California lawmakers approve mandatory sentencing for rape
The California Assembly unanimously passed a measure that requires a prison sentence for anyone convicted of sexually assaulting an unconscious person.
States & provinces
Massachusetts passes groundbreaking equal pay law
The new state law, which will take effect on July 1, 2018, requires employers to pay men and women the same for comparable work, defined as works that “requires substantially similar skill, effort and responsibility and is performed under similar working conditions.”
India’s Cochin International becomes world’s first fully solar-powered airport
Cochin International, in the state of Kerala, transformed a patch of land previously reserved for cargo handling into a 12-megawatt solar plant. This energy source – now featuring more than 46,000 solar panels – provides all the power the airport needs and even generates surplus for the state. Costing less than $10 million USD, the project likely recouped all development costs within the first five years of operation.
Massachusetts becomes first U.S. state to legalize same-sex marriage
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruled that it was unconstitutional under the Massachusetts Constitution to allow only opposite-sex couples to marry.
Bahia gains independence, ending Portuguese rule in Brazil
Control of the province was disputed in several battles, mostly in Pirajá, before the Portuguese were fully expelled on 2 July 1823. Bahia became a Brazilian state in 1889.