Author: WHES

How poverty taxes the brain

Human mental bandwidth is finite. You’ve probably experienced this before (though maybe not in those terms): When you’re lost in concentration trying to solve a problem like a broken computer, you’re more likely to neglect other tasks, things like remembering to take the dog for a walk, or picking your kid up from school. This is why people who use cell phones behind the wheel actually perform worse as drivers. It’s why air traffic controllers focused on averting a mid-air collision are less likely to pay attention to other planes in the sky.

Low wage workers are older than you think: 88 percent of workers who would benefit from a higher minimum wage are over 20, one-third are over 40

It is a common myth that very low-wage workers—workers who would see a raise if the minimum wage were increased—are mostly teenagers. The reality is that raising the federal minimum wage to $10.10 per hour would primarily benefit older workers. Eighty-eight percent of workers who would be affected by raising the minimum wage are at least 20 years old, and a third of them are at least 40 years old.

Travel guide for African Americans, civil rights activists pointed way to 1963 march. During the Jim Crow era, laws restricted black Americans from patronizing gas stations, restaurants and hotels

African Americans traveling to the nation’s capital on the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington will need little more than a GPS device to find their way. But 50 years ago, they might have needed a book to navigate through the racial prejudice of the times.

They fear us because we are fearless: Reclaiming indigenous lands and strength in Honduras

“Honduras has been known for two things only: being a military base for the [contra] attacks on the Nicaraguan revolution, and Hurricane Mitch.” So said Berta Caceres, co-founder and general coordinator of the Civic Council of Popular and Indigenous Organizations of Honduras (COPINH by its Spanish acronym). COPINH is an organization of hundreds of communities of Lenca indigenous peoples and small farmers.

Syria records its millionth child refugee. UNICEF says the global community has failed in its responsibility to the children displaced by the violence in Syria.

The Syria crisis reached another grim milestone as UN aid agencies reported that the number of registered child refugees had reached 1 million, most of whom were under 11. Within the country, more than 2 million children have been displaced, they said.