6/23 to 6/29, 2025

This Week, Basically — hosted by Robyn Davies. Every week I take you across politics, protest, science, and spectacle, all in under ten minutes. Let’s dive in.

We begin in the United States, where the human cost of immigration crackdowns is showing in stark detail. Detention centers across the country are overflowing. More than 56,000 people are in custody — far above the 41,000 beds the system is meant to hold. Inside, conditions are bleak: detainees go a week without showers, sleep shoulder to shoulder on bare floors, and struggle to get medication for chronic illnesses. At least ten immigrants have died in custody just this year, including suicides in Arizona and Georgia. The Department of Homeland Security insists all detainees are properly fed and treated, but interviews with former detainees tell a different story — of cold floors, tiny food portions, and desperate protests, including one in Miami where people spelled out an “S.O.S.” in a yard. The administration is pushing Congress for a $45 billion budget to expand detention, more than ten times today’s level. But as numbers keep climbing, the system looks less like a deterrent and more like a pressure cooker .

Now to the streets of Bangkok, where thousands of protesters are demanding Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra’s resignation. The spark? A leaked phone call in which she referred to Cambodia’s longtime strongman Hun Sen as “uncle” and promised she would “arrange anything” he wanted. Critics say that sounded like selling out the nation. At the Victory Monument, over six thousand demonstrators braved heavy rain to wave Thai flags and call her unfit to lead. The controversy adds fuel to Thailand’s long history of governments brought down by street movements — and while analysts doubt a coup is imminent, the tension is unmistakable. The prime minister faces not just protesters, but also looming court challenges and the possibility of a no-confidence vote. For many in Thailand, the storm clouds are gathering .

Meanwhile, in Europe, Viktor Orbán’s attempt to ban Budapest Pride backfired spectacularly. His party rushed a law through Parliament making gatherings like Pride parades illegal, threatening fines and even jail. The government claimed it was all about shielding children from “homosexual propaganda.” But instead of shutting things down, it ignited defiance. More than 100,000 people flooded the streets — far more than the usual crowd. The city’s liberal mayor sidestepped the ban by recasting the parade as a municipal celebration of Hungary’s freedom after Soviet troops left. Police looked on from the sidelines but didn’t intervene. Orbán’s media allies tried to spin the day as “chaos,” but images of rainbow flags and massive crowds told a different story. What was meant to be a show of control turned into one of the biggest rebukes of Orbán’s rule in years .

And in the Middle East, Syria is confronting its fragile new reality. Bashar al-Assad’s fall last December ended a thirteen-year war, but peace hasn’t erased the scars. More than half a million dead or missing, millions displaced, and whole neighborhoods reduced to rubble. Reporters who traveled across the country describe a mix of joy and grief: jubilant crowds in Damascus celebrating newfound freedoms, while just outside the capital families live in bombed-out ruins with only two hours of electricity a day. The mother of Hamza al-Khateeb — the 13-year-old boy whose killing in 2011 ignited Syria’s uprising — still keeps his clothes folded in his old room. His image remains a symbol of both sacrifice and resilience. Today, a new government is trying to build institutions on shaky ground, but for many Syrians, the future remains an uneasy blend of hope and fear .

Back in the U.S., a different kind of environmental crisis is finally seeing a fix. Chicago’s McCormick Place convention center was once infamous as the single deadliest building for migratory birds. On some mornings, nearly a thousand birds would lie dead after slamming into its giant glass walls. But last summer, the windows were overlaid with a dotted pattern to help birds see the glass. Early results? A 95 percent drop in deaths. That’s huge, especially in a city that’s one of the most dangerous for migrating species. Volunteers who have tracked the carnage for decades are calling the change “remarkable.” It’s a reminder that sometimes, the simplest design tweaks can make an enormous difference — and maybe inspire other cities to follow .

And we close on the lighter side — but still defiant in its own way. Pride parades, protests, and politics dominate headlines, but culture often carries the same rebellious streak. In Chicago, it’s about saving birds. In Syria, it’s about street debates and book readings once banned. And in Budapest, it’s about turning a banned march into the biggest one yet. The common thread this week? Ordinary people finding ways to resist — whether against harsh detention, heavy-handed laws, or just glass walls in their flight path.

That’s the roundup. From detention cells in Florida to rainbow flags in Hungary, from Thai rallies in the rain to Syrian streets rebuilding after war — this week showed us resilience in every corner.

This has been This Week, Basically. I’m Robyn Davies. Thanks for listening, and I’ll see you next time.