thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-06--Bubbles, Zombie Arms And Laughter: Inside England's Re-Opened Classrooms

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The first day back at school is always a mixture of nerves, anxiety and excitement – but none more so than when some children returned at the beginning of this week, after 10 long weeks of coronavirus lockdown.
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And none more divided either, as unions, parents and scientists warned against the government’s easing of the lockdown.
Many parents chose not to send their children back, despite Boris Johnson’s announcement of a return of school children in reception, Year 1 and Year 6 in England from June 1.
A number of councils across England opposed schools opening to more pupils amid safety concerns and many remained open to only the children of key workers and vulnerable pupils as they have since March 23.
However, some schools who opened their doors to more youngsters this week after making drastic changes to their classrooms and timetables to allow for social distancing measures, revealed to HuffPost UK that despite their reservations and anxieties, the first week of ‘back to school’ has been “emotional in a joyous way.”
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“It’s like having an empty house that’s suddenly full of life again. It’s just so lovely to hear laughter and fun in the corridors again.”” - Brian Walton, Brookside Academy, Somerset
And although they know they will face many challenges ahead as they prepare to take in greater numbers of children while trying to keep everyone safe, they say they have been buoyed by the happiness of children at being reunited with their friends and teachers and their resilience in the face of challenging circumstances.
“It’s like having an empty house that’s suddenly full of life again.” admitted Brian Walton, headteacher at Brookside Academy in Somerset. “It’s just so lovely to hear laughter and fun in the corridors again.”
He said the school had around 30 children on site each day throughout the lockdown as they took in the children of key workers and vulnerable pupils and have a special school for children with special educational needs.
But he said to go from that to having around 100 children running around the fields and outside has led to a “different noise” which has made the school staff feel very positive despite their apprehension.
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Brian Walton, headteacher at Brookside Academy in Somerset Brookside Academy
Walton says the school has all the procedures in place to maintain social distancing such as chalk markings on the ground and the children are in their “bubbles” with frequent hand washing and the cleaning and sanitising of tables.
“Things are still far from normal,” he said. “But there is a sense that we are getting back to what a school is all about.
“There is a feeling of weirdness – but also a sense of calm. We know caution and a lot of planning is still needed to get this right and if I feel there were any risks, I will make changes and even shut again if needed.
“The children have been so positive and were so excited to see their friends again. Their energy levels are immense as they have been missing that social interaction.”
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Youngsters arriving back to Roade Primary School in Northampton are greeted every morning with a “virtual hug” at the school gates by headteacher Mark Currell.
Mark Currell, headteacher at Roade Primary School in Northampton gives a "virtual hug" Roade Primary School
He told HuffPost UK that the school has created bubbles, zones and no-go areas and are doing everything they can to minimise the risk of the virus – not just for the children and teachers, but for the families they go home to.
Teacher Cora Taylor says pupils came into school “bubbling over” with tales of all the different things they had been up to during lockdown. “The children were very excited and were smiling and chatting and told us about all the walks they had been on, the sticks they had found and one of them had got a new puppy.
“They really seemed to enjoy that extra time with their family but were so happy to be back. Children are very resilient and they settled into their new classrooms and adapted to the changes very quickly.”
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Currell says that it was heartwarming to hear children share stories about how they had learnt to do things like ride a bike without stabilisers and learn to cook with their parents during their time together during lockdown.
“It has been quite lovely and healthy for those children and parents to have spent that extra time together.” he said. “But we have also been very careful to monitor children who are less supported at home.”
The school has taken steps such as putting stickers on the carpet so youngsters know there are specific places to sit and putting signs up to remind them to stay in their bubbles stating: “Don’t pop my bubble.”
But children are being quite inventive when it comes to social distancing themselves and Currell said Year 1 pupils were walking around the school “like zombies” with their arms out to make sure they don’t go near anyone else.
“Trying to teach younger ones to socially distance is a big challenge.” he said. “They haven’t seen their friends for 10 weeks and they want to share things. But they have been a lot better than I thought they would be.”
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In the classrooms, each child has their own table with a zip wallet containing everything they need from school books to pencils, a ruler and eraser. The idea is that they don’t need to get up to get anything or share resources – which goes against the grain of what their teachers normally encourage. However, staff say the children are “loving the novelty of doing something different.”
However, Currell knows they are currently “riding on the crest of a wave” as there are low numbers in school with around 80 out of 300 children back.
While they can find their feet with smaller groups, Currell is mindful there will be greater challenges when they expand to more children – particularly when it comes to maintaining social distancing.
“At the moment, we are OK as we’ve had good weather so the children have been able to spend time outdoors and run around.
“But what happens when it is raining and those 15 children are kept in their classrooms for seven hours? That is going to be difficult.
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“When expansion happens, we are going to have t re-think the whole set-up including rotas and lunchtimes.”
The National Education Union carried out a survey of schools and their reaction to being asked to open more widely to children under the easing of lockdown.
They found 44% of schools did not open more widely to any of the year groups suggested by the prime minister on June 1. Thirty-five per cent opened on June 1 on the terms expected by Boris Johnson and 21% opened more widely, but on less terms than expected by the PM.
There was also a stark regional variation with just 12% of schools in the North East and 8% in the North West – where levels of coronavirus are higher – opening fully to all eligible years groups in their school.
Youngsters being taught while socially distancing at Greenfield School in Woking Greenfield School, Woking
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Tania Botting, headteacher at Greenfield School in Woking, admitted to HuffPost UK that she felt very anxious about having the children return and felt physically sick. “I had some really weird dreams the week before such as my staff hugging each other and me telling them not to.” she said.
“I never want to live through anything like this again. It has been my most stressful period as a head.”
“What we see as difficulties, the children see as a huge adventure.”” - Tania Botting, Greenfield School, Woking
But she says everything went a lot smoother than envisaged and the children adapted to the changes far better than she thought.
“What we see as difficulties, the children see as a huge adventure,” she explained. “Children are very adaptable and we need to give them more credit for that.
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“I worried about things like not providing a proper lunch for them but giving them a packed lunch to eat on the field in their bubble. But they absolutely loved it and there was so much excitement.”
Botting says she ensures nothing goes home at the end of the school day with the children – no water bottles or pencil cases. Parents collecting their children drive through in a loop and don’t get out of the car. Staff carrying walkie talkies take each child to the vehicle.
“Parents had told us they were getting worried about their child’s behaviour and temper tantrums during lockdown.” she said. “For me, it has been about getting the children back to more normality.
“They came into school beaming and the feedback I have received from parents is that they’ve been buzzing when they got back home.
“Some parents admitted they had felt anxious and worried about their child going back, but that seeing the joy on their face was worth it.”
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Tania Botting, head at Greenfield School, Woking, Greenfield School
Botting says one of the questions parents have had is what will happen if their child falls over and hurts themselves at school and how teachers will deal with such situations when trying to maintain social distancing.
She said although this luckily hasn’t happened as yet, a teacher’s instinctive reaction would be to “scoop the child up.” She says that although they won’t be able to do this, they will still comfort them.
“Putting your arms around a child when you are stood up and they are at knee level will be fine.” she said. “But we won’t be able to crouch down to give them a hug.
“I think it would be too cruel to completely push them away. And if they are hurting, we will use masks and gloves.”
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Vic Goddard, principal at Passmores Academy in Essex, who starred in the 2011 BBC programme Educating Essex, told HuffPost UK that they faced a heartbreaking moment when a pupil from Romania got upset in school as he realised that for the first time, he wouldn’t be able to go and visit his Romanian family that summer.
“Usually, we would have taken him to a room and had a one-to-one chat with him.” said Goddard. “Trying to comfort him from two metres away was very difficult. Luckily, he rallied quickly.”
Vic Goddard, principal at Passmores Academy in Essex Passmores Academy
Goddard says their school is staggering the return of pupils and have had Year 6 back this week with Year 1 set to return next. Around 45% of the parents chose to send their children back to school.
“The kids were just so pleased to see each other and us. It has been an incredibly joyous week.
“There was definitely more anxiety amongst the teachers than the children – the kids have been remarkably accepting of the fact that things have changed.
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“They have really stepped up and their behaviour has been immaculate during these first few days back. Even some of the traditionally challenging children have come back and realised: ‘Now is not the time.’
“You don’t realise what you’ve got until you haven’t got it anymore and I think the children realised how much they value school.
“It has made us feel a lot more confident about the weeks ahead.”
“You don’t realise what you’ve got until you haven’t got it anymore and I think the children realised how much they value school.” - Vic Goddard, Passmores Academy, Essex
However, Goddard says children are currently coming into school for the morning and going home before lunch, and he knows life will become tricky when greater numbers of children return and when they have them for the full school day.
“If all the kids came back, we’d need to build another school and have more teachers if we wanted to maintain social distancing,” he said.
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“The timing of the easing of the lockdown coinciding with children returning to school was a real source of anxiety for the teachers and their worries are around the coronavirus infection rate going up and children not realising they are carriers.
“All we can do is take all the steps we can to mitigate the risk.”
Across the 1,000 children they have across their schools, Goddard says they are aware of 20 deaths in the family. “We are extremely aware that the children coming back into school are not the same as when they left and some have had a different lived experience and suffered bereavement.”
Allana Gay, headteacher at Vita Et Pax prep school in North London, told HuffPost UK the return of the children has been: “emotional in a joyous way.” She said there was lots of excited chatter as the youngsters shared tales of life at home during lockdown.
“There was a lot of talking and chatter and catching up and the children told us all the stories of everything that happened in their house during lockdown. They probably shared tales their parents would have preferred them not to such as mishaps when dinner got burnt!”
She says one of the things teachers have noticed is children have been saying: “I’m starving” and asking for snacks in the middle of lessons as they have got used to having constant snacks at home.”
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Allana Gay, headteacher at Vita Et Pax prep school in North London Allana Gay
Gay said the children are wearing face masks in the playgrounds as she feels that at least offers some level of protection if they come too close when playing.
“The children are full of energy and vigour and are being inventive with their social distancing games such as building forts and going from one fort to the other or going back to playing traditional games such as hide and seek.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-06--How The Hell Did TikTok Get So Big, So Quickly?

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We’re often hesitant to embrace new apps.
Their intensity is criticised as bad for our mental health and with Instagram Stories and the grid a constant presence in our lives, shouldn’t we expand our real-life experiences by going outside more often, or doing exercise, instead of adding something else to our phones?
Yes. There’s no doubt that our hesitancy to lean into new apps is completely legitimate. So how come, in an age of mental exhaustion due to the virus, TikTok muscled its way onto 8.7% of British phone screens in such a short time?
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The app’s success has even surprised Hollywood’s most clued-in talent agents.
“I’ve been in this space for twelve, fifteen years now,” reflects Greg Goodfried, talent agent, responsible for creating digital platforms for stars including Jennifer Lopez and Lauren Conrad.
“The first ten years YouTube was everything,” he tells HuffPost UK down the phone from his home office in LA. “Then for the last five I’ve been saying we live in a YouTube/Instagram world. I firmly believe we’re now in a YouTube/Instagram/TikTok world and I think we’re going to be in that for a very long time.”
Goodfried works at United Talent Agency managing social media stars including Charli D’Amelio, the world’s biggest TikTok star with 60 million followers, and has seen his workload dramatically change since TikTok blew up at the start of 2020.
The world's biggest TikTok star Charli D'Amelio during an interview on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon NBC via Getty Images
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Greg notes that the global nature of TikTok has contributed to its incredibly sharp rise. “We’ve never had a platform introduce itself with China too, so just the sheer numbers behind it, it has that weight and power behind it,” he says.
The app also resonates with our times. In a coronavirus world, the joyous, often comedic, defiantly silly 30 second videos shot on mobile phones and published by TikTok users provides the sort of light relief that Instagram can’t fathom.
Rather than promoting vain and wearisome selfies, TikTok’s raison d’etre is light heartedness.
With NHS staff singing songs from quarantine, A-List celebrities like Ariana Grande and Britney Spears recording videos from isolation and Gen-Z using it to recreate favourite memes IRL, the app is entertainment writ-large: its offer of escapism the perfect bedfellow for its users going through lockdown together.
And the platform is changing the way digital celebrities are made. “I don’t think we’ve ever seen a platform grow this fast,” reflects Greg. “This is happening at light speed where somebody can get famous in three or four months.”
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As with any major social platform, sadly TikTok isn’t immune from the inevitable trolls, which have cohabited TikTok alongside the talent, but where isn’t there the need to be vigilant against online abuse?
Sadly it follows users all across the digital realm. “You’ve seen some of her tweets and Instagram posts calling out people, and that empowers her,” says Greg of D’Amelio’s approach to dealing with her instant fame.
Charli D’Amelio is a professional dancer and her TikToks are characterised by the 16-year-old performing impressive dance routines. Sometimes she’ll talk to the camera about her day, other times, she’ll perform a complex dance you might expect to see on a professional stage - while wearing joggers and a sweatshirt from home.
While she’s advised against warding off online abuse and managing thousands of commenters, one encouraging trope of Gen Z is that they seem kinder to one another, according to Greg, making TikTok a generally more pleasant place to be than some of its competitors.
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“Boys say super complimentary things about boys, girls saying complimentary things about girls, that’s an incredible thing we’re finding from this younger generation” - Greg Goodfried, UTA talent agent
“There’s so many more young people who are complimentary of each other,” he notices, “they’re like ‘Yeah you go, you’re fire,’ and boys say super complimentary things about boys, girls saying complimentary things about girls, that’s an incredible thing we’re finding from this younger generation.
“They’re focused on anti bullying and focused on positivity and a lot of them self police, if they see people piling onto a creator you’ll see a tonne of people pop up telling these commenters, ‘Hey we don’t need you here, go somewhere else.’”
Openness and honesty was also the selling point for YouTube when it first began in 2005, establishing homemade video creation as a legitimate form.
Since its inaugural videos were uploaded it has been the Everest for influencers and vloggers, ever since Tyler Oakley was the first to go stratospheric on the platform in 2007 while at university.
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Reaching potentially millions of viewers and turning over vast profits, YouTube was the first and most obvious step towards TV and film contracts for the new realm of ‘content creator’ talent.
Now, around six months after it broadly took off, TikTok is a surprising and direct challenger to YouTube’s authority over video making, and has become the unlikely new gateway to TV and film for its users - even though the videos are only thirty seconds long.
TikTok is now equally as important as Instagram for content creators, says Greg Goodfried, UTA talent agent SOPA Images via Getty Images
“We laugh about it internally,” says Greg. “It used to be YouTube was short form and it’d be, ‘How do you do something in long form?,’ meaning TV and film. Now TikTok is short form it’s, ‘How do I do something in long form,?’ meaning YouTube.”
With millions of eyeballs on content, TikTok is big money, much like YouTube. With sales to be made, brands are scrambling to assert themselves on the platform, and Greg and his colleague Ali Berman dispute the idea that cashing in on TikTok makes creators sellouts.
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Much like on YouTube, earning money from your content is “the holy grail,” says Greg.
“Getting that brand deal, or launching a merch line, or recording a song - they’re rooting for the people they’re following to be able to do these commercial things,” he says.
““She’s a 16 year old CEO," laughs Greg” - Greg Goodfried on his client, Charli D'Amelio
As for Charli, she’s heavily involved in all brand partnerships and decisions around marketing and business reflected on her platform.
“She’s a 16 year old CEO,” laughs Greg. “Charli has an amazing business sense of what she’s excited about, what brands she’s passionate about, what opportunities make sense for her.”
Cutting through the hype, he does have one fear. “The hard part for brands is going to be a year from now when they have all spent and experimented and it’s either going to have worked for them or it’s not going to have worked.”
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Regardless of which high-net-worth audiences may be watching Charli’s skillfully created videos, Greg is clear that TikTok has surpassed fad stage.
“One thing I think probably gets missed is it’s not all dancing content, and it’s not all lip syncing of popular movie clips from memes,” he asserts. “There is enormous TikTok around food and cooking, around fishing, sports, action sports…
“It’s much bigger than just the, ‘I’m a teenager dancing to a song,’” he reflects. “You’re seeing traditional entertainers flock to it, and even traditional communities and factors of entertainment making sure it’s a part of their strategy, whether it’s music or film marketing divisions.”
Having earned the interest of Gen-Z throughout the bizarre, empty months that have crept past under lockdown, TikTok is trickling down from the trend setters steadily into the handsets of more and more of us.
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thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-06--Boris Johnson Must Show BAME Communities How Black Lives Matter, Says Former Tory Minister

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Boris Johnson must demonstrate how he believes Black lives matter by standing up to Donald Trump, and through measures to protect BAME communities from Covid-19, a former Tory minister has said.
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Caroline Nokes, who chairs the Commons’ powerful women and equalities committee, said the prime minister must be “bold enough to speak truth to power” when it came to the US president.
It comes as fresh divisions open in the US over race, with Trump threatening to quell protests with military force following widespread outrage over the Minnesota killing of 49-year-old Black man George Floyd at the hands of a police officer.
Meanwhile in the UK, where there have also been demonstrations over Floyd and racism, a Public Health England study laid bare the extent to which BAME people are disproportionately affected by coronavirus.
Hitting out at the government’s lack of action since the report, Nokes said of BAME people watching Johnson: “You would be perfectly entitled to ask: ’Well, if Black lives matter, show me how they matter – show me how you have taken an action that demonstrates that our lives matter.”
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In a wide-ranging interview with HuffPost UK, the former immigration minister says: The Equality and Human Rights Commission, which on Friday launched an inquiry into how BAME communities are affected by Covid-19, must be “more determined” in taking on the government and be “beating the drum louder” over the unequal impact of coronavirus
Johnson should make an “incredible appointment” and promote his predecessor Theresa May to the cabinet to help handle the crisis, saying “you don’t waste ability like that”
Rishi Sunak’s emergency budget must swerve a looming crisis of childcare for working mothers, as she has “horrible visions” the pandemic will put female employment prospects back 20 years.
The women and equalities committee will launch an investigation into the impact of coronavirus on minority groups, with three strands: disability, BAME people, and women.
Johnson has refused to directly criticise the president, saying only that he is “appalled and sickened” at Floyd’s death and that “racism and racist attacks have no place” in society.
But Nokes said “it is the prime minister’s role” to voice the UK’s strength of feeling and “have the courage” to use the special relationship to lobby for change.
“Every other US president has sought to unite the country, to heal divisions and make it a better place for all Americans and at the moment we see horrendous division in the US,” she said.
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“I think that some of the president’s comments have been really regrettable and inflammatory – and sometimes we have to be bold enough to speak truth to power.
“You do have to be brave enough, when one of your friends is doing something wrong, to tell them.
“We should be firmer. We should be more direct with what we are saying to the US.”
Nokes also has concerns that, closer to home, power-holders are failing BAME communities, saying the PHE report failed set out how government could better protect people from coronavirus risks.
“It was missing recommendations – that’s what struck me instantly,” she said.
We must give the government something to do,” she added. “Reviews are important and I’m really interested in the how and the why BAME communities are more impacted by Covid, but I’m more interested in what the hell we are going to do about that.
“Because we can see [BAME people were hit harder] – and we saw it so early on, with the deaths of healthcare workers. When you would look at a page of photographs in the national media, anyone with an ounce of awareness, you thought: ‘Oh, my god.’”
Minister of State for Immigration Caroline Nokes arrives for a cabinet meeting at 10 Downing Street, London. PA
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Nokes praised the Somerset Foundation Trust, which in April took BAME staff off the frontline and made them a priority for personal protective equipment (PPE), and said the lack of focus from government was glaring.
“I get the realities of that – that’s Somerset, where you don’t have a hugely diverse community in the first place,” Nokes said.
“But at the very least you need to be able to point to direct actions that you can take to safeguard BAME people from the worst ravages of this disease.”
Nokes’ committee will launch an investigation into the impact of coronavirus on minority groups. It will have three strands: disability, BAME people, and women – and there will be numerous recommendations to ministers.
“You have to look at how you tackle a pandemic to make sure you don’t make those existing inequalities worse,” she said.
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The Windrush scandal will also form part of the committee’s future work, Nokes stressed, following news that just 60 victims have been given compensation in the last year.
The MP for Romsey and Southampton North also said the equalities watchdog – the Equalities and Human Rights Commission – should be more strident in taking on the government.
“If I were to be candid, I would want them to have a bit more ‘oomph’,” she said.
“I would like to see them being more effective, more determined and to have a bit of passion.
“I would like to see them being more effective, more determined and to have a bit of passion.” - Caroline Nokes on the equalities watchdog the EHRC's approach to government
“That is one of the things that strikes me is that, in order to get anywhere, you have to be absolutely determined and you have to be ruthless.
“I’m not convinced they are throwing enough energy at making their case to government.”
The toll the pandemic is taking on disadvantaged groups is difficult to calculate as lockdown continues.
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From blind and partially sighted people with a personal aide being denied access to some supermarkets, to working class youngsters potentially falling behind due to closed schools, Nokes said there are many elements of policy government “haven’t even begun to think about”.
The committee chair fears that women may be bearing the brunt.
The Institute for Fiscal Studies warned last month that women were more likely to have lost their job or have been furloughed.
Domestic abuse hotlines, meanwhile, have seen a huge increase in calls, while the murder rate for domestic killings has doubled.
“We know that the online ‘chat’ services saw big spikes, particularly in people in LGBT relationships,” she added.
Chancellor Rishi Sunak, left, and Prime Minister Boris Johnson arrive for a press briefing at Downing Street ASSOCIATED PRESS
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“We already know that people in the trans community are disproportionately likely to be in relationships where there is domestic abuse – and it is harder for them to access services, inevitably, because there are fewer services available to them.
“I think we have to be conscious of that.”
While sectors such as construction, which have around an 80% male workforce, have seen less interruption, retail and hair and beauty have remained in strict shutdown due to the difficulties of social distancing.
Nokes said chancellor Rishi Sunak, who with the economic damage of the pandemic expected to be huge is preparing an emergency budget, must make childcare a top priority to limit the risk of widening inequalities.
“Families are making decisions now about who makes the career sacrifice, because of the lack of available childcare,” she said.
“I have horrible visions of women’s employment going backwards, of women losing career opportunities they might otherwise have had.”
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Nokes, who fears there are not enough women at Johnson’s top table, went on: “It sounds like there will be quite a big focus on training for young people and on the tech sector – which is not well known for employing women – and my ask of the government is: if you are preparing an emergency budget, please look at the childcare sector.
“If you don’t have that key building block, then it doesn’t matter however many thousands of jobs you create in the tech sector for bright young men – you are going to be missing out on a massive part of the workforce who will simply not be able to go back to work.”
Johnson’s administration, which was geared up for a Brexit agenda, was plunged headlong into Covid crisis management just weeks after the PM reshaped his cabinet in January after December’s general election.
“He has been very careful to have ministers in his top team who are very, very loyal to him,” said Nokes. “There are not many challenging or dissenting voices included.”
Critics have pointed out – and Johnson has himself acknowledged – there are few women in his cabinet, with key strategic decisions left to “the quad” – Sunak, Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove, health secretary Matt Hancock and foreign secretary Dominic Raab.
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The PM has suggested a reshuffle could be on the cards and Nokes believes the former premier Theresa May, who stood down last year amid deadlock over Brexit, should be on his list.
While not suggesting a particular role – May’s long tenure as home secretary saw the rise of the so-called “hostile environment” for immigrants – Nokes thinks the PM needs experienced heads to tackle the pandemic.
Theresa May walks with other Members of Parliament through the Commons Members Lobby to hear the Queens's Speech in Parliament in December ASSOCIATED PRESS
“Theresa May is the most experienced parliamentarian we have in the party still in parliament,” she said.
“She has amazing qualities and is incredibly determined and diligent. She is a woman that does detail and is a voice to be reckoned with.
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“I think she would be an incredible appointment but I wouldn’t like to bank on that happening.
“I would love to see her back. I don’t think you waste ability like that.”
Nokes went on: “I’m not particularly stressed about [home secretary] Priti Patel being the sole female minister to chair the daily press conference.
“What I am more concerned about is why are there not more voices of women even in the room.
“It’s absolutely imperative that Boris puts more women around his cabinet table and be prepared to listen to them.”
Nokes also questioned why Therese Coffey, the work and pensions secretary, had been near-invisible, despite the biggest rise in Universal Credit claims ever.
“She clearly has a massive role to play in facilitating the re-entry of people back in the workforce,” said Nokes. “It’s the whole purpose of her department and yet we’ve not seen or heard very much from Therese.”
Liz Truss, the trade secretary heading up deals with the EU and US over the coming months, is also minister for women and equalities, and Nokes believes the job will be too demanding to be “an add on” as the impact of the pandemic comes into sharp focus.
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Previously, the role has almost always been held by a female minister alongside a second cabinet job.
“It’s moved around endlessly and is always seen as an ‘add on’ and I don’t think that’s good enough,” said Nokes.
“We need someone focused exclusively on it and who is prepared to champion it.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-06--Shielding From Covid-19, I Can’t Physically Protest For Justice. I Still Want To Be Heard

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I have always known racism would kill me, but I have never known how.
They don’t tell you that. They tell you you are more likely to die in childbirth, more likely to die in police custody, in prison or on the border, more likely to be in a mental health institution, more likely to be exposed to pollution or have diabetes, high blood pressure, childhood asthma - the morbid list goes on and on.
I cannot go outside.
It is because you stole our bodies. It is because our bodies and our minds are still trying to recover from the violence of ancestors we cannot find the names of. It is because we are still trying to deal with the putrid impact of racist attacks that happened last decade, last year, last month, last week, or as we speak, in the midst of fighting this new virus.
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I was told it would be asthma, that would be how racism would kill me.
I cannot go outside.
“I actually know, and have known since I was a child, what it is like to feel like you cannot breathe”
I was told my lungs would kill me when I was a child – not exactly when, but that at some point they would. I wasn’t told it was because I was Black – and I certainly was not told it was because of white supremacy and capitalism’s inability to live in some sort of harmony with the environment. I was told my childhood asthma was just unlucky. I actually know, and have known since I was a child, what it is like to feel like you cannot breathe. I have been scared of my own death most of my life.
I cannot go outside.
What I am not used to is not being able to do is contribute. I have been politically active my whole life. My mother and my aunts started Abasindi, a cooperative for black women in Manchester. I was bought up in the Nation of Islam. I have marched with my mother and my family since I was young. I have demanded reparations, demanded justice for so many people. I founded Rainbow Noir, a community action group for QTIPOC, and The Rebel Man Standard in collaboration with amazing people. I have worked with Black Lives Matter UK, and with the QTIBIPOC Hardship Fund.
But right now, I just can’t quite figure out this moment. This moment right now where I feel like I cannot contribute, because I cannot go outside and scream for justice with you.
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Protestors gather at a Black Lives Matter peaceful protest organised by BLM Southampton outside Southampton Guildhall in Southampton, England EMPICS Entertainment
“I want us, together, to think of a way that I can be involved in the next round of screaming.”
We have all had to shield ourselves from racism at some point in our lives – I just happen to be shielding now. None of us that can be there physically, can be there all the time. My time is just now. Your vulnerability, the ways your Blackness may be used to kill you can show up at any moment. I happen to have been given my notice when I was four years old in a doctors’ surgery – and the answers, I was told, were in a pump.
But I know the answers to my weak lungs are in a resistive strategy that centres Blackness, disability, trans and queer lives and the environment. I cannot be there with you to scream, to chant. It is not safe for me. It is not safe for you, but you have your choices and I have mine.
I want you to remember me when you scream. I want us, together, to think of a way that I can be involved in the next round of screaming. There is no movement that leaves anyone behind. Know that, feel that, remember that, and find more ways to include me.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-06--20 Secret Staycation Swaps That Look Like They’re Abroad

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While travel abroad has opened up again under the UK’s traffic light system, the government are still urging us to avoid getting on a plane unless it’s essential. Environment secretary George Eustice has advised the British public to “holiday at home” – adding that he himself will not be travelling abroad this summer. “I will be staying at home. I have no intention of travelling or going on a holiday abroad this summer,” he told Sky News, urging Brits to visit the “great places” on our doorstep.
On that point, he’s not wrong. The UK is filled with stunning landscapes, idyllic beaches and quaint villages – it’s amazing how a few hours’ drive really does feel like you’re getting away from it all.
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But you might still be hankering after the feel of abroad. So we’ve swapped some popular overseas destinations with some strikingly similar UK equivalents for your holiday consideration. Enjoy!
1. Visit West Voe Beach, Shetlands, Scotland instead of Yyteri Beach, Finland
Philipp Pe West Voe Beach, Shetlands
This crescent-shaped white sandy beach of West Voe beach is sheltered by steep dunes covered in marram grass and looks out onto turquoise waters. It reminds me of Yyteri beach on Finland’s west coast.
ElenaNoeva via Getty Images Yyteri Beach, Finland
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Yyteri has a magnificent 6km stretch of golden sands that has a wild feel and is backed by extensive sand dunes, wispy beach grass, and nearby woodlands.
The Shetlands has the upper hand with almost 1,700 miles of coastline and West Voe beach is one of five spots to receive a Seaside Award from Keep Scotland Beautiful. It might not be the piña colada-sipping kind of beach holiday, but you can almost imagine breathing in that fresh sea breeze.
2. Visit Observatory Gully, Ben Nevis, Scotland instead of Mont Blanc, the Alps, France
Kevin Wells Observatory Gully, Ben Navis, Scottish Highlands
Gasping for a slice of the piste? Trade your usual ski holiday in the Alps for Scotland’s Ben Nevis, which is the UK’s highest mountain. Standing tall at 1345m, the Scottish slopes have had peak snow conditions for years where skiers, climbers, and snowboarders can tear up the slopes and take in the stunning views at the same time.
FLAVIEN FREMINET / 500px via Getty Images Mont Blanc, the Alps, France
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The Alps might be the more popular choice for a ski session because of its huge alpine ski region that stretches almost one thousand miles across five countries and houses thousands of ski resorts, but when flying is out of the question, sometimes you’ve got to bring powder to the people right at home. We don’t make the mountain rules.
3. Visit Elegug Stacks, Pembrokeshire, Wales instead of Nusa Penida, Bali
Pam Sargeant Elegug Stacks, Pembrokeshire, Wales
Elegug Stacks’ dramatic natural rock formations will rock your world. Pembrokeshire is famed for its secluded rugged cliffs, sandy beaches and untouched woodland, which some say resembles Nusa Penida in Bali.
Louise Lenoir / 500px via Getty Images Nusa Penida, Bali
The largest of three exotic Nusa islands off from mainland Bali, this crystal clear bay boasts picturesque cliffs and lagoons, but it can get too busy during peak season, so take the road less travelled and opt for Wales. It might lack in infrastructure (and guaranteed sunshine), but makes up for with unspoiled natural beauty.
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4. Visit High Force Waterfalls, Durham, England instead of Nauyaca Waterfalls, Costa Rica
Andrew Swinbank High Force Waterfalls, Durham
Maybe TLC were wrong. We should go chasing waterfalls, especially when they’re this beautiful. Fall for Durham’s High Force Waterfalls, which is one of the most spectacular cascades in Britain and enjoy the soothing sounds of continuous water flow.
Gianfranco Vivi via Getty Images Nauyaca Waterfall, Costa Rica
To match the roaring force of nature it’s been compared to Nauyaca Waterfall in Costa Rica, which sits in a wide canyon that’s covered in lush greenery and offers a deep natural pool at the base where you can dive right in. You might not be able to swim at High Force Waterfalls, but the rocks are far more ancient – with origins dating back over 300 million years!
5. Visit Langamull Beach, Isle of Mull, Scotland instead of Crane Beach, Barbados
Howard Greenwood Langamull Beach, Isle of Mull, Scotland
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Langamull beach is home to glistening white shell sand, hidden coves and clear blue waters, which often gets mixed up with Crane Beach in Barbados. Can you spot the difference?
Philip_Willcocks via Getty Images Crane Beach, Caribbean island of Barbados
Voted one of the ‘Top 25 Sexiest Beaches in the World’ by The Travel Channel, the Barbados strip of powder-soft, pink-tinged sand is known for its luxury nearby resorts and villas.
But who needs the nine-hour flight to the Caribbean when we have ‘The Mull of the Caribbeans’ right here on British soil? It’s one of the island’ best-kept secrets, steeped in rich history, bountiful wildlife and iconic scenery.
6. Norfolk Lavender Fields, Heacham, England instead of Provence, France
Jeff Overs via Getty Images Norfolk Lavender Fields, Heacham, England
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Wake up and smell the lavender. Surround yourself with acres upon acres of dusky purple-hued flowers in Norfolk’s lavender fields. They might not be as famous as their French counterpart in Provence, but you can still get your fill of calming, delicate fragrance right here in the UK.
Francesco Riccardo Iacomino via Getty Images Lavender Felds, Valensole, Provence, Southern France
Provence does trump Norfolk on the stunning mountain and stone backdrop, but you can always visit another year. It’s cutting it fine, but we may catch the tail end of the season just before the lavender is harvested in September.
7. Visit Mealtfalls, Isle of Skye, Scotland instead of Háifoss Waterfall, Iceland
iaminut Mealtfalls, Isle of Skye, Scotland
Prepare to be entranced by Mealtfalls’s powerful stream of water that plunges straight off a cliff and down into the turquoise clear waters below. On second glance it looks just like Háifoss Waterfall in Iceland.
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HandmadePictures via Getty Images Háifoss Waterfall, Iceland
Háifoss is one of the tallest waterfalls in Iceland and comes in at a whopping 122m high and well worth a visit once you’re able. If you’re lucky enough, you might be able to see rainbows within the mist of the main falls.
However, the good thing about Scotland is that there’s minimal hiking required if you’re not feeling up to it and want to get straight in seeing the stunning ancient cliffs. Result.
8. Bidean nam Bian, Scotland instead of the Asian Himalayas
Richard Y Bidean nam Bian, Scotland
Take in the breathtaking views of the majestic range of Bidean nam Bian mountains on the south side of Glen Coe. The higher you hike the more dramatic crags, ridges and summits you’ll spot along the way.
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mbrand85 via Getty Images The Himalayas, Asia
It draws similarities to the lush, verdant green mountains of the Himalayas. Travel seekers looking for adventure across the other side of the globe can chase similar thrills in Scotland.
9. Visit Cockington Village, Devon, England instead of Veules-les-Roses, France
Kelly Bayliss Cockington Village, Devon, England
Jokes about the name aside, Cockington is a picturesque thatched-roof village hidden away just outside of Torquay, originally founded in the Iron Age. It’s worth taking a walk back in time along this UNESCO geopark site’s narrow lanes and the nearby Cockington Country Park, which has bagged a Green Flag Award for the last 23 years in a row.
Jose Maria Escolano / 500px via Getty Images Veules-les-Roses, France
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Cockington looks the spitting image of the lovely Veules-les-Roses village in France. A small, quaint town in the Normandy region dotted with watermills, Norman houses, and flower gardens. Lush.
10. Visit Sgwd yr Eira Waterfall, Brecon Beacons, Wales instead of Tad Mork Waterfall, Chiang Mai, Thailand
Billy Stock Sgwd yr Eira Waterfall, Brecon Beacons, Wales
Hidden deep within the Welsh valleys of the Brecon Beacons is waterfall country where you’ll be treated to towering falls left, right and centre, but the highlight is the beautiful Sgwd yr Eira’s classic rectangular drop.
luvvstudio via Getty Images Tad Mork Waterfall, Chiang Mai, Thailand
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It’s the same shape as the Tad Mork Waterfall in Chiang Mai Thailand, which looks every bit as breathtaking and serene as the photo looks. But who needs Thailand when you have an area of outstanding beauty right on our doorsteps? It’s a 2.5-mile walk to get to the falls from the nearest village, but you’ll be rewarded with magnificent falls in full flow.
11. Visit Gaping Gill, North Yorkshire, England instead of Son Doong, Vietnam
David Oxtaby Gaping Gill, North Yorkshire, England
Fall in love with Gaping Gill’s 98-metre deep pothole and have a rock-solid good time. This Northern Yorkshire rocky landmark is only open twice a year, get a glimpse of one of the most complex cave systems in the UK.
Geng Xu via Getty Images Son Doong, Vietnam
Speaking of large caves, you’re going to dig Son Doong cave in Vietnam. It’s the world’s biggest cave measuring 1.35bn cubic feet long, it’s so big that it has its own weather system and can comfortably fit a Boeing 747 in its largest passage. Yeah, that big.
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For now, all the geology lovers out there can get their fix by appreciating some of the wonders we have right here in Britain.
12. Visit Lunan Bay, Scotland instead of Cape Cod, Massachusetts
Bob Shand Lunan Bay, Scotland
Seeing double? Don’t worry it’s not your eyes deceiving you, Lunan Bay in Scotland looks exactly like Massachusetts’s Cape Cod. This British beach was originally built for King William of Scotland to defend against Viking invaders and really does have it all: a magnificent sweep of sand, a cave with an arch at its northern end, and even a ruined castle.
LUNAMARINA via Getty Images Cape Cod Herring Cove Beach in Massachusetts USA
Its American hook-shaped counterpart can be just as beautiful, with its quaint fishing villages, kitschy tourist traps, and marram grass backed beaches dotted throughout. However, Scotland edges in the lead with its cool Viking history.
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13. Visit Sandwood Bay Beach, Sutherland, Scotland instead of Skallerup Strand Beach, Lønstrup, Denmark
Davide Bedin Sandwood Bay Beach, Sutherland, Scotland
Secluded long coastal stretch facing the ocean? Check. Huge beautiful pink sand dunes? Check. Crystal clear freshwater blue lake? Check. Hit the holiday jackpot at the picture-perfect Sandwood Bay Beach in Scotland.
Jarl Johannessen via Getty Images Skallerup Strand Beach, Lønstrup, Denmark
And for the lottery rollover, Denmark’s family-friendly Skallerup Strand Beach is also a winner. There are tons of activities to do here including hiking and beach fishing.
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14. Visit Achmelvich Beach, Lochinver, Scotland instead of Saleccia Beach, Corsica, France
Tom Page Achmelvich Beach, Lochinver, Scotland
Enjoy your one-way ticket to relax town at Achmelvich Beach. Sprinkled with sandy white beaches, a ruined old mill, and a hidden cove, who would have guessed that all this was in Scotland? With its tranquil deep blue waters, it echoes something you would find in the south of France.
pkazmierczak via Getty Images Saleccia Beach, Corsica, France
Do a double-take of its doppelgänger at the secluded Selaccia Beach on Corsica Island. This dazzling flash of white sand is actually on a desert part of a protected area near dense scrubland, but head north of that and you’ll be rewarded with the same turquoise seas as Scotland.
15. Visit Castell Coch, Wales instead of Bran Castle, Transylvania, Romania
Owen Mathias Castell Coch, Wales
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Magic by name, magic by nature. Castell Coch or ‘Red Castle’ near Cardiff in Wales towers high above the surrounding ancient beech woods. This 19th-century Gothic Revival castle was built upon the ruins of a medieval fortress and it’s almost impossible to tell apart from Bran Castle in Transylvania.
warmcolors via Getty Images Bran Castle, Transylvania, Romania
Perched dramatically on a hill and you’ll be able to see its distinctive orange-tiled turrets and steeples rise high above the trees. Both castles have mystical properties attached to it. One is associated with wizards and witches, and the other with vampires. We’ll let you decide which is which.
16. Visit Smoo Cave, Sutherland, Scotland instead of Phra Nang cave, Krabi, Thailand
Tom Parnell Smoo Cave, Sutherland, Scotland
Go deeper underground to see Scotland’s Smoo Cave. Its limestone scenery dominates the Sutherland region and offers a fascinating network of cave systems.
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gionnixxx via Getty Images Phra Nang cave, Krabi, Thailand
For more stalagmites and stalactite formation action, cast your eye to Phra Nang cave in Krabi. Legend says that an Indian princess was killed in a shipwreck offshore and her ghost occupied the cave, which is why it’s sometime’s known as Princess cave. Whatever the tales are, one story that’s set straight is that this boat access-only cave underneath a cliff surrounded by alluring white-sand beaches is legendary around Thailand.
17. Visit Barafundle Bay, Pembrokeshire, Wales instead of Ithaca, Ionian, Greece
Ed Webster Barafundle Bay, Pembrokeshire, Wales
It’s not surprising that Barafundle Bay in Wales scooped up the Seaside and Green Coast Awards for one of Britain’s best beaches. From scenic walks along the impressive rocky cliffs to dramatic rock arches and rolling sand dunes, this golden half-mile crescent-shaped stretch is worth its weight in gold.
ac_bnphotos via Getty Images Ithaca, Ionian, Greece
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You may have visited Barafundle’s Greek twin: the island of Ithaca just off the northeast coast of Kefalonia. Ithaca is a mythical Greek island that’s home to Odysseus and glorious views across the Ionian Sea.
18. Visit Kynance Cove, Cornwall, England instead of Costa Paradiso, Sardinia, Italy
Stewart Williams Kynance Cove, Cornwall, England
Kynance Cove in Cornwall is known as the Jewel of the Lizard Peninsula and it’s easy to see why. From its brilliant turquoise seas, pale sandy beaches and rocky coastline, it’ll soon be the jewel of your eye, too.
Andrea Comi via Getty Images Costa Paradiso, Sardinia, Italy
But don’t get confused with Costa Paradiso in Sardinia. Both share a similar craggily shore, but Italy’s beach resort offers a secluded beach with panoramic views of the Mediterranean rocky terrain. We’ll take both, thanks.
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19. Visit Durdle Door, Dorset, England instead of Anacapa Island, California, US
Norbert Rupp Durdle Door, Dorset, England
Dorset holds the key to a chilled out break in the sun. Make your way down to Jurassic Coast and peep through the stunning natural wonder of Durdle Door that defines the dramatic coastline.
Cindy Robinson via Getty Images Anacapa Island, California, US
Once we can travel again, 5,000 miles west of Durdle Door lies the volcanic Anacapa Island off mainland California. Here, you’ll score another hole in one with another almost identical natural formation. It’s one of the most undeveloped, but utterly magical national parks in the US.
20. Visit Portmeirion, Gwynedd, Wales instead of Loro Ciuffenna village, Tuscany, Italy
Mike McBey Portmeirion, Gwynedd, Wales
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Modelled on an Italianate-style village – it’s no wonder that Portmeirion on the coast of North Wales takes after its enchanting Tuscan twin. Take a walk through this fairytale technicolour pastel village that overlooks the beautiful Dywryd estuary, woodlands and mountains.
e55evu via Getty Images Loro Ciuffenna village, Tuscany, Italy


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-06--How Are We Going To Get Our Sex Lives Back Anytime Soon?

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When lockdown measures were announced, Helen* and her partner knew they were looking at spending some time apart. They both own their own homes in the Midlands and until the coronavirus pandemic, seeing each other on weekends and for holidays had always worked perfectly. Suddenly they were faced with the prospect of going months without physical contact.
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Hopes that their sex life might soon be restored were dashed on Monday when the UK government introduced a ban on indoor gatherings of “two or more persons”. The amendments to the Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) Regulations 2020 bill effectively outlaw sex outside of cohabitation.
“I quite frankly despair at the situation,” Helen, 41, says. “We have been so patient. We are being penalised because we choose to remain in our own property.”
At the start of lockdown deputy chief medical officer Jenny Harries told non-cohabiting couples that they should “test the strength of their relationship” by either moving in together or staying apart.
But for Helen and her partner, forming a household was never an option
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“It’s not that simple,” she tells HuffPost UK. “I live with my children. We’re both key workers. If my partner had moved in, he would have been further from work and his house would have sat empty.”
One in five unmarried adults in England and Wales has a romantic partner they don’t live with, according to a 2015 YouGov survey for Relate. Helen’s story is echoed by the hundreds of couples across the UK who have spent more than 10 weeks waiting to hear when they might be able to have sex again.
It is now permissible to meet outdoors in groups of six. Social distancing guidelines are still in place, but with barbecues, picnics, horse-racing, and even trips to Ikea all back on the table, people are wondering why physical contact has fallen so far down the list of priorities. And with no end to their enforced separation in sight, many, like Helen, are feeling let down and angry.
So how on earth are we going to get our sex lives back? While the numbers of cases of coronavirus remain high, it’s difficult to speculate, says Jonathan Ball, professor of molecular virology at the University of Nottingham.
“Any relaxation in social distancing measures will increase the risk of virus transmission,” says Prof Ball. “The question is: what additional risk is there when two people from separate households have close contact? The risk of passing the virus between them is the same as people living in the same household. However, when it comes to picking the virus up, it’s potentially twice the risk because they may have much larger networks.
“Any relaxation in social distancing measures will increase the risk of virus transmission.” - Professor Jonathan Ball
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For a while people were holding on to the prospect of being allowed to form “bubbles” with other households, a policy implemented in New Zealand. This would allow people to visit their partners at home.
In theory this approach ought to be safe, agrees Prof Ball, since everybody in the bubble behaves as if in one household and doesn’t see anybody outside that. However, it only really works for people who live alone.
“People who are single are often living in multiple-occupancy households,” he points out. “Therefore, that behaviour’s putting the other people at risk.”
It also means that in a flatshare of three or four, only one person would be able to see a partner. In this situation, something like The Netherlands’ “sex buddy” model might be preferable.
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In May, the Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) amended its guidance to allow people who don’t live with a partner to choose one person with whom to have physical intimacy, including platonic affection as well as sex.
While the transmission risk to the individual is high, keeping the number of people you interact with to a minimum means the risk to the community is low. But Professor Ball is sceptical of how it would work in practice.
“It’s a very difficult thing to police,” he says. “What do you do? Do you have people walk around with a card saying ‘I’m allowed to visit this person?’”
Self-isolation and social distancing are only sure ways to avoid transmitting the virus, he says – and some people have cottoned on to this. A friend explained how she’d been to stay with her girlfriend for a week and then put herself in quarantine for a fortnight before seeing anyone else. Another confessed he’d spent the night with his partner but was now self-isolating for two weeks so that he could go visit his mum.
“If somebody is isolating themselves after being in contact with somebody else and they’re properly doing it for 14 days and not having interaction with anybody, they’re totally minimising the risk of passing on any virus they might have picked up,” says Professor Ball.
The problem, he adds, is trusting people to do it. “From an infection control point of view, it’s perfectly fine,” he acknowledges. “However, I would question how often and how rigidly somebody would adhere to that 14-day isolation?”
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nito100 via Getty Images
Creating a loophole that would allow couples to see one another isn’t unfeasible – many have pointed out that it’s considered safe for children to travel between households to visit separated parents. Professor Ball has some sympathy with this. “Is it any different to people meeting up because they’re in a relationship? I would say in terms of virus risk, no, it’s not.”
In the meantime, non-cohabiting couples and single people across the UK feel forgotten. Ruth*, 23, says she and her girlfriend are struggling with the lack of a time frame. “We can manage the distance and the time apart, but not knowing exactly how long it’s for is torturous,” she says.
Psychotherapist Lucy Beresford says it would be a mistake to underestimate the mental health impact of such uncertainty. “If you knew that it was just for the next two weeks, you could maybe eke it out for a bit longer,” she says. “Because it is so open-ended, it’s very demoralising. It can chip away at the confidence of the relationship as well.”
“It’s like telling a bunch of teenagers they can’t have sex. They’re bound to be more curious.” - Psychotherapist Lucy Beresford
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The silence around the situation only makes people more inclined to break the rules – leading to riskier behaviour than if people had clear guidelines, rather like an abstinence-only approach to sex education, Beresford suggests. “It’s like telling a bunch of teenagers they can’t have sex,” she says. “They’re bound to be actually more curious and more experimental and maybe even more risky.”
As the UK moves towards ‘test and trace’, many couples are hoping the restrictions will be relaxed. But whether this would allow people to visit their partners at home, or to have physical contact with them, remains obscure.
Professor Ball says that despite appearances, there will be scientists in the Sage committee who are arguing for the importance of sex and physical intimacy. Sociologists in the advisory group understand the issue well, he says, but it will come down to what the government thinks is important.
“I suspect that the priorities will be more economic than they will be social,” he says. “I can understand why people don’t think that’s fair. But those are the government’s priorities.”
• Surnames have been omitted to protect anonymity.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-06--What Soft Play Will Be Like For Kids In A Socially-Distanced World

scaliger via Getty Images
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If you’ve ever taken a child to soft play, or remember going yourself, chances are you’ll know one thing about them: they are filthy.
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That’s not to say staff and managers don’t work hard to keep them clean – it’s just that... well, little kids are dirty. They are. I’ve got two of them. I know.
Whether it’s snot, sick, dribble, bits of chewed up food, earwax, wee, milk or an unidentifiable crust or fluid or scab – kids will share it. Gladly. In fact, I stopped going to one soft play centre because the smell of cheesy feet was so overpowering, it made me gag.
SbytovaMN via Getty Images
So, now we’re living in a world where hygiene is paramount – and face masks, social distancing and anti-bacterial wipes are routine – what’s the future for the shared ‘rough and tumble’ world of soft play?
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There’s been no official guidance from the UK government yet on the rules or reopening of indoor play centres, but here’s how those in the industry are preparing.
Fewer soft play centres will open
Some directors of soft play centres don’t imagine opening again for a very long time, giving parents fewer options – even when life starts to resemble normality. Sean Schofield, who owns two soft play centres in Devon – Planet Play Crediton and Planet Play Honiton – can’t imagine opening until the pandemic is over, and the disease gone from the UK, or until there is a vaccine. “I just can’t see how play centres can safely operate under social distancing guidelines,” he says.
Tom Filer, director of Ocean Adventurers Ltd in Somerset, says knowing when they’ll be able to reopen is the million dollar question. “The government guidance states July 4 as a potential date for leisure,” he says, “but the important thing is that the sector as a whole is given enough notice to be able to prepare – it’s not as simple as flicking a switch and reopening tomorrow.”
Hand-washing stations
Schofield says, post-pandemic, his businesses will look and operate differently. “Hand washing and sanitising would have a greater presence in the public areas,” he says. Lizzie Orr, of Cirq d-Play Indoor Play Centre in Liverpool, adds: “We have ordered hand sanitiser stations that we can place throughout the centre so they are easily accessible.”
Some say they’ll have hand sanitiser points at every entry and exit point to the play structures.
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One-way systems
It won’t be as simple as letting your kids run free as they run through the doors of soft play. “We need to look at creating some kind of one-way system through the play area, so children have as little contact with each other as possible,” Schofield tells HuffPost UK. And Filer agrees, adding: “We’ll be setting up one-way systems around the structure and centre.”
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Fewer children
To keep in line with social distancing measures, soft play centres won’t be as busy as you’re used to seeing them. “We’d need to hugely restrict the number of children and adults in the venues – specifically focusing on the number of children in the play areas,” says Schofield.
This is something Anthony Kingsley, a manager at Kidzmania, in Hackney, London, is planning for, too. “We might only let four or five families in at a time and we may have to restrict the total number of children to 20,” he says. “That’s down from our regular maximum capacity of 60.
“If it’s more than 20, we don’t think people will come.”
Adults wearing face coverings
Kingsley says he doesn’t expect children to wear masks, but parents may have to. “It’s too difficult for kids to keep them on while running around, and we want to keep it normal for them – and not scare anyone,” he says. “But as for parents, we would like them to wear masks and will probably have them on sale. Staff will be wearing them, too.”
Extensive cleaning sessions
Cleaning will be top priority, owners of soft play centres tell us. “We expect to employ one member of staff to be constantly cleaning with a focus particularly on touch points, toilets and other high-traffic areas,” says Filer.
“We were the first soft play in the UK to use fogging [applying disinfectants to production areas] a means of disinfecting the whole centre and we’ll be ramping up the frequency of this process as it’s an effective way of killing Covid-19 on a large scale.”
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The same goes for Cirq d-Play. “We’ve always had deep cleans every single day before we closed so this will continue,” Orr says. “Prior to opening, we’ll also have a company come in who provide an anti-viral fogging service to disinfect and prevent viruses.” But Kingsley admits it will be challenging. “Cleaning is going to be a problem,” he says. “We can’t strip it down because it’s all bolted together and for smaller kids that’s a big draw.”
Fewer tables
To accommodate social distancing, Filey says they’ll be reducing the number of tables they have in the centre. “Some children, especially younger ones, will struggle with social distancing so we’ll also allow parents onto the structure to support their children to socially distance.”
Pre-bookings
Schofield is looking at taking bookings for play slots to ensure the venue doesn’t become too crowded. Kingsley agrees: “We used to reserve private bookings for the end of the day at weekends,” he says, “but we’re going to allow people to make them at any time, so they feel safe about who their children are mixing with.”


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-06--Mounted Police Charge Anti-Racist Demonstrators At Black Lives Matter Protest

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Violence broke out as mounted police officers charged at a crowd of protesters at a Black Lives Matter demonstration in central London.
After a day of largely peaceful protests in cities across the country, tensions began to flare as crowds gathered outside Downing Street.
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Videos circulating on social media show mounted officers driving back demonstrators along Whitehall, while protesters were filmed throwing plastic and glass bottles towards police.
A mounted police officer raises their baton as police horses ride along Whitehall in an attempt to disperse protesters. DANIEL LEAL-OLIVAS via Getty Images
Police in Whitehall charge Black Lives Matter protesters as they throw bottles at police horses. pic.twitter.com/lsidWFC2md — Ian Miles Cheong (@stillgray) June 6, 2020
Officers in helmets and holding shields had formed two lines outside of Downing Street, separating the crowd.
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Police then tried to force demonstrators further down Whitehall. Some protesters linked arms and turned their backs to stop themselves from being moved on, urging each other to “stand your ground”.
An officer was knocked from her horse after riding into a traffic light, the Metropolitan Police confirmed. She is currently in hospital receiving treatment for her injuries.
Metropolitan Police Federation chairman Ken Marsh said the officer had “quite nasty” injuries, telling BBC Breakfast on Sunday morning: “She’s stable – she has some quite nasty injuries which she sustained. And the horse is fine.”
Metropolitan Police Commissioner Dame Cressida Dick said on Sunday morning that assaults on police officers were “shocking and completely unacceptable”, adding that 14 police officers had been injured.
UPDATE | The officer is currently in hospital, receiving treatment for her injuries which are not life threatening.
The officer fell from her horse, and we are examining the full circumstances of what took place. — MPS Events (@MetPoliceEvents) June 6, 2020
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Home secretary Priti Patel said violence towards police at protests was “completely unacceptable” and gave officers her “full support in tackling disorderly behaviour”.
We have made specific enforcement powers available to them during the pandemic to help protect the entire public. — Priti Patel (@pritipatel) June 6, 2020
Mayor of London Sadiq Khan praised those who protested peacefully on Saturday but said people who became violent “let down the cause”.
He said: “To the thousands of Londoners who protested peacefully today, I stand with you and I share your anger and your pain.
“George Floyd’s brutal killing must be a catalyst for change worldwide.”
He added: “No country, city, police service or institution can absolve itself of the responsibility to do better.
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“We must stand together and root out racism wherever it is found. Black Lives Matter.
“To the tiny minority who were violent and threw glass bottles and lit flares – you endangered a safe and peaceful protest and let down this important cause.”
Extraordinary scenes in Whitehall as police horses charge into the crowd. A police officer was knocked clean out when he hit the traffic light. pic.twitter.com/ZcgKwOPsVn — Marc Ward (@MarcStevenPhoto) June 6, 2020
The Metropolitan Police said that, by 5pm, four arrests had been made. All of the suspects are in custody. The arrests were on suspicion of assaulting police, criminal damage, making threats and calling for violence and an incident of dangerous driving near the US Embassy.
A police officer was injured when falling of a horse during scuffles with demonstrators at Downing Street. ASSOCIATED PRESS
The clashes took place after a largely peaceful day of protests that began on Saturday afternoon.
Earlier protesters dropped to one knee and raised their fists outside the US embassy, chanting slogans such as “silence is violence” and “colour is not a crime”.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-06--Naga Munchetty Says News Broadcasters Are 'Not Robots' Who Are There To 'Blankly Read The News'

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BBC Breakfast presenter Naga Munchetty has said that broadcasters are not “robots” who are there to “blankly read the news”.
Last year, the BBC ruled Naga had breached their guidelines around impartiality when she commented on racist remarks made by US president Donald Trump in a tweet telling female Democrats to “go back” to their own countries.
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The broadcaster’s decision was eventually overturned by former BBC Director General Tony Hall following a huge backlash to the original ruling.
Asked about the matter while speaking on the Women’s Prize For Fiction Podcast, Naga said that while she did not offer an opinion during the broadcast, she noted that journalists are “impartial but we are not idiots”.
Naga Munchetty PA
“I sit on that sofa as a woman, as a person of colour from an ethnic minority who is not a robot. We’re talking about Black Lives Matter now, we’re talking about George Floyd.
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“Just today, I was on the phone to a colleague who is bereft at the moment. She is mixed race and she is bereft about trying to figure out how we are in a situation again where a man has been killed and the colour of his skin cannot be ignored in terms of the circumstances surrounding his death.
“We are not robots,” she said. “We are not there to simply blankly read the news, that isn’t our job.
“We are judging the tone of the morning, we are judging the tone of those who are watching, we are judging what they need to know and informing them neutrally but with insight as much as we can. We are impartial but we’re not idiots.”
She added that interviewees cannot “say the sky is pink in the middle of a blue sky day” and go unchallenged.
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In a BBC Breakfast broadcast last July, Naga said: “Every time I have been told, as a woman of colour, to go back to where I came from, that was embedded in racism.”
She added: “I’m not accusing anyone of anything here, but you know what certain phrases mean.”
Trump’s tweets had been written about US politicians Ilhan Omar, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rashida Tlaib and Ayanna Pressley. All four are US citizens, and three of them were born in America.
In a letter Lord Hall sent to BBC staff after he reversed the ruling that Naga had breached editorial guidelines, he said that “racism is racism, and the BBC is not impartial on the topic”.
Naga later said things have been improving at the BBC, following some “very robust” conversations she’d had with senior figures.
She told the Guardian last month: “I think there was a process that needed to be gone through. I think lessons have been learned and things are improving.
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“We’re learning all the time – the BBC learns, I learn, move on.”
She added: “I’m not there to give an opinion, but I’m equally not there to ignore a damaging opinion and to absorb that into our coverage.”


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-06--Buffalo Police Officers Who Knocked Peaceful Protester To The Ground Charged With Assault

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Two Buffalo, New York, police officers have each been charged with second-degree assault for their roles in an incident that left a protester seriously injured.
Both pleaded not guilty.
A widely circulated video shows police shoving Martin Gugino, 75, before he falls backward to the ground, smacking his head and beginning to bleed from the ear, apparently unconscious.
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Gugino was taken by ambulance to Erie County Medical Center in serious but stable condition.
Buffalo Police Commissioner Byron Lockwood suspended Officers Robert McCabe and Aaron Torgalski without pay on Thursday night and ordered an internal investigation. In response to the disciplinary action, all 57 members of the Buffalo Police Department’s Emergency Response Team “resigned in disgust” from their spots in the crowd-control unit, John Evans, president of the Buffalo Police Benevolent Association, told WGRZ Friday afternoon.
Graphic video captured by local media, which can be seen in the tweet below, shows Gugino walking up to officers in Buffalo’s Niagara Square as they begin to enforce the city’s 8 p.m. curfew. Two cops aggressively push Gugino, causing him to fall. His head hits the pavement with an audible thud. The officers stop to look while Gugino lies motionless, blood pooling by his ear, until a third officer steps in and motions for them to keep walking.
The department initially said Gugino “tripped and fell,” a description that does not accurately depict the encounter.
Just about an hour ago, police officers shove man in Niagara Square to the ground (WARNING: Graphic). Video from: @MikeDesmondWBFO pic.twitter.com/JBKQLvzfET — WBFO (@WBFO) June 5, 2020
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New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) called the video “fundamentally offensive and frightening” during his regularly scheduled news conference Friday.
“You see that video, and it disturbs your basic sense of decency and humanity. ... Where was the threat?” he said. “It’s just fundamentally offensive and frightening. ... How did we get to this place?”
An attorney for Gugino said in a statement on Friday that his client “has been a longtime peaceful protester, human rights advocate and overall fan of the U.S. Constitution for many years.”
“At this time, Mr. Gugino is in serious but stable condition. He is alert and oriented. Mr. Gugino requests privacy for himself and his family as he recovers,” the statement read. “He appreciates all of the well wishes he has received and requests that any further protests continue to be peaceful.”
Police arrested five people in the otherwise peaceful demonstration in Buffalo on Thursday night, according to local news outlet WIVB. Four were blocking traffic, and a fifth was involved in a “skirmish” with the protesters.
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Protesters around the world have taken to the streets since the killing of George Floyd, a Black man in Minneapolis who died after a white police officer knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes as Floyd repeatedly gasped, “I can’t breathe.”


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-06--Black Lives Matter Activists Explain Why They’re Marching

Black Lives Matter Activists Explain Why They’re Marching
In their own words anti-racism demonstrators explain why they are joining Black Lives Matter protests in the UK. They are among thousands who have taken to the streets for a second week in the wake of the killing of George Floyd.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-06--UK Records 204 More Coronavirus Deaths In 24 Hours As Latest Care Home Data Released

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The number of people who have died in the UK after testing positive for coronavirus has risen to 40,465 – an increase of 204 over 24 hours.
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Since the end of April, the government’s daily announcement has included people in care homes and the community, rather than just in hospital, who have died.
But only those who had tested positive for Covid-19 are included, meaning anyone who died with a suspected case won’t be recorded.
The figures cover the period up to 5pm on Friday.
It comes after the number of people who have died in hospitals across the UK, as well as care homes in Wales, after contracting the virus rose by 92 in 24 hours.
That increase consisted of 75 in England, six in Scotland, 10 in Wales and one in Northern Ireland.
NHS England said patients were aged between 43 and 100 years old and all had known underlying health conditions.
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Meanwhile, as of 9am on Saturday, there have been 5,438,712 tests for Covid-19 carried out, with 284,868 people coming back positive.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-06--Thousands Of Anti-Racism Protesters Nationwide Take To The Streets

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Thousands of Black Lives Matter protesters across the UK have taken to the streets for a second week of anti-racism demonstrations in the wake of the killing of George Floyd.
The protests – held on Saturday in a number of cities including London, Manchester, Leicester, Peterborough and Cardiff – follow almost two weeks of huge protests against police brutality in the US.
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Floyd, a 46-year-old Black man, was killed in Minneapolis on May 25 by Derek Chauvin, a white police officer who was filmed kneeling on his neck for almost nine minutes.
While campaigners are standing in solidarity with their American counterparts, the protests are also highlighting racism in the UK itself, with many signs making reference to BAME deaths in custody, the Windrush scandal, hostile environment policies and the recent death of Belly Mujinga.
Pictures from demonstrations across the UK show crowds of people gathering outside the Houses of Parliament in London, in Manchester’s Piccadilly Gardens and Bute Park in Cardiff.
This is definitely the biggest crowd I've ever seen in Manchester for a protest #BlackLivesMatter pic.twitter.com/C9MM7xDaQQ — Manc Pictures 📸 (@Manc_Pictures) June 6, 2020
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The majority of the demonstrators appear to be wearing masks and face coverings, with some also opting for gloves.
Outside the US embassy in London, protesters dropped to one knee and raised their fists in the air, chanting “silence is violence” and “colour is not a crime”.
Placards carried by demonstrators referenced the coronavirus crisis, with one that said: “There is a virus greater than Covid-19 and it’s called racism.”
Many other signs said “black lives matter” and “no justice, no peace”.
As the rally began, one organiser used a megaphone to tell the crowds: “We are not here for violence. Today is sheer positivity, today is sheer love.”
She added: “Today we will not commit any violence to anyone.”
Protesters were also reminded to try and keep a two metre distance from others where possible and to be mindful of the pandemic.
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During a minute’s silence in Parliament Square, hundreds of protesters went down on one knee while raising one fist in the air.
The crowds then began chanting “no justice, no peace” and George Floyd’s name.
Violence broke out between police and demonstrators after officers on horseback charged in an effort to separate the crowd outside Downing Street.
Officers in helmets and holding shields had formed two lines outside of Downing Street, which separated the crowd.
Police then tried to force demonstrators further down Whitehall, with some protesters linking arms and turning their backs to stop themselves being moved on.
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A flare was reportedly thrown at the mounted horses, and an officer was thrown from their horse after “riding into a traffic light”, Sky news reported.
A mounted police officer lays on the road after being unseated from their horse, during a demonstration on Whitehall. DANIEL LEAL-OLIVAS via Getty Images
Graffiti was reportedly daubed on on buildings on Whitehall, including the Cabinet Office, and a small “BLM” motif was painted on the Cenotaph in black paint.
Several hundred marchers gathered in Newcastle while thousands more watched an online protest organised in the North East.
Demonstrators gathering at the Earl Grey Monument in the city centre were handed masks if they did not have one, and there was hand sanitiser available.
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Dr Christina Mobley, a history lecturer who came to Newcastle University from the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, attended with her five-year-old daughter.
The historian, who is leading the project to decolonise the university curriculum, said: “I absolutely felt the need to be here today.
“The organisers have done an amazing job.
“It is really powerful to see such a young, motivated crowd coming out and organising themselves, handing out masks and working with the police.”
Hundreds of south Londoners take a knee and chant #BlackLivesMatter on Tooting Bec common pic.twitter.com/ILKzY9fr8W — Damien Gayle (@damiengayle) June 6, 2020
Meanwhile, an online protest organised by Stand Up To Racism – North East drew an audience of several thousand who listened to speakers including Janet Alder, whose brother Christopher died in police custody in Hull in 1998.
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In Sheffield, hundreds of people gathered on Devonshire Green to protest and hold a minute’s silence.
During the gathering, which included speeches, they chanted: “No justice, no peace, no racist police.”


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-07--Huge Crowds Gather Across The UK As Anti-Racism Protests Continue

Thousands of protesters have joined an anti-racism rally outside the US embassy in London as Black Lives Matter demonstrations take place in cities across the UK.
Crowds of demonstrators wore face coverings and held placards outside the embassy in Battersea, south-west London, on Sunday, in protest against police brutality following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
The Metropolitan Police warned drivers of disruption on Nine Elms Lane, while video footage showed protesters flooding the roads outside the embassy.
Protesters then marched on Parliament Square, where rapper Stormzy joined demonstrators and listened as the crowd, many of whom were black, spoke about the struggle for equality and the need for solidarity.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-07--Tim Lovejoy Took A Spectacular Tumble On Sunday Brunch, And Simon Rimmer Couldn't Help... Because, S

Tim Lovejoy Took A Spectacular Tumble On Sunday Brunch, And Simon Rimmer Couldn't Help... Because, Social Distancing

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Listen, we know it’s not big or clever to laugh at people falling over, but sometimes it sure is funny – as showcased on Sunday Brunch.
Presenter Tim Lovejoy had a spectacular tumble as he opened Sunday’s episode with co-host Simon Rimmer.
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Right at the top of the show, Tim was clearly very excited to be on air, adding in a some little bounces as he introduced himself.
But Tim awkwardly stumbled as he landed, and was soon sent crashing into the back of the set.
And because of social distancing, a helpless Simon remarked: “I can’t even help you up!”
Tim Lovejoy took a tumble on Sunday Brunch Channel 4
“Why is everyone laughing?” Tim joked. “It really hurt!”
He later said: “I’m in a little bit of pain, not a lot, but everyone is laughing in my ear. That is disrespectful!”
Sunday Brunch’s official Twitter account later confirmed Tim was OK following his tumble.
We can confirm Tim is okay 👍 #SundayBrunch — Sunday Brunch (@SundayBrunchC4) June 7, 2020
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Sunday Brunch recently resumed filming in the studio, after the presenters were initially forced to do the show from their homes during lockdown.
Social distancing measures were later put in place to allow them to safely make the show from London’s Television Centre featuring the usual mix of cooking, music and celebrity chat.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-07--Late UK Lockdown 'Cost Lives', Science Adviser To Government Says

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Coronavirus has changed everything. Make sense of it all with the Waugh Zone, our evening politics briefing. Sign up now.
The government should have imposed the coronavirus lockdown earlier and its failure to do so has cost lives, a scientific adviser to the government has said.
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Professor John Edmunds, who sits on the government’s scientific advisory group for emergencies (Sage), said it would have been “hard” to lock down earlier as the government’s data and awareness of coronavirus was “really quite poor”.
But health secretary Matt Hancock insisted the government made the “right decisions at the right time”.
The clash came amid reports that Boris Johnson will set out further steps to ease the lockdown, which was introduced on March 23, following a cabinet meeting this week.
But it comes after a period in which the prime minister has presided over the UK suffering one of the worst Covid-19 death tolls in the world.
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Edmunds, an infectious diseases expert from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, told BBC One’s Andrew Marr Show: “We should have gone into lockdown earlier.
"We should have gone into lockdown earlier… I think that has cost a lot of lives unfortunately," says SAGE member Professor John Edmunds#Marr #Covid_19 https://t.co/Uug1h8EmWX pic.twitter.com/nhHj56z5V5 — BBC Politics (@BBCPolitics) June 7, 2020
“I think it would have been hard to do it. I think the data that we were dealing with in the early part of March and our situational awareness was really quite poor.
“And so, I think it would have been very hard to pull the trigger at that point.But I wish we had.
“I wish we had gone into lockdown earlier. I think that has cost a lot of lives unfortunately.”
Asked about Edmunds’ comments, Hancock told Marr: “I think we took the right decisions at the right time.
“And there’s a broad range on Sage of scientific opinion.
"I’m sure… that we made the right decisions at the right time"
Health Secretary Matt Hancock tells #Marr he disagrees with SAGE member Professor John Edmunds that not going into lockdown earlier had cost lives#Covid_19 https://t.co/Uug1h8EmWX pic.twitter.com/TSyOeajdsy — BBC Politics (@BBCPolitics) June 7, 2020
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“And we followed, we were guided by the science which means guided by the balance of that opinion as expressed to ministers through the chief medical officer, and the chief scientific adviser.”
Asked again about Edmunds’ comments, Hancock said: “There are others who equally make different scientific arguments.”
Asked if he knew anyone who thought locking down relatively late compared to other countries did not cost lives, the health secretary said: “Yes if you listen to the balance of opinion on Sage, 100 people on Sage approximately.”
Marr then asked: “So absolutely clear, you are sure that locking when you did and not earlier did not cost lives?”
Hancock said: “I am sure, and we keep looking back on that period.
“I’m sure that taking into account everything we knew at that moment, my view is that we made the right decisions at the right time.”
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The health secretary meanwhile claimed it was “not true” that testing figures are designed by the government to show the largest possible number of tests.
In a rebuke to Hancock last week, UK Statistics Authority chairman Sir David Norgrove said: “The aim seems to be to show the largest possible number of tests, even at the expense of understanding.”
But Hancock insisted: “The thing about it is that it is not true. There are other ways that you could measure testing to give much higher figures and we chose not to.
“What we chose, advised by my permanent secretary, are the most accurate ways to show the testing that the government is doing, which is the number of tests either directly administered or sent out.”
He was unable to give the latest figures for the number of people tested - as opposed to the number of tests.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-07--Australian Surfer, 60, Dies After Great White Shark Attack

A 60-year-old surfer has died after being attacked by a 10ft great white shark off the coast of New South Wales.
The man received a bite to the back of his thigh and was brought to the shore by other surfers who had fought off the shark, a surf rescue group, Surf Life Saving NSW, said.
The incident took place at Salt Beach, near Kingscliff, which is situated some 500 miles north of Sydney.
The victim, from Tugun just over the state border in Queensland, received first aid on the shore but died on the beach.
“A shark biologist assessed photographs and confirmed a white shark was responsible for the fatal attack,” the state’s Department of Primary Industries said.
New South Wales Ambulance inspector Terence Savage said it was a “dreadful” situation for everyone involved.
“When you get a call to attend a shark attack, you never really know the full extent of the damage until you get on scene,” he said. “They did everything they could to try and save his life, but despite their best efforts, were unable to do so.”
Nearby beaches were cleared of swimmers and surfers and will remain closed for 24 hours.
Kingscliff resident Stuart Gonsal had just arrived at the beach ready for a surf, when he found out about the fatal attack.
“We came down and we hadn’t got in the water and police were immediately hauling people in,” Mr Gonsal told ABC radio. “We found out there was a fatal shark attack on the south side of the rock wall. We were going to get in, we’re not going to now for sure.”
It was at least the third fatal shark attack in Australia this year.
In January, a diver was killed near Esperance off the Western Australia state coast. In April, a shark fatally mauled a 23-year-old wildlife worker on the Great Barrier Reef.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-07--Minneapolis Mayor Booed After Saying He Wouldn't 'Abolish' Police Department

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Protesters booted Minneapolis mayor Jacob Frey from a protest Saturday after he told demonstrators that he would not commit to defunding the police department.
During a peaceful protest led by the advocacy group Black Visions, demonstrators marched to Frey’s house, where he came out to meet them, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported.
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When Frey, 38, told protest organisers that he would not commit to defunding the Minneapolis police department in the wake of the deadly arrest of George Floyd, protesters booed him and told him to leave.
The moment was filmed and shared widely online.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey showed up today at the protests. He was asked if he would commit to abolishing/defunding the police. Incredible to witness crowd hold him directly accountable. Man did a literal walk of shame. pic.twitter.com/v645mfIZHt — Sana Saeed (@SanaSaeed) June 6, 2020
At first, Frey told the protest organisers that he had been “coming to grips with my own responsibility, my own failure in this” and said there needed to be “deep-seated, structural reform” within the Minneapolis Police Department.
Then, one of the protest organisers asked him whether he would commit to defunding the police department — and she asked the mayor to answer the question with a “yes” or “no.”
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Speaking into a microphone, the organiser reminded the large group of protesters that he was up for re-election in 2021.
Frey responded to the question by shaking his head and saying, “I do not support the full abolition of the police department.”
In response, the organiser took the microphone from him and told him to “get the f*** out of here.”
As he walked away, protesters chanted, “Go home, Jacob. Go home!”
During the protests over the death of George Floyd, who was killed when a Minneapolis police officer pressed his knee into Floyd’s neck during an arrest, many activists have called for state and local governments to “defund the police.”
The phrase is being used to describe an effort to cut police budgets and redirect that money to other agencies that support communities.
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Frey later told local news station WCCO that he supported “massive structural reform” to Minneapolis’ police force and said he would do “everything possible to push back on the inherent inequities that are literally built into the architecture the answer is ‘yes.’”
However, he maintained that he does not support “abolishing the entire police department.”
“If you’re asking whether I’m willing to do everything I possibly can throughout the rest of my term to make sure that the police union, the police contract, the arbitration system, and some of these policies that have resulted in problems for specifically Black and Brown people and murder over series of generations, I’m all for that,” Frey told the news station. “I’m not for abolishing the entire police department, I will be honest about that.”
When Frey entered office in 2018, he vowed to mend the relationship between residents and the police department, the New York Times reported.
However, Floyd’s death has deepened the distrust between residents and police and has led to another round of nationwide protests against police brutality against Black people.
The mayor of Minneapolis — @Jacob_Frey — was just chewed up and spat out by protesters pic.twitter.com/JDy1qyB2wH — Raheem Kassam (@RaheemKassam) June 7, 2020


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-07--Lisa Kudrow Still Hasn't Seen All Of Friends Despite Having 16 Years To Catch Up

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Friends may have finished 16 years ago, but it seems Lisa Kudrow hasn’t managed to find the time to watch it all yet.
The actor, who played Phoebe Buffay, has admitted she hasn’t seen every episode of the hit sitcom.
In an interview with The Mirror, Lisa also said she isn’t the only cast member who is yet to catch up on all the Central Perk shenanigans.
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Lisa Kudrow Faye Sadou/MediaPunch/IPx
She said: “I should [watch it] because it’s funny. The times I watch the show, I really enjoy it. But to be honest, there are episodes I have never seen.
“I am not the only one in the cast for which that is true. You got busy, so you didn’t watch everybody else’s scene because you didn’t have time.
“It’s really crazy, but one day I can’t wait to watch Friends.”
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The Monica Geller actor told Jimmy Kimmel back in March that it was bringing back memories she’d completely forgotten about.
Friends ran from 1994 to 2004 NBC via Getty Images
“I decided during this time, people love the show so much, I decided to binge-watch Friends. I just started season one – it’s really good!” she said.
“I don’t remember even being on the show. I have such a bad memory.
“I remember obviously loving everybody there and having fun and I remember certain times of my life I was there but I don’t remember episodes.”
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Lisa and Courteney were due to reunite with former co-stars Jennifer Aniston, Matthew Perry, Matt LeBlanc and David Schwimmer back in March to film the long-awaited Friends reunion special.
However, the unscripted episode, which will see the actors discuss their 10 years on the show, was postponed due to the pandemic.
In her interview with The Mirror, Lisa confirmed filming it still set to go ahead when they’re able to get together, adding: “It’s gonna be fun. I mean, it’ll be really fun. I can’t wait for it to happen.”