President Biden is pardoning thousands of Americans convicted of simple possession of marijuana under federal law. The Biden administration is taking a dramatic step towards decriminalizing the drug and addressing charging practices that disproportionately impact people of color. According to the White House, the pardon could help thousands overcome obstacles like renting a home or finding a job.

America’s employers slowed their hiring in September, but still added 263,000 jobs. This figure will likely keep the Federal Reserve on pace to continue raising interest rates aggressively to fight high inflation. A government report showed that hiring fell from around 300,000 jobs in August, marking the weakest gain since April of 2021.

Human rights activists from Ukraine, Belarus and Russia won the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday. The Norwegian Nobel Committee awarded the 2022 prize to imprisoned Belarus activist Ales Bialiatski, the Russian group Memorial, and the Ukrainian organization Center for Civil Liberties.

Bialiatski was detained in 2020 following protests against Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko’s re-election.

The awards come in the face of Russian president Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine aided by Lukashenko, Putin’s ally during the war in Ukraine.

Sam Larson can be reached at sam.larson@stthomas.edu.