huffpost--2020-05-23--How Some Mississippi Teens Are Saving Their Town From Climate Change

The group is called the ASEEDS Creek Rangers program ― ASEEDS stands for Achieving Sustainability Through Education and Economic Development Solutions ― and it includes about 20 kids between the ages of 12 in 18 , led by local leaders and funded through grant money .
Its goal is to build a more sustainable future in the area .
But it has also managed to foster a new generation of climate experts in a state where politicians continue to push climate change denialism and where science education on the topic is decidedly light .
Flooding in the area periodically causes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ flooding in the Delta region continues apace , students will only miss more and more days of school .
At the same time , the COVID-19 crisis has revealed how utterly unprepared the community is for remote learning .
A survey of the group ’ s students found that nearly 90 % didn ’ t have reliable internet access or devices .
When Climate Disasters Are A Fact Of Life They designed a way to revamp the town ’ s antiquated drainage system , mitigating the effects of floods , in part through @ @ @ @ @ @ @ men helped build the plan into action .
Duck Hill is a poor , rural town , primarily composed of African American residents .
The group tackled some of the issues that had long challenged political decision-makers .
The youth got involved later on , helping to build out a green space on the town ’ s most problematic street corner .
The idea is for students to see climate change as not just an environmental issue , but also one of economic and racial justice .
Group leaders are under no impression @ @ @ @ @ @ @ devastation of climate change .
They are trying to prepare students to save their communities themselves .
“ I feel like some people don ’ t think it affects them.
” Now , Watkins is working with the group to expand its impact on the community .
The Creek Rangers have held workshops with local pastors about the realities of climate change .
Residents are starting to realize that some of the respiratory issues they face may be related to the mildew infesting their homes , a result of the constant flooding .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ like enough .

Illustration: Luke Waller for HuffPost
This story about climate change and education was produced as part of the nine-part series “Are We Ready? How Schools Are Preparing — and Not Preparing — Children for Climate Change,” reported by HuffPost and The Hechinger Report, a nonprofit, independent news organization focused on inequality and innovation in education.
The teens of Duck Hill, Mississippi, aren’t the teens you see on television protesting the impact of climate change. They’re not missing school to rally in the streets. But they know better than most how climate change is affecting the world.
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Their tiny, rural town of just over 1,000 people suffers from severe flooding, made worse by climate change. The Black side of town hasn’t had a proper drainage system for decades, either, leaving up to 15 inches of rainwater to linger on street corners for days after storms.
Or, at least, it never had an adequate system until recently, when the teens helped work on one.
Since 2018, a group of Duck Hill teens and community leaders have been tackling the climate-related problems that their state and local government neglect or haven’t had the capacity to fix. In the process, they have worked to change how their tiny town views climate change.
Right: A street in the town looked like after a storm before it had an updated drainage system. Left: Kids in Creek Rangers helping to build a green space where flooding once was. Courtesy Romona Williams
The group is called the ASEEDS Creek Rangers program ― ASEEDS stands for Achieving Sustainability Through Education and Economic Development Solutions ― and it includes about 20 kids between the ages of 12 in 18, led by local leaders and funded through grant money. Its goal is to build a more sustainable future in the area. But it has also managed to foster a new generation of climate experts in a state where politicians continue to push climate change denialism and where science education on the topic is decidedly light.
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The issue feels especially urgent now.
Flooding in the area periodically causes schools to cancel classes. If the flooding in the Delta region continues apace, students will only miss more and more days of school. At the same time, the COVID-19 crisis has revealed how utterly unprepared the community is for remote learning. A survey of the group’s students found that nearly 90% didn’t have reliable internet access or devices.
“There are issues small communities face, and a lot of it is rooted in structural racism,” says Romona Williams, volunteer executive director of Montgomery Citizens United for Prosperity, the umbrella group that developed the Creek Rangers program. “They don’t receive the funding that other areas receive.”
When Climate Disasters Are A Fact Of Life
Until joining Creek Rangers, many of the group’s members had accepted the floods and other extreme weather events, like tornadoes, as a fact of life. They didn’t see them as part of a larger, systemic crisis. Clawing to survive amid weather-related disasters had become normal.
They learned, through Creek Rangers, that it didn’t have to be.
“They don’t talk about that kind of stuff in school,” says 15-year-old Keyunna McCaskill, a member of the group.
“Mississippi is a climate-denying state. It’s a Trump state. There’s not a policy infrastructure in place, so we have to look at how we can empower small communities.” - Romona Williams, executive director of Montgomery Citizens United for Prosperity
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Adult leaders associated with the group first designed a system to fix the town’s drainage system, consulting with local experts like professors. A build-up of water would sit on street corners after storms, causing mosquito infestations. It would seep through the floorboards of homes, attracting snakes and mildew.
They designed a way to revamp the town’s antiquated drainage system, mitigating the effects of floods, in part through green infrastructure. A group of local men helped build the plan into action. Duck Hill is a poor, rural town, primarily composed of African American residents. The group tackled some of the issues that had long challenged political decision-makers. The youth got involved later on, helping to build out a green space on the town’s most problematic street corner.
“Mississippi is a climate-denying state. It’s a Trump state. There’s not a policy infrastructure in place, so we have to look at how we can empower small communities and the residents who live in those communities in order to build power,” says Williams.
When Williams first started working with students, she says they relayed feeling detached from the idea of climate change, which was mentioned as an aside in earth science or biology class. It was taught abstractly, as a scientific phenomenon that is happening — but not to people.
The students said they didn’t realize they could already see the consequences of climate change right outside their windows.
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“Before I was in Creek Rangers, climate change was the last thing on my mind,” said 16-year-old Mersie Watkins. “I never thought about it. I knew about it. But I never thought about it on a personal level and what it was doing to me.”
The idea is for students to see climate change as not just an environmental issue, but also one of economic and racial justice. Group leaders are under no impression that policymakers will save them from the devastation of climate change. They are trying to prepare students to save their communities themselves.
Indeed, Taylor notes that “more affluent communities have been working toward sustainability for decades.”
Through their participation in Creek Rangers, students travel to civil rights museums and conferences in between working on local sustainability projects and tackling a bespoke science and technology curriculum. Some participants participate in a larger youth leadership training institute. They’ve attended a National Geographic photo camp focused on how climate change affects Indigenous coastal communities.
“There is also a life-threatening aspect to this,” says Williams. “We’re being hit with tornadoes, the flooding is just unbelievable, and there’s no task force. There’s no action around why is this happening?”
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“I feel like some people don’t think it affects them.”
While COVID-19 has confined students around the country to their homes, some Mississippi kids would have likely stayed home in the last few months even without the pandemic. The area has recently faced an onslaught of flooding.
Watkins had long accepted the flooding as an inevitable part of her community. It had happened her whole life, making it so her family couldn’t leave the house after storms to go to the store.
Watkins joined Creek Rangers in 2018 through her grandmother, a local organizer and alderwoman. She says it was eye-opening.
In school, she says, teachers broadly tell students that climate change is “affecting people” all over the globe. But it didn’t feel real, “because those people have nothing to do with you,” says Watkins.
“Once you look at it from a perspective that it’s around you, and people you care about, and people you love … it makes you want to build something to make it better.”
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But since joining the program, Watkins has run into community members who don’t share her view. When she’s out in the community working on gardening projects, she’s been questioned about her interest in the group and the realities of climate change.
That started to shift once the group successfully built a system to stem the flooding. The Creek Rangers started to receive more respect after that, she said.
“Once you look at it from a perspective that it’s around you, and people you care about, and people you love … it makes you want to build something to make it better.” - Mersie Watkins, 16
Now, Watkins is working with the group to expand its impact on the community. The Creek Rangers have held workshops with local pastors about the realities of climate change. Residents are starting to realize that some of the respiratory issues they face may be related to the mildew infesting their homes, a result of the constant flooding. But it still doesn’t feel like enough.
“When it began, people didn’t really care what we was doing ― they always questioned it. When we would try to tell them, they didn’t really care, because for one, they didn’t know what climate change was,” says Watkins. “I feel like some people don’t think it affects them.”
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Building Hope
The group’s floodwater mitigation project took two years in all.
The first time it stormed after leaders had finished the project’s initial portion, they didn’t know if it would work. The rain pounded down with enormous force. They waited with bated breath to see if their efforts were in vain. They watched as the town’s main street turned into a river.
Then, within a half-hour, the water receded. The system had worked.
“It was relief. It was gratification. We were thankful. And the community, they just ... they just felt hope,” says Williams. “They knew that something had happened and something was different in their community now. Now, when it rains, they’re not all panicked.”
But the group’s work has just begun. Adult leaders in ASEEDS have developed a long-term climate resiliency plan for the town. They expect the plan to pass, and they hope it will be a model for small, rural towns across the country.
Before, the town’s residents knew things were happening to them; they just didn’t know why.
“But now our children know why it’s happening,” says Williams. “This is their future.”


huffpost--2020-05-24--Ex-Congressman Allen West Of Florida Injured In Motorcycle Crash

WACO , Texas ( AP ) — Former U.S. Rep. Allen West of Florida was injured in a motorcycle crash @ @ @ @ @ former congressman was in stable condition after having been airlifted to a hospital , according @ @ @ @ @ on West ’ s Facebook page .
The Facebook post said West was on his @ @ @ @ @ him off , causing him to collide with another motorcyclist .
West ’ s wife @ @ @ @ @ wrote on Facebook that the crash occurred outside Waco .
The Dallas Morning News reported @ @ @ @ @ Saturday morning at the Texas Capitol that was focused on reopening the state amid the @ @ @ @ @ Sen. Don Huffines told the newspaper West got in the accident on the way back @ @ @ @ @ , a Republican , moved from Florida to Texas after leaving Congress in 2013 .
@ @ @ @ @ once called for then-President Barack Obama ’ s impeachment .
West is running for chair @ @ @ @ @ Texas .

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WACO, Texas (AP) — Former U.S. Rep. Allen West of Florida was injured in a motorcycle crash Saturday in Texas.
The former congressman was in stable condition after having been airlifted to a hospital, according to a Saturday night post on West’s Facebook page.
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The Facebook post said West was on his motorcycle when a car cut him off, causing him to collide with another motorcyclist.
West’s wife, Angela Graham-West, earlier wrote on Facebook that the crash occurred outside Waco.
The Dallas Morning News reported that West attended a rally Saturday morning at the Texas Capitol that was focused on reopening the state amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Former state Sen. Don Huffines told the newspaper West got in the accident on the way back from the rally.
West, a Republican, moved from Florida to Texas after leaving Congress in 2013. He served one term and once called for then-President Barack Obama’s impeachment.
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huffpost--2020-05-24--The New York Times Fills Entire Cover With Names Of Coronavirus Victims In The U.S.

When readers across the country pick up a copy of the New York Times on Sunday , they will be confronted with an extraordinarily grim sight .
They will see the names and a peek into the lives of the people who died in the U.S. as a result of the coronavirus pandemic .
The nearly one thousand obituaries , which fill the entire front page , represent only an estimated 1 % of the death toll .
As of Saturday , more than 97,000 people in the U.S. had died from complications with COVID-19 .
The victims ’ stories @ @ @ @ @ @ @ across the country .
Simone Landon , the Times ’ graphics desk assistant editor , came up with the idea to honor the victims in a way that would allow readers to see the gravity of the pandemic ’ s impact in the country , according to the paper .
Landon told the Times that there was “ a little bit of a fatigue with the data ” on deaths in the U.S. , which is being tracked daily by Johns Hopkins University and followed closely by the media .
“ We knew @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Landon told the Times .
“ We knew that there should be some way to try to reckon with that number.
” The shortened obituaries are displayed one after the other and fill six tall columns that stretch across a majority of the Times ’ front page .
In a preview of the paper published Saturday , viewers can zoom in on each name to read about the victims ’ lives :

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When readers across the country pick up a copy of the New York Times on Sunday, they will be confronted with an extraordinarily grim sight.
They will see the names and a peek into the lives of the people who died in the U.S. as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. The nearly one thousand obituaries, which fill the entire front page, represent only an estimated 1% of the death toll.
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As of Saturday, more than 97,000 people in the U.S. had died from complications with COVID-19.
The front page of The New York Times for May 24, 2020 pic.twitter.com/d14JhFp4CP — The New York Times (@nytimes) May 24, 2020
The victims’ stories were pulled from obituaries published in newspapers across the country.
Simone Landon, the Times’ graphics desk assistant editor, came up with the idea to honor the victims in a way that would allow readers to see the gravity of the pandemic’s impact in the country, according to the paper.
Landon told the Times that there was “a little bit of a fatigue with the data” on deaths in the U.S., which is being tracked daily by Johns Hopkins University and followed closely by the media.
“We knew we were approaching this milestone,” Landon told the Times. “We knew that there should be some way to try to reckon with that number.”
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The shortened obituaries are displayed one after the other and fill six tall columns that stretch across a majority of the Times’ front page.
In a preview of the paper published Saturday, viewers can zoom in on each name to read about the victims’ lives:
“Lila Fenwick, 87, New York City, first black woman to graduate from Harvard Law School.”
“Mike Field, 59, Valley Stream, N.Y., first responder during the 9/11 attacks.”
“Jessica Beatriz Cortez, 32, Los Angeles, immigrated to the United States three years ago.”
With the obituaries, the Times reminds readers who these people are.


huffpost--2020-04-11--How Chaos Is The Only Sure Thing

How Chaos Is The Only Sure Thing

The book opens with this same idea that chaos can strike at any minute — Jordan trying to salvage his collection of fish after the 1906 earthquake hit San Francisco .
Our world right now feels like it was hit by an earthquake in the form of COVID-19 .
One minute we were going to work and the next minute we weren ’ t , and one minute we were sending our kids to school and the next minute we ’ re homeschooling them .
And for you , one minute you were about to go on a book tour @ @ @ @ @ @ @ When the news of the coronavirus started to bubble up did you think of Jordan during this time ?
Did you see the parallel ?
And then I didn ’ t think about him for years .
Then in my late 20s , I had just screwed up a bunch of stuff in my own life and I found myself in my own proverbial wreckage , personally and professionally ; I had left radio and I was trying to write fiction and I was really bad at it and I was lonely and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I was in a new place , I didn ’ t really have a community , and I was just alone , and lost .
I wanted to keep pining for this person who I really wanted to get back together with but was showing me no signs that he was going to ever take me back .
And I suddenly wondered , “ Am I being crazy or is this hope and this persistence the kind of faith you need that ultimately wins you , sails you through the storms , like @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” Well , you ’ re actually totally making me think about something differently right now , which is that I think when I went into writing about him I was sitting in this growing loss of this person , who is alive , and it was my fault , but I was staring at that loss , and in a way I couldn ’ t take my eyes off it , the shape of the loss , what was gone , how this person wasn ’ t even responding to jokes in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at the shape of the hole of the loss as it grew larger and larger in my life , and considering its contours and studying the loss , I was transfixed by it .
I had a similar moment as a kid .
When I was 10 years old , I had a job ironing my dad ’ s friend ’ s shirts — I don ’ t remember why or how I got this job , but I had it .
And one day I was ironing , and as all 10-year-olds @ @ @ @ @ @ @ thinking about space and the universe , and I was trying to figure out what happens when you get to the end of space .
I kept trying to think about how I could touch it , as if it were a wall , something substantive , and then I realized that there was no end and I almost passed out because I was trying to understand the concept of infinity and my little 10-year-old self couldn ’ t cope with it .
I was ironing and I almost burnt the shirt because @ @ @ @ @ @ @ right there made me be like , “ oh , there is no god.
” Like I had that kind of epiphany , where the universe was torn open .

This article is part of a series called “How to Human,” interviews with memoirists that explore how we tackle life’s alarms, marvels and bombshells.
One day Lulu Miller, the co-founder of the science podcast Invisibilia, was out birdwatching with her father. She was 7 years old and eye level with his “friendly belly,” when she blurted out one of those deep questions kids like to ask: “What is the meaning of life?” Under a hot summer sun, her father’s answer tore open her world. There was no meaning to life, he said. Everything was meaningless.
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So begins Miller’s origin story. That 7-year-old would grow up to become an award-winning science reporter with a mission to tell stories that give meaning to life, to investigate why we are here and how we live out our days. One such story was that of David Starr Jordan, a 19th century taxonomist who sought to bring order to the natural world. He spent decades trying to collect every species of fish, and over the years he amassed a shoal numbering in the thousands. But then the 1906 San Francisco earthquake hit, and his life’s work — stored in glass jars — fell to the ground and shattered. But instead of wallowing in his loss, he did the unexpected. He tried to put his collection back together. He looked chaos in the eye, and said, “I dare you.”
That’s where Miller picks up the story. In her new book, “Why Fish Don’t Exist,” which comes out on Tuesday, she dives deep into the story of a man who believed he could make sense of the chaotic world. She investigates how Jordan was able to overcome not only the loss of his life’s work, but the human loss of his children, his wife and his colleagues who all died too young. Jordan possesses a godlike level of resilience and Miller explores where it came from and how she could learn from him.
“Why Fish Don’t Exist,” strangely, could not have been better timed, publishing during a global pandemic that also seemingly came out of nowhere and upended millions — if not billions — of lives in unthinkable ways.
HuffPost caught up with Miller by phone, as she took a walk in her neighborhood in Chicago. This interview was condensed and edited for clarity.
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Where are you right now? What do you see?
The streets are empty, it’s completely empty because it’s pretty freezing and rainy right now. But I’m all bundled in my kick-ass giant coat and hat and I even see some bark and pine cones and the moss looks extra green because it’s that gray and rainy.
I feel like we should start our conversation with the topic of chaos. Your book is a study in how chaos strikes without warning, and with coronavirus striking in a similar fashion, it feels as though your book publication could not have been better timed. So thanks for writing a book about chaos!
You’re welcome, I really wanted to sell some books. Make it relevant.
The book opens with this same idea that chaos can strike at any minute — Jordan trying to salvage his collection of fish after the 1906 earthquake hit San Francisco. Our world right now feels like it was hit by an earthquake in the form of COVID-19. One minute we were going to work and the next minute we weren’t, and one minute we were sending our kids to school and the next minute we’re homeschooling them. And for you, one minute you were about to go on a book tour and the next it was canceled. When the news of the coronavirus started to bubble up did you think of Jordan during this time? Did you see the parallel?
So on one hand, I was so bummed and I was sulky and profoundly disappointed, but then the next step was like, “You don’t get to pout about this, when your book is about how to move forward in chaos ... You should never be surprised when chaos foils all your plans. That is, you have just written a book that maybe even gets a little preachy at the end about how to see the good in chaos, and if you can’t see the good in this moment you are the biggest hypocrite, you have spent 10 years thinking about this kind of moment.”
So I think I felt disappointed and then I immediately was like, “OK, what did you just try to teach yourself?” And I think I haven’t been as quick as I would have liked to recalibrate or move out of the paralyzed, frustrated zone, which also feels so petty in comparison to everything that is going on. I’m so lucky I’m safe, everyone I love is safe and well thus far, and I think each day that goes by I just appreciate that more.
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Anyway, so I think I’m actually authentically on the other side of that aspect but now what I’m trying to do is just think about like, okay, we are all in a huge moment, there’s so much uncertainty ahead, there’s so much uncertainty about what do we do to be a good worker, a good family member, a good citizen. So yeah, I’m trying to just think about some of the lessons of the book and how to apply them to my life.
OK, so for the purposes of the reader coming to this story, could you talk about the moment you came across Jordan and what it was like and what you thought about?
Yeah, so I was in my early 20s and it was totally random. He was basically a passing anecdote while I was getting a tour of the California Academy of Sciences, and the little detail was that this guy’s entire life’s work of fish specimens, fish collecting, discovering new species, ordering them, thousands and thousands of jars — a huge amount of it came down in the 1906 earthquake. Shattered, the fish were separated from the names. And as he stood there in all that wreckage, instead of just giving up, he invented this little new technique of sewing a label to a fish so that should another earthquake come, the names would never get separated.
And I don’t know, it just struck me as this little perfect emblem of human persistence and just the refusal to back down in the face of all these huge forces that will always do us in. When I first thought about it, I just was like, “Oh you fool, chaos will keep destroying you.” I don’t know what it was, I just thought he was pathetic. I thought he was an Icarus, I thought he was a fool.
And then I didn’t think about him for years. Then in my late 20s, I had just screwed up a bunch of stuff in my own life and I found myself in my own proverbial wreckage, personally and professionally; I had left radio and I was trying to write fiction and I was really bad at it and I was lonely and I screwed up a whole relationship and I was in a new place, I didn’t really have a community, and I was just alone, and lost. I wanted to keep pining for this person who I really wanted to get back together with but was showing me no signs that he was going to ever take me back. And I suddenly wondered, “Am I being crazy or is this hope and this persistence the kind of faith you need that ultimately wins you, sails you through the storms, like is it actually noble and beautiful?”
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And then I thought of this David Starr Jordan guy again and I was like, “I wonder what happened to that dude, because he is the most comic example of this, and did he end up a king with tons of kids and admirers or did he end up alone and poor and a fool?”
So then I set out to — not knowing what else to do — I set out to research his life, thinking I’d write a very short essay and get a little clarity or a little hint of what to do for myself. Then it just spiraled because he had such a weird tale and he was also a profoundly interesting person to study because he left behind so much to go through and he’s funny and he’s kind of evil and it just made him a wonderful person to obsessively research while I wasn’t sure what the heck to do with my life.
That’s such an interesting way to take solace in the wreckage of someone else’s life and figure them out. As if they could offer a map of the way out.
It’s like the journalist predilection; I think sometimes you go and see how other people are getting through similar questions or similar situations and it’s such a privilege to get to be able to do that for a living. But yeah, I was doing that with him for a while.
This brings me to another question. Jordan just loses so much, like there’s so much fire and loss. I was thinking this is actually a story about loss, and that loss, and perhaps tragedy, are other words for chaos. They help label and explain the unexplainable. That was something I took away from everything that kept happening to Jordan.
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Well, you’re actually totally making me think about something differently right now, which is that I think when I went into writing about him I was sitting in this growing loss of this person, who is alive, and it was my fault, but I was staring at that loss, and in a way I couldn’t take my eyes off it, the shape of the loss, what was gone, how this person wasn’t even responding to jokes in my head. I was just looking at the shape of the hole of the loss as it grew larger and larger in my life, and considering its contours and studying the loss, I was transfixed by it.
And then here is David Starr Jordan, this person who didn’t seem to look and seemed to move right on. I think in a weird way, like for as much as that man named things and ordered things, one thing he was really good at doing was not getting transfixed by his loss. Like the minute the lightning strikes, he doesn’t study the fire, the ashes, or wonder what went wrong. He just keeps going. He turns away, he turns to the future. And you see that time and time again, like the fire, the death of the wife, the earthquake, the death of the colleague.
Maybe loss is the one thing he doesn’t study and name and maybe that’s part of his trick, maybe that’s actually part of what he can teach us. I will sit around and consider my loss forever, like three years went by as I stared at it and tried to order it, and it’s one of the few things he wasn’t interested in looking at. For as much as he studied the world, loss was one of the few things he didn’t seem to consider.
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Let’s talk about Chapter 3. You step back from Jordan and write about your personal moment of chaos. You know that conceit where every superhero has an origin story, that moment in time that turns them into who they are? I feel like Chapter 3 is your superhero origin story. You describe a scene of birdwatching with your dad, and you’re 7 years old and out of nowhere you ask him about the meaning of life, and he tells you that everything is meaningless. And his answer unhinges you.
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Totally. Yeah, it did. I think I say it felt like a big feather comforter had just been ripped off the world. And that’s what it felt like, it felt like it was really shocking. There was no room for any magic. I was such a daddy’s girl, I believed him fully. It immediately just threw out the question of, “What are we all doing, like what is the point?”
As a little girl, it really frightened me. And I think a lot of my life has been centered on that conversation with him. The first job I had was working for Radiolab, and I loved that show because it was all about spirituality and magic, but all through science that showed that there might be weird mathematical cosmic justice, or there might be ways to connect. That conversation created some sort of pull in me that I keep trying to shove back into faith and say, “There is meaning, there is magic.”
I had a similar moment as a kid. When I was 10 years old, I had a job ironing my dad’s friend’s shirts — I don’t remember why or how I got this job, but I had it. And one day I was ironing, and as all 10-year-olds are wont to do, I was thinking about space and the universe, and I was trying to figure out what happens when you get to the end of space. I kept trying to think about how I could touch it, as if it were a wall, something substantive, and then I realized that there was no end and I almost passed out because I was trying to understand the concept of infinity and my little 10-year-old self couldn’t cope with it. I was ironing and I almost burnt the shirt because everything went black. And that moment right there made me be like, “oh, there is no god.” Like I had that kind of epiphany, where the universe was torn open.
Oh my god. That’s so vivid with the flatness of the thing you’re ironing and wondering about the edge. Wow, yeah. It is almost like, I remember later there was a Church of Latter-day Saints ad campaign that showed some little family mishap and then it would end with like, “Join the Church of Latter-day Saints and discover the meaning of life.” I remember being like, “So there is meaning.” And then I remembered what my dad told me and no, there isn’t, and so it felt like ... It made everything immediately feel — you described it so well — it’s like a terrifying pointlessness.
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There’s a part of Chapter 3 that gets into the cruelty of middle school for you and your sister, and you describe a lack of light. You talk about how there was no gleaming, no glittering, no stars. And you talk about temptation, but you never actually use the word suicide, and I wonder if you could speak to that. Was it a choice?
Oh, that’s interesting, did I not use the word?
I don’t think so.
No, I think you’re right. Yeah. I think you’re totally right. I don’t think I used the word. It’s something that I actually have kept very private until now. But I think that there is a part of me that thinks, when you see that word, everyone has their judgments about it. And I think I was trying the do the writing thing where it’s like, are you going to be someone who sees the word suicide and thinks “self-indulge” or thinks “call for attention” or thinks “pathology, unhealthy”? There were just all these dangerous places that that word can go.
Or I think maybe it’s because I’ve been afraid. I think a lot of my personality after that attempt when I was 16 has been built around having someone never guess that I did that. I just didn’t want to be associated with it, maybe. So to actually go in and write about it, I think I was just really interested in talking about what the sensation actually feels like and call it what you will. I think I was maybe interested more just in trying to describe it.
I think for me, to let myself really go back there and remember what it felt like and then subsequently what that thought feels like when it appears is just, that’s always been what’s hard for me about it, is that it doesn’t feel scary in the moment, it feels lustful, it feels delicious. And I think that’s what I was really interested in trying to convey, and then also come to terms with, what do you do when this thought feels delicious ... but what if some other part of you knows you do want to keep enduring, how do you navigate that and how do we contend with that thought?
And so I think I wanted to write about what it felt like without having to throw around a word that might just be such a hot word in people’s mind that it takes them to other directions and prevents them from just feeling the feeling they could actually connect to. Does that make sense?
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It makes so much sense. It gets at what you describe also in the book about something only coming into existence if it’s labeled, and that the word itself has so many connotations, and it doesn’t speak to the way it spoke to you. So the way you described it is much more personal and vivid to your experience and not to the word as a loaded cultural mine.
Yeah. And I think there was something in later years, really healing for me when I worked on Invisibilia where we talked about dark thoughts like it’s no big deal, like we all have them — getting over this instinct to pathologize them. And let’s shine light on them, not to downplay them, because they can be very dangerous, but let’s have a conversation where the reporter isn’t like, “So, person, troubled by dark thoughts.” Just instead like, “Yeah, I have them too, what do you do?”
What do you think Jordan would make of COVID-19? Like if he were to collect viruses instead of fish?
There’s this term called antifragile, have you heard that? It’s like something that’s fragile — so a plate, a ceramic plate, if the world is chaotic it’s going to break, and that’s going to be bad. But there are some things that are antifragile, which means chaos is really good for them and actually they thrive in chaos.


huffpost--2020-04-11--She’s A Furloughed Single Mom Of 3. The Utility Is Shutting Off Her Power Anyway.

PAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP via Getty Images High-voltage power lines in Memphis , Tennessee .
Toni worked for the Tennessee Valley Authority before being furloughed .
Now she may lose electricity at home .
She filed for unemployment almost immediately .
But , weeks later , the check hasn ’ t come and the bills keep mounting .
Across the country , utilities and states have enacted policies to stop service shut-offs for nonpayment .
As an employee of the federally owned power company that generates nearly all of Tennessee ’ s electricity , she figured the utilities that distribute that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ basically told me they ’ ll give me five extra days , and I ’ d accrue late fees , and if I couldn ’ t pay it they ’ d have to run it off , ” said Toni , who asked to keep her last name private for fear of drawing unwanted attention to her daughters .
“ They said if they let everyone not pay , they ’ d be losing money , and it wasn ’ t their problem.
” This is the stark reality for many Americans , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ South , whose utility providers operate outside the bounds of the state regulatory orders and corporate pledges to keep the power and heat on during a pandemic that requires anyone who can to stay home .
That ’ s why Toni is days from losing power even as friends in a neighboring town can check electricity off their list of concerns as bills stack up and savings dwindle .
Adding to the complexity is the fact that , in both cases , the TVA generates the actual electricity the utilities are selling .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ a $ 1 billion credit line to local power companies .
It also deferred payments in hopes of granting “ regulatory flexibility to allow local power companies to halt disconnection of electric service.
” “ When the utilities use the cover of local control without actually giving the public local control , you end up with a situation like this , ” Knisley said by phone Friday .
“ Where there ’ s a scattered response , you see some utilities implementing these policies and others telling customers and members they can ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it ’ d encourage some to abuse the system.
” Deflated , Knisley turned to the governor .
On Wednesday , more than two dozen nonprofits ― including Appalachian Voices and local chapters of the NAACP and the Sierra Club ― wrote a letter to Tennessee Gov .
Bill Lee ( R ) asking him to “ put the full weight of your administration behind protecting the public ’ s health and safety during this time of crisis ” and issue a statewide moratorium on all utility shutoffs .
“ By taking the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ offs and fees , you can address some of the burdens that are affecting the lives of everyday Tennesseans the most , ” the letter said .
“ Now more than ever , residents and businesses across the state need to know they will get the immediate assistance they require.
” There is scant national survey data .
In 2015 , the last year the federal Energy Information Administration polled residential energy consumers , 1 in 3 U.S. households reported struggling to keep up with electricity and heating bills .
When the Census @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Urban Development ’ s most recent American Housing Survey in 2017 , it found more than 18.4 million U.S. households ― roughly 15 % of the population ― received notices threatening to terminate utility service for nonpayment in the first three months of that year .
Of those , 1.2 million households ’ service was shut off .
Until she was furloughed , Toni said she donated $ 30 a month of her paycheck to Helping Hands of Dayton , a nonprofit that provides services to those in need .
She never thought @ @ @ @ @ @ @ need it .
But even there , the policies to help with utility bills require applications that take weeks for approval .

High-voltage power lines in Memphis, Tennessee. Toni worked for the Tennessee Valley Authority before being furloughed. Now she may lose electricity at home. PAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP via Getty Images
After she was furloughed from her job at a Tennessee Valley Authority nuclear plant three weeks ago, Toni burned through her savings stocking up on essentials: propane, toilet paper, shampoo and food.
The 38-year-old single mother had her two high schoolers and her 20-year-old daughter, home from college, to care for, and they needed enough to survive on as the novel coronavirus pandemic wreaked havoc across the country and brought the economy screeching to a stop.
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She filed for unemployment almost immediately. But, weeks later, the check hasn’t come and the bills keep mounting. Across the country, utilities and states have enacted policies to stop service shut-offs for nonpayment. As an employee of the federally owned power company that generates nearly all of Tennessee’s electricity, she figured the utilities that distribute that energy would follow suit.
Last week, she called the Dayton Electric Department, the municipal power distributor in her small town in central Tennessee, to let them know she’d be late on her bill. The response was unsparing, she told HuffPost on Friday evening.
“They basically told me they’ll give me five extra days, and I’d accrue late fees, and if I couldn’t pay it they’d have to run it off,” said Toni, who asked to keep her last name private for fear of drawing unwanted attention to her daughters. “They said if they let everyone not pay, they’d be losing money, and it wasn’t their problem.”
If she doesn’t come up with $236, plus $26 in late fees, the utility said, her power would be shut off Monday. It would have been Friday, but the city government was closed for Good Friday.
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If her unemployment check doesn’t come Saturday and she can’t muster the cash, the cost of getting the power back on will go up more. With the $65 reconnection fee, the total bill will come to $327.
“I’m hoping and praying my unemployment comes in tomorrow,” she said Friday. “It’s really stressful. I’m not going to lie, it doesn’t make you sleep good at night knowing that in a few days your kids are going to have the power off.”
Dayton Electric did not return a call Friday requesting comment.
Worshippers in Mount Juliet, Tennessee, gather for a drive-in church service on March 29 after Gov. Bill Lee (R) signed an executive order that prohibits social gatherings of 10 or more in response to the spread of coronavirus. Brett Carlsen via Getty Images
This is the stark reality for many Americans, particularly those in rural parts of the South, whose utility providers operate outside the bounds of the state regulatory orders and corporate pledges to keep the power and heat on during a pandemic that requires anyone who can to stay home.
In the Southeast, particularly in Tennessee, the electrical system dates back to the early 20th century, when the New Deal funded vast public power projects to electrify a poor region that private utilities, unable to turn a profit, simply left in the dark. In an ironic historical twist, that system now leaves millions at the mercy of small-town nickel-and-dimers.
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Tennessee’s Unique Situation
Like many states, the Tennessee Public Utility Commission directed power companies to stop disconnecting service to households that couldn’t afford their bills as the pandemic induced a wave of layoffs that shattered weekly jobless claims records for the past three weeks in a row.
But its March 31 order applied to just three for-profit, investor-owned electric companies. The vast majority of Tennessee is served by a decentralized network of public power providers that exists outside the state’s authority.
That’s why Toni is days from losing power even as friends in a neighboring town can check electricity off their list of concerns as bills stack up and savings dwindle. Adding to the complexity is the fact that, in both cases, the TVA generates the actual electricity the utilities are selling. On March 26, the TVA extended a $1 billion credit line to local power companies. It also deferred payments in hopes of granting “regulatory flexibility to allow local power companies to halt disconnection of electric service.”
“The strength of public power is a passionate commitment to serve people over balance sheets,” Jeff Lyash, the TVA’s chief executive, said in a statement. “This is perhaps more critical today than it has ever been.”
“Where there’s a scattered response, you see some utilities implementing these policies and others telling customers and members they can’t make exceptions in hard times or it’d encourage some to abuse the system.” - Bri Knisley, Appalachian Voices
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Seeking firmer assurances, advocates urged the Tennessee Valley Public Power Association, the consortium that represents the TVA’s local distributors, to call for a blanket moratorium on shutoffs. But the group refused, claiming it “would be intruding on local control to issue such a recommendation,” said Bri Knisley, the Tennessee coordinator at Appalachian Voices, a regional environmental and anti-poverty nonprofit.
“When the utilities use the cover of local control without actually giving the public local control, you end up with a situation like this,” Knisley said by phone Friday. “Where there’s a scattered response, you see some utilities implementing these policies and others telling customers and members they can’t make exceptions in hard times or it’d encourage some to abuse the system.”
Deflated, Knisley turned to the governor. On Wednesday, more than two dozen nonprofits ― including Appalachian Voices and local chapters of the NAACP and the Sierra Club ― wrote a letter to Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee (R) asking him to “put the full weight of your administration behind protecting the public’s health and safety during this time of crisis” and issue a statewide moratorium on all utility shutoffs.
“By taking the measures above to halt utility service shut offs and fees, you can address some of the burdens that are affecting the lives of everyday Tennesseans the most,” the letter said. “Now more than ever, residents and businesses across the state need to know they will get the immediate assistance they require.”
Such a move has precedent. In Mississippi, the state attorney general stepped in to expand the Public Service Commission’s powers to cover utilities “not ordinarily within its regulatory jurisdiction.” In North Carolina, the governor issued a similar order to cover the 26 rural electric co-ops that fell outside the state Utilities Commission’s March 19 ban on shutoffs.
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But on Thursday, Lee’s office told Knisley it was “receiving hundreds of advocacy letters,” so “it’s probably not reasonable for us to expect a response.” A spokesperson for the administration did not respond to a request for comment on Friday evening.
Nearly half the state, meanwhile, remains subject to disconnections, according to a map the Knoxville News Sentinel has kept updated on its website.
In The Dark
It’s difficult to know just how many Americans are struggling without electricity or heating right now.
There is scant national survey data. In 2015, the last year the federal Energy Information Administration polled residential energy consumers, 1 in 3 U.S. households reported struggling to keep up with electricity and heating bills. When the Census Bureau conducted the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s most recent American Housing Survey in 2017, it found more than 18.4 million U.S. households ― roughly 15% of the population ― received notices threatening to terminate utility service for nonpayment in the first three months of that year. Of those, 1.2 million households’ service was shut off.
Though most investor-owned utilities had vowed to stop disconnecting service, few agreed to reconnect households who lost power before the moratoriums took effect. In northeast Ohio, for example, the investor-owned giant FirstEnergy Corp. left hundreds of households without electricity weeks after it pledged to stop shutoffs, HuffPost reported last month.
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House Democrats proposed a nationwide moratorium on utility shutoffs last month as part of the $2.2 trillion stimulus bill that passed. But the provision was stripped from the Senate version. Sens. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) proposed legislation that could be included in the next aid package Congress considers.
But in rural towns like Dayton, draconian policies on utility shutoffs come with an added sting. People are charitable with their neighbors.
“We live in a small country town. Football’s big, softball’s big. We’re not overrun by meth or anything. We don’t have a lot of drugs or crime in our area,” Toni said. “We have a lot of people who help each other out.”
Until she was furloughed, Toni said she donated $30 a month of her paycheck to Helping Hands of Dayton, a nonprofit that provides services to those in need. She never thought of herself as someone who’d need it. But even there, the policies to help with utility bills require applications that take weeks for approval.
On Thursday, Toni was scrambling to buy herself more time. She offered to pay Dayton Electric her last $100, hoping she could pay down some of the bill and make the rest up later with her unemployment or federal stimulus check ― whichever one came first. The utility, she said, balked at the offer.
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“They labeled me as, like, ‘You’re one of the ones waiting on a stimulus check?’” she said. “I said, ’No, I work for TVA power. We’re furloughed. I don’t receive any assistance and I’m a single mom. I work. I own a home. It’s not just people who are low income.”
She sighed. “When the country closes down, it’s hard. You’re no different than nobody else. And, look: If I’m struggling, I’m sure there’s someone worse than me who’s really struggling. We should have compassion for one another.”


huffpost--2020-04-03--Legendary 'Lean On Me' Singer Bill Withers Dies

Bill Withers , who wrote and sang a string of soulful songs in the 1970s that have stood the test of time , including “ Lean On Me , ” “ Lovely Day ” and “ Ain ’ t No Sunshine , ” has died from heart complications , his family said in a statement to The Associated Press .
He was 81 .
The three-time Grammy Award winner , who withdrew from making music in the mid-1980s , died on Monday in Los Angeles , the statement said .
His death comes as the public has drawn inspiration from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with health care workers , choirs , artists and more posting their own renditions on “ Lean on Me ” to help get through the difficult times .
“ We are devastated by the loss of our beloved , devoted husband and father .
A solitary man with a heart-driven to connect to the world at large , with his poetry and music , he spoke honestly to people and connected them to each other , ” the family statement read .
“ As private a life as he lived close to intimate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ belongs to the world .
In this difficult time , we pray his music offers comfort and entertainment as fans hold tight to loved ones.
” “ Lean On Me , ” a paean to friendship , was performed at the inaugurations of both Barack Obama and Bill Clinton .
“ Ain ’ t No Sunshine ” and “ Lean on Me ” are among Rolling Stone ’ s list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time .
Withers , who overcame a childhood stutter , was born the last of six @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Slab Fork , West Virginia .
After his parents divorced when he was 3 , Withers was raised by his mother ’ s family in nearby Beckley .
He joined the Navy at 17 and spent nine years in the service as an aircraft mechanic installing toilets .
After his discharge , he moved to Los Angeles , worked at an aircraft parts factory , bought a guitar at a pawn shop and recorded demos of his tunes in hopes of landing a recording contract .
In 1971 , signed to Sussex Records @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , “ Just As I Am , ” with the legendary Booker T. Jones at the helm .
It had the hits “ Grandma ’ s Hands ” and “ Ain ’ t No Sunshine , ” which was inspired by the Jack Lemmon film “ Days of Wine and Roses.
” He was photographed on the cover , smiling and holding his lunch pail .
“ Ain ’ t No Sunshine ” was originally released as the B-side of his debut single , “ Harlem.
” But radio DJs flipped the disc @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 3 on the Billboard charts and spent a total of 16 weeks in the top 40 .
Withers went on to generate more hits a year later with the inspirational “ Lean On Me , ” the menacing “ Who Is He ( and What Is He to You ) ” and the slinky “ Use Me ” on his second album , “ Still Bill.
” Later would come the striking “ Lovely Day , ” co-written with Skip Scarborough and featuring Withers holding the word “ day ” for almost 19 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Of Us , ” co-written with Ralph MacDonald and William Salter .
His “ Live at Carnegie Hall ” in 1973 made Rolling Stone ’ s 50 Greatest Live Albums of All Time .
“ The hardest thing in songwriting is to be simple and yet profound .
And Bill seemed to understand , intrinsically and instinctively , how to do that , ” Sting said in “ Still Bill , ” a 2010 documentary of Withers .
But Withers ’ career when Sussex Records went bankrupt and he was scooped up by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ complete control over his music and chaffed when it was suggested he do an Elvis cover .
His new executives found Withers difficult .
None of his Columbia albums reached the Top 40 except for 1977 ’ s “ Menagerie , ” which produced “ Lovely Day.
” ( His hit duet with Grover Washington Jr. “ Just the Two of Us ” was on Washington ’ s label ) .
Withers ’ last album was 1985′s “ Watching You Watching Me.
” He was awarded Grammys as a songwriter for “ Ain @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and for “ Just The Two Of Us ” in 1981 .
In 1987 , Bill received his ninth Grammy nomination and third Grammy as a songwriter for the re-recording of the 1972 hit “ Lean On Me ” by Club Nouveau .
He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2015 by Stevie Wonder .
Withers thanked his wife as well as the R & B pioneers who helped his career like Ray Jackson , Al Bell and Booker T. Jones .
He also got in a few @ @ @ @ @ @ @ A & R stood for “ antagonistic and redundant.
” His music has been sampled and covered by such artists as BlackStreet ’ s “ No Diggity , ” Will Smith ’ s version of “ Just The Two Of Us , ” Black Eyed Peas ’ “ Bridging The Gap ” and Twista ’ s “ Sunshine.
” The song “ Lean on Me ” was the title theme of a 1989 movie starring Morgan Freeman .

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Bill Withers, who wrote and sang a string of soulful songs in the 1970s that have stood the test of time, including “ Lean On Me, ” “Lovely Day” and “Ain’t No Sunshine,” has died from heart complications, his family said in a statement to The Associated Press. He was 81.
The three-time Grammy Award winner, who withdrew from making music in the mid-1980s, died on Monday in Los Angeles, the statement said. His death comes as the public has drawn inspiration from his music during the coronavirus pandemic, with health care workers, choirs, artists and more posting their own renditions on “Lean on Me” to help get through the difficult times.
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“We are devastated by the loss of our beloved, devoted husband and father. A solitary man with a heart-driven to connect to the world at large, with his poetry and music, he spoke honestly to people and connected them to each other,” the family statement read. “As private a life as he lived close to intimate family and friends, his music forever belongs to the world. In this difficult time, we pray his music offers comfort and entertainment as fans hold tight to loved ones.”
Bill Withers with the PRS for Music Special International Award during the 62nd Annual Ivor Novello Music Awards at Grosvenor House in London. Ian West - PA Images via Getty Images
Withers’ songs during his brief career have become the soundtracks of countless engagements, weddings and backyard parties. They have powerful melodies and perfect grooves melded with a smooth voice that conveys honesty and complex emotions without vocal acrobatics.
“Lean On Me,” a paean to friendship, was performed at the inaugurations of both Barack Obama and Bill Clinton. “Ain’t No Sunshine” and “Lean on Me” are among Rolling Stone’s list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
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“He’s the last African-American Everyman,” musician and band leader Questlove told Rolling Stone in 2015. “Bill Withers is the closest thing black people have to a Bruce Springsteen.”
Withers, who overcame a childhood stutter, was born the last of six children in the coal mining town of Slab Fork, West Virginia. After his parents divorced when he was 3, Withers was raised by his mother’s family in nearby Beckley.
He joined the Navy at 17 and spent nine years in the service as an aircraft mechanic installing toilets. After his discharge, he moved to Los Angeles, worked at an aircraft parts factory, bought a guitar at a pawn shop and recorded demos of his tunes in hopes of landing a recording contract.
In 1971, signed to Sussex Records, he put out his first album, “Just As I Am,” with the legendary Booker T. Jones at the helm. It had the hits “Grandma’s Hands” and “Ain’t No Sunshine,” which was inspired by the Jack Lemmon film “Days of Wine and Roses.” He was photographed on the cover, smiling and holding his lunch pail.
Advertisement
“Ain’t No Sunshine” was originally released as the B-side of his debut single, “Harlem.” But radio DJs flipped the disc and the song climbed to No. 3 on the Billboard charts and spent a total of 16 weeks in the top 40.
Withers went on to generate more hits a year later with the inspirational “Lean On Me,” the menacing “Who Is He (and What Is He to You)” and the slinky “Use Me” on his second album, “Still Bill.”
Later would come the striking “ Lovely Day,” co-written with Skip Scarborough and featuring Withers holding the word “day” for almost 19 seconds, and “Just The Two Of Us,” co-written with Ralph MacDonald and William Salter. His “Live at Carnegie Hall” in 1973 made Rolling Stone’s 50 Greatest Live Albums of All Time.
“The hardest thing in songwriting is to be simple and yet profound. And Bill seemed to understand, intrinsically and instinctively, how to do that,” Sting said in “Still Bill,” a 2010 documentary of Withers.
But Withers’ career when Sussex Records went bankrupt and he was scooped up by Columbia Records. He no longer had complete control over his music and chaffed when it was suggested he do an Elvis cover. His new executives found Withers difficult.
Advertisement
None of his Columbia albums reached the Top 40 except for 1977’s “Menagerie,” which produced “Lovely Day.” (His hit duet with Grover Washington Jr. “Just the Two of Us” was on Washington’s label). Withers’ last album was 1985′s “Watching You Watching Me.”
Though his songs often dealt with relationships, Withers also wrote ones with social commentary, including “Better Off Dead” about an alcoholic’s suicide, and “I Can’t Write Left-Handed,” about an injured Vietnam War veteran.
He was awarded Grammys as a songwriter for “Ain’t No Sunshine” in 1971 and for “Just The Two Of Us” in 1981. In 1987, Bill received his ninth Grammy nomination and third Grammy as a songwriter for the re-recording of the 1972 hit “ Lean On Me” by Club Nouveau.
He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2015 by Stevie Wonder. Withers thanked his wife as well as the R&B pioneers who helped his career like Ray Jackson, Al Bell and Booker T. Jones. He also got in a few jabs at the record industry, saying A&R stood for “antagonistic and redundant.”
Advertisement
His music has been sampled and covered by such artists as BlackStreet’s “No Diggity,” Will Smith’s version of “ Just The Two Of Us, ” Black Eyed Peas’ “Bridging The Gap” and Twista’s “Sunshine.” The song “Lean on Me” was the title theme of a 1989 movie starring Morgan Freeman.
His songs are often used on the big screen, including “The Hangover,” “28 Days,” “American Beauty,” “Jerry Maguire,” “Crooklyn,” “Flight,” “Beauty Shop,” “The Secret Life of Pets” and “Flight.”
“I’m not a virtuoso, but I was able to write songs that people could identify with. I don’t think I’ve done bad for a guy from Slab Fork, West Virginia,” Withers told Rolling Stone in 2015.


huffpost--2020-03-31--Meghan Markle And Prince Harry's Royal Exit Is Complete

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry officially stepped back from their royal duties on Tuesday , the day they had agreed to complete their transition from working members of the monarchy .
This means that as of March 31 , the couple are free to pursue financial independence and split their time between the U.K. and North America ― or wherever else they choose .
They will begin paying rent on their home in Britain , Frogmore Cottage .
They will retain their patronages , but will no longer represent the queen , as was their stated preference .
While Tuesday @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and Duchess of Sussex completed a goodbye tour of sorts earlier this month in the U.K .
The couple dazzled crowds with their return to the country and nailed a photo-op so perfect it seemed straight out of Hollywood ( and perhaps foreshadowed their return to LA ) .
Harry said in January “ there was no other option ” than for the couple to leave the royal family .
In the less than two years since the couple ’ s wedding , Harry and Meghan repeatedly expressed dismay at the attention and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
In the weeks since their departure from the continent , Harry and Meghan moved from their temporary home on Vancouver Island and have settled in Los Angeles , Meghan ’ s hometown .
Her mother , Doria Ragland , still lives in the city .
On Monday , the duke and duchess announced plans to shutter their Sussex Royal Instagram account and website of the same name , while acknowledging that at the moment the world was in an “ extraordinarily fragile ” place .
“ As we all find the part @ @ @ @ @ @ @ shift and changing of habits , we are focusing this new chapter to understand how we can best contribute , ” the two said in a joint Instagram post .
“ While you may not see us here , the work continues.
” “ Thank you to this community - for the support , the inspiration and the shared commitment to the good in the world , ” they added .
“ We look forward to reconnecting with you soon .
You ’ ve been great !
” The Instagram account and website @ @ @ @ @ @ @ but they won ’ t be updated and comments on all Instagram posts have been shut off .
The change was not entirely unexpected , as the couple said in February that they wouldn ’ t use “ royal ” or “ SussexRoyal ” in their future branding .
The couple signed that post “ Harry and Meghan , ” hinting at how they ’ ll be addressed after their royal exit .
( The prince insisted that attendees at an event in February call him just “ Harry.
” ) The couple @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Sussex and Their Royal Highness titles , though they will stop using the latter .
Still to come are details about the couple ’ s new nonprofit organization .
A spokesperson previously said the focus will be on the couple ’ s core issues : “ the Commonwealth , community , youth empowerment and mental health , collectively.
” But for now , the Sussexes want people to focus on the most threatening issue at hand ― the coronavirus pandemic ― while they step away from the spotlight for a few months to @ @ @ @

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Meghan Markle and Prince Harry officially stepped back from their royal duties on Tuesday, the day they had agreed to complete their transition from working members of the monarchy.
This means that as of March 31, the couple are free to pursue financial independence and split their time between the U.K. and North America ― or wherever else they choose. They will begin paying rent on their home in Britain, Frogmore Cottage. They will retain their patronages, but will no longer represent the queen, as was their stated preference.
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While Tuesday marks their official departure, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex completed a goodbye tour of sorts earlier this month in the U.K. The couple dazzled crowds with their return to the country and nailed a photo-op so perfect it seemed straight out of Hollywood (and perhaps foreshadowed their return to LA).
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex attend the Endeavour Fund Awards at Mansion House on March 5 in London. Samir Hussein via Getty Images
Harry said in January “there was no other option” than for the couple to leave the royal family. In the less than two years since the couple’s wedding, Harry and Meghan repeatedly expressed dismay at the attention and harassment wielded by Britain’s tabloids.
In the weeks since their departure from the continent, Harry and Meghan moved from their temporary home on Vancouver Island and have settled in Los Angeles, Meghan’s hometown. Her mother, Doria Ragland, still lives in the city.
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On Monday, the duke and duchess announced plans to shutter their Sussex Royal Instagram account and website of the same name, while acknowledging that at the moment the world was in an “extraordinarily fragile” place.
“As we all find the part we are to play in this global shift and changing of habits, we are focusing this new chapter to understand how we can best contribute,” the two said in a joint Instagram post. “While you may not see us here, the work continues.”
“Thank you to this community - for the support, the inspiration and the shared commitment to the good in the world,” they added. “We look forward to reconnecting with you soon. You’ve been great!” The Instagram account and website will continue to exist for now, but they won’t be updated and comments on all Instagram posts have been shut off. The change was not entirely unexpected, as the couple said in February that they wouldn’t use “royal” or “SussexRoyal” in their future branding.
The couple signed that post “Harry and Meghan,” hinting at how they’ll be addressed after their royal exit. (The prince insisted that attendees at an event in February call him just “Harry.”)
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The couple still retain their Duke and Duchess of Sussex and Their Royal Highness titles, though they will stop using the latter.
Still to come are details about the couple’s new nonprofit organization. A spokesperson previously said the focus will be on the couple’s core issues: “the Commonwealth, community, youth empowerment and mental health, collectively.”
Disney confirmed Meghan’s first post-royal project: a voiceover role for its documentary “Elephant,” which will stream on Disney Plus April 3.
But for now, the Sussexes want people to focus on the most threatening issue at hand ― the coronavirus pandemic ― while they step away from the spotlight for a few months to be with family.
“The Duke and Duchess of Sussex would prefer that in the immediate weeks and months, the focus remains on the global response to COVID-19,” a spokesperson for the couple said Monday in a statement released by Buckingham Palace.
The spokesperson added that the couple “will spend the next few months focusing on their family and continuing to do what they can, safely and privately, to support and work with their pre-existing charitable commitments while developing their future non-profit organisation.”


huffpost--2020-06-02--Biden Promises 'Era Of Action' To Battle Racial Inequality

Biden also harshly criticized President Donald Trump for his inflammatory and frequently racist rhetoric following the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police officers , comparing the president to the worst villains of the civil rights era .
Floyd ’ s death has led to days of protests across the country , during which police departments have often deployed tear gas and violence .
“ Look , the presidency is a big job .
Nobody will get everything right .
And I won ’ t either , ” Biden said from Philadelphia ’ s City Hall .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ hometown of Wilmington , Delaware , in months because of the coronavirus pandemic .
The roughly 20-minute speech could provide something of a restart for Biden ’ s campaign , which has drawn limited attention following his victory in the Democratic primaries and the outbreak of the pandemic .
Biden , who has a steady lead over Trump in most public polling , used the speech to appeal to both his base ― Black and older voters ― while using rhetoric and unveiling policy proposals that could encourage younger voters who remain skeptical @ @ @ @ @ @ @ creating an equal justice system would take more than a single term in office , but said Congress should “ immediately ” pass “ real police reform ” ― including legislation to ban police chokeholds , legislation to improve oversight and accountability , a ban on transferring military weaponry to police departments and the creation of a uniform standard for when police officers can deploy force .
Biden called out the worst excesses of the protests and riots — saying there needed to be a distinction between “ legitimate peaceful protest and opportunistic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ more on the underlying causes of the unrest and on Trump ’ s response , specifically hammering the president for deploying tear gas on protesters to secure a photo-op on Monday night .
“ When peaceful protesters are dispersed by the order of the president from the doorstep of the people ’ s house , the White House — using tear gas and flash grenades — in order to stage a photo-op at a noble church , we can be forgiven for believing that the president is more interested in power than in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ former vice president has relied on Black voters since the start of his presidential run last year , and his support from Black elected officials and older Black voters remains solid .
But many younger Black voters remain skeptical of Biden , who has a history of racially insensitive remarks and has supported laws widely seen as increasing mass incarceration .
“ Joe Biden ’ s campaign made it clear that they stand with the rioters , the people burning businesses in minority communities and causing mayhem , by donating to post bail @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Pierson , a senior adviser to the Trump campaign .
“ He has obviously made the crass political calculation that unrest in America is a benefit to his candidacy.
” Biden peppered the speech with references designed to strike a chord with baby boomers and older Americans : He invoked the assassinations of John F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr. as setbacks toward progress , and he compared Trump to Bull Connor , perhaps the most famous racist law enforcement official in U.S. history .
At the same time , however , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that went beyond his standard rhetoric portraying Trump as an aberration .
Instead , he sounded more like his former boss , Barack Obama , who often portrayed American progress as the result of a constant push and pull .
“ I wish I could say this hate began with Donald Trump and will end with him .
It didn ’ t and it won ’ t , ” Biden said .
“ American history isn ’ t a fairytale with a guaranteed happy ending .
The battle for the soul of this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pull for more than 240 years .
A tug of war between the American ideal that we are all created equal and the harsh reality that racism has long torn us apart.
” This rhetorical shift could appeal more to younger voters and progressives who are sometimes skeptical of Biden and are more likely to see Trump as the culmination of a corrupt and failing American system that requires sweeping reform ― not just a problem that can be solved by a single election .

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Former Vice President Joe Biden on Monday promised an “era of action” to battle racial inequality, including racism in the criminal justice system, and called for Congress and local governments to immediately move to reform police departments and tactics.
Biden also harshly criticized President Donald Trump for his inflammatory and frequently racist rhetoric following the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police officers, comparing the president to the worst villains of the civil rights era. Floyd’s death has led to days of protests across the country, during which police departments have often deployed tear gas and violence.
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“Look, the presidency is a big job. Nobody will get everything right. And I won’t either,” Biden said from Philadelphia’s City Hall. It was his first time leaving his hometown of Wilmington, Delaware, in months because of the coronavirus pandemic.
“But I promise you this: I won’t traffic in fear and division,” he added. “I won’t fan the flames of hate. I will seek to heal the racial wounds that have long plagued this country — not use them for political gain.”
The roughly 20-minute speech could provide something of a restart for Biden’s campaign, which has drawn limited attention following his victory in the Democratic primaries and the outbreak of the pandemic. Biden, who has a steady lead over Trump in most public polling, used the speech to appeal to both his base ― Black and older voters ― while using rhetoric and unveiling policy proposals that could encourage younger voters who remain skeptical of his candidacy.
He acknowledged that creating an equal justice system would take more than a single term in office, but said Congress should “immediately” pass “real police reform” ― including legislation to ban police chokeholds, legislation to improve oversight and accountability, a ban on transferring military weaponry to police departments and the creation of a uniform standard for when police officers can deploy force.
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“Let us vow to make this, at last, an era of action to reverse systemic racism with long overdue and concrete changes,” Biden said. “No more excuses. No more delays.”
So far, Congress has taken little action in response to Floyd’s death and the resulting protests.
Biden also said “every police department in the country” should review its hiring and training processes, and reiterated his call for a national police oversight commission.
“More police officers meet the highest standards of their profession,” he said. “All the more reason why bad cops should be dealt with severely and swiftly.”
Former Vice President Joe Biden speaking in Philadelphia on Tuesday. He called for Congress and local governments to immediately move to reform police departments and tactics. AP Photo/Matt Rourke
Biden called out the worst excesses of the protests and riots — saying there needed to be a distinction between “legitimate peaceful protest and opportunistic violent destruction” — but he focused more on the underlying causes of the unrest and on Trump’s response, specifically hammering the president for deploying tear gas on protesters to secure a photo-op on Monday night.
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“When peaceful protesters are dispersed by the order of the president from the doorstep of the people’s house, the White House — using tear gas and flash grenades — in order to stage a photo-op at a noble church, we can be forgiven for believing that the president is more interested in power than in principle,” Biden said.
The former vice president has relied on Black voters since the start of his presidential run last year, and his support from Black elected officials and older Black voters remains solid. But many younger Black voters remain skeptical of Biden, who has a history of racially insensitive remarks and has supported laws widely seen as increasing mass incarceration.
The Trump campaign has long sought to highlight those issues, hoping to dampen Black voters’ enthusiasm for Biden. Trump has a long history of racist statements and holds little appeal for the overwhelming majority of Black voters.
“Joe Biden’s campaign made it clear that they stand with the rioters, the people burning businesses in minority communities and causing mayhem, by donating to post bail for those arrested,” said Katrina Pierson, a senior adviser to the Trump campaign. “He has obviously made the crass political calculation that unrest in America is a benefit to his candidacy.”
Biden peppered the speech with references designed to strike a chord with baby boomers and older Americans: He invoked the assassinations of John F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr. as setbacks toward progress, and he compared Trump to Bull Connor, perhaps the most famous racist law enforcement official in U.S. history.
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“American history isn’t a fairytale with a guaranteed happy ending. The battle for the soul of this nation has been a constant push and pull for more than 240 years.” - former Vice President Joe Biden
At the same time, however, Biden framed these events in a way that went beyond his standard rhetoric portraying Trump as an aberration. Instead, he sounded more like his former boss, Barack Obama, who often portrayed American progress as the result of a constant push and pull.
“I wish I could say this hate began with Donald Trump and will end with him. It didn’t and it won’t,” Biden said. “American history isn’t a fairytale with a guaranteed happy ending. The battle for the soul of this nation has been a constant push and pull for more than 240 years. A tug of war between the American ideal that we are all created equal and the harsh reality that racism has long torn us apart.”
“The honest truth is both elements are part of the American character,” he concluded.
This rhetorical shift could appeal more to younger voters and progressives who are sometimes skeptical of Biden and are more likely to see Trump as the culmination of a corrupt and failing American system that requires sweeping reform ― not just a problem that can be solved by a single election.
Former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julián Castro, who made police reform a top issue during his unsuccessful bid for the Democratic presidential nomination, finally endorsed Biden on Tuesday, citing the former vice president’s recognition of “the urgent need for real reform to address our broken policing system.”
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Joe Biden recognizes the urgent need for real reform to address our broken policing system.
I’m proud to support him, and I look forward to seeing these reforms become law, so that what happened to George Floyd never happens again. pic.twitter.com/MKcOCk526Z — Julián Castro (@JulianCastro) June 2, 2020
Biden also acknowledged the massive economic pain caused by the coronavirus with a call for “economic justice.” (The unemployment rate now officially stands at 14%, but is likely higher.)
“These last few months, we have seen America’s true heroes. The health care workers, the nurses, delivery truck drivers, grocery store workers,” he said. “But we need to do more than praise them. We need to pay them.”
Compared to his proposals on criminal justice reform, however, Biden had little new information to offer on economic policy. He merely repeated his standard call for the expansion of Obamacare. (In recent months, Biden has adopted some left-leaning economic policies he had avoided during the primary, including a plan to wipe out substantial amounts of student debt.)
The speech, which was carried live on several cable news channels, was Biden’s highest-profile public appearance in months. It’s unclear if the Biden campaign — or the news media — will view this as the beginning of a new and more active phase of his presidential bid.


huffpost--2020-06-02--Demonstrations, Violence Engulf Cities After Trump Threatens To Send In Troops

In New York City , nonviolent demonstrations were punctuated by people smashing storefront windows near Rockefeller Center and breaching the doors into the storied Macy ’ s store on 34th Street , littering parts of Manhattan with broken glass .
A vehicle plowed through a group of law enforcement officers at a demonstration in Buffalo , injuring at least two .
Demonstrations erupted from Philadelphia , where hundreds of protesters spilled onto a highway in the heart of the city , to Atlanta , where police fired tear gas at demonstrators , to Nashville , where more than 60 National @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at the request of peaceful protesters who had gathered in front of Tennessee ’ s state Capitol to honor George Floyd .
Bystander Sean Jones , who watched as people ransacked luxury stores in Manhattan ’ s chic Soho neighborhood , explained the destruction this way : “ People are doing this so next time , before they think about trying to kill another black person , they ’ re going to be like , ’ Damn , we don ’ t want them out here doing this ... again.
’ ” The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the same day Floyd ’ s brother made an impassioned plea for peace at the location where a white police officer put his knee on the handcuffed black man ’ s neck until he stopped breathing last week .
An officer was shot shortly before midnight near the Circus Circus casino in Las Vegas .
Police had no immediate word on the officer ’ s condition .
Four officers were shot in St. Louis , Missouri , where police said they were expected to recover .
Emerging after two days out of public @ @ @ @ @ @ @ House Rose Garden to deploy “ thousands and thousands ” of U.S. troops .
Then he made a surprise walk across Lafayette Park to a house of worship known as “ The Church of the Presidents.
” “ The president just used a Bible and one of the churches of my diocese as a backdrop for a message antithetical to the teachings of Jesus and everything that our church stands for , ” she said .
For nearly a week since Floyd ’ s death , largely peaceful protests by day have turned @ @ @ @ @ @ @ frustration that after years of seeking reforms , minorities still suffer and die in police custody .
With so many aspects of society and the economy disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic , people are demanding fundamental changes , nationwide .
A military deployment by Trump to U.S. states would mark a stunning federal intervention rarely seen in modern American history .
It drew comparisons to 1968 , when Richard Nixon ran as the law-and-order candidate in the aftermath of riots following the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. Five months before Election Day @ @ @ @ @ @ @ would stake his reelection efforts on convincing voters that his strong-arm approach was warranted to quell the most intense civil unrest since the 1960s .
He made little effort to address the grievances of black Americans and others outraged by Floyd ’ s death and the scourge of police brutality , undermining what his campaign had hoped would be increased appeal to African American voters .
The scene in and around the White House appeared to be carefully orchestrated .
As the crowd of protesters grew , Attorney General William Barr arrived in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ demonstrations and the swarm of law enforcement .
Once his path was cleared , Trump , who rarely attends church , then walked through the park and held up a Bible , posing for photos with an all-white group of advisors .
Federal law permits presidents to dispatch the military into states to suppress an insurrection or if a state is defying federal law , legal experts said .
But officials in New York and other states asserted that the president does not have a unilateral right to send in troops against the @ @ @ @ @

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WASHINGTON (AP) — Hours after President Donald Trump posed with a Bible and vowed to deploy the military to “dominate the streets,” American cities were engulfed in more violence and destruction, overshadowing peaceful protests demanding justice after generations of racism.
In New York City, nonviolent demonstrations were punctuated by people smashing storefront windows near Rockefeller Center and breaching the doors into the storied Macy’s store on 34th Street, littering parts of Manhattan with broken glass. A vehicle plowed through a group of law enforcement officers at a demonstration in Buffalo, injuring at least two.
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Demonstrations erupted from Philadelphia, where hundreds of protesters spilled onto a highway in the heart of the city, to Atlanta, where police fired tear gas at demonstrators, to Nashville, where more than 60 National Guard soldiers put down their riot shields at the request of peaceful protesters who had gathered in front of Tennessee’s state Capitol to honor George Floyd.
Bystander Sean Jones, who watched as people ransacked luxury stores in Manhattan’s chic Soho neighborhood, explained the destruction this way: “People are doing this so next time, before they think about trying to kill another black person, they’re going to be like, ’Damn, we don’t want them out here doing this ... again.’”
Protesters march across the Brooklyn Bridge as part of a solidarity rally calling for justice over the death of George Floyd on June 1, 2020, in the Brooklyn borough of New York. ASSOCIATED PRESS
The unrest in Minneapolis appeared to stabilize on the same day Floyd’s brother made an impassioned plea for peace at the location where a white police officer put his knee on the handcuffed black man’s neck until he stopped breathing last week.
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The death toll from the unrest began to mount, including two people killed in a Chicago suburb. The police chief in Louisville was fired after a beloved restaurant owner was killed by police and National Guard enforcing a curfew.
An officer was shot shortly before midnight near the Circus Circus casino in Las Vegas. Police had no immediate word on the officer’s condition. Four officers were shot in St. Louis, Missouri, where police said they were expected to recover.
Trump, meanwhile, portrayed himself as a hard-nosed, law-and-order president, with police under federal command forcing back peaceful demonstrators with tear gas so he could pose with a Bible outside a damaged church.
Emerging after two days out of public view, he threatened from the White House Rose Garden to deploy “thousands and thousands” of U.S. troops. Then he made a surprise walk across Lafayette Park to a house of worship known as “The Church of the Presidents.”
The photo op was condemned by Episcopal Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde.
“The president just used a Bible and one of the churches of my diocese as a backdrop for a message antithetical to the teachings of Jesus and everything that our church stands for,” she said.
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Police stand in formation at the entrance to Fremont Street Experience on June 1, 2020, in downtown Las Vegas. ASSOCIATED PRESS
For nearly a week since Floyd’s death, largely peaceful protests by day have turned to chaos at night. Many express frustration that after years of seeking reforms, minorities still suffer and die in police custody. With so many aspects of society and the economy disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic, people are demanding fundamental changes, nationwide.
“We have been sitting on a powder keg for some time and it has burst,” Philadelphia Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw said.
The president, seeking his second term in office, vowed to use more force to stop the violence.
If governors don’t deploy the National Guard in sufficient numbers to “dominate the streets,” Trump said, the U.S. military would step in to “quickly solve the problem for them.”
“We have the greatest country in the world,” the president declared. “We’re going to keep it safe.”
As Trump spoke, tear gas canisters could be heard exploding.
A military deployment by Trump to U.S. states would mark a stunning federal intervention rarely seen in modern American history. It drew comparisons to 1968, when Richard Nixon ran as the law-and-order candidate in the aftermath of riots following the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.
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Minutes before Trump began speaking, police and National Guard soldiers began aggressively removing hundreds of peaceful protesters from the Lafayette Park, across the street from the White House, where they were chanting against police brutality and Floyd’s death.
Five months before Election Day, the president made clear that he would stake his reelection efforts on convincing voters that his strong-arm approach was warranted to quell the most intense civil unrest since the 1960s. He made little effort to address the grievances of black Americans and others outraged by Floyd’s death and the scourge of police brutality, undermining what his campaign had hoped would be increased appeal to African American voters.
The scene in and around the White House appeared to be carefully orchestrated. As the crowd of protesters grew, Attorney General William Barr arrived in Lafayette Park to look over at the demonstrations and the swarm of law enforcement. Once his path was cleared, Trump, who rarely attends church, then walked through the park and held up a Bible, posing for photos with an all-white group of advisors.
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Trump “used the military to push out a peaceful protest so he could have a photo op at a church.”
Federal law permits presidents to dispatch the military into states to suppress an insurrection or if a state is defying federal law, legal experts said. But officials in New York and other states asserted that the president does not have a unilateral right to send in troops against the will of local governments.
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Earlier Monday, Trump told the nation’s governors in a video conference that they “look like fools” for not deploying even more National Guard troops. “Most of you are weak,” he said.
“You’ve got to arrest people, you have to track people, you have to put them in jail for 10 years and you’ll never see this stuff again,” Trump said.
Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, a Democrat, dismissed Trump’s comments as the “rantings of an insecure man trying to look strong after building his entire political career on racism.”
Former Vice President Joe Biden, the Democratic presidential candidate, vowed to address institutional racism in his first 100 days in office. He met in person with black leaders in Delaware and also held a virtual meeting with big-city mayors.
Biden said hate emerges “when you have somebody in power who breathes oxygen into the hate.”
More than 5,600 people nationwide have been arrested over the past week for such offenses as stealing, blocking highways and breaking curfew, according to a count by The Associated Press.
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