The Rights of Chile’s Mapuche Population

Chile’s Mapuche population has long struggled for greater rights. So many warmly greeted President Sebastián Piñera’s recent promise to give “top priority and urgency” to finding a constitutional solution that will recognize Chile’s Indigenous Mapuche people, a 700,000-person strong minority group that constitutes 6 percent of Chile’s population. His reaction comes after a month of increased tension in the southern Araucanía region, where the majority of the Mapuche live.

Spanish Investigators Arrive in Mali to Probe Air Algérie Crash Site Plane

A team of Spanish civil and forensic aviation experts arrived in Bamako, Mali, on Saturday to investigate the crash of Air Algérie Flight 5017, Spain’s government said. The plane, operated by Swiftair SA, a Spanish charter company, crashed on Thursday, killing all 118 people aboard, including two pilots and four crew members, all Spaniards. The cause of the crash is still unknown.

Spain Scraps Plan to Tighten Abortion Law

Spain’s government withdrew a bill that would have imposed some of Europe’s strictest curbs on abortion, bowing to popular sentiment and dissent within the ruling conservative Popular Party.

The decision Tuesday by Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy on one of the most divisive social issues in this largely Roman Catholic country prompted sharp protests from some of his party’s core supporters. His justice minister, the bill’s chief advocate, resigned.

‘The government invites you to be wary of those who do not eat baguettes’

On Wednesday the French government launched a website to counter terrorism in the wake of the Charlie Hebdo attacks. Its message of national unity, aimed at young people who could be radicalised as well as the general public, quickly made a splash on the internet. The site was liked 17,000 times on Facebook; its official Twitter hashtag (#StopDJihadisme) was used 12,000 times; and a slick video meant to counter jihadist recruiters got over half a million hits.

#BBCTrending: Fashion Week controversy over Native design

Inspiration has not been in short supply at this year’s New York Fashion Week. One item on the runway has caused a stir, however, after a designer claimed on Instagram that her dress had been copied by another designer. Native American fashion designer Bethany Yellowtail posted a comparison of a dress she had released last year and a design shown this week by London-based KTZ.

Starbucks #RaceTogether campaign mocked online

A Starbucks PR campaign to unite customers with conversations about race appears to have backfired, as the company’s big roll-out was widely mocked. “Black Coffees Matter”, “African-Americano” and “Stolen-from-the-Gold-Coast Blend” – these aren’t unfortunate slogans for Starbucks drinks but jokes about the coffee chain’s latest marketing campaign. The race-related puns are just one aspect of a trending hashtag begun after the company launched “Race Together”.

Mauna Kea defenders protest against 18-storey high telescope

A controversial telescope project on the top of the Mauna Kea mountain in Hawaii has sparked peaceful protests on and off social media across the United States. Opponents of the telescope, including celebrities, say the structure desecrates sacred land. They also say the land in question is designated as a conservation area.

Southern US strawberry festival sparks a race row

A poster for a Louisiana strawberry festival showing two faceless black children has prompted sharply split online opinion over whether it is offensive and racist. The Ponchatoula Strawberry Festival attracts hundreds of thousands of people to the small city near Lake Pontchartrain every April, and according to organisers is second in popularity in the state only to Mardi Gras itself.

Photos of white cops helping black Americans

In the wake of several high-profile cases of white police officers killing unarmed black men, some Americans have been defending police by posting pictures of officers being helpful. “Police officers that do the wrong thing seem to be getting all the press coverage,” Chris Hall wrote on Facebook, underneath the above photo of an Ohio State Patrol officer changing a car tyre for a African-American woman. “This officer proves that for every one that does the wrong thing, there are thousands out there doing the right thing every day.”

The young Republican behind an anti-Hillary Clinton hashtag

As one of the most famous politicians in the world announced her intention to run for US president, her opponents hit back on social media. Hillary Clinton’s announcement on Sunday that she would be running for president wasn’t exactly a surprise. She made the long-anticipated declaration in a YouTube video and followed up with a tweet. But some of her opponents had already organised a welcoming party on social med