the Web Editors

"‘Ubuntu’ is very difficult to render into a Western language. It speaks to the very essence of being human … it also means my humanity is caught up, is inextricably bound up, in theirs. We say, ‘A person is a person through other people.’"

3. The Mysterious Private Police Force That’s Killing People In The Nation’s Capital

“Special police officers like the two that killed Alonzo are not quite full police officers, but they’re more than security guards. They are a private police force, empowered to make arrests and carry guns. But because they work for private contractors and not public agencies, their actions are often shrouded in mystery.” (Bonus wrap! Watch: How can we trust that black lives matter to police?)

4. Weiner Didn’t ‘Humiliate’ Huma. He Humiliated Himself.

“Humiliated” has long been used to describe Abedin. But why do we assume her dignity and self-respect have suffered in her husband’s embarrassment?

5. Muslims Can Wear Headscarves for Alabama IDs. A Christian Woman Sues So She Can, Too

A Christian woman who adheres to the New Testament directive for women to cover their hair was told only Muslim women have the right to do so in ID photos. She is suing, and the religious liberty conversation is adding another dimension.

Nearly two years after the shooting death of Laquan McDonald, Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson is seeking the firing of five police officers involved in the Oct. 2014 shooting, reports the Chicago Tribune.

One of the five police officers is Officer Jason Van Dyke, who shot McDonald sixteen times — the horrific moment captured on video and seen around the country.

In a "test case" for the southern French town of Villeneuve-Loubet, France's highest court overturned a ruling that bans on burkinis were required to prevent public disorder, reports The Guardian.

Rescue efforts are underway to help people trapped or injured by the earthquake, which hit towns across central Italy, nearly 100 miles north of Rome and Vatican City. The quake is the deadliest for the country since a 2009 quake that hit L’Aquila and killed more than 300, also in central Italy. Rescuers are continuing to search for survivors.

Pope Francis, who was scheduled to give a speech to his general audience Wednesday, instead prayed with and for the people of Italy, reports Reuters.

As the presidential election tightens and polls show Trump and Clinton within a few points of each other in North Carolina, Republican Gov. Pat McCrory has appealed the Supreme Court to reinstate previous voter ID laws and cuts to early voting, according to NBC News. This comes in the wake of numerous voter-ID laws throughout the country being struck down in the courts this past month.

This week Asian-American women leaders at American University in Washington, D.C., released a video of local Asian Pacific Islanders reading a letter of solidarity in support of the Black Lives Matter movement.

The collaborative letter was drafted online last month as Asian Americans across the country responded to the shootings of Philando Castile and Alton Sterling, black men killed recently by police officers.

1. President Obama: ‘This Is What a Feminist Looks Like ’

On his 55th birthday, the president penned a column in Glamour talking about his role as father to Sasha and Malia: “ …It’s important that their dad is a feminist, because now that’s what they expect of all men.”

2. Apple Adds More Gender-Diverse Emoji in iOS10

Female athletes and professionals, plus additional family representation options roll out in iOS10.

3. What’s a Class Revolution Without Black People?

“It’s black Americans, not would-be white revolutionaries, who’ve led a successful movement to claim power and rights in this country. And it’s black people who are going to be the beneficiaries. If they're missing — which they are — it suggests both that the movement is getting something wrong, and isn’t long for the political world.”

During a meeting with hundreds of nuns back in May, Pope Francis surprised many both in and outside the Catholic Church by saying he’d like to consider the historical role of female deacons, or deaconesses, in the early church and whether the diaconate should be re-opened to women.

On Aug. 1, Pope Francis made good on his expressed interest by appointing a commission to study the question, reports CNN.