USA | Society

On Columbine anniversary, a nation divided over guns

A quarter century after the Columbine massacre, Americans continue to square off over the interplay of guns, safety, health, and freedom.

Australia sees surge in public violence despite tough gun laws. Some blame extremism.

Australians are demanding answers after a deadly knife attack in a Sydney mall and a stabbing during a church service. Some locals argue that tough gun laws prevented a deadlier attack. Others worry religious extremism is rising unchecked.

They couldn’t drive back home. US driving schools help refugee women.

Women from countries that ban female driving have found newfound freedom in America. Driving schools in Georgia are giving lessons to recent immigrants and refugees looking to build a new life, with freedom front of mind.

Pregnant Black women feel lost in the medical system. Doulas offer guidance – and a voice.

As Black expectant mothers try to navigate a medical system in which they have little confidence, Black doulas have become trusted members of their pregnancy teams.

Bryan Stevenson Q&A: Alabama park confronts difficult history in sculpture

In Montgomery, Alabama, a new sculpture park has joined two memorials created by the Equal Justice Initiative started by Bryan Stevenson, a lawyer perhaps best known for his memoir, “Just Mercy.”

With antisemitism on rise, Auschwitz exhibit counters with proof of Holocaust

Amid the Israel-Hamas war, antisemitism and Holocaust denial have risen. An Auschwitz exhibit stands firmly for the truth by providing evidence of atrocities – and humanity.

Food companies reverse their pandemic strategies as consumer spending plummets

Low-income Americans are cutting household spending on fast food and groceries. Big food companies like Kraft Heinz are offering more deals and options – a reversal from pandemic-era strategies to justify climbing prices.

Sparrows Point helped build the Key Bridge. Its collapse left residents isolated.

Sparrows Point was a company town that lost its iconic company but persevered. Now, the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge has left residents feeling cut off on the north side of the harbor, wondering what the future may hold.

Record-setting crowds. Star players. Women’s college basketball has it all.

In US capital, rats thrive where civic trust is low. Here’s how to fix that.

From the Rose Garden to the Capitol, in the rat battle in the nation’s capital, victory can be measured in civic cooperation, not total destruction.