The Army Has Been Deployed in Ethiopia Amid Deadly Protests

Reports indicate that at least 67 protesters have been killed and dozens others injured in Addis Ababa and the Oromia region.

Last week, hundreds of Ethiopians in Addis Ababa and the Oromia region took to the streets to protest against Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed. The protests were in response to prominent opposition activist and media owner Jawar Mohammed having announced that the government had removed the security guards assigned to him following his return from exile last year. Supporters of Mohammed showed up outside his house the following morning to show their support for him. However, they later clashed with supporters of the recent Nobel Peace Prize winner and security forces had to subsequently intervene. Army troops are reportedly now being deployed to the Oromia region to calm the unrest.

Thousands of Ethiopians have now joined the growing protests and according to France24, at least 67 protesters have been killed with dozens others having been injured.

Ahmed denounced the killing of protesters this past Saturday. He described the current situation as "an attempt to provoke an ethnic and religious crisis". He went on to add that, "The crisis we are experiencing could get even worse if the Ethiopians do not unite."

His comments speak to the country's longstanding ethnic tensions between the Tigrayans, Oromos, Gedeos and numerous others. In December of last year, at least 2.9 million Ethiopians were displaced as a result of inter-ethnic violence. Mohammed has also called for calm.

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Influential Louis Vuitton And Off-White Designer Virgin Abloh, Dies at 41

The popular Ghanian-American designer had been battling a rare form of cancer in private for several years.

The fashion industry has lost a talented, unique, and boundary-pushing influence this weekend.

41-year-old Ghanianian-American designer Virgil Abloh has died after a 2 year battle with a rare form of cancer, a statement from his associates LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton said on Sunday. Abloh, founder of luxury streetwear brand Off-White, and artistic director of men's wear at French fashion house Louis Vuitton leaves his wife Shannon, and 2 children - Lowe and Grey. Chairman and CEO of LVMH Bernard Arnault said in a statement, "We are all shocked after this terrible news. Virgil was not only a genius designer, a visionary, he was also a man with a beautiful soul and great wisdom." "The LVMH family joins me in this moment of great sorrow, and we are all thinking of his loved ones after the passing of their husband, their father, their brother, or their friend," he added.

After the news broke on Sunday, Abloh started trending on Twitter, with fans of the designer remembering his influence on music, art, and fashion. The 1990s saw Abloh DJ and the creative director once told The Guardian in a 2016 interview, "When the phone is off, I play my favorite songs really loud for myself, and I'm not talking to anyone. I'm not managing anything. It's just like a time when I can listen to music… I'll be DJing after I'm done designing or doing anything else." Virgil got his hands into designing album artworks after strumming up a friendship with American rapper Kanye West before becoming the creative director of West's DONDA Creative House. More recently known for his creative streetwear brand 'Off-White' the designer became popular among fashion-conscious youngsters and will forever be immortalized.

A statement posted to Abloh's Instagram explained that "Virgil chose to endure his battle privately since his diagnosis in 2019, undergoing numerous challenging treatments, all while helming several significant institutions that span fashion, art, and culture"

Friends, fans, and colleagues took to social media to share their well-wishes for Virgil as he transitions to his next destination.

RIP Virgil Abloh \n\nThe first African American to ever be an artistic director for Louis Vuitton in the brand\u2019s entire 167 years of existence.
— NUFF (@NUFF) 1638124518

My heart is broken \n\nVirgil you were a kind, generous, thoughtful creative genius \n\nyour work as a human and your work as a spiritual being will live forever \n\nSending love and light to your wife, children, family and day ones\n\nyou\u2019re with the Master now, shine\n\n,\nP
— Pharrell Williams (@Pharrell Williams) 1638124715

rest in peace to virgil abloh. thank you for giving us these iconic album coverspic.twitter.com/3M6DY1jrsb
— \ud83d\udd96 (@\ud83d\udd96) 1638124391

Just a year after Chadwick, Virgil Abloh, another influential Black force, has been taken from us due to a private cancer battle. The resiliency these men must have had to deal with such difficult situations in complete silence, working all the way to the very end. Devastating.
— Anyway, Britney (@Anyway, Britney) 1638125236

Rest in Power Virgil pic.twitter.com/FvZW8YNeY7
— Omar Sy (@Omar Sy) 1638126234

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How Relocating to Ghana Helped Reinvigorate Jewelry Designer Aisha Asamany's Work

Moving to Ghana gave Aisha Asamany's luxury jewelry brand, inspired by Adinkra symbols that traditionally project strength, fearlessness, love and power, renewed verve to tell personal stories of her growing clientele.