A fight to protect the dignity of Michelangelo’s David raises questions about freedom of expression

FLORENCE, Italy — Michelangelo’s David has been a towering figure in Italian culture since its completion in 1504. But in the current era of the quick buck, curators worry the marble statue’s religious and political significance is being diminished by the thousands of refrigerator magnets and other souvenirs sold around Florence focusing on David’s genitalia. … Read more

Fire extinguished on Carnival Freedom cruise ship after witnesses reported possible lightning strike

Heath Barnes opened his book on the upper decks of the Bahamas-bound Carnival Freedom cruise ship in between bouts of rain. But his relaxation Saturday afternoon was suddenly stolen with “the loudest thunder and lightning I have ever heard,” he told CNN. Barnes, of Woodsboro, Maryland, went back inside and minutes later learned from his … Read more

Chinese citizens flee constraints to find freedom in Thailand

CHIANG MAI, Thailand — There are the hipsters cramped by big-city life, the tech bros pumped about the internet of tomorrow, and idealistic parents wary of China’s hyper-intensive schools, and then there are the stoners. This backpacker town in the mountains of northern Thailand has become the destination of choice for a slew of Chinese … Read more

Jordan Rakei Announces New Album ‘The Loop,’ Shares ‘Freedom’

Jordan Rakei will release his highly-anticipated new album The Loop on May 10, his debut for Verve Forecast and Decca UK. Ahead of the album, Rakei has shared the project’s second single, “Freedom,” launched as BBC Radio 1’s Hottest Record. Of the groove-laden track, Rakei shares, “To me, freedom is the absence of dread or … Read more

Long walk to school: 30 years into freedom, many kids in South Africa still walk miles to class

DUNDEE, South Africa — On weekdays, 14-year-old Luyanda Hlali gets up before dawn to fetch firewood and cow dung to start a fire and boil some water before her four siblings and parents wake up. The mornings are a hive of activity in the Nhlangothi home, in the tiny village of Stratford in South Africa’s … Read more

China denies accusations of forced assimilation and curbs on religious freedom in Tibet

BEIJING — A government official from China’s Tibetan region on Friday rejected allegations of forced assimilation and curbs on religious freedom, while stressing that Tibetan Buddhism should adapt to the Chinese context. Xu Zhitao, vice chairman of the Tibet region government, defended a boarding school system that overseas activists have said takes children away from … Read more

Ukrainian war veterans with amputated limbs find freedom in jiu-jitsu

Ukrainian war veterans with amputated limbs perform at the Ukrainian national competition of jiu jitsu in Kyiv, Ukraine, Sunday, Oct. 29, 2023. More than 20,000 people in the Ukraine have lost limbs from injuries since the start of the Russian war, many of them soldiers. Some of them have learned to deal with their psychological … Read more

Ukrainian war veterans with amputated limbs find freedom in the practice of jiu-jitsu

KYIV, Ukraine — Nervous ahead of their first jiu-jitsu championship, the war veterans gathered in a group to share jokes and help each other tie the belts of their kimonos. Many of them had suffered severe battlefield injuries requiring amputations. Now they were assembled to perform in the “para jiu jitsu” category at the Ukrainian … Read more

‘Sound of Freedom’ will stream on Amazon Prime Video

Jim Caviezel stars in Angel Studio’s “Sound of Freedom.” Angel Studios Amazon Prime Video has secured the rights to one of the hottest box office releases of 2023 — Angel Studios’ “Sound of Freedom.” The Jim Caviezel-led thriller snared more than $180 million at the domestic box office during its run, outpacing big studio films … Read more

Britney Spears Says She Posts Nudes As Act of Freedom, Self-Empowerment

Britney Spears posts a lot of naked photos of herself these days — and if you’re wondering why, now you have an answer straight from the horse’s mouth … or book, rather. A new excerpt from Brit’s forthcoming memoir leaked to the New York Times, and they cite a quote from her in there that … Read more