Israeli air strikes hit Gaza as ceasefire frays
Israeli air strikes targeted Rafah and Khan Younis in southern Gaza, according to local media, as Israel and Hamas continued to accuse each other of v...
A group of young entrepreneurs from London is creating the world’s first Afro hair emoji to promote diversity in beauty standards and represent Black and mixed-race hairstyles.
Aiming to break down beauty stereotypes and making the digital world more inclusive, a group of young students and professionals from London have designed what they hope will become the first ever emojis of Black and mixed-race hairstyles.
The project, a partnership between youth-led organisation RISE.365 and PR agency Good Relations, aims to tackle texturism, a form of discrimination where Afro hair is often perceived as "unprofessional", "unattractive" or "unclean".
There are nearly 4,000 emojis - symbols that represent human emotions or objects which are widely used in electronic messages - but none feature Black or mixed-race hairstyles. RISE.365 and Good Relations took matters into their own hands to change that.
A group of young people sketched what the emojis should look like, and then designers came up with the final product.
"It (emojis) would break down the society standards of your hair having to be straight to be seen as desirable," said Jayzik Duckoo, a 17-year-old who worked on the initial drawing of one of the emojis. "I hope people wear their hair proudly."
Four emojis were created featuring afros, braids, cornrows and locs. They will be submitted to Unicode, the California-based group responsible for emojis, in April 2025 for consideration.
Googling 'Afro hair' could help increase the chance of the emojis making the cut as one of the criteria when reviewing the submissions is frequency of use of the key term associated with the proposed symbols, RISE.365 said.
Olivia Mushigo was the senior creative behind the project, and said she hoped the emojis would make people "feel empowered and...actually seen".
The 28-year-old shared, “On a more personal note, I finally have an emoji that looks like me, that I can identify with."
A poll of RISE.365 members - a total of 104 respondents - showed 61% had experienced discrimination or bullying because of their hair. A 2023 study by the CROWN Research Studies showed 66% of Black women change their hair for a job interview.
Vanita Brown, who designed the emojis after consultation with the young people at RISE.365, said a reason why such emojis were still not available was due to Eurocentric beauty standards being seen as the norm.
Video from the USGS (United States Geological Survey) showed on Friday (19 September) the Kilauea volcano in Hawaii erupting and spewing lava.
At least 69 people have died and almost 150 injured following a powerful 6.9-magnitude earthquake off the coast of Cebu City in the central Visayas region of the Philippines, officials said, making it one of the country’s deadliest disasters this year.
A tsunami threat was issued in Chile after a magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck the Drake Passage on Friday. The epicenter was located 135 miles south of Puerto Williams on the north coast of Navarino Island.
The war in Ukraine has reached a strategic impasse, and it seems that the conflict will not be solved by military means. This creates a path toward one of two alternatives: either a “frozen” phase that can last indefinitely or a quest for a durable political regulation.
A shooting in Nice, southeastern France, left two people dead and five injured on Friday, authorities said.
Ace Frehley, the original lead guitarist of the legendary rock band Kiss known for its powerful sound, theatrical performances, and signature makeup has died at 74, his family announced Thursday.
Grammy Award-winning R&B artist D’Angelo, a pioneer of the neo-soul movement, has died aged 51 after what his family described as “a prolonged and courageous battle with cancer.”
U.S. President Donald Trump has reinstated Columbus Day as a national holiday, calling the explorer “America’s original hero” and hailing Italian-American contributions — a move that has reignited fierce debate over Indigenous Peoples’ Day and colonial legacy.
The European Broadcasting Union has postponed until December a key vote on Israel’s participation in the 2026 Eurovision Song Contest, citing uncertainty over the Gaza ceasefire and mounting pressure from broadcasters threatening to boycott the event.
Diane Keaton, the eccentric American actress who won an Academy Award and stole hearts with her charming portrayal of Woody Allen’s neurotic, self-doubting girlfriend in the 1977 romantic comedy Annie Hall, has died aged 79, People magazine reported on Saturday, citing a family spokesperson.
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