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How FDA’s forthcoming blood donor policy change could help address stigma about gay and bisexual men

December 1, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is considering updating its blood donation policy, which currently places some restrictions on blood donations from sexually active gay and bisexual men.

In a statement, an FDA spokesperson said, “While we can’t comment on what might be in the content of the guidance, we can say that the screening policy we put forward will be gender neutral and science-based.”

The announcement on Wednesday was made on the eve of World AIDS Day, a day to spread awareness of and dismantle the stigma associated with the disease.

Public health experts and advocates said relaxing restrictions doesn’t only help battle stigma but could also help address future blood shortages.

“The plan for the FDA to revise its donation guidelines is absolutely a step in the right direction because what it does is it’s going to move the criteria from a population-centered approach to a risk-approach,” Dr. Perry Halkitis, dean of Rutgers School of Public Health whose research focuses on HIV and disparities in the LGBTQ population, told ABC News.

A ban on gay and bisexual blood donors began during the HIV/AIDS crisis in the 1980s, which primarily affected gay and bisexual men. The FDA banned all donations from men who have sex with men in 1985 in response to the crisis.

This restriction remained in place until 2015, when the policy was changed to allow such donors to give blood if they abstained from sex for one year. In 2020, amid severe blood shortages during the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the FDA shortened the abstinence period to 90 days.

“At the time of the initial epidemic, we had no way of identifying and testing for AIDS and HIV,” Ayako Miyashita Ochoa, an adjunct professor at the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs whose research focuses on HIV-related health disparities, told ABC News. “What radically shifted over the decades is that testing came online a long time ago, So, at the point in which we were able to identify the virus, I believe that the lifetime deferral became outdated.”

If a policy change is implemented, gay and bisexual men in monogamous relationships can donate without abstaining from sex. It follows several other Western countries that have recently dropped bans or eased restrictions including the United Kingdom, France, Greece and the Netherlands.

Activists said these restrictions are based solely on identity rather than individual risk because the ban even applies to gay men who are monogamous, test HIV negative and practice safe sex.

“There is a perception that being a gay or bisexual person is in and of itself unsafe,” Sarah Warbelow, the legal director at Human Rights Campaign, told ABC News. “We have to differentiate between what are behaviors that place people at risk — and that’s all people at risk –” and identity based restrictions.

“Not every gay man is the same, not every bisexual man is the same, not every straight person is the same,” Halkitis added. “And so recognizing that people are — within each population — diverse is a much better way to assess the risks that people take and then deciding based on people’s risk.”

The American Red Cross and the American Medical Association have both supported a risk-based approach to donor eligibility.

The FDA said there is no “specific timeline” for the update because the agency is currently collecting and analyzing data from multiple sources. However, in a statement to ABC News, the FDA says the evidence analyzed so far will “likely support a policy transition” that focuses screening blood donations based on each person’s HIV risk.

In 2020, the FDA launched a study called ADVANCE to look into alternative solutions to its current policy. The FDA is currently reviewing research from the American Red Cross, OneBlood and Vitalant to determine if eligibility based on an individual’s risk can replace the current time-based deferral system while maintaining the safety of the blood supply.

Despite the growing research on HIV/AIDS, as well as the success in tackling and treating the illness, the shame and stigma against the LGBTQ community remains.

“As LGBTQ leaders and medical experts have been saying for years: bans and restrictions on blood donations from gay and bisexual men are rooted in stigma, not science,” said Sarah Kate Ellis, president and CEO of GLAAD.

She continued, “Giving one set of rules to some people, and another set of rules to others, based purely on identity, is blatant discrimination. This fight is not over until all LGBTQ Americans who want to donate blood are met with the same protocols as other Americans.”

Experts say the updated policy will also help address the national blood shortage and, in turn, save lives. In January 2022, the American Red Cross said it was facing its worst blood shortage in more than a decade.

A 2014 study co-authored by Miysahista Ochoa found that eliminating the ban could increase the donation supply by 2% to 4%, bringing in more than 615,000 pints of blood every year.

“That isn’t a small amount,” she said. “That 2 to 4% count is roughly calculated to a million lives saved.”

Battles over politics, race, LGBTQ issues have made teaching harder, according to new survey

December 1, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — The so-called culture wars are deeply affecting schools across the country, according to a new UCLA report that surveyed principals from across the country.

The report, released Wednesday, showed a vast majority of principles reporting “substantial and growing political conflict” that’s making it harder to combat misinformation and interfering with productive discussions in classrooms.

Over the last year, a conservative-led effort to target topics on race, oppression and the LGBTQ community have prompted state legislators and some school boards across the country to adopt policies that limit or restrict dialogue or curriculum on certain identities.

Principals in “Purple” districts, or politically divided communities, often faced more challenges than others, according to the survey.

The report found that these communities have been targeted by “small groups of vocal parents and community members” who are connected to conservative national organizations to “aggressively” challenge or threaten educators on such topics.

According to one principal in Minnesota who was quoted in the report: “My superintendent told me in no uncertain terms that I could not address issues of race and bias etc. with students or staff this year. He told me, ‘This is not the time or the place to do this here. You have to remember you are in the heart of Trump country and you’re just going to start a big mess if you start talking about that stuff.'”

Almost two-thirds or 64% of principals said parents and community members have challenged the information or media sources used by teachers in their school.

Nearly half of all principals – and 63% of principals in Purple communities – said parents or community members “sought to limit or challenge …teaching and learning about issues of race and racism.”

Between 2018 and 2022, heightened community-based contention over teachers’ use of media sources and information grew almost three-fold in Purple districts from 12% to 35%, the survey found.

In Purple communities, almost a quarter (23%) of principals reported their school board or district leaders took action on limiting teaching and learning about race and racism.

Nearly half of all principals reported efforts to challenge LGBTQ+ rights in the 2021–2022 school year. In Purple communities, principals were nearly twice as likely to say such attacks occurred multiple times than in Red or Blue communities.

According to the report, the communities in which principals reported high rates of hostility and disrespect towards LGBTQ+ youth were also the communities in which principals reported fewer efforts to address these concerns.

Principals say these new policies have not only deeply affected the actual content being delivered in the classroom but also the way students responded to one another.

Roughly 69% of principals said students made derogatory remarks to liberal or conservative classmates, a problem that was much more likely to occur repeatedly in Purple communities.

Principals at schools in Purple communities were also more likely than Red and Blue districts to report high levels of political conflict.

One Iowa principal said: “I had to come down and help the teacher, like a veteran teacher, who’s never had problems having discussions. And the kids were just so stuck in their trenches, they weren’t willing to be open to even listen to the other side.”

HIV tests dropped by one-third during COVID-19 pandemic: CDC

December 1, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(ATLANTA) — The number of HIV tests and people diagnosed with the virus dropped significantly during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to new federal data.

The report, published Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, looked at data from two commercial laboratories and found decreases during the first half of 2020.

Between April and June 2020, in the early months of the pandemic, about 1.68 million HIV tests were performed, a 33% decline from the 2.52 million tests performed during the same period in 2019.

As a result, fewer people were diagnosed with HIV. During the first six months of 2019, 18,919 people tested positive for HIV. By comparison, 14,666 people received an HIV diagnosis during the same six-month period of 2020.

Rebounds were seen in late 2020, but not returns to pre-pandemic levels. From October to December 2020, 2.27 million HIV tests were performed and 7,758 people received positive diagnoses.

The use of pre-exposure prophylaxis, or PrEP — a daily pill containing two medications that prevent HIV-negative patients from being infected — saw just a slight drop in the first half of 2020.

A total of 179,280 prescriptions were written from April to June 2020, a 6% drop from January to March 2020. However, by September, the number of prescriptions had surpassed pre-pandemic levels.

“I think most people would agree that those kinds of drops are mostly attributable to the complete disruption of medical services that appeared early in the COVID-19 pandemic,” Dr. Uriel Felsen, medical director for HIV testing at the Montefiore AIDS Center in New York City, told ABC News.

When cities and states across the country issued lockdowns and stay-at-home orders, this resulted in the closure of non-emergency health care services, which limited the number of HIV tests performed and number of PrEP prescriptions written, the CDC report stated.

Additionally, people fearful of contracting COVID-19 avoided doctors’ offices or hospitals, where they may have received care. Also, millions of people lost health insurance after being laid off from their jobs, limiting their ability to access care.

“It’s absolutely alarming that the services were disrupted this profoundly,” Felsen said. “Overall, there were more missed diagnoses and the more time people go without getting tested, the more time they have to transmit HIV unbeknownst to themselves.”

The authors noted that the COVID-19 public health emergency laid bare the need to deliver HIV services outside of traditional settings.

Felsen agreed and said, for example, he is part of a team at his hospital investigating a new strategy to try and improve PrEP access by prescribing it in emergency departments directly to those who are at risk.

“It has really reminded us that we need to be able to implement HIV prevention in a diverse array of settings so that, in cases where services are so extremely disrupted, people are still getting the care that they need, because the HIV epidemic didn’t stop because of COVID,” Felsen said.

Defense in Trump Organization trial says CFO’s tax dodge was ‘solely to benefit himself’

December 1, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — The Manhattan district attorney’s office failed to prove former President Donald Trump’s namesake real estate firm is guilty of tax fraud, a defense attorney insisted Thursday during closing statements in the criminal tax fraud trial of the Trump Organization.

Two entities of the Trump Organization — the Trump Corporation and the Trump Payroll Corporation — are on trial for paying the personal expenses of some executives without reporting them as income and for compensating them as independent contractors instead of full-time employees.

In her closing statement, defense attorney Susan Necheles pinned the scheme on Allen Weisselberg, the Trump Organization’s former chief financial officer who pleaded guilty in August to a 15-count indictment, and said the company is not liable for his criminal conduct.

“The prosecution’s case rests on one thing: trying to convince you, the jurors, that Mr. Weisselberg’s actions were done in behalf of the company,” Necheles said. “They were not. They were done solely to benefit himself. And that is the critical issue in this case.”

The longtime CFO testified at trial that he reduced his reported salary by the total amount of the personal expenses that the company covered, and that the company benefitted by paying less in payroll taxes. He also testified that his primary motive was greed.

Weisselberg “testified that Allen Weisselberg committed these crimes solely to benefit himself — solely to benefit himself,” Necheles said. “In other words, no intent to benefit the corporation.”

“This case is about greed. But only the greed of Allen Weisselberg,” said defense attorney Michael van der Veen, who represents the Trump Payroll Corporation. “There’s not any dispute about what Allen Weisselberg did. The real question is, ‘Who did he do it in behalf of?'”

Van der Veen suggested that the real crime was not the company’s decision to pay Weisselberg’s rent, the lease on his Mercedes Benz, or his grandchildren’s school tuition — but Weisselberg’s failure to report those perks on his income taxes. The attorney questioned why the Manhattan district attorney’s office charged the company.

“They wanted something with the Trumps attached to it,” van der Veen said, drawing an objection from prosecutor Josh Steinglass that the judge overruled.

The defense also tried to convince the jury the Trump Organization’s outside accountant, Donald Bender of Mazars USA, should be blamed for failing to flag the company to fraud or other criminal conduct.

“Bender never told the owner of the Trump Corporation, President Trump, that there was anything wrong,” defense attorney Susan Necheles said. “There can be no claim that President Trump had any knowledge or belief that the fringe benefits were illegal.”

The defense prepared a scorecard for the jury that listed elements of the scheme and boxes to check “yes” or “no” regarding whether there was an intent to benefit the Trump Organization. Necheles paired it with transcripts of select testimony in which witnesses said the sole beneficiary was Weisselberg.

But some of the transcript pages displayed for the jury included answers to questions that had been successfully objected to, which caused a delay while the pages were reviewed and prosecutors sought corrections.

“It’s your responsibility to make sure this doesn’t happen again,” Judge Juan Merchan told the defense. “I don’t fault the People for being upset.”

The outcome of the case could turn on the vagaries and nuances of a part of New York criminal law that even the presiding judge has called “confusing.” Judge Juan Merchan said Wednesday he would allow defense attorneys to argue in their closing statements that prosecutors failed to show Weisselberg acted “in behalf of” the company.

The confusing part, the judge said, is that the New York state legislators who drafted the relevant statute did not define exactly what “in behalf of” means in that context.

The judge said he would not allow the defense to “overstate what that intent was.”

Prosecutor Josh Steinglass said he planned to tell the jury in his closing statement that Weisselberg qualifies as a “high managerial agent” of the company and that he committed his crimes while in his official capacity in a manner that benefitted the company.

“It was understood that by having less payroll you’d have less payroll taxes,” Weisselberg acknowledged on the stand.

The longtime CFO, who agreed to testify as part of a plea deal with prosecutors, said his primary goal in arranging the perks was to “save pretax dollars.”

If convicted, the company faces fines of up to $1.7 million. Potentially more significant could be collateral consequences if banks call in loans or partners cancel contracts.

The trial also revealed that Trump reported nearly $1 billion in operating losses over a two-year period about a decade ago, spilling into public view tax information that the former president had tried repeatedly to keep private.

Gas prices plunge to lowest level since February

December 1, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — Gas prices nationwide have plunged to their lowest level since February as demand has dropped from peak summer travel season and the price of crude oil has fallen.

Softening pain at the pump offers welcome relief for households battered by inflation that stands near a 40-year high.

The national average price for a gallon of gas, which stands at $3.47, has fallen more than 30% since it reached a peak of $5.01 in mid-June, according to data AAA provided to ABC News.

Over the last month alone, the price for a gallon of gas has fallen nearly 8%.

In California, the state with the highest average price, a gallon of gas costs $4.90, though that price has fallen more than 11% over the past month. In Texas, the state with the lowest average gas price, a gallon costs $2.84, AAA data showed.

Despite the recent price dip, the cost of gas remains elevated — roughly 3% above a $3.38 national average one year ago, according to AAA data.

The decline in gas costs owes in part to a fall-off in demand as weather has cooled and Americans have dialed back travel, industry analysts told ABC News.

“In North America, there is a summer driving season when demand is particularly high and refineries are running all out,” Pavel Molchanov, a senior energy analyst at Raymond James, told ABC News. “In the fall and winter, demand cools off.”

In addition to a drop in demand, gas prices have benefited from a decline in the cost of crude oil, allowing refineries to generate fuel at lower prices.

The cost of a barrel of oil, which stands at about $83, has plummeted nearly 8% over the last month.

The fall in oil prices — which are set on a global market — has stemmed from discussions at the European Union on a plan to place a price cap on Russian oil, analysts said.

The compromise measure would limit the oil revenue enjoyed by Russia as it wages war against Ukraine, but would also allow for the continued purchase of Russian oil, boosting global supply and pushing down prices.

The price of oil has also been pushed downward in recent months by the Biden administration’s release of petroleum from the strategic reserve as well as a decline in demand in China due to continued COVID lockdowns, the analysts said.

“The big wild card is China, which seems to change day to day,” Peter McNally, a global sector leader for industrial materials and energy at Third Bridge, told ABC News.

In recent days, the price of oil has inched upward amid civil unrest in China and the possibility of a relaxation of the lockdown policy, threatening to reverse the decline in U.S. gas prices, Molchanov said.

“If the Chinese government signals COVID lockdown easing in response to popular protest, then that stimulates among other things oil demand in China and it boosts oil prices,” he said.

“So when oil prices go up, you will see that reflected in gas at the pump,” he added.

Scientists discover fossils of new predatory dinosaur species in Mongolia

December 1, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — Scientists have discovered a new predatory dinosaur fossil in Mongolia that was likely a semiaquatic diving predator.

A near-complete skeleton, found in the Omnogovi Province, depicts a bird-like specimen and was named “Natovenator polydontus,” or “Swimming hunter with many teeth,” according to a paper published in Communications Biology on Thursday.

Researchers from the Korea-Mongolia International Dinosaur Expedition located the fossils at the Baruungoyot Formation in 2008, Young-Nam Lee, a professor of vertebrate paleontology who led the dig, told ABC News.

During the expedition, 27 members of the team gathered 196 cataloged specimens. The Natovenator polydontus was found by Robin Sissons, a graduate student of the University of Alberta, Lee said.

The fossil was not fully exposed in the field, so Sissons, despite not knowing what it was at the time, made a plaster jacket for it, Lee said.

All of the fossils from that collection were then shipped to South Korea for preparation and study, where “a whole skeleton came to light” of the new species of dinosaur, Lee said.

The specimen “was so delicate but beautifully preserved,” Lee said.

It included a skull, spinal column, one forelimb and the remains of two hindlimbs. Its streamlined body, with ribs that point toward its tail, is similar to modern diving birds and its long neck resembles modern water birds such as geese, the researchers said. These adaptions may have reduced the drag that Natovenator would have been subjected to when swimming, helping it to catch prey.

The fossil also included an “unusually high number of teeth” compared to the size of the dinosaur’s jaw, indicating that it ate a fish or insect-based diet, according to the researchers.

“Instantly we realized it was something important,” Lee said. “It had a skull with many tiny teeth and a very long neck was distinct.”

This is the first time that a non-avian theropod — a type of carnivorous dinosaur that walked on two legs — was discovered with a streamlined body similar to some birds, according to the researchers.

Analysis of evolutionary relationships also indicate that the new species is closely related to halszkaraptorines, a group of non-avian theropods that previous research has suggested may have been adapted for a semiaquatic lifestyle.

“Natovenator is a valuable discovery,” Lee said. “Finding semi-aquatic dinosaurs means that the ecological diversity was very high in dinosaurs. Halszkaraptorines could change our prejudice about the lifestyle of dinosaurs.”

Matt Gaetz associate Joel Greenberg gets 11 years as probe into congressman stalls, sources say

December 1, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(ORLANDO, Fla.) — Joel Greenberg, a former Florida tax collector who sources say agreed to cooperate in the federal probe into his one-time close associate, Rep. Matt Gaetz, was sentenced Thursday to 11 years in prison after pleading guilty to crimes ranging from wire fraud to sex trafficking a minor.

Greenberg pleaded guilty last May to six of the 33 federal charges he was facing, including charges of stalking, identity theft, wire fraud, and conspiracy to bribe a public official, as well as one charge of sex trafficking.

The case grabbed national attention in the spring of 2021 after news broke that the investigation into Greenberg, a Seminole County tax collector, had, according to multiple sources, erupted into a sprawling federal probe that included whether Gaetz, his close friend, had had sex with a minor who he met through Greenberg.

Gaetz has long maintained his innocence and has vehemently denied any wrongdoing.

In September of this year, The Washington Post reported that career prosecutors had recommended against charging the Florida congressman with sex trafficking. During a subsequent interview with Fox News’ Sean Hannity, Gaetz said he didn’t know any more about the case than what’s been in the media, adding that “I continue to proclaim my innocence.”

Multiple sources familiar with the probe told ABC News that the investigation into Gaetz has stalled, with federal investigators having concerns regarding multiple key witnesses in the case, including Greenberg — as well as specifics in the case that could make a conviction difficult for prosecutors.

Ahead of Thursday’s sentencing, Greenberg’s attorney, Fritz Scheller, issued a veiled criticism of the Justice Department’s inaction against other individuals whom his client has implicated as part of his cooperation.

“If the Government is so concerned with general deterrence, then why hasn’t it prosecuted the other individuals, including public figures, who were also involved in Greenberg’s offenses?” Schiller wrote in a memo filed ahead of his client’s sentencing. “Perhaps the DOJ are master strategists far beyond the capabilities of the undersigned. Or perhaps the DOJ is like Nero fiddling away as Rome burns.”

Greenberg — who served as Seminole County tax collector for just over three years — was initially charged in 2020 with over 30 counts that included defrauding the Seminole County Tax Office out of hundreds of thousands of dollars through schemes ranging from buying sports memorabilia and cryptocurrency to paying women he met on a self-described “sugar daddy” website using the office credit card.

Greenberg reached a plea deal with investigators in May 2021 in which he agreed to provide “substantial assistance” to prosecutors as part of their ongoing investigation into Gaetz and others, according to sources familiar with the arrangement. The former tax collector provided investigators with years of Venmo and Cash App transactions and thousands of photos and videos, as well as access to personal social media accounts.

Greenberg’s cooperation led to probes of two dozen individuals, including eight people being investigated for sex crimes, seven for public cooperation, and 10 for election fraud, according to his attorney.

Four individuals have been indicted in part due to Greenberg’s cooperation, and Scheller said two additional new indictments related to crimes stemming from fraudulent COVID relief loans were expected in the coming months.

At a pre-sentencing hearing on Wednesday, both the prosecution and Greenberg’s defense attorneys recommended to U.S. District Judge Gregory Presnell that Greenberg be sentenced to between 9.25 and 11 years in prison, per federal sentencing guidelines. But Presnell signaled Wednesday that he was considering a harsher sentence for Greenberg, citing concerns about stacking the multiple, wide-ranging charges together.

“We don’t have related crimes,” Presnell said, noting that “there is no precedent” for the range of crimes Greenberg pled guilty to committing.

Retro games get a new life as demand for defunct consoles, games on the rise

December 1, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — They were once coveted birthday and holiday gifts for millions of millennials and Generation Xers.

They were Nintendo Entertainment System bundled with Super Mario Brothers and Duck Hunt or that copy of Pokémon Gold for the Game Boy Color.

And even though those vintage game systems and cartridges are long gone from store shelves to make way for more advanced tech, the beloved games are still in high demand. In some cases, they can sell for thousands of dollars for collectors and retro gamers.

“Everybody’s into this stuff because this is the stuff they grew up on,” Nick Pittelli, the CEO of the retro gaming store “The Game Island,” told Impact x Nightline.

Impact x Nightline takes a look at this growing and lucrative trend in an episode now streaming on Hulu.

Although retro gaming has had a following ever since the first video game systems hit the market in the 70s, experts say the trend has boomed in recent years, and along with it the profits.

The industry-wide resale price for Nintendo 64 systems, which sold for $199.99 when it launched in 1996, or roughly $375 in 2022 dollars, can now fetch as much as five figures depending on its condition and rarity, according to experts.

Brandi Ahmer, a Maryland police officer who has a giant collection of video games, arcades and other vintage electronics, showed off her basement where she keeps her gaming relics. She told Impact that she was able to snag some rare consoles at bargains.

“That one goes for about $8,000,” Ahmer said of a rare red Nintendo 64 controller. “That’s what I was offered, but I paid $12.50 for it. I found it in a video game store.”

“Then this one right here is a chrome Nintendo 64…There’s only ten of these in the world,” she added. “And I was offered close to $20,000.”

Ahmer said she has no intention of selling any of her vintage systems or games and is always on the lookout to add to her collection.

“There’s something about these older systems,” she said. “But it’s like there are memories of a simpler time, you know, your childhood.”

Ahmer isn’t the only one feeling that nostalgia.

Pittelli said that demand for vintage games grew during the pandemic and the value of some items in his shop has gone up by 40%.

Joey Walker-Denny, the social media manager for the Pennsylvania-based retro game store DK Oldies, told Impact that his team gets about 300 emails a day from customers looking to either buy or sell their used games.

“I’ve seen larger emails than that,” he told Impact.

Walker-Denny noted that his team, which has grown tremendously since the store opened in the 2000s, takes great care to ensure that the games are in working condition for their customers, in some cases going as far to replace key components, such as a Game Boy screen.

“A lot of the stuff that we sell is over 30 years old. So you can imagine it needs a thorough cleaning,” he said.

Pittelli and other retro gaming experts said they expect that more people will be on the lookout for vintage games to reclaim their youth.

“I think there’s a stigma, like, ‘Oh yeah the people who shop or go to a video game store. They’re super nerdy.’ No, it’s not like that anymore. Rappers come here. Artists come here,” Pittelli said.

Hosting thousands of war refugees, Lviv preps for winter without electricity and heating

December 1, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(LVIV, Ukraine) — Officials have warned that the city of Lviv, Ukraine, home to over 150,000 internally displaced people, could face a winter without power as they anticipate another surge in refugee numbers.

The mayor of Lviv, Andriy Sadovyi, told ABC News that the city, near the western border with Poland, is preparing to stay completely without power supply and natural gas supply because of Russian missile attacks which have devastated Ukrainian infrastructure in recent weeks.

To cope with the coming winter, a major construction project is now underway in the city in order to facilitate a new wave of people fleeing from regions badly targeted by Russian missile strikes which involves both renovating existing modular houses and building new ones.

Amongst the current refugee population, there is a mix of fear ahead of the expected drop in temperatures as well as overall hope in Ukraine’s long-term ability to secure a victory in the war.

“We hope that we will move to a different location as it becomes cold in here,” Ksenia, a 17-year-old from New York — a town in Donetsk region situated near the current frontline — told ABC News. She has been living in Lviv since this summer, when warmer temperatures did not pose such a challenge, with her mother, grandmother, brother and two cats.

Maria, 45, from Zaporizhzhia, has tried to retain her optimism. Asked by ABC News about her family’s plans for the future, she said: “Only victory and a way back home.”

Both Maria’s brother and son are currently serving in the Ukrainian army and her husband, also a military serviceman, has been missing since 2015.

Maria’s mother, Olga says, the conditions were different in the summer when they just moved into a temporary house designed for the families of four people. Due to the building’s thin walls, it can get very wet inside the home — the walls, doors and even their beds are covered with condensation and, sometimes, even with fungus.

These modular houses were a result of an urgent decision made in the early stages of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

According to Mayor Sadovyi, five million people have moved through the city since late February and there were days when upwards of two million refugees were staying in Lviv at once.

“We were forced to come up with any decision to give these people an opportunity to sleep somewhere,” he said.

Now he plans to buy more powerful diesel generators to guarantee the city’s residents heating, even without complete electricity.

“Every medical facility and several boarding schools are supposed to have a generator as an alternative energy source, and a solid fuel boiler as a second heating source,” Sadovyi said.

A separate complex for young mothers and pregnant women was built in Lviv about three months earlier this year — a totally different type of accommodation that is resistant to low temperatures, is more comfortable and can house over 100 people at once.

Lilia Kilchytska, head of a charity called “Unbroken Mothers”, says that IDPs from Luhansk, Donetsk, Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, Mykolaiv and other partially occupied regions live there at the moment.

To provide electricity and heating for the children and their mothers, the center has been granted a power generator by an international charity organization. It has already saved the families during the several blackouts caused by the Russian missile strikes.

A large number of refugees have lost their homes because of the war. Besides temporary shelters placed at dormitories, malls, theaters, schools, hospitals and other social infrastructure facilities, the administration is actively searching for long-term housing projects for IDPs.

Officials are currently considering buying, building or renovating enough square meters for the forced newcomers to the region but money is scarce, and authorities have said they require more donations and financial support if they are going to scale up their efforts.

At the moment, there are only 1,733 places for refugees to stay in these renovated buildings in Lviv over the upcoming winter.

That number, according to the authorities, pales in comparison to the potential flood of people who may leave their homes in other parts of Ukraine as Russian strikes continue this winter.

Prince William, Kate sit courtside at Boston Celtics game: Latest updates

December 1, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(BOSTON, Mass.) — Prince William thanked the “people of Boston” as he and his wife Kate arrived in the city to kick off their first U.S. tour in nearly a decade.

Their whirlwind tour ends with an awards ceremony for the Earthshot Prize, an initiative William launched in 2019 to create solutions for environmental problems.

This is William and Kate’s first visit to the United States since they visited New York City in 2014. It is also their first overseas trip since the death of Queen Elizabeth II in September and their first overseas trip since taking on the titles of Prince and Princess of Wales.

“[William and Kate] are both excited for their first international trip since taking on their new roles,” a Kensington Palace spokesperson told ABC News. “Both appreciate the history associated to the titles but understandably want to look to the future and pave their own paths.”

Check back for updates throughout their trip.

Wednesday: Prince and princess of Wales sit courtside at Celtics game

Following their visit to city hall, William and Kate headed to TD Garden for a basketball game between the Boston Celtics and Miami Heat.

Kate donned a blue blazer while William wore a blue button down and dark blue blazer. They were all smiles as they cheered on Celtics courtside alongside Governor-elect Maura Healey, Celtics co-owners Steve Pagliuca and Wyc Grousebeck, and Grousebeck’s wife Emilia Fazzalari.

William and Kate light Boston green

William and Kate’s first stop on their Boston trip was Boston City Hall.

They were greeted by Boston Mayor Michelle Wu, the first woman and first person of color to be elected as mayor in the city last year, and U.S. Ambassador to Australia Caroline Kennedy.

In honor of the Earthshot Prize, which was inspired by President John F. Kennedy’s Moonshot Initiative, the couple helped light Boston buildings and landmarks green.

In his address to Mayor Wu and the crowd at Boston City Hall, Prince William thanked Wu and Reverend White-Hammond for their support for the Earthshot Prize. He also noted why Boston was the “obvious choice for the Earthshot Prize in its second year” and said he was inspired by President Kennedy’s moonshot speech to launch the Earthshot Prize.

“Sixty years ago, President John F. Kennedy’s ‘moonshot’ speech laid down a challenge to American innovation and ingenuity,” Prince William began. “‘We chose to go to the moon,’ he said, ‘not because it is easy, but because it is hard.'”

“Where better to hold this year’s awards ceremony than in President Kennedy’s hometown, in partnership with his daughter and the foundation that continues in his name,” he added. “Boston was also the obvious choice because our universities, research centres and vibrant start-up scene make you a global leader in science, innovation and boundless ambition. Mayor Wu, you have also been a leader in putting climate policies at the heart of your administration. Thank you.”

“Like President Kennedy, Catherine and I firmly believe that we all have it in ourselves to achieve great things, and that human beings have the ability to lead, innovate and problem-solve,” William said. “We cannot wait to celebrate the Earthshot Prize later this week, and we are both looking forward to spending the next few days learning about the innovative ways the people of Massachusetts are tackling climate change.”

President Biden to greet Prince William and Kate in Boston on Friday

Earlier on Wednesday during a White House press briefing, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said President Joe Biden “intends to greet the prince and princess of Wales” on Friday when he is in Boston. The White House previously announced that Biden would be in Boston this week for a fundraiser.

William and Kate arrive in Boston

Upon their arrival in Boston Wednesday morning, William said he and Kate are “delighted to be back in the United States.” He also used the moment to reflect about his grandmother, who celebrated her 1976 bicentennial in the U.S.

“On this, our first visit since the death of my grandmother, I would like to thank the people of Massachusetts and particularly of Boston for their many tributes to the late queen. She remembered her 1976 bicentennial visit with great fondness,” William said in a statement.

“My grandmother was one of life’s optimists. And so am I,” he added. “To the people of Boston, thank you. I’m so grateful to you for allowing us to host the second year of the Earthshot Prize in your great city. Catherine and I can’t wait to meet many of you in the days ahead.”

Spokesperson for William addresses racism accusations surrounding godmother

As William and Kate were making their way to Boston, a controversy erupted in the U.K. involving William’s godmother, Lady Susan Hussey.

Hussey, a longtime lady-in-waiting to the late queen, was accused of making racist remarks to an attendee at a reception hosted by Queen Escort Camilla on Tuesday at Buckingham Palace.

On Wednesday, Buckingham Palace said it had launched an investigation into the allegation and said Hussey had “stepped aside from her honorary role.”

A spokesperson for William commented on the incident while briefing reporters ahead of William and Kate’s arrival in Boston.

“This is a matter for Buckingham Palace but as the Prince of Wales’ spokesperson, I appreciate you’re all here and understand you’ll want to ask about it. So let me address it head on,” the spokesperson said. “I was really disappointed to hear about the guest’s experience at Buckingham Palace last night.”

He continued, “Obviously, I wasn’t there, but racism has no place in our society. The comments were unacceptable and it is right that the individual has stepped aside with immediate effect.”

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