In Maryland, the Montgomery County Council has introduced a resolution deeming racism a public health crisis.
In an interview with Cheddar, councilmember Will Jawando says disparities the black community faces are staggering. Recent social uprisings might have lit the flame under Jawando to introduce the resolution but the issue of racial inequality goes back hundreds of years, he said.
"Racism is the direct result, for 401 years, we've been either property or legally discriminated against for most of that time," Jawando told Cheddar.
In Montgomery County, systemic racism is not limited to just over-assertive and sometimes lethal policing of the black community, he said. It's also running rampant in the healthcare system. As COVID-19 continues to ravage communities of color nationwide, 18 percent of the black population in his county makes up a quarter of the deaths related to the virus.
For Jawando, racism in the Washington DC suburb is simply a reflection of society on a smaller scale.
"If you look at maternal health and childbirth, black women die at three times the rate," he said. "When they come in with problems, often doctors — look at Serena Williams — don't believe that they're sick."
Introducing the resolution, which he expects to pass next week, is a first step for curing the public health crisis in his county, Jawando said, but he hopes the measure is eventually recognized on both the state and federal levels. He also supports other methods of combating racism including the growing call to defund police departments nationwide.
"We shouldn't have stats driven by policing," he explained. "De-escalation, that should be rewarded just as much as we reward arrests and tickets."
The European Commission has issued a statement condemning President Donald Trump’s travel ban to 26 European countries, announced last night in a widely criticized speech.
Massachusetts Rep. Katherine Clark called out Republican leaders for characterizing the House Democratic aid bill as being "partisan."
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is quarantining himself at home after his wife exhibited flu-like symptoms. Trudeau's office said Thursday that Sophie Grégoire Trudeau returned from a speaking engagement in Britain and had mild flu-like symptoms, including a low fever late, Wednesday night.
Turbulent oil prices dropped to the low $30s on Thursday, falling to 16-year lows just hours after President Donald Trump announced a 30-day ban on travel from more than two dozen countries in Europe in an attempt to stem the spread of coronavirus.
She confirmed that Democrats and Republicans are working closely to pass a bill today that would provide additional protections, and free testing, following an $8.3 billion aid package last week. "No one will say I can't afford it," she said.
President Donald Trump said Wednesday he is suspending all travel between the U.S. and Europe for 30 days beginning Friday as he seeks to combat a viral pandemic.
Dow drops more than 1,400 points, or 5.9 percent.
Stocks are tumbling again Wednesday, and indexes lost more than 4 percent to wipe out their huge gains from a day earlier as Wall Street keeps reeling on worries about the coronavirus.
Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont spoke at length about the need to defeat Donald Trump and discussed his campaign today after falling behind in another set of Democratic primaries on Tuesday but did not announce his intention to drop out of the contest.
These are the headlines you Need 2 Know for Wednesday, March 11, 2020.
