International

Students in America Lament Loan Burden

Published

3 years ago

July 1, 2023

Charles Flames

507 Views

Americans are currently lamenting about the student loan burden which some students are kicking against.

If the United States Supreme Court had not overruled President Joe Biden’s programme to cancel billions of dollars in student debt, Satra D. Taylor, who borrowed $40,000 to complete her studies, could have seen that amount reduced by half.

Now the 27-year-old – who used the loan to study at the University of Michigan, supplementing a scholarship and other financial aid – is back on the hook for the whole sum.

“We created this unjust, inequitable, expensive, higher education system and so we need to redress it,” she told AFP, standing before the high court.

Biden’s forgiveness programme was meant to lift more than $400 billion in student debt weighing down the lives of millions of lower and middle-income Americans.

Certain borrowers would have been eligible to receive $20,000 in cancellations, while the vast majority were eligible for $10,000.

But the court overruled the programme Friday, stating that given the large sum, the president had overstepped his powers.

“Any American who wants to pursue higher education should be able to do so,” Taylor said.

“We have students now who have not acquired the generational wealth to pay for their cost of college, it needs to be debt-free,” added Taylor, who works for the youth advocacy group Young Invincibles.

Taylor said she was not surprised given the Supreme Court’s conservative majority, which on Thursday banned the use of affirmative action in university admission policies.

Taylor, who is African American, said the loan forgiveness decision was a setback for Black and Latino students who “would have disproportionately benefitted from this relief.”

“This is absolutely not only a social justice issue, but also a racial equity issue.”
– ‘Future generations’ –
Mina Schultz, 37, who borrowed approximately $65,000 for her studies, emphasized the impact student debt has on the entire economy.

When the pandemic hit and student loan repayments were frozen, it was “a blessing,” she told AFP from outside the Supreme Court.

People were “able to contribute more to the economy” by spending money elsewhere, whether on food as prices surged due to inflation or on things like rent, the George Washington University graduate said.

Schultz would have benefited from $10,000 in debt cancellation, which “would have been really helpful.”

That sort of money “is a huge deal to a lot of people,” said Schultz, who will be forking over some $340 per month when payments resume in several months.

Enjoying a seemingly debt-free life during the repayment pause, she was able to move out of her studio apartment and into a one-bedroom unit.

Nearby, Shanna Hayes, 34, could not contain her emotion as she spoke before several cameras: Her debt, originally $130,000, now exceeds $150,000 due to compounding interest that has accrued over the past 11 years.

“I ask you to remember that the student debt crisis impacts our grandparents, parents… children and future generations,” she told the reporters.

AFP

Related Topics:American STudents Featured Lament Loan Burden

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International

Andy Burnham set to become Labour leader before taking over as UK PM

Burnham, who has since become known as the “king of the North,” returned to Westminster in June after securing a huge majority in the Makerfield by-election, comfortably beating out challengers from Nigel Farage’s Reform UK party and Rupert Lowe’s hard-right Restore Britain.

Published

18 hours ago

July 17, 2026

OCHEFA

19 Views

• Andy Burnham / Euro News

Andy Burnham is set to be announced as the Labour Party’s new leader on Friday.

Euro News reports that the Makerfield MP is scheduled to be unveiled at a special press conference before taking over as the UK’s seventh prime minister in a decade on Monday.

Burnham is expected to deliver a speech during the conference where he will reportedly pledge to be “unashamedly Labour” and vow that his government will have the “courage to fix the big things that politics has neglected.”

Burnham was left with a clear path to Downing Street after his last potential leadership rival ruled out challenging last week.

He received 379 nominations from Labour MPs for the party leadership out of a possible 403.

His uncontested run has sparked concern from some analysts and government insiders, however, and opposition leader Kemi Badenoch has accused Labour of “running scared” of scrutiny.

It comes after Keir Starmer announced he was stepping down as PM last month, as pressure continued to build in the wake of Labour’s disastrous local election results in May.

Who is Andy Burnham?

Born on Merseyside in the northwest of England and raised in the village of Culcheth in Cheshire, Burnham has said he was first inspired to enter politics after watching “Boys From The Blackstuff,” an acclaimed 1982 TV show about five unemployed men in Liverpool navigating life in Margaret Thatcher’s Britain.

He went on to study English at the University of Cambridge before starting out in journalism, working for a number of trade publications.

He soon made the jump into politics, taking a job as a researcher for the late Tessa Jowell, a former MP for Dulwich, while in his early 20s.

He eventually became MP for Leigh in 2001, a position he held until 2017, and served in a number of senior ministerial positions, including as secretary of state for health and chief secretary to the Treasury. He unsuccessfully ran for the Labour leadership in 2010 and 2015, losing to Ed Miliband and Jeremy Corbyn, respectively.

In 2017, he took over as mayor of Greater Manchester, overseeing a period of huge growth and development and gaining a reputation for his loyal defence of the region during the Covid-19 pandemic lockdown.

International

FAO Adopts New Science Guidelines on ‘May Contain’ Precautionary Allergen Labelling

For millions of consumers, precautionary allergen statements can play an essential role in deciding whether a food is safe to eat.

Published

20 hours ago

July 17, 2026

OCHEFA

27 Views

The Food And Agriculture Organisation (FAO) has agreed to adopt new international guidelines on the use of precautionary allergen labelling (PAL), marking an important step towards making “may contain” statements more meaningful, science-based and consistent for consumers with food allergies around the world.

The new science-based recommendations promote more consistent use of precautionary allergen labelling, helping consumers make more informed food choices.

This was disclosed in a statement issued by the Food And Agriculture Organisation (FAO) noting that for millions of consumers, precautionary allergen statements can play an essential role in deciding whether a food is safe to eat.

This is as food allergies affect an estimated 4.3 percent of the global population, with reactions ranging from mild symptoms to life-threatening anaphylaxis.

The guidelines were adopted as part of the 49th session of the codex alimentarius commission, held in Geneva, Switzerland, from 6th to 10th July 2026.

FAO noted that the use of labels such as “may contain” varies widely across products and countries and remains unregulated in many parts of the world.

International

At least 28 killed, 25 critically injured after fire engulfs Bangkok bar

Footage posted online shows panicked customers screaming as they fled – some with their clothes on fire – through the flame-enveloped front door of Rong Beer Na Lat Phrao.

Published

4 days ago

July 13, 2026

OCHEFA

56 Views

A huge fire tore through a bar in Thailand’s capital Bangkok late on Sunday, killing at least 28 people and leaving 25 critically injured, according to BBC.

The blaze started near the stage of the bar in the popular Chatuchak district, then spread rapidly, cutting power and engulfing the room with smoke, eyewitnesses say.

Footage posted online shows panicked customers screaming as they fled – some with their clothes on fire – through the flame-enveloped front door of Rong Beer Na Lat Phrao.

Firefighters, who arrived at the scene just after midnight, quickly extinguished the fire. They found the bodies of most of the victims in a bathroom, where they had apparently sought shelter.

“Most of the people who died were found in the toilets. When the fire broke out, they panicked.

There were no lights,” national police chief Kitrat Panphet said.

Kaew-udon Poungppany, 24, from Laos, fought back tears as he described trying to reach his younger brother, who did not survive.

“I grabbed a fire extinguisher and sprayed it at the door… but I couldn’t go any further. I heard people screaming,” he told journalists.