This Week’s COVID Roundup
The latest in numbers: 16M total cases & 299K deaths
At the top of the headline pile:
The vaccine should be in all 50 states by now. If you plan to take it & are eligible, here’s a helpful list of things NOT to do.
Facing criticism, Trump backed out of a plan to give his staffers the vaccine ahead of the rest of the country.
The general public (those that aren’t essential workers or in high risk groups) can expect to get the vaccine in the spring. Or in the summer. Or maybe the fall.
SCOTUS Lays the Smack Down
Texas, 17 other states & 100 House Republicans sued Georgia, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin & Michigan because they called the race for Joe Biden. They wanted to delay the deadline by which electors cast their votes for their state’s winner (today) & block any illegal votes from being counted. The SCOTUS came back with a swift “No” based on the fact that, much like the rest of the GOP’s attempts, the suit had nothing to stand on.
Now Texas Republicans want to secede from the Union. Lol, bye.
White Terror Goes Unchecked Yet Again
The Proud Boys & their MAGA counterparts took to the streets of DC over the weekend to protest Donald Trump’s election loss. At some point during the rally, they clashed with counter protesters and decided to tear down & burn Black Lives Matter signs hanging outside of Black churches.
Were police units present? Yes. Did they deploy pepper spray, batons, or any of the other things they used on BLM protesters? Nope. Has any high ranking official spoken out against the racial & religious violence exercised against the Black community? Hmmm...no.
The DC police department is looking into the burning of the signs as potential crimes. Anyone with information on the incidents is being asked to call 202-727-9099 or text 50411.
Congress, What’s Good?
Unable to come to an agreement on a spending bill last week, congress managed to buy themselves extra time. They will now have another week to pass a bill to keep the government running & to provide COVID relief before the end of the year.
Beyond that, here’s a sample of what they’re doing in their committee meetings this week:
Examining state of the live entertainment industry during the pandemic
Discussing testing & treatments for Alzheimer’s
Uncovering culpable parties in the opioid crisis
Georgia Runoff Watch
Days to Remember:
Early voting starts: TODAY
Deadline to request an absentee ballot: December 31
Election Day: January 5
Kelly Loeffler recently posed for a photo with a former leader of the KKK. Do we need any other reason to get her TF out of the Senate?
Progressives’ war against the Democratic establishment has been put on hold...until after the Georgia elections.
Keeping Up with Biden & Harris
The electoral college will be making the election results OFFICIAL official today. The chances of anything going haywire and Trump winning a 2nd term are slim to none, but it is still 2020, so anything’s possible.
Black Twitter is HOT about Biden’s tone in newly released tapes of a call between him & Black activists. It’s always the mediocre white men that have the most nerve.
Many groups are expecting the incoming administration to be diverse and to represent their unique identities & views, but one group’s gain is another group’s missed opportunity.
Kamala Harris will be in a good position for a 2024 run if none of the other 2020 Democratic candidates land a spot in Biden’s administration.
Around the Diaspora
British heavyweight boxing champ Anthony Joshua is starting a union to uplift Afro-Caribbean community & culture within the larger British society.
Nigerians are yelling #BringBackOurBoys after hundreds of them were forcibly taken from a school by armed kidnappers.
In many countries across Africa, civic rights (the right to speak out against governments, protest, etc.) eroded in 2020.
Getting to the Money
Tinder & Megan Thee Stallion are willing to give you $10K to put yourself out there. If you’re already in the online dating game, this may be an easy come up.
Buying Black
Because we tend to add sauce to everything we do, Smiles Shield is giving you the option to pimp your protective shield.
Culture that Pops
Tyler Perry donates $100K to Breonna Taylor’s boyfriend’s legal defense fund.
The youngest mayor of Baltimore was sworn in last week with the most perfect ‘fro & the freshest line up. Get into his style here.
Have y’all heard of Amorphous or heard any of his mashups that are taking the internet by storm? Well, Oprah has and she’s gifted him a new laptop for blessing us with his talent.
Meek Mill is starting a $2M scholarship fund for Philly students from grades pre-K through high school.