Lea Michele kicked off her An Evening With Lea Michele: Life in Music tour with a tribute to her late boyfriend and Glee co-star, Cory Monteith.
During her first stop in Washington, D.C. last week, the actress performed the same song her Glee character, Rachel Berry, sang during the show’s tribute episode to Monteith and his character, Finn Hudson — Bob Dylan‘s “Make You Feel My Love.”
Recalling how Glee creator Ryan Murphy let her pick the tribute song, at the July 20 show, Michele said, “I’m grateful that [Murphy] asked me. Because it needed to be something that felt real for me,” according to E! News.
She also shared how the tune happened to be one that she and Monteith listened to together and how their real life together inspired moments from the touching episode, noting that, “A lot of what I say to [Matthew Morrison‘s] character in that classroom were exact words I said to Ryan after everything.”
The Funny Girl star also revealed that she’s never watched the tribute episode, which was titled “The Quarterback.”
“It’s the only one I’ve not seen,” Michele admitted. “Because I think if I don’t watch it, it just kind of feels like Finn is still there. So this [song] is very special.”
(WASHINGTON) — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with the family of slain Palestinian-American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh on Tuesday amid renewed demands for justice.
Blinken had previously spoken to Abu Akleh’s relatives via telephone, but Tuesday was their first in-person meeting. The family traveled from their home in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem to meet with him at the U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C.
While the meeting was ongoing, State Department spokesperson Ned Price told reporters during a press briefing that Blinken would “use the opportunity to underscore for Shireen’s family our deepest condolences on her tragic death and to reiterate the priority we attach to accountability — something we continue to discuss with our Israeli and Palestinian partners as well.”
“It is a priority for us that we see appropriate accountability,” Price added.
Lina Abu Akleh, the journalist’s niece, took to Twitter after the meeting with Blinken, saying: “Although he made some commitments on Shireen’s killing, we’re still waiting to see if this administration will meaningfully answer our calls for #JusticeForShireen.”
“Accountability requires action,” she tweeted. “We look forward to a US investigation that leads to real consequences. Shireen was my aunt and the voice of Palestine and she was killed by an Israeli soldier.”
She said her family also stressed to Blinken the importance of a meeting with U.S. President Joe Biden, who tested positive for COVID-19 last week.
“A meeting with him will demonstrate to our family that Shireen’s case is a priority for this administration,” she tweeted. “Since he didn’t meet with us in Jerusalem, we came to DC. We need him to hear from us directly.”
Abu Akleh, a veteran 51-year-old journalist working for Al Jazeera, was killed on May 11 while on assignment covering an Israeli military raid in the occupied West Bank. The Israeli Defense Forces said exchanges of gunfire erupted between Israeli soldiers and Palestinian militants, and Abu Akleh, who had been wearing a protective vest identifying her as a member of the press, was shot in the head. She was rushed in critical condition to a local hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
Abu Akleh’s death has sparked controversy as Palestinians claimed she was killed by Israeli gunfire, while the Israeli Defense Forces steadfastly denied that was the case.
So far, the United States has served as sort of an intermediary between separate Israeli and Palestinian investigations. The U.S. Security Coordinator’s office in Israel, which monitors Israeli and Palestinian security arrangements, recently analyzed the full investigations carried out by authorities on both sides and determined that gunfire from Israeli positions likely killed Abu Akleh but appeared to be unintentional.
Earlier this month, in an exclusive statement to Politico, Abu Akleh’s family called those findings “an affront to justice,” claiming it “enabled Israel to avoid accountability for Shireen’s murder.” They also accused the White House of failing to take their concerns seriously.
Abu Akleh’s family made clear on Tuesday that they want the Biden administration to launch its own probe into the circumstances surrounding her death. But the State Department showed no sign of reevaluating its stance.
“We have published the findings in this case. We believe that by publishing the findings it speaks to our commitment to pursuing an investigation that is credible, an investigation that is thorough, and, importantly, an investigation that culminates in accountability,” department spokesperson Ned Price said Tuesday. “And it is that question of accountability that we have continued to discuss with our Palestinian partners and, of course, with our Israeli partners as well.”
Joshua Bassett knows why people adore High School Musical: The Musical: The Series, and it has everything to do with the cast.
“It’s the people and the relationships and the characters,” Bassett, who plays Ricky, told ABC Audio. “You can have the craziest storylines. You can have the best writers on the planet. But if the chemistry isn’t right… Then it doesn’t work.”
“You can feel the love we have for each other that comes through the screen. You can feel the heart that this show has,” the 21-year-old actor continued. “And it’s doing a lot of brave things! I think people are drawn to it because we’re pushing the envelope for Disney.”
Adds Matt Cornett, who plays E.J., “Everybody can relate to this show, no matter where you come from or how old you are… I think it’s awesome that kids get to see more of themselves on screen!”
DaraReneé, who returns as Kourtney,agrees representation is a major bonus of the beloved series, but she says the driving force is how the cast gels together. She said she knew the show was going places when she sat down for the first table read.
“I just knew that I had something special when I got to meet everybody. People like Sophia [Wylie] and Olivia [Rodrigo] — everybody just opened my heart,” she raved. “I was so grateful.”
Wylie, who stars as Gina, says the cast’s strong bond does shine through the screen. “We all flowed with one another,” she explained. “It makes every day on set really fun.”
“We’re, like, The Real Housewives of High School Musical: The Musical: The Series without the drama,” Reneé laughed.
Variety reports The Mandalorian‘s Pedro Pascal and Stranger Things‘ David Harbour are set to star together in the limited series My Dentist’s Murder Trial, currently in development at HBO. The series, inspired by James Lasdun‘s New Yorker article “My Dentist’s Murder Trial: Adultery, False Identities, and a Lethal Sedation,” tells the true story of how Dr. Gilberto Nunez was indicted for the death of his friend, Thomas Kolman. Pascal and Harbour will both executive-produce in addition to starring…
Peacock has given a straight-to-series order for Those About to Die, a gladiator drama with Independence Day director Roland Emmerich, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The series based on author Daniel Mannix’s book of the same, is described as “a large-scale drama set within the spectacular, complex and corrupt world of gladiatorial sports in ancient Rome. The series introduces an ensemble of diverse characters across the many layers of Roman society where sports, politics and business intersect and collide”…
Martin Scorsese‘s highly anticipated Apple TV+ series, Killers of the Flower Moon, won’t be arriving until 2023, according to Variety. The Western drama, starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Jesse Plemons, will instead be released in the originally intended 2023 calendar year. The film is based on David Grann’s bestseller Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI, about the serial murders of members of the oil-wealthy Osage Nation in 1920s Oklahoma. John Lithgow and Lily Gladstone also star…
The Talk‘s Natalie Morales revealed on Tuesday that she has landed a recurring role on the CBS soap opera The Young and the Restless. “I have some exciting news to share!” Morales told her co-hosts on the CBS talk show on Tuesday. “Starting next month, I have a little role — well, it’s a recurring role — on the CBS Daytime drama The Young and the Restless.” Morales added, “I am playing investigative reporter Talia Morgan, yes, and I’m investigating Diane Jenkins, played by Susan Walters. You know, she’s the one who faked her own death. She’s returned recently to Genoa City after just being gone for 10 years. It’s going to be a lot of fun.” Morales has appeared in a number of movies and TV series — all playing herself — including Graves, This Is Us, Nashville, Zoolander 2, Pitch Perfect 2, Rio 2 and the Sharknado TV movie series…
BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI,JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images
(WASHINGTON) — Joe Biden and Donald Trump have been headed for another face-off since the day Trump lost to Biden in 2020 — but voters say they are upset with the direction of the country and just as ambivalent about having either Biden or Trump lead their political parties in two years, adding an unusual level of uncertainty to what could be a historic 2024 contest.
A New York Times/Siena College poll earlier this month showed abysmal numbers for both leaders: Biden’s job approval scraped 33%, a new nadir, and 64% of Democrats surveyed said they wanted a different nominee in 2024. Meanwhile, 51% of Republicans said they wanted someone other than Trump to be their standard-bearer in the next presidential election — and despite Biden’s unsteady footing, Trump still narrowly trailed him in a hypothetical head-to-head.
Such stark numbers only supercharged speculation, among politicos, over whether either of the two will be on the ballot come 2024. How unusual would it be for them to run against one another again? If not them, then who? And what can change between now and then?
“When you have such a sour, negative political environment, voters in general are looking for change,” said GOP pollster Robert Blizzard. “They’re looking for new voices, new people.”
The underlying reasons for this can be contradictory, given voters’ political differences. There is concern about the economy and rising inflation, about the persistence of the coronavirus, about crime and gun violence — including the habitual spasms of mass shootings — and about abortions, LGBTQ rights and more.
Gallup’s polling on how “satisfied” Americans are has consistently declined since the mid-2000s — but it has shown ever-sharper dissatisfaction since 2021. The most recent survey, in June, reported 87% dissatisfaction.
As those numbers refuse to budge — and, in particular, as voters increasingly focus on historically high inflation despite other good economic news — Biden’s approval rating has crumbled.
Steve Phillips, a progressive Democratic donor, said there was another factor influencing Biden’s intraparty weakness: Democrats want him to be more forceful in advocating for the base’s priorities.
In response, Biden and his administration have touted a range of executive actions he has taken but stressed that he is limited by Democrats’ fragile majority in Congress. Often, Biden will urge voters to elect more Democrats so he can do more.
Phillips, the donor, sees it another way.
“There’s 45-47% of people in the country who are going to hate Biden regardless. And then the worst is: What about those who elected him? And that’s where the disappointment comes in. And there’s such a reluctance to tackle the fights that are coming with the same intensity that they are coming. That’s what I think is responsible for the low poll numbers,” he said.
Still, Trump hasn’t seemed to reap many benefits from the drop in Biden’s support.
The same Times/Siena poll showing Biden only winning the approval of a third of all voters also showed that 92% of Democrats would back him if he faces off against Trump in a general election, where he would be expected — in this survey — to narrowly triumph.
Biden insists he’ll run again if he’s healthy. In an impassioned exchange with ABC News earlier this month, he said, “They [Democrats] want me to run.” Pressed on this, he noted that “92% said if I did, they’d vote for me.”
Still, his anemic approval ratings and advanced age — cited by a third of Democrats in the Times/Siena poll as the reason they wanted another nominee — have fueled a rumor mill over his second-term ambitions at the same time that other politicians have jockeyed for a bigger spotlight.
Observers say the potential 2024 short-list includes past candidates like Vice President Kamala Harris, Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.
Democratic Govs. Roy Cooper of North Carolina, Gavin Newsom of California, J.B. Pritzker of Illinois and Michigan’s Gretchen Whitmer were also repeatedly mentioned by over a half-dozen Democratic aides who spoke to ABC News.
“I think there is a lot of people who could very quickly step into the spotlight who are qualified, who are dynamic and who I think could capture the public’s imagination,” said strategist Jon Reinish.
Some of the would-be candidates have, according to reports, privately acknowledged the possibility of 2024.
The Washington Post reported that it obtained a memo earlier this year written by a Sanders’ campaign adviser that Sanders would consider a third White House bid if Biden didn’t run in 2024.
Others have conspicuously swatted away the idea that they’re waiting in the wings.
During an earlier interview with ABC News, Newsom insisted he had no White House ambitions — which he reiterated while in Washington this month to accept an award on education. He said then that he supported Biden being on the ticket in 2024.
But Newsom — like Govs. Pritzker and Whitmer — has also seized on certain issues. All three have seen their profiles grow as a result. Pritzker, who recently made a trip to New Hampshire, spoke bluntly about why he supported gun control in the wake of a Fourth of July parade massacre in his state.
Meanwhile Whitmer has emerged as a forceful Democratic defender of abortion access and Newsom, despite playing down the 2024 possibilities, this month ran an ad in Florida berating Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis — and casting himself as a culture warrior in the process.
Many party experts said that it was Harris who would start in a particularly strong position.
“Whereas you may hear people making waves or putting their toe in the water, there’s always the presumption and the courtesy that … we’ll wait to see what the current vice president is going to do,” said one Democrat with ties to the White House.
Some Democrats chalked that activity up to just laying the groundwork if Biden were to pass on 2024 — but observers said the candidates could be getting more emboldened as Biden’s footing worsens.
“I think that the poll numbers, the whispers, certainly I think do motivate people to float trial balloons,” said Phillips, the donor.
Across the aisle, Republican rumors over 2024 are flying just as fast.
Trump has openly teased a forthcoming comeback bid — telling New York magazine in an interview this month that “in my own mind, I’ve already made that decision” and that he was only debating the timing of his announcement.
Still, he would be running as the party’s most recent presidential loser — and one who faces not only intense scrutiny over his actions around last year’s Capitol riot but also a number of legal problems, including investigations in Georgia and New York. (He denies all wrongdoing and has cast the House Jan. 6 committee as politically motivated.)
Some critics also note that, like Biden, he has been dogged by questions about his advancing age and acuity.
On top of that, Trump seems fixated on his loss to Biden — a focus that some experts say keeps him from talking about issues like inflation that are currently motivating voters.
While Trump remains the de facto GOP leader and party kingmaker, offering or withholding a powerful endorsement in down-ballot races across the country, strategists are forecasting a crowded field for the 2024 nomination.
“By focusing on 2020 all the time and trying to litigate that election, he’s not presenting a positive vision for the future. And I think that there are some other Republican candidates out there who are making it pretty clear that they want to run in ’24 and that they have ideas as to where America should go and they’re not afraid to run, even if Trump is in the race,” said Bob Heckman, a veteran of several GOP presidential campaigns.
The list of other would-be 2024 candidates amounts to a who’s-who of Republican leaders, including Trump’s own Vice President Mike Pence, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, Florida’s Gov. DeSantis and Sens. Tom Cotton of Arkansas, Ted Cruz of Texas, Josh Hawley of Missouri and Rick Scott of Florida.
Vocal Trump detractors like Maryland’s Republican Gov. Larry Hogan — who sent nearly hourly tweets about a recent trip to New Hampshire — are also being floated.
Several of those politicians are endorsing their candidates in the midterms, even when it conflicts with Trump, and traveling to critical primary states.
And while many of them may stay out of a primary should Trump run, laying the groundwork early could be critical in case he doesn’t.
“Anyone who is thinking about running for president will realize that this could be their last best shot. Because if they don’t run, and another Republican wins, they’re effectively sidelined for the next decade,” said Alex Conant, a top aide on Sen. Marco Rubio’s (R-Fla.) 2016 presidential campaign. “If a Republican wins in 2024, the next time there’ll be an open White House is 2032.”
But timing is a delicate dance in the Trump-dominated GOP. While the former president is not anticipated to clear the field if he runs, being the first opposing primary candidate out of the gate could engender brutal attacks — a repeat of Trump’s approach to his 2016 opponents.
“I think there’s a recognition and a degree of respect for Trump’s political power of waiting. They have no choice. Those who step out too early can get slapped down really easy,” said former Michigan Republican Party Chair Saul Anuzis.
Should Biden and Trump both run and win their respective nominations — as many expect — strategists of both parties are anticipating a highly unusual election.
A rematch between a current and former president, both of whom are facing popularity issues within their own party, would be virtually unheard of.
Historian Mark Updegrove said the closest comparison is President Grover Cleveland, who served from 1885 to 1889 before losing to Benjamin Harrison, only to reclaim the White House four years later.
But even that is not an apples-to-apples comparison.
“That’s the closest thing we come to this. But the circumstances here are highly unusual for so many reasons, not the least of which is you’d have to septuagenarians right now who are considering this race, and by the time the election comes around, Joe Biden will be 82 years old. So age becomes a factor in this as well as all the other unusual aspects of the matchup,” Updegrove said.
That being said, Updegrove noted that if current economic conditions continue, Trump has a wide opening to go on the offense given rampant inflation — but he may be undercutting himself by his singular focus on the 2020 election.
“Americans are going to be tired of it … And if he continues to harp on this message that something was taken from him, that election was stolen from him, I think it’s going to hurt,” Updegrove said. “I think the smart play would be to talk up what he could do to rejuvenate a foundering economy. That, to my mind, is Joe Biden’s true Achilles heel.”
Operatives, of course, warn against reading the tea leaves in the summer of 2022. The distance to the 2024 race is essentially a political lifetime. Trump himself proved that: The real estate mogul and reality TV host was on almost nobody’s radar as a sincere candidate in summer 2014.
“It’s good not to chisel your long-term plans in politics into rock,” said Jared Leopold, a former top staffer at the Democratic Governors Association. “It’s better left in pencil.”
(KYIV, Ukraine) — Jalal Noory, an Afghan refugee in Ukraine who serves in the Ukrainian armed forces, defended the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv from being captured by Russian troops at the onset of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine earlier this year. Noory and his fellow soldiers succeeded, repelling all Russian attacks on the capital.
A Ukrainian citizen since 2005, Noory first went to the frontline in 2014 as a volunteer following Russia’s invasion of Crimea and the Donbas region. Noory said he was called to the front by a sense of patriotism.
“I simply could not stay away,” he added.
“I wanted to share my combat experience with my Ukrainian comrades,” Noory said, adding that “war is part of every Afghan’s nature.”
Noory was born in Afghanistan in the mid 1970s. He still recalls the Soviet invasion of his native country in 1979.
“I remember the Soviet army crossing through my city when I was a child. We bought cigarettes and gave them to the Soviet soldiers. They gave us bullets in return to play with,” Noory said.
The conflict morphed into a full-scale war that lasted 10 years and cost the Soviets around 15,000 troops, according to official estimates. More than 3,000 men lost in the war were from Ukraine.
Up to two million Afghan civilians died in the fighting — or about 10% of Afghanistan’s population in 1979. Millions of others became refugees, including Noory.
Russian military tactics witnessed today in Ukraine are identical to those used in Afghanistan, Noory said.
“At the time, the Russians claimed their Afghan friends were calling for help. Just like now in Ukraine,” he said.
Russia invaded Ukraine in February this year under the pretext of protecting the Russian speaking population in the country, among other justifications proclaimed by Russian officials as the invasion unfolded.
“But it’s a lie. I’ve lived in Ukraine for 23 years and I’ve only spoken Russian. I never had a problem with the language,” Noory said.
Frightening and terrorizing the civilian population is another staple of Russian warfare that stood the test of time, according to Noory.
“Absolutely nothing has changed. They are hiding behind women, children, houses, and villages. They destroy them by rockets, bombs and tanks,” he said.
Noory, having grown up in the middle of a war, absorbed military knowledge from his early childhood. But after fleeing to Ukraine in 1999, he led a peaceful life.
Noory became a successful athlete, winning several titles in martial arts competitions. He also got married and had children.
Yet he did not hesitate for a second when Russia invaded Ukraine both in 2014 and this year.
“Someone must stop the Russians. Now it is the Ukrainians, but Poland or Lithuania could be next,” Noory said.
Noory said he did not only fight for his life, family, friends, or Ukraine. He’s protecting something much bigger, he added.
“I fight for every human. Not just an Afghan, Ukrainian or American, but for every human,” he said.
The most important thing in life is freedom, Noory said.
“If you don’t have freedom, you have nothing. So I must be free and my children have to be free,” he said.
(NEW YORK) — The future of COVID-19 vaccines might not be shots in the arm or leg. Instead, picture a nasal spray or a patch stuck onto the skin for a few minutes.
A group of scientists, doctors and administration health officials gathered at the White House on Tuesday to discuss the next generation of inoculation against COVID and its viral cousins; they were in agreement that there is room for improvement.
The future could include vaccines that protect equally against all variants — or even vaccines that stop infections from happening in the first place.
“Innovative approaches are clearly needed to induce broad and durable protection against coronaviruses known and unknown,” Dr. Anthony Fauci, the White House’s chief medical adviser, told the audience.
There’s broad consensus that despite the benefit of the currently available vaccines, the “job is not done,” Fauci said.
“We’ve already averted well over 2 million deaths, approximately $1 trillion in health care costs and tens and tens of millions of infections, as well as close to 20 million hospitalizations. That’s the good news,” Fauci said. “What’s the sobering news? Sobering news is why we’re here today — because our job is not done.”
There are a few options on the table.
One is a pan-coronavirus vaccine, which could cover a broad array of future COVID variants and perhaps other coronaviruses, giving people protection for longer periods of time.
Another is a vaccine that people would spray into their noses, called a mucosal vaccine, or even a small patch that would be applied to the skin and carry the vaccine in microneedles.
All are promising innovations, with the potential to be combined with one another — but all are in very early stages of development.
The “holy grail,” Fauci said, is “not only to protect against disease, but to protect against acquisition, and by acquisition, transmission.”
Sprays and patches
Dr. Akiko Iwasaki, an expert on nasal vaccines from Yale University who spoke at the summit, said the only way to fully achieve that goal — Fauci’s “holy grail” — would be nasal vaccines.
She compared them to “stopping the virus from spreading right at the border,” because the virus enters through the nose.
“This is akin to putting a guard outside of the house in order to patrol for invaders, compared to putting the guards in the hallway of a building in the hope they would capture the invader,” Iwasaki said, contrasting the nasal vaccines to the current shots, which are injected and produce an antibody response throughout the body.
Mark Prausnitz, the chief scientific officer of Micron Biomedical, which is developing a vaccine administered through a skin patch, also pitched it as a better option to the current generation of vaccines.
“Leave it in place for a few minutes, peel it off and discard it. We think this can not only make vaccines more readily accessible, but improve immunogenicity,” Prausnitz said.
He said the microneedles in the patch are as long as a piece of paper is thick, and people barely feel them. The patches could be administered by people at home, he said, and wouldn’t require inaccessible cold storage.
A summit for ideas, but also a pitch to Congress
For both the new types of vaccines on the horizon, there are still huge scientific hurdles to developing such new innovations. And without significant resources, that could take upwards of three to five years, experts estimate.
So while Tuesday’s summit was a display of potential new advancements and an acknowledgement of where the current vaccines are falling behind, it was also in a pitch to lawmakers for substantial focus and investment.
“It’s very important to note that we need to move quickly to start testing these nasal vaccines in humans, and that requires a significant U.S. government input, both resources and help with manufacturing and delivery as well as acceptance across society,” Iwasaki told the audience.
Marty Moore, founder and chief scientific officer of another nasal vaccine company, Meissa Vaccines, said the benefits would significantly outweigh the risks.
“I think developing transmission-blocking vaccines, of course, will come with great challenges and some cost,” he said. “But I think the probability of success warrants this investment based on what we know about vaccines. And the potential benefits are just enormous, direct and indirect.”
White House COVID coordinator Dr. Ashish Jha has said he’s hopeful the timeline for these new vaccines could be drastically reduced — if investments are made.
But the Biden administration has faced reluctance from congressional Republicans to approve even more funding, with conservatives citing questions and objections over how past monies were spent.
(NEW YORK) — A tampon shortage in the U.S. this summer has put a spotlight on menstrual product alternatives.
Over the past several weeks, major retail chains across the country have reported a shortage of tampon products. Across social media, users have posted about their struggles finding products on store shelves.
The shortage reportedly stems from a combination of factors, including staffing problems at factories, transportation delays and the rising cost of materials like plastics that are used to make the products.
Amid the ongoing shortage, the average price for tampons and other menstrual products has also risen.
The price of tampons rose by nearly 10% and the price of menstrual pads by more than 8% through May, according to a June Bloomberg report, which cited data from measurement and analytics company NielsenIQ.
The good news for people who menstruate and prefer to use tampons is that there are still alternatives to be found.
Dr. Jessica Shepherd, a board-certified OB-GYN, spoke with ABC News’ Good Morning America about the pros and cons of those common tampon alternatives.
Alternative #1: Menstrual pads
Pads are the most well-known alternative to tampons and the most easily accessible, according to Shepherd.
“Pads really are the forefront of menstrual hygiene products,” she said. “They were the first that were developed.”
Menstrual pads include both one-time-use disposable pads as well as cloth pads, which Shepherd described as a more eco-friendly alternative.
“As far as waste is concerned, reusable cloth pads are a great alternative,” she said. “You’re going to able to wash them and they give you about four to eight hours of protection.”
Shepherd noted that reusable cloth pads can range in price from $10 to $40, but because they are washable and reusable, they can last longer than other options.
Both reusable and disposable pads, while uncomfortable to wear for some people, are also available for the different levels of bleeding a person may experience throughout their menstrual cycle.
“Pads really kind of create an atmosphere and an environment for people to have easy access to something that really has [been] designed to cater to the duration and flow of every individual,” said Shepherd.
Alternative #2: Menstrual cups and discs
Menstrual cups and menstrual discs are both objects that are inserted into the vagina to absorb period blood, according to Shepherd.
Menstrual cups, which are cup-shaped and reusable, are folded and inserted into the vagina, where they sit below the cervix. The cups have a suction seal to prevent leakage, according to Shepherd.
Menstrual discs are disc-shaped and are also folded and inserted in the vagina, sitting below the cervix. They do not suction though, according to Shepherd.
“It just sits in the vaginal canal rather than having a suction portion, allowing it to be to the actual cervix,” she said.
Both options are inserted at home, not at a doctor’s office, and offer up to 12 hours of protection, according to Shepherd.
While menstrual cups and discs are more expensive than disposable tampons, for example, they are longer lasting, Shepherd noted.
“There is cost involved but you have to remember that cost, when you look over the long range of time, usually ends up being a little bit cheaper or less expensive than using things that are disposable such as your tampons and your pads,” she said.
Alternative #3: Period panties
The most recent addition to the menstrual hygiene product options is period panties, which are underwear that have built-in absorption to prevent leakage.
Shepherd said she recommends period panties for people who have lighter periods, or for someone who is at the beginning of their menstrual cycle, when bleeding is lighter.
She said she also recommends them for adolescents who typically have lighter periods in general, for athletes who need the ability to move and for people who do not like the feel of other options like pads or tampons.
“Those are great for your light days or if you want to kind of double up,” she said, adding, “For someone who does have a heavier cycle, wearing a period panty or period underwear usually needs to be done in conjunction with something else, which is a pad or menstrual disc.”
Period panties can be worn for up to 12 hours and are reusable, according to Shepherd.
While period panties can be more expensive, costing as much as $50 for some brands, Shepherd noted the price may be worth it in order to have something accessible.
“They may be pricey, you may have to buy more than one, however, the great feature of period panties is that you always have it available,” she said. “So even if you have a product that you run out of or is not the correct product that you need, you always have something that’s able to be absorbent to some capacity.”
(NEW YORK) — Brittney Griner is expected to testify on Wednesday in a Russian court more than five months after she was detained in the country and after the WNBA star’s legal team requested more time for her to prepare.
Griner, a 31-year-old Houston native who plays professional basketball for the Phoenix Mercury, was detained on Feb. 17 at Sheremetyevo International Airport in Khimki as she returned to Russia to play during the WNBA’s offseason after she was accused of having vape cartridges containing hashish oil, which is illegal in the country.
If convicted, she faces up to 10 years in prison and also has a right to an appeal.
Griner pleaded guilty to drug charges in court earlier this month, saying that the vape cartridges containing hashish oil were in her luggage mistakenly. She said she had no “intention” of breaking Russian law and did not mean to leave the cartridges in her bag.
Earlier this month, one of Griner’s attorneys presented a letter from an American doctor in court, giving her permission to use cannabis to reduce chronic pain.
Her legal team told ABC News in a statement earlier this month that her “guilty” plea was recommended by her Russian attorneys.
“Brittney sets an example of being brave. She decided to take full responsibility for her actions as she knows that she is a role model for many people,” the lawyers said in the statement. “Considering the nature of her case, the insignificant amount of the substance and BG’s personality and history of positive contributions to global and Russian sport, the defense hopes that the plea will be considered by the court as a mitigating factor and there will be no severe sentence.”
The WNBA star briefly spoke to ABC News during a break in Tuesday’s proceedings at a courthouse in the Moscow suburb of Khimki. When asked whether she has any complaints, she said: “No, no complaints. Just waiting patiently.”
She also shared with ABC News a message for her wife, Cherelle, who recently graduated from law school.
“Good luck on the bar exam,” Griner said.
Griner’s legal team continued to present evidence on Tuesday and called another witness to testify as pressure mounts on the United States to negotiate her release.
A Russian narcologist, Dr. Mikhail Tetyushkin, testified on Tuesday that cannabis is often used by professional athletes to treat sports injuries because of its therapeutic properties, including analgesic and anti-inflammatory. However, with constant use, it may impair motor coordination and reaction time, which is why athletes should not take it permanently, according to Tetyushkin. He also noted that there are no international standards to differentiate medical cannabis from a drug.
Since Griner’s trial began on July 1, several Russian individuals have testified in court as character witnesses about their experience with the Phoenix Mercury center, who also played in the WNBA offseason for UMMC, a Russian basketball club in the city of Yekaterinburg. Witnesses include Maxim Ryabkov, the director of UMMC; team doctor Anatoly Galabin, who said that Griner never tested positive for doping while playing for the team; and Evgenia Belyakova, one of Griner’s Russian teammates, who said that Griner was the leader of the team.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine began one week after Griner was detained, and some officials have expressed concern that Americans jailed in Russia could be used as leverage in the ongoing conflict.
The U.S. Department of State classified Griner’s case on May 3 as “wrongfully detained.”
Calls to free Griner escalated following the May release of U.S. Marine veteran Trevor Reed, who was freed from a Russian prison as part of a prisoner exchange. Former Marine Paul Whelan has also been detained in Russia since 2019.
State Department spokesperson Ned Price said Tuesday afternoon that officials were with Griner in court on Tuesday, and confirmed that she was “doing OK,” and the department has “routinely conveyed those discussions” to Griner’s wife.
“I would say that we have made the case of Brittney Griner, we have made the case of Paul Whelan, an absolute priority and we are working actively, quietly, behind the scenes to do everything we can to see that their wrongful detentions come to an end as quickly as possible,” Price said.
Price added that the administration won’t be satisfied until Griner is back with her family.
“We don’t look at this in terms of satisfaction. We look at this through the lens of doing everything we possibly can to see to it that these individuals are reunited with their families as quickly as we can,” Price said.
Kane Brown‘s wife, Katelyn, shared footage of their family enjoying a day at the fair with their two-year-old daughter, Kingsley. Among the activities they delighted in was a mother-daughter trip down the slide and going for a joyride on the bobsleds, with little Kingsley throwing her hands in the air.
Kane also got to show off his basketball skills, dominating on the Swoosh game where he won enough tickets to get his daughter a stuffed animal horse. The family also went on the puppy roll and hopped on a train ride.
“Fair with my favs,” Katelyn captioned the fun day, accompanied by Brent Morgan‘s cover of “What Dreams Are Made Of.”
Kane and Katelyn welcomed Kingsley in October 2019 and their second daughter, Kodi, in December 2021.
