Good morning Her Campus! With a break-neck news cycle, there is no possible way for you to stay on top of every story that comes across your feeds—we’re all only human, after all.
But, life comes at you fast. So grab a cup of coffee and settle in for this quick and dirty guide to stories you might’ve been sleeping on (like, literally. It’s early.)
A Georgia Teacher Is Facing Charges After Firing Gun Inside School
After barricading himself inside an empty classroom and firing a handgun, high school social studies teacher Jesse Randal Davidson is facing several charges. HuffPost says that Davidson’s shooting inside Georgia’s Dalton High School led to a panicked lockdown on Wednesday morning, but no students were critically injured, as Davidson refused to let anyone inside the classroom in which he locked himself.
“When the principal put a key in the door to try to unlock the classroom, Mr. Davidson apparently fired a shot from a handgun through an exterior window of the classroom,” said Dalton police spokesman Bruce Frazier at a press conference. “It does not appear that it was aimed at anybody.”
Local authorities arrived at the school soon after the gunshot was heard and took Davidson into custody. According to police, Davidson now faces charges of aggravated assault, carrying a weapon on school property, terroristic threats, reckless conduct, possession of a gun during the commission of a crime and disrupting public school.
Jesse Randal Davidson has been charged with aggravated assault, carrying weapon on school grounds, terroristic threats, reckless conduct, possession of gun during commission of a crime, and disrupting public school.
— Dalton Police (@DaltonPD) February 28, 2018
Muslim Women Forced to Remove Hijabs While in Police Custody Reach a Settlement With NYC
Three Muslim women who were forced to remove their hijabs for photographs while in police custody have each reached a $60,000 settlement with New York City. The New York Times reports that the settlements detailed separate cases in which the women claimed that their religious rights had been violated. The three incidents, one occurring in 2012 and two in 2015, all involved the women objecting to police requests that they remove their hijabs for photographs.
One woman asked for a female officer to take her photo alone, while another told authorities that she couldn’t remove her hijab in front of men she was not related to. All three women were forced to take their photos without their hijabs and were all arraigned on their individual criminal charges. Each case was eventually sealed without conviction, but the women’s settlements have caused police departments to reconsider policies toward various kinds of religious dress.
New York City has reached a settlement with three women who had their Muslim headscarves removed by police… https://t.co/X4DfIopnKy
— FiWEH Life (@fiweh) February 28, 2018
The First Plastic-Free Grocery Store Aisle Has Launched in Amsterdam
Good News Network reports that, in a time where awareness of recycling is growing, the first plastic-free grocery store aisle has opened in an Amsterdam location. Dutch grocery store chain Ekoplaza opened the aisle, which contains more than 700 products such as fruit, veggies, snacks, non-perishables and more in recyclable and biodegradable materials.
Environmental group A Plastic Planet oversaw the aisle’s launch and will likely be involved when Ekoplaza opens similar aisles in its other branches. Here’s hoping that more effort to use less plastic in our daily lives continues!
Shoppers at #Amsterdam @EkoPlaza today have the pick of more than 700 #plasticfree products. The store is the first in the world to have an #aisle dedicated to non-plastic items. @siansutherland says #Britain‘s #supermarkets need to follow suit https://t.co/bHDfabKZpD
— A Plastic Planet (@aplastic_planet) February 28, 2018
What to look out for…
Happy Holi! Tonight marks the beginning of the annual Festival of Color, which calls for a celebration of fertility, love and the kickoff to spring. While the lively tossing of colorful powder, called Rangwali Holi, actually occurs on March 2, tonight is the Holika Dahan portion of traditional festivities. This involves a “purification ritual” during which logs are burned to symbolize good triumphing over evil. If anything, take this as a sign that warmer weather is on the way!