NPR News Now - NPR News: 09-22-2025 2AM EDT

Episode Date: September 22, 2025

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Live from NPR News in Washington, D.C., I'm Dale Willen. Supporters of Charlie Kirk paid tribute to the conservative activist on Sunday. Tens of thousands of people turned out for a memorial in Glendale, Arizona. NPR's Elena Moore was there and says the mood was somber, and there were more people than the venue could hold. There was a lot of passion and emotion. Folks sported red, white, and blue clothing. And I also saw many wearing the same shirt Kirk was wearing when he was shot and killed.

a white tea with the word freedom on it. People started lining up really early in the morning, and many people ended up being actually turned away before the event started. President Trump told those gathered that Kirk played a pivotal role in his 2024 election victory. Other mourners included Vice President J.D. Vance and many of Trump's cabinet members. Palestinian officials in the Israeli-occupied West Bank are thanking world leaders for officially recognizing the state of Palestine. Ahead of a UN General Assembly meeting this week, Britain, Australia, and Canada, all said Sunday they will formally recognize it. Several other countries are expected to follow suit soon.

And Pierre's Kerry Khan has more. Palestinian Authority Foreign Minister Farsan Agabikian applauded the declarations but said to believe there can be peace and security in the region without an independent state of Palestine is, quote, a delusion. It will never happen as long as these rights are violated, as long as we are are not seen as human beings, worthy of living, and worthy of our country. There are no public commemorations planned in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Many say with the war in Gaza still raging, and the death toll, surpassing 65,000

there is little to celebrate. Israel's Prime Minister said recognizing Palestinian statehood is a, quote, reward for Hamas's terrorism. Kerry Kahn and Pierre News, Tel Aviv. The U.S. Department of Agriculture says it will end. and a food insecurity survey. That survey has been published every year since the Clinton administration. NPR's Jordan Marie Smith has more on our story. Data from the annual household food security report

helps nutrition and food policy experts work to end hunger in the U.S. The Trump administration says it's ending the survey because, quote, redundant, costly politicized, and extraneous studies do nothing more than fearmonger. Some experts say that without that information, abating or ending hunger in the U.S. will become increasingly more difficult. Here's Crystal Fitzsimons, president of the Food Research and Access Center. The National Food and Security Survey is a critical, reliable data source that shows how many families in America struggle to put food on the table.

The last report will be published by the Trump administration in October, using data from 2024, according to the Associated Press. Jordan Marie Smith, NPR News. And you're listening to, and P.R. News. Tens of thousands of Brazilians demonstrated on Sunday against a possible pardon for former President Jaya Bolsonaro and his allies. They'd been convicted of attempting a coup after Bolsonaro's loss in the 2022 presidential election. The country's lower legislative body fast-tracked a measure from right-wing opposition lawmakers last week that could grant amnesty to Bolsonaro and hundreds of his

supporters. Hundreds of international experts are in upstate New York this week, analyzing how historic waterways can be repurposed. From member station BTPM, Emily Watkins, has more. The World Canals Conference is in Buffalo, New York, through Thursday, to celebrate 200 years of the Erie Canal, an engineering marvel that reshaped trade. John Patterson from Scottish canals emphasizes these historic canals can have new life. We're here in this marvelous waterfront canal site development, and it's filled by head full of wonderful ideas, because I think there's been a tremendous bit of work done here to regenerate

Talks and tours will cover preservation, management, accessibility, tourism, ecology, recreation, and more. For NPR News, I'm Emily Watkins in Buffalo. It was a relatively quiet weekend at North American movie theaters, with overall ticket sales down by about a half compared to last weekend. Demon Slayer, Infinity Castle, remained in first place, bringing in $17.3 million at the box office. him, which is a movie about a young quarterback, landed in second with $13.5 million. The Conjuring last rites finished in third, while the last Downton Abbey movie and the Long Walk tied for fourth. I'm Dale Wilman, NPR News, in Washington.