National News - Page 96

UN rights chief urges US to ‘stop denying and start dismantling racism’

By Leah Asmelash The United Nations’ human rights chief is calling on the US to reform its criminal justice system, reimagine policing nationwide and provide reparations for descendants of enslaved Africans. In a report published on Monday, the UN’s High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet urged the US to make “transformative change for racial justice and equality.” “I am calling on all States to stop denying, and start dismantling, racism; to end impunity and build trust; to listen to the voices of people of African descent; and to confront past legacies and deliver redress,” Bachelet said in a statement. The report

This Iowa county used to be named for a slave-holding former vice president. Now, it’s named after a Black academic

By Leah Asmelash A county in Iowa was named after a slave-holding vice president. Now, it’s named after the first Black woman to earn a PhD from the University of Iowa. The Board of Supervisors of Johnson County in Iowa, home to Iowa City and the state university, voted unanimously on Thursday to recognize Lulu Merle Johnson as the official eponym of the county, rather than Richard Mentor Johnson. “Today was touching and I am so happy,” said Royceann Porter, the board’s vice chairperson, in a statement. “It was amazing to include Lulu Merle Johnson’s family in the recognition. I look forward

More people looking for — but not taking — jobs after their unemployment benefits end early

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By Tami Luhby Jason Smith thought he’d have an easier time filling jobs at his three auto repair shops after Indiana’s governor announced that pandemic unemployment benefits would end in mid-June. But it hasn’t worked out that way so far. While he is getting more applications for the auto technician, service consultant and administrative assistant postings, the job seekers haven’t responded to his requests for interviews. Smith has reached out to more than three dozen people in the last month, but he only heard back from a few, who said they weren’t interested in the position. “I thought it was going to be

Passenger frustration mounts as lines grow at understaffed airports

By Kelsey Kushner The busy summer travel season is in full swing. No matter where your vacation plans take you, if you’re flying, you might want to listen up. People are having trouble making their flights. From TSA shortages to plane delays, passengers say they’re beyond frustrated. “I didn’t expect too many delays,” said traveler Susan Goldstein. It’s another busy weekend at BWI and the level of frustration with passengers is high. “I made sure I got here early. Almost two hours early,” said passenger Jay Charles. TSA officials said as air travel skyrockets, so do the wait times to

Cincinnati’s first statue of a named woman honors civil rights activist Marian Spencer

By Rachel Trent Historical statues dot the landscape of Cincinnati, Ohio, but the city has been notably lacking any that feature a named woman. Until now. A new statue to be unveiled Sunday honors Marian Spencer, the first Black woman to be elected to the Cincinnati City Council. Spencer also served as vice mayor and fought for the desegregation of Coney Island and YWCA summer camps and pools nationwide, according to a Cincinnati Parks news release. The life-sized sculpture will be unveiled Sunday night at John G. & Phyllis W. Smale Riverfront Park. It shows the civil rights pioneer with two young children,

The UK should be having a racial reckoning. Instead, Black Lives Matter activists say they fear for their safety

Analysis by Salma Abdelaziz Aima, 19, is one of Britain’s most prominent Black Lives Matter (BLM) activists, but at a protest in London she is nervous. She has her hood up and, while a pandemic-mandated mask covers most of her face, she keeps her head down for fear of being recognized. Her eyes constantly dart to check the location of the police. She has reason to be scared. Campaigners say that standing up for the rights of Black people in the UK comes at a high price. They say they’ve seen an angry backlash and have even received death threats.

Department of Education has let colleges off the hook for $1 billion owed to taxpayers

By Katie Lobosco The federal government has failed to collect more than $1 billion in fines and other money owed by colleges, most of which is owed by for-profit institutions, according to a report released Thursday by a non-profit advocacy group. There are nearly 1,300 colleges that owe money to the Department of Education as of February, according to the National Student Legal Defense Network’s review of a series of documents it obtained over two years through Freedom of Information Act requests. The group, founded by former Department of Education officials, asserts that the agency has failed for years to use all the

Their ancestors were enslaved workers. Now they’re getting $2,100 a year in reparations

By Faith Karimi Linda Johnson-Thomas’ grandfather worked at the Virginia Theological Seminary for more than a decade, first as a farm laborer before moving up to head janitor. Her grandparents lived in a little white house on campus with their four children, including her mother. But until two years ago, she had no idea that her grandfather, John Samuel Thomas Jr., had been forced to work at the school in Alexandria, just outside of Washington, D.C. “All I knew was that he grew up on the seminary,” said Johnson-Thomas, 65, who lives in Mitchellville, Maryland. “We knew there were slaves in

Derek Chauvin sentenced to 22.5 years in death of George Floyd

By Ray Sanchez and Eric Levenson Derek Chauvin, the former police officer who killed George Floyd on a Minneapolis street last year, was sentenced Friday to 22 and half years in prison. Chauvin, in a light gray suit and tie and white shirt, spoke briefly before the sentence was imposed, offering his “condolences to the Floyd family.” Under Minnesota law, Chauvin will have to serve two-thirds of his sentence, or 15 years — and he will be eligible for supervised release for the remaining seven and a half years. The sentence exceeds the Minnesota sentencing guideline range of 10 years

The Theodore Roosevelt statue in front of New York’s Museum of Natural History will finally be removed

By Ganesh Setty and Leah Asmelash A controversial statue of Theodore Roosevelt will finally be moved from its current location after years of debate — and one year after a formal request for its removal. The statue debuted in 1940 and stands in front of the American Museum of Natural History in New York. It features the 26th president on horseback flanked by a Native American man on one side and an African man on the other — conveying a “racial hierarchy that the museum and members of the public have long found disturbing,” wrote the museum in its initial removal request

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