Texas Weekly Online

Texas-trans-white
Menu
Menu

Year: 2025

Djokovic-led tennis players’ union files lawsuit against professional tours

Djokovic-led tennis players’ union files lawsuit against professional tours

The Professional Tennis Players Association (PTPA) has filed a lawsuit against the sport’s governing bodies, accusing them of anti-competitive practices and a disregard for player welfare. The PTPA, an independent players’ union co-founded by Novak Djokovic in 2019, said on Tuesday that after years of good-faith efforts to reform professional tennis, it had been forced to take legal action to end “monopolistic control” of the sport. It said in a statement that, along with more than a dozen players, the PTPA had filed papers in a New York court against the ATP Tour, the WTA Tour, the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA). “Tennis is broken,” Ahmad Nassar, executive director of the PTPA, said in the statement. “Behind the glamorous veneer that the defendants promote, players are trapped in an unfair system that exploits their talent, suppresses their earnings, and jeopardises their health and safety. “We have exhausted all options for reform through dialogue, and the governing bodies have left us no choice but to seek accountability through the courts. Fixing these systemic failures isn’t about disrupting tennis, it’s about saving it for the generations of players and fans to come.” Advertisement In response, the ATP accused the PTPA of choosing “division and distraction” and having no meaningful role in the sport. “We strongly reject the premise of the PTPA’s claims, believe the case to be entirely without merit, and will vigorously defend our position,” the ATP said in a statement. “ATP remains committed to working in the best interests of the game – towards continued growth, financial stability, and the best possible future for players, tournaments, and fans.” The WTA defended its record of growing women’s tennis, describing the lawsuit as “baseless”. “Every decision taken at the WTA Board level includes the input of players via their elected Board representatives, and athletes receive substantial financial rewards and other benefits from participation in the WTA,” the organisation said. Today marks a pivotal moment in the battle for fairness and integrity in tennis. I take pride in standing alongside a group of fellow players, both men and women, as one of the named plaintiffs in a comprehensive lawsuit targeting the ATP and WTA Tours, the ITIA, and the ITF. The… https://t.co/XohSsD38vB — Vasek Pospisil (@VasekPospisil) March 18, 2025 ‘A big day for tennis’ Meanwhile, Australian tennis player Nick Kyrgios believes the lawsuit marks a “special moment” and that it was high time players’ voices were heard. Former Wimbledon finalist Kyrgios, who is among 12 current and former players listed as plaintiffs along with the PTPA in the suit, said the group was determined to do something for the future of the game. Advertisement “I know that myself and many of the players aren’t happy with the structures and everything that’s going on in tennis at the moment,” Kyrgios told Sky Sports. “This will be a special moment in tennis, for sure. “Things needed to change. It’s a big day for tennis.” The PTPA was formally established by Novak Djokovic and Vasek Pospisil in 2019 to advocate for players. Pospisil said the PTPA had spoken to more than 250 players and had plenty of support, including from the top players. “The ATP/WTA has spread so much fear over the years that it’s not easy to put your name on this publicly. Player support for this initiative is undeniable,” he added. While player associations are common in professional sports, tennis is different in that the players operate as independent contractors. “We’re the only sport in the world that doesn’t have a players’ association. That was the PTPA’s first goal, to get the players to be heard,” Kyrgios said. “The ATP just had so much power, they don’t have to show anything to anyone. Now things will have to change, they’ll have to show things, how things operate and that’s when people really realise that it hasn’t really been done correctly. “I don’t think players ultimately have been very happy with what they earn on the tour compared to other sports and I think that’s definitely one of the main reasons.” Describing the various governing bodies as ‘a cartel’, the PTPA, which has also begun legal action in the United Kingdom and the European Union, accuses them of paying “artificially low compensation to professional tennis players” and imposing a “draconian” ranking system that forces them to compete in certain tournaments. Advertisement The lawsuit calls the schedule unsustainable, says players are made to play in extreme heat and often in the early hours of the morning, that tennis balls chosen by the tournaments are a factor in chronic injuries, and that players’ privacy rights are being abused by random drug tests. Before filing the lawsuit, the PTPA said it met more than 250 players across the tours, including the majority of the men’s and women’s top 20. Adblock test (Why?)

‘I nearly died’: Taba, the tobacco drug Gambian women share in secret

‘I nearly died’: Taba, the tobacco drug Gambian women share in secret

Banjul, The Gambia – On a humid March afternoon on the outskirts of Banjul, a woman known only as Saf* carries a basket of plants from her garden. Moving with urgency to avoid prying eyes, she makes her way to a hidden location, where the air is thick with the earthy scent of raw, unprocessed tobacco leaves waiting to be turned into the popular drug taba. Suddenly, her phone rings. A customer. She smiles knowingly. “She’s one of my favourites because she keeps coming back,” says Saf, whose name is a code word that means “sweet” in Wolof. Secrecy is important, says the 68-year-old taba seller, who for decades has made and discretely sold the substance to women. Taba, a local Mandinka word for powdered tobacco, has been consumed in The Gambia for generations, usually through smoking, snuffing and chewing. But in recent years, taba, modified by adding other substances to the tobacco powder, is being used for different purposes. Sellers like Saf take regular taba and mix it with potent chemicals to enhance its intoxicating effect. Many women then use it intravaginally, believing it enhances sexual pleasure. Advertisement Meanwhile, others, including some traditional healers, insist its intravaginal use has medicinal properties – from helping treat genital infections and headaches to conditions like epilepsy, hypertension and infertility – though these remain medically unproven. Though taba is not illegal, health authorities, doctors and activists in The Gambia warn of its dangers and caution against its use. But many women continue to seek it out. For Fatmata*, 36, “taba works wonders.” Married for a decade, Fatmata’s husband left for Europe just three years into their marriage. Struggling with his absence, a close friend introduced her to taba. “I don’t want to have extra-marital affairs for religious reasons, so I resort to taba,” she says, shyly. Due to its taboo nature, intravaginal taba is not sold publicly in The Gambia, but in secret among women [Kaddy Jawo/Al Jazeera] ‘Worst mistake of my life’ For others, the effects have been less favourable. The first time Rose*, 28, used taba after a friend suggested she try it, she felt an overwhelming sense of dizziness and nausea before violently vomiting. She continued trying, but the third time she used it, she says she nearly lost her life. “I remember the burning sensation, the excruciating pain, and how my body reacted as if my insides were on fire,” she says. “I could barely breathe and thought I was going to die.” The pain was intense but brief, she says. Afterwards, she fell asleep, and when she woke up, there was an uncomfortable ache between her legs. But she did not seek medical help, fearing it would expose her as a taba user at a time was the government was warning against it. Advertisement After her ordeal, she pledged never to touch taba again. “It is dangerous, and women need to stop inserting it into their genitals before it’s too late,” she warns. Taraba*, 28, and Isatu*, 42, began using taba to address health concerns. “Taba damaged my system,” says Taraba, who initially took it in an attempt to cure gonorrhoea. “At first, I only used it for that purpose. But a month later, I began inserting it into my vagina for pleasure. That was the worst mistake of my life.” What followed was excruciating. “It felt like fire burning inside me, and my whole body became [temporarily] paralysed.” Unlike Rose, whose pain was brief, hers lasted for an entire week. Isatu also first used it as a supposed remedy for gonorrhoea. “I first heard about this powder three years ago from a colleague. She told me she had used it in her vagina to relieve a bad headache, and it worked.” But when Isatu tried it, “I was bleeding profusely; I nearly died.” Neither Taraba nor Isatu sought medical help, choosing instead to endure their pain in silence. Isatu says she remains traumatised from the experience. Regular user Fatmata, however, insists that taba has no harmful effects on her health and claims most women use it with no complaints. Taba seller Saf agrees, saying most of her customers have been buying from her for years. “If it was harmful, they wouldn’t keep coming back.” Saf, a taba seller, works with freshly processed tobacco powder [Kaddy Jawo/Al Jazeera] ‘Intravaginal taba is harmful’ Little is known about the health consequences of intravaginal taba, according to the peer-reviewed journal, Tobacco Control. But it is “likely to have negative health effects” based on what is known about the use of other smokeless tobacco, said the authors of a 2023 paper on taba. Advertisement “Intravaginal taba is harmful,” insists Dr Karamo Suwareh, a gynaecologist at Kanifing General Hospital, the second largest public hospital in the country. “It causes irritation, infections, burning sensations, itching, foul-smelling discharge, and bleeding during intercourse,” he tells Al Jazeera. Dr Suwareh warns that taba contains carcinogens, and says research is needed to see whether it could lead to cervical and vaginal cancers. During pregnancy, the nicotine and other unknown substances may increase the risks of preterm labour, foetal growth restriction, and stillbirth. “Taba disrupts vaginal pH, making women more vulnerable to STIs like gonorrhoea, syphilis, and HIV. It damages tissue instead of healing it.” Gambia’s Ministry of Health has been vocal about the potential health risks of using taba intravaginally, cautioning that it could pose an increased risk of cancer or life-threatening complications during childbirth. Some women use it in an attempt to ease labour pains, but medical experts warn that it can cause severe harm instead. The ministry has used social media to educate the public on the risks, and in a video that went viral, Minister of Health Lamin Samateh was seen addressing a gathering in a local language to warn about its harmful effects. “Taba is dangerous, and women should reject it,” said Minister Samateh in the video that first emerged online in 2022. Women’s rights organisations have also been raising awareness about the harmful effects of taba. Advertisement “No

Israeli attacks on Gaza kill 14 Palestinians overnight

Israeli attacks on Gaza kill 14 Palestinians overnight

Attacks follow Israeli air raids that killed more than 400 Palestinians on Tuesday, breaking a months-long ceasefire. At least 14 Palestinians have been killed in overnight and early morning Israeli attacks on Gaza, a day after more than 400 were killed across the besieged enclave. The deadly Israeli attacks early on Wednesday targeted Khan Younis and Rafah in southern Gaza, as well as Gaza City’s Sabra neighbourhood in the north. Tents housing forcibly displaced people were also hit, killing a mother and a child. The Israeli army claimed in a statement that it struck a “Hamas military site” in northern Gaza overnight. The attacks come after at least 404 Palestinians, many of them children, were killed as Israel resumed its full-fledged bombing of Gaza on Tuesday, shattering a fragile ceasefire with Hamas that had been in place since January 19. Mourners pray next to the bodies of Palestinians killed in Israeli strikes, at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, March 19, 2025 [Hussam al-Masri/Reuters] In central Gaza, Palestinians reported an attack on a home near a mosque in the Deir el-Balah area, while Israeli helicopter fire and artillery shelling were reported east of the Bureij refugee camp on Wednesday. Advertisement Al Jazeera’s Hind Khoudary, reporting from Deir el-Balah, said people in Gaza were left “terrified, helpless and devastated” following the attacks amid the Israeli blockade of aid and electricity cuts. “People are starving. They do not have access to food. The water desalination plant that was providing water for 500,000 Palestinians is not working [due to Israel cutting off electricity],” she said. “With all this happening, Palestinians wake up to a massive series of attacks in different areas of Gaza.” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday the renewed bombing of Gaza was “only the beginning” and that Israel would press ahead until it achieves all of its war aims — destroying Hamas and freeing all the captives. Global condemnation Tuesday’s attacks attracted widespread condemnation, including from United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres who said he was “outraged by the Israeli air strikes in Gaza”. China’s European envoy Fu Cong regretted the “harm done to the hard-won ceasefire”. Several lawmakers in the United States also condemned the Israeli attacks, with Senator Bernie Sanders calling for an end to US military aid to Israel. Protests erupt in Israel Israel’s opposition leader and former Prime Minister Yair Lapid called on the public to rally against Netanyahu’s government, accusing it of having “no red lines” after resuming war in Gaza. The entire nation must “come together and say: ‘Enough!’”, wrote Lapid in a post on X on Wednesday. “I’m calling on all of you – this is our moment, this is our future, this is our country. Take to the streets!” he added. Advertisement Thousands of Israelis packed a Tel Aviv square on Tuesday evening to demand the government resume negotiations for a captive deal. The main group representing the families of the captives held in Gaza accused the government of “deliberately dismantling” the ceasefire. “Today Netanyahu did not open the gates of hell on Hamas. He opened the gates of hell on our loved ones,” said Einav Zangauker, whose son is among the captives. Adblock test (Why?)

How Donald Trump dominates the news, both positively and negatively

How Donald Trump dominates the news, both positively and negatively

The Associated Press, not exactly a White House favorite, has shot itself in the foot. The following retraction is nothing short of humiliating: “The Associated Press has withdrawn its story about U.S. Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard saying President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin ‘are very good friends.’ Gabbard was talking about Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The AP will publish a corrected version of the story.” TRUMP ACCUSES BIG MEDIA OF ‘ILLEGAL’ REPORTING, VIRTUALLY ABOLISHES VOICE OF AMERICA Whoa! How do you run that piece in the first place without having it nailed down? The wire service, you may recall, is suing the Trump administration for ousting its reporters from the White House pool over its refusal to refer to “Gulf of America.” So, this unforced error puts the White House in I-told-you-so mode. On Monday, when Trump was at the Kennedy Center, an NBC reporter tried to ask a question, Trump asked, “Who are you with?” After the journalist identified himself, the president said: “I don’t want to talk to NBC anymore. I think you’re so discredited.”  The Trump team later posted the exchange with “mic drop” emojis. The point is that Trump dominates the news no matter what he does. And, as I’ve been saying for the 35 years I’ve known him, even a torrent of negative publicity helps him because his media detractors are playing on his turf. While Trump was visiting the Kennedy Center, he “floated” the idea of personally hosting the annual awards show. And who’s going to stop him, since he’s purged the Democratic board members? ELON MUSK, LIGHTNING ROD, WHO CALLS AN OPPONENT ‘TRAITOR,’ BECOMES A HIGH-PROFILE TARGET The ratings, he said, would skyrocket. And he’s right about that. As the New York Times notes, a younger Trump dreamed of becoming a Broadway producer. He now says the Kennedy Center will concentrate on producing “Broadway hits.” And by the way, Trump released 80,000 pages of JFK assassination files yesterday and has asked for no redactions. The president can make news on the slightest whim, just by posting on Truth Social. He just went after Judge James Boasberg, who ordered the deportations of mostly Venezuelan gang members to be stopped while planes were still in the air:    “This judge, like many of the Crooked Judges’ I am forced to appear before, should be IMPEACHED!!!” WE DON’T WANT VICIOUS, VIOLENT, AND DEMENTED CRIMINALS, MANY OF THEM DERANGED MURDERERS, IN OUR COUNTRY.” The posting drew a rare rebuke from Chief Justice John Roberts: “For more than two centuries, it has been established that impeachment is not an appropriate response to disagreement concerning a judicial decision. The normal appellate review process exists for that purpose.” DONALD TRUMP, FACING TERRIBLE COVERAGE, SOFTENS TONE AND TACTICS FOR ELON MUSK’S DOGE CRUSADE The president is also renewing his habit of going after journalists personally. Ashley Parker had a highly successful career at the New York Times and Washington Post–she’s also an MSNBC analyst–who recently joined the Atlantic. She asked Trump for an interview.  After dismissing the liberal Atlantic as a “Third Rate Magazine,” Trump posted: “Ashley Parker is not capable of doing a fair and unbiased interview. She is a Radical Left Lunatic, and has been as terrible as is possible for as long as I have known her. To this date, she doesn’t even know that I won the Presidency THREE times. If you have some other reporter, let us know, but Ashley is not capable or competent enough to understand the intricacies of High Level politics.” Parker is restrained, not radical, and in bringing up the 2020 election, Trump is asking her to accept something that has never been proven in court or by his own attorney general. A magazine spokesperson said, “Atlantic reporters are diligent and fair and continue to pursue stories of importance to the public.” And then there is, you know, the actual job of the presidency. Trump reported yesterday on his 90-minute phone call with Vladimir Putin. They “stressed the need for improved bilateral relations between the United States and Russia” – no surprise there. “The leaders agreed that the movement to peace will begin with an energy and infrastructure ceasefire, as well as technical negotiations on implementation of a maritime ceasefire in the Black Sea, full ceasefire and permanent peace….  “They further discussed the need to stop proliferation of strategic weapons and will engage with others to ensure the broadest possible application. The two leaders shared the view that Iran should never be in a position to destroy Israel.” And: “The two leaders agreed that a future with an improved bilateral relationship between the United States and Russia has huge upside,” including “enormous economic deals and geopolitical stability.” It seems to me that Trump got next to nothing. A 30-day pause in attacks on energy plants and infrastructure, that’s about it. Everything else is subject to negotiations, which gives the Kremlin more time to keep attacking Ukraine and lock in further territorial gains. A real cease-fire seems a long way off. But whether Trump is on the attack or being attacked, he is driving the news every day, even inserting himself into culture and sports topics. Keep that in mind when the ratings-driven president hosts the Kennedy Center honors.