democracynow--2020-07-07--"A Dream That Comes True": Standing Rock Elder Hails Order to Shut Down DAPL After Years of Protest

This is a rush transcript .
Copy may not be in its final form .
AMY GOODMAN : We ’ re going to turn now to our top story .
In a massive win for the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and Indigenous organizers across the country , a federal judge has ordered the Dakota Access Pipeline shut down and called for it to be emptied of all oil in the next 30 days , pending an environmental review .
U.S. District Court Judge James Boasberg issued the decision on Monday , saying the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers violated environmental @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the pipeline without an extensive environmental assessment .
That permit has now been revoked until an environmental review is conducted — a process that could take years .
Standing Rock Sioux Tribe Chairperson Mike Faith called the move “ historic ” and said in a statement , quote , “ This pipeline should have never been built here .
We told them that from the beginning , ” he said .
The company , Energy Transfer Partners , owns the pipeline and said in a statement Monday it will appeal the decision .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ a major supporter of President Trump .
The Dakota Access Pipeline has been operating since 2017 , carrying fracked petroleum from the Bakken oil fields in North Dakota through South Dakota , Iowa and Illinois , for transfer to another pipeline to carry it on to the Gulf Coast .
The Standing Rock Sioux call the pipeline the “ black snake.
” Monday ’ s historic court order comes more than four years after the resistance at Standing Rock began in 2016 , bringing tens of thousands of people to North Dakota to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sacred lands .
Democracy Now !
was there on the ground covering the struggle .
On September 3rd , 2016 , Labor Day weekend , the Dakota Access Pipeline company unleashed dogs and pepper spray on Native Americans seeking to protect their sacred tribal burial site from destruction .
AMY GOODMAN : To see the full report from 2016 , you can go do democracynow.org .
But for more on this historic court order , we ’ re joined by two guests .
LaDonna Brave Bull Allard is a member of the Standing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Stone Camp in resistance to the Dakota Access Pipeline .
And Tara Houska is with us , Indigenous lawyer , activist and founder of the Giniw Collective .
She is Ojibwe from Couchiching First Nation .
We welcome you both to Democracy Now !
We ’ re first going to go to LaDonna Brave Bull Allard , speaking to us from her home right next to the Cannonball River .
She , on April 1st , announced , in 2016 , she was opening her property to the resistance , expecting maybe some @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of people , hundreds of people , and soon thousands of people , leading to more resistance camps all over the area .
LaDonna Brave Bull Allard , can you share your response to Judge Boasberg ’ s ruling that , at least for now , the Dakota Access Pipeline must be shut down and emptied of all oil ?
LADONNA BRAVE BULL ALLARD : You ever have a dream , a dream that comes true ?
That is what it is when I got up in the morning and seen that .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ still overwhelmed .
If people could understand how much I love my home , how much I love my land and my river , it is the greatest thing in the whole world .
I know that it ’ s going to be appealed .
I know it ’ s going to be a long journey , but we ’ re here for the long journey .
It is not about who ’ s right or wrong ; it ’ s about how do we live in the future .
And for me @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hard .
And so this has been a great blessing .
I am so overthankful for the judges , for the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe , for the lawyers and for every water protector that stood up on every frontline , for every keyboard warrior , for the support .
Overwhelming is all I can say , and great thanks .
JUAN GONZÁLEZ : Well , LaDonna Brave Bull Allard , I ’ d like to ask you to take us back to your decision four years ago to start the resistance camp @ @ @ @ @ @ @ would be as long as it has been , especially you being an historian of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe , in terms of how this fits into the history of the fight of your people ?
LADONNA BRAVE BULL ALLARD : So , I did not think that all of this would transpire the way it is .
I had thought , “ Follow the law.
” The law says you protect sacred sites , burial sites , traditional culture properties .
You do an environmental assessment , an EIS , according @ @ @ @ @ @ @ assumed that they would follow the law .
And when — this is the first federal agency , corporation that I worked with that did not follow no law .
And so it was kind of shocking for me to be dealing with vast corruption of corporations .
AMY GOODMAN : Tara Houska , you ’ re an Indigenous lawyer .
You were just with LaDonna yesterday .
And you ’ re also dealing with COVID-19 , which we ’ ll talk about in a minute ; in North Dakota , it ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , can you talk about what the ruling was based on , the risk of contaminating the water ?
You were on the ground in 2016 , also a part of the resistance .
The significance of what Boasberg has ruled ?
TARA HOUSKA : Yeah , without , I guess , giving away too much of the reaction of the actual lawyers that are on this case , I would say , you know , to me , I see a very clear message to the fossil fuel industry that trying to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the nations that are impacted is just not going to work any longer ; that , in this particular instance , they tried to push through an environmental assessment , which is a low-level environmental review , of a massive , massive pipeline project , over half a million barrels of oil a day .
And yeah , they needed to do an environmental impact statement , which is years of consultation , which is years of review and consideration of sacred sites , cultural sites , all these different properties that have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of this size .
So , you know , I hope Kelcy Warren is really feeling that hurt right now , because he was so oblivious to the suffering and pain that he was causing on the ground , not only in the resistance movement , but just generally to the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe , to all the tribal nations that have seen this happen time and time again , when we say no and they move forward anyway .
JUAN GONZÁLEZ : And , Tara Houska , where do you see @ @ @ @ @ @ @ appeals process ?
Is this a temporary delay ?
Is it a delay of a few years ?
Or do you think that this has a potential to kill the project completely ?
TARA HOUSKA : You know , I ’ m very hopeful that the shareholders this morning are waking up and reconsidering their investment in the fossil fuel industry , and particularly the expansion of the fossil fuel industry .
You know , we just saw the Atlantic Coast Pipeline also get scrapped .
We ’ ve seen Keystone XL get @ @ @ @ @ @ @ East tar sands pipeline get scrapped .
This is a series of events and resistance , particularly led by Indigenous people across Turtle Island , that the expansion of the fossil fuel industry just can not happen any longer .
And to see this momentous win , I ’ m really hopeful that the shareholders , who really do control the bottom line , are looking at this and not only reconsidering their Indigenous peoples policy , their need for free , prior and informed consent instead of just consultation , but that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ what our energy economy looks like , which should be a green economy at this point .
AMY GOODMAN : I wanted to turn to U.S. Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette responding to news the Dakota Access Pipeline will be shut down , pending review , and the Atlantic Coast Pipeline , which we ’ re going to talk about in a second , is canceled .
He was interviewed on Fox Business Network by Stuart Varney .
AMY GOODMAN : So , that ’ s the U.S. energy secretary talking — crediting protests @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of these major pipelines .
LaDonna Brave Bull Allard , did you ever dream on that day , April 1st , 2016 , that so many people would come , not only to your property , the Sacred Stone Camp , but to the Red Warrior Camp and to so many others ?
What this activism would mean , and where do you think — how do you think it will manifest itself now ?
LADONNA BRAVE BULL ALLARD : I had no idea that so many people would come and stand up @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from all over the world , we are all in the same position of extraction industries coming in , destroying water and land and our environments .
Right now we are in the sixth extinction rate of animals .
We shouldn ’ t be here .
When I started talking to people from everywhere , one of the things that I understood is it is a time for change .
The time is now .
We can not go any further with extraction industries , until we repair and allow the Earth to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ important thing that we have to do to live .
We have to have clean water .
We have to have clean environments to live .
And if you ’ re putting money before lives , that is unjust .
JUAN GONZÁLEZ : Tara Houska , I ’ d like to ask you , in terms of the — the pipeline has been in operation now .
President Trump made it a big part of his presidency to get it running .
What ’ s been the impact in the time that it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ now says within 30 days it must stop all flow of oil ?
TARA HOUSKA : I went out to the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation to stand with LaDonna Allard because I saw her on Facebook and because I saw youth runners that ran 2,000 miles , from Cannon Ball out to Washington , D.C. And I packed my things and went that way , because I understood not only was this a moment where people were taking a real stand and saying , “ We ’ re not going to accept this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ accept you running over our rights yet again , ” but it was also this understanding that we are talking about the bulldozing of sacred sites , of places that can never be brought back , of the risk to the drinking water of the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation .
Let ’ s not forget that this pipeline was originally supposed to go through the drinking water further upstream near Bismarck , but instead it got rerouted right next to the reservation — you know , clear , obvious environmental racism and disregard @ @ @ @ @ @ @ know , it ’ s been four years of knowing that that pipeline is right next to — is only a couple hundred yards from the water intake of the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation , of knowing that a break could impact not only that reservation , but the 17 million people that live along the Missouri River , you know , not to mention the continued extraction of fossil fuels from the ground , the continued impact to the environment , to greenhouse gas emissions , to the climate crisis that we @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
This is a project that was one of many , but it ’ s one that I think people recognized that it was time to take a stand , and it reached the world .
And we continue to fight on .
AMY GOODMAN : Tara , in a statement , Energy Transfer said , “ We intend to immediately file a motion to stay this decision and if not granted , to pursue a stay and expedited appeal with the Court of Appeals .
We also believe that the Army Corps @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this matter , pursuant to its regulations governing Corps property , ” they said .
If you could comment on Energy Transfer Partners CEO , the billionaire Kelcy Warren , a major supporter of President Trump , recently hosted a fundraiser at his home in Dallas , and if you can talk about his role ?
TARA HOUSKA : Kelcy Warren was somebody that was absolutely , completely oblivious and outright dismissive of human lives on the ground .
I mean , you mentioned at the beginning of the segment the fact that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ dogs on women and children , unarmed people , that people were bitten .
I interviewed Tashina Smith , a young woman who had been bitten on the breast that day .
And that was a pattern of ongoing harm and extreme brutality that was unleashed onto unarmed women and children and to unarmed people that were trying to protect sacred sites from destruction .
Kelcy Warren knew all of this .
He knew about the environmental racism question .
He knew about the fact that there were 10,000 people at one point @ @ @ @ @ @ @ It was the 13th largest city in the state .
He knew what was happening .
And I ’ m sure he knew when all of his shareholders were showing up , and his financial backers , the 17 banks behind the Dakota Access Pipeline project , were pulling out parts of their loans from the project .
You know , his alignment with Trump is similar to many fossil fuel industry insiders and executives that have either been installed into the administration itself .
Like , I think about the secretary of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lobbyists and people that have established themselves in the administration , I ’ m guessing they ’ re pretty nervous about the upcoming elections and the handling of the COVID-19 crisis by the Trump administration .
AMY GOODMAN : And you were just giving out masks yesterday , Tara , trying to make sure people in North Dakota are protected , the Indigenous people of North Dakota , like Standing Rock ?
TARA HOUSKA : Actually , we were down in the Navajo Nation , so I ’ m kind of on my @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has been a spot in the United States that ’ s had some of the worst COVID-19 statistics in the entire nation .
So we were handing out , delivering boxes , contact-free , of hand sanitizer , diapers , food , masks , everything that we can give to help people that are already living in disparate conditions , that are already living without running water , without electricity , and living with all the inequities that already exist in this country .
AMY GOODMAN : Well , Tara Houska , I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ us , Indigenous lawyer , joining us from Alamosa , Colorado , and LaDonna Brave Bull Allard , member of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe , founder of Sacred Stone Camp in resistance to the Dakota Access Pipeline , joining us from her home right along the Cannonball River , where she has experienced this enormous victory yesterday , a battle she has devoted her life to over these last few years .
We ’ re wishing you the best of health , LaDonna , as you struggle with brain cancer .
You @ @ @ @ @ @ @ many .
Your final thoughts ?
LADONNA BRAVE BULL ALLARD : We ’ ve only just begun .
I encourage everybody to continue to stand .
There must be justice in this world , and there must be accountability .
And I truly believe if we can have those two major components , we can change for a better system .
We need a better system in America .
We need a system that ’ s equal to everybody .
And we need , as Native people , not to be invisible in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ here to help .
We are only here to teach you to love the land and the water .
AMY GOODMAN : LaDonna , thank you so much .
AMY GOODMAN : And best of health to you .
When we come back , we ’ ll look at Duke and Dominion Energy ’ s abrupt decision to cancel their plans building the Atlantic Coast Pipeline after years of protests .
Then we go inside a major detention facility .
Stay with us .
AMY GOODMAN : Willie Wright , performing “ Right @ @ @ @ @ @ @ away last week at the age of 80 .

This is a rush transcript. Copy may not be in its final form.
AMY GOODMAN: We’re going to turn now to our top story. In a massive win for the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and Indigenous organizers across the country, a federal judge has ordered the Dakota Access Pipeline shut down and called for it to be emptied of all oil in the next 30 days, pending an environmental review. U.S. District Court Judge James Boasberg issued the decision on Monday, saying the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers violated environmental law when it granted a permit for the pipeline without an extensive environmental assessment. That permit has now been revoked until an environmental review is conducted — a process that could take years.
Standing Rock Sioux Tribe Chairperson Mike Faith called the move “historic” and said in a statement, quote, “This pipeline should have never been built here. We told them that from the beginning,” he said.
The company, Energy Transfer Partners, owns the pipeline and said in a statement Monday it will appeal the decision. Their CEO, Kelcy Warren, is a major supporter of President Trump.
The Dakota Access Pipeline has been operating since 2017, carrying fracked petroleum from the Bakken oil fields in North Dakota through South Dakota, Iowa and Illinois, for transfer to another pipeline to carry it on to the Gulf Coast. The Standing Rock Sioux call the pipeline the “black snake.”
Monday’s historic court order comes more than four years after the resistance at Standing Rock began in 2016, bringing tens of thousands of people to North Dakota to oppose the pipeline’s construction on sacred lands. Democracy Now! was there on the ground covering the struggle. On September 3rd, 2016, Labor Day weekend, the Dakota Access Pipeline company unleashed dogs and pepper spray on Native Americans seeking to protect their sacred tribal burial site from destruction.
WATER PROTECTOR 1: This guy maced me in the face.
LAURA GOTTESDIENER: Why don’t — can you show us the label?
WATER PROTECTOR 1: Look, it’s all over my sunglasses. Just maced me in the face.
WATER PROTECTOR 2: Get the [bleep] out of here!
WATER PROTECTOR 3: These people are just threatening all of us with these dogs. And she, that woman over there, she was charging, and it bit somebody right in the face.
AMY GOODMAN: The dog has blood in its nose and its mouth.
WATER PROTECTOR 3: And she’s still standing here threatening us.
AMY GOODMAN: Why are you letting their — her dog go after the protesters? It’s covered in blood!
VICTOR PUERTAS: Over there, with that dog. I was like walking. Throwed the dog on me and straight, even without any warning. You know? Look at this. Look at this.
AMY GOODMAN: That dog bit you?
VICTOR PUERTAS: Yeah, the dog did it, you know? Look at this. It’s there. It’s all bleeding.
AMY GOODMAN: To see the full report from 2016, you can go do democracynow.org.
But for more on this historic court order, we’re joined by two guests. LaDonna Brave Bull Allard is a member of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and founder of Sacred Stone Camp in resistance to the Dakota Access Pipeline. And Tara Houska is with us, Indigenous lawyer, activist and founder of the Giniw Collective. She is Ojibwe from Couchiching First Nation.
We welcome you both to Democracy Now! We’re first going to go to LaDonna Brave Bull Allard, speaking to us from her home right next to the Cannonball River. She, on April 1st, announced, in 2016, she was opening her property to the resistance, expecting maybe some people might come. Soon, tens of people, hundreds of people, and soon thousands of people, leading to more resistance camps all over the area. LaDonna Brave Bull Allard, can you share your response to Judge Boasberg’s ruling that, at least for now, the Dakota Access Pipeline must be shut down and emptied of all oil?
LADONNA BRAVE BULL ALLARD: You ever have a dream, a dream that comes true? That is what it is when I got up in the morning and seen that. I was overwhelmed. I’m still overwhelmed. If people could understand how much I love my home, how much I love my land and my river, it is the greatest thing in the whole world.
I know that it’s going to be appealed. I know it’s going to be a long journey, but we’re here for the long journey. It is not about who’s right or wrong; it’s about how do we live in the future.
And for me, the last four years have been hard. And so this has been a great blessing. I am so overthankful for the judges, for the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, for the lawyers and for every water protector that stood up on every frontline, for every keyboard warrior, for the support. Overwhelming is all I can say, and great thanks.
JUAN GONZÁLEZ: Well, LaDonna Brave Bull Allard, I’d like to ask you to take us back to your decision four years ago to start the resistance camp. Did you expect that the struggle would be as long as it has been, especially you being an historian of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, in terms of how this fits into the history of the fight of your people?
LADONNA BRAVE BULL ALLARD: So, I did not think that all of this would transpire the way it is. I had thought, “Follow the law.” The law says you protect sacred sites, burial sites, traditional culture properties. You do an environmental assessment, an EIS, according to the law. And I just assumed that they would follow the law. And when — this is the first federal agency, corporation that I worked with that did not follow no law. And so it was kind of shocking for me to be dealing with vast corruption of corporations.
AMY GOODMAN: Tara Houska, you’re an Indigenous lawyer. You were just with LaDonna yesterday. And you’re also dealing with COVID-19, which we’ll talk about in a minute; in North Dakota, it’s soaring. But on this issue, can you talk about what the ruling was based on, the risk of contaminating the water? You were on the ground in 2016, also a part of the resistance. The significance of what Boasberg has ruled?
TARA HOUSKA: Yeah, without, I guess, giving away too much of the reaction of the actual lawyers that are on this case, I would say, you know, to me, I see a very clear message to the fossil fuel industry that trying to shove through permits against the will of the nations that are impacted is just not going to work any longer; that, in this particular instance, they tried to push through an environmental assessment, which is a low-level environmental review, of a massive, massive pipeline project, over half a million barrels of oil a day. And yeah, they needed to do an environmental impact statement, which is years of consultation, which is years of review and consideration of sacred sites, cultural sites, all these different properties that have to be considered before approving a project of this size.
So, you know, I hope Kelcy Warren is really feeling that hurt right now, because he was so oblivious to the suffering and pain that he was causing on the ground, not only in the resistance movement, but just generally to the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, to all the tribal nations that have seen this happen time and time again, when we say no and they move forward anyway.
JUAN GONZÁLEZ: And, Tara Houska, where do you see this going now in terms of an appeals process? Is this a temporary delay? Is it a delay of a few years? Or do you think that this has a potential to kill the project completely?
TARA HOUSKA: You know, I’m very hopeful that the shareholders this morning are waking up and reconsidering their investment in the fossil fuel industry, and particularly the expansion of the fossil fuel industry. You know, we just saw the Atlantic Coast Pipeline also get scrapped. We’ve seen Keystone XL get scrapped through the years, the Energy East tar sands pipeline get scrapped. This is a series of events and resistance, particularly led by Indigenous people across Turtle Island, that the expansion of the fossil fuel industry just cannot happen any longer. And to see this momentous win, I’m really hopeful that the shareholders, who really do control the bottom line, are looking at this and not only reconsidering their Indigenous peoples policy, their need for free, prior and informed consent instead of just consultation, but that they are reconsidering their entire outlook into what our energy economy looks like, which should be a green economy at this point.
AMY GOODMAN: I wanted to turn to U.S. Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette responding to news the Dakota Access Pipeline will be shut down, pending review, and the Atlantic Coast Pipeline, which we’re going to talk about in a second, is canceled. He was interviewed on Fox Business Network by Stuart Varney.
STUART VARNEY: Mr. Secretary, in both of these cases, do you blame activists for essentially shutting them down?
ENERGY SECRETARY DAN BROUILLETTE: That’s right, actually. Great to be with you. I do, in fact. I do, indeed. In both cases, I think it’s applicable.
STUART VARNEY: So it appears that in comes a lawsuit to prevent it, even if they don’t even know where it is and what it’s for. It just is that blind opposition to anything that the energy industry tries to accomplish.
ENERGY SECRETARY DAN BROUILLETTE: That’s correct. I would agree with that. And I’m not quite sure what they’re cheering, except for perhaps the loss of jobs —
STUART VARNEY: Yeah.
ENERGY SECRETARY DAN BROUILLETTE: — all throughout America.
AMY GOODMAN: So, that’s the U.S. energy secretary talking — crediting protests, actually, with the closing down of these major pipelines. LaDonna Brave Bull Allard, did you ever dream on that day, April 1st, 2016, that so many people would come, not only to your property, the Sacred Stone Camp, but to the Red Warrior Camp and to so many others? What this activism would mean, and where do you think — how do you think it will manifest itself now?
LADONNA BRAVE BULL ALLARD: I had no idea that so many people would come and stand up. But after talking to Indigenous people from all over the world, we are all in the same position of extraction industries coming in, destroying water and land and our environments.
Right now we are in the sixth extinction rate of animals. We shouldn’t be here. When I started talking to people from everywhere, one of the things that I understood is it is a time for change. The time is now. We cannot go any further with extraction industries, until we repair and allow the Earth to heal again. That is the most important thing that we have to do to live. We have to have clean water. We have to have clean environments to live. And if you’re putting money before lives, that is unjust.
JUAN GONZÁLEZ: Tara Houska, I’d like to ask you, in terms of the — the pipeline has been in operation now. President Trump made it a big part of his presidency to get it running. What’s been the impact in the time that it has been running, although the judge now says within 30 days it must stop all flow of oil?
TARA HOUSKA: I went out to the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation to stand with LaDonna Allard because I saw her on Facebook and because I saw youth runners that ran 2,000 miles, from Cannon Ball out to Washington, D.C. And I packed my things and went that way, because I understood not only was this a moment where people were taking a real stand and saying, “We’re not going to accept this. We’re not going to accept you running over our rights yet again,” but it was also this understanding that we are talking about the bulldozing of sacred sites, of places that can never be brought back, of the risk to the drinking water of the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation.
Let’s not forget that this pipeline was originally supposed to go through the drinking water further upstream near Bismarck, but instead it got rerouted right next to the reservation — you know, clear, obvious environmental racism and disregard for Indigenous lives. So, you know, it’s been four years of knowing that that pipeline is right next to — is only a couple hundred yards from the water intake of the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation, of knowing that a break could impact not only that reservation, but the 17 million people that live along the Missouri River, you know, not to mention the continued extraction of fossil fuels from the ground, the continued impact to the environment, to greenhouse gas emissions, to the climate crisis that we know is happening all over the globe. This is a project that was one of many, but it’s one that I think people recognized that it was time to take a stand, and it reached the world. And we continue to fight on.
AMY GOODMAN: Tara, in a statement, Energy Transfer said, “We intend to immediately file a motion to stay this decision and if not granted, to pursue a stay and expedited appeal with the Court of Appeals. We also believe that the Army Corps of Engineers has the ultimate jurisdiction over this matter, pursuant to its regulations governing Corps property,” they said. If you could comment on Energy Transfer Partners CEO, the billionaire Kelcy Warren, a major supporter of President Trump, recently hosted a fundraiser at his home in Dallas, and if you can talk about his role?
TARA HOUSKA: Kelcy Warren was somebody that was absolutely, completely oblivious and outright dismissive of human lives on the ground. I mean, you mentioned at the beginning of the segment the fact that Energy Transfer Partners’ private security unleashed dogs on women and children, unarmed people, that people were bitten. I interviewed Tashina Smith, a young woman who had been bitten on the breast that day. And that was a pattern of ongoing harm and extreme brutality that was unleashed onto unarmed women and children and to unarmed people that were trying to protect sacred sites from destruction.
Kelcy Warren knew all of this. He knew about the environmental racism question. He knew about the fact that there were 10,000 people at one point in this encampment in North Dakota. It was the 13th largest city in the state. He knew what was happening. And I’m sure he knew when all of his shareholders were showing up, and his financial backers, the 17 banks behind the Dakota Access Pipeline project, were pulling out parts of their loans from the project.
You know, his alignment with Trump is similar to many fossil fuel industry insiders and executives that have either been installed into the administration itself. Like, I think about the secretary of state, former Exxon CEO. Many lobbyists and people that have established themselves in the administration, I’m guessing they’re pretty nervous about the upcoming elections and the handling of the COVID-19 crisis by the Trump administration.
AMY GOODMAN: And you were just giving out masks yesterday, Tara, trying to make sure people in North Dakota are protected, the Indigenous people of North Dakota, like Standing Rock?
TARA HOUSKA: Actually, we were down in the Navajo Nation, so I’m kind of on my way back up north. Navajo Nation has been a spot in the United States that’s had some of the worst COVID-19 statistics in the entire nation. So we were handing out, delivering boxes, contact-free, of hand sanitizer, diapers, food, masks, everything that we can give to help people that are already living in disparate conditions, that are already living without running water, without electricity, and living with all the inequities that already exist in this country.
AMY GOODMAN: Well, Tara Houska, I want to thank you for being with us, Indigenous lawyer, joining us from Alamosa, Colorado, and LaDonna Brave Bull Allard, member of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, founder of Sacred Stone Camp in resistance to the Dakota Access Pipeline, joining us from her home right along the Cannonball River, where she has experienced this enormous victory yesterday, a battle she has devoted her life to over these last few years. We’re wishing you the best of health, LaDonna, as you struggle with brain cancer. You’ve been an inspiration to so many. Your final thoughts?
LADONNA BRAVE BULL ALLARD: We’ve only just begun. I encourage everybody to continue to stand. There must be justice in this world, and there must be accountability. And I truly believe if we can have those two major components, we can change for a better system. We need a better system in America. We need a system that’s equal to everybody. And we need, as Native people, not to be invisible in our own homelands. We are only here to help. We are only here to teach you to love the land and the water.
AMY GOODMAN: LaDonna, thank you so much.
LADONNA BRAVE BULL ALLARD: [Speaking Lakota].
AMY GOODMAN: And best of health to you.
When we come back, we’ll look at Duke and Dominion Energy’s abrupt decision to cancel their plans building the Atlantic Coast Pipeline after years of protests. Then we go inside a major detention facility. Stay with us.
[break]
AMY GOODMAN: Willie Wright, performing “Right On for the Darkness.” Wright passed away last week at the age of 80.


democracynow--2020-07-07--Headlines for July  7, 2020

Headlines for July  7, 2020

Hospitals in parts of Florida , Texas , Arizona and California are running out of intensive care unit beds as coronavirus cases continue to surge .
In Texas , the number of COVID-19 hospitalizations has quadrupled over the past month .
In St. Petersburg , Florida , five hospitals have run out of intensive care unit beds .
In Miami , indoor restaurants have been ordered to close again , less than two months after being reopened .
Nationwide , the death toll from COVID-19 has topped 130,000 , and COVID cases are rising in 41 states .
At least @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cases recently .
On Monday , the nation ’ s top infectious disease expert , Dr. Anthony Fauci , warned the United States is still “ knee-deep ” in the first wave of the pandemic .
Dr. Anthony Fauci : “ A series of circumstances associated with various states and cities trying to open up , in the sense of getting back to some form of normality , has led to a situation where we now have record-breaking cases .
Two days ago , it was at 57,500 .
So , within a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , we ’ ve almost doubled the number of cases .
So , in answer to your first question , we are still knee-deep in the first wave of this.
” Dr.Fauci also said immunity provided by antibodies may be “ finite ” and that protection from any potential vaccine might be short-lived .
The pandemic continues to hit communities of color the hardest .
Newly released federal data show African American and Latinx people are nearly three times more likely to be infected and twice as likely to die from the virus @ @ @ @ @ @ @ California , the top medical officer for the state ’ s prison system has been ousted following the death of six prisoners from COVID-19 at San Quentin State Prison , where more than 1,300 prisoners have tested positive .
Meanwhile , Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms has announced she has tested positive for the virus .

Hospitals in parts of Florida, Texas, Arizona and California are running out of intensive care unit beds as coronavirus cases continue to surge. In Texas, the number of COVID-19 hospitalizations has quadrupled over the past month. In St. Petersburg, Florida, five hospitals have run out of intensive care unit beds. In Miami, indoor restaurants have been ordered to close again, less than two months after being reopened. Nationwide, the death toll from COVID-19 has topped 130,000, and COVID cases are rising in 41 states. At least 14 states have reported single-day highs in cases recently. On Monday, the nation’s top infectious disease expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, warned the United States is still “knee-deep” in the first wave of the pandemic.
Dr. Anthony Fauci: “A series of circumstances associated with various states and cities trying to open up, in the sense of getting back to some form of normality, has led to a situation where we now have record-breaking cases. Two days ago, it was at 57,500. So, within a period of a week and a half, we’ve almost doubled the number of cases. So, in answer to your first question, we are still knee-deep in the first wave of this.”
Dr.Fauci also said immunity provided by antibodies may be “finite” and that protection from any potential vaccine might be short-lived.
The pandemic continues to hit communities of color the hardest. Newly released federal data show African American and Latinx people are nearly three times more likely to be infected and twice as likely to die from the virus compared to their white neighbors.
In California, the top medical officer for the state’s prison system has been ousted following the death of six prisoners from COVID-19 at San Quentin State Prison, where more than 1,300 prisoners have tested positive.
Meanwhile, Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms has announced she has tested positive for the virus.


democracynow--2020-07-08--COVID Exposes "Significant Racial Health Inequities" as Black, Brown & Indigenous People Suffer Most

This is a rush transcript .
Copy may not be in its final form .
AMY GOODMAN : This is Democracy Now !
The Quarantine Report .
I ’ m Amy Goodman , with Juan González .
We ’ re looking at the coronavirus pandemic and disparities in treatment and in deaths .
Newly released federal data shows African American and Latinx people are nearly three times more likely to be infected and twice as likely to die from the virus compared to their white neighbors .
The New York Times reported these figures after suing the Centers for Disease @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
In April , New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio acknowledged the racial disparities in the city ’ s coronavirus death rates .
Still with us in Houston is Dr. Sheri Fink , New York Times Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist , who recently co-wrote a piece headlined “ Why Surviving the Virus Might Come Down to Which Hospital Admits You.
” We are also joined by Dr. Uché Blackstock , emergency medicine physician , and CEO and founder of Advancing Health Equity , a company that works with healthcare organizations to fight racism @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , thanks so much for joining us , as well .
If you can talk about the disparities — who lives , who dies , and who gets sick , and who doesn ’ t ?
DR. UCHÉ BLACKSTOCK : Sure .
You know , I think that before the pandemic , what people may not realize is that there were pretty significant racial health disparities in this country .
I think many people had heard about the Black maternal mortality crisis , that had gotten a lot of press .
But what @ @ @ @ @ @ @ few months is these really significant racial health inequities being exposed and even amplified .
We saw that Black and Latinx and Indigenous communities were more likely to be infected because they were essentially placed at risk given the types of jobs that they had .
They were more likely to be essential workers and service workers .
These were public-facing jobs .
They were essentially exposed .
They were also more likely to use public transportation in urban areas and more likely to live in overcrowded housing .
These are all risk @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
And then , to think about which communities carry the highest burden of chronic diseases , diabetes , high blood pressure , obesity and asthma are all risk factors for doing very poorly when you are infected with coronavirus .
And so , those are some of the factors for why we ’ re seeing Black , Latinx and Indigenous communities being so disproportionately impacted by this pandemic .
JUAN GONZÁLEZ : Dr. Blackstock , I ’ d like to ask you specifically in terms of some of the figures I ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ community — for instance , here in New Jersey , 19 % of the population , 30 % of the COVID cases ; in Utah , 14 % of the population , 42 % of the COVID cases .
This whole issue , because the Latino community , generally speaking , is a much younger community than either the African American or the white community , so you would — the proportion that are elderly are much smaller .
Is this more a function of the underlying conditions that affect the community — @ @ @ @ @ @ @ conditions in the community ?
Or is this — what other factors do you see affecting the Latino rate ?
DR. UCHÉ BLACKSTOCK : Right .
And so , you know , as I mentioned , I think when we talk about who is at risk for being infected , it also depends on who is at risk for being exposed .
And so , I think that those numbers that you cite point to the fact that Latino community members are more likely to be working in jobs where they ’ re @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , of course , this is because of practices and policies that limit certain racial groups to certain types of jobs .
And so , I think that what we ’ re seeing really are the outcomes of structural racism in this country .
We have seen how life opportunities , including jobs opportunities , educational opportunities , have basically limited people and put people at risk to being in situations where they are more likely to be infected with coronavirus .
And what I found very interesting about The New York Times @ @ @ @ @ @ @ just seeing it in urban areas .
We ’ re seeing it in rural areas , right ?
So I would say that that speaks to the expansive reach of racism in this country .
AMY GOODMAN : You wrote a piece , Dr. Uché Blackstock , in The Washington Post headlined “ Community health workers are essential in this crisis .
We need more of them.
” In it , you suggest community health workers are essential to addressing this issue of systemic racism .
Explain .
DR. UCHÉ BLACKSTOCK : You @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are seeing is that Black , Latinx , Indigenous communities need to be really centered in this pandemic .
Right ?
They ’ re the communities being most disproportionately impacted .
And I think a key part of that is messaging and outreach .
And who better to do that than people who are from those communities , trusted individuals who know the nuances of what messaging entails ?
And so , for example , when you are contact tracing somebody and you approach that person , you have to ask them , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ contact with ?
” And for someone who may be undocumented , to be able to give out that information , you have to trust the person who ’ s asking you that .
So I think community health workers really have a significant role to play in this pandemic , especially in relation to mitigating the impact of this virus on racialized minority communities .
JUAN GONZÁLEZ : I ’ d like to bring Dr. Sheri Fink back into the conversation and ask you a question about the numbers we ’ re @ @ @ @ @ @ @ coronavirus .
While the number of confirmed cases is spiraling , the defenders of President Trump say , “ Well , the death rate has been going down.
” I mean , on a daily basis , it ’ s still relatively high , in the hundreds , but certainly not at the level it was earlier this year when it was in the thousands .
Your sense of this shift between the confirmed cases versus deaths ?
DR. SHERI FINK : Yeah .
Well , that ’ s a positive thing , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ very overstretched here in Houston .
And I asked that question about the deaths .
And , of course , nobody knows for sure .
But some of the factors that may be contributing to the deaths being lower , number one , the younger patient population with this — well , won ’ t say “ wave , ” it ’ s considered the same wave , but this surge of patients is generally younger .
They have better outcomes .
Number two , there are things that — you know , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has been advancing , and so there are some treatments that seem to be effective .
So , the physicians , the nurses , they feel that they ’ re able to care for the patients better .
That may be contributing to these better outcomes .
The concern is that if the people who are younger are then going to pass the virus on to the older patient — or , the older population , then we may see some of this shift .
And the other thing is that , from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sick , if you ’ re going to , and then to getting critically ill , there ’ s a lag time of weeks in between those .
So even as we hopefully start to see some numbers of new infections go down or flatten , that it could be many weeks later before you know the true death toll .
But the good news is , it does — there are signals it does look like it is lower at this time .
AMY GOODMAN : Sheri Fink , I wanted to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , “ Why Surviving the Virus Might Come Down to Which Hospital Admits You.
” This was a piece about New York City , about public hospitals and private hospitals .
The door you go through , you know , which hospital , can determine whether you live or die .
Explain .
DR. SHERI FINK : So , a number of doctors got a hold of some of us reporters , and they were doctors who work in multiple campuses , different hospitals .
Sometimes they rotate in the private system and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ were concerned because they felt that there were differences .
And some of them got data , raw data , mortality , so the percentage of deaths , to put it simply .
And there were vast differences at one campus versus another .
And so , they felt that there were differences in care , too .
Nursing ratios were much worse at some hospitals than others , and that ’ s very , very important .
So the number of patients that a nurse has , when a nurse is the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ patient and able to see if they suddenly take a turn for the worse , which happens with this disease , those ratios were incredibly large , the number of patients per nurse as at some hospitals .
There were also modalities of treatment .
So , for example , I spent a lot of time at the Brooklyn Hospital Center , this wonderful community hospital that has — in Fort Greene , New York , in Brooklyn , that has no parent company , no larger system , so they ’ re @ @ @ @ @ @ @ But they also don ’ t do things that some of the bigger hospital systems do , the really sort of — ECMO , for example , this heart-lung machine , if you ’ re really , really , really sick .
They don ’ t do continuous dialysis there , which is a form of dialysis that is sometimes used in critical care patients .
So , it ’ s all to say that there are differences in the care .
And as Dr. Blackstock said , these are preexisting differences in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ unequal in New York City and likely across the country .
So , because people were going to their nearest hospital , that would sort of , like , magnify or amplify it , sort of .
There ’ s a quote in the story that this pandemic hit on top of an epidemic of these structural inequalities and racism .
And so these are magnifying effects .
I will say , I want to say , an important caveat , which is that the patient populations are different that these hospitals serve @ @ @ @ @ @ @ very important , because if you ’ re a hospital right near a nursing home , which some of the hospitals with the worst outcomes had , that patient population was more likely to die .
They were having those underlying conditions and the higher age , that does go along with death .
So , it ’ s just an important signal .
You know , journalism is the first draft of history .
And many people who focus on health equity , like Dr. Blackstock and other researchers , are saying @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
We have to adjust those figures .
And early signs are , even when you adjust for things like age , how ill a patient is , that in fact there are important differences between hospitals that may have to do with these differences in what they can provide .
JUAN GONZÁLEZ : I ’ d like to ask Dr. Blackstock — we have only about a minute left , but I ’ m wondering your sense of this shift of the epicenter of this pandemic in the United States from the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ South and the Southwest .
Have you ever seen a public health crisis so politicized and so dependent on the decisions of political leaders rather than public health officials , and what the impact of that is on the Black and Brown communities ?
DR. UCHÉ BLACKSTOCK : No , no .
Obviously , no , I have not .
And just like you , I am alarmed and appalled .
You know , we ’ re actually in the very early stages of this pandemic , whether we believe it or not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that could actually happen .
And so I think that we have an opportunity here .
We have an inflection point , where we can really press on state and local officials to put interventions in place , targeted testing , contact tracing , messaging and outreach to Black and Brown communities , really to prevent further devastation to the communities that have already been so hard hit .
AMY GOODMAN : We want to thank you both for being with us .
Dr. Uché Blackstock is an emergency medicine physician and CEO @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Fink is a New York Times correspondent , Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and writer .
We ’ ll link to your pieces from Houston and New York City .
That does it for our show .
Democracy Now !
is produced with Mike Burke , Renée Feltz , Deena Guzder , Libby Rainey , Nermeen Shaikh , Carla Wills , Tami Woronoff , Charina Nadura , Sam Alcoff , Tey-Marie Astudillo , John Hamilton , Robby Karran , Hany Massoud , Adriano Contreras , María Taracena .
Our general manager is Julie Crosby .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Barnard , Paul Powell , Mike DiFilippo , Miguel Nogueira , Hugh Gran , Denis Moynihan and David Prude .
Stay safe by wearing a mask .
You protect yourself .
You protect your family .
You protect the community .
To see all the transcripts and the video and audio podcasts of Democracy Now !
The Quarantine Report , go to democracynow.org .
I ’ m Amy Goodman , with Juan González .
Stay safe .

This is a rush transcript. Copy may not be in its final form.
AMY GOODMAN: This is Democracy Now! The Quarantine Report. I’m Amy Goodman, with Juan González. We’re looking at the coronavirus pandemic and disparities in treatment and in deaths. Newly released federal data shows African American and Latinx people are nearly three times more likely to be infected and twice as likely to die from the virus compared to their white neighbors. The New York Times reported these figures after suing the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for the federal data. In April, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio acknowledged the racial disparities in the city’s coronavirus death rates.
MAYOR BILL DE BLASIO: So, now I have information that points out that there are clear inequalities, clear disparities in how this disease is affecting the people of our city. … The deaths because of COVID-19 in the city, first and foremost, have affected the Hispanic community, with 34% of the deaths. That community is about 29% of all New Yorkers in terms of population, but 34% of the deaths. And again, this is preliminary information that we’ll keep adding to. It’s hard to talk about this stuff like statistics. This means human beings. This means families. But we have to look in the face these disparities that we’re learning about. So, the Hispanic community, 34%. The Black community, 28% of the deaths compared to about 22% of the overall population. … The disparities that have plagued this city, this nation, that are all about fundamental inequality, are once again causing such pain and causing people, innocent people, to lose their lives. It’s just abundantly clear. It’s sick. It’s troubling. It’s wrong.
AMY GOODMAN: So, that’s Mayor de Blasio speaking recently.
Still with us in Houston is Dr. Sheri Fink, New York Times Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, who recently co-wrote a piece headlined “Why Surviving the Virus Might Come Down to Which Hospital Admits You.”
We are also joined by Dr. Uché Blackstock, emergency medicine physician, and CEO and founder of Advancing Health Equity, a company that works with healthcare organizations to fight racism and bias in services.
Dr. Blackstock, thanks so much for joining us, as well. If you can talk about the disparities — who lives, who dies, and who gets sick, and who doesn’t?
DR. UCHÉ BLACKSTOCK: Sure. You know, I think that before the pandemic, what people may not realize is that there were pretty significant racial health disparities in this country. I think many people had heard about the Black maternal mortality crisis, that had gotten a lot of press. But what we saw in the pandemic these first few months is these really significant racial health inequities being exposed and even amplified.
We saw that Black and Latinx and Indigenous communities were more likely to be infected because they were essentially placed at risk given the types of jobs that they had. They were more likely to be essential workers and service workers. These were public-facing jobs. They were essentially exposed. They were also more likely to use public transportation in urban areas and more likely to live in overcrowded housing. These are all risk factors for being infected with the disease. And then, to think about which communities carry the highest burden of chronic diseases, diabetes, high blood pressure, obesity and asthma are all risk factors for doing very poorly when you are infected with coronavirus. And so, those are some of the factors for why we’re seeing Black, Latinx and Indigenous communities being so disproportionately impacted by this pandemic.
JUAN GONZÁLEZ: Dr. Blackstock, I’d like to ask you specifically in terms of some of the figures I’ve seen in terms of the Latino community — for instance, here in New Jersey, 19% of the population, 30% of the COVID cases; in Utah, 14% of the population, 42% of the COVID cases. This whole issue, because the Latino community, generally speaking, is a much younger community than either the African American or the white community, so you would — the proportion that are elderly are much smaller. Is this more a function of the underlying conditions that affect the community — for instance, diabetes and other underlying conditions in the community? Or is this — what other factors do you see affecting the Latino rate?
DR. UCHÉ BLACKSTOCK: Right. And so, you know, as I mentioned, I think when we talk about who is at risk for being infected, it also depends on who is at risk for being exposed. And so, I think that those numbers that you cite point to the fact that Latino community members are more likely to be working in jobs where they’re at risk for being exposed. And, of course, this is because of practices and policies that limit certain racial groups to certain types of jobs.
And so, I think that what we’re seeing really are the outcomes of structural racism in this country. We have seen how life opportunities, including jobs opportunities, educational opportunities, have basically limited people and put people at risk to being in situations where they are more likely to be infected with coronavirus. And what I found very interesting about The New York Times piece was that we’re not just seeing it in urban areas. We’re seeing it in rural areas, right? So I would say that that speaks to the expansive reach of racism in this country.
AMY GOODMAN: You wrote a piece, Dr. Uché Blackstock, in The Washington Post headlined “Community health workers are essential in this crisis. We need more of them.” In it, you suggest community health workers are essential to addressing this issue of systemic racism. Explain.
DR. UCHÉ BLACKSTOCK: You know, I think that what we are seeing is that Black, Latinx, Indigenous communities need to be really centered in this pandemic. Right? They’re the communities being most disproportionately impacted. And I think a key part of that is messaging and outreach. And who better to do that than people who are from those communities, trusted individuals who know the nuances of what messaging entails? And so, for example, when you are contact tracing somebody and you approach that person, you have to ask them, “Which people have you been in contact with?” And for someone who may be undocumented, to be able to give out that information, you have to trust the person who’s asking you that. So I think community health workers really have a significant role to play in this pandemic, especially in relation to mitigating the impact of this virus on racialized minority communities.
JUAN GONZÁLEZ: I’d like to bring Dr. Sheri Fink back into the conversation and ask you a question about the numbers we’re seeing in terms of the deaths from coronavirus. While the number of confirmed cases is spiraling, the defenders of President Trump say, “Well, the death rate has been going down.” I mean, on a daily basis, it’s still relatively high, in the hundreds, but certainly not at the level it was earlier this year when it was in the thousands. Your sense of this shift between the confirmed cases versus deaths?
DR. SHERI FINK: Yeah. Well, that’s a positive thing, certainly. We are seeing the hospitals very overstretched here in Houston. And I asked that question about the deaths. And, of course, nobody knows for sure. But some of the factors that may be contributing to the deaths being lower, number one, the younger patient population with this — well, won’t say “wave,” it’s considered the same wave, but this surge of patients is generally younger. They have better outcomes. Number two, there are things that — you know, doctors have been sharing knowledge, science has been advancing, and so there are some treatments that seem to be effective. So, the physicians, the nurses, they feel that they’re able to care for the patients better. That may be contributing to these better outcomes.
The concern is that if the people who are younger are then going to pass the virus on to the older patient — or, the older population, then we may see some of this shift. And the other thing is that, from infection to getting sick to getting hospital sick, if you’re going to, and then to getting critically ill, there’s a lag time of weeks in between those. So even as we hopefully start to see some numbers of new infections go down or flatten, that it could be many weeks later before you know the true death toll. But the good news is, it does — there are signals it does look like it is lower at this time.
AMY GOODMAN: Sheri Fink, I wanted to go to this piece that you wrote, “Why Surviving the Virus Might Come Down to Which Hospital Admits You.” This was a piece about New York City, about public hospitals and private hospitals. The door you go through, you know, which hospital, can determine whether you live or die. Explain.
DR. SHERI FINK: So, a number of doctors got a hold of some of us reporters, and they were doctors who work in multiple campuses, different hospitals. Sometimes they rotate in the private system and in the public system. And they were concerned because they felt that there were differences. And some of them got data, raw data, mortality, so the percentage of deaths, to put it simply. And there were vast differences at one campus versus another.
And so, they felt that there were differences in care, too. Nursing ratios were much worse at some hospitals than others, and that’s very, very important. So the number of patients that a nurse has, when a nurse is the one who’s really monitoring that patient and able to see if they suddenly take a turn for the worse, which happens with this disease, those ratios were incredibly large, the number of patients per nurse as at some hospitals.
There were also modalities of treatment. So, for example, I spent a lot of time at the Brooklyn Hospital Center, this wonderful community hospital that has — in Fort Greene, New York, in Brooklyn, that has no parent company, no larger system, so they’re nimble, they’re small. But they also don’t do things that some of the bigger hospital systems do, the really sort of — ECMO, for example, this heart-lung machine, if you’re really, really, really sick. They don’t do continuous dialysis there, which is a form of dialysis that is sometimes used in critical care patients. So, it’s all to say that there are differences in the care.
And as Dr. Blackstock said, these are preexisting differences in our healthcare system, which is very unequal in New York City and likely across the country. So, because people were going to their nearest hospital, that would sort of, like, magnify or amplify it, sort of. There’s a quote in the story that this pandemic hit on top of an epidemic of these structural inequalities and racism. And so these are magnifying effects.
I will say, I want to say, an important caveat, which is that the patient populations are different that these hospitals serve. So, this is very, very important, because if you’re a hospital right near a nursing home, which some of the hospitals with the worst outcomes had, that patient population was more likely to die. They were having those underlying conditions and the higher age, that does go along with death.
So, it’s just an important signal. You know, journalism is the first draft of history. And many people who focus on health equity, like Dr. Blackstock and other researchers, are saying we have to look more into this. We have to adjust those figures. And early signs are, even when you adjust for things like age, how ill a patient is, that in fact there are important differences between hospitals that may have to do with these differences in what they can provide.
JUAN GONZÁLEZ: I’d like to ask Dr. Blackstock — we have only about a minute left, but I’m wondering your sense of this shift of the epicenter of this pandemic in the United States from the Northeast and the Midwest now to the South and the Southwest. Have you ever seen a public health crisis so politicized and so dependent on the decisions of political leaders rather than public health officials, and what the impact of that is on the Black and Brown communities?
DR. UCHÉ BLACKSTOCK: No, no. Obviously, no, I have not. And just like you, I am alarmed and appalled. You know, we’re actually in the very early stages of this pandemic, whether we believe it or not, and there are many more deaths that could actually happen. And so I think that we have an opportunity here. We have an inflection point, where we can really press on state and local officials to put interventions in place, targeted testing, contact tracing, messaging and outreach to Black and Brown communities, really to prevent further devastation to the communities that have already been so hard hit.
AMY GOODMAN: We want to thank you both for being with us. Dr. Uché Blackstock is an emergency medicine physician and CEO of Advancing Health Equity. Dr. Sheri Fink is a New York Times correspondent, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and writer. We’ll link to your pieces from Houston and New York City.
That does it for our show. Democracy Now! is produced with Mike Burke, Renée Feltz, Deena Guzder, Libby Rainey, Nermeen Shaikh, Carla Wills, Tami Woronoff, Charina Nadura, Sam Alcoff, Tey-Marie Astudillo, John Hamilton, Robby Karran, Hany Massoud, Adriano Contreras, María Taracena. Our general manager is Julie Crosby. Special thanks to Becca Staley, Miriam Barnard, Paul Powell, Mike DiFilippo, Miguel Nogueira, Hugh Gran, Denis Moynihan and David Prude.
Stay safe by wearing a mask. You protect yourself. You protect your family. You protect the community.
To see all the transcripts and the video and audio podcasts of Democracy Now! The Quarantine Report, go to democracynow.org. I’m Amy Goodman, with Juan González. Stay safe.


democracynow--2020-07-08--The New NYC? Houston Hospitals Struggle with "Astonishing" Rise in Coronavirus Cases

This is a rush transcript .
Copy may not be in its final form .
AMY GOODMAN : This is Democracy Now !
I ’ m Amy Goodman , with Juan González .
This is The Quarantine Report .
More than 60,000 new coronavirus cases were reported in the U.S. Tuesday , a record shattering the previous high .
Nearly 3 million people have now tested positive for the virus , and the death toll has topped 131,000 , though that number is expected to be far higher .
As cases rise , hospitalizations are soaring .
Health facilities in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are running out of ICU beds .
On Tuesday , Texas set a grim new record of 10,000 new cases in a single day .
Despite this , the Texas Republican Party still plans to hold its in-person state convention in Houston next week .
Mayor Sylvester Turner went on CNN Tuesday , pleaded for the Republicans to reconsider .
AMY GOODMAN : The New York Times has been reporting extensively from inside Houston ’ s hard-hit hospitals .
In a moment , we ’ ll be joined by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Dr. @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in this new video by The New York Times .
AMY GOODMAN : That ’ s a video from The New York Times featuring our guest , New York Times correspondent Dr. Sheri Fink .
Her recent piece is headlined “ As Coronavirus Slams Houston Hospitals , It ’ s Like New York 'All Over Again . '
” Dr. Sheri Fink , thanks so much for joining us .
If you can talk first about Houston and what you ’ re finding there , you having come from the epicenter covering what @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as the epicenter switches and shifts to Houston ?
DR. SHERI FINK : Yes , there are a lot of similarities , unfortunately , and some differences .
We can talk about both .
But the similarities are just the numbers .
The numbers of new patients , they are stressing the hospitals here .
The hospital that I ’ ve been embedded with , Houston Methodist Hospital , which is the largest hospital in Houston , as you heard , has just been — it ’ s been astonishing .
They ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ unit just to care for coronavirus patients .
And they can do that .
Meanwhile , there ’ s a safety net system , those hospitals who are there to treat people who tend to be disproportionately affected by coronavirus , and they are just completely full and transferring their patients out .
So , this is very similar to New York in that way .
JUAN GONZÁLEZ : And , Dr. Fink , in terms of some of the differences , though , it would seem that , at least in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on the East Coast , there were massive shortages of personal protective equipment , of the ability to test patients .
How has those factors played out now in this , months later , in places like Texas ?
DR. SHERI FINK : So , you would think , months later , we would have some of the systems in a better way .
And certainly , personal protective gear , there does seem to be more of that , although there have been some backups in getting certain pieces of that protective @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a problem .
This is a huge problem here .
I think some of my colleagues did a really nice piece yesterday about this backup in testing .
But I ’ m seeing it affecting the hospitals .
So , first of all , it ’ s very hard to get a test here .
You have to schedule it maybe some time in advance .
And then , to get those results back is taking many days .
Now , in the hospitals , when they get backed up , that is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ comes into the hospital at this point , when coronavirus is quite widespread in the community , they need to know whether that person should go on a coronavirus ward or on a non-coronavirus ward , or just how to treat them .
So , this is very , very important to get those test results back .
And , you know , there are backups .
We ’ re seeing that around the country .
The labs are backed up .
AMY GOODMAN : I mean , this is absolutely astounding .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ open up the economy around the country , we are seeing this increasing lack of testing , the shortage of testing .
We ’ re showing lines of people in Texas , cars that are waiting something like eight to 12 hours .
In Arizona , the same thing , the lines are something like eight to 10 hours .
Testing facilities are just shutting down .
Sometimes after five minutes , they run out .
If you could talk , Dr. Sheri Fink , about both the importance of , I mean @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lack of masks , or President Trump not wearing a mask ?
Actually , the governor of Texas just recently saying masks must be worn , though it took a long time for Governor Abbott to get to this point , but why that ’ s so important ?
DR. SHERI FINK : That ’ s right .
In the piece that you talked about that ran over the weekend , it explored the differences and the similarities with New York .
And the head of Houston Methodist system , medical system , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that is really striking him , and that if he could have one thing back from March , that awful time that we had in New York — but the one thing was that there was unity in terms of the measures needed to stop that spread .
So , you remember there was a national shutdown for a while , a pause , and at least you had the federal and the state and the local officials on the same page for that brief period of time .
The problem now , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ there ’ s been such a division amongst officials who are giving messages to the public , the public is confused .
And so , there are people getting the coronavirus , and the doctors are saying , you know , “ Who can blame them ?
” They don ’ t know — you know , with such mixed messages , it ’ s very hard for a person in the public to really know who to trust .
And maybe you trust that official who you voted for .
So , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ there is this focus , this importance of the masks .
And there is some hope in the medical community that the universal masking , if everybody is wearing a mask , that that will start to drive down some of these numbers , and maybe is starting to have a little bit of an effect .
But I don ’ t go out much here , but when I ’ ve — you know , going back and forth to the hospital , I do see young people not masking .
And @ @ @ @ @ @ @ public health officials here and the medical folks are very concerned about that , because you have — the other big difference is you have a younger patient population , which means that they generally are a little bit healthier .
There are definitely critically ill people , and I ’ m watching some of the people I met the first day , who were young , going through getting sicker , some in the ICU .
But generally , they ’ re healthier .
The problem is : Do those young people @ @ @ @ @ @ @ more vulnerable , or people with underlying conditions who are doing their best to stay safe ?
I ’ ve seen it over and over again .
I ’ ve met very few patients who were the ones out partying .
It ’ s the ones who caught it from a family member who had an essential job — that ’ s what I ’ m seeing — or a small family gathering that they thought was safe , that included some younger members of the family .
Those are the people who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , just by random selection who I ’ m tending to meet .
AMY GOODMAN : Dr. Sheri Fink , we have to break , but we ’ re going to come back to you .
Dr. Fink is a New York Times correspondent , Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and writer .
She is executive producer of the Netflix docuseries Pandemic : How to Prevent an Outbreak and author of the widely acclaimed book on the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina titled Five Days at Memorial : Life and Death in a Storm-Ravaged Hospital .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ most hard hit by COVID-19 , from New York to Houston .
Stay with us .

This is a rush transcript. Copy may not be in its final form.
AMY GOODMAN: This is Democracy Now! I’m Amy Goodman, with Juan González. This is The Quarantine Report. More than 60,000 new coronavirus cases were reported in the U.S. Tuesday, a record shattering the previous high. Nearly 3 million people have now tested positive for the virus, and the death toll has topped 131,000, though that number is expected to be far higher. As cases rise, hospitalizations are soaring. Health facilities in Florida, Texas, Arizona and California are running out of ICU beds.
On Tuesday, Texas set a grim new record of 10,000 new cases in a single day. Despite this, the Texas Republican Party still plans to hold its in-person state convention in Houston next week. Mayor Sylvester Turner went on CNN Tuesday, pleaded for the Republicans to reconsider.
MAYOR SYLVESTER TURNER: Bringing 6,000 people together indoors over a two-to-three-day event is not good on any level, not in the midst of a pandemic. And so, I just would hope and pray that they will take into account the employees who would have to service that convention, the employees’ families, the delegates themselves, the people in this city, and the people in the cities and the towns and cities that they are coming from. So, I will continue to believe that wiser heads will prevail and that people will recognize that this is a pandemic and people are dying and people are getting infected, and that the numbers in the state are going up and not going down.
AMY GOODMAN: The New York Times has been reporting extensively from inside Houston’s hard-hit hospitals. In a moment, we’ll be joined by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Dr. Sheri Fink, who’s featured in this new video by The New York Times.
DR. SHERI FINK: We are here at Houston Methodist Hospital, which is the largest hospital in Houston. And right at this moment the number of coronavirus cases is really rising dramatically in the city.
How does it feel similar or different to March?
DR. ARIC BAKSHY: This is the surge.
DR. SHERI FINK: Although they had a moderate peak in April, now they’re more than double the peak that they ever reached at that time, and the numbers look like they’re going to just keep rising.
DR. ARIC BAKSHY: Since March, we’ve had a trickle of patients. Everyone was — everyone stayed at home. People were not really getting sick in numbers that would overburden the system.
Dr. Bakshy here.
In fact, some of us cut our shifts down because there weren’t enough patients to see. Since probably Memorial Day, it’s been a lot busier. Every patient who comes into the hospital now, we’re testing for COVID.
AMY GOODMAN: That’s a video from The New York Times featuring our guest, New York Times correspondent Dr. Sheri Fink. Her recent piece is headlined “As Coronavirus Slams Houston Hospitals, It’s Like New York 'All Over Again.'”
Dr. Sheri Fink, thanks so much for joining us. If you can talk first about Houston and what you’re finding there, you having come from the epicenter covering what had happened here in New York, as the epicenter switches and shifts to Houston?
DR. SHERI FINK: Yes, there are a lot of similarities, unfortunately, and some differences. We can talk about both. But the similarities are just the numbers. The numbers of new patients, they are stressing the hospitals here. The hospital that I’ve been embedded with, Houston Methodist Hospital, which is the largest hospital in Houston, as you heard, has just been — it’s been astonishing. They’ve been adding unit after unit after unit just to care for coronavirus patients. And they can do that. Meanwhile, there’s a safety net system, those hospitals who are there to treat people who tend to be disproportionately affected by coronavirus, and they are just completely full and transferring their patients out. So, this is very similar to New York in that way.
JUAN GONZÁLEZ: And, Dr. Fink, in terms of some of the differences, though, it would seem that, at least in the early days of the pandemic, especially on the East Coast, there were massive shortages of personal protective equipment, of the ability to test patients. How has those factors played out now in this, months later, in places like Texas?
DR. SHERI FINK: So, you would think, months later, we would have some of the systems in a better way. And certainly, personal protective gear, there does seem to be more of that, although there have been some backups in getting certain pieces of that protective gear.
But the testing is similarly a problem. This is a huge problem here. I think some of my colleagues did a really nice piece yesterday about this backup in testing. But I’m seeing it affecting the hospitals. So, first of all, it’s very hard to get a test here. You have to schedule it maybe some time in advance. And then, to get those results back is taking many days.
Now, in the hospitals, when they get backed up, that is a problem, because when a person comes into the hospital at this point, when coronavirus is quite widespread in the community, they need to know whether that person should go on a coronavirus ward or on a non-coronavirus ward, or just how to treat them. So, this is very, very important to get those test results back. And, you know, there are backups. We’re seeing that around the country. The labs are backed up.
AMY GOODMAN: I mean, this is absolutely astounding. As President Trump puts enormous pressure to open up the economy around the country, we are seeing this increasing lack of testing, the shortage of testing. We’re showing lines of people in Texas, cars that are waiting something like eight to 12 hours. In Arizona, the same thing, the lines are something like eight to 10 hours. Testing facilities are just shutting down. Sometimes after five minutes, they run out. If you could talk, Dr. Sheri Fink, about both the importance of, I mean, this lack of testing and the lack of masks, or President Trump not wearing a mask? Actually, the governor of Texas just recently saying masks must be worn, though it took a long time for Governor Abbott to get to this point, but why that’s so important?
DR. SHERI FINK: That’s right. In the piece that you talked about that ran over the weekend, it explored the differences and the similarities with New York. And the head of Houston Methodist system, medical system, he said that one of the things that is really striking him, and that if he could have one thing back from March, that awful time that we had in New York — but the one thing was that there was unity in terms of the measures needed to stop that spread. So, you remember there was a national shutdown for a while, a pause, and at least you had the federal and the state and the local officials on the same page for that brief period of time.
The problem now, as you said, is that because there’s been such a division amongst officials who are giving messages to the public, the public is confused. And so, there are people getting the coronavirus, and the doctors are saying, you know, “Who can blame them?” They don’t know — you know, with such mixed messages, it’s very hard for a person in the public to really know who to trust. And maybe you trust that official who you voted for.
So, yes, now it does seem that there is this focus, this importance of the masks. And there is some hope in the medical community that the universal masking, if everybody is wearing a mask, that that will start to drive down some of these numbers, and maybe is starting to have a little bit of an effect.
But I don’t go out much here, but when I’ve — you know, going back and forth to the hospital, I do see young people not masking. And that is — you know, the public health officials here and the medical folks are very concerned about that, because you have — the other big difference is you have a younger patient population, which means that they generally are a little bit healthier. There are definitely critically ill people, and I’m watching some of the people I met the first day, who were young, going through getting sicker, some in the ICU. But generally, they’re healthier.
The problem is: Do those young people then infect older people who may be more vulnerable, or people with underlying conditions who are doing their best to stay safe? I’ve seen it over and over again. I’ve met very few patients who were the ones out partying. It’s the ones who caught it from a family member who had an essential job — that’s what I’m seeing — or a small family gathering that they thought was safe, that included some younger members of the family. Those are the people who are ending up in the ICUs here, just by random selection who I’m tending to meet.
AMY GOODMAN: Dr. Sheri Fink, we have to break, but we’re going to come back to you. Dr. Fink is a New York Times correspondent, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and writer. She is executive producer of the Netflix docuseries Pandemic: How to Prevent an Outbreak and author of the widely acclaimed book on the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina titled Five Days at Memorial: Life and Death in a Storm-Ravaged Hospital. She’s reporting from the hospitals most hard hit by COVID-19, from New York to Houston. Stay with us.