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HOW BENIN EMPIRE DEALT WITH THE INSUBORDINATION OF DEJI OF AKURE IN AD 1818   HOW BENIN EMPIRE DEALT WITH THE INSUBORDINATION OF DEJI OF AKURE IN AD 1818 After the success of the coup d’etat staged by Ezomo Erebor against the usurper, Prince Ogbebor, Erebors nephew, Prince Erediauwa returned from exile in Ewohimi in Ishan, and assumed his rightful office as Osemwende, the Oba of Benin. As was customary, whenever a new Oba of Benin ascended the throne of his father, the Chalk of Good Tidings was sent to all the vassal potentates in the Benin Empire, informing them that a new Oba was on the throne in Benin City. One of the ranking chiefs in the Iwebo Chancellery of the Palace, the Osague of Benin, was the Emissary entrusted with this Chalk of Good Tidings to the Akure monarch, the Deji of Akure.  The name of the Deji was Arakale. The day that the Osague presented the royal chalk at the palace of the Deji in Akure, he was suitably dressed as the benin chief of rank...

 I wanted to take off my skin': Ukrainian women recount rape by Russian soldiers   I wanted to take off my skin': Ukrainian women recount rape by Russian soldiers The three Russian soldiers arrived at Victoria's house claiming they needed to seize her cell phone. But they weren't looking for phones. Victoria, a 42-year-old Ukrainian woman, told ABC News she and another woman, a neighbor, were raped by two of the Russian soldiers occupying her village near Kyiv in March. ABC News spoke to the two women who agreed to talk about what they say happened to them, on condition that their location and last names not be revealed. Another soldier, a commanding officer who was not involved in the assault, threatened Victoria, she says. "He looked at me and said, 'You see, our boys have had a drink and want to have fun,'" Victoria recounts. "I understood that something terrible would happen." Two of the soldiers took the women to a...

LIFE AND STRUGGLE Tony Smart was a driver and he spent so much time at his work, that he could hardly have a meal together with his wife and two kids. In the evenings he attended classes, seeking to get knowledge, that one day would help him to find a better paying job. Tony's family often complained that he is not spending enough time with them, but his only answer was „I am doing all this for you, I work hard to provide my family with the best that I can". Soon after Tony had passed his exams, he got a good job with a salary, which was significantly higher than he had before. So now Tony could provide his family with more expensive clothes, some luxury item trips to foreign countries. It was like a dream come true, but family still did not get enough attention from Tony as he continued to work very hard and often he did not get to see his family for most of the week.

 History of the Human Zoo   The History of the Human Zoo.  From the late 1800's to around the 1950's, there were human zoos internationally. From Europe to New York, there were people of color (POC) residing in zoos and museums as living exhibits. They were Africans, Asians, Latin Americans and Indigenous people. They were on display, clothed or nude, in “naturalistic” man-made habitats purported to look as close to each captive POC’s homeland. Spectators would pet and photograph them because they viewed these people as 'exotic animals'. POC were held captive for having body parts, sizes or shapes, considered “unusual” to the non-POC eye. In 1906 at the Bronx Zoo in New York City, there was an exhibit called “The Monkey House”. This was essentially a human zoo. Among other captive people, who were all in different makeshift, artificial exhibits of their homelands, there was a Congolese man named Ota Benga who was put on display with a monkey. People ...

 In 1867, at the age of thirteen, Elisabeth Moendi was brought to Suriname from Calcutta as an indentured laborer.   In 1867, at the age of thirteen, Elisabeth Moendi was brought to Suriname from  Calcutta as an indentured laborer.   Suriname was then a Dutch colony, and it had a sugar plantation economy that, following the abolition of slavery in 1863, depended heavily on indentured servants.  Elisabeth later married a man who was a descendant of Suriname's indigenous people. In 1883, she and her one-and-a-half-old daughter Henriette were taken to Amsterdam and displayed in a human zoo at the World's Fair. In fact, an entire Surinamese village was recreated, featuring a group of 28 inhabitants from various ethnicities, including Creoles, Caraïbes, Arowaks, and Marrons. For six months, they pretended to demonstrate their daily lives and work at the zoo. The front and side portraits of Elisabeth, as well as the photograph of her with her daugh...

 In 1996, in a zoo in Illinois, USA, an amazing display of empathy between animals took place. In 1996, in a zoo in Illinois, USA, an amazing display of empathy between animals took place. An unidentified 8 year old boy slipped away from his mother, climbed over a barrier and fell into the Gorilla Enclosure. Due to the 20 ft fall, the boy broke his hand and suffered a deep laceration to his face.  Seven gorillas inhabitated the enclosure. Gorillas are known to be fiercly territorial animals. They will fight to the death in order to defend their families. It is estimated that male silver back gorillas have the strength of at least 10 grown human men, though it is estimated to be even higher.  However, one of the gorillas, called Binti Jua, meaning "daughter of sunshine" went over to the boy and cradled him in her arms, all while her own young child was on her back. She then went over to the edge of the enclosure and waited for the zookeepers to come...