(2020-04-07). China must step up on African debt relief amid coronavirus pandemic — Ghana. rt.com 
China must do more to help ease the debt burden of African countries facing economic calamity from the coronavirus pandemic, Ghana's finance minister said. Africa accounts for just a fraction of global cases of the disease, but the continent's economies are expected to contract, putting about 20 million jobs at risk. | "My feeling is that China has to come on stronger," Ken Ofori-Atta said during a conversation on Monday with Masood Ahmed, president of the Washington-based Center for Global Development. "African debt to China is $145 billion or so, over $8 billion of payments is required this year… So that n…
(2020-04-07). Preserving the legacy of the townsite of Negro Bar, Alta California established in 1849. indybay.org Genesis 15: 12-14 speaks of a people enslaved and afflicted for 400 years. For 400 years people of Pan African Ancestry have been enslaved and afflicted throughout the United States of America. Rancho Rio de Los Americans begins to share the legacy along the American River Parkway.
(2020-04-07). COVID-19 pandemic threatens millions in war-torn Libya and Syria. wsws.org Imperialist wars and proxy conflicts costing hundreds of thousands of lives have destroyed infrastructure critical to fight the spread of coronavirus.
(2020-04-07). Mandatory online classes not accessible for millions in Italy: Communist Youth. peoplesdispatch.org Italy's Communist Youth Front (FGC) has stated that the Italian government's decision to start compulsory online classes for students during the COVID-19 lockdown will exclude millions who do not have internet access. On April 6, Monday, the council of ministers, including education minister Lucia Azzolina, approved a new school decree making online teaching mandatory. | FGC argued that the decree formalizes a model of education which discriminates against the children of workers. According to Italian National Institute of Statistics (ISTAT) data, one in three families in the country does not own a computer or ta…
(2020-04-07). Deaths of Inequality: AOC on Black and Latinx Communities at Epicenter of Epicenter of the Pandemic. democracynow.org 
As COVID-19 deaths spike in African-American and immigrant communities, almost a third of New York City's infections are in Queens, one of the most diverse places in the world, and many in the hardest-hit neighborhoods are undocumented and working-class. We speak with Congressmember Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who represents the neighborhoods at the epicenter of the epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic, about how the Trump administration's response to the pandemic is causing "deaths of incompetence," "deaths of science denial" and "deaths of inequality."
(2020-04-07). African Americans Have Contracted and Died of COVID-19 at an Alarming Rate. truthout.org The coronavirus entered Milwaukee from a white, affluent suburb. Then it took root in the city's black community and erupted. | As public health officials watched cases rise in March, too many in the community shrugged off warnings. Rumors and conspiracy theories proliferated on social media, pushing the
(2020-04-06). Headlines for April 6, 2020. democracynow.org Coronavirus Cases Surge in U.S., Surgeon General Warns of "Pearl Harbor Moment" | , Gov. Cuomo Slashes Medicaid as New York Struggles to Get Handle on COVID-19 Cases | , Black Communities Hit Disproportionately Hard by Coronavirus , Coronavirus Cases Appear to Level Off in Parts of Europe, But Death Tolls Remain High | , Boris Johnson Hospitalized for Acute Coronavirus Symptoms | , Japan's Shinzo Abe to Declare Emergency; Filipino Police Kills Man Who Flouted Coronavirus Rules, Low-Paid Garment Workers in Bangladesh Face Mass Unemployment , Former Prime Ministers of Somalia and Libya Die from COVID-19, Complaint…
(2020-04-06). Morocco releases over 5,600 incarcerated people amid COVID-19 threat in prisons. peoplesdispatch.org Several human rights groups and organizations had appealed to the king for the release of all political prisoners and detainees, a large number of whom were part of the popular Rif protests in Morocco.
(2020-04-06). 'For Life' and Black incarceration; The twin meanings of 'Twisty'. peoplesworld.org 
The best network series in what might be a coronavirus-abbreviated season is ABC's For Life, a combination prison/courtroom drama about an innocent African-American inmate sentenced to life imprisonment for being a drug kingpin. The series is based on the true story of Issac Wright Jr., a New Jersey inmate who used his time in prison …
(2020-04-06). The COVID-19 pandemic and the African American Nation. fightbacknews.org San José, CA – Much of the day-to-day news coverage on the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States has been on the plight of New York City, which has been the hardest hit to date. With more than 8 million people, NYC is the largest city in the United States, but the number of COVID-19 infections, at more than 63,000, is more than any other entire country in the world except for the United States, Spain, Italy, Germany, France and China. The death toll of more than 2500 is more than every other country in the world except for Italy, Spain, the United States, France, the United Kingdom, Iran and China. | Without try…
(2020-04-04). Human Development: Will It End Soon? dissidentvoice.org 
Our species—Homo sapiens sapiens—originated in Africa about 40,000 to 130,000 years ago. Even before 130,000 years ago our ancestors were exposed to certain stimuli—from other members of our species, and from the physical surround—and engaged in certain behaviors—especially behaviors related to the acquisition of sustenance, such as gathering, hunting, and even scavenging. Because both occurred …
(2020-04-03). Protect Immigrant Communities: Fear Mounts of Deadly COVID-19 Outbreak in U.S. Border Camps, ICE Jails. democracynow.org 
The Congressional Hispanic Caucus has joined thousands of medical professionals and immigration rights groups to demand that Immigration and Customs Enforcement release all prisoners from immigration jails as the coronavirus continues to spread. Meanwhile, immigration advocates are working to prepare crowded encampments of asylum seekers across the U.S.-Mexico border for a potentially catastrophic outbreak of COVID-19. Since the implementation of the Trump administration's "Remain in Mexico" policy, tens of thousands of asylum seekers from regions like Central America and Africa have been stranded in Mexican bord…
(2020-04-03). Mauritius Leaks Expose Exploitation of African Nations. projectcensored.org In August 2019, the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists announced that businesses have used Mauritius as a tax shelter from 1992 to the present. Mauritius originally set up a series…
(2020-04-03). International JUULs: E-Cigarette Giant Courts Foreign Governments. projectcensored.org Since coming under major scrutiny for many marketing scandals, leading e-cigarette company JUUL has begun looking to enter new markets in Europe, Middle East, Africa, South America, and Asia. JUUL,…
(2020-04-03). Editorial from Zimbabwe praises U.N. call to end sanctions. workers.org The Herald, Zimbabwe's largest newspaper in Harare, the capital, published the following editorial on March 27 commenting on the COVID-19 pandemic and sanctions. With the coronavirus pandemic escalating every second and reaching unprecedented levels globally, it is no time to play political games with people's lives. The big brother mentality . . . |
(2020-04-03). Coronavirus restrictions hamper aid access for Sudanese in need. news.un.org The United Nations and its partners are putting in place alternative plans to ensure the continuity of humanitarian assistance in Sudan, as measures taken by the Government to prevent the spread of COVID-19 are having an impact on aid access, deliveries and services.
(2020-04-03). Amazon executives conspired to smear fired worker who led protest over Covid-19 safety conditions. rt.com 
Amazon's top lawyer crafted a strategy to scapegoat the man who organized a protest at a New York warehouse, calling the African-American ex-employee 'not smart, or articulate.' President Obama's ex-spokesman helped carry it out. | Chris Smalls was fired on Monday, after he led up to 50 of his colleagues at a Staten Island warehouse to walk out in protest over what they described as unsafe working conditions at the mammoth facility, including the lack of protective gear for the workers. A number of political and media figures, including Democrat presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont), condemned…
(2020-04-03). Uganda's 'Kill the Gays' Bill and Chick-Fil-A. projectcensored.org In 2014 Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni signed an Anti-Homosexuality bill which criminalized homosexuality and any person who keeps a place of any kind for purposes of homosexuality, as well as…
(2020-04-02). Burkina Faso crisis and COVID-19 concerns highlight pressure on Sahel food security. news.un.org Food insecurity levels in the Sahel region are "spiralling out of control", the World Food Programme (WFP) said on Thursday, as it expressed concerns about the potential impact on humanitarian supply chains because of restrictions imposed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
(2020-04-02). FROM THE FIELD: Sunny days power a better life for displaced Nigerians. news.un.org Water boreholes powered by solar energy are helping to improve life for Nigerians displaced by conflict, according to the UN's International Organization for Migration (IOM).
(2020-04-02). COVID-19 Lays Bare Neoliberalism's Failure In Sudan. therealnews.com 
The failure of neoliberalism in addressing the coronavirus crisis is not limited to Sudan. It is a global failure.
(2020-03-18). [Research Paper] A phase 1b randomized study of the safety and immunological responses to vaccination with H4:IC31, H56:IC31, and BCG revaccination in Mycobacterium tuberculosis-uninfected adolescents in Cape Town, South Africa. thelancet.com BCG revaccination administered as a single dose ID and both H4: IC31 and H56: IC31 administered as 2 doses IM had acceptable safety profiles in healthy, QFT-negative, previously BCG-vaccinated adolescents. Characterization of the assays and the immunogenicity of these vaccines may help to identify valuable markers of protection for upcoming immune correlates analyses of C-040-404 and future TB vaccine efficacy trials.
(2020-03-16). [Comment] Preparedness is essential for malaria-endemic regions during the COVID-19 pandemic. thelancet.com The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic that first emerged in Wuhan in China's Hubei province1 has quickly spread to the rest of China and many other countries. Within 3 months, more than 125‚Äà000 people have been infected and the death toll had reached over 4600 worldwide on March 12, 2020.2 In an attempt to contain the virus, the Chinese Government has made unprecedented efforts and invested enormous resources and these containment efforts have stemmed the spread of the disease.3 As of March 12, 2020, malaria-endemic regions in Africa have reported a few imported COVID-19 cases inclu…
(2020-03-11). [Correspondence] Adoption of COVID-19 triage strategies for low-income settings. thelancet.com Despite major advances in epidemic preparedness, Africa remains uniquely susceptible to novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). According to the Infectious Disease Vulnerability Index,1 22 of the 25 countries most susceptible to an infectious disease outbreak are in Africa. The high prevalence of HIV, tuberculosis, and other pathogens might potentiate the severity of COVID-19 and contribute to diagnostic uncertainty. Health-care systems and human resources are already spread thin. And although the young age of the population (with more than half aged younger than 20 years) might prove protective, it also means…
(2020-03-04). [Commentary] We all progress through progress towards gender equality. thelancet.com Ubuntu — often translated as "I am because we are" — is an African humanist philosophy asserting that we are all interconnected and derive our humanity from each other [1]. It follows that we progress through the progress of others. Archbishop Desmond Tutu put it this way [2]: "We think of ourselves far too frequently as just individuals, separated from one another, whereas you are connected and what you do affects the whole world. When you do well, it spreads out; it is for the whole of humanity."
(2020-03-03). [Research Paper] Violence-related knife injuries in a UK city; epidemiology and impact on secondary care resources. thelancet.com Knife injuries constitute 12 ∑9% of trauma team workload. Violence recidivism and intoxication are common, and females are predominantly injured in a domestic setting, presenting opportunities for targeted violence reduction interventions. 13 ∑9% of injuries involved machetes, with implications for law enforcement strategies.
(2020-01-07). [Comment] Relaunching human bornavirus research from encephalitis cases with unclear cause. thelancet.com Borna disease virus 1 (BoDV-1), the first bornavirus to be discovered, was identified as a causative agent of Borna disease, a fatal encephalitis occurring in horses and sheep. BoDV-1 is highly neurotropic and can cause both fatal immune-mediated encephalitis and behavioural disturbances in a broad range of infected animals.1 These observations prompted researchers to investigate the presence of BoDV-1 in patients with psychiatric disorders on the basis of the hypothesis that BoDV-1 might also cause behavioural abnormalities in humans.