Bono has a message for the U.S. Congress: Thanks for ignoring President Donald Trump. Trump has sought to slash hundreds of millions of dollars from U.S. funding for AIDS programs at home and abroad, but the U2 frontman says members of Congress “have so far turned down this president’s request …

Tina Benawre’s paintings are made to be felt, as well as seen. The Kenyan-based artist uses Braille in her artwork so her pieces can be experienced by the visually impaired. VOA’s Mariama Diallo reports. …

Cuban-American singer Camila Cabello was the big winner at the MTV EMAs gala in Spain on Sunday, while Janet Jackson used her acceptance speech for a life-time achievement award to take a stand for women’s rights. Jackson was honored with the Global Icon Award for her four-decade, 11-album career that …

By the time Mary Keitany was pacing her way up Manhattan’s First Avenue, she had no reason to look back for challengers. The Kenyan’s lead was growing over the strong women’s field with every stride, and all she thought about was the finish line. Lelisa Desisa of Ethiopia didn’t break …

A new exhibition in Los Angeles is celebrating the U.S. cult of custom cars and art culture. “Auto-Didactic: The Juxtapoz School” features art, fashion and vehicles that represent the custom culture of the “hot rod” era that began in Southern California in the 1960s. VOA’s Julie Taboh has more. …

When you think of art, you may imagine paints, brushes and a spacious studio with canvasses. But for a Los Angeles man, creating art means being out in the sun, accompanied by a magnifying glass, a mirror and a piece of wood. VOA’s Genia Dulot met with the sunlight artist. …

Information in this article is confirmed with other sources and may be used without attribution to the Associated Press in broadcasts — websites still must use the attribution. The News Center has no plans at this time to match it.    Trumpeter Roy Hargrove, a prolific player who provided his jazz sound …

El Cajon, California, is home to a large number of Iraqi Chaldean Christians. Over the past nearly two decades, the Chaldean population in California has become a thriving immigrant community. But many say their hearts and minds are still with their home country of Iraq. VOA Kurdish Service’s Yahya Barzinji …

A federal judge in Boston heard closing arguments Friday in a highly publicized lawsuit alleging that elite Harvard discriminates against Asian-Americans. Much of the spotlight has been on affluent Chinese-Americans with stellar academic scores who say the college rejects Asians in favor of lesser-qualified applicants. They say factoring in race …

Everything about the city of Barrow, Alaska, is special. The northern-most city in the U.S., it is home to indigenous carvers, fishermen, researchers and teachers doing their best to preserve the native Inupiaq language. But at the center of Inupiat culture is the whale: It is its food, its symbol, …

The road to riches in the United States can take many routes. Amazon’s Jeff Bezos became a billionaire 132 times over by creating a business few would have conceived of just 25 years ago. Thanks to his mammoth online marketplace, Bezos is not only Washington State’s wealthiest resident, but also …

We tend to think of opera singers as a voluptuous breed: it’s not over until the fat lady sings, or so the old saying goes. But as star soprano Lisette Oropesa knows all too well, directors are increasingly pressuring female stars into losing weight. Back in 2005, the Cuban-American singer …

Thirty-year-old Shamsia Hassani is widely recognized as Afghanistan’s first, if not only, female graffiti artist. Being a graffiti artist anywhere in the world is a challenge, but in war-torn Kabul, it carries its own unique difficulties. An invitation to an Istanbul cartoon and street art festival allowed Hassani to share …

The director of a viral rap video that has racked up tens of millions of views on YouTube with lyrics flaying Thailand’s military junta says the artists behind it have no intention of hiding from police.  Since the junta, led by Prayut Chan-o-cha, seized power in a coup four years ago and …

Rafael Nadal pulled out of his second-round match at the Paris Masters on Wednesday because of an abdominal problem, meaning Novak Djokovic will reclaim the No. 1 ranking next week. Nadal was returning from a right knee injury which forced him to retire from the U.S. Open semifinals, but took …

Three weeks after a bizarre White House meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump, rapper Kanye West said on Tuesday he was distancing himself from politics. West, Trump’s biggest celebrity supporter, also sought to distance himself from a new campaign that encourages black Americans to quit the Democratic Party. …

A jittery New York will celebrate Halloween on Wednesday with the city’s police department planning on being out in force as precaution, a year after the holiday was marred by a deadly truck attack. Thousands of uniformed and plainclothes officers will be on hand for the city’s big Halloween parade …

Beyonce is in a 1990’s mood as she salutes singer Toni Braxton for Halloween. Beyonce appears on Instagram in a pixie wig, leather jacket, white tank top and jeans to re-create Braxton’s 1993 album, which she labeled Phoni Braxton. In the last of the three images, Beyonce writes: “Sending love …

Clues to America’s past can be found in its ghost towns, once bustling communities that have been abandoned. The deserted communities show us how the Industrial Revolution and two World Wars shaped the history of the United States, according to Geotab, a telematics company (think global positioning and vehicle tracking), …

The Pistol Annies’ sassy new song about reclaiming singlehood called “Got My Name Changed Back” has raised some eyebrows for its lyrics about a husband who cheats while on the road and prompted speculation about who might have inspired it.   The trio of Miranda Lambert, Angaleena Presley and Ashley …

Kids – and a lot of adults – around the country are counting the hours left until they can celebrate the spookiest night of the year – Halloween. But some folks prefer not to wait – celebrations, parties and events dedicated to All Hallows’ Eve are in full swing. Maxim …

Jimmy Page once painted a dragon, and used it to slay. The guitar guru was so bursting with creative inspiration 50 years ago that he felt compelled to pick up a brush and use his skills from art school to take poster paints to his favorite instrument, a 1959 Fender …

The Nutcracker, the beloved holiday season tale of toys that come to life, moves from the ballet stage to the big screen in an action-adventure story being released Friday by the Walt Disney Co. In Disney’s The Nutcracker and the Four Realms, Mackenzie Foy stars as 14-year-old Clara, a girl …

With the pressure of the lead role on him for the first time, Lucas Hedges was hearing voices. Vivid movie-critic voices.   “I would hear reviews in my head that were like: ‘It appears as if Hedges has nothing going on in his inner life. In what should be a …

Nobel Prize Winner Malala Yousafzai is being honored by Harvard University for her work promoting girls’ education. Harvard’s Kennedy School says Yousafzai will be awarded the 2018 Gleitsman Award at a Dec. 6 ceremony. Yousafzai became the youngest person to win the Nobel Peace Prize in 2014 when she was recognized …