This piece was originally published in the September 15, 2020 edition of CAP Action’s daily newsletter, the Progress Report. Subscribe to the Progress Report here.
Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash
The number of times Trump has tweeted about Fox News since August 1. He has tweeted about wildfires just once over the same period.
Last month, Trump falsely claimed that kids were “almost immune” from the coronavirus.
The reality? Confirmed cases, hospitalizations, and deaths among children are skyrocketing across the country. And as schools continue to reopen, it can only get worse.
Share this video on Twitter and Facebook to get the facts out:
- [Sensitive content warning: abuse in detainment, sexual abuse] A whistleblower report from a nurse at an ICE detention center describes “jarring medical neglect” at the center, including a horrifyingly high number of hysterectomies being performed on immigrant women. Forced sterilization has long been used against Black and Indigenous people, disabled people, incarcerated people, migrants and other marginalized groups — and, disturbingly, it’s legal! As CAP Action Disability Justice Initiative Director Rebecca Cokley reminds us, the 1927 Supreme Court case Buck v. Bell ruled that compulsory sterilization was constitutional to protect the “health of the state,” and it has never been expressly overturned.
- At least 6,000 coronavirus cases and 22 deaths have been reported among students and school staff since August 1, according to the National Education Association. Our team is monitoring the situation, and we’ll be updating this tracker as more stories emerge about schools shutting down in-person classes after experiencing an increase in COVID-19 cases.
- As wildfires continue to spread across California, Oregon, and Washington state, so does online disinformation. Conspiracy theories about the wildfires are surfacing on Facebook, some of which have even led to offline violence and threatening actions. In Oregon, one journalist says he was stopped on two separate occasions by civilians — one pointed an assault rifle at him — who insisted he was one of the “looters” supposedly responsible for the massive fires (this is obviously false). We’ll have more on this in tomorrow’s edition of What’s Trending?.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
- On Sunday, the U.S. Court of Appeals rejected the will of Florida voters and upheld the Republican-controlled state government’s decision to require formerly incarcerated people to pay fines and fees in order to exercise their right to vote. This reversal of a ruling by a lower court is a massive blow to voting rights in Florida, a state that will be consequential in the election this year. Returning citizens already face countless barriers after being incarcerated, including finding employment and securing a steady income, so requiring them to pay money in order to vote makes voting out of reach for people trying to get back on their feet. Make no mistake — this is racist voter suppression in action.
- September 15 is the first day of Latinx Heritage Month! From now through October 15, our friends at Voto Latino are mobilizing the Latinx community to embrace their power and participate in our democracy. Read about the Latinx heroes working on the front lines of the pandemic in this profile from NBC News, and don’t miss this webinar that explains how Latinx history is deeply interconnected with Black history.
- Today marks 57 years since four Black girls were killed when Klan members bombed the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama. It’s also the day that Eric Garner, who was killed in 2014 by a New York City police officer, would have turned 50 years old. Senator Doug Jones (D-AL) tweeted a timely reminder: “We cannot let pass today’s historic moment for racial justice without finishing the march to equality.” Take a moment today to remember the names of those we’ve lost as a result of racism and hateful violence — Addie Mae Collins (14), Denise McNair (11), Carole Robertson (14), Cynthia Wesley (14), and Eric Garner (43) — and commit to continuing the still-unfinished fight against white supremacy in America.
WHAT WE’RE READING
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