Two North Carolina police officers were placed on leave after at least one of them was shown on video throwing punches at a Black man who was taken to the ground after a foot pursuit.
A roughly 17-second video clip from a bystander's cellphone during the arrest Monday night in Kinston appears to show an officer standing over David Lee Bruton Jr. and throwing multiple punches while he's on the ground. The leader of the local chapter of the NAACP called the video disturbing and the man's mother said she's grateful he's alive.
Bolding mine, because it's a damn shame when simply surviving a police encounter is considered a blessing. A woman called 911 to say she had been threatened by somebody (not even sure if it was him), and I'm very curious to see what that threat actually entailed:
NC REPUBLICANS PUSH TO INCREASE ELIGIBILITY AND PAYMENTS FOR PRIVATE SCHOOLS: The state House voted 69-49 on Tuesday to approve legislation that would increase the $4,200 annual amount provided to students who receive school vouchers, or Opportunity Scholarships. Senate Bill 671 would increase the income eligibility to 175% of the amount required for a family to be eligible for a free- or reduced-price lunch. That works out to a family income up to $56,400 for a two-person household and up to $85,794 for a family of four. The legislation also would raise the voucher amount to a maximum of $6,500 a year, according to bill sponsors. The bill ties the voucher amount to the average amount spent by the state per student each year. Republicans are expected to try work out a compromise between the two bills to see if it will get enough Democratic support to override a potential veto from Cooper. https://www.newsobserver.com/news/politics-government/article250629959.html
Of all the pressing questions facing the good citizens of North Carolina, it's hard to imagine that this most crushing intrusion into a person's very own identity would somehow rise to the top of the list of issues on the minds of the two most powerful men in our legislature. But there it is. Again.
NC VOTER ID TRIAL BEGINS, INHERENT RACISM LEADS DEBATE: North Carolina's latest law requiring photo identification to cast ballots went on trial on Monday, with attorneys for voters challenging the mandate by arguing it still disproportionately prevents Black residents from carrying out their constitutional right. A panel of three state Superior Court judges began hearing evidence in the lawsuit filed to overturn a December 2018 law that filled in the details of how a voter ID constitutional amendment approved in a statewide referendum several weeks before would be implemented. Lawmakers in the Republican-controlled legislature said the new law isn't racially suspect, pointing out they expanded the types of qualifying IDs and made it easier for registered voters without IDs to have their votes counted. The evidence shows the new law, rushed for passage so Republicans could override Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper's veto before their power waned during the next legislative session, suffers from the same racial taint and faults as the previous law, said Allison Riggs, a lawyer for the voters who sued. https://www.wral.com/trial-begins-on-challenge-to-latest-nc-voter-id-law/19622995/
#BREAKING: NCAA is pulling events from states with anti-trans bills.
“When determining where championships are held, NCAA policy directs that only locations where hosts can commit to providing an environment that is safe, healthy and free of discrimination should be selected.”
28 – percentage of transgender or nonbinary youth who attempted suicide who reported they had been subjected to so-called “conversion therapy.”
78 – percentage of transgender or nonbinary youth who reported that they were under the age of 18 when they were subjected to “conversion therapy.”
40 – percentage of transgender or nonbinary youth who reported being physically threatened or harmed due to their gender identity.
50 – percentage of transgender or nonbinary youth who reported being kicked out of their homes.
To call those numbers "shameful" is a gross understatement. Children are the greatest responsibility an adult can have, and tossing them out if you can't "fix" them is the height of selfish irresponsibility. It's also criminal, or at least it's supposed to be. Conversion therapy is psychologically abusive and, in many cases, also physically abusive. Of course Republicans know this, but they refuse to stop it. And they also don't care if NC gets negative national exposure for promoting violence against transgender youth:
ONE QUARTER OF NC'S ADULT POPULATION HAS BEEN FULLY VACCINATED: At least 929,406 people in North Carolina have tested positive for the coronavirus and 12,248 have died since March 2020, according to state health officials. The N.C. Department of Health and Human Services reported 2,509 new COVID-19 cases on Friday, up from 2,087 the day before. At least 977 people in North Carolina were reported hospitalized with the coronavirus as of Friday, down from 1,010 on Thursday. As of Wednesday, the latest day for which data is available, 4.6% of coronavirus tests were reported positive. More than 2.3 million people in North Carolina have been fully vaccinated. That includes more than one-quarter of the state’s adult population and one-fifth of all North Carolinians, health officials said. https://www.newsobserver.com/news/coronavirus/article250590889.html
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