Public Policy
News releases, reports, statements and associated documents from public policy organizations whose goal it is to influence the debate Washington.
Featured Stories
WQXR and the Metropolitan Opera Announce the Third Season of Aria Code
NEW YORK, March 4 -- Metropolitan Opera issued the following news release on March 3, 2021:
WQXR and the Metropolitan Opera today announced a third season of the critically acclaimed opera podcast Aria Code, hailed by The New Yorker as "elegantly constructed [and] effortlessly listenable."
Hosted by MacArthur Fellow and Grammy Award-winning musician Rhiannon Giddens, Aria Code brings to life the human experience at the heart of opera through storytelling, interviews, and stellar performances from the Metropolitan Opera's treasured archives.
Season three launches on Wednesday, March 10, with
... Show Full Article
NEW YORK, March 4 -- Metropolitan Opera issued the following news release on March 3, 2021:
WQXR and the Metropolitan Opera today announced a third season of the critically acclaimed opera podcast Aria Code, hailed by The New Yorker as "elegantly constructed [and] effortlessly listenable."
Hosted by MacArthur Fellow and Grammy Award-winning musician Rhiannon Giddens, Aria Code brings to life the human experience at the heart of opera through storytelling, interviews, and stellar performances from the Metropolitan Opera's treasured archives.
Season three launches on Wednesday, March 10, withan episode centered on an aria that has gained particular resonance over the past year as the world contended with a pandemic: "Nessun dorma" from Puccini's Turandot. This enduring ode to triumph over adversity has been sung outside of hospitals, inside COVID wards, and from balconies around the world, resulting in numerous videos on YouTube documenting these performances of hope and resilience. Giddens is joined by Met Music Director Yannick Nezet-Seguin and former Washington Post music critic Anne Midgette who place the aria in its historical context, and Dr. Michael Cho, a pulmonary and critical care physician at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, who speaks to its powerful place in the present. Dr. Cho, who has been working on the front lines of COVID-19, is also a violist with the National Virtual Medical Orchestra and played in the group's video performance of "Nessun dorma" released in October 2020.
The season will also feature an episode tied to the highly anticipated New York premiere of Terence Blanchard's opera, Fire Shut Up in My Bones, based on the powerful memoir of the same name by New York Times columnist Charles Blow. Other explorations of contemporary social issues include episodes on: the complex meaning of "home" for immigrants and those who have endured forced migration ("O patria mia" from Verdi's Aida); depictions of mental health ("Il dolce suono... Spargi d'amaro pianto" from Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor); the impact of forced marriage on women today ("Una voce poco fa" from Rossini's Il Barbiere di Siviglia); and the destructive force of illegitimate political power ("Dostig ja vishei" from Mussorgsky's Boris Godunov).
Musical performances and recordings will include arias sung by world-renowned opera stars past and present, including Franco Corelli, Latonia Moore, Gerald Finley, Pretty Yende, Joyce DiDonato, Natalie Dessay, Joseph Calleja, Erin Morley, Renee Fleming, Rene Pape, Nina Stemme, Deborah Voigt, Will Liverman, and more.
"WQXR is thrilled to bring listeners a new and extended season of Aria Code, a program that speaks beautifully both to passionate opera lovers and the opera-curious," said Ed Yim, Chief Content Officer, WQXR. "As New York awaits the return to live performance, Aria Code is part of our commitment to partnering with cultural organizations like the Metropolitan Opera to bring audiences musical experiences wherever they are."
"For the past year, the Met has made it a priority to do all we can to stay engaged with our audience while the opera house is dark," said Peter Gelb, the Met's General Manager. "I'm very pleased that our successful podcast collaboration with WQXR will continue for a third season, bringing powerful operatic stories to listeners at a time when they need them most."
Aria Code's third season will launch Wednesday, March 10, and can be found wherever podcasts are available. Episodes will be released bi-weekly through November.
Featured Guests
Anne Midgette (former music critic of the Washington Post)
Naomi Andre (author of Black Opera: History, Power, Engagement and Scholar in Residence, Seattle Opera)
Fred Plotkin (author of Opera 101: A Guide to Learning and Loving Opera)
Paul Thomason (writer and lecturer)
Cori Ellison (dramaturg)
James Conlon (Music Director of the Los Angeles Opera)
Philip Ewell (Director of Graduate Studies in the Music Department at Hunter College)
Dr. Michael Cho (pulmonary and critical care physician)
Mahtem Shiferraw (writer and visual artist from Ethiopia and Eritrea)
Jasvinder Sanghera CBE (survivor of a forced marriage and founder of Karma Nirvana, a national award winning charity that supports both men and women affected by honor-based abuse and forced marriages)
Alex Ross (music critic for The New Yorker)
Rhiannon Giddens's new album They're Calling Me Home, recorded with Italian multi-instrumentalist Francesco Turrisi, will be released April 9 on Nonesuch Records. They're Calling Me Home is a 12-track album that speaks of the longing for the comfort of home as well as the metaphorical "call home" of death, which has been a tragic reality for so many during the COVID-19 crisis.
[Category: Arts/Cultural]
VFW: 'Hello Girls' Kept World War I Communications Humming
KANSAS CITY, Missouri, March 4 -- The Veterans of Foreign Wars issued the following news release:
By the time the U.S. declared war on Germany in 1917, the Navy had already opened its doors to women, assigning them ground jobs that freed up men for sea service. The need ashore was even greater.
As the first American forces began arriving in France that summer, they found the communications network in disarray. In three years of combat, telephone lines were shot, shelled and bombed faster than they could be repaired.
Furthermore, the French women operating telephone exchanges spoke no English
... Show Full Article
KANSAS CITY, Missouri, March 4 -- The Veterans of Foreign Wars issued the following news release:
By the time the U.S. declared war on Germany in 1917, the Navy had already opened its doors to women, assigning them ground jobs that freed up men for sea service. The need ashore was even greater.
As the first American forces began arriving in France that summer, they found the communications network in disarray. In three years of combat, telephone lines were shot, shelled and bombed faster than they could be repaired.
Furthermore, the French women operating telephone exchanges spoke no Englishand in general were very casual toward their duties, frequently forsaking their switchboards in order to go to canteens, shopping and to meet with boyfriends. The very first U.S. phone operators were men who were poorly trained and tended to hang up when combat-stressed officers shouted at them over the lines.
Pershing Calls for 'Hello Girls'
Army Gen. John J. Pershing, commander of American Expeditionary Forces in World War I, found this situation intolerable. He had, however, noted the efficiency and competence of Britain's Women's Army Auxiliary Corps as they expertly kept England-based phone lines humming.
In November, he urgently advised his War Department of the need for French-speaking American women to take over the telephone system so that Allied military operations could be effectively coordinated.
Before Pershing had boarded the ship that bore him to Europe, he stuffed its hold with the latest in communications technology. The telephone was an American invention, and he was determined to exploit it to its fullest potential.
The War Department placed advertisements in newspapers across the country, and more than 7,000 patriotic women eagerly responded. The vast majority had to be rejected because they had no communications experience and spoke no French.
From this pool, the Army selected 150, mostly Louisiana Creoles and the daughters and granddaughters of French and French-Canadian immigrants. Following intensive training (in some cases re-training women who had been working as telegraph operators) by AT&T and basic instruction in military protocol, the Secret Service meticulously screened these volunteers to assure they were loyal to the Allied cause. Eventually, 223 women were cleared for duty and served in war-torn France.
While the men serving in the trenches were affectionately known as "Doughboys," these female switchboard warriors had the moniker "Hello Girls" hung on them. In general, they loved it. In a rare case (for that time) of sexual equality, chief operators were paid $125 per month, the same as a male Signal Corps soldier. All the ladies received their monthly remuneration, down to $50 for substitute operators.
Professionalism Welcomed in War Zone
The initial contingent of Hello Girls arrived in France in March 1918 and immediately ingratiated themselves. U.S. officers who had been stymied by French operators who spoke no English and were less than conscientious about their duties were mightily relieved to come on line and hear a crisp, clear and fluent American woman say, "Number please."
After their long shifts ended, many of these fatigued women, rather than collapse into their bunks, would visit field hospitals and talk to wounded British, French and American soldiers. This undoubtedly raised the spirits of these hurting young men, many of whom were terribly disfigured. Sexism faded away quickly on the front lines, replaced by mutual respect and admiration as men and women embraced a camaraderie brought on by the horrors of war.
The operators working in the forward areas endured many of the same dangers and discomforts as the young men in the trenches. Shellings, aerial strafings, poison gas, freezing weather, drafty barracks and phone huts, squirrel-sized rats and the terrifying specter of the Spanish flu were all factors these women refused to be intimidated by as they flawlessly carried out their assignments.
Near the Meuse-Argonne Front Line
Following the battle of St. Mihiel in September 1918, the Hello Girls transferred to Souilly in northeastern France for the Meuse-Argonne offensive. As the armies clashed, these operators worked round-the-clock handling an endless succession of calls coordinating infantry advances, artillery placements and troop movements. An extra six operators had to be assigned to the Allied communications center to handle the volume of wire traffic supporting this last major engagement of the war in Europe.
After German shrapnel shattered the windows of the building housing the central telephone exchange, the operators ignored the numbing cold as they kept the flow of information moving, enabling Allied victory. As always, having danger at their sides did not impress these ladies.
On Oct. 30, a wounded German POW kicked over an oil stove in the U.S. headquarters, starting a conflagration that spread to eight buildings, including the telephone exchange. As the flames crept closer, the Hello Girls continued to connect calls, ignoring repeated orders to evacuate. Not until the fire was almost upon them and exasperated officers threatened them with courts martial did the women finally forsake their switchboards.
The fire brigade made short work of the blaze, and a mere hour later, the operators rushed back into the still-smoking building to staff the remaining phone lines. This selfless, crucial heroism earned seven women Distinguished Service Medals.
Following the Nov. 11, 1918, armistice, the Army sent a contingent of Hello Girls to Paris to translate during the peace proceedings. Some went to Germany to assist with the settling in of the limited Allied occupation forces. Their vital contributions in these capacities did not go unnoticed as Pershing frequently visited the telephone exchanges and extolled the worth of the Hello Girls. As they returned home, though, they learned that the U.S. government did not share their general's high estimation.
Two Hello Girls died from the Spanish flu while in France. Others were wounded. After their return home, the Army said they had served as employees of the military, not as actual soldiers, and denied them veterans bonuses, hospitalization for disabilities or even flags on their coffins.
Granted Official Veterans Status
Decades later, a new wave of feminism spearheaded by the National Organization for Women came to the WWI phone operators' aid. In 1977, President Jimmy Carter enacted the GI Bill Improvement Act of 1977 (P.L. 95-202) that granted the Hello Girls veterans status, benefits and receipt of the WWI Victory Medal. In 1979, 31 surviving Hello Girls received their much-deserved medals.
Even before World War I ended in 1918, President Woodrow Wilson, noting the priceless contribution being made by the Hello Girls, reversed his previous stance on women's suffrage. In 1912, one of the planks in his election platform had been staunch opposition to allowing women to vote, the logic being that since women stayed home during wartime they did not participate in combat, and therefore had not earned the right to vote.
The Hello Girls showed this argument as pure fallacy. While addressing Congress on Sept. 30, 1918, Wilson spoke clearly in the opposite direction, as he urged the legislators to pass women's suffrage.
"Are we alone to ask and take the utmost that our women can give and still say we do not see what title that gives them to stand by our sides in the guidance of the affairs of their nation and ours?" he asked.
"We have made partners of the women in this war. Shall we admit them only to a partnership of suffering and sacrifice and toil and not to a partnership of privilege and rights? This war could not have been fought if it had not been for the services of the women, services rendered in every sphere wherever men have worked and upon the very skirts and edges of the battle itself."
The Nineteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution -- which gave women the right to vote -- was ratified in 1920.
[Category: National Defense]
Institute for Local Self-Reliance: New Research Focuses on Internet Infrastructure on Tribal Lands
WASHINGTON, March 4 (TNSRes) -- The Institute for Local Self-Reliance issued the following news release:
New research from the Institute for Local Self-Reliance's Community Broadband Network Initiative is focused on broadband access and Internet infrastructure on tribal lands -- areas which suffer from the least connectivity in the nation. There are two key pieces of research:
The first comprehensive list of tribally owned broadband projects in Indian Country. No one has assembled a list of all tribal-owned networks in the U.S. until now. Our resource includes an interactive web map of the locations
... Show Full Article
WASHINGTON, March 4 (TNSRes) -- The Institute for Local Self-Reliance issued the following news release:
New research from the Institute for Local Self-Reliance's Community Broadband Network Initiative is focused on broadband access and Internet infrastructure on tribal lands -- areas which suffer from the least connectivity in the nation. There are two key pieces of research:
The first comprehensive list of tribally owned broadband projects in Indian Country. No one has assembled a list of all tribal-owned networks in the U.S. until now. Our resource includes an interactive web map of the locationsin which these networks offer service, brief descriptions of each of the projects, and links to many other resources. The goal is to have -- for the first time -- a comprehensive resource for Native Nations to consult when considering a broadband project.
A case study report that delves into the experiences of four Native Nations as they constructed their own Internet service providers. The case studies examine the unique challenges Native Nations confront as they seek to build Internet infrastructure and address the digital divide while also retaining the tribal sovereignty that is essential to Native Nations' identity and heritage. As the report states, "Native Nations are sovereign over their data, and have the obligation to protect that information and use it for the betterment of tribal citizens." The case study shows how four tribes -- the Coeur d'Alene, the Nez Perce, the Fond du Lac Band of Ojibwe, and the St. Regis Mohawk Tribe -- tackle these issues as they seek to construct this essential piece of infrastructure.
Each section of the report contains key takeaways that other tribes could use and learn from. The report also pulls these individual case studies together for comprehensive key lessons that Native Nations, lending institutions, and the federal government can use to improve the process for implementing tribal ISP's, which include:
* Improving Access to Capital. Native Nations do not have the same access to capital as municipalities or as private Internet service providers. Due to that fact, lending institutions should address their processes for lending to Native Nations to determine how to better support network projects, and the federal government should regularly evaluate funding opportunities for network projects by Native Nations.
* Avoiding Single-Purpose Funding. Federal funding is often limited to a single purpose, such as connecting Indian Health Services facilities or schools & libraries, which tends to create Internet "silos" rather than broad access.
* Recognizing the Preparation Needed to Take Advantage of Opportunities. Native Nations that have already started projects or have plans to start projects can easily jump on new funding opportunities if they have a core team of network professionals ready and waiting for the next funding opportunity.
* Respecting Native Nations' Right to Spectrum. The FCC should not lease licenses to spectrum over any Native Nations to non-native entities. Spectrum should be treated as a natural resource, and the FCC should recognize Native Nations' autonomy in determining how to use spectrum for Internet access.
* Recognizing the Important Role of Tribal Employment Rights Offices. The Tribal Employment Rights Offices provide a value often overlooked by lending institutions or the federal government by making sure that training and hiring is done locally and that the community is benefiting from the new job opportunities that a network project brings.
The report, Building Indigenous Future Zones: Four Tribal Broadband Case Studies, is available here: https://ilsr.org/report-indigenous-future-zones/
[Category: Sociological]
Feinstein Institutes and GE Research Demonstrate Ultrasound Stimulation Reduces Obesity
MANHASSET, New York, March 4 (TNSJou) -- Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research issued the following news on March 3, 2021:
New research shows that liver-focused ultrasound stimulation significantly decreases chronic inflammation linked to obesity. In a study published today in Scientific Reports, researchers from the Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research and GE Research demonstrate that ultrasound technology could be used as a noninvasive approach to treating obesity.
These findings are important as they present breakthrough noninvasive methods to tap into the nervous system to treat
... Show Full Article
MANHASSET, New York, March 4 (TNSJou) -- Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research issued the following news on March 3, 2021:
New research shows that liver-focused ultrasound stimulation significantly decreases chronic inflammation linked to obesity. In a study published today in Scientific Reports, researchers from the Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research and GE Research demonstrate that ultrasound technology could be used as a noninvasive approach to treating obesity.
These findings are important as they present breakthrough noninvasive methods to tap into the nervous system to treatmetabolic diseases without the use of pharmaceuticals.
More than 650 million adults worldwide are obese, which often leaves them vulnerable to a number of medical comorbidities and despite an urgent need for treatments, no specific long-lasting therapeutic approaches are currently available. In obesity, pro-inflammatory markers, like cytokine proteins, have been associated with hyperglycemia, insulin resistance and hypertension. Additionally, obesity leads to reduced vagus nerve activity and metabolic dysfunction.
The latest study on obesity is based on GE's novel discovery that ultrasound can be used to perform peripheral nerve modulation as a new form of bioelectronic medicine. Over the past four years, GE has worked with the Feinstein Institutes and other collaborators to advance this new technology toward future clinical applications to treat diabetes, chronic inflammatory conditions like arthritis, and more recently, obesity.
"Obesity is linked to devastating health problems, like heart disease, diabetes, and high blood pressure, and yet there are no long-lasting clinical treatments," said Sangeeta S. Chavan, PhD, professor in the Institute of Bioelectronic Medicine at the Feinstein Institutes, and principal investigator on the paper. "These encouraging results show the unrecognized potential ultrasound has to alleviate this deadly condition."
In preclinical studies, Dr. Chavan and Tomas Huerta, a graduate student, demonstrated the therapeutic effects of targeted ultrasound stimulation on body weight, food intake, and metabolic and inflammatory markers. Overall, the severity of obesity was reduced. These initial results suggest peripheral focused ultrasound can modulate obesity-associated complications without side effects and show promise for the development of noninvasive therapy for chronic diseases like diabetes and metabolic syndrome.
"The latest breakthrough highlighted in Scientific Reports builds on previous work by GE, demonstrating that peripheral ultrasound induced nerve modulation is capable of regulating critical neurons involved in glucose regulation, food intake and metabolism," said Victoria Cotero, a senior scientist in the Biosciences Group at GE Research and technical lead and co-principal investigator. "From diabetes to now obesity, we are showing the future potential of this platform as an alternative to drug treatments to treat these chronic conditions."
Cotero cited several breakthroughs that GE's bioelectronic medicine team has achieved since starting a research program in 2016. The team also has published numerous papers in Nature Communications, the Journal of Neuroscience Method and Experimental Physiology, demonstrating other potential treatments for hyperinflammatory conditions such as type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome and irritable bowel disease.
The Feinstein Institutes, the global scientific home of the emerging field of bioelectronic medicine, explores the use of electronic devices to treat diseases and injury instead of drugs while reducing significant side effects associated with drugs. The goal of bioelectronic medicine is to identify neural targets that can be selectively activated or inhibited, which can control when needed, the function of specific organs. Results from this ultrasound study indicate the possibility of one such novel, noninvasive bioelectronic medicine treatment for obesity.
"Researchers and clinicians consider bioelectronic medicine as an alternative to some of the most critical conditions, like obesity," said Kevin J. Tracey, MD, president and CEO of the Feinstein Institutes and co-author on the paper. "This important collaboration with GE Research points to future studies that may improve the lives of patients with obesity.
Recently, there have been significant breakthroughs in bioelectronic medicine. In November 2020, Dr. Chavan and her team discovered that a small cluster of neurons within the brain is responsible for controlling the body's immune response and the release of cytokines, which leads to inflammation in the body. This discovery, published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America (PNAS), adds to the growing body of research in the field of bioelectronic medicine and how the brain regulates the body's immune response.
* * *
JOURNAL: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America - https://www.pnas.org/content/117/47/29803
JOURNAL: Scientific Reports - https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-021-84330-6
[Category: Health Care]
Committee to Protect Journalists: Investigative Journalist Visar Duriqi Assaulted in Kosovo
BERLIN, Germany, March 4 (TNSRes) -- The Committee to Protect Journalists issued the following news on March 3, 2021:
Kosovo authorities should conduct a swift and thorough investigation into the assault of journalist Visar Duriqi and ensure his safety, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.
Shortly after midnight on February 25, three unidentified masked men attacked Duriqi, an investigative reporter for the local news website Insajderi, outside his home in Fushe Kosova/Kosovo Polje, a municipality of Pristina, the capital, according to a report (https://insajderi.org/dhembe-dhe-hunde-te-thyer-lendime-te-renda-trupore-ndaj-gazetarit-hulumtues-visar-duriqi/)
... Show Full Article
BERLIN, Germany, March 4 (TNSRes) -- The Committee to Protect Journalists issued the following news on March 3, 2021:
Kosovo authorities should conduct a swift and thorough investigation into the assault of journalist Visar Duriqi and ensure his safety, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.
Shortly after midnight on February 25, three unidentified masked men attacked Duriqi, an investigative reporter for the local news website Insajderi, outside his home in Fushe Kosova/Kosovo Polje, a municipality of Pristina, the capital, according to a report (https://insajderi.org/dhembe-dhe-hunde-te-thyer-lendime-te-renda-trupore-ndaj-gazetarit-hulumtues-visar-duriqi/)by his employer and the journalist, who spoke to CPJ in a phone interview.
The men hit Duriqi and knocked him to the ground, where they kicked him in the head and broke two of his teeth, he told CPJ.
Duriqi said the men left the scene and police arrived later, and he was brought to a local hospital, where he was treated for head injuries. The Kosovo police have opened an investigation into the attack, according to news reports.
"Kosovo authorities should swiftly and thoroughly investigate the assault of journalist Visar Duriqi, determine whether the attack was linked to his work, and bring the perpetrators to justice," said CPJ's Europe and Central Asia program coordinator, Gulnoza Said, in New York. "Authorities must ensure that journalists working to uncover corruption can safely do their jobs, and that those who attack journalists are held to account; impunity in such cases only encourages more attacks."
Duriqi told CPJ that he often covers organized crime groups' alleged political connections in his work at Insajderi and in the investigative video show INDOKS, which he produces for the website.
He said that he believed the attack was connected to his work as a journalist because the attackers did not say anything and did not attempt to rob him; he added that he did not know of any specific work he had done recently that may have sparked the attack.
He said he had not received any threats recently, aside from threatening comments that he often receives on social media.
CPJ emailed questions to the press department of the Kosovo Police in Pristina, but did not receive any reply.
[Category: Media]
CAIR Decries Striking of Preamble on Role of Racism in Health Disparities Bill in Maryland Legislature
WASHINGTON, March 4 -- The Council on American-Islamic Relations issued the following news release on March 3, 2021:
The Maryland office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) today decried the striking of language in Senate Bill 52 Public Health - Maryland Commission on Health Equity (The Shirley Nathan-Pulliam Health Equity Act of 2021) in the Maryland General Assembly that addresses and highlights the role of racism in health disparities.
The preamble of the bill, which is sponsored by Senator Mary Washington, originally read in part:
"Racism is rooted in the foundation of America,
... Show Full Article
WASHINGTON, March 4 -- The Council on American-Islamic Relations issued the following news release on March 3, 2021:
The Maryland office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) today decried the striking of language in Senate Bill 52 Public Health - Maryland Commission on Health Equity (The Shirley Nathan-Pulliam Health Equity Act of 2021) in the Maryland General Assembly that addresses and highlights the role of racism in health disparities.
The preamble of the bill, which is sponsored by Senator Mary Washington, originally read in part:
"Racism is rooted in the foundation of America,from the time chattel slavery began in the 1600s, to the Jim Crow era, to the declaration of the war on drugs that eventually led to the mass incarceration of Black people, and it has remained a presence in American society while subjecting Black, Indigenous, and People of Color to hardships and disadvantages in every aspect of life."
All 11 references to racism were struck after pushback from Republican and some conservative Democrat lawmakers who raised objections and expressed a preference to focus on the bill's "substance" instead.
"The preamble of this bill contains important context that is relevant to understanding the extent, scope and nature of factors contributing to health disparities in our state and beyond," said CAIR's Director in Maryland Zainab Chaudry. "We can't effectively get to the root of a problem and fix it until we first find the courage to take a good hard look and examine the issue of systemic racism more closely. It's dismaying that despite the racial reckoning sweeping our nation, some of our lawmakers are still not ready to acknowledge tough realities that communities of color have been forced to confront for generations."
In CAIR's written and oral testimony before the Senate Finance Committee in support of the measure earlier this session, Government Affairs intern Huzzaifa Muhammad stated in part:
"Racism has been on the forefront of this past year, however there are many consequences of racism, and health inequity is one of them. Research shows that ethnic minorities and people of color tend to have access to lower quality of health compared with others. In fact, according to the Center for American Progress, African-Americans are less likely to have health insurance and also have the highest mortality rate for all cancers. These health inequities are partly due to poverty, less access to affordable medical care, and discrimination in the health care system. They have been especially harmful during the coronavirus pandemic over the last year, where countless reports and studies have exposed racial disparities and shown that communities of color - particularly African-American communities - are disproportionately adversely impacted by COVID-19 infections."
The bill, named for former state senator Shirley Nathan-Pulliam, aims to create a statewide commission charged with examining the health of Maryland residents and assessing the impact of factors including access to affordable housing, educational attainment and employment. Commissioners' objective would be to advise state government on racial, ethnic, cultural or socioeconomic disparities in health, and identify goals for health equity.
CAIR is America's largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization. Its mission is to enhance understanding of Islam, protect civil rights, promote justice, and empower American Muslims.
[Category: International]
Black Women Call for Police Accountability, End to Qualified Immunity
WASHINGTON, March 4 -- In Our Own Voice-National Black Women's Reproductive Justice Agenda issued the following statement:
* * *
This week, U.S. Rep. Ayanna Pressley (MA-07) and Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA) reintroduced the "Ending Qualified Immunity Act" to eliminate the legal loophole that prevents victims of police violence and civil rights violations from obtaining relief through civil lawsuits. In Our Own Voice: National Black Women's Reproductive Justice Agenda President and CEO Marcela Howell issued the following statement in support of the legislation:
"Police violence against Black families
... Show Full Article
WASHINGTON, March 4 -- In Our Own Voice-National Black Women's Reproductive Justice Agenda issued the following statement:
* * *
This week, U.S. Rep. Ayanna Pressley (MA-07) and Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA) reintroduced the "Ending Qualified Immunity Act" to eliminate the legal loophole that prevents victims of police violence and civil rights violations from obtaining relief through civil lawsuits. In Our Own Voice: National Black Women's Reproductive Justice Agenda President and CEO Marcela Howell issued the following statement in support of the legislation:
"Police violence against Black familiescontinues to plague our communities. Federal, state and local officials time and again fail to protect our civil rights and our very lives. When victims of police violence seek justice through civil litigation, they are thwarted by the 'qualified immunity' doctrine, a legal loophole invented by the courts to shield police from accountability.
"We applaud Rep. Pressley and Sen. Markey for reintroducing the 'Ending Qualified Immunity Act.' We encourage Congress to follow their lead and pass the bill, which will allow victims of civil rights violations at the hands of the police to seek justice. In honor of Shukri Ali, Rekia Boyd, Miriam Carey, Deborah Danner, Maya Hall, Charleena Lyles, Aiyanna Stanley-Jones, Breonna Taylor and all the Black women, men and children killed by police violence, we demand immediate action by Congress.
"Black women are leading the movement to dismantle systemic racism and to stop police violence. Congress must heed our call for justice and the right to live our lives in peace. The same elected officials who courted our votes must now vote to protect our rights and lives by passing the 'Ending Qualified Immunity Act.'"
[Category: Political]
