Top 5 Current Events for a Zillennial

1. Ukraine-Russia Tensions

On February 24th, Russia fired missiles on Ukraine and captured the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. This comes immediately after Russian President Vladimir Putin declared war on Ukraine in a televised speech. Ukraine is now battling Russia along three sides of their borders. Ukranians have began to hide out in abandoned subways as bomb shelters and have fled their homes to find safety. Putin has recognized two Ukraine regions as allies and has decided to spare them. Ukraine and Russia have had a conflict brewing since 2014.

2. Havana Syndrome

In 2016, multiple United States embassy employees working in Havana fell ill with a spontaneous illness. The illness had no name and victims would suffer from a popping feeling in their head, giving them symptoms of tinnitus, pain in one or both ears, sudden loud noises, feeling of pressure or vibrations in the head, vertigo and other sight problems, nausea, cognitive difficulties, sleep deprivation, fatigue, and dizziness. In 2017, military and intelligence personnel developed the same symptoms while in China, New Delhi, parts of Europe, and Washington, D.C.. The U.S. Department of State has been referring to this as “unexplained health incidents”. In January 2022, the CIA came forward with an intelligence assessment claiming Havana Syndrome is caused by specific attacks from foreign countries against the United States. Foreign involvement could not be ruled out after there

two year long investigation, though there is no concrete evidence this was caused by any force in particular.

3. Supreme Court Nominee Chosen

On February 25th, President Joe Biden announced his Supreme Court Nominee after a month of deliberation. Biden has chosen attorney Ketanji Brown Jackson to be the next member of the Supreme Court. Biden kept his promise that he would nominate the first female African American to the Supreme Court. Jackson is currently serving as a judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Jackson will hopefully replace Supreme Court Justice Steohen Breyer. Breyer announced retirement earlier this year on January 26, 2022. Breyer served on the Supreme Court for 27 years after being sworn in by Bill Clinton in 1994.

4. End of Covid-19 Restrictions in England

On February 21, 2022, Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced the end of Covid-19 restrictions in England a day after Queen Elizabeth II tested positive for the virus. Johnson has decided the country will learn to “live with Covid”. The legal requirement to self-isolate after testing positive for Covid-19 will end on February 24 though the government still advises people to stay home. By April 1st, the country will stop providing free rapid tests to the public. Lastly, they will phase out financial help the public was receiving from the government.

5. Ahmaud Arbery

Two years after Ahmaud Arbery was murdered in Glenn County, Georgia while jogging, justice was served. Travis and Gregory McMicheal, and William Bryan gunned down Arbery in February of 2020. In a state trial, all three men were found guilty and sentenced. Travis and Gregory McMicheal were sentenced to life imprisonment with no parole and an additional 20 years. William Bryan was sentenced to life imprisonment with the possibility of parole after 30 years. In a federal hate crime trial, all three men were found guilty on February 22, 2022. As of now, no sentencing date has been set.