killaphill
killaphill's JournalCity of Duluth moves to remove the word 'chief' from key job titles
The city of Duluth is moving to delete the word “chief” from the titles of two of its administrative leadership positions in an effort to remove language that some Native Americans and others find offensive.
On Monday, the City Council is scheduled to take up an amendment to the city charter to change the name of the city’s “chief administrative officer” to “city administrator.” The city’s “chief financial officer” would be renamed “finance director.”
“We are dropping the name ‘chief’ with intention and with purpose so we have more inclusive leadership, and less language that is rooted in hurt and offensive and intentional marginalization,” Duluth Mayor Emily Larson said in explaining the move.
https://www.mprnews.org/story/2020/06/17/city-of-duluth-moves-to-remove-the-word-chief-from-key-job-titles
Interesting move, and I'll confess this is a title I hadn't contemplated as offensive. But now can absolutely see it. Hopefully this becomes a trend.
NYPD Investigating Possible Poisoning Of 3 Officers At Shake Shack In Manhattan
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) — A possible hate crime against police is being investigated at the Shake Shack in downtown Manhattan.
Sources told CBS2 three officers became sick when they had shakes from the restaurant located at Broadway and Fulton Street earlier Monday night.
The NYPD suspects an employee may have contaminated the shakes with bleach.
https://newyork.cbslocal.com/2020/06/15/nypd-investigating-possible-poisoning-of-3-officers-at-shake-shack-in-manhattan/
Thomas Jefferson statue toppled in Portland, Oregon
Source: CBS News
A statue of Thomas Jefferson outside a high school named for him in North Portland, Oregon was toppled Sunday after a night of protests, reports CBS Portland, Oregon affiliate KOIN-TV. It was the latest to be vandalized or pulled over in the U.S. and other nations during the racial justice protests that have followed the death of George Floyd at Minneapolis police hands three week ago.
Statues of leading Confederate figures as well as slaveowners and slave traders have been targeted by demonstrators – and in some cases, removed by state and state governments.
The Jefferson statue was the third to be taken down this weekend in Oregon alone: Two at the University of Oregon – the Pioneer Man and the Pioneer Mother – were taken down Saturday evening.
Read more: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/thomas-jefferson-statue-toppled-in-portland-oregon/
The Dukes of Hazzard May Get Yanked from Amazon Streaming
The Dukes of Hazzard has been flagged for internal review at Amazon. The hit 1980s sitcom could end up getting the boot for problematic imagery. The series aired on CBS for 7 seasons and was a success for most of that time, thanks to the adventures of Bo and Luke Duke, along with their cousin Daisy Duke. Concerns over the show's use of the Confederate flag on the iconic vehicle, nicknamed the General Lee, have come up more than once over the past few years, but it looks like now may be the time the boys get cancelled.
Amazon is currently discussing whether or not to remove The Dukes of Hazzard from their streaming service amid the Black Lives Matter protests currently going on around the world. The Confederate flag is a symbol of racism and oppression and has slowly been phased out of public places all over the United States in recent years. NASCAR just made the decision to stop waving the flag at all of their races, which has received mixed reactions over the past few days.
https://movieweb.com/amp/the-dukes-of-hazzard-canceled-streaming-amazon/?__twitter_impression=true
Can't believe anyone still actually watches this ridiculous, offensive show.
Beshear promises health insurance for all black Kentuckians
Source: Lexington Herald Leader
After more than a week of protests against police brutality and racial injustice, Gov. Andy Beshear announced several actions Monday aimed at reducing racial inequality in Kentucky.
The biggest promise by far was a pledge to make sure every black Kentuckian has health insurance. He also announced plans to provide anti-bias and other training for police officers and teachers
“My commitment today is we’re going to begin an effort to cover 100 percent of our individuals in our black and African American communities,” Beshear said. “Everybody. We’re going to be putting dollars behind it, we’re going to have a multifaceted campaign to do it.”
Beshear provided few details to back up his pledge, but said his administration will work to connect black Kentuckians with private health insurers and Medicaid.
Read more: https://www.kentucky.com/news/politics-government/article243373171.html
A good first step. Now lets hope the Governor delivers.
Councilor describes what Minneapolis with fewer police could look like
https://bringmethenews.com/minnesota-news/councilor-describes-what-minneapolis-with-fewer-police-could-look-likeVery interesting article. Hopefully a model for the rest of the nation so we de-militarize the streets. Some highlights?
- County mental health professionals sent to mental health calls, not police officers.
– Using fire department EMTs to respond to opioid overdose calls.
– The use of "unarmed, community-oriented street teams" on weekend nights downtown "to focus on de-escalation."
– Traffic enforcement turned over to cameras and potentially parking enforcement teams.
– And while there was no specific reference made to plans for handling violent crime, Fletcher says the council would "invest in cultural competency and mental health training, de-escalation and conflict resolution."
Shut down all police movies and TV shows. Now.
Like many other industries, entertainment companies have issued statements of support for the protests against racism and police brutality now filling America’s streets. But there’s something Hollywood can do to put its money where its social media posts are: immediately halt production on cop shows and movies and rethink the stories it tells about policing in America.
For a century, Hollywood has been collaborating with police departments, telling stories that whitewash police shootings and valorizing an action-hero style of policing over the harder, less dramatic work of building relationships with the communities cops are meant to serve and protect. There’s a reason for that beyond a reactionary streak hiding below the industry’s surface liberalism. Purely from a dramatic perspective, crime makes a story seem consequential, investigating crime generates action, and solving crime provides for a morally and emotionally satisfying conclusion.
The result is an addiction to stories that portray police departments as more effective than they actually are; crime as more prevalent than it actually is; and police use of force as consistently justified. There are always gaps between reality and fiction, but given what policing in America has too often become, Hollywood’s version of it looks less like fantasy and more like complicity.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/06/04/shut-down-all-police-movies-tv-shows-now/?arc404=true
Powerful opinion piece from the Washington Post. Interestingly enough, I was halfway through the most recent season of "Bosch" on Amazon Prime when I came across this. That was enough for me. I have better things to do with my time.
Councilors: 'We're going to dismantle the Minneapolis Police Department'
Source: Minneapolis News
Members of Minneapolis City Council are adding fuel to growing calls for the disbanding of the Minneapolis Police Department in the wake of George Floyd's killing.
There have been rumblings in recent days of looking for alternative approaches to law enforcement and crime prevention in Minneapolis, as trust in the police department continues to plummet after the 46-year-old's death.
Chief among those calling for change is Northside council member Jeremiah Ellison, who on Thursday tweeted "we are going to dismantle the Minneapolis Police Department."
"And when we’re done, we’re not simply gonna glue it back together," he added. "We are going to dramatically rethink how we approach public safety and emergency response. It’s really past due."
Read more: https://bringmethenews.com/minnesota-news/councilor-were-going-to-dismantle-the-minneapolis-police-department
Interesting idea. I'm not sure what the bridge would be between the old force and the new alternative approach, but I think its long overdue. Has another major American city ever done something similar? I honestly don't know, but I think very shortly we will have entirely new models to policing being rolled out.
Republicans win back California House seat they lost in 2018 after Democrat concedes
Source: CNN
Republicans have won back a California US House seat they had lost in the 2018 midterms, flipping it from blue to red in a high-profile victory
The win came after Democrat Christy Smith conceded to Republican Mike Garcia on Wednesday in the special election for seat left vacant when Katie Hill, a Democrat, resigned amid controversy last year.
"While it's critical that we ensure every vote is counted and recorded, we believe that the current tally shows Mike Garcia is the likely victor in the May 12 special election. As such, I'd like to congratulate him," Smith said in a statement on Wednesday.
Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2020/05/13/politics/mike-garcia-christy-smith-california-25-congressional-seat/index.html
This seems premature and a bit foolish to me. Thousands of votes are still to be counted. Why concede now?
35 of the 40 people who were arrested on social distancing violations in Brooklyn were black
Source: NBC
Newly released statistics on the New York Police Department's social-distancing enforcement show that black people account for the majority of arrests in Brooklyn.
Police arrested 40 people in the borough for social-distancing violations from March 17 through May 4, the district attorney's office said Thursday night.
Of those arrested, 35 people were black, four were Hispanic and one was white. More than a third of the arrests, 16, were made in Brownsville, a predominantly black neighborhood.
Mayor Bill de Blasio said the disparity in the numbers does not reflect the city's values. "We HAVE TO do better and we WILL," he tweeted Thursday.
Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/35-40-people-who-were-arrested-social-distancing-violations-brooklyn-n1202841
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