Lustre shared her views during an interview on the Almost Honest podcast hosted by Kylie Verzosa.
She said she became the family’s breadwinner at a young age after starting work in commercials and modeling when she was 12.
“I think because I’m a breadwinner kasi. I still am and I’m always going to be proud of that,” Lustre said. She added that she was able to help support her siblings’ education and assist her parents through her work.
Lustre said she later realized that she had spent much of her life taking care of other people and now wants to prioritize herself.
“But I realized that I’ve always been taking care of other people… I want to take care of myself. I don’t want another responsibility. I don’t want to take care of another person,” she said.
She added that being a breadwinner has required her to put other people’s needs ahead of her own, which has influenced her decision not to have children.
Lustre said she remains open to changing her mind in the future.
“I’ve always said naman na it’s my decision not to become a mom, but if I do become pregnant, I will commit to it… I’m not closed off naman,” she said.
Lustre also said her boyfriend, Christophe Bariou, wants to have children, but she wants to pursue personal goals before taking on additional responsibilities.
She said she continues to support her family and wants to experience a period when she is no longer responsible for supporting others before reconsidering motherhood.
In an October 2025 interview with TV Patrol, Lustre said she was not ready to become a mother because she wanted to focus on her career, relationship and businesses.
]]>The agency, a subsidiary of Hybe, said the song was independently created and rejected the claims made by Steve Cooper, Jon Sandler and Greylyn Johnson.
“‘Swim’ is an independent creation,” Big Hit Music said in a statement shared with The Korea Herald. “The allegations in the lawsuit are unilateral and unsubstantiated. We will respond firmly through the appropriate legal process.”
The plaintiffs filed the lawsuit before the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. According to U.S. media reports, the complaint names Hybe, Hybe America, Big Hit Music and the song’s co-writers Derrick Milano, James Essien and Ryan Tedder as defendants. BTS members are not named in the lawsuit. RM and producer Pdogg, who participated in writing the song, are also not named as defendants.
The complaint states that the plaintiffs wrote their version of “Swim” in early 2025 and completed a demo in March. They allege they shared the recording with music industry contacts, including executives at Artist Publishing Group through the music-sharing platform Disco, and claim it may have reached the writers of BTS’ song.
The plaintiffs also submitted an analysis by musicologist Alexander Stewart, who identified alleged similarities between the two songs in the title hook, harmony, texture, rhythm and lyrics. The complaint argues that BTS’ “Swim” is not an original composition.
The songwriters asked the court to stop further commercial use of “Swim” and award damages and profits generated by the song. Alternatively, they requested recognition as co-writers and a share of the song’s copyright royalties.
BTS released “Swim” as the lead single from the group’s fifth album, “Arirang.” The song won Best Song of the Summer at the recent American Music Awards.
The group resumed full-group activities earlier this year after all seven members completed their mandatory military service. BTS is currently performing the European leg of its “Arirang” world tour and is scheduled to hold concerts at the Philippine Sports Stadium in Bulacan on March 13, 14 and 16, 2027.
]]>Mamdani confirmed the payment while answering questions from reporters about whether Swift would reimburse the city for police overtime related to the event.
“Taylor Swift has paid already the cost of the permit that was lodged, which was over $160,000 for that event and for the response to that event,” Mamdani said.
Swift and Kelce held their wedding over two days in Manhattan. The ceremony drew hundreds of guests and prompted authorities to close streets around Madison Square Garden as police provided security.
City officials have not released the total cost of the event. Forbes estimated the wedding cost exceeded $20 million.
Before the ceremony, Swift and Kelce donated $26 million to several charities.
]]>Sheinbaum announced the move after an ICE agent fatally shot 52-year-old Mexican national Lorenzo Salgado Araujo during an enforcement operation in Houston’s Magnolia Park neighborhood on July 7. Salgado Araujo had lived in the United States for decades and had a pending work permit application.
Foreign Minister Roberto Velasco said Mexico has documented 17 deaths of Mexican nationals linked to ICE since the current U.S. immigration crackdown began. He said 14 deaths occurred in ICE detention centers and three occurred during enforcement operations, including the death of Salgado Araujo.
Sheinbaum said Mexico will no longer rely solely on diplomatic protest notes and will continue providing consular assistance to detainees and their families.
Velasco said the Foreign Ministry will ask Mexico’s Attorney General’s Office to refer the cases to U.S. state prosecutors and the U.S. Department of Justice to seek criminal investigations into those responsible.
U.S. authorities said Salgado Araujo attempted to evade arrest and used his vehicle as a weapon during the operation, prompting an ICE agent to fire in self-defense. Witnesses and relatives disputed that account. They also said the family learned of his death through videos circulating on social media before receiving official notification.
Mexico also plans to pursue civil action against private companies that operate ICE detention facilities. Velasco said the government will send cease-and-desist letters demanding changes to detention practices and conditions that Mexico alleges contributed to the deaths of Mexican detainees.
The Mexican government is also seeking international support. Velasco said Mexico has asked the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, together with civil society organizations, to seek protective measures for Mexican nationals in U.S. detention. He added that Mexico has requested assistance from U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk and directed Mexican officials in Washington to seek meetings with U.S. authorities and members of Congress.
Mexican officials said the government has sent 11 diplomatic notes to the United States requesting information about the deaths of Mexican nationals in ICE custody or enforcement operations. They said the responses have not provided satisfactory accountability and that pursuing legal action has become a government priority.
]]>U.S. District Judge David Ezra issued the injunction in a class-action lawsuit filed by Disability Rights Texas on behalf of criminal defendants who remained in jail for more than 21 days after courts found them incompetent to stand trial. Ezra gave the commission four years to fully comply with the order.
Ezra ruled that detainees must receive competency restoration treatment in psychiatric facilities before criminal proceedings can continue. He wrote that wait times exceeding 21 days violate due process because they no longer bear a reasonable relationship to the purpose of confinement.
Disability Rights Texas filed the lawsuit in 2016, alleging the state failed to provide timely access to competency restoration services for detainees awaiting transfer to state hospitals.
The plaintiffs argued that prolonged delays extend incarceration, harm criminal cases, worsen mental and physical health conditions, and, in some cases, result in detainees serving the maximum possible sentence before receiving treatment or standing trial.
Court records showed that, as of August 2025, detainees assigned to maximum-security units waited an average of 202 days for transfer, while other detainees waited an average of 178 days.
The commission maintains a first-come, first-served waiting list for competency restoration because of limited capacity in state hospitals.
The Dallas County Sheriff’s Office separately sued HHSC over the delays, arguing that housing detainees awaiting transfer costs counties millions of dollars. The Texas Supreme Court declined in June to review a lower court ruling that counties must continue housing the detainees because state law does not require HHSC to transfer them within a specific timeframe.
HHSC has expanded jail-based competency restoration programs, diversion initiatives and hospital capacity with legislative funding. However, Ezra ruled those efforts have not significantly reduced wait times. State health officials previously told lawmakers they do not expect to have enough hospital beds to meet demand by the end of next year.
During the trial, attorneys representing Gov. Greg Abbott argued that the case should be dismissed under the Prison Litigation Reform Act. Ezra rejected that argument, ruling that the lawsuit challenges the constitutionality of prolonged confinement without competency restoration rather than individual jail conditions.
Ezra directed both parties to develop implementation benchmarks and a monitoring plan to ensure HHSC complies with the 21-day transfer requirement.
]]>Hidalgo disclosed her diagnosis in a Facebook post after experiencing a sore throat and fatigue. She said she wore a K95 mask during a Harris County Commissioners Court meeting because she was not feeling well.
She said medical tests later confirmed she had mononucleosis.
“I share this because I will be less visible around the community for the next several weeks while I recover, and I want to be fully transparent about why,” Hidalgo said.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, infectious mononucleosis is caused by the Epstein-Barr virus and spreads primarily through saliva. The CDC says recovery typically takes four to six weeks.
Hidalgo said members of her staff will represent her at events and meetings when necessary while she recovers.
]]>Salgado Araujo, 52, died after a federal immigration agent shot him outside businesses along Canal Street. The incident prompted vigils, memorials and calls from residents, elected officials and advocacy groups for an independent investigation.
Federal authorities have released limited information about the shooting. Surveillance footage shared with news organizations shows a white van being followed by several unmarked vehicles before the shooting, but no publicly available video captures the fatal encounter.
The Department of Homeland Security said the officers involved were not wearing body cameras. U.S. Rep. Sylvia Garcia said Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials told her Salgado Araujo was not the intended target of the operation.
ICE said Salgado Araujo attempted to strike an officer with his vehicle, prompting an agent to fire in self-defense. An attorney representing two passengers in the van disputed that account, saying no officer stood directly in front of the vehicle.
Carlos Rebollar, an East End resident and pastor who helped lead a community vigil, said the shooting occurred less than a mile from his home. He said the location of the shooting and the image of Salgado Araujo reminded him of his own family and underscored the impact of the incident on the community.
Residents also pointed to the East End’s history as a center of Houston’s Latino community.
Historians said Mexican workers began settling in the area in the early 1900s as Houston’s shipping, railroad and oil industries expanded. Neighborhoods including Second Ward and Magnolia Park became home to generations of Latino families.
José Aranda, a professor of Latin American studies at Rice University, said employers recruited workers from Mexico to meet labor demands during Houston’s industrial growth. He said the area’s neighborhoods later became united through the Chicano civil rights movement, which advocated for expanded educational opportunities, political representation and improved living conditions.
Several residents compared Salgado Araujo’s death to the 1977 killing of Vietnam veteran José “Joe” Campos Torres, who died after Houston police officers beat him following his arrest and forced him into Buffalo Bayou. His death and the subsequent criminal cases against the officers became a catalyst for Latino civil rights activism in Houston.
Janie Torres, Campos Torres’ sister, visited the Canal Street memorial this week and said she saw similarities between the two incidents.
Residents who attended vigils for Salgado Araujo said they remain concerned about public safety while continuing to call for transparency and accountability. They said they hope the investigation will establish what occurred during the federal operation and help restore public trust.
]]>The Senate Committee on Health and Human Services reviewed testimony from state officials, advocates and industry representatives after Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick directed the panel to study whether Texas should prohibit foreign nationals from contracting with Texas surrogates.
Surrogacy involves a woman carrying and delivering a child for another person, usually through in vitro fertilization (IVF). Families facing infertility and members of the LGBTQ+ community commonly use the procedure to have children.
Some lawmakers expressed concern that foreign nationals may use surrogacy in Texas because children born in the United States generally acquire U.S. citizenship at birth.
Texas Department of Family and Protective Services Commissioner Audrey O’Neill told lawmakers the agency has received few reports involving surrogacy-related abuse or neglect.
O’Neill said the agency investigated three reports in 2025—two in May and one in November. Two involved intended parents who were foreign nationals living outside the United States, while the third involved a U.S. citizen from another state with a history of child abuse.
Jennifer Lahl, founder and board member of the Center for Bioethics and Culture Network, testified that intended parents can select sperm and egg donors based on specific characteristics through fertility clinics. She also raised concerns about the commercialization of surrogacy and the health risks faced by surrogate mothers.
State Sen. Lois Kolkhorst, R-Brenham, questioned whether some surrogacy arrangements closely resemble the sale of children, which Texas law prohibits.
Surrogacy agencies and advocates told the committee that cases involving foreign nationals account for only a small share of surrogacy arrangements. They also warned that restrictions targeting international surrogacy could lead to broader limits on surrogacy and IVF.
State Sen. César Blanco, D-El Paso, asked whether a ban would affect families with mixed immigration status, particularly in border communities.
Lahl responded that she opposes surrogacy regardless of the intended parents’ nationality because of the health risks to surrogate mothers.
Lawmakers heard that surrogacy births in Texas increased from 244 in 2016 to 657 in 2025, representing between 0.10% and 0.17% of the state’s roughly 400,000 annual births.
Texas Health and Human Services Commission Chief Regulatory Services Officer David Korstroun said surrogacy agencies do not require state licenses and therefore operate without state regulation.
Witnesses also testified that Texas does not collect data identifying whether intended parents or donors provide the sperm and egg used in surrogacy procedures, making it difficult to determine how many cases involve donor gametes.
Lawmakers discussed concerns involving birthright citizenship after the U.S. Supreme Court recently ruled that birthright citizenship remains protected under the 14th Amendment.
State Sen. Charles Perry, R-Lubbock, said lawmakers should review surrogacy regulations and examine whether the current legal framework adequately protects children.
Texas legalized gestational surrogacy in 2003 by allowing intended parents to obtain legal parentage before a child’s birth through court-approved agreements.
The Texas Republican Party recently adopted a platform supporting a ban on commercial surrogacy involving foreign nationals and opposing public funding for IVF.
Lawmakers did not vote on any proposals during Wednesday’s hearing. The committee is expected to continue reviewing the issue before lawmakers convene for the 2027 legislative session.
]]>Teare said his office is conducting its own investigation after receiving requests from Salgado Araujo’s family, community members and elected officials. He urged witnesses to provide statements, surveillance footage or other evidence related to the July 7 shooting in Houston’s Magnolia Park neighborhood.
U.S. Rep. Sylvia Garcia said Acting ICE Director David Venturella told her that the ICE officers involved were not wearing body cameras and that the three unmarked ICE vehicles at the scene did not have dashboard cameras.
Garcia said Congress appropriated $20 million last year for ICE body cameras and that Venturella told her the devices would be distributed to ICE officers nationwide by the end of July.
Attorney Hugo Baldera-Ybarra, who represents two of the three men who witnessed the shooting, said his clients’ accounts differ from the information released by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
DHS said Salgado Araujo, 52, ignored verbal commands, struck an unmarked federal vehicle with his van and attempted to run over an ICE agent, prompting the agent to fire in self-defense.
Garcia said she saw no damage to the unmarked SUV that Salgado Araujo allegedly struck. Baldera-Ybarra said his clients described events that differed from the federal account.
Baldera-Ybarra said he met with the three witnesses, who are being held at an ICE detention facility in Conroe, and advised them not to sign documents or agree to return to Mexico while the investigation is ongoing. He also called for their release.
The three witnesses, including Salgado Araujo’s brother, were passengers in the van and were traveling to a construction job when the shooting occurred shortly before 7 a.m.
Garcia said Venturella told her federal agents were targeting another individual and not Salgado Araujo during the operation. DHS previously said ICE agents began surveillance after receiving information from another law enforcement agency that led them to a Houston residence and later to Salgado Araujo’s vehicle.
Garcia said Venturella declined to identify the ICE agent who fired the fatal shot and did not commit to an independent investigation. She added that he told her he would not answer congressional questions until the federal investigation concludes.
The FBI is investigating the incident as a possible assault on a federal law enforcement officer, while the DHS Office of Inspector General is investigating the shooting. Garcia said she has not been given a timeline for either investigation.
Houston Mayor John Whitmire directed Police Chief Noe Diaz on Friday to notify DHS and the FBI that the Houston Police Department is prepared to provide resources to assist the investigation.
On Thursday, Garcia and fellow Houston-area representatives Lizzie Fletcher, Al Green and Christian Menefee sent a letter to DHS and ICE requesting an immediate, independent and transparent investigation. The lawmakers also sought information about the operation, including whether ICE had an administrative warrant, who authorized it, how many agents participated and why Salgado Araujo’s identity was released before his family was notified.
Garcia also said the ICE vehicles involved did not use emergency lights or sirens during the operation.
Teare said Harris County investigators responded to the scene after federal authorities released it and have continued collecting evidence.
“We investigate every officer-involved shooting in Harris County,” Teare said. “When it involves an agency that is not ICE, universally we are invited in that day. We run a parallel investigation where we collaborate with law enforcement, be it a federal agency or state and local agencies. We were not invited into this scene on Tuesday.”
Rep. Al Green expressed support for the district attorney’s investigation and said local authorities have a responsibility to seek accountability.
Green also said U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson, the ranking member of the House Committee on Homeland Security, informed him that members of Congress would hold a public hearing in Houston if they do not receive the information they seek from federal authorities.
Immigrant advocacy groups said they plan to continue public demonstrations and community outreach following the shooting. The Cypress-Tomball Democrats scheduled a “Justice for Lorenzo” protest in Conroe on Saturday, while Organized Power in Numbers announced it would conduct community outreach in Houston’s East End to inform residents of their legal rights.
]]>Baterbonia’s tomb was covered with flowers as visitors paid their respects and remembered him.
Baterbonia and his teammate, Nigerian national Divine Adili, drowned during the Ateneo Blue Eagles’ team-building activity in Dipaculao, Aurora, on June 8.
His family has coordinated with authorities in Manila as part of efforts to pursue the case. Family members also visited the shoreline in Aurora where the drowning occurred.
Meanwhile, the Talacogon Municipal Information Office said preparations are underway for Baterbonia’s 40th-day remembrance on July 18.
The local government said municipal officials met with Baterbonia’s parents on Tuesday to discuss the planned activities.
The municipal government also said it will provide a live broadcast of the commemoration for those who cannot attend in person.
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