For Nepali men, going abroad to work is often the only option they have to support their family. But doing so can come with great risk. Lately, many Nepali men have died under mysterious circumstances while working in other countries, and it seems to be part of a larger trend that strikes every decade or so. Since Nepal’s government started promoting foreign labor, the number of Nepali men trying their luck in other countries has increased a lot.

In 2015, about 500,000 men went abroad to work, compared to about 220,000 in 2008. But the number of men who die while away has gone up disproportionately–in 2008 only one in 2,500 workers died. In 2015, the number was one in 500, according to the Associated Press.

In total, more than 5,000 workers from the small country situated in between India and China have died since 2008. About 10 percent of Nepal’s 28 million people are working abroad and the money they send back amounts to almost a third of the country’s annual revenues.

These statistics could be enough to intimidate most from endeavoring on a journey across borders. But as Nepal is one of the poorest and least developed countries in the world, many have few alternatives to earn money. And because Nepali men are often willing to work hard under any circumstances, they are in high demand.

Qatar is preparing for the 2022 FIFA World Cup and has hired around 1.5 million immigrants from different countries. To make its citizens desirable for recruitment, the Nepali embassy in Doha even started advertising online, saying, “Nepalese workers are well known for their hard work, dedication, and loyalty.” The site goes on to say they are “comparatively cost effective and their hiring cost is lower as compared to other labour exporting countries,” and that they are “experienced in working in the extreme climatic conditions.”

Qatar has long promised to make conditions for migrant workers safer. But still, Nepali men working for the World Cup were dying at a rate of one man every two days in 2014. The government has been criticized for not doing enough to prevent this from happening. The men work long hours in temperatures that often reach 122 degrees Fahrenheit. “We know that people who work long hours in high temperatures are highly vulnerable to fatal heat strokes, so obviously these figures continue to cause alarm,” Nicholas McGeehan from Human Rights Watch told the Guardian.

Two Nepali workers die in Qatar every three days constructing for the 2022 FIFA WC, @Jomo1966 at #ThorolfRaftoChallenge @RaftoFoundation pic.twitter.com/ZlcrrrZM8o

— Solveig Moldrheim (@Solmol) October 5, 2016

Nepal only has one international airport, located in the capital, Kathmandu. About 1,500 workers fly out every day, and on average, three dead bodies come back. “The rate at which Nepali workers are dying abroad is alarming because they are too young to die,” said labor migration expert Ganesh Gurung to Nepali Times. Gurung added that it’s difficult to know the actual reason for the deaths, as autopsies are very rarely performed. Writing “natural causes” in the death certificate could be a way to cover up the real cause.

Many Nepali workers also end up taking on a lot of debt just to get a job abroad. Even though it’s illegal for employers to charge fees for work, both in Nepal and in Qatar, the costs can be high. The men need to get enough money to afford a plane ticket, pay a recruiter, and find a place to sleep. This means many work endless hours, live with a dozen or more men in one room, while also being the target of scammers. These brutal conditions might be a reason why otherwise healthy young men die. Nepal’s government even arranged for trucks to be retrofitted to carry coffins after deaths abroad increased.

Nepali migrant workers who return in coffins are too young and healthy to die https://t.co/kBjuq18Zkt @omastharai pic.twitter.com/fCLYMGDEws

— Nepali Times (@nepalitimes) January 8, 2016

Exactly how the young men die largely remains a mystery, as natural death, heart attack, or cardiac arrest are listed as the cause of death in about half of the cases. Many of them went to bed as usual, but never woke up in the morning. According to medical researchers, this is actually something that happens about every 10 years to healthy Asian men working away from their home countries. In the 1970’s, it was a problem in the U.S., in the 1980’s in Singapore, and later on in China. The phenomenon was named Sudden Unexplained Nocturnal Death Syndrome and next year an international effort plans to take a closer look at the phenomenon.

Patrick Clarkin at the University of Massachusetts told the AP that he could see a pattern in the Nepali workers. “I suspect that there would be little harm in improving the diets and living conditions of these young men. Something as simple as a multivitamin could go a long way and with little risk.” The difference in diet when going to another country could be an explanation, but also because even though they are working in the desert they drink less water than usual because, as Hindus, they are not allowed to use Muslim restrooms.

Nepali authorities blame stress and even homesickness. “I’m not trying to be insensitive but we have sent millions of workers to more than 100 countries, and so yes, sometimes people will die,” the spokeswoman for the Department of Foreign Employment, Rama Bhattarai, told the AP. “They die as foreign employees, they die here when a bus goes off a cliff.” The problem doesn’t seem to be taken as seriously as it should. But Krishna Dawadee, director of Kathmandu’s work permit center, wishes that it would. “These are our youth, draining out from our country. I am very much worried about these people,” she said. Hopefully, the international investigation will find out more about the cause in order to find a solution.

Emma Von Zeipel

Emma Von Zeipel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. She is originally from one of the islands of Stockholm, Sweden. After working for Democratic Voice of Burma in Thailand, she ended up in New York City. She has a BA in journalism from Stockholm University and is passionate about human rights, good books, horses, and European chocolate. Contact Emma at EVonZeipel@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Nepali Workers Abroad are Dying at an Alarming Rate appeared first on Law Street.

It has become a common sentiment–2016 was awful. One frequent complaint: a bunch of celebrity deaths. It even felt bizarre at points–just how many legendary music stars and acting icons was the Grim Reaper going to take away from us at a time when we need them the most? Think about it: David Bowie, Alan Rickman, Leonard Cohen, Prince, Muhammad Ali, and Gene Wilder all passed away this year.

“Harambe died, America died, Prince and other famous people died.”—Description of 2016 by my 11-year-old, who should be president.

— Ken Layne (@KenLayne) December 2, 2016

So did a lot more celebrities die this year? Or did it just feel that way? The BBC actually looked into that question. It sent its obituaries editor Nick Serpell to check whether there was an abnormal number of stars who died this year.

Serpell analyzed how many pre-prepared obituaries the BBC aired or posted over its TV, radio, and website outlets, from the years 2012-2016. And, interestingly enough, there was huge increase in star deaths in just the first three months of 2016—with twice as many notable deaths compared to the same months in 2015, and five times as many when compared to 2012.

No, It’s NOT Our Imagination. More Famous People HAVE Died in 2016. https://t.co/B5nF6ho3nF pic.twitter.com/alywiBcdtv

— Alan Cross (@alancross) December 16, 2016

Bear in mind though that this is not a completely reliable number to weigh. The BBC doesn’t run an obituary for every single celebrity who dies, and it was only the pre-prepared ones that were measured.

According to Serpell, the spike in celebrity deaths was early and didn’t last. “The last six months of this year were broadly in line with the previous last six months of the previous four or five years,” he said. But, there was an overall increase of 30 percent, which is still noteworthy. “In 2012, we had a total of 16. In 2013, it went to 24. In 2014, it rose again to 29. In 2015, it rose slightly again to 32. For 2016, as of [December 15], it stands at 42,” he said.

I wanna take a moment to remind you how many famous people died (so far) in 2016.

If everyone could stop dying – that’d be great. Thanks. pic.twitter.com/stgjqGepPi

— Nick Monroe (@nickmon1112) November 25, 2016

So, maybe it felt like there was a spike in deaths this year since there were a lot of big names who died, leaving a seemingly large vacuum.  And as Serpell points out, that actually makes a lot of sense. The golden days of the 1960s–when pop culture and TV really exploded–were roughly half a century ago. People who became stars became huge stars. But today, there’s significantly more diversity, so a lot of stars are less universally recognized.

It’s also important to note that the death rate is up generally, because of the enormity of the baby-boomer generation, born between 1946 and 1964. In the U.S., there were about 76 million baby-boomers in 2014–about 23 percent of the U.S. population. These people are now between 52 and 70 years old. That means we may see more celebrity obituaries soon, so get ready and brace yourselves for 2017.

Emma Von Zeipel

Emma Von Zeipel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. She is originally from one of the islands of Stockholm, Sweden. After working for Democratic Voice of Burma in Thailand, she ended up in New York City. She has a BA in journalism from Stockholm University and is passionate about human rights, good books, horses, and European chocolate. Contact Emma at EVonZeipel@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Is it Just Us, or Were There a Lot of Celebrity Deaths in 2016? appeared first on Law Street.

This week, news became public that the daughter of late action star Paul Walker is receiving a $10.1 million settlement from the estate of the man, Roger Rodas, who was driving the car when it crashed, killing both Walker and Rodas.

The settlement was decided in November of 2014, roughly a year after Walker’s death, but the information about it wasn’t made public until this week. According to court documents, $7.2 million of the money is in a trust for Meadow Walker, 17, the rest went toward legal fees. However that $10 million-plus settlement is just a “fraction of what her father would have earned as an international movie star had his life not been tragically cut short.”

USA Today reports that Rodas’s estate released the following statement:

Through his estate, Mr. Rodas, the driver of the car, took partial responsibility for the crash. Meadow’s lawsuit against Porsche AG – a $13 billion corporation – intends to hold the company responsibly for producing a vehicle that was defective and caused Paul Walker’s death.

That lawsuit, brought by Meadow Walker’s lawyers against Porsche, is still ongoing. She is accusing the German-based carmaker of skimping on safety features that could have saved her father’s life.

Porsche claims that Walker’s death was Rodas’s fault for driving too quickly, particularly after an investigation conducted by Los Angeles police pointed to speed as the catalyst of the accident. Porsche has also alleged that the vehicle wasn’t properly operated or maintained. But Walker claims that the vehicle wasn’t going as fast as the investigation alleged; additionally Walker is arguing that had the Porsche been safer, her father wouldn’t have been severely burned after the crash–which ultimately led to his death. However it’s unclear if Walker’s lawsuit against Porsche will be successful–a similar lawsuit brought by Rodas’s widow ruled in favor of Porsche recently, stating: “Plaintiff has provided no competent evidence that Rodas’ death occurred as a result of any wrongdoing on the part of Defendant.”

For Meadow Walker, it’s all presumably bittersweet–while the money set aside in a trust for her will ensure that she has enough to live on, it’s certainly less than her father would have made had he not lost his life in the tragic 2013 crash, and can’t replace him.

Anneliese Mahoney

Anneliese Mahoney is Managing Editor at Law Street and a Connecticut transplant to Washington D.C. She has a Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs from the George Washington University, and a passion for law, politics, and social issues. Contact Anneliese at amahoney@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Paul Walker’s Daughter Awarded Settlement Money for Father’s Death appeared first on Law Street.

For the eco-conscious among us, there may be a new way to be environmentally friendly even after death. A company called Coeio has created a unique burial bodysuit from a special strand of mushrooms that decomposes dead bodies. Coeio brings together innovative minds from the design, art, finance, fashion, and funeral industries to rethink the way we approach funerals, and death in general.

What began as co-founder Jae Rhim Lee’s MIT graduate work has become the Infinity Burial Shroud. In a 2011 Ted Talk, Lee explained how she has trained edible mushrooms to eat her own dead fingernails, strands of hair, and skin. She selects all the mushrooms most advanced in eating the excess of her own body to create the infinity mushrooms. She then integrates these infinity mushrooms into a variety of objects, hence the body burial suit.

With America’s population aging at its highest rates, it’s certainly time for us to start thinking about new ways to deal with death. According to the U.S, Census the population aged 65 and older will be at 83.7 million by 2050, mainly due to the large population of baby boomers aging now. However, funerals may not be the most cost efficient option for everyone, nor the most environmentally friendly.

On average burial funerals cost about $6,600; cremations are about half that price on average around $3,200. Cost aside though, people are also weighing the need of the environment into their end-of-life plans. Traditional burial involves the use of formaldehyde-embalming, metal or wood caskets, and concrete vaults all strenuous to the environment in some way shape, or form. Additionally, caskets take up land space. Cremation is considered much more environmentally friendly, but still runs the risk of releasing mercury into the atmosphere as a byproduct of the cremation. With the infinity burial shroud people could still be put to rest in the ground, without the environmental cost or space issue.

At one point or another, we must all come to terms with our immortality. At least for Lee this project has been “…a step toward accepting the fact that someday [she] will die and decay,” and “a step toward taking responsibility for [her] own burden on the planet.”

These suits are as much about conserving the earth as they are about confronting our own end. Dennis White is the company’s first customer. He is 63 and lives in Massachusetts, and until he was diagnosed with a terminal illness, he did not think about his own death. In his wish to be buried in the mushroom suit he expressed satisfaction with the end of his body, as “flora and fauna can dine upon it, just as I have dined upon flora and fauna during my lifetime.” The infinity burial suit can be yours too for $999, and meanwhile, you can rest easy knowing that people are taking steps to help the environment, even after they’ve passed away.

Dorsey Hill

Dorsey is a member of Barnard College’s class of 2016 with a major in Urban Studies and concentration in Political Science. As a native of Chicago and resident of New York City, Dorsey loves to explore the multiple cultural facets of cities. She has a deep interest in social justice issue especially those relevant to urban environments. Contact Dorsey at Staff@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post There’s a New Environmentally Conscious Way to be Buried appeared first on Law Street.

Would you drink this water?

Here’s what Flint, Michigan’s poison lead water looks like. pic.twitter.com/s2g2ml8UL4

— (´・ω・｀) (@_icze4r) January 15, 2016

Many citizens of Flint, Michigan are refusing to–and for good reason. The water supplied by the city of Flint to many residents has been contaminated with poisonous amounts of lead and other toxins for over two years. The safe level for lead content in drinking water, according to the CDC, is absolutely none. That’s why the EPA’s goal for public drinking water is zero parts per billion (ppb), and why 15 ppb is listed as their action level (the concentration at which water authorities are federally required to lower contamination).

So with these regulations from the Safe Drinking Water Act, why are some families reporting 25, 100, and even 200 ppb of lead detected in the tap water from their homes? The answer is shrouded in the intricacies of municipal water supply agreements and water main construction, which are enough to make anyone’s eyes glaze over. So let’s break down just how this ‘man-made disaster‘ began: with a corner-cutting move designed to save money.

It Began With a Plan

Flint, Michigan had been getting its tap water from Detroit for over 50 years. But in 2013, the Karegnondi Water Authority (KWA) began constructing a new pipeline to connect water from Lake Huron to Genessee County, which contains the Flint metropolitan area. This new project would provide water to Genessee and neighboring counties no longer rely on water piped in from Detroit.

A project like this is great news for towns like Flint, which could reduce their public water costs by procuring it locally while also creating jobs to construct and maintain the new system. So construction began on the KWA, and at this point in the story, no public officials or agencies have done anything wrong. That changes.

A Temporary Switch

You see, when this happened, Flint planned to switch to the new KWA pipelines when they finished construction in three years. But in the meantime, they still needed water, and rather than continuing to buy the Detroit water–a pre-treated and sanitary supply from Lake Huron–they switched sources to the Flint River. This switch was estimated to save about $5 million over less than two years.

The trouble was that the water sourced from the Flint River was 19 times more corrosive than the Lake Huron supply. Even after being treated and deemed acceptable, the water eroded the city’s pipes and water lines and accumulated iron, lead, and other metals from the material of the pipes.

By the time the water arrives at neighborhoods, businesses, and schools, the once-drinkable water is tinged brown from the iron, and carrying harmful levels of toxic chemicals. The most dangerous of which is lead.

Flint, Michigan, is suffering a major water crisis. Here’s how you can help. https://t.co/Z01vWiG8JLpic.twitter.com/ecJyIhEtkF

— CNN (@CNN) January 14, 2016

Permanent Health Effects

The presence of lead in drinking water is known to cause kidney problems and related issues in adults, but infants and children are subjected to the worst effects. Lead interferes with development such that children exposed to lead exhibit delays in mental and physical development are often severely impaired by the contaminant’s effects. In September 2015, according to a study performed by the Hurley Medical Center, the proportion of infants and children with above-average levels of lead in their blood nearly doubled since Flint switched its water source.

Given the extent of the problem, residents in Flint have very few options to stay safe. Many homeowners took to boiling large batches of water before bathing their children or giving them water to drink. While that process can help remove some impurities, it actually makes the issue of lead contamination worse. The city issued a ‘Boil Advisory‘ detailing how boiling water just increases the concentration of lead in the tap water.

The only choice left for thousands of residents is to purchase bottled water. The FDA regulates that a bottle of water can have no more than 5 ppb of lead, so bottled water is a safer option for concerned homeowners. For many, this cost is in addition to their water bill, which still may need to use for bathing, and washing dishes. Considering that Flint is often recognized for its poverty (in addition to being among the most dangerous cities in the United States), this burden is especially debilitating.

A Failed Response

After denying that the water in Flint presented a danger to its citizens for nearly two years while residents continuously complained about their water quality, Flint officials finally recognized the contamination problem. When trying to contain a public health epidemic such as this one, it’s important to know the scale of the problem. That seems like a pretty simple task– figure out which homes receive water from pipes made of lead, as those pipes are now corroded and cannot safely transmit water– but as with all things bureaucratic, it wasn’t nearly that simple.

The city government’s data on which houses are serviced by lead water lines was written down on 45,000 index cards stored in a filing cabinet in the city’s public utility building. In October of 2015, transferring this information into a digital spreadsheet was, according to Department of Public Works Director Howard Croft, “on our to-do list,” but only a quarter of the cards had been processed at that time.

Remember that $5 million number? That was the amount Flint expected to save with their water-source switch. The ultimate cost of that “money-saving” maneuver has been estimated at over $1.5 billion dollars by some, as officials evaluate the cost of completely renovating the Flint waterlines with lead-free pipes. That figure also doesn’t take into account any compensation for families and children affected by the contaminated water. The Governor of Michigan, Rick Snyder has now officially appealed to President Obama for a declaration of disaster and federal aid.

Whether Snyder and the state of Michigan receive the declaration and money they are hoping for, the damage to the people of Flint has already been done. Even as the water source is relocated, the lead pipes servicing Flint will still be compromised. A careless decision by local officials snowballed into a public health crisis of unprecedented scale in the area, and the youngest residents of Flint will pay the highest price.

Sean Simon

Sean Simon is an Editorial News Senior Fellow at Law Street, and a senior at The George Washington University, studying Communications and Psychology. In his spare time, he loves exploring D.C. restaurants, solving crossword puzzles, and watching sad foreign films. Contact Sean at SSimon@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post A Call for Help in Flint’s Toxic Water Emergency appeared first on Law Street.

Bobbi Kristina Brown, the daughter of late superstar Whitney Houston and singer Bobby Brown, died Sunday at the age of 22, a representative of the family said in a statement. The statement read:

Bobbi Kristina Brown passed away Sunday, July, 26 2015, surrounded by her family. She is finally at peace in the arms of God. We want to again thank everyone for their tremendous amount of love and support during these last few months.

She was treated in a hospital, and then an Atlanta-area hospice facility, nearly six months after she was found unresponsive and face down in the bathtub of her Rosewell, Georgia home. She was found on January 31, nearly three years to the day of her mother’s death.

Just days before she was found,Brown tweeted in excitement about new projects she was working on. So when she was found unresponsive just a few days later, it raised a lot of eyebrows for her friends, family, and fans.

https://twitter.com/REALbkBrown/status/561009982720983040

Now Brown’s death is being investigated as a homicide, with the 22-year-old’s boyfriend Nick Gordon as a suspect. Police officials are reportedly confident there was foul play involved.

Police had been called to Brown’s home on January 23 after someone reported a fight there, but no one answered the door, and officers found no evidence of an altercation. After first responders found injuries on Brown’s body when they discovered her, authorities launched a criminal investigation. A family friend said police questioned her live-in boyfriend, Nick Gordon, about her chest bruisings, and he told them it was a result of the CPR he gave her. There was also a history of violence reported between the couple.

Since Brown’s hospitalization in January, Gordon has allegedly gotten access to Brown’s account and stole more than $11,000. On July 12, Gordon reportedly was served with a $10 million lawsuit filed by Brown’s family on June 24. The lawsuit accuses Gordon of punching Brown in the face, and of controlling her finances after she was placed in a medically induced coma. Brown’s best friend, Alex Reid, opened up about Gordon’s alleged abuse on July 1. Reid said:

I don’t know when he started hitting her. But I know of at least four occasions when he struck her. She also told me about he had tried to choke her once. She was definitely scared. She had some friends, but not many. One time, I remember she called me for three hours. She was hyperventilating. I could barely understand what she was saying because she was so distraught. When she could finally get the words out, she told me he had been physically abusive. He had hit her in the face and thrown her against a wall.

After learning about the history, Brown’s family banned Gordon from visiting her while she was hospitalized and in hospice, even though he is distraught over the news of her death, according to one of Gordon’s close friends. The friend stated:

Even though Bobbi Kristina was in that condition, Nick always had hope that she would pull through […] All he wanted to do was see her, hold her hand, talk to her. He was not allowed to do that.

When Brown’s family learned that Gordon had abused her, they immediately cut off all ties. Gordon continuously claimed that he had nothing to do with her death, and is reportedly now on suicide watch because he is so broken up about her death. But police continue to investigate Brown’s homicide with Gordon as a primary suspect. An initial autopsy has not found an obvious cause of death, but a final ruling isn’t expected for several weeks. Whether or not Brown will actually be arrested or charged is most likely pending the results of that autopsy.

Angel Idowu

Angel Idowu is a member of the Beloit College Class of 2016 and was a Law Street Media Fellow for the Summer of 2015. Contact Angel at staff@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Bobbi Kristina Brown’s Death: Accident or Homicide? appeared first on Law Street.

Sandra Bland was found dead in a Texas jail cell from what authorities believe was suicide. But friends and family of the victim are outraged, and claim that she had no reason to take her own life. The entire story of her arrest and subsequent death raise a lot of questions about her treatment in the justice system.

“I do suspect foul play,” a friend, Cheryl Nanton, told ABC 7. “I believe that we are all 100 percent in belief that she did not do harm to herself.” Bland, 28, had just landed her dream job, when she was arrested for allegedly assaulting an officer, police said.

On June 29, Bland drove down to Texas from Illinois to begin a new job with her alma mater, Prairie View A&M. On July 10, police stopped Bland just outside of the school’s campus for failing to signal while changing lanes. Police officers claim that during this stop, Bland became combative, and was thrown to the ground, arrested, and charged with “assault on a public servant.”

But, the recently released video from the policeman’s dashboard camera show that the stop that led to her arrest was anything but routine.

While Bland is being combative in the above video, she had plenty of reason to be. The situation escalated rapidly–but her questioning of the police officer was valid. In these situations, people sometimes say the best thing to do is be polite and respectful to police officers so they have no reason to accuse you of anything, but that shouldn’t preclude someone who is pulled over from asking questions about the reason why. This was not a routine traffic stop, and that is very clear. He was extremely forceful with Bland, to the point where you can hear her wincing at the pain he is causing her. The video below captures their interaction after he removed her from the car and it doesn’t seem to get better.

“After he pulled her out of the car, forced her and tossed her to the ground, knee to the neck, and arrested her,” says her friend Malcom Jackson.

In the second video, Bland is heard saying, “You just slammed my head into the ground. Do you not even care about that? I can’t even hear!” Then, as she is taken into custody, she repeats, “You slammed me into the ground and everything.”

Reports claim that jailers saw Bland at 7 AM Monday when they gave her breakfast, and again at 8 AM when they spoke to her over the jail’s intercom about making a phone call. She was found in her cell one hour later. Waller County Sheriff’s Office Captain of Patrol Brian Cantrell claimed that Bland strangled herself with a jail cell trash bag. CPR was reportedly done immediately, but she was pronounced dead shortly after.

Waller County Sheriff Glenn Smith, who made the first public announcement about Bland’s death, was suspended for documented cases of racism when he was chief of police in Hempstead, Texas in 2007. After serving his suspension, more complaints of racism came in, and he was fired from this position shortly after. Smith made his way to Waller County, where he was then elected as sheriff of Waller county. While this connection to her death is not certain, there are questions about the role that her race could have played in the incident. 

Bland’s family held a news conference last Thursday afternoon in the Chicago Loop, but no details have been released. They are firm in their belief that foul play is suspected, and looking for answers. “She was planning for the future, and she came here to start for that future, so to say that she killed herself is totally absurd,” said her friend Lavaghn Mosley. 

But her friends and family are not the only ones who suspect something is amiss. With the popular hashtag #WhatHappenedtoSandraBland trending on Twitter, there are several people wondering what happened to Sandra Bland in that jail cell.

Reporters are working around the clock tonight to find out if Sandra Bland's babysitter's boyfriend's cousin ever broke a law. #SandraBland

— JRehling (@JRehling) July 16, 2015

Dear white people, any of you EVER been pulled over for a lane change? Did you end up dead? #SandraBland #WhatHappenedToSandraBland

— Jessica Fish (@Fishica) July 16, 2015

Don't tell me that #SandraBland could be my sister, friend, mother. It is enough that she was a human being! #WhatHappenedToSandraBland

— Ntombizikhona (@valavoosh) July 16, 2015

You stay. You run. You submit. You resist. It doesn't matter. They will kill you anyway. Your skin is black. #SandraBland #BlackLivesMatter

— Amarlie (@marabout40) July 16, 2015

These questions make a lot of sense, and Bland’s story does fit into the continued narrative of #BlackLivesMatter, because it highlights the way that our society continues to treat Black lives as lesser than others. What needs to happen to ensure that all of our citizens are safe when in the hands of the justice system? After all, it didn’t matter how loud Bland screamed, because she still wasn’t being heard.

Angel Idowu

Angel Idowu is a member of the Beloit College Class of 2016 and was a Law Street Media Fellow for the Summer of 2015. Contact Angel at staff@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post The Death of Sandra Bland: More Questions Than Answers appeared first on Law Street.

Date rape, also known as “acquaintance rape” or “hidden rape,” has been increasingly recognized as a problem in our society. A shocking study shows that 82 percent of sexual assaults are perpetrated by someone who is not a stranger, and 47 percent of rapes are by a friend or acquaintance. The tragic story of a woman in Montgomery County, Maryland who was recently raped and killed serves as a horrifying reminder of these statistics.

At 11:40 PM on Thursday, June 18th, a security guard at the Montgomery County Circuit Courthouse  in Rockville, Maryland witnessed a struggle between 16-year-old Marquiz Turner and a 19-year-old girl outside. The guard notified the sheriff’s deputies who went outside the building and allegedly saw Turner forcing sexual intercourse on the young woman. He was immediately taken into custody. According to court documents, the victim had gone to see a movie in downtown Rockville with her ex-boyfriend, Turner, on Friday night. When the film ended Turner expressed that he wanted to have sex with her and she told him she was not interested. As the two of them walked to the car, Turner allegedly ripped off her clothing, pushed her against the courthouse’s concrete wall, and proceeded to rape her. The charging documents stated, “when the Deputies rounded the corner and identified themselves, Turner jumped back and pulled his pants up.”

Detectives interviewed Turner, who did admit to forcing the victim to have sex with him. He stated that “he was unwilling to accept ‘no’ for an answer,” and that he was going to have intercourse regardless of her objections. According to the charging documents, he felt that she “owed him” sex. At the scene, the victim told police she had broken up with Turner previously because he kept pressuring her to have sex with him.

Paramedics transported the victim to Shady Grove Medical Center for a forensic rape exam. While en route, she stopped breathing and lost a pulse. Doctors pronounced her dead at 1 AM, less than 90 minutes after the alleged rape occurred. The official autopsy and toxicology results have not yet been released, leaving questions about the reason for her mysterious death. According to reports, Turner showed little to no emotion after hearing of the victim’s death.

Court documents show that Turner is a sophomore at Winston Churchill High School in Potomac, Maryland where he had a 3.7 GPA. He lived with his mother in a Silver Spring high-rise apartment building. Neighbor Felicia Charles expressed, “I’m very shocked. I think that’s disturbing. I would have never thought he would do something like that. He never gave off that vibe.” Jean Arthur, a counselor for victims of sexual abuse, said,

Unfortunately that thinking is pervasive. It’s just really sad that a person thinks they can do that to another person. The fact that a person at 16-years-old even thinks to do that, I mean it just boggles my mind. I completely don’t understand it.

Turner is currently being charged with second-degree rape, a felony that carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. Prosecutors say there may be additional charges depending on the deceased victim’s autopsy and toxicology reports.

Unfortunately sexual assault is one of the most underreported crimes, with an average of 39 percent being reported to the police each year. While this was a more high profile case, more attention does need to be brought to the pervasive issue of date rape.

Taelor Bentley

Taelor is a member of the Hampton University Class of 2017 and was a Law Street Media Fellow for the Summer of 2015. Contact Taelor at staff@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Maryland Woman’s Death Sheds Light on the Problem of Date Rape appeared first on Law Street.

Journalism can be an incredibly dangerous field. Last year 61 journalists were killed while covering topics such as war, crime, human rights, and politics. Everyday, journalists put themselves in danger to get the hard truth so that people can be informed of what is occurring in our world. As a result, campaigns such as A Day Without News were created to draw attention to the importance of journalism and those journalists that risk their lives on a daily basis.

The Newseum in Washington, DC put on a ceremony this morning recognizing 14 journalists who have died covering the news in 2014. For the first time in the Newseum’s history, no newspapers will be displayed in the “Today’s Front Pages” exhibit inside or outside of the building, or on its website. Instead, there are blacked-out pages featuring the hashtag #WithoutNews.

A world #WithoutNews would also leave us without knowledge, insight, and an understanding of how we are cogs in a greater machine @Newseum

— Kamahl Santamaria (@KamahlAJE) June 8, 2015

These 14 journalists have been selected to represent those who died in 2014, and will be placed among the other names on the memorial for fallen journalists. The “Today’s Front Pages” exhibit reaches more than 800,000 people who visit the Newseum annually. Through the museum’s website and mobile app, more than three million users visit “Today’s Front Pages” online every year. Displaying blacked-out front pages is a smart way to attract people’s attention and raise awareness of the increasing dangers of journalism. Peter S. Pritchard, chairman and CEO of the Newseum stated:

Part of our mission is to educate people about growing threats to journalists around the world. These blacked-out front pages vividly demonstrate what it means when journalists are murdered or kidnapped — we receive no news from some regions of the world. We hope the #WithoutNews campaign will encourage people to think about where news comes from, and to remember the brave men and women who often risk their lives to report it.

Newseum ceremony. Image courtesy of Angel Idowu.

One of these featured journalists is Michael Du Cille, a photojournalist for the Washington Post. Featured in the ceremony was a short summary honoring his life and work:

Despite the risks, Washington Post photographer Michael du Cille made three trips to Liberia in four months to photograph victims of the deadly Ebola virus. While hiking back from a remote village, du Cille collapsed from an apparent heart attack and was transported two hours across dirt roads to a hospital, where he was declared dead. He was 58. A three-time winner of the Pulitzer Prize for his powerful images, du Cille became the Post’s director of photography in 2007. But his passion for reporting drew him back into the field to cover dangerous assignments such as the war in Afghanistan, where he came under fire in 2013. The Ebola outbreak in West Africa has claimed the lives of more than 10,000 people.

The atmosphere was heavy, but I had the opportunity to speak with colleagues who worked with du Cille and spoke about the difference he worked to make.

“Michael was was so incredibly inspiring,” said Sari Horwitz, a staff writer for the Washington Post. “He was so dedicated to the work, it’s so sad to see a person so passionate about their work gone.”

It was easy to feel surprise and frustration for the lack of attention this campaign seemed to be receiving from the media, in comparison to the influx of other topics in the news, such as celebrity gossip.

Horowitz’s comments echoed that frustration, claiming Du Cille and all of the other fallen journalists  were the true heroes. She stated:

What’s so crazy about this is that these are the true heroes, and no one even knows their name. They sacrifice their lives every day to get the story out, but it’s still so sad to see his name be added to the list of fallen journalists here in the Newsuem.

The other thirteen journalists that were honored at today’s event include: Yusuf Ahmed Abukar of Radio Ergo and Mustaqbal Radio who died in Somalia; Muftah Bu Zeid of Brnieq who died in Libya; Simone Camilli of the Associated Press who died in Israel; James Foley, a freelancer who died in Syria; Rubylita Garcia of Remate and dwAD who died in the Philippines; Nils Horner of Sveriges Radio who died in Afghanistan; Camille Lepage, a freelancer who died in the Central Africa Republic; Irshad Mastoi of Online International News Network and ARY News who died in Pakistan; Pablo Medina of ABC Color who died in Paraguay; Anja Niedringhaus of the Associated Press who died in Afghanistan; Luke Somers, a freelancer who died in Yemen; Steven Sotloff, a freelancer who died in Syria; and Vyacheslav Veremiy of Vesti who died in Ukraine.

With a total of 61 journalist lives lost in 2014 alone, the efforts the Newseum and other news sources make to honor the lives of those who have worked to tell an important story are truly appreciated.

Angel Idowu also contributed to this story.

Taelor Bentley

Taelor is a member of the Hampton University Class of 2017 and was a Law Street Media Fellow for the Summer of 2015. Contact Taelor at staff@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post #WithoutNews: Newseum Raises Awareness of Fallen Journalists appeared first on Law Street.

Bruce Jenner, the Olympian and former patriarch of the Kardashian/Jenner clan, was involved in a car crash in Malibu, California yesterday. The four-car pile up left one driver dead and a few others with minor injuries. While it seems like the crash itself is a pretty routine, although tragic, reality of driving a car in the United States, there may be more to it than that.

The story is a sad one–a white Lexus stopped short in front of Jenner’s car on a road in Malibu after stopping to avoid another car in front of it. Apparently it was on a part of the road that is difficult to navigate. According to evidence from the scene of the accident, Jenner appeared to slam on the brakes in an attempt to avoid the Lexus; however, he wasn’t able to stop his car in time, and hit the back of the Lexus, pushing it into oncoming traffic. The Lexus was hit by a Hummer, and the resulting impact left the driver of the Lexus dead.

The Sheriff’s department has opened a vehicular manslaughter investigation. The department has said that everyone involved–including presumably, Jenner–is cooperating with the investigation.

There have been many rumors floating around about what exactly happened during the accident. Jenner is claiming that members of the paparazzi were following him; however, the police say that’s simply not true. In response to the paparazzi rumors, Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Lt. John Lecrivain said:

That is a very regular occurrence, and (there is) no indication at this time it was a contributing factor of the crash.

If Jenner was trying to get away from the paparazzi, it makes sense that he would be driving too close to the car in front of him, maybe trying to get around the Lexus, or just in a frustrated rush. There’s also the chance that it wasn’t a member of the paparazzi following him, but Jenner just thought the paparazzi was after him. In the age of smartphones and easy-to-access cameras, passersby could have seen Jenner and tried to grab pictures of him. In addition, Jenner has been in the news a lot lately–an amateur paparazzo could have fooled him.

There are also rumors that he may have been using his cell phone at the time of the crash. According to news reports earlier today, the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department started looking into Jenner’s phone records to see if he was texting and driving at the time of the collision; however, even if they do find something, it might be hard to prove that the phone played a factor. It’s difficult to determine if a phone was actually being used at the exact time of the collision.

Whether or not there will be any legal ramifications for Jenner remains to be seen. It’s obviously good that he’s cooperating with the police, but that doesn’t guarantee that he’ll come out scot-free. While it may have been a total accident, if there was anything that Jenner did that contributed to it, he may be on the hook.

Anneliese Mahoney

Anneliese Mahoney is Managing Editor at Law Street and a Connecticut transplant to Washington D.C. She has a Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs from the George Washington University, and a passion for law, politics, and social issues. Contact Anneliese at amahoney@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Will There Be Legal Charges for Bruce Jenner After Car Crash? appeared first on Law Street.

No one knows what happens when we die, and we never will. Some believe in an afterlife, some think death is just eternal darkness, and some believe that our spirits reincarnate into another body. We have no idea what belief is right, but I think we can all agree that death is terrifying. Which is why I would never wish it on anyone.

Earlier this week, actress and comedian Joan Rivers passed away at the age of 81. Thousands have voiced their opinions on the late comedian, calling her a “trailblazer,” “one of a kind,” and a “mentor.” While all these might well be true, let’s not forget that Joan Rivers was also a bitch.

Before she died, Joan Rivers was recorded on camera saying that Palestinians “deserved to die,” because they elected Hamas into power. In her short rant she manages to degrade a whole society by stating “they were told to get out, you don’t get out then you know you’re an idiot. And at least the ones that were killed were the ones with very low IQs.” Watch the statement below.

It’s one thing to be open and frank, but it’s another to be rude and offensive. When you’re as big of a star as Joan Rivers was you have to realize that your voice reaches the masses. You have to realize that you have a duty to be vigilant about what you say and when you say it. Because for some reason Joan, people looked up to you. And contrary to what you might think, innocent people who refuse to leave a place that they call home, do not deserve to die.

Apart from Gaza, the late actress managed to offend the President of the United States and the First Lady by calling President Obama “gay,” and the First Lady a “tranny.” She offended Heidi Klum, Germans, and Jews with her concentration camp joke. She attacked celebrity baby North West saying she was in need of a waxing, and British singer Adele with the tweet below.

Congratulations to Adele on the birth of her 68 pound 8 ounces bouncing baby boy.

— Joan Rivers (@Joan_Rivers) October 22, 2012

Yes, Rivers had her funny moments. Yes, she had an illustrious career in television and comedy. Yes, she helped pave the way for women in media. But I personally think that her disregard for people, her outlandish statements, and her brute stubbornness overshadows all of that.

We tend to hold celebrities in a higher regard than we should. If Joan Rivers was your teacher, would you respect her? If she called your baby fat or ugly, would you still adore her? If she called your husband gay or your wife a tranny, would you still think she was funny? I refuse to let her off the hook just because she was famous. I refuse to respect anyone who says innocent people deserve to die. I refuse to like celebrities just because they are celebrities. I am sorry that she died, and my condolences go out to her family. But let’s not act like we lost Mother Teresa.

Mic Drop

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Trevor Smith (@TSmith1211) is a homegrown DMVer studying Journalism and Graphic Design at American University. Upon graduating he has hopes to work for the US State Department so that he can travel, learn, and make money at the same time.

 Featured image courtesy of [Steve Rhodes via Flickr]

Trevor Smith

Trevor Smith is a homegrown DMVer studying Journalism and Graphic Design at American University. Upon graduating he has hopes to work for the US State Department so that he can travel, learn, and make money at the same time. Contact Trevor at staff@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Stop Glorifying Undeserving Celebrities Like Joan Rivers When They Die appeared first on Law Street.

Childhood and adult obesity is highly reported as a growing epidemic in the United States, yet less often do we hear of the negative psychological and physical ramifications of eating disorders. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, anorexia nervosa is the most fatal mental disorder, “[with] an estimated mortality rate of around 10 percent.” According to the National Eating Disorder Association, “20 million women and 10 million men [in the United States] suffer from a clinically significant eating disorder at some time in their life.” Although these types of disorders may not always be obvious, they are taking a toll on many young Americans who suffer in silence until it is too late.

What is an eating disorder?

An eating disorder is a life consuming mental illness that forces an individual to consciously diet or consume to an extreme, detrimental point. People who are affected by an eating disorder constantly obsess over calories, food, and their body weight. In the case of anorexia, the person limits his or her calorie intake to an extremely low and unhealthy number and adheres to a strict diet only consisting of “safe” foods. An individual with bulimia binges until he or she is uncomfortably full, then purges by vomiting. These disorders cause serious physical and psychological damage and can ultimately result in death. They are fueled by personal angst, trauma, and are essentially a way to cope with negative feelings, including personality disorders such as Obsessive Compulsive and extreme perfectionist tendencies. Eating disorders go beyond the surface desire of wanting to be thin. If left untreated through cognitive therapy and support, eating disorders will progressively consume the victim, until his or her entire life revolves around appeasing this internally violent illness.

What is a Pro-Ana/Mia website?

A Pro-Ana/Mia website is a public forum on which people, the majority of whom are women, with eating disorders share tips for maintaining an anorexic or bulimic lifestyle. Members share diet, beauty, and fitness tips that revolve around the theme of being thin. Discussions are not all illogical, yet the majority of them are fueled by the intense desire to remain in control, with the ultimate goal of reaching the most emaciated state possible. The sites often feature photographs of extremely thin people whose bones protrude and bodies that appear sick and gaunt. According to Children’s Mercy Hospital and Clinics, “there are now over 400 pro-ana/mia websites.” These sites encourage people to embrace their disorders as a lifestyle and assure victims that they are not abnormal or alone in their choice to live with an eating disorder. They promote and enhance the typically negative image that eating disorders support. Woman offer each other support to fuel the disorder, continuously telling it that the body is not (and never will) be thin enough. According to the National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders characteristics of a pro-ana site include:

• The glamorization/idolization of images of emaciated or very thin individuals

• The implication that food and weight are the enemy

• Encouragement and teaching of dangerous eating disorder behaviors

• Promotion of thinness at any cost, denial of the seriousness of the illness

• Insistence that eating disorders are choices rather than illnesses

• Attempts to mask toxicity by being exclusive and elite

What the investigative report below on the dangers of pro-anorexic (pro-ana) and pro-bulimia (pro-mia) websites.

Do Pro-Ana/Mia Websites constitute free speech?

Eating disorders continue to carry a negative connotation despite their increasing popularity among teens and young women. This doesn’t stop women from openly spilling their diet and exercise secrets, no matter how extreme and unhealthy. The pro-ana maxim is “thinspiration.” Girls motivate one another to maintain their eating disorders and are virtually assisting each other in a prolonged suicide.

This information is accessible to children. Girls mature faster than boys and are susceptible to the influence of their peers as early as the age of eight. If curiosity about weight loss becomes appealing, the individual has this controversial information right at her fingertips. Proponents of the movement feel that if these websites are not censored they will continue to corrupt youth and increase eating disorders among younger generations.

Watch the video below of four recovered women sharing the harm Pro-ana/mia websites can inflict on someone struggling with an eating disorder.

According to Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Right, “[The right of freedom of expression may] be subject to certain restrictions…For the protection…of public order or of public health or morals.”  Pro-Ana/Mia websites portray anorexia and bulimia in a positive light and increase the likelihood of individuals who view them developing an eating disorder. This could be considered a danger to the overall public health, and gives government the incentive to block or censor them.

Pro-Ana supporters argue that the “thinspiration” movement gives individuals the opportunity to gain support and share tips with others who are experiencing the same thing, yet all of the exchanges on these sites seem to be negative. People motivate one another by saying things like they need lose more weight, and giving them tips on how to achieve that dream state of being virtually weightless and emaciated. The sites lack any positive effect on the community or individuals suffering with an illness. Therefore, they have little to argue regarding their need to stay accessible to the general public or their effect on the community.

Case Study: Valerie Boyer’s Bill (Ban on Pro-Ana)

A short clip from the documentary about the pro-anorexia movement in France, and the legislation to make it illegal:

France passed legislation in 2008 outlawing the portrayal of extreme thinness in the media as a desirable or positive trait. Additionally, Valerie Boyer, a  right-wing member of the lower house of Parliament, created a bill to enforce the elimination of Pro-Ana websites. The bill called for media outlets to face potential fines and possible jail time if they embraced the message that emaciation and eating disorders are attractive. The bill did not pass, yet it helped to draw more attention to the issue and awareness in both France and the United States has been increasing since the proposal. In the United States, servers such as Yahoo have worked to ban several pro-anorexia websites from their server.

Case Study: Social Media Bans Pro-Ana

In an effort to stop the glamorization of eating disorders throughout social media, Instagram, Pinterest, and Tumblr all updated their policies in 2012 to ban some of the attention that pro-ana websites receive online. Tumblr issued a statement outlining its plan to eliminate blogs that actively promote self-harm. If a user types in a trigger word such as “anorexia” on Tumblr, instead of receiving diet tips or images of emaciated models, a message urging you to seek assistance will appear. On Pinterest, although pro-anorexia images still exist  upon searching “anorexia”, results are displayed below the following message:

“Eating disorders are not lifestyle choices, they are mental disorders that if left untreated can cause serious health problems or could even be life-threatening. For treatment referrals, information, and support, you can always contact the National Eating Disorders Association Helpline at 1-800-931-2237 or www.nationaleatingdisorders.org”

Although more passive in nature, this message is meant to urge the user to recognize the dangers of the disorder, and to seek professional support as oppose to the negative motivation from others who suffer from a similar illness.

Instagram issued a new policy, to eliminate the promotion of self-harm on Instagram. The policy reads:

“Don’t promote or glorify self-harm:

1. “While Instagram is a place where people can share their lives with others through photographs and videos, any account found encouraging or urging users to embrace anorexia, bulimia, or other eating disorders; or to cut, harm themselves, or commit suicide will result in a disabled account without warning. We believe that communication regarding these behaviors in order to create awareness, come together for support and to facilitate recovery is important, but that Instagram is not the place for active promotion or glorification of self-harm.”

Instagram does not follow through with its former ban. When searching “anorexia” on Instagram, results display a long list of users who share photos of their gaunt collarbones, protruding hips, and non-existent  thighs. One photo, under the user “anorexianervosa_depression,” reads:

“Call it a sickness, call it an obsession, I don’t care, I call it perfection.”

There have been petitions to eliminate “thinspiration” tags on Twitter, yet when searched several photographs of overtly thin thighs and tiny waists appear. On Facebook, pages such as “Anorexia Tips” are easily accessible to anyone with an account. To see how websites measured up to their policy proposals, Buzzfeed compiled a list of all of social media sites efforts to ban pro-ana, and graded them based on how effectively they have eliminated the “thinspiration” movement across the web. Most of the sites received a low grade, in that most of them still permit much of the pro-anorexia community’s antics and do little to stop the community from continuing to infiltrate the social media stream.

Users have discovered loopholes. The bans do not necessarily stop users from continuing to post pro-ana material; in order to remain accessible, users can simply use different taglines in order for the material to appear when searched.The only way to truly minimize the value of the “thinspiration” movement is for people to stop liking the material, then it will eventually fade away.

Social media platforms run into some problems when they ban one type of body fad and not others, such as body building. Any extreme body manipulation could be considered a dangerous mental illness, therefore singling out a specific movement could cause the networks freedom of speech problems. To consider one group more dangerous than another becomes constitutionally complicated in that one group should not be favored over the other if they all do pose a potential threat to society. Eating disorders can be a very subjective experience and the line between the sharing of a personal experience and advocating for a disease is very thin. If pro-ana sites were to be censored or banned, would people who are simply telling their story be penalized?

The battle to remove these sites rages on between concerned medical experts and parents; yet pro-ana reigns on as a form of freedom of speech, and will continue to taint the minds of eating-disordered individuals until they are stopped.

Resources

Primary

DHS of Iowa: Pro-Anorexia/Pro-Bulimia Websites: A Dangerous Influence

Additional

ANAD: Eating Disorders and the Internet

Sociology of Health and Illness: Pro-anorexia, weight-loss drugs and the internet: an ‘anti-recovery’ explanatory model of anorexia

The New York Times: French legislators approve law against Web sites encouraging anorexia and bulimia

About Kids Health: Starved for attention: pro-anorexia websites glorify eating disorders

Body Space Society: Banning Pro-ANA Websites? NOt a Good Idea, As Web Censorship Might Have a ‘Toothpaste Tube Effect’

CBS: Despite social media bans of “pro-ana” websites, pages persist

Huffington Post: Why Blocking ‘Pro-Ana’ Sites Is a Bad Idea

Johns Hopkins University: Study Examines Pro-Anorexia and Pro-Bulimia Websites

Eating Disorders Recovery Today: Call to Ban Pro-Ana Websites

The New York Times: Point, Shoot, Retouch and Label?

PBS: Fighting social media ‘thinspiration’ with messages of self-acceptance

ABC: Pro-Anorexia ‘Thinspiration’ Photos Shouldn’t Be Banned from Social Media

Huffington Post: Can Thinspiration Really Be #Banned From Instagram?

 Debate: Should pro-anorexia websites be censored?

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Madeleine Stern (@M3estern) is a student at George Mason University majoring in Journalism and minoring in Theater. Her writing on solitary confinement inspired her to pursue a graduate degree in clinical counseling after graduation. Madeleine is an avid runner, dedicated animal lover, and a children’s ballet instructor. Contact Madeleine at staff@LawStreetMedia.com.

Featured image courtesy of [Evelina Zachariou via Flickr]

Madeleine Stern

Madeleine Stern attended George Mason University majoring in Journalism and minoring in Theater. Her writing on solitary confinement inspired her to pursue a graduate degree in clinical counseling after graduation. Madeleine is an avid runner, dedicated animal lover, and a children’s ballet instructor. Contact Madeleine at staff@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Bones Are (Not) Better: The Battle to Ban Pro-Ana Websites appeared first on Law Street.

“A friend who dies, it’s something of you who dies.” – Gustave Flaubert

Death is serious, and in contemporary times, social media companies must choose how to incorporate the major life event into their platforms. A sense exists that death, so heavy a subject, must be treated differently; normal commercial interests should subside and companies should develop their policies appropriate for its gravity. The choice of how to deal with death is not self-evident. Social media sites have many options: they can abolish deceased person’s site; leave the site in the state it existed just before the deceased person died; or create some alternative site format for those who have passed away. The choice requires a near-philosophical inquiry into how the platform can best deal with the gravity of death.

Facebook recently decided to change their policy regarding deceased users, and some feel it was done in a duplicitous and covert fashion.

The policy change weakened the privacy settings applied to those who pass away. For deceased Facebook users who had open privacy settings prior to their death, Facebook now allows their pages to remain accessible to the public at large. This is a departure from their previous policy, which restricted access to friends only following a user’s death.

This decision has important privacy considerations. For example, the average Facebook user changes his or her privacy settings throughout the his or her time on the site. Why should the privacy settings utilized right before a user’s death be immortalized for all time? Couldn’t Facebook have allowed users to make the decision of their privacy settings in the case of death? What gives Facebook the right to make that decision?

Instead of addressing this policy change head on, Facebook decided to write about it in a post entitled, “Remembering our Loved Ones.” The title appears too sentimental to merely apply to the shift in privacy rights. Instead, the post also deals with a new feature that Facebook now makes available to family members of a deceased Facebook user: the “Look Back” life montage video.

But was Facebook really being sincere? Two separate issues are being conflated. In Facebook’s post, the company seemingly couched a significant privacy policy change under an appealing and overwhelmingly correct decision to create a “Look Back” video. While these both relate with death, I wonder if they necessarily needed to be mentioned in the same post? Did Facebook exploit the tear-jerker YouTube video to obfuscate any potential backlash movement against the softening of user privacy?

An analysis of the Facebook post illuminates a potential calculating craftiness regarding how they reveal their information about the diminishing privacy rights.

1. The post begins by writing about the company’s commitment to improving user experience and how users contact Facebook to memorialize the accounts of deceased loved ones.

As members of Facebook’s Community Operations team, we talk to people who use Facebook every day and we’re committed to making their experience better. Some of the people who reach out to us are grieving the death of a friend or family member, and they usually ask for their loved one’s timeline to be memorialized.

2. The post then delves into the fact that the company seriously contemplates the issue of how to deal with the death of a Facebook user. They acknowledge that such questions have “no easy answer” and they wonder if they are “honoring the wishes” of the deceased.

3. Then, they finally introduce their discussion about the change in privacy policy.

We’ve decided to make an important change to how we preserve legacies on Facebook. Up to now, when a person’s account was memorialized, we restricted its visibility to friends-only… Starting today, we will maintain the visibility of a person’s content as-is. This will allow people to see memorialized profiles in a manner consistent with the deceased person’s expectations of privacy. We are respecting the choices a person made in life while giving their extended community of family and friends ongoing visibility to the same content they could always see.

Notably, the “important change” referenced was not described as an important change in privacy rights, but as an important change in how the company “preserves legacies on Facebook.” The company uses softer word choice to distract from what is actually happening.

Death deserves frank speech, but Facebook seems to evade the discussion. Facebook states that the policy change will respect the deceased person’s “expectations of privacy,” but does not substantiate why. Rather, the company merely announces that they are respecting the choices a person made in life. This is spurious reasoning. When a Facebook user makes a privacy change while alive, the user does not contemplate their death and the fact that such a setting might still apply at that time. They do not connect why a person’s decisions while alive reflect what he or she would want when deceased.

Instead of probing deeper into the issue, the rest of the post introduces the agreeable, supportable “Look Back” video policy. The new feature has little connection with the change in privacy settings and takes the reader away from the issue. The universally appealing feature is sandwiched between privacy changes with suspect reasoning and artful dodging of the issue.

I do not necessarily disagree with the change in policy, but I find it disconcerting that Facebook employs skilled writing techniques to avoid a frank discussion on the issue. Humans generally drop all guises in the midst of death. Social media sites should do the same. Facebook argues that their new policy is consistent with a user’s “expectation of privacy,” but they present the change in a manner inconsistent with a user’s “expectation” of honesty.

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Imran Ahmed is a writer living in New York City whose blog explores the legal implications of social media and the internet. Contact him via email here.

Featured image courtesy of [Tim Wayne via Flickr]

Imran Ahmed

Imran Ahmed is a writer living in New York. Contact Imran at staff@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Facebook Controls Your Privacy Settings Even After You Die appeared first on Law Street.