Villanova captures NCAA tournament trophy
On Monday, April 4, the Villanova Wildcats took home the NCAA men’s basketball national championship with a win against the UNC Tar Heels. The No. 2 seed team won 77-74 against No. 1 seed North Carolina at NRG Stadium in Houston. The win was the first buzzer-beater on a three point shot in the history of national championships. The win is also Villanova’s second championship, as well as being the first championship for head coach Jay Wright.

For more information: http://www.cnn.com/2016/04/04/us/ncaa-national-championship-game-villanova-unc/

Sanders, Cruz gain more delegates in Wisconsin
At the Democratic and Republican primary in Wisconsin on Tuesday, April 5, Bernie Sanders and Ted Cruz won, resulting in tough losses for Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. Cruz’s victory here complicates Trump’s march toward the 1,237 pledged delegates that he needs before the convention in Cleveland to secure the Republican nomination. Sanders is hoping to continue his hot streak at the New York primary where Clinton also hopes to secure a win to maintain her big delegate lead.

For more information: http://www.cnn.com/2016/04/05/politics/wisconsin-primary-highlights/

Student in Bangladesh shot in religiously- motivated attack
On Wednesday night, a law student in Bangladesh was hacked and shot to death for being an atheist. Nazimuddin Samad, a student at Jagannath University, was attacked late at night while walking in Bangladesh’s capital of Dhaka. The attackers were reportedly riding on a motorcycle and escaped while praising Allah. The attack was triggered due to activity on Samad’s Facebook page of him criticizing radical Islam and promoting secularism. Over the past couple of years, there have been several murders being tied to tensions between secularists and Islamists.

For more information: http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/04/07/473347159/atheist-law-student-hacked-to-death-in-bangladesh

iHeart Radio awards celebrate best of the music industry
On Sunday night, the 2016 iHeart Radio awards was hosted at The Forum in Inglewood, California. Highlights from the night include Demi Lovato and Brad Paisley’s surprise performance of her song “Stone Cold”, U2 shading Donald Trump during their acceptance speech, and Justin Timberlake awarding Taylor Swift with the title of Best Tour for her “1989 World Tour.”

For more information: http://news.iheart.com/articles/trending-104650/2016-iheartradio-music-awards-highlights-taylor-14562184/

Mississippi governor signs religious-rights bill into law
On Tuesday, Mississippi’s governor Phil Bryant signed into law a bill that allows businesses to refuse services to gay couples based on religious objections. The new law says that it protects the belief that marriage is only between a man and a woman and that sexual relations should only occur in such a marriage. The bill also states that businesses can determine who is allowed to access bathrooms, dressing rooms and locker rooms because a person’s gender is “determined by anatomy and genetics at time of birth.”

For more information: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-nation/wp/2016/04/05/mississippi-governor-signs-law-allowing-business-to-refuse-service-to-gay-people/