☕️ The allegations facing Abercrombie & Fitch's former CEO

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“The unlicensed use of creative works for training generative AI is a major, unjust threat to the livelihoods of the people behind those works, and must not be permitted.”
A one-line open letter signed by more than 13,500 artists and creatives, including ABBA member Björn Ulvaeus, writer James Patterson, and actor Kevin Bacon.

$US50 million ($AU75 million)
How much Microsoft founder Bill Gates has donated to Democratic Presidential candidate Kamala Harris’ campaign. Gates confirmed the donation in a statement to The New York Times.

1945
The United Nations was founded with the ratification of the UN Charter.

On average, NSW Police conduct more than 100 strip searches at train stations per year, according to Redfern Legal Centre (RLC).

RLC analysed police data from 2016 to 2024. It found strip searches disproportionately impacted First Nations people.

Police at train stations carried out more than 800 strip searches over an eight-year period.

RLC has suggested the searches could be in violation of NSW law.

Under NSW law, strip searches – when a person is required to remove their clothing – should only be carried out in “serious and urgent” circumstances.

Before conducting any search, an officer must have a reasonable suspicion that a person is carrying an unlawful item, like illicit drugs.

NSW Police cannot search a child younger than 10.

From 2016 to 2024, the RLC found NSW Police conducted 883 strip searches at train stations.

Nearly 8% (66) of those searched were children aged between 10 and 17.

82 of those searched were First Nations people, totalling 9% of all strip searches.

3.4% of NSW’s population are First Nations people.

RLC argued that some of these strip searches could have been illegal under NSW’s Law Enforcement Act.

The law requires police conducting a strip search to provide “reasonable privacy for the person searched”. This includes searching them in a “private area”.

RLC supervising solicitor Samantha Lee said: “There is no privacy at a train station... subjecting children to this invasive procedure in such a public space is appalling.”

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Reporting by Nandini Dhir.

CW: Sexual assault

The former CEO of American fashion brand Abercrombie & Fitch, Michael Jeffries, has been charged with sex trafficking in the U.S.

Federal police arrested the 80-year-old along with his partner Matthew Smith, and their former employee James Jacobson.

Prosecutors have accused the three men of “exploiting, abusing, and silencing... vulnerable men for their own sexual gratification”.

It follows a 2023 BBC investigation into Jeffries, Smith, and Jacobson.

Abercrombie & Fitch (A&F) is a U.S-based fashion retailer. It also owns the retail brand Hollister.

Jeffries ran A&F from 1992 to 2014. He wanted the brand to attract “cool, good-looking people.” During his time as CEO, A&F became associated with the young shirtless men it hired to greet customers outside its stores.

In a 2006 interview with the magazine Salon, Jeffries said: “A lot of people don’t belong [in our clothes], and they can’t belong. Are we exclusionary? Absolutely.”

Last year, the BBC outlined allegations of sexual exploitation at A&F under Jeffries. Former employees and models described “parties” where men were told to perform sexual acts in exchange for career opportunities.

A&F has also faced legal challenges over its hiring practices. In 2005, it settled a racial discrimination class action brought by non-white job applicants.

In 2015, it lost a Supreme Court case for refusing to hire a woman who wore a hijab because she didn’t meet the company’s “look policy”.

U.S. federal prosecutors have charged Jeffries, Smith, and Jacobson with sex trafficking.

They allege that Jacobson was employed to “hire men to perform commercial sexual acts for Smith and Jeffries” from 2008 to 2015.

The three are accused of setting up an international sex trafficking scheme, recruiting men through “coercive, fraudulent and deceptive tactics,” including promising modelling opportunities at A&F.

Prosecutors allege Jacobson would conduct “tryouts” where young men would engage in sexual acts with him before attending “Sex Events”.

Men would arrive at the events – held in the U.S., UK, Europe, and Morocco – hand over all their clothes and belongings, and perform acts to fulfil Jeffries and Smith’s “sexual desires”.

Some of the acts were allegedly non-consensual, and the men were told a failure to engage in sexual acts would hurt their careers.

They were then allegedly required to sign non-disclosure agreements to ensure their silence.

Jeffries, Smith, and Jacobson have all appeared in court and are expected to face a federal trial in New York.

Sex trafficking charges carry a minimum prison sentence of 15 years, while a separate charge of “international prostitution” carries a maximum 20-year prison sentence.

Jeffries’ lawyer Brian Bieber told U.S. media he plans to “respond in detail to the allegations” in court.

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Reporting by Harry Sekulich.

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🗞️ Also in today’s Sport Newsletter: cricket, soccer, and more…

Mickey the Cockatoo accidentally found himself trapped inside the Macarthur Square Shopping Centre in Campbelltown.

He spent weeks living off snacks provided by the centre’s supermarket before a local bird expert was brought in. After 20 failed attempts to get him out, Mickey was safely caught and has since been released back into nature.

Want more good news? Sign up to our weekly Good Newsletter here - we promise it’ll make your week better!

Reporting by Harry Sekulich.

What do you dunk in your tea? A cookie? Or a bikkie?

King Charles and Queen Camilla’s visit to NSW Parliament House involved a luncheon which, controversially, they left before food was served. But what’s been causing more of a stir was that an Anzac biscuit was listed on the menu as a ‘cookie’.

Turns out, it’s illegal to misuse the word “Anzac”, in certain contexts.

According to the official guidelines published by the Department of Veteran's Affairs, the only admissible name of the treat is “Anzac slice” and “Anzac biscuit”. It does in fact explicitly say “not ‘Anzac cookies’”.

The rules also say any such biscuits “must not substantially deviate from the generally accepted recipe and shape”.

Reporting by Nandini Dhir.

Over the past few weeks, abortion has been in the headlines in Australia. Despite the fact that it has been decriminalised everywhere in the country, the topic of reproductive rights has re-entered the political landscape and is being debated in Queensland and South Australia.

In today's podcast, we discuss why abortion is back in the news, and whether the laws in some states in Australia could actually change.