npr--2020-10-24--At Least 18 Dead, Including Children, In Suicide Attack In Afghan Capital

At Least 18 Dead , Including Children , In Suicide Attack In Afghan Capital Officials in Afghanistan say at least 18 people are dead , including schoolchildren , from a suicide attack outside of an education center in the capital of Kabul .
The country 's interior ministry confirmed that more than 57 others were wounded Saturday after the explosion went off in a heavily Shiite neighborhood , The Associated Press reported .
Interior ministry spokesman Tariq Arian said the attacker attempted to enter the center but was stopped by security guards , according to the AP .
The attacker @ @ @ @ @ @ @ nearby alley , the Agence France-Presse reported .
Reuters , citing Arian , identified the target of the attack as the Kawsar-e Danish education center .
The center offers training and courses for higher education students , the AFP says .
The western Kabul neighborhood where the bombing occurred has a large Shiite community , a minority group in the country that has been targeted by the Islamic State in the past .
The Islamic State took responsibility for the attack , though it did not provide any evidence , Reuters reported .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ bombing .
The attack came amid intensifying fighting between Afghan forces and the Taliban , even as the two sides engage in peace talks .
Those talks were spurred by a peace deal agreed to by the U.S. and the Taliban in February that would pave for the way for the eventual withdrawal of U.S. forces from the country .
Amnesty International said Friday that at least 50 civilians were killed in the past week in spite of the ongoing peace talks .
The Associated Press reported that a separate attack in eastern @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a roadside bomb struck a minivan full of civilians .
A second roadside bomb killed two policemen who were en route to respond .

At Least 24 Dead, Including Children, In Suicide Attack In Afghan Capital
Enlarge this image toggle caption Mariam Zuhaib/AP Mariam Zuhaib/AP
Updated 6:18 AM ET Sunday
Officials in Afghanistan say at least 24 people are dead, including schoolchildren, from a suicide attack outside of an education center in the capital of Kabul.
The country's interior ministry confirmed that more than 57 others were wounded Saturday after the explosion went off in a heavily Shiite neighborhood, The Associated Press reported.
Interior ministry spokesman Tariq Arian said the attacker attempted to enter the center but was stopped by security guards, according to the AP. The attacker then set off the explosives in a nearby alley, the Agence France-Presse reported.
Reuters, citing Arian, identified the target of the attack as the Kawsar-e Danish education center. The center offers training and courses for higher education students, the AFP says.
The western Kabul neighborhood where the bombing occurred has a large Shiite community, a minority group in the country that has been targeted by the Islamic State in the past.
The Islamic State took responsibility for the attack, though it did not provide any evidence, Reuters reported. The Taliban has denied responsibility for the bombing.
The attack came amid intensifying fighting between Afghan forces and the Taliban, even as the two sides engage in peace talks. Those talks were spurred by a peace deal agreed to by the U.S. and the Taliban in February that would pave for the way for the eventual withdrawal of U.S. forces from the country.
Amnesty International said Friday that at least 50 civilians were killed in the past week in spite of the ongoing peace talks.
The Associated Press reported that a separate attack in eastern Afghanistan on Saturday killed nine people after a roadside bomb struck a minivan full of civilians. A second roadside bomb killed two policemen who were en route to respond.


npr--2020-10-24--Polish President Tests Positive For The Coronavirus

Poland 's president , Andrzej Duda , is in isolation after testing positive for the coronavirus , his spokesman announced Saturday .
`` The president is fine , '' his spokesman , Blazej Spychalski , said on Twitter .
`` We are in constant contact with the relevant medical services . ''
In a video message , the 48-year-old Duda said he was experiencing no symptoms .
He apologized to people he came into contact with , who now have to quarantine .
`` If I had had any symptoms , please believe me , all meetings would have been @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to a translation published by The Associated Press .
On Friday , Duda bestowed state honors on tennis player Iga Swiatek , who won the French Open .
The 19-year-old Swiatek said she would quarantine .
Poland is currently seeing its greatest surge in coronavirus cases since the pandemic began .
Until now , the country had experienced a relatively slow spread , due in part to a strict lockdown imposed in the spring .
It took until early October for the country to tally 100,000 cases .
But over the past few @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
On Friday , Poland added more than 13,600 new cases , bringing the total to about 242,000 .
The country has declared a nationwide `` red zone , '' closing restaurants and bars nationwide and limiting public gatherings to five people .
`` Our actions must be much more decisive , '' Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said .
`` What worries us a lot is the speed of the increase . ''
In Poland , the president guides foreign policy and signs legislation , but the duties of the office are largely @ @ @ @ @ @ @ administration handles most of the day-to-day work of running the country .
Deputy Prime Minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski , leader of the country 's governing Law and Justice Party , went into self-quarantine earlier this week after coming into contact with an infected person .
According to The New York Times , a spokesman for Kaczynski said the 71-year-old `` feels well and will continue performing his duties from home . ''
With his positive test result , Duda has joined an unfortunate list of world leaders who have been stricken with the virus @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro .
All have recovered .

Polish President Tests Positive For The Coronavirus
Enlarge this image toggle caption Mateusz Slodkowski/AFP via Getty Images Mateusz Slodkowski/AFP via Getty Images
Poland's president, Andrzej Duda, is in isolation after testing positive for the coronavirus, his spokesman announced Saturday.
"The president is fine," his spokesman, Blazej Spychalski, said on Twitter. "We are in constant contact with the relevant medical services."
In a video message, the 48-year-old Duda said he was experiencing no symptoms. He apologized to people he came into contact with, who now have to quarantine.
"If I had had any symptoms, please believe me, all meetings would have been canceled," Duda said, according to a translation published by The Associated Press.
On Friday, Duda bestowed state honors on tennis player Iga Swiatek, who won the French Open. The 19-year-old Swiatek said she would quarantine.
Poland is currently seeing its greatest surge in coronavirus cases since the pandemic began. Until now, the country had experienced a relatively slow spread, due in part to a strict lockdown imposed in the spring. It took until early October for the country to tally 100,000 cases. But over the past few weeks, the case count has doubled.
On Friday, Poland added more than 13,600 new cases, bringing the total to about 242,000. The country has declared a nationwide "red zone," closing restaurants and bars nationwide and limiting public gatherings to five people.
"Our actions must be much more decisive," Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said. "What worries us a lot is the speed of the increase."
In Poland, the president guides foreign policy and signs legislation, but the duties of the office are largely ceremonial. The prime minister and his administration handles most of the day-to-day work of running the country.
Deputy Prime Minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski, leader of the country's governing Law and Justice Party, went into self-quarantine earlier this week after coming into contact with an infected person. According to The New York Times, a spokesman for Kaczynski said the 71-year-old "feels well and will continue performing his duties from home."
With his positive test result, Duda has joined an unfortunate list of world leaders who have been stricken with the virus, including U.S. President Trump, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro. All have recovered.


npr--2020-10-24--Trump Votes Early In Florida 'For A Guy Named Trump'

Before embarking on a packed day of campaign rallies , President Trump stopped at a library in Florida 's Palm Beach County on Saturday to cast his ballot .
While the president has voted by mail in the past , in recent months , he has decried the integrity of voting by mail , falsely asserting that it results in rampant fraud .
`` It was a very secure vote , much more secure than when you send in a ballot , '' Trump said on Saturday , without evidence .
While many have states rushed to expand voting by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Democrats have started encouraging voters to cast ballots early and in person if possible as the prospect of delayed tabulations and Postal Service slowdowns loom .
More than 50 million people have already voted in the election either by mail or in person , according to the U.S .
Elections Project , a turnout-tracking database run by University of Florida political scientist Michael McDonald .
After voting , Trump was scheduled to depart Florida for rallies Saturday in North Carolina and Ohio .
The president will also hold a rally in Wisconsin @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the worst coronavirus outbreaks in the country .
Trump told reporters that the rallies will be `` big ones '' and boasted about the crowds he has been attracting .
His Democratic opponent , Joe Biden , is holding a pair of rallies in Pennsylvania on Saturday , including a drive-in rally in Luzerne County with Jon Bon Jovi .

Trump Votes Early In Florida 'For A Guy Named Trump'
Enlarge this image toggle caption Evan Vucci/AP Evan Vucci/AP
Before embarking on a packed day of campaign rallies, President Trump stopped at a library in Florida's Palm Beach County on Saturday to cast his ballot.
"I voted for a guy named Trump," he told reporters.
While the president has voted by mail in the past, in recent months, he has decried the integrity of voting by mail, falsely asserting that it results in rampant fraud.
"It was a very secure vote, much more secure than when you send in a ballot," Trump said on Saturday, without evidence.
While many have states rushed to expand voting by mail this spring because of the pandemic, Democrats have started encouraging voters to cast ballots early and in person if possible as the prospect of delayed tabulations and Postal Service slowdowns loom.
More than 50 million people have already voted in the election either by mail or in person, according to the U.S. Elections Project, a turnout-tracking database run by University of Florida political scientist Michael McDonald.
Trump's running mate, Vice President Pence, voted early on Friday in Indianapolis.
After voting, Trump was scheduled to depart Florida for rallies Saturday in North Carolina and Ohio. The president will also hold a rally in Wisconsin, which is currently experiencing one of the worst coronavirus outbreaks in the country.
Trump told reporters that the rallies will be "big ones" and boasted about the crowds he has been attracting.
His Democratic opponent, Joe Biden, is holding a pair of rallies in Pennsylvania on Saturday, including a drive-in rally in Luzerne County with Jon Bon Jovi.
NPR's Franco Ordoñez contributed reporting.


npr--2020-10-24--Coronavirus World Map: Tracking The Spread Of The Outbreak

Coronavirus World Map : Tracking The Spread Of The Outbreak On Sept. 28 , the world marked a tragic milestone : 1 million deaths from COVID-19 .
That 's according to a tally maintained by Johns Hopkins University .
And public health experts believe the actual toll – the recorded deaths plus the unrecorded deaths – is much higher .
While the number of cases has slowed in many countries that were hit hard early on by coronavirus , the number of new cases continues to increase .
Since early July , new daily cases averaged over 200,000 worldwide .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ country-by-country breakdown of new and total cases since January .
At over 8 million cases , the United States leads the world 's COVID-19 crisis .
In late spring and early summer , new COVID-19 cases were largely driven by cases in the Americas .
While the U.S. has consistently had the most new daily cases of coronavirus in the region , Brazil 's new daily cases increased rapidly between May and August .
However , in September , several countries that had previously flattened their curve saw a resurgence in cases , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , daily case counts have risen swiftly since June , without signs of slowing down .
Explore how the number of coronavirus cases have shifted in different parts of the world over time .
The first chart compares each continent to each other , while the next charts highlight the number of cases in select countries by region .
To compare country outbreaks , the chart below graphs trend lines for average new daily cases and deaths against each country 's totals to date .
This type of visualization highlights a state 's @ @ @ @ @ @ @ overall size of its outbreak .
When both new and total case and death counts grow quickly , the curves bend upward .
As new cases and deaths slow , the curves level or bend down .
In countries like Israel , which is seeing a second wave of case growth after an initial wave in April , the line forms a V-shape , as the initially bent curve spikes upwards again .
Click here to see the state-by-state breakdown of cases in the United States .
This story was originally published on @ @ @ @ @

Coronavirus world map: We've now passed the 600 million mark for infections
Editor's note: This page is no longer being updated. The last update was Sept. 5, 2022. For current data about COVID-19 cases and deaths around the world, Johns Hopkins University and Our World in Data are useful resources.
In late January 2020 only a few dozen COVID-19 infections had been identified outside of China. A year later, the world tallied its first 100 million cases. It took the globe just 7 more months to pass the 200 million mark— then another 5 months to hit 300 million, according to researchers at Johns Hopkins University. Now the virus has spread to every corner of the globe and has been blamed for more than 6 million deaths.
The United States, India and Brazil in that order have had the most COVID cases and the three nations collectively account for almost half of all recorded infections so far in the pandemic.
Explore the chart below to find a country-by-country breakdown of new and total cases since January 2020.
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Explore how the number of coronavirus cases have shifted in different parts of the world over time. The first chart compares each continent to each other, while the next charts highlight the number of cases in select countries by region.
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This story was originally published on March 30, 2020.


npr--2020-10-24--Coronavirus Maps: How Severe Is Your State's Outbreak?

Coronavirus Maps : How Severe Is Your State 's Outbreak ?
More than 8 million people in the U.S. have been infected with the coronavirus and more than 220,000 have died .
Tens of thousands of new cases are reported daily nationwide .
In the graphics below , explore the trends in your state .
View the data via a heat map ( immediately below ) , curve charts , a table of state-by-state trends over four weeks , or a map of total cases and deaths .
The map above shows the risk of infection in each state based @ @ @ @ @ @ @ These color-coded risk levels were developed by a consortium of researchers and public health experts .
The group advises states in the red category to issue stay-home orders .
Orange states may need to consider stay-home orders , along with increased testing and contact tracing .
Yellow states need to keep up social distancing and mask usage , and both yellow and green states should continue testing and contact tracing .
To compare state outbreaks , the chart above graphs trend lines for average new daily cases and deaths against each state 's @ @ @ @ @ @ @ visualization highlights a state 's daily growth or decline relative to the overall size of its outbreak .
When both new and total case and death counts grow quickly , the curves bend upward .
As new cases and deaths slow , the curves level or bend down .
In New York , the curve rose sharply before reaching over 170,000 total cases in April .
Since then , new cases have fallen from about 10,000 per day in mid-April to over 1,000 per day in mid October .
Explore the map above @ @ @ @ @ @ @ around the country for both new confirmed cases and reported deaths from COVID-19 .
New York was the original epicenter of the pandemic in the U.S. As of mid October , California , Florida and Texas surpass New York for total cases to date , though New York still has the highest death total .
Click here to see a global map of confirmed cases and deaths .
To show trends , the table below shows the change in average new cases per day in each state , week over week for the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ shades of red have growing outbreaks ; those in shades of green , are declining .
The graphics on this page pull from data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University from several sources , including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ; the World Health Organization ; national , state and local government health departments ; 1point3acres ; and local media reports .
The JHU team automates its data uploads and regularly checks them for anomalies .
This may result in occasional data discrepancies on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ anomalies and updates its feeds .
State-by-state recovery data are unavailable at this time .
There may be discrepancies between what you see here and what you see on your local health department 's website .
Figures shown do not include cases on cruise ships .
Fluctuations in the numbers may happen as health authorities review old cases and or update their methodologies .
For example , in early June , Michigan health authorities started including probable cases in its totals .
This resulted in a brief spike in the state 's daily @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to reconcile the historical data .
On June 25 , New Jersey included 1,854 previously-unreported probable deaths in its totals , resulting in a spike in the state 's daily death numbers .
On Sept. 2 , Massachusetts changed its methodology for counting probable cases , which lowered its overall case and death numbers .
The JHU team maintains a list of such changes .
This story was originally published on March 16 , 2020 .
Elena Renken was a co-author on that version .
Sean McMinn contributed to and Carmel Wroth edited @ @ @

Tracking the coronavirus around the U.S.: See how your state is doing
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Note: This page was last updated on Feb. 1, 2023. It will no longer be updated. For current data on COVID cases and deaths, demographics, and hospitalizations, consult the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
As of Feb. 1, there have been more than 101 million confirmed coronavirus infections in the U.S. and more than 1 million people have died of COVID-19. In the graphics below, explore the trends in your state.
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The above charts show average new cases per 100,000 people for each state over the last 12 months.
Note: Actual cases may be substantially higher, since many who test positive with at-home tests don't report their cases.
For additional data about COVID-19 in the U.S, including cases and deaths, demographics, and hospitalizations, consult the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website.
To show trends, the table below shows the change in average new cases per day in each state, week over week for the last 28 days. States marked in shades of red have growing outbreaks; those in shades of green, are declining.
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Methodology
The graphics on this page pull from data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University from several sources, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; the World Health Organization; national, state and local government health departments; 1point3acres; and local media reports.
The JHU team automates its data uploads and regularly checks them for anomalies. This may result in occasional data discrepancies on this page as the JHU team resolves anomalies and updates its feeds. There may be discrepancies between what you see here and what you see on your local health department's website. Figures shown do not include cases on cruise ships.
Fluctuations in the numbers may happen as health authorities review old cases, process testing backlogs or update their methodologies. The JHU team maintains a list of such changes.
This story was originally published on March 16, 2020. Elena Renken was a co-author on that version. Sean McMinn and Audrey Carlsen contributed to this story. Carmel Wroth edited this story.


npr--2020-10-25--The Philippines Has A Policy Against Home Births. It's Not Playing Well In A Pandemic

The Philippines Has A Policy Against Home Births .
It 's Not Playing Well In A Pandemic Risa Calibuso , 34 , wanted to give birth to her second child at home .
In the Philippines , where she lives , that 's against the law .
In 2008 the country passed the Maternal , Newborn and Child Health and Nutrition Strategy policy — referred to as the `` no home birth '' policy .
The goal was to reduce the country 's high rates of maternal mortality , from 203 out of 100,000 live births that year to 52 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ law .
Despite the good intentions , some local groups assert that it impinges on the rights of women .
What 's more , the policy has not yet met its goal .
In 2017 , the maternal mortality rate in the Philippines was 121 deaths per 100,000 live births .
Nor has there been a significant change in the rates of infant mortality .
In 2008 , there were 25.5 deaths per 1,000 live births .
In 2018 , the figure was 22.5 .
The pandemic of 2020 has made the policy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , women who live in remote areas have had to arrange for transportation to the nearest appropriate health-care facility .
Now matters are even more complicated .
With pandemic-related restrictions on transportation options like cabs and motorized tricycles , women who do not own a car have fewer choices .
Then again , the policy was complicated even before COVID-19 struck .
Some regions of the Philippines will fine a woman who gives birth at home when she comes to a hospital to register her baby .
Other provinces do not fine the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ brings in her newborn to be registered .
Meanwhile , across the country , the law has had a chilling impact on midwives .
If they assist at a home birth , they risk losing their accreditation .
As with many laws , those who are well-to-do can get around the restrictions .
They would have to hire a private doctor to assist with a home birth , sterilize a birthing area in their residence and rent an ambulance on standby .
But for many women , this is hardly an option .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ many issues swirling around the policy into sharp focus .
Calibuso was expecting her second child in July .
She lives with her family in Abinganan , a village of 1,700 people on rugged terrain in Bambang .
Her husband , Michael , age 36 , dries rice for a living and earns 345 pesos ( $ 7 ) a day .
She does not work and describes the family as `` indigent . ''
She and her husband do not own a car — they ca n't afford it .
To comply @ @ @ @ @ @ @ she 'd have to travel 11 miles – a trip of about an hour over rough roads – to the nearest clinic .
The Calibusos pay $ 73.94 a year for medical insurance , and yet she was worried that her insurance would n't cover all the expenses .
`` Traditional birth attendants are cheaper , '' says Calibuso , who used an attendant when she delivered her first child at home .
They are typically paid with tips amounting to the equivalent of about $ 10 — or higher if the family @ @ @ @ @ @ @ more , Calibuso really wanted to give birth at home .
She did it with her first child in 2007 , before the policy went into effect , and she felt like that went OK .
So she did not arrange in advance for transportation to that clinic that was 11 miles away .
When she went into labor at 8 p.m. on July 19 , she figured she would call a midwife , Marissa Tuping , and retired birth attendant , Florida Domingo , in the morning and hope for the best @ @ @ @ @ @ @ When the midwife and attendant came to her home , they found that Calibuso 's water had already broken and she was spotting blood .
Yet the midwife would not agree to help deliver the baby lest her own career be jeopardized .
Marissa Tuping , the midwife , says , `` I can never pull the baby out .
If there is a home birth , it will affect my performance review . ''
Like many midwives , Tuping works under the Department of Health and must renew her contract with them @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that if there is home birth on my record , I will lose my job , '' she says .
Calibuso 's only option for medical care was to travel those 11 miles .
A neighbor had a motorcycle , but it was unavailable .
The last resort was the motorized tricycle , provided by the government for the village to use in emergencies like these ; it was also not available .
This put me , as a journalist , in a difficult situation .
I had arrived to photograph the birth @ @ @ @ @ @ @ driver .
As a reporter , I am trained not to intervene in the lives of my subjects – but given the circumstance , I felt I had to offer to bring her to the hospital .
The midwife came along and talked to Calibuso about how to breathe through the contractions .
Fortunately we made good time .
Given that it was an emergency , we drove fast , and the drive took a little over a half an hour .
A few minutes after arriving at the hospital , Calibuso gave @ @ @ @ @ @ @ baby boy .
Even though many women find the policy burdensome , the government stands by it .
`` Every birth , life is at risk — and as a doctor who knows the risks , I will not advocate for a home birth , '' says Dr. Agnes Bernabe , 47 , an obstetrician and gynecologist .
She works in a private clinic in Bambang and at Nueva Vizcaya Provincial Hospital and is a member of the committee that reviews maternal death in the province .
`` Home births and traditional healings @ @ @ @ @ @ @ after birth ] are the usual causes of maternal and neonatal births . ''
Her concerns are backed up by data .
According to the Department of Health , the majority of maternal deaths in the Philippines are a direct result of pregnancy complications that occur during labor and delivery and also from issues that arise in the post-partum period .
When the policy was implemented in 2008 , a little over half of births in the Philippines were at home .
Only about a third of those take place with the assistance @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not medically trained ) .
There are no comparable statistics regarding the role of midwives .
The policy , adds Bernabe , has helped mothers become `` more informed now about the importance of seeing a doctor and hospital births . ''
Lockdown restrictions around public transportation — which in some villages , change every couple of weeks – is making it harder for women to get to a health facility .
Some mothers have had to rent an apartment before giving birth , creating an additional cost for them to bear .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ from the hospital , so we came down and rented an apartment two weeks before my due date , '' says Mylene Madawat , a 24-year-old mother from the upland municipality of Santa Fe who gave birth on July 24 .
Madawat ended up delivering her 8-pound baby boy through a cesarean section at the hospital .
Due to her surgery , she and her mother Minda , who came down from their village , needed to stay longer in the apartment they rent for 4,000 pesos ( $ 82 ) plus utilities @ @ @ @ @ @ @ finish her postpartum and neonatal check-ups .
`` This apartment is so expensive , we ca n't wait to go back home , '' she says .
`` I 'm scared of the virus , what if I get it from the hospital ? ''
says Jessa Tayombong , a 32-year-old mother from Banggot , a village in the province of Nueva Vizcaya .
Even though she knew that home births are n't allowed , she delivered her daughter Josie at home on July 14 with the help of a neighbor , who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ births before but was not a skilled birth attendant .
Luckily for Tayombong and the neighbor , their village has not enacted a financial penalty for home births .
So when she registered the child 's birth , she was only chastised by health-care workers and village officials .
And to register the child she had to go to the hospital for a neonatal checkup .
So in the end , she had to do what she feared and went to a health-care facility during the pandemic .
The Gabriela Women 's Party @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the rights of marginalized Filipino women , has been trying for years to get rid of the policy .
`` The No Home Birth policy is against the rights of mothers , '' says the organization 's deputy secretary-general Joan Salvador .
`` Women should be given all the necessary information and choices on how and where to give birth .
Whether she wants to give birth at home or in a facility , the government should provide all the necessary support and services to ensure her safety and that of the child @ @ @ @ @ @ @ House Resolution 1531 , a written motion to the Philippines Congress to challenge the No Home Birth policy and investigate the fines on women and health care workers .
It did n't pass , so Gabriela re-filed it in 2016 — but it was never brought up for debate .
Lynn Freedman , a professor of population and family health at Columbia University , agrees that a policy that punishes women for giving birth at home is not the way to go .
`` Criminalizing or outright banning home deliveries is a blunt @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the ultimate goal , '' she says .
Still , she adds , hospitals and health care facilities have a crucial role in reducing maternal mortality .
`` If a woman gets a serious obstetric complication during delivery , such as hemorrhage , her survival often depends on getting timely access to emergency obstetric care in a health facility or hospital that can save her life , '' she says .
`` The way to get there has to be multidimensional , '' she adds .
`` The country may need to build @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are properly trained and equipped , make sure people have a way to get to the hospital . ''
As for Risa Calibuso , she is at home with her newborn son .
When I visited her , she was undergoing a traditional healing process from the Ilocana ethnic group with Florida Domingo , a retired birth attendant .
The method includes binding the stomach with fabric for several days .
In addition , the attendant administers early morning massage .
That 's what she did after the birth of her first son @ @ @ @ @ @ @ culture , '' she says .
And she tells me she is very happy that the stress of giving birth is now behind her .
Xyza Cruz Bacani is a freelance photographer based in Southeast Asia and the author of the book We Are Like Air .
She previously contributed to NPR for a story on babies born during the pandemic , in collaboration with Everyday Projects .

The Philippines Has A Policy Against Home Births. It's Not Playing Well In A Pandemic
Enlarge this image toggle caption Xyza Cruz Bacani For NPR Xyza Cruz Bacani For NPR
Risa Calibuso, 34, wanted to give birth to her second child at home.
In the Philippines, where she lives, that's against the law.
In 2008 the country passed the Maternal, Newborn and Child Health and Nutrition Strategy policy — referred to as the "no home birth" policy. The goal was to reduce the country's high rates of maternal mortality, from 203 out of 100,000 live births that year to 52 by 2015.
It's a controversial law. Despite the good intentions, some local groups assert that it impinges on the rights of women.
What's more, the policy has not yet met its goal. In 2017, the maternal mortality rate in the Philippines was 121 deaths per 100,000 live births.
Nor has there been a significant change in the rates of infant mortality. In 2008, there were 25.5 deaths per 1,000 live births. In 2018, the figure was 22.5.
The pandemic of 2020 has made the policy even more controversial. In the past, women who live in remote areas have had to arrange for transportation to the nearest appropriate health-care facility. Now matters are even more complicated. With pandemic-related restrictions on transportation options like cabs and motorized tricycles, women who do not own a car have fewer choices.
Then again, the policy was complicated even before COVID-19 struck.
Some regions of the Philippines will fine a woman who gives birth at home when she comes to a hospital to register her baby. Other provinces do not fine the woman but may chastise her when she brings in her newborn to be registered.
Meanwhile, across the country, the law has had a chilling impact on midwives. If they assist at a home birth, they risk losing their accreditation.
Enlarge this image toggle caption Xyza Cruz Bacani For NPR Xyza Cruz Bacani For NPR
As with many laws, those who are well-to-do can get around the restrictions. They would have to hire a private doctor to assist with a home birth, sterilize a birthing area in their residence and rent an ambulance on standby.
But for many women, this is hardly an option.
A mother's burden
The story of Risa Calibuso brings the many issues swirling around the policy into sharp focus.
Calibuso was expecting her second child in July. She lives with her family in Abinganan, a village of 1,700 people on rugged terrain in Bambang. Her husband, Michael, age 36, dries rice for a living and earns 345 pesos ($7) a day. She does not work and describes the family as "indigent." She and her husband do not own a car — they can't afford it.
Enlarge this image toggle caption Xyza Cruz Bacani For NPR Xyza Cruz Bacani For NPR
To comply with the No Home Birth policy, she'd have to travel 11 miles – a trip of about an hour over rough roads – to the nearest clinic.
The Calibusos pay $73.94 a year for medical insurance, and yet she was worried that her insurance wouldn't cover all the expenses.
"Traditional birth attendants are cheaper," says Calibuso, who used an attendant when she delivered her first child at home. They are typically paid with tips amounting to the equivalent of about $10 — or higher if the family has a higher income.
What's more, Calibuso really wanted to give birth at home. She did it with her first child in 2007, before the policy went into effect, and she felt like that went OK.
So she did not arrange in advance for transportation to that clinic that was 11 miles away. When she went into labor at 8 p.m. on July 19, she figured she would call a midwife, Marissa Tuping, and retired birth attendant, Florida Domingo, in the morning and hope for the best.
She gambled – and lost. When the midwife and attendant came to her home, they found that Calibuso's water had already broken and she was spotting blood. Yet the midwife would not agree to help deliver the baby lest her own career be jeopardized.
Marissa Tuping, the midwife, says, "I can never pull the baby out. If there is a home birth, it will affect my performance review." Like many midwives, Tuping works under the Department of Health and must renew her contract with them every year. "I'm scared that if there is home birth on my record, I will lose my job," she says.
Calibuso's only option for medical care was to travel those 11 miles. A neighbor had a motorcycle, but it was unavailable. The last resort was the motorized tricycle, provided by the government for the village to use in emergencies like these; it was also not available.
Enlarge this image toggle caption Xyza Cruz Bacani For NPR Xyza Cruz Bacani For NPR
This put me, as a journalist, in a difficult situation. I had arrived to photograph the birth; I traveled by car with a driver.
As a reporter, I am trained not to intervene in the lives of my subjects – but given the circumstance, I felt I had to offer to bring her to the hospital. The midwife came along and talked to Calibuso about how to breathe through the contractions.
Fortunately we made good time. Given that it was an emergency, we drove fast, and the drive took a little over a half an hour. A few minutes after arriving at the hospital, Calibuso gave birth to Heinrich Claude, a healthy baby boy.
Even though many women find the policy burdensome, the government stands by it. "Every birth, life is at risk — and as a doctor who knows the risks, I will not advocate for a home birth," says Dr. Agnes Bernabe, 47, an obstetrician and gynecologist. She works in a private clinic in Bambang and at Nueva Vizcaya Provincial Hospital and is a member of the committee that reviews maternal death in the province. "Home births and traditional healings [procedures done by a local healer after birth] are the usual causes of maternal and neonatal deaths."
Enlarge this image toggle caption Xyza Cruz Bacani For NPR Xyza Cruz Bacani For NPR
Her concerns are backed up by data. According to the Department of Health, the majority of maternal deaths in the Philippines are a direct result of pregnancy complications that occur during labor and delivery and also from issues that arise in the post-partum period. When the policy was implemented in 2008, a little over half of births in the Philippines were at home. Only about a third of those take place with the assistance of traditional birth attendants (who are not medically trained). There are no comparable statistics regarding the role of midwives.
The policy, adds Bernabe, has helped mothers become "more informed now about the importance of seeing a doctor and hospital births."
Pandemic anxiety adds to the stress
Lockdown restrictions around public transportation — which in some villages, change every couple of weeks – is making it harder for women to get to a health facility.
Some mothers have had to rent an apartment before giving birth, creating an additional cost for them to bear.
"Our house is two hours away from the hospital, so we came down and rented an apartment two weeks before my due date," says Mylene Madawat, a 24-year-old mother from the upland municipality of Santa Fe who gave birth on July 24.
Enlarge this image toggle caption Xyza Cruz Bacani For NPR Xyza Cruz Bacani For NPR
Madawat ended up delivering her 8-pound baby boy through a cesarean section at the hospital. Due to her surgery, she and her mother Minda, who came down from their village, needed to stay longer in the apartment they rent for 4,000 pesos ($82) plus utilities a month. And Madawat needed to finish her postpartum and neonatal check-ups. "This apartment is so expensive, we can't wait to go back home," she says.
"I'm scared of the virus, what if I get it from the hospital?" says Jessa Tayombong, a 32-year-old mother from Banggot, a village in the province of Nueva Vizcaya.
Even though she knew that home births aren't allowed, she delivered her daughter Josie at home on July 14 with the help of a neighbor, who had assisted women in their village with births before but was not a skilled birth attendant.
Luckily for Tayombong and the neighbor, their village has not enacted a financial penalty for home births. So when she registered the child's birth, she was only chastised by health-care workers and village officials. And to register the child she had to go to the hospital for a neonatal checkup. So in the end, she had to do what she feared and went to a health-care facility during the pandemic.
Enlarge this image toggle caption Xyza Cruz Bacani For NPR Xyza Cruz Bacani For NPR
Pushing back against the policy
The Gabriela Women's Party, a grassroots organization that advocates for the rights of marginalized Filipino women, has been trying for years to get rid of the policy.
"The No Home Birth policy is against the rights of mothers," says the organization's deputy secretary-general Joan Salvador. "Women should be given all the necessary information and choices on how and where to give birth. Whether she wants to give birth at home or in a facility, the government should provide all the necessary support and services to ensure her safety and that of the child."
In 2014, Gabriela filed House Resolution 1531, a written motion to the Philippines Congress to challenge the No Home Birth policy and investigate the fines on women and health care workers.
It didn't pass, so Gabriela re-filed it in 2016 — but it was never brought up for debate.
Enlarge this image toggle caption Xyza Cruz Bacani For NPR Xyza Cruz Bacani For NPR
Lynn Freedman, a professor of population and family health at Columbia University, agrees that a policy that punishes women for giving birth at home is not the way to go. "Criminalizing or outright banning home deliveries is a blunt, potentially rights-violating instrument for getting to the ultimate goal," she says.
Still, she adds, hospitals and health care facilities have a crucial role in reducing maternal mortality. "If a woman gets a serious obstetric complication during delivery, such as hemorrhage, her survival often depends on getting timely access to emergency obstetric care in a health facility or hospital that can save her life," she says.
"The way to get there has to be multidimensional," she adds. "The country may need to build more facilities, hire more staff who are properly trained and equipped, make sure people have a way to get to the hospital."
Enlarge this image toggle caption Xyza Cruz Bacani For NPR Xyza Cruz Bacani For NPR
As for Risa Calibuso, she is at home with her newborn son. When I visited her, she was undergoing a traditional healing process from the Ilocana ethnic group with Florida Domingo, a retired birth attendant. The method includes binding the stomach with fabric for several days. In addition, the attendant administers early morning massage.
That's what she did after the birth of her first son.
"It is part of our culture," she says.
And she tells me she is very happy that the stress of giving birth is now behind her.
Enlarge this image toggle caption Xyza Cruz Bacani For NPR Xyza Cruz Bacani For NPR
Xyza Cruz Bacani is a freelance photographer based in Southeast Asia and the author of the book We Are Like Air. She previously contributed to NPR for a story on babies born during the pandemic, in collaboration with Everyday Projects.


npr--2020-10-25--How Donald Trump's Presidency Has Changed The Media

How Donald Trump 's Presidency Has Changed The Media Audio will be available later today .
NPR 's Lulu Garcia-Navarro @ @ @ @ @ correspondent Brian Stelter how Donald Trump 's presidency has affected the media and what another @ @ @ @ @

How Donald Trump's Presidency Has Changed The Media
LULU GARCIA-NAVARRO, HOST:
As Donald Trump makes his argument for four more years, we're looking at the impact he's had this past four, and you can't do that without looking at the press. It's been a mutual obsession. The media has covered him wall-to-wall, and he, in turn, has fixated on that coverage, using his various platforms to praise or call out newsrooms and journalists in a way never seen before by an American president. The Fourth Estate, as it's known, is supposed to be a check on power. How well has it done? Brian Stelter is the chief media correspondent for CNN, and he joins us now.
Welcome.
BRIAN STELTER: Thank you so much.
GARCIA-NAVARRO: Let's go back to 2016.
STELTER: Oh, boy.
GARCIA-NAVARRO: Yeah. Yeah, we're going to take a little bit of a journey. The mainstream media was ripped for giving the president too big a platform and doing too little to fact-check him. Obviously, four years later, things have changed. But I would argue that the media's obsession remains. Do you agree?
STELTER: It does. He still sucks up all the oxygen in every room. And to a great extent, the media still lets him. Of course, he is a giant story. But too often, he still gets to set the terms of that story, define that story and set the agenda.
GARCIA-NAVARRO: Let me ask you this. Has it done the media any favors to have these combative interviews, the endless fact-checking, where the media has to be basically a watchdog constantly, endlessly in a loop?
STELTER: Well, I think the public has been well-served by the increase in fact-checking. And I find it shocking that not all news outlets have invested in hiring fact-checkers because the line is so pervasive. And really, in many ways, the line is the through line. It's the central story of the Trump presidency. It's this creation of an alternative reality that is in competition with what we do as journalists, trying to vet information and have kind of reality-based news.
GARCIA-NAVARRO: I mean, he has called us the enemy of the people. Has he actually been able to put us in that role, in your view? Because of the nature of the kinds of interviews that the media has to do, because what the public hears is the media constantly fact-checking him, does it actually put us in the role that it seems or gives the appearance of that we are acting against this presidency?
STELTER: Right. A chronic liar causes the press to be in a more adversarial stance, which then feeds his narrative the media is out to get him. And yet I think most Americans see through that. I suppose my attitude is what's most important is that we surround the president's misleading information with accurate information and help people know what is true 'cause I think the biggest trend of the Trump years is that people are increasingly confused about what is real and what is made-up. And as a result, some people just don't engage at all, and that's dangerous.
GARCIA-NAVARRO: Well, I was about to say we have seen very separate media ecosystems evolve. You know, you turn on CNN, you get one reality. Fox has a completely different one.
STELTER: It is a really discouraging trend because the greatest hoax of all the last few years has been Trump and Fox working together to distract the public, deflect from Trump's own real scandals by focusing on made-up controversies and conspiracies instead. The president unfortunately gets misinformed by right-wing media. And then he misinforms the rest of the country, as we recently saw at the presidential debate, where he was talking about storylines and scandals that really only exist in his pro-Trump media universe.
But this will be a long-lasting, you know, right-wing media ecosystem. There are networks now and websites that make Fox News blush, that, you know, people at Fox News say to me, well, those are radicals; those are extremists. And President Trump - if he does not win the election, he may well end up with a show on one of those networks. Maybe he'll end up on the radio. I think we know for sure he will seek out a media platform if he is not living in the White House. This sense of two competing realities is something that I fear will be with us for the rest of our American lives.
GARCIA-NAVARRO: And what if President Trump does win?
STELTER: If President Trump wins, I think there would be legitimate fears about the president using his power against the press in new ways.
GARCIA-NAVARRO: What would you say the big lesson is of this era for the media? - because I would argue that one of the things that the press has done is not connect with people where they live. And it has been a continual sort of feedback loop with the president. What would your big takeaway be?
STELTER: I was in Allentown, Pa., this week speaking with reporters at the local paper there, The Morning call, that's been decimated by cuts by a hedge fund owner. These communities that are losing local news coverage are losing something deeper. They're losing a connection to American democracy. And those connections must be rebuilt. We need more of a bottom-up sense of what it means to produce news. There are more stories about voters. We are hearing their voices more often in the coverage. We are hearing less from Trump at his rallies. Let's hope that that continues - that kind of coverage continues regardless of who wins.
GARCIA-NAVARRO: That's CNN chief media correspondent Brian Stelter. He's also the author of a bestselling book on Donald Trump's relationship with Fox News. It's called "Hoax."
Brian, thank you very much.
STELTER: Thank you.
Copyright © 2020 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information.
NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.


npr--2020-10-25--Election 2020: Latinx Women's Vote Could Affect The Outcome

Women from the Latinx community are being hurt more by the coronavirus pandemic than any other group .
Not only are they facing higher infection rates but many are also losing their jobs or getting their work hours reduced .
As a result of these hardships , a growing number of women say they are now motivated to vote for Democrat Joe Biden in the upcoming election , according to recent polling data by the Pew Research Center , a Washington , D.C. , think tank .
Among them are Latina workers like Gloria María Jímenez , of York , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a local beauty supply distributor at the end of March due to the pandemic .
Jímenez was unemployed for almost half of this year , but last month she was lucky to find temporary work at a different beauty supply distributor a 35-minute drive away in Harrisburg , Pa .
It will keep her employed through December but she says the future is uncertain .
Jímenez , 57 , is a naturalized U.S. citizen who came from the Dominican Republic in the late 1980s .
She lives with her adult daughter , Adelaida @ @ @ @ @ @ @ `` Things have been tough , '' she says , noting she fell behind on rent .
`` And the father of my children died in March of COVID .
It 's been too much for my daughter , who also lost her job at a restaurant .
She 's fallen into depression . ''
Unemployment hits Latinx women harder because they are more likely to be the head of a single family and are the primary caretakers at home , caring for sick relatives and helping children navigate distant learning in this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to the Economic Policy Institute .
Jímenez says she wants the next president `` to create good jobs , affordable healthcare , housing and education . ''
She says she takes medication for high blood pressure and that she and her daughter are covered under Medicaid .
Jímenez says she voted for both President George H.W .
Bush and his son George W. Bush , but also for President Obama and Hillary Clinton .
She says she did n't like what she heard from Trump on the campaign in 2016 .
Jímenez 's @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to vote for the first time for Joe Biden .
Latinx women are heavily employed in some of the industries hardest hit by COVID-19 .
In the hospitality industry alone 14.6 % of Latinas make up the workforce , higher than whites at 9 % , as well as Latinx men at 11.6 % .
Retail and `` other services '' also employ a large percentage of Latinas , according to the Economic Policy Institute .
In April one in five Latinx women workers were unemployed .
`` They still have n't quite @ @ @ @ @ @ @ opportunities like men have , '' says Mark Hugo Lopez , Pew Research Center 's director of Global Migration and Demography .
Lopez says Latinx women are becoming more politically engaged and it could perhaps reflect a `` political awakening . ''
He says the coronavirus pandemic is pushing women to vote for democratic candidates in this election in numbers greater than men .
The 2018 elections showed historic participation with the number of Latinx voters nearly doubling from 2014 to 2018 , according to the Pew Research Center .
Many Latinx women @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Women like Lourdes Vázquez who is voting for Democratic presidential candidate Job Biden .
After more than three decades living in the U.S. as a permanent resident , Vázquez became a U.S. citizen two years ago , she says .
`` It 's the dehumanizing rhetoric President Trump uses when referring to immigrants , '' that drove her to file for U.S. citizenship , she says .
`` Hearing the president calling us 'animals ' and 'roaches ' was very hurtful , very painful , '' says the 66-year old Mexican-born woman .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ for change . ''
Vázquez works for a local human rights organization but says she does n't have healthcare .
She decided to vote for Biden because among other things , she says Trump 's rhetoric and policies have polarized the country and she thinks Biden can unite people .
`` I hope he condemns racism and discrimination , '' she says .
Vázquez says that she raised her two U.S.-born children to be politically engaged , even though she did n't have the privilege to vote , until now .
`` Mama @ @ @ @ @ @ @ you and me , '' her daughter , Yuridia Cruz , 30 , would tell her .
Vázquez voted already in Las Cruces , N.M. , where she lives .
I 'm relieved , '' she says in a soft voice .
Lourdes Vázquez is among more than 18,000 immigrants in New Mexico who have become citizens since 2014 .
About 57 % of them are women and a majority from Mexico , according to a recently released report .
These new citizens are expected to play a key role in this year @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on how many go to the polls .
Despite the growing Latinx eligible voter population in the U.S. , currently at 32 million , their electoral power has been historically limited by low voter turnout , according to the Pew Research Center .
`` Latinos and Latinas are energized to vote now , '' says Clarissa Martínez De Castro , deputy vice president with UnidosUS , the largest , nonpartisan Latinx advocacy organization in the country .
Martínez De Castro says campaigns need to do a better job at voter registration outreach , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ women are apolitical due to language barriers , feeling insecure about navigating the voting process and thinking that their vote wo n't make a difference , '' she says .
She says Bernie Sanders ' campaign successfully registered a high number of Latinx .
`` It 's not rocket science .
It boils down to get to be known by the community , get your positions known in the community and do outreach .
It pays off , '' she says .
A recent UnidosUS survey shows that the issues energizing Latinx women @ @ @ @ @ @ @ response to the pandemic , lowering the cost of health care and job creation , '' followed by growing concerns about discrimination against immigrants and Latinos , Martínez De Castro says .
`` I 'm tired of seeing so much injustice , '' says voter Rosa María Capellán .
`` Dreamers should be allowed to stay in this country , '' she says referring to participants of Obama 's program , Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program , or DACA .
It protects undocumented persons from deportation – immigrants who were brought to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 66 , is retired .
She worked as a nurse in her native Dominican Republic , but in York , Pa. , she sorted recycled materials in the office of waste and management , she says .
She lives with her husband , her grown son and his family , including two grandchildren .
Capellán is the main caretaker in the family , she says .
She and her diabetic husband tested positive for COVID-19 in June .
Both have recovered .
`` The stress of testing positive was worse than the symptoms @ @ @ @ @ @ @ she `` worried to death '' about her husband whose high fever would not subside for weeks , and also about infecting her son 's family .
Capellán , who describes her family and herself as devout Christians says , `` President Trump lacks humanity , he 's selfish and arrogant . ''
She says Trump 's handling of the coronavirus pandemic reflects that .
`` People , especially people of color , are dying from COVID-19 and he 's not doing anything . ''
She says the administration 's inaction feels racist @ @ @ @ @ @ @ survey , Latinx women could change the election .
With the crushing impact of the coronavirus on the Latinx community , more than 50 % of Latinx women disapprove of Trump 's handling of the pandemic ; 77 % say Trump ignored early COVID-19 warning signs and downplayed the seriousness of the pandemic , and 67 % say they 'll vote for Joe Biden .
`` These are the most important elections of our lives as immigrants , as people of color and women , '' says Jossie Flor Sapunar , communications director @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that has been doing voter outreach work in immigrant and people of color communities in the Mid-Atlantic region for the past 10 years .
She says the Trump administration has demonstrated it 's `` very anti-immigrant , very anti-Black . ''
If these elections do n't bring about change , she says , `` We as Latinos , as immigrants , as people of color are in big trouble because that means the policies that will turn out in these next four years are going to attack us . ''

Election 2020: Latinx Women's Vote Could Affect The Outcome
Enlarge this image toggle caption Ethan Miller/Getty Images Ethan Miller/Getty Images
Women from the Latinx community are being hurt more by the coronavirus pandemic than any other group. Not only are they facing higher infection rates but many are also losing their jobs or getting their work hours reduced.
As a result of these hardships, a growing number of women say they are now motivated to vote for Democrat Joe Biden in the upcoming election, according to recent polling data by the Pew Research Center, a Washington, D.C., think tank.
Among them are Latina workers like Gloria María Jímenez, of York, Pa., who lost her job at a local beauty supply distributor at the end of March due to the pandemic. Jímenez was unemployed for almost half of this year, but last month she was lucky to find temporary work at a different beauty supply distributor a 35-minute drive away in Harrisburg, Pa. It will keep her employed through December, but she says the future is uncertain.
'Things have been tough'
Jímenez, 57, is a naturalized U.S. citizen who came from the Dominican Republic in the late 1980s. She lives with her adult daughter, Adelaida Sánchez, in battleground state Pennsylvania.
"Things have been tough," she says, noting she fell behind on rent. "And the father of my children died in March of COVID. It's been too much for my daughter, who also lost her job at a restaurant. She's fallen into depression."
Unemployment hits Latinx women harder because they are more likely to be the head of a single family and are the primary caretakers at home, caring for sick relatives and helping children navigate distant learning in this pandemic — an added stress, according to the Economic Policy Institute.
Jímenez says she wants the next president "to create good jobs, affordable health care, housing and education." She says she takes medication for high blood pressure and that she and her daughter are covered under Medicaid.
Jímenez says she voted for both President George H.W. Bush and his son George W. Bush, but also for President Obama and Hillary Clinton. She says she didn't like what she heard from Trump on the campaign in 2016. Jímenez's 28-year-old son and 20-year-old daughter are planning to vote for the first time for Biden.
Enlarge this image toggle caption Gloria María Jímenez Gloria María Jímenez
Latinx women are heavily employed in some of the industries hardest hit by COVID-19. In the hospitality industry alone 14.6% of Latinas make up the workforce, higher than whites at 9%, as well as Latinx men at 11.6%. Retail and "other services" also employ a large percentage of Latinas, according to the Economic Policy Institute. In April one in five Latinx women workers were unemployed.
"They still haven't quite recovered in terms of their job market opportunities like men have," says Mark Hugo Lopez, Pew Research Center's director of Global Migration and Demography.
Lopez says Latinx women are becoming more politically engaged and it could perhaps reflect a "political awakening." He says the coronavirus pandemic is pushing women to vote for democratic candidates in this election in numbers greater than men. The 2018 elections showed historic participation with the number of Latinx voters nearly doubling from 2014 to 2018, according to the Pew Research Center.
Many Latinx women are voting for the first time. Women like Lourdes Vázquez who is voting for Biden. After more than three decades living in the U.S. as a permanent resident, Vázquez became a U.S. citizen two years ago, she says.
"It's the dehumanizing rhetoric President Trump uses when referring to immigrants" that drove her to file for U.S. citizenship, she says.
"Hearing the president calling us 'animals' and 'roaches' was very hurtful, very painful," says the 66-year old Mexican-born woman. "I needed to raise my voice for change."
Vázquez works for a local human rights organization but says she doesn't have health insurance. She decided to vote for Biden because among other things, she says Trump's rhetoric and policies have polarized the country and she thinks Biden can unite people. "I hope he condemns racism and discrimination," she says.
toggle caption Lourdes Vázquez
Vázquez says that she raised her two U.S.-born children to be politically engaged, even though she didn't have the privilege to vote, until now.
"Mama, I'm going to vote for you and me," her daughter, Yuridia Cruz, 30, would tell her.
Vázquez voted already in Las Cruces, N.M., where she lives. "I'm relieved," she says in a soft voice.
Lourdes Vázquez is among more than 18,000 immigrants in New Mexico who have become citizens since 2014. About 57% of them are women and a majority from Mexico, according to a recently released report. These new citizens are expected to play a key role in this year's elections though the impact will depend on how many go to the polls.
Despite the growing Latinx eligible voter population in the U.S., currently at 32 million, their electoral power has been historically limited by low voter turnout, according to the Pew Research Center.
"Latinos and Latinas are energized to vote now," says Clarissa Martínez De Castro, deputy vice president with UnidosUS, the largest nonpartisan Latinx advocacy organization in the country.
Martínez De Castro says campaigns need to do a better job at voter registration outreach, especially targeting Latinx women.
"Often women are apolitical due to language barriers, feeling insecure about navigating the voting process and thinking that their vote won't make a difference," she says.
She says Bernie Sanders' campaign successfully registered a high number of Latinx. "It's not rocket science. It boils down to get to be known by the community, get your positions known in the community and do outreach. It pays off," she says.
A recent UnidosUS survey shows that the issues energizing Latinx women in this election include "an effective response to the pandemic, lowering the cost of health care and job creation," followed by growing concerns about discrimination against immigrants and Latinos, Martínez De Castro says.
"I'm tired of seeing so much injustice," says voter Rosa María Capellán.
"Dreamers should be allowed to stay in this country," she says referring to participants of Obama's program, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA. It protects undocumented persons from deportation — immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as children.
Capellán, 66, is retired. She worked as a nurse in her native Dominican Republic, but in York, Pa., she sorted recycled materials in the office of waste and management, she says.
She lives with her husband, her grown son and his family, including two grandchildren. Capellán is the main caretaker in the family, she says. She and her diabetic husband tested positive for COVID-19 in June. Both have recovered.
"The stress of testing positive was worse than the symptoms," she says.
She says she "worried to death" about her husband whose high fever would not subside for weeks, and also about infecting her son's family.
Capellán, who describes her family and herself as devout Christians, says, "President Trump lacks humanity, he's selfish and arrogant."
She says Trump's handling of the coronavirus pandemic reflects that. "People, especially people of color, are dying from COVID-19 and he's not doing anything." She says the administration's inaction feels racist to her.
According to a recent survey, Latinx women could change the election. With the crushing impact of the coronavirus on the Latinx community, more than 50% of Latinx women disapprove of Trump's handling of the pandemic, 77% say Trump ignored early COVID-19 warning signs and downplayed the seriousness of the pandemic, and 67% say they'll vote for Biden.
"These are the most important elections of our lives as immigrants, as people of color and women," says Jossie Flor Sapunar, communications director at Casa in Action, an organization that has been doing voter outreach work in immigrant and people of color communities in the Mid-Atlantic region for the past 10 years.
She says the Trump administration has demonstrated it's "very anti-immigrant, very anti-Black." If these elections don't bring about change, she says, "We as Latinos, as immigrants, as people of color are in big trouble because that means the policies that will turn out in these next four years are going to attack us."


npr--2020-10-25--Pence's Chief Of Staff Has The Coronavirus. Pence Will Continue To Campaign

Pence 's Chief Of Staff Has The Coronavirus .
Pence Will Continue To Campaign Updated at 2:45 a.m .
ET Marc Short , the chief of staff to Vice President Mike Pence , tested positive for the coronavirus on Saturday , making him the closest aide to Pence and the latest senior White House official to contract the virus .
The confirmation comes as Pence — who tested negative on Saturday — criss-crosses the country for rallies in swing states in the remaining days of the campaign as he and President Trump fight to win reelection .
Trump 's handling @ @ @ @ @ @ @ issue in his campaign .
More than 224,000 people have died from the virus in the United States , and more than 8 million people have been infected .
Cases have been surging recently , and daily case levels hit a record high on Friday .
Millions of people have been thrown out of work because of shutdowns and other changes forced by the pandemic .
Short did not travel with Pence on Saturday to rallies in Lakeland and Tallahassee , Fla. Aides deemed to have had close contact with Short were pulled @ @ @ @ @ @ @ House reporters who traveled with Pence were later told .
But Pence , who is considered to have had close contact with his most senior adviser , decided to `` maintain his schedule in accordance with the CDC guidelines for essential personnel , '' spokesman Devin O'Malley said in a statement , noting Pence had consulted with White House physicians..
The CDC guidelines for essential workers who have had close contact with an infected person include wearing a mask for 14 days `` at all times while in the workplace . ''
Pence @ @ @ @ @ @ @ outdoor rally .
O'Malley could not be immediately reached for comment about whether Pence had worn a mask on Air Force Two .
O'Malley said Short `` began quarantine '' on Saturday and was `` assisting in the contact tracing process . ''
Trump , who had the virus and was hospitalized earlier this month , has insisted that the country has rounded the corner on the pandemic .
Asked about surging cases in Wisconsin — one of three states Trump visited for rallies on Saturday — he bristled and said most people @ @ @ @ @ @ @ You know why there are so many cases ?
Because we test , '' he said .
`` You 're trying to scare people .
Do n't scare people . ''
Neither Trump nor his aides mentioned Short 's diagnosis on Saturday as he went to rallies in North Carolina , Ohio and Wisconsin .
Upon landing after midnight , Trump told reporters that he had `` just now '' heard about Short 's diagnosis .
`` I think he 's quarantining , '' Trump said .
`` He 's going to be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the head of the White House coronavirus task force , did not comment on Short 's diagnosis on Saturday .
In his second rally in Tallahassee , Pence did n't discuss the coronavirus until midway through his 50-minute speech , lauding Trump for his actions .
`` Until that day that we have a vaccine available , we 're going to keep working to slow the spread , '' Pence said .
We 're all going to do our part to protect the vulnerable , to save lives . ''
Since Sunday , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ seven states : Maine , Pennsylvania , New Hampshire , Ohio , Michigan , Indiana and Florida .
His office said late Saturday that he would travel to a rally in Kinston , N.C. , on Sunday and the Trump campaign has also scheduled him for a rally in Hibbing , Minn. , on Monday .
`` Vice President Pence and Mrs. Pence both tested negative for COVID-19 today , and remain in good health , '' O'Malley said .
Trump has sought to make his recovery from the virus an asset on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ had its own `` super-spreader event '' last month .
More than a dozen people got the virus , including Trump , first lady Melania Trump , their teenaged son Barron , campaign manager Bill Stepien , press secretary Kayleigh McEnany and adviser Hope Hicks .
Trump has said their experience shows people can recover .
But polls show most Americans disapprove of how Trump has handled the pandemic .
By a 71 % -to-26 % margin , likely voters view the coronavirus as a `` real threat , '' though a significant @ @ @ @ @ @ @ blown out of proportion , according to an NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll .
The poll showed only 36 % of likely voters said they trust what Trump says about the virus a great deal or a good amount , and most said they would prefer Biden to handle the issue .
The White House has refused to say how many of staff have contracted the virus in total .
Medical experts have said the incident shows how lax Trump and officials have been in taking steps to stop the spread of the virus , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 6 feet away from other people — and have relied too much on testing .

Pence Aides Test Positive As Coronavirus Consumes Final Days Of Campaign
Enlarge this image toggle caption Andrew Harnik/AP Andrew Harnik/AP
Updated at 7:45 a.m. ET Monday
With eight days until Election Day, the White House again faces the coronavirus in its ranks and controversy over its national strategy for the pandemic, after President Trump's chief of staff said the administration would not control the spread of the disease.
Two top advisers to Vice President Pence have tested positive for the virus in recent days, as Pence — who tested negative on Saturday and Sunday — crisscrosses the country for rallies in swing states.
Marc Short, Pence's chief of staff, tested positive for the coronavirus on Saturday.
Marty Obst, a Pence political adviser, has also tested positive for the virus, according to a person familiar with the matter who asked for anonymity on Sunday to discuss Obst's health.
Other news outlets have reported that three additional Pence aides tested positive in recent days; NPR has not confirmed those reports.
The White House says Pence will continue to campaign. On Sunday, he traveled to North Carolina for a rally. His wife, Karen, who also tested negative for the coronavirus on Sunday, is slated to travel to the state for a campaign event on Monday.
Short did not travel with Pence on Saturday to rallies in Lakeland and Tallahassee, Fla. Spokesman Devin O'Malley said Short "began quarantine" on Saturday and was "assisting in the contact tracing process." Aides deemed to have had close contact with Short were pulled from the trip before departure, White House reporters who traveled with Pence were later told.
But Pence — who is considered to have had close contact with his most senior adviser — decided to "maintain his schedule in accordance with the CDC guidelines for essential personnel," O'Malley said in a statement, noting that Pence had consulted with White House physicians.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's guidelines for essential workers who have had close contact with an infected person include wearing a mask for 14 days "at all times while in the workplace."
Pence did not wear a mask at his outdoor rally.
Asked by CNN on Sunday whether Pence should continue to campaign, White House chief of staff Mark Meadows said: "Essential personnel, whether it's the vice president of the United States or anyone else, has to continue on."
Meadows added that Pence wears a mask on the campaign trail except for when he speaks on camera.
"We're not going to control the pandemic"
Meadows also spoke about the pandemic more broadly.
"We're not going to control the pandemic," he told CNN. "We are going to control the fact that we get vaccines, therapeutics and other mitigation."
The Trump administration's handling of the pandemic has been the central issue in the presidential race. More than 224,000 people have died from the virus in the United States, and more than 8 million people have been infected. Cases have been surging recently, and daily new case levels hit a record high on Friday. Millions of people have been thrown out of work because of shutdowns and other changes forced by the pandemic.
Trump, who had the virus and was hospitalized this month, has insisted that the country has rounded the corner on the pandemic.
Asked about surging cases in Wisconsin — one of three states Trump visited for rallies on Saturday — he bristled and said most people who get the virus recover.
"You know why there are so many cases? Because we test," he said. "You're trying to scare people. Don't scare people."
Neither Trump nor his aides mentioned Short's diagnosis on Saturday as the president went to rallies in North Carolina, Ohio and Wisconsin. Upon landing after midnight, Trump told reporters that he had "just now" heard about Short's diagnosis. "I think he's quarantining," Trump said. "He's going to be fine."
Pence, who is the head of the White House's coronavirus task force, did not comment on Short's diagnosis on Saturday. In his second rally in Tallahassee, Pence didn't discuss the coronavirus until midway through his 50-minute speech, lauding Trump for his actions.
"Until that day that we have a vaccine available, we're going to keep working to slow the spread," Pence said. "We're all going to do our part to protect the vulnerable, to save lives."
Since last Sunday, Pence has appeared at 10 rallies in seven states: Maine, Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, Ohio, Michigan, Indiana and Florida.
His office said late Saturday that he would travel to a rally in Kinston, N.C., on Sunday, and the campaign has also scheduled him for a rally in Hibbing, Minn., on Monday. On Tuesday, he is slated for rallies in Greensboro and Wilmington, N.C., and Greenville, S.C.
Democratic vice presidential nominee Sen. Kamala Harris was asked by reporters Sunday morning whether Pence should suspend his travel, as Harris herself did in mid-October when two people near her tested positive for the virus.
"He should be following the guidelines," Harris said. "I think we have modeled the right and good behavior and they should take our lead."
The Democratic presidential nominee, Joe Biden, on Sunday released a statement blasting Pence's decision to keep campaigning.
"The grim reality is that we continue to set records for new cases," Biden said, "and the fact that the head of the White House's coronavirus task force has an outbreak in his office and yet still refuses to follow CDC guidelines shows us exactly why."
Trump has sought to make his recovery from the virus an asset on the campaign trail after the White House had its own "superspreader event" last month. More than a dozen people got the virus, including Trump; first lady Melania Trump; their teenage son, Barron; campaign manager Bill Stepien; press secretary Kayleigh McEnany; and adviser Hope Hicks. Trump has said their experience shows people can recover.
But polls show most Americans disapprove of how Trump has handled the pandemic. By a 71%-to-26% margin, likely voters view the coronavirus as a "real threat," though a significant portion of Republicans view it as being blown out of proportion, according to an NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll.
The poll showed that only 36% of likely voters said they trust what Trump says about the virus a great deal or a good amount, and most said they would prefer Biden to handle the issue.
The White House has refused to say how many staff members have contracted the virus in total. Medical experts have said the large number of White House cases show how lax Trump and officials have been in taking steps to stop the spread of the virus, including wearing masks and staying at least 6 feet away from other people — and how they've relied too much on testing.
WFSU's Ryan Dailey contributed to this story.


npr--2020-10-24--At Least 24 Dead, Including Children, In Suicide Attack In Afghan Capital

At Least 24 Dead , Including Children , In Suicide Attack In Afghan Capital Officials in Afghanistan say at least 24 people are dead , including schoolchildren , from a suicide attack outside of an education center in the capital of Kabul .
The country 's interior ministry confirmed that more than 57 others were wounded Saturday after the explosion went off in a heavily Shiite neighborhood , The Associated Press reported .
Interior ministry spokesman Tariq Arian said the attacker attempted to enter the center but was stopped by security guards , according to the AP .
The attacker @ @ @ @ @ @ @ nearby alley , the Agence France-Presse reported .
Reuters , citing Arian , identified the target of the attack as the Kawsar-e Danish education center .
The center offers training and courses for higher education students , the AFP says .
The western Kabul neighborhood where the bombing occurred has a large Shiite community , a minority group in the country that has been targeted by the Islamic State in the past .
The Islamic State took responsibility for the attack , though it did not provide any evidence , Reuters reported .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ bombing .
The attack came amid intensifying fighting between Afghan forces and the Taliban , even as the two sides engage in peace talks .
Those talks were spurred by a peace deal agreed to by the U.S. and the Taliban in February that would pave for the way for the eventual withdrawal of U.S. forces from the country .
Amnesty International said Friday that at least 50 civilians were killed in the past week in spite of the ongoing peace talks .
The Associated Press reported that a separate attack in eastern @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a roadside bomb struck a minivan full of civilians .
A second roadside bomb killed two policemen who were en route to respond .


npr--2020-10-25--Europe Imposes New Restrictions As COVID-19 Cases Soar

New regulations and social-distancing rules are being introduced across multiple European countries in an attempt to stop the spread of the coronavirus as a second wave of the pandemic accelerates across the continent .
Europe reported more than 1.3 million new cases this past week , its highest single week count yet , according to the World Health Organization .
Spain and France each surpassed 1 million cumulative confirmed cases last week , becoming the sixth and seventh countries to do so globally .
Italy , Germany , Belgium , the Czech Republic and the United Kingdom are also experiencing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ' abilities to test , trace and contain the virus .
Polish President Andrzej Duda tested positive for the virus over the weekend , as cases have doubled there in recent weeks .
Europe 's infection rate has been rising for over 90 days , according to European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control .
As authorities and experts worry that the situation in Europe may soon spin out of control , governments are imposing curfews and social restrictions in an attempt to avoid full-scale lockdowns that could hurt the economy and dim @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Minister Pedro Sánchez declared a national state of emergency on Sunday , which included a nighttime curfew and possible travel restrictions between regions .
Italy also announced new measures to curb the virus , the harshest since its lockdown in the spring , when the country was the global epicenter of the pandemic .
U.K. Health Secretary Matt Hancock announced a move to a `` high '' alert level for London and other cities as of Oct. 17 , banning residents from mixing with people from other households indoors and restricting outdoor gatherings @ @ @ @ @ @ @ week , Ireland became the first country in Europe to reimpose a lockdown in the face of soaring cases .
Wales began a 17-day lockdown this weekend , shuttering all nonessential businesses and requiring people to remain home , with few exceptions .
`` If we do this now and if we then have a consistent set of national rules , to keep the transmission and the intensity of the virus at a lower level , then we can have a much more normal Christmas season for businesses , '' Vaughan Gething , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Radio Wales .
France has become the worst-hit country in Europe 's second wave , with over 40,000 new cases every day the past few days .
Nightly curfews have been in place in several cities since mid-October , and this weekend , multiple new curfews were enacted , bringing the total number of people affected to around 46 million , or about two-thirds of France 's population .
`` The second wave is here , '' said Prime Minister Jean Castex at a press conference when the new restrictions were announced .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @

Europe Imposes New Restrictions As COVID-19 Cases Soar
Enlarge this image toggle caption Michel Euler/AP Michel Euler/AP
New regulations and social distancing rules are being introduced across multiple European countries in an attempt to stop the spread of the coronavirus as a second wave of the pandemic accelerates across the continent. Europe reported more than 1.3 million new cases this past week, its highest single week count yet, according to the World Health Organization.
Spain and France each surpassed 1 million cumulative confirmed cases last week, becoming the sixth and seventh countries to do so globally. Italy, Germany, Belgium, the Czech Republic and the United Kingdom are also experiencing record numbers — threatening to overwhelm countries' abilities to test, trace and contain the virus. Polish President Andrzej Duda tested positive for the virus over the weekend as cases there have doubled in recent weeks.
Europe's infection rate has been rising for more than 90 days, according to European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control. As authorities and experts worry that the situation in Europe may soon spin out of control, governments are imposing curfews and social restrictions in an attempt to avoid full-scale lockdowns that could hurt the economy and dim the upcoming holiday season.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez declared a national state of emergency on Sunday, which included a nighttime curfew and possible travel restrictions between regions. Italy also announced new measures to curb the virus, the harshest since its lockdown in the spring, when the country was the global epicenter of the pandemic.
U.K. Health Secretary Matt Hancock announced a move to a "high" alert level for London and other cities as of Oct. 17, banning residents from mixing with people from other households indoors and restricting outdoor gatherings to six people or fewer.
Last week, Ireland became the first country in Europe to reimpose a lockdown in the face of soaring cases.
Wales began a 17-day lockdown this weekend, shuttering all nonessential businesses and requiring people to remain home, with few exceptions. "If we do this now and if we then have a consistent set of national rules, to keep the transmission and the intensity of the virus at a lower level, then we can have a much more normal Christmas season for businesses," Vaughan Gething, the Welsh health minister, told BBC Radio Wales.
France has become the worst-hit country in Europe's second wave, with more than 40,000 new cases every day the past few days. Nightly curfews have been in place in several cities since mid-October, and this weekend, multiple new curfews were enacted, bringing the total number of people affected to around 46 million, or about two-thirds of France's population.
"The second wave is here," French Prime Minister Jean Castex said at a press conference when the new restrictions were announced. "The situation is grave."


npr--2020-10-25--Gulf Coast Braces As Tropical Storm Zeta Poised To Become A Hurricane

Gulf Coast Braces As Tropical Storm Zeta Poised To Become A Hurricane A tropical storm stalled over the Caribbean Sea is poised to drop heavy rain on the U.S. Gulf Coast within the next few days .
Forecasters say it is likely to move in a northwestward direction and strengthen into a hurricane by the time it hits the southern U.S. on Wednesday .
Beginning as a depression east of Mexico , the storm quickly strengthened and was named Tropical Storm Zeta .
The storm was nearly stationary Sunday , dropping water over the open ocean and causing downpours in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ maximum sustained winds of 50 mph .
Mexico is already bracing for impact .
The government of Mexico has issued a hurricane warning for the Yucatan Peninsula , from Tulum to Rio Lagartos .
As the 27th named storm of the season , Zeta gives 2020 the distinction of having the second-highest number of named storms .
Only 2005 was more tempestuous , with 28 named storms .
Areas in Zeta 's path can expect 4-8 inches of rainfall , with some areas getting as much as a foot of rain through Wednesday @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Over the next two days , 5 inches of rain are possible across southern Florida and the Keys .
Forecasters expect a dangerous storm surge , with water levels rising by up to 3 feet above normal .
Louisiana Gov .
John Bel Edwards said the state was once again preparing for dangerous weather .
`` It is unfortunate we face another tropical threat this late in a very active season , '' Edwards said .
`` We must roll up our sleeves , like we always do , and prepare for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ `` A tropical threat during the ongoing COVID-19 emergency is challenging , but something we can handle , '' Edwards added .
`` If Tropical Storm Zeta does become a serious threat , we stand ready to ramp up our actions as a state to meet the needs of our people and communities . ''
Coming just a week before Election Day , Zeta could have an impact on the race .
Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden is leading the polls in Florida , but only within a few percentage points — and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ begun to close the gap there .
`` Hurricane Zeta could disrupt in-person early voting in Republican areas of Florida 's panhandle , '' writes University of Florida professor Michael McDonald , who specializes in American elections .

Gulf Coast Braces As Tropical Storm Zeta Poised To Become Hurricane
Updated Oct. 26 at 9:50 a.m. ET
A tropical storm stalled over the Caribbean Sea is poised to drop heavy rain on the U.S. Gulf Coast within the next few days. Forecasters say it is likely to move in a northwestward direction and strengthen into a hurricane by the time it hits the southern U.S. on Wednesday.
Beginning as a depression east of Mexico, the storm quickly strengthened and was named Tropical Storm Zeta. As of Monday morning, the storm is about 175 miles southeast of the island of Cozumel, Mexico, near Cancun. It's moving northwest at a pace of 9 miles per hour, with sustained winds of up to 70 miles per hour.
Mexico is already bracing for impact. A hurricane warning is in effect for Cozumel, and for the stretch of coastline from Tulum to Dzilam, including major tourism hubs on the Yucatán Peninsula.
Zeta is projected to move "near or over" the peninsula on Monday afternoon or evening, according to the National Hurricane Center.
Forecasters expect Zeta to make landfall Wednesday afternoon or evening in southeastern Louisiana.
As the 27th named storm of the season, Zeta gives 2020 the distinction of having the second-highest number of named storms. Only 2005 was more tempestuous, with 28 named storms.
The National Hurricane Center is predicting 4 to 8 inches of rain, with some areas seeing totals of up to 12 inches, as Zeta moves from the Yucatán Peninsula and through the Cayman Islands and Cuba.
Areas in the central Gulf Coast and Tennessee Valley are expected to get 2 to 4 inches of rain, with up to 6 inches in some isolated areas.
Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards said his state is once again preparing for dangerous weather. "It is unfortunate we face another tropical threat this late in a very active season," Edwards said. "We must roll up our sleeves, like we always do, and prepare for a potential impact to Louisiana."
"A tropical threat during the ongoing COVID-19 emergency is challenging, but something we can handle," Edwards added. "If Tropical Storm Zeta does become a serious threat, we stand ready to ramp up our actions as a state to meet the needs of our people and communities."
Earlier projections had suggested that Zeta could hit deep into the Florida panhandle and potentially disrupt early voting there. The latest projections suggest the storm's path has tracked westward, reducing its impact in Florida and increasing the effect on Louisiana.
NPR's Merrit Kennedy contributed to this report.


npr--2020-10-25--360,000 Customers Lose Power In California Amid Fire-Safety Shutoffs

Pacific Gas and Electric Company ( PG & E ) is shutting off power for approximately 361,000 customers in Northern California on Sunday to help prevent sparking wildfires amid extreme weather conditions .
The utility says the shutoffs are affecting customers across 36 counties as weather forecasts predict wind gusts over 70 mph in some areas combined with dry conditions .
Much of the state is under a Red Flag Warning — signifying extreme fire conditions — with 20 wildfires already burning and 5,000 firefighters deployed , according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection , or Cal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 1 to 10 , this event is a 9 , '' Craig Clements , director of San Jose State University 's Fire Weather Lab , told the Bay Area News Group .
`` Historically our biggest fires are in October .
We are in a critical period . ''
Downed power lines and other electrical equipment have been blamed for igniting deadly and destructive fires in California in the past — most notably the 2018 Camp Fire which killed 85 people and destroyed thousands of buildings around the town of Paradise .
PG @ @ @ @ @ @ @ counts of involuntary manslaughter and one felony count of unlawfully starting a fire in that case earlier this year .
This weekend 's shutoffs began Sunday morning and will continue through Monday , as the highest winds are expected throughout the night .
They are the fifth public safety power shutoff , or PSPS , for the utility this year .
`` We 're seeing four extremes in the weather for this potential PSPS event : extremely high winds , extremely low humidity , extreme dry fuels due to the hottest average temperatures @ @ @ @ @ @ @ records that go back 126 years , and extreme drought across the territory given lack of rainfall , '' Scott Strenfel , PG & E 's head of meteorology and fire science , said in a statement .
PG & E will inspect the de-energized lines for damage and aim to restore power to all customers within 12 daylight hours after severe weather has passed , according to a press release from the San Francisco-based utility company .
2020 has been an unprecedented wildfire year across the western part of the country , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ states , according to the National Interagency Fire Center .
In California alone , well over 4 million acres have burned , more than doubling a previous record .
The year 's fires have killed dozens of people , burned thousands of buildings and forced over 100,000 people to evacuate .
Scientists say that climate change makes large , destructive wildfires more likely because of hotter temperatures and drier vegetation .
Across the country , higher average temperatures are increasing the length of fire season and the number of places where fires can @ @

360,000 Customers Lose Power In California Amid Fire-Safety Shutoffs
Enlarge this image toggle caption Philip Pacheco/AFP via Getty Images Philip Pacheco/AFP via Getty Images
Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) is shutting off power for approximately 361,000 customers in Northern California on Sunday to help prevent sparking wildfires amid extreme weather conditions. The utility says the shutoffs are affecting customers across 36 counties as weather forecasts predict wind gusts over 70 mph in some areas combined with dry conditions.
Much of the state is under a Red Flag Warning — signifying extreme fire conditions — with 20 wildfires already burning and 5,000 firefighters deployed, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or Cal Fire.
"On a scale of 1 to 10, this event is a 9," Craig Clements, director of San Jose State University's Fire Weather Lab, told the Bay Area News Group. "Historically our biggest fires are in October. We are in a critical period."
Downed power lines and other electrical equipment have been blamed for igniting deadly and destructive fires in California in the past — most notably the 2018 Camp Fire which killed 85 people and destroyed thousands of buildings around the town of Paradise. PG&E pleaded guilty to 84 separate counts of involuntary manslaughter and one felony count of unlawfully starting a fire in that case earlier this year.
This weekend's shutoffs began Sunday morning and will continue through Monday, as the highest winds are expected throughout the night. They are the fifth public safety power shutoff, or PSPS, for the utility this year.
"We're seeing four extremes in the weather for this potential PSPS event: extremely high winds, extremely low humidity, extreme dry fuels due to the hottest average temperatures over the last six months according to records that go back 126 years, and extreme drought across the territory given lack of rainfall," Scott Strenfel, PG&E's head of meteorology and fire science, said in a statement.
PG&E will inspect the de-energized lines for damage and aim to restore power to all customers within 12 daylight hours after severe weather has passed, according to a press release from the San Francisco-based utility company.
2020 has been an unprecedented wildfire year across the western part of the country, with large fires currently burning in 11 states, according to the National Interagency Fire Center. In California alone, well over 4 million acres have burned, more than doubling a previous record. The year's fires have killed dozens of people, burned thousands of buildings and forced over 100,000 people to evacuate.
Scientists say that climate change makes large, destructive wildfires more likely because of hotter temperatures and drier vegetation. Across the country, higher average temperatures are increasing the length of fire season and the number of places where fires can occur.