2021-03-01: News Headlines

Dave Clennon (2021-03-01). Hollywood's New Blackface. counterpunch.org Many more black faces on your movie screen. Same old shuck and jive from finance capital. AND . . . why are so many foreign Blacks impersonating African-Americans? I saw "Selma" six years ago. I could feel earnest sincerity radiating from the screen. It was pretty clear the filmmakers were trying to do justice to

Ed Rampell (2021-03-01). 'Hollywood's Architect: The Paul R. Williams Story' at PAFF. peoplesworld.org Co-directors Royal Kennedy Rodgers and Kathy McCampbell Vance's Hollywood's Architect: The Paul R. Williams Story is a nonfiction biopic about the African-American talent who rose to become the so-called "Architect of the Stars" when Jim Crow was still the scourge of the land. Born 1894 in L.A., Paul Revere Williams's real-life story of overcoming adversity …

Juan Cole (2021-03-01). Morocco beats U.S. in Green Energy Future Index with Massive Saharan Solar Plant. juancole.com Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) — The MIT Technology Review has released its Green Future Index. Among Middle Eastern countries, Morocco ranks number one, and it also leads Africa. I have a big problem with the index, though. One of its criteria is technological innovation in the area of green energy. These are the bases for …

RT (2021-03-01). UK authorities' plea for mystery person infected with 'Brazilian' Covid-19 strain to come forward. rt.com Health officials in England are looking for an unidentified person who was infected with a mutated 'Brazilian variant' of SARS-CoV-19 and slipped under the radar. They are one of six known cases in the UK. | The P1 strain was first detected in people coming to Japan from the Brazilian city of Manus and resembles the so-called South African variant, which is more infectious than 'regular' variants of the virus. Samples collected from six individuals were sequenced as part of the UK's national research of Covid-19 mutations. Public Health England (PHE) could not determine who provided one of them, the organisati…

Democracy Now! (2021-03-01). Vaccine Apartheid: If One Person Is Unprotected, We Are All Unprotected. indybay.org "I've personally received more doses of a Covid-19 vaccine than 130 countries," Dr. Craig Spencer writes, about the two vaccine shots he recently got as an emergency room doctor. In 2014, he contracted ebola while combating that epidemic in Guinea, Africa. Dr. Spencer knows the value of public health protocols, personal protective equipment, or PPE, and vaccinations.

Mehr News Agency (2021-03-01). S Africa slams use of nation as Guinea Pigs for J&J COVID jab. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Mar. 01 (MNA) — South African Drug Regulator SAHPRA Chairwoman Helen Rees let slip that US-made Johnson & and Johnson coronavirus vaccine's usefulness against virulent "South African" strain was unknown.

Hadas Thier (2021-03-01). The Global South Faces a 'Vaccine Apartheid'. zcomm.org Just 10 nations have administered 75% of the vaccines worldwide. Countries like South Africa are being left behind…

Raul Diego (2021-03-01). British American Tobacco's Illegal Smokes Burn Through Mali's Quest for Self-Determination. mintpressnews.com A recent investigative report reveals the extent of an illegal cigarette smuggling operation in Mali by Big Tobacco that is helping to keep European and American interests viable in West Africa.

news.un (2021-03-01). 'We sink or we swim together': 5 things you need to know about COVAX. news.un.org COVAX has been trending in stories about the COVID-19 pandemic in recent days, particularly in relation to the shipment of vaccines to Ghana and Cà¥te d'Ivoire, the first to arrive in Africa. Here's a UN News recap of what COVAX is, and why it is so important.

sputniknews (2021-03-01). Ghana, Cà¥te D'Ivoire Become First Nations to Administer COVID-19 Vaccines From WHO's COVAX Program. sputniknews.com Africa as a whole has suffered comparatively less deaths from the novel coronavirus compared to many industrialized nations, for reasons still not entirely clear. However, if global vaccination trends are not reversed, the continent's deaths could continue long after they decline in other places.

Staff (2021-03-01). Headlines for March 1, 2021. democracynow.org Biden Will Not Sanction MBS After Intel Report Confirms Responsibility in Khashoggi Murder, Johnson & Johnson Vaccine Rolls Out as CDC Warns Decline in Cases Has Stalled, Dem. Senators Move to Penalize Big Companies That Underpay Workers, 18 Killed in Deadliest Day of Burmese Anti-Coup Protests, 47 Hong Kong Activists Charged Under National Security Law, Four Killed, 120 Injured After Iraqi Security Forces Open Fire on Protesters in Nasiriyah, 42 Released Following Mass Kidnapping at Nigerian School, 15 Refugees Drown as Boat Capsizes Off Libyan Coast, Donald Trump Attacks Immigrants & Lies About 2020 Election in…

RT (2021-03-01). Plane forced to land in Sudan after CAT ATTACKS pilot in mid-air, 'hijacking' cockpit. rt.com A passenger plane was forced to return to an airport in the Sudanese capital of Khartoum after an angry cat, which somehow got into the cockpit, attacked the pilots shortly after takeoff, local media report. | Wednesday's flight of the Sudanese Tarco airline bound for Qatar's capital, Doha, was proceeding in a totally routine manner — that is, until a most unlikely passenger caused an emergency in mid-air. | Having departed from Khartoum International Airport, the plane was in the air for roughly half-an-hour when an unregistered passenger was spotted inside the pilot's cabin. The passenger in question wa…

RT (2021-03-01). Plane forced to land in Sudan after CAT ATTACKS pilot mid-air, 'hijacking' cockpit. rt.com A passenger plane was forced to return to the airport in the Sudanese capital of Khartoum after an angry cat, which somehow got into the cockpit, attacked the pilots shortly after takeoff, local media reports. | This Wednesday's flight of the Sudanese Tarco airline bound for Qatar's capital, Doha, was proceeding in a totally routine manner — that is, until a most unlikely passenger caused an emergency mid-air. | Having departed from the Khartoum International Airport, the plane was in the air for roughly half an hour when an unregistered passenger was spotted inside the pilot's cabin. The passenger in que…

Chuck Collins — Omar Ocampo (2021-03-01). Financial Reserves and the Racial Wealth Gap. counterpunch.org Why is it that the wealthiest country on earth has the highest death toll of any nation in the world? And why are Black and Latino people among those experiencing the greatest mortality and hardship during the pandemic? There is excellent research on how the Black-white wealth gap left Black households more vulnerable (see resources

Staff (2021-03-01). Rep. Ro Khanna: Democrats Should Ignore the Senate Parliamentarian and Pass $15 Minimum Wage Hike. democracynow.org The House of Representatives has voted to pass President Biden's $1.9 trillion pandemic relief package that includes an increase to the federal minimum wage from $7.25 to $15 an hour, which could now be stripped out in the final bill after the unelected Senate parliamentarian found it does not comply with budget rules. Democratic Senators Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona have also said they'll oppose the measure. Congressmember Ro Khanna of California says the parliamentarian "misruled" in this case and that Democrats should pass the wage hike anyway. "I don't know any part of this count…

RT (2021-03-01). Beijing accused of using Covid pandemic to control journalists — foreign media group report. rt.com The Foreign Correspondents' Club of China (FCCC) has accused Beijing of using Covid-19 as "yet another way to control journalists," curbing visas and surveilling reporters. China says it's protecting its citizens from the virus. | The FCCC, which is the professional association of Beijing-based journalists reporting on China, has argued that 2020 had seen a "rapid decline in media freedom," implemented under the cover of measures that were used to combat the spread of coronavirus. | In its annual report released on Monday the press group claimed these restrictions were placed on journalists to prevent them fro…

RT (2021-03-01). CYBERWAR is imminent & will affect ordinary Americans, claims CEO of company that 'discovered' SolarWinds hack. rt.com Cybersecurity firm FireEye has warned Americans that they'll be targeted by the next big cyberattack, whether they know it or not. Disrupted supply chains and the chaos of cellular and internet networks crashing will follow. | "The next conflict where the gloves come off in cyber, the American citizen will be dragged into it, whether they want to be or not. Period," FireEye CEO Kevin Mandia told Axios on HBO on Sunday. | "People don't even know all the things they depend on. All of a sudden the supply chain starts getting disrupted because computers don't work," he continued, threatening viewers with his descr…

Staff (2021-03-01). Illinois Must End Youth Incarceration, Not "Transform" It. truthout.org Even amid a deadly pandemic, in the U.S., there are

Staff (2021-03-01). After Mass Closures, Post-Pandemic Child Care Options Will Be Scarce. truthout.org Driving to work before dawn last winter, Valerie Norris heard an NPR report about a terrible disease spreading in China — a pandemic, people were starting to call it. It sounded sad but very far from Rocky River, Ohio, where she'd led the Rockport Early Childhood Center for 34 years. | A few weeks later, she knew better. | It was still dark on the chilly morning of March 13 when Norris pulled into the big parking lot at the Rockport United Methodist Church, where her school was based. She always…

Binoy Kampmark (2021-03-01). Culpability and Recalibration: MBS and the Killing of Jamal Khashoggi. counterpunch.org It was a brutal way to go, and it had the paw prints of the highest authorities. On October 2, 2018, Jamal Khashoggi, the Saudi Arabian insider turned outsider, was murdered by a squad of 15 men from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He was dismembered and quite literally cancelled in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.

Gareth Porter (2021-03-01). U.S. State Department accusation of China 'genocide' relied on data abuse and baseless claims by far-right ideologue. mronline.org The Trump and Biden administrations have relied on the work of a right-wing religious extremist, Adrian Zenz, for their "genocide" accusation against China. A close review of Zenz's research reveals flagrant data abuse and outright falsehoods.

PAI (2021-03-01). Biden declares support for Alabama Amazon workers' union drive. peoplesworld.org WASHINGTON—Democratic President Joe Biden has officially backed the union organizing drive at the big Amazon warehouse in Bessemer, Ala. In a two-minute-20-second video he posted on Twitter Feb. 28, and an accompanying shorter tweet, Biden declared the choice by the 5,800 workers there is "vitally important" to both them and the country. "Today and over …

Marina Wheeler QC (2021-03-01). Supreme Court: Shamima Begum may be barred from UK. ukhumanrightsblog.com Special Immigration Appeals Commission and Secretary of State for the Home Department v R (Begum) [2021] UKSC 7 Since 2019 when Shamima Begum was found in a camp in north Syria, her hopes of returning to the UK have ebbed and flowed (see here and here). Stripped of her British citizenship, she brought three sets …

Eds. (2021-03-01). Ecosocialism versus degrowth: a false dilemma. mronline.org Ecosocialists and degrowthers need to map the many overlaps of their views to improve the effectiveness of their shared struggle for an ecologically-sound and socially-fair world free from patriarchal, racial and colonial legacy.

Editor (2021-03-02). Raise the minimum wage to $15 — at least! workers.org A $15-per-hour minimum wage cannot be included in the $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief bill proposed by Congressional Democrats. So ruled the Senate parliamentarian, Elizabeth McDonough, on Feb. 25. This unelected official called it "irrelevant to budget legislation." This edict is a brutal blow to millions of struggling workers. Nevertheless, the . . . |

Arturo Pineda (2021-03-01). New Haven youth target gun violence, inequality at Black history month march. peoplesworld.org NEW HAVEN, Conn.—A caravan of 20 cars and a group of 65 people took to the streets of New Haven on Feb. 20 to call for an end to gun violence and police brutality, taxing the rich, and to demand state and federal relief for communities of color impacted by COVID-19. The Annual Black History …

teleSUR (2021-03-01). Malawian COVID-19 Survivors on Quest To Minimize Stigma. telesurenglish.net Malawians who recovered from COVID-19 have embarked on an initiative of sharing their COVID-19 experience into communities. | RELATED: | Felix Khonje, a primary school teacher, who was once tested positive is empowering people in his community about the effects of stigma on people with COVID-19 prevention and dealing away with myths and misconceptions. | At first, it was very hard for Khonje to share his COVID-19 experience among his fellows bec…

RT (2021-03-01). Spain begins to ease Covid lockdown, but says border with Portugal will be sealed for at least 2 more weeks. rt.com The Spanish border with Portugal will remain largely closed until at least March 16, Madrid confirmed on Monday, even as it began to ease some regional restrictions implemented to slow the spread of Covid-19. | The restrictions have been in place along the 1,200km-long border since January 29, with only Spanish residents or Schengen-area travelers who are en route to their homes allowed to cross. | The Spanish government has begun to ease regional Covid lockdown regulations that imposed overnight curfews and restrictions on restaurants, bars, and shops, as well as limiting the number of people who could meet u…

RT (2021-03-01). Family with young child rescued, warned after camping on CLIFF EDGE known for landslides (PHOTO). rt.com Police and coastguard officers responded to a call after a couple were spotted camping on a cliff edge with their young child, in contravention of lockdown rules and, arguably, common sense. | Rescue teams from Staithes and Whitby coastguard agencies, along with responding police officers, happened upon the couple's tent on Cleveland Way in North Yorkshire on Saturday. | www.facebook.com/staithes.coastguard/posts/1857131324439338 | The police were called as the family had breached Covid restrictions, though it is unclear whether or not they received a fine. Overnight stays away from a person's primary…

RT (2021-03-01). Covid-19 virus didn't originate naturally but is actually a BIOWEAPON, most Russians believe, according to explosive new poll. rt.com The world has been savaged by a killer virus that escaped a top-secret lab or was unleashed by shadowy forces. It might sound like the plot of a Hollywood film, but a new poll has found it's also how most Russians see Covid-19.

RT (2021-03-01). Finland declares STATE OF EMERGENCY over Covid-19 cases surge. rt.com Helsinki has declared a state of emergency on Monday in a bid to stem the rapid spread of coronavirus. The measure would allow it to impose a lockdown and potentially "restrict the fundamental rights of citizens." | The state of emergency is effective "immediately" and will stay in force for an indefinite period of time "until it is repealed," the government said in a

RT (2021-03-01). NHS Providers calls for urgent review into 'insufficient' critical care capacity. rt.com NHS Providers has called for a review into "insufficient" critical care capacity in England, citing three regions as being of key concern, at a time when the NHS found itself overwhelmed by Covid-19 cases earlier this year. | The organisation, which includes NHS hospital, mental health, community and ambulance services, called on the government to conduct an investigation into failings in the current system after an analysis showed the UK has the lowest number of critical care beds per head in Europe. | The analysis by NHS Providers uncovered that, per 100,000 people, the UK only has 7.3 critical care beds, co…

RT (2021-03-01). New Zealand PM urges public to 'call out' family & friends who break Covid-19 rules, who let down 'team of five million'. rt.com New Zealand's Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has urged obedient members of the public to call out violators of coronavirus rules, as it emerged people have been concealing Covid-19 contacts. | Speaking on Monday about recent Covid-19 cases that are linked to breaches of anti-coronavirus restrictions, Ardern aimed mighty jabs at rule breakers. | Even with the full understanding of human fallibility, it is not appropriate, and it is not okay for members of a team of five million to let the rest of us down. | Ruling out punishments for the violators handed out directly by the government, and citing the separation…

RT (2021-03-01). Virus reduces fitness of former Covid-19 patients aged 45 to level of 80-year-olds, Israeli researchers discover. rt.com One of Israel's top medical centers has published a worrying study about the long-term effects of the coronavirus, revealing that 45-year-old former patients performed during physical tests as if they were aged 80. | Some 30 people aged 45, on average, took part in the survey carried out by the Beilinson Medical Center in Petah Tikva, the Times of Israel Three months after they had been officially cleared of the disease, the former Covid-19…

RT (2021-03-01). EU-wide Covid-19 vaccine passport proposals to be brought forward by Brussels, says von der Leyen. rt.com The European Commission president has said Brussels will launch a proposal for the introduction of digital vaccine passports for use across the bloc in March, after the German chancellor said it should be ready by the summer. | "As for the question of what the digital green passport could look like, we will submit a legislative proposal in March," Commission President Ursula von der Leyen told German conservative lawmakers on Monday. | Von der Leyen's remarks came after German Chancellor Angela Merkel claimed that the vaccine passport would be ready in time for the summer, with a number of southern European st…

RT (2021-03-01). Macron says France's Covid curfew in place for another '4 to 6 weeks' as contagious UK variant accounts for more half of all cases. rt.com French President Emmanuel Macron has called on the nation to "hold out" for at least another month before the country can think about easing Covid-induced restrictions and the current 6pm curfew. | Speaking with a group of industrial trade trainees on Monday, Macron dismissed, with a smile, the request of a young man to relax France's 6pm curfew. The president told the students that the nation's curfew would need to remain in place for another four to six weeks, amid indicators the epidemic is on the rise again in France. | Further measures may be brought in across the 20 departments in France which have alrea…

RT (2021-03-01). Chinese investment in Australia plunges to RECORD LOW amid escalating trade row. rt.com New data from the Australian National University (ANU) showed Chinese investment in Australia dropped by more than 61 percent in 2020, to just over a billion Australian dollars (US$780 million) — the lowest in the past six years. | According to figures from the Chinese Investment in Australia Database (CHIIA), the drop followed a 47 percent fall in 2019, when Chinese investment totaled US$1.57 billion. It was also well short of the peak of US$12.7 billion recorded in 2016. | "It reflects the effects of Covid, but also more scrutiny of foreign investment by the Australian government, particularly that fro…

RT (2021-03-01). 'I don't want the vaccine': Jamaican running champ Yohan Blake insists he 'would rather miss the Olympics' than take Covid-19 jab. rt.com Sprint star Yohan Blake has said he is staying "strong in his mind" over taking a Covid-19 vaccine and would rather miss the rescheduled 2021 Olympic Games than receive a jab — even if it's made obligatory for Games participation. | The former men's 100m world champion has revealed that his strident stance on not getting a Covid-19 jab hasn't changed, stressing that even the threat of not being allowed to compete in Tokyo wouldn't dissuade him from rejecting one. | The four-time Olympic medalist said he had his "own reasons" for abstaining from the Covid-19 vaccination program and wouldn't be drawn into…

RT (2021-03-02). US won't share Covid-19 vaccines with Mexico as Americans must be inoculated first — White House. rt.com The Biden administration has rejected the idea of sharing Covid-19 vaccines with the hard-hit neighbor Mexico, White House press-secretary Jen Psaki said, adding that it can only be discussed after all Americans get their shots. | "The administration's focus is on ensuring that every American is vaccinated. And once we accomplish that objective we're happy to discuss further steps," Psaki said when asked about possible vaccine sharing during a briefing on Monday. | The comments came hours before the virtual meeting between US President Joe Biden and his Mexican counterpart, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador. | Also…

RT (2021-03-02). Johnson & Johnson's newly-approved Covid vaccine met with pushback as Catholic diocese condemns it for 'ties to abortion cells'. rt.com As Johnson & Johnson rolls out its freshly approved Covid-19 vaccine in the US, it faces a religious controversy as the Catholic Archdiocese of New Orleans has labeled it "morally compromised" over links to abortion cells. | Catholics are advised not to receive the vaccine because Johnson & Johnson used cell lines derived from decades-old abortions in both testing and production of the new product, the Archdiocese Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna have utiliz…

Betsey Piette (2021-03-02). Protest demands freedom for Mumia, suffering COVID symptoms. workers.org Political prisoner and Black journalist Mumia Abu-Jamal began experiencing COVID-19 symptoms, including difficulty breathing, Feb 26. Hearing this news, his family and supporters called a protest. Less than 24 hours later, about 70 people turned up outside the office of Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner to call for Abu-Jamal's immediate . . . |

E.L. Melrose (2021-03-02). Erie, PA: Residents skeptical towards corporation's "green" promises. liberationnews.org The plight of this area has left the door open to the opportunism of "green" industry and it is currently being courted by International Recycling Group (IRG).

Robert Penner (2021-03-02). Struggle for justice forces reopening of two cases of police violence in Milwaukee. liberationnews.org The cases of Christopher Davis, killed by Milwaukee Deputy Juan Ortiz, and Jay Anderson, killed by Wauwatosa officer Joseph Mensah, have been re-opened in the Milwaukee area.

Editor (2021-03-02). Digamosle a Biden: °Deja de bombardear Siria! workers.org La administración de Biden solo tardó 36 días en el cargo para mostrar al mundo, a través de un bombardeo en Siria, que es beligerante, agresivo y empeñado en la guerra. Solo hubo un breve respiro de las viles palabras y acciones de Trump. Ahora tenemos que enfrentar los viles . . . |

Margaret Flowers (2021-03-02). Small Acts Can Become A Power No Government Can Suppress. dissidentvoice.org The American Rescue Plan (ARP) was passed in the House this past week and now heads to the Senate, where it will no doubt be changed before it becomes law some time in mid-March. The current unemployment benefits expire on March 14. While we don't know what the final bill will look like, at least …

RT (2021-03-02). Attempt at civil discourse on 'Wokeism' ends in Clubhouse room 'coup,' Jewish prof shut down as 'SPICY WHITE' & demands for CASH. rt.com Evolutionary biologist Bret Weinstein had to relive his Evergreen College moment whe he was attacked from all sides in a Clubhouse room hijacked by hostile "anti-racist" mob aghast at the idea of white people discussing "wokeism." | The room, dubbed "Is Clubhouse Obsessed with 'Wokeism'?" was created by independent journalist Michael Tracey, who said he thought the Clubhouse chats "almost inevitably evolve into a discussion of 'woke-ism'… but there's seldom anyone in the room who identifies enough with the ideology to give a defense of it." | His attempt to create a safe space for a civil discourse and let b…

RT (2021-03-02). Former CIA director John Brennan 'embarrassed to be a WHITE MALE'… and critics agree they're embarrassed he's a white male. rt.com John Brennan, the former CIA director and perjurer who's now an MSNBC contributor, apparently found a point on which he and his conservative critics can agree: Both sides are ashamed that he's a white male. | Responding to an MSNBC discussion Monday about Republican claims regarding the January 6 Capitol riot, Brennan said, "I'm increasingly embarrassed to be a white male these days, in light of what I see of my other white males saying." | John Brennan should be ashamed to be John Brennan

RT (2021-03-02). Twitch reverts back to 'women' after tweet celebrating 'Womxn's History Month' savaged online. rt.com Streaming platform Twitch has returned to the conventional spelling for "women" after its social media post hailing "Womxn's History Month" — avoiding any "gender-binary language" — backfired and angered critics on all sides. | Though the company took to Twitter on Monday to inform users that "March is Womxn's History Month," using an alternative styling of "women" in a bid to include non-binary gender identities, it made an abrupt about-face just a few hours later, announcing that it would revert back to the standard spelling. | "While we originally wanted to use a word that acknowledges the short…

RT (2021-03-02). 'We have to DO STUFF NOW': Biden adviser says White House to start redressing systemic racism, not just wait for reparations study. rt.com President Joe Biden will push ahead on making amends for America's "systemic racism," creating more opportunities for black people right away rather than waiting for a reparations study, a White House adviser said. | "We don't want to wait on a study," Cedric Richmond, director of the White House Office of Public Engagement, said in an 'Axios on HBO' | White House press secretary Jen Psaki confirmed on February 17 that Biden s…

Devin Cole (2021-03-02). Nadezhda Krupskaya: Bolshevik revolutionary and educator. workers.org Feb. 14 is the birth date of Nadezhda Krupskaya — Bolshevik revolutionary, educator and library advocate. Although born to a formerly aristocratic family, her family had descended into poverty, which led her to study Marxism. She joined the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party in 1903. Nadezhda Krupskaya In 1905, Krupskaya . . . |