By Nicole Winfield
Pope Francis endorsed same-sex civil unions for the first time as pope while being interviewed for the feature-length documentary “Francesco,” which had its premiere at the Rome Film Festival on Wednesday.
The papal thumbs up came midway through the film that delves into issues he cares about most, including the environment, poverty, migration, racial and income inequality, and the people most affected by discrimination.
“Homosexual people have the right to be in a family. They are children of God,” Francis said in one of his sit-down interviews for the film. “What we have to have is a civil union law; that way they are legally covered.”
While serving as archbishop of Buenos Aires, Francis endorsed civil unions for gay couples as an alternative to same-sex marriages. However, he had never come out publicly in favor of civil unions as pope.
Director Evgeny Afineevsky had remarkable access to cardinals, the Vatican television archives, and the pope himself. He said he negotiated his way in through persistence, and deliveries of Argentine mate tea and Alfajores cookies that he got to the pope via some well-connected Argentines in Rome.
Navient, a major student loan collecting company, agreed to cancel $1.7 billion in debt owed by more than 66,000 borrowers across the U.S. and pay over $140 million in other penalties to settle allegations of abusive lending practices.
The recently expired child tax credit helped a wide swathe of families throughout the U.S. Megan Pratz looks into the impact the payments had, and how the end of the program will have a drastic effect on families that could still use the help with child care.
Supreme Court Scraps most of Biden's vaccine mandate 2021 was hot, hot , hot, and it's time for salad dressing-makers to go crazy. Here is all the news you Need2Know for Friday, January 14, 2022.
Cheddar recs 'Peacemaker,' 'Letterkenny,' 'Yellowjackets,' and 'No Sudden Moves'
Buckingham Palace says that Prince Andrew’s honorary military titles and royal patronages have been returned to Queen Elizabeth II with her “approval and agreement.”
Everything is so expensive, the weather is too darn cold, and a major leaguer pinch hits for teachers. Here is all the news you Need2Know for Thursday, January 13, 2022.
COVID-19 continues to impact the world of sports, and most significantly, the NHL. The world's premier hockey league has postponed a total of 104 games so far this season, and a spike in omicron infections has led to a surge in postponements in recent weeks. This comes after the NHL went dark for six days in December because of a COVID-19 outbreak, and after the league decided not to have its players participate in the 2022 Beijing Olympics so it can use the time to reschedule postponed games. Yahoo Sports NHL reporter Justin Cuthbert joined Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
A land mine-detecting rat in Cambodia who received a prestigious award for his life-saving duty has died in retirement. APOPO, a Belgium-headquartered non-profit group, says the African giant pouched rat passed away last weekend.
Authorities and witnesses say a pilot crash landed a medical helicopter without loss of life in a residential area of suburban Philadelphia, somehow avoiding a web of power lines and buildings as the aircraft fluttered, hit the street and slid into bushes outside a church.
Back to the hospital, back to school, back to Bonnaroo. Here is all the news you Need2Know for Wednesday, January 12, 2022.
