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."
Vanity Fair's Hive: We’re joined by the crew at Vanity Fair's Hive to discuss Hope Hicks' resignation. On Between Bells: TV reboot fever, and E!'s Seacrest problem. With Diply, The Hollywood Reporter, Zimbio, and more.
Kroger follows Walmart and Dick's Sporting Goods in becoming the third major retailer to impose tighter regulations on gun sales. NBC is cutting back on commercial time to compete with streaming giants like Netflix and Hulu. Hope Hicks, one of President Trump's closest aides, is out as White House communications director. And Congressman John Delaney (D-MD) joins us to discuss the future of artificial intelligence.
Heather Haddon, reporter for The Wall Street Journal, shares her thoughts on Kroger becoming the third retailer to raise the age for buying a firearm to 21. Walmart and Dick's Sporting Goods made similar changes recently.
Ben Dreyfuss, senior editor at Mother Jones, discusses the surprise resignation of Hope Hicks, making her the 4th White House communications director to leave the Trump Administration.
The bipartisan caucus aims to work with the private sector to make sure technological change "doesn't leave huge parts of the country behind," says Rep. John Delaney (D-MD), who founded the group.
Jessica Dimmock, Drea Cooper, and Zackary Canepari, directed the upcoming Netflix docu-series "Flint Town". The trio discusses not only the water crisis but the economic struggles and underfunded police department in the Michigan town.
Spotify files to go public. Dick's will immediately stop selling assault rifles. President Trump meets with lawmakers on gun control. White House communications director Hope Hicks is resigning from her post. Facebook launching a new initiative to take on sites like LinkedIn and Glassdoor.
Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School students returned to school on Wednesday, two weeks after a mass shooter killed seventeen people. Since that tragic event, a student-led movement has been rallying support for changes to gun laws. But on Capitol Hill House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) signaled his disinterest in new restrictions on gun purchases. Rep. Darren Soto (D-Fl) discusses the state of gun control.
The Democratic lawmaker says that, if there's no change to current legislation, gun control will be an issue during this year's midterm elections.
Mashable recently published a three-part multimedia project on climate change. The series shines a spotlight on the Marshall Islands which are considered a forgotten nation still reeling from nuclear testing. Mashable Science Editor Andrew Freedman explains the impact of this project, which features journalist Kim Wall's last unpublished work since her tragic death in 2017.
