Headlines of the Month

Dr. Kizzmekia Corbett, A Black woman from North Carolina will go down in history for leading the effort to solve the COVID-19 pandemic.

Dr. Kizzmekia Corbett is a research fellow and scientific lead at the National Institut of Health. She was on the frontlines working with a team of scientists, studying Moderna's vaccine, one of the two COVID-19 vaccines shown to be effective by more than 90 percent. Finding a vaccine to combat COVID-19 has been crucial to saving lives on a national and global level.

Black Americans and other people of color have been disproportionately affected by Covid-19, increasing the urgency among health experts and community leaders to build confidence and trust in the vaccine. But skepticism among some people of color, especially Black Americans, remains high.

A study released by the COVID Collaborative, the NAACP and UnidosUS found that only 14% of Black Americans trust that a vaccine will be safe and 18% trust it will be effective. Their concerns stem largely from a history of racism in medical research and healthcare that includes incidents like the Tuskegee syphilis experiment, the study found.

Corbett has seen vaccine hesitancy in Black communities firsthand and recognizes that rebuilding trust in medical institutions will take time, which is something that health experts have to accept. Thankfully, Dr. Corbett, being a black woman herself and the one behind the vaccines development, has been able to reassure some of black community of the COVID-19 vaccine’s effectiveness and it being safe for individuals to take. Corbett did however say to people who are hesitant about the vaccine that, “You've earned the right to ask the questions that you have around these vaccines and this vaccine development process, ” but she is working hard to help earn back that trust.

Dr. Corbett has been outspoken on the role systemic racism has played in the pandemic, and has criticized the Trump administration for a lack of diversity on its coronavirus task force.

"Trust, especially when it has been stripped from people, has to be rebuilt in a brick-by-brick fashion, " she said. "And so, what I say to people firstly is that I empathize, and then secondly is that I'm going to do my part in laying those bricks. And I think that if everyone on our side, as physicians and scientists, went about it that way, then the trust would start to be rebuilt. "

30 days after being nominated by President This October, Cameroon’s Anglophone Crisis Trump, Amy Coney Barrett was officially has reached higher stakes after a fatal shooting sworn-in On April as 6, a Supreme Courtthe long-awaited Justice results on October of the court ThatIn e dthe the ay before New York City public schoolsMother Francisca International Bilingualpast year, cities across the United States On Wednesday, July 29, Mexico’s Supreme Court (SCJN) halted a tremendous milestone for abortion rights by voting against an injunction in Veracruz. The injunction, approved by a judge in Xalapa, Veracruz ordered the state’s congress to remove articles 149, 150, and 154 of the local penal code. This decision would have decriminalizeed abortions within 12 weeks, allowed for abortions due to health risks, and abolished the time limit on abortions for cases involving rape. The plan for removing these three articles was originally introduced by the women’s rights organizations National Commission to This past March, officers Brett Hankinson, Myles Cosgrove, and Jonathan Mattingly, barged into Breonna Taylor’s house under a “no-knock warrant” as she and her boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, were sleeping and fired a barrage of 32 bullets that killed Taylor. This month, a Jefferson County grand jury only indicted one of the three officers, Hankinson, and only charged him for endangering Taylor’s neighbors. None of the officers were charged for the death of Breonna Taylor. In addition, recently leaked body-cam footage reveals Brett Hankinson and Myles Cosgrove returning to Taylor’s residence 27th. Based on her judicial record on gun rights and immigration as well as her public statements on abortion and LGBTQ+ rights, it is clear that Barrett’s nomination will shift the nation’s highest court severely to the right. The backlash against Barrett’s nomination is two-fold: Many Americans are concerned about how Barrett’s stance will play out in court cases dealing with LGBTQ+ rights and abortion (particularly in Fulton v. City of Philadelphia), and people are furious with the Trump administration for fast-tracking Barrett’s Amanda Gorman will undoubtedly go down in history for being the poet that stole the show for her performance of “The Hill We Climb” at President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris’ inauguration this year. Gorman, the United States’ first Youth Poet Laureate and the youngest inaugural poet at the age of 22 years old, has already had a lifetime’s worth of achievements, but she’s only going up from here. This month, she has already made history again as the first poet to perform at the Super Last month Chloé Zhao made history as the first Asian woman to win a Golden Globe for Best Director. Zhao’s win also comes nearly 40 years after Barbara Streisand became the very first female director to win a Golden Globe. Zhao was awarded for her film “Nomadland, ” a drama starring Frances McDormand that follows the life of an itinerant woman traveling the United States in a van. Her upcoming project is Marvel’s case surrounding George Floyd’s murder were released, and former police officer Derek Chauvin was found guilty on all counts. Charged for second and third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter, with a unanimous decision from the jury, Derek Chauvin could face up to 75 years in prison. Although Chauvin’s conviction was rightfully celebrated, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison and many others have said that they would not call this verdict “justice, ” but rather, accountability. Jena Faith, a 43-year-old trans woman, has just made history in Steuben County, NY by filing a lawsuit against the county for the abuse she experienced in jail. Faith was arrested back in 2018 for allegedly buying a meal with counterfeit money. While she was originally placed in a women’s facility, she was abruptly moved to a men’s facility she was misgendered, denied her hormone replacement treatment, and sexually assaulted. The lawsuit Faith filed upon her release, however, has now led to multiple reforms dedicated to protecting trans inmates. As a result of these reforms, trans inmates in Steuben County were scheduled to open, the Council of School Supervisors and Administrators (CSA) declared a “No Confidence” vote against Mayor Bill de Blasio and Chancellor Richard Carranza due to their failure to come up with a safe plan for schools in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Along with the vote, the CSA is calling on de Blasio and Carranza to relinquish control of the city's Department of Education for the remainder of the pandemic and to seek out the assistance of the New York State education department. According to CSA leaders, school officials want to get school’s reopened as safely Academy in Kumba that resulted in the deaths of six children under 14-years-old. Unfortunately, the shooters have not been identified yet. The Anglophone Crisis in Cameroon first emerged in 2016 as Anglophones in Cameroon started to protest their oppression at the hands of the Francophone government. Since then, due to the government’s violent suppression of these protests, tensions have continued to rise and over 5,000 soldiers, separatist fighters, and civilians have been killed. Not only has this Cicely Tyson, a beacon of light and a major role model in the film and theater industry, suddenly passed away last month at age 96. A native of Harlem, New York, and born to Caribbean immigrants, Tyson lived an incredibly extensive 65-year-long career filled with masterfully impactful performances, like her first lead role as “Rebecca” in Sounder (1972). Tyson was also revolutionary for the way that she demanded respect in the industry: She was not only a leader of the Black is Beautiful movement, but Deb Haaland has made history this month by becoming the first Native American ever to be confirmed as a Cabinet secretary. Member of New Mexico’s Laguna Pueblo, Haaland, as Interior Secretary, will be in charge of managing the country’s public lands, endangered species, natural resources, and manage government-government relationships between the United States and Native American Tribes. have witnessed a startling rise in hate crimes (content warning: offensive language and violence) against Asian American and Pacific Islander individuals. According to many activists, these hate crimes are motivated by the xenophobic and racist narratives that connect members of the AAPI community to the spread of COVID-19. In response to the spike in hate crimes, the Senate has passed legislation that improves the process of reporting and investigating hate crimes. For ways to support Prevent and Eradicate Violence against Womenand commenting on potential evidence afternomination rather than allowing the AmericanBowl where she delivered her poem “Chorus oflong-awaited film “Eternals. ”Furthermore, Chauvin is one of the very few will have access to gender-affirming care, will be and as quickly as possible. conflict resulted in immense violence, it alsoshe also refused to play characters thatthe AAPI community, see this article, and always (Conavim) and the National Institute for Womenthe incident took place. Needless to say, folkspeople to let their vote for president influencethe Captains. ”police officers actually prosecuted for misuse of able to wear clothing thatprevented almost oneportrayed demeaning orsupport local mutual aligns with their gender,million children fromflawed images of Blackaid requests from (InMujeres) in 2016. Unfortunately, four out of five judges voted against upholding the injunction. While this decision would have only affected the state of Veracruz, activists hoped that it would set across the country are furious that Taylor’s death occurred at all, and that now, Taylor is being denied justice. the justice to fill the place of the late Ruth Bader Ginsburg, considering Republicans prevented former president, Barack Obama, force. and legally must be referred to by their correct names and pronouns. attending school right now.identity. Cicely Tyson’s legacy lives on in the thousands of Black artists that she has inspired, and her work will undoubtedly be remembered impacted individuals! the precedent for other states to do the same.from replacing Justice Scalia in 2016. for years to come. Last month, trailblazing costume-designer Ruth E. Carter became the first Black costume After winning the Democratic nomination this July, Candace Valenzuela could now make history by becoming the first Black Latina in Congress. Valenzuela is an educator, a member of her school board, and a mother of two. Her campaign was supported by EMILY’s List, End Citizens United, the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, the Congressional Black Caucus, the Congressional Asian American Pcific American Caucus, and was Information on President Trump’s long-awaited tax-returns has finally been released by the New York Times. According to their report, Trump, the only president in recent history to not release his tax-returns, paid $750 the year he won the presidential election and his first year in office. In 10 of the past 15 years, however, he didn’t pay any income taxes because he reported losing more money than he made. In addition, he is currently in a dispute with the IRS over the legitimacy of a $72.9 million tax refund. Unsurprisingly, Trump has In a seismic shift in governmental leadership, Samoa’s Deputy Prime Minister, Fiame Naomi Mata’afa has resigned from her government position to run against her former party, the Human Rights Protection Party (HRPP), in the next election. Fiame’s decision to resign and run against her party is a rejection of current Prime Minister, Tuilaepa Aiono Sailele Malielegaoi’s recently established laws that critics claim This January, Senator Raphael Warnock made history as Georgia’s very first Black senator, the first Black democrat senator to represent a southern state, and as the 11th Black senator ever in the United States. Warnock’s win was made possible by Stacey Abrams and the many other trailblazing voting rights activists that successfully flipped Georgia blue in this year’s presidential election. Last month, the United States National Park Service named Pamela A. Smith the new chief of the United States Park Police, making her the first Black woman to ever hold the position. Smith, who was worked with the USPP for the past 23 years, is praised for her commitment to transparency and the professionalism of law enforcement. In her first 90-days in the position, Smith intends to pilot the use of body cameras in San Francisco and hopefully implement the program nationwide by the end of 2021. India is currently facing a COVID-19 crisis. With around 350,000 new infections every day, hospitals are spread thin and unable to accommodate the swarms of people in need of immediate care. Many families are being forced to turn to unreliable treatments and overpriced oxygen and other medical resources on the black market. Please support the organizations listed in this article as well as Rapid Response, Making the Difference, and Ketto to help. In the past few months, the Greek government has secretly expelled over 1,000 asylum seekers by sending them off in occasionally malfunctioning life rafts. Despite the many outcries against Greece’s illegal actions, the government has denied the allegations. Some experts suggest that this recent humanitarian violation is a result of other European countries not providing enough assistance to Greece for taking in a high influx of Syrian refugees. Also, rising tensions between Greece and Turkey have led people to believe that both nations are weaponizing Syrian refugees to place pressure on Days before a major UN biodiversity summit, 64 world leaders signed the Leader’s Pledge for Nature, among them Angela Merkel, Justin Trudeau, Jacinda Ardern, and Boris Johnson. The document is a 10-point pledge that plans to reverse biodiversity loss by 2030. The pledge warns that humanity is facing a climate crisis and declares that it will reduce deforestation and unsustainable fishing practices, eliminate environmentally harmful subsidies, and encourage sustainable food production systems. The pledge also puts pressure on countries that contribute the most greenhouse North Carolina’s “I Am Change” march began as a peaceful protest to encourage voter turnout but quickly devolved into violence when law enforcement arrived in riot gear and gas masks and demanded that protestors move to the sidewalk. Despite the fact that the protestors had applied for the permit to be there, officers quickly resorted to the use of pepper spray, harming the children, elderly folks, and disabled folks that were in the crowd. Nia Dennis has once again gone viral for an incredibly engaging floor routine celebrating Black history and culture. The routine incorporated music by Beyoncé, Missy Elliot, Tupac Shakur, and Kendrick Lamar, and included aspects of popular dances throughout Black history, taking a knee in tandem with Colin Kaepernick, and stepping, a form of dance designer to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Carter, known for her work on blockbusters like Black Panther (2018), Selma (2014), and Dolemite is My Name (2019), is also the second costume designer ever to have her name engraved in the Hollywood walk of fame, 60 years after fellow costume-designer Edith Head. Two years ago, Carter also became the first Black woman to win a costume-design Oscar for her incredible work on Black Panthe. Just 20 minutes before Derek Chauvin was declared guilty, police officer Nicholas Reardon shot and killed 16-year-old Ma’Khia Bryant in Columbus, Ohio. Trapped in an altercation with older women, Ma’Khia Bryant dialed 911 for assistance, but Reardon shot at Bryant almost instantly once he saw that she was using a knife to protect herself. Read more about the case, and the dangers of misogynoir and the adultification of Black children here. endorsed by the late John Lewis. referred to the report as “fake newsundermine Samoa’s constitution. . ” one another. gasses like the US,practiced by Black Brazil, China, anfraternities and d Russia.sororities.