In the nearly 300-page report of an independent investigation, the first correlative study of the immense Protestant sect of Southern Baptists, several top clergy members were found to have minimized, ignored, and even vilified sex abuse survivors who came forward for help.
The Associated Press (AP) acquired more than 10,000 names of Muslim minority Uyghurs from Konasheher County who were imprisoned due to China's "war on terror." The leaked data reveals that nearly one in 25 Uyghurs in that county received prison sentences based on trumped-up terrorism-related charges, achieving the highest incarceration rate in the world.
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the city of Boston had violated the free speech of a Christian group by rejecting its request to fly a Christian flag at the city hall.
On May 2, the supreme court unanimously ruled that Boston, the capital of Massachusetts, has infringed on the first amendment rights of the Christian group, Camp Constitution.
On April 26, France's highest administrative court rejected the Interior Ministry's appeal to continue closing down a mosque. The Conseil d'Etat, on Tuesday, dismissed an appeal that will challenge the previous suspension of a closure order.
The Interior Ministry has been shutting down mosques all over France, citing radicalization concerns.
On Wednesday, April 27, Moroccan police raided a cafe in Casablanca and arrested individuals eating and drinking during the daytime. The detained individuals were accused of breaking their fast during Ramadan.
Morocco, a Muslim-majority country, is observing the month of Ramadan, which runs from April 1 to May.
For the third year, the United States panel on international religious affairs recommended labeling India as one of the "countries of particular concern." The report accuses India and other countries of engaging or tolerating "systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations" of religious rights.
India's first openly-gay royalty vowed to fight conversion therapy. After surviving the horrors of conversion therapy, Prince Manvendra Singh Gohil said he would work on making conversion therapy illegal in India.
Equaldex, a collaborative knowledge base for the LGBT movement, puts India in the 51st rank in their World Equality Index, including scores for legal rights and freedoms for LGBTQ+ people. Although Equaldex listed conversation therapy as banned in India, this is only valid for one state.
A private adoption agency refused a couple of adoption services in Alabama for their lack of religion. A 30-year-old librarian, Alaina Browning, and her husband were devastated to hear the news.
Family Adoption Services, a private adoption agency run by Richard and Susan Wyatt, sent the message to Browning.
“It hurt,” Browning said, crying while reading the message on her phone.
On April 14, the high court of Prayagraj in Uttar Pradesh, India, rejected the plea of a same-sex couple to have their marriage recognized. The court ruled that the couple's marriage violates the Hindu Marriage Act of 1995.
The plea was submitted to Justice Shekhar Kumar Yadav on April 7.
