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The Graphic Truth: UN personnel in peril
In just one month, the fighting in Gaza has claimed more UN aid workers' lives than any previous conflict. Since Oct. 7, at least 89 UNRWA personnel, the major UN humanitarian aid force in the region, have been killed. In total, 131 UN aid workers have died in the Gaza Strip in 2023. UN leaders are calling for an immediate ceasefire and expansion of humanitarian access to Gaza, emphasizing the need to protect civilians and vital infrastructure and to ensure the safe and swift delivery of essential aid.
But Israel remains unswayed by their calls and mounting international pressure for a ceasefire, saying hostages taken by Hamas militants should be released first.The Graphic Truth: More disabled Americans are working and studying
How well does the world’s largest economy offer opportunities to those with disabilities? For National Disability Employment Awareness Month, we delved into the data from the Census Bureau’s annual American Community Survey to find out.
The good news? Over the last decade, the one in 10 Americans with physical, developmental, or intellectual disabilities have made major progress in finding full-time employment and graduating from university.
The share of Americans aged 21-64 with at least one disability who held full-time employment rose from 20.9% in 2010 to 26.9% in 2021. Simultaneously, the share of the same demographic who hold at least a Bachelor’s degree grew from 12.2% to 17.9%. Both are the highest numbers on record since comparable data collection began in 2008.
America’s progress on tertiary education for people with disabilities is particularly laudable given that disability rights activist Eddie Ndopu recently told GZERO that 98% of children with disabilities in the developing world “never see the inside of a classroom.”
But many systemic barriers remain. According to the Center for American Progress, people with disabilities are too often the employees of last resort – the first out in a recession and the last in during boom times – which CAP says “showcases the persistence of systemic ableism in the labor market.” Indeed, Census Bureau data shows that full-time employment rates for people with disabilities cratered during the 2008 financial crisis and did not recover until 2019 – about four years behind the job market for the general population.
Income-based limits on government benefits are also a problem. CAP says programs including Supplemental Security Income, Medicaid, and Social Security Disability Insurance — without which millions of people with disabilities and their families would have no way to afford the medical care and social work support they need — “cut off support or result in penalization if even the most basic economic security is reached.” That means Americans who are ready and willing to work full-time must deliberately seek part-time work to avoid earning money that would result in losing the support they depend on to survive.The Graphic Truth: Indians hold 40% of Canadian student visas
The fallout from allegations that India was behind the assassination of Hardeep Singh Nijjar has thrown Indo-Canadian relations into the lurch. Each side has expelled a diplomat from the other, and India’s Embassy in Canada stopped processing visas – a serious diplomatic gesture, no doubt, but the material impacts are likely to be small. Only around 80,000 Canadians visited India in 2021 out of more than 1.5 million foreign tourists.
But if Canada responds in kind, it will be a very different story. Indian students represent a staggering 40% of the 807,000 foreign student visa holders in Canada, more than every other nationality combined save China. The number of Indians studying in the Great White North skyrocketed from just 2,210 in 2000 to 171,505 in 2018 — also the year Indian students first outnumbered Chinese students. Their population has since nearly doubled, and Indian students now represent approximately 0.8% of the entire population of Canada.
Here’s the twist: Even before the row over Nijjar’s murder, Canada was seriously considering capping student visas. The country is in the midst of a severe housing shortage, and efforts to alleviate the situation are falling short. The province of Ontario needs to build around 150,000 new houses every year for the next several years to rectify the situation — and they’re managing around 40,000. Capping the number of foreign students competing for limited housing might be politically expedient, but it would be a devastating blow to the Canadian universities that depend upon international tuition rates.
The Graphic Truth: How old is US Congress
Recent headlines of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, 81, struggling to speak and Sen. Dianne Feinstein, 90, appearing confused in hearings have left some Americans concerned that their leaders are staying in power past their prime.
In Congress, baby boomers and the Silent Generation make up 54% of all members. The Senate’s median age, 65.3, has risen by three years since 2017, while the House’s dropped slightly from 58.4 to 57.9. In 2023, the first Gen Z representative was elected, joining the ranks of 13 others under the age of 35.
The Democratic Party skews older, with 17 House members from the Silent Generation compared to five across the aisle. This is likely because Democrats value seniority in committee leadership positions and don’t have term limits like the Republicans.
These age concerns go beyond health and mental fitness; they question whether a gerontocratic government will adequately prioritize slow-moving crises, from climate change to mounting federal debt, whose consequences aren’t immediate but will shape the future for younger generations.
Racial makeup of undergraduate students in the U.S. (2010-2021)
The Graphic Truth: Hispanic college enrollment has surged
September 15 marked the beginning of Hispanic Heritage Month, and as the United States enters a new era in college admissions following the Supreme Court’s decision to strike down race-based affirmative action protections this summer, many worry that the new rules could hurt the chances of aspiring students from traditionally marginalized communities.
New data from the Department of Education indicates the number of Hispanic students grew nearly 30% between 2010 and 2021, and made up over a fifth of the enrolled student body in 2021. Hispanic people as a whole were one of the fastest growing demographic groups in the U.S. at the time, accounting for more than half of the total population increase between 2010 and 2020. Here’s a look at racial makeup of undergraduate students in the U.S. over the last several years.