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The Empire State building was lit up with the colours of the French flag this week, in honour of the American-French performer Josephine Baker, who was inducted into France's Panthéon mausoleum on Tuesday. In the US, Josephine Baker is just as beloved as she is in France, and nowhere more so than in Harlem, in New York City. Our correspondents Jessica Le Masurier, Yves Schaeffner and Fanny Chauvin met with New Yorkers to explore Baker's legacy.

In his seventh collaboration with actress Penélope Cruz, Pedro Almodóvar focuses on two very different experiences of motherhood. Critic Lisa Nesselson tells us why "Parallel Mothers" draws some outstanding performances and how society seems to be catching up with Almodóvar's explorations of the diversity of the human condition.

Quebec's hip-hop scene is buzzing with new exciting acts and Naya Ali is one of its freshest faces, even if she raps in English and not in French. Her latest album “Godspeed: Elevated” is full of self-aware lyrics and confident flow. She stopped by the FRANCE 24 studio to tell us about her first time in France, her sound and her Ethiopian heritage. We also take a look at new music by Venezuelan artist and producer Arca, Burkina Faso chanteuse Kandy Guira and French rockers the Howlin’ Jaws.

American-born entertainer-turned-resistance fighter and civil rights activist Josephine Baker is the latest to get the ultimate recognition from the French state: entombment in the Pantheon. That begs the questions: what does it take to be a national hero in France?

Colombia is one of the most biodiverse countries in the world, with an enormous variety of wild birds and reptiles. Amidst the COVID-19 lockdown the residents of Bogotá are now discovering that the city has a greater diversity of inhabitants than they had imagined.

France's prominent Le Petit Robert dictionary, considered a linguistic authority in the country, recently added a new pronoun to its online edition. The word is "iel", a gender-neutral merging of the masculine "il" (he) and the feminine "elle" (she). This new pronoun, intended for those who identify as neither male nor female, is already used online and by younger generations. But the move to include it in the dictionary provoked a backlash from politicians and linguists. One vocal critic of the new pronoun is French Education Minister Jean-Michel Blanquer. He says it's the latest expression of "wokism" which, he claims, threatens France's universalist model. We take a closer look.

Cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was killed when a gun in Baldwin's hand discharged on the set of a Western movie near Santa Fe. No criminal charges have been filed.

Shooting to fame at the height of the Roaring Twenties in Paris, Josephine Baker was a Missouri-born dancer who found her spiritual home in France, far from the racial segregation of her native USA. Yet the early years of her career can make for uncomfortable viewing for a contemporary audience, with Baker seemingly complicit in numerous racist stereotypes. But for Ilana Navaro, director of the film "Josephine Baker: The Story of an Awakening", Baker "took what she had and, later on, turned it into a political tool" – as part of the French Resistance during World War II, and even later as a leading voice in the US civil rights movement.

Sufi whirling is a form of dancing that dates back to the 12th or 13th century. This mystic tradition emphasises the inward search for the divine. Not many women practice the dance in public but we're joined in the studio by one of them, Rana Gorgani. She tells us more about this unique form of dance.

Countries around the world are clamping down on international travel in an effort to hold the Omicron coronavirus variant at bay. Along with cutting air links to southern African countries, the travel bans have left thousands of travelers stranded.

By imposing new restrictions on the media and female actors, the Taliban have once again reaffirmed their misogynistic ideology, rights advocates have said.

Barbados declared hit singer Rihanna a national hero at its republican celebrations in her hometown of Bridgetown. Prime Minister Mia Mottley announced that the 33-year-old would be conferred with the honor of National Hero of Barbados to cheers. Rihanna was called up before the crowds to be congratulated by Mottley.