Wednesday, July 8 top news briefs
Hello! It is Wednesday, July 8. Here are today’s top news briefs.
3 million Covid-19 cases
Today the U.S. surpassed 3 million confirmed cases of Covid-19. 131,600 have died while almost a million people have recovered. NPR explained that one million cases were confirmed in the past month alone, during a time that many states started to reopen. There are record case numbers and hospitalizations in Florida, Arizona, Texas, and California. Eight other states reported double their average daily new cases this week: Louisiana, Idaho, Georgia, Florida, Nevada, Tennessee, Kansas, and Delaware.
There is a national debate on whether schools should be reopened for in-person classes this fall. President Donald Trump said yesterday at the White House that he would put pressure on state governors to reopen their school districts. The decision on reopening is up to local school districts. Florida education officials said brick-and-mortar schools must be opened for at least five days per week for all students. Trump tweeted today that he may cut off funding if schools did not open. There are many teachers and school staff who have expressed concerns on what would happen if they were infected and had to stay home. Would they still be paid, or would it be time off? It’s a controversy.
FBI investigating apparent hateful attack involving threat of noose
The FBI said they are investigating an incident that was captured on video of a Black man who was seen being assaulted by five white men in a wooded area in which the white men threatened to bring a noose. The Black man’s name is Vauhxx Booker and this happened on the Fourth of July at a lake near Bloomington, Indiana. Booker said he was trying to go to a beach but it was blocked by a boat and ATVs, so he went with his friends through the woods and that’s when they were confronted by the men who said they were trespassing. The video shows some of the men holding Booker against a tree. His friends helped to intervene and they left after an argument that included racial slurs. Booker posted the video and said he had several injuries. Now the FBI is looking into this.
Two charged with hate crimes for painting over “Black Lives Matter” mural
In Martinez, California, a man and a woman were charged with a hate crime for painting over a large “Black Lives Matter” mural on a road in the front of a courthouse. Their names are David Nelson and Nicole Anderson. They were seen in a video pouring black paint and using a roller paint pole. This happened on the Fourth of July. Their charges are violation of civil rights, vandalism, and possession of tools to commit vandalism. They face up to a year in jail.
Supreme Court says employers can decline to provide birth control
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled today that employers can decide to not provide birth control to employees as a part of their health insurance coverage if they have religious or moral beliefs that they feel is in conflict with birth control. They can withhold birth control while providing insurance coverage. To explain it a bit — the Affordable Care Act, as known as Obamacare, which became law in 2010, required employers to provide birth control at no cost. The ACA exempted churches, temples, and mosques (houses of worship), but required nonprofit organizations that were affiliated with religious organizations to provide birth control or to complete an “opt out” process. The Trump administration created a policy that said employers with religious beliefs can decline to provide birth control. So it was confusing on what was legal and now the Supreme Court has made it clear in a 7-2 ruling to allow employers to withhold birth control based on religious reasons.
Kanye West explains his latest perspectives
Kanye West said in an interview with Forbes that he is no longer a supporter of President Donald Trump and would take off the “red hat.” He doubled down that he was serious about running for president in 2020 and said his political party would be the “Birthday Party” because when they win, it’s everybody’s birthday. He criticized Joe Biden for saying that if a Black person did not vote for him, then they are not Black. He explained that he wore the red hat as a protest against the idea that Black individuals are automatically considered Democratic voters. West said if he did not win in 2020, he may win in 2024 and said that God is the one who appoints the president.
That is all the top news briefs for today. Check out our Deaf News videos. Stay with the light!
https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/map.html
https://www.cnn.com/2020/07/08/us/fbi-investigation-alleged-racist-attack-indiana/index.html