A campaign to topple statues of slave owners and Confederate heroes across the United States has extended in California to monuments honoring icons of the region’s Spanish colonial history, much to the distress of the Spanish Embassy in Washington.“We deeply regret the destruction of the statue of Saint Junipero Serra in San Francisco today, and would like to offer a reminder of his great efforts in support of indigenous communities,” the embassy A graffiti reading “racist” is seen on a statue of Fray Junipero Serra in Palma de Mallorca, Spain, June 22, 2020.The statue of Serra, a founder of 18th-century California missions, was one of several monuments vandalized during an overnight rampage in the park June 20.Similar attacks have occurred across the United States amid a wave of public revulsion over the May 25 death of George Floyd, an African American, while in custody of white police officers in Minneapolis. But the San Francisco protesters appear to have been indiscriminate in their targets.Cervantes, GrantFigures defaced or knocked from their pedestals included those of the Spanish author Miguel de Cervantes as well as American heroes Francis Scott Key, author of  the U.S. national anthem, and General Ulysses S. Grant, who contributed to the end of slavery in the United States by defeating the South in the 1861-65 Civil War.It was all too much for the Spanish Embassy, which declared that “defending the Spanish legacy in the U.S. is a priority” and called for “the memory of our rich shared history [to] be protected.”The embassy’s tweets generated more than 15,000 reactions — remarkable given that the response to its Twitter postings is often logged in double digits — with most of the comments either defending or criticizing Serra.The Franciscan friar, who was canonized as a saint by Pope Francis in 2015, made it his life’s mission to Christianize Indigenous populations in the Americas during the 1700s. Statues of the priest can be found along the Pacific Coast in California and Mexico.“As an American who was raised in California during an era when schools taught the complexities of history, let me apologize for the wanton destruction of these statues,” said one message posted to the embassy’s Twitter feed.(1/4) We deeply regret the destruction of the statue of Saint Junípero Serra in San Francisco today, and would like to offer a reminder of his great efforts in support of indigenous communities.
Thread ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/qJOmsjorjS
— Embassy of Spain USA (@SpainInTheUSA) June 20, 2020But another respondent wrote, “Junipero Serra was responsible for a system of enslavement that decimated California native communities, his recent canonization was a shameful cover up of genocide, and the day we take down every public statue of him can’t come soon enough.”Junípero Serra was responsible for a system of enslavement that decimated California native communities, his recent canonization was a shameful cover up of genocide, and the day we take down every public statue of him can’t come soon enough https://t.co/SeBtMu2PgJ
— Rebecca Pierce #BlackShabbat (@aptly_engineerd) June 21, 2020A self-identified historian pointed out that the friar’s legacy has been controversial for some time, noting that Indigenous groups in California waged a campaign in 2018 that led Stanford University to rename its postal address to delete the priest’s name.. @Stanford erased Serra’s name from the campus, condemning the violence and abuse of indigenous peoples in the mission system https://t.co/lBtCWf9RTk
— Dr Kristie Flannery (@thehistoriann) June 21, 2020While the anger over Serra has historical roots, the damage to the bust of Cervantes — Spain’s most famous literary figure and author of the novel Don Quixote — was more puzzling.“Don Quixote and Sancho Panza — and for what?” one resident asked a reporter from a local television station. In the book, Sancho Panza is Don Quixote’s sidekick.Spain’s responseIn response, the Spanish Embassy is vowing to intensify “educational efforts in order for the reality of our shared history to be better known and understood,” while “always ensuring that we do not interfere with the domestic debates that are currently taking place” in the United States.The embassy has already posted a slide show on its official Twitter page featuring some of Washington’s most prominent tributes to Spanish history in the Americas.The virtual tour is led by Ambassador Santiago Cabanas, who appears in one slide next to a statue of Bernardo de Galvez, a Spanish commander who aided the American Revolution and later was granted honorary citizenship in the United States.Also featured is another statue of Serra, this one ensconced in the Statuary Hall of the U.S. Capitol, the building where Congress meets.
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Fake news about the coronavirus can do real harm. Polygraph.info is spotlighting fact-checks from other reliable sources here​. Daily DebunkIs a second wave of coronavirus coming?
The United States is arguably still in the first wave of the coronavirus pandemic, so it may be too early to talk about a coming second wave.
— PolitiFact, June 22 Social Media DisinfoScreenshotClaim: Drinking “asthma plant” tea helps Covid-19 breathing complications.Verdict: No EvidenceRead the full story at: Africa Check​Factual Reads on CoronavirusHow the Virus Won
Invisible outbreaks sprang up everywhere. The United States ignored the warning signs. We analyzed travel patterns, hidden infections and genetic data to show how the epidemic spun out of control.
— New York Times, June 25
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Mexico City’s chief of police was shot and injured in an assassination attempt early Friday morning when gunmen set upon him in an upscale neighborhood of the capital, killing two of his bodyguards, authorities said. Mexico City Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum said on Twitter that public security chief Omar Garcia Harfuch was “out of danger” following the attack at around 6.30 a.m., which shocked residents of the Lomas de Chapultepec area of the city. Police officers arrive at the area where a shooting took place in Mexico City, Mexico, June 26, 2020.An unspecified number of people had died, Sheinbaum added, without giving details. A Mexico City official said two of Garcia’s police escorts were killed in the incident and that the police chief sustained three bullet wounds. Separately, Ernestina Godoy, attorney general of Mexico City, said 12 people had been arrested. Speaking at a regular government news conference, President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador attributed the outbreak of violence to the work of local officials to establish order in the city. People react near the area where a shooting took place in Mexico City, Mexico, June 26, 2020.Residents said heavy gunfire rang out for several minutes during the attack in Lomas de Chapultepec, which is home to many wealthy residents and the location of ambassadorial residences. Police converged on the area in the west of the city, which is rarely troubled by the violence that in recent years has afflicted many parts of the country, particularly poorer ones. Television images showed dozens of police cordoning off a main road in the area. Mexican broadcaster Televisa said at least two police were injured in the incident.  
 
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The Black Lives Matter campaign sparked by the death of George Floyd in the United States has resonated in an unusual area — skin lightening beauty products that have become hugely popular in India and other Asian countries. Consumer giant Unilever has announced it will change the name of its popular Fair and Lovely cream that has long been criticized for promoting the stereotype that light-colored skin is more desirable.   “We recognize that use of the words ‘fair,’ ‘white’ and ‘light’ suggest a singular ideal of beauty that we don’t think is right and we want to address that,” Sunny Jain, the president of Unilever’s beauty and personal care division, said in a statement Thursday.   Fair & Lovely brand of skin-lightening products are seen on the shelf of a consumer store in New Delhi, India, June 25, 2020.Unilever’s Fair and Lovely was a hot-selling cream in India, occupying pride of place on shelves in stores and becoming a household name, not just in cities, but also in villages. Activists who had slammed such products for reinforcing biases about dark skin welcomed the company’s move as a significant first step but questioned if rebranding the cream would be enough. “It’s a milestone for us,” said Kavitha Emmanuel, who launched “Dark is Beautiful,” an advocacy campaign against colorism, in 2009. “It looks like the narrative has changed, but we are yet to see how it will take shape. Is dropping the word ‘fair’ enough?” Skin-lightening products constitute a multi-million-dollar industry in parts of Asia and Africa, with many leading cosmetic companies cashing in on a lucrative market that taps into the notion that lighter skin equals beauty — a preference that many trace to an era of colonial rule in Asia.    Growing backlashBut a backlash against such products has been mounting for some time with activists saying that colorism was as discriminatory as racism. Emmanuel, who runs the non-profit Women of Worth, began the campaign against skin-lightening products after witnessing how messaging around them contributed to low self-esteem among brown girls in India. “In our counseling and workshops we found that it was so traumatic that it affected not just their confidence, but also their relationships, their marriage, even the workplace.”  While companies selling skin-lightening products did not start the bias, activists blame them for deeply reinforcing it through slick marketing and advertising campaigns that often involve top Bollywood stars, who are huge influencers in the country. FILE – An Indian salesman arranges men’s fairness products at a shop in New Delhi, Sept. 4, 2007.There had been some change in recent years — Unilever had stopped doing before and after images of skin tones in their advertisements following campaigns. The Black Lives Matter movement brought the products under fresh scrutiny and renewed demands for accountability for product names like Fair and Lovely. In its statement on Thursday, the company said it was committed to “a portfolio of skin care products that is inclusive and cares for all skin tones celebrating greater diversity of beauty.” For 22-year-old Chandana Hiran, who launched an online petition against Fair and Lovely two weeks ago, that statement was a moment to celebrate. “I think it is a huge shift. Changing a brand name is not a small thing,” said Hiran. The petition was motivated by the young woman’s personal experience of colorism. “Being dark-skinned, I have constantly felt insecure. I am still unlearning those tiny things. For instance, I would not wear yellow because I was afraid that people would make comments that I am looking dark. Random people come up and give solutions on how to become fair. Bollywood will never represent my skin tone,” she said. The idea that fair skin equates beauty became so deeply ingrained over the years that advertisements for marriage partners in India often cited a “fair” bride as one of their prime criterions. But the anti-racism outrage sparked by the death of Floyd while in police custody has even made a mark here. Other changesEarlier this month, one of India’s biggest matchmaking websites, Shaadi.com, said it would remove a search filter that allowed users to identify potential matches by skin tone. Following an online petition against the option, the company said the filter “was not serving any purpose” and a “product debris we missed removing.” Unilever is not the only company taking a look at lightening products — Johnson & Johnson said last week it would stop selling skin-whitening creams popular in India, Asia and the Middle East. The company said it was never its intention that “our dark spot reducer products represent fairness or white as better than your own unique skin tone.” As far as Unilever’s Fair and Lovely cream is concerned, activists will watch closely to see how the company rebrands one of it’s most popular beauty products in India. According to a report by the Press Trust of India news agency, the company is getting the name Glow and Lovely registered. “It is not just the word ‘fair’ that must be removed, but it is the stance of the brand that needs to change,” said brand strategy specialist Harish Bijoor. “I believe it will go in the right direction, but we need to wait and watch what else changes. Is it going to promote holistic beauty much more rather than a binary view of beauty, black versus white?” Activists also acknowledge that even if fairness products disappear from shelves, it would still take hard work to dent the equation of fair color with beauty that has become deeply ingrained. 
 
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A massive dust cloud that originated in Africa’s Sahara desert has arrived in the coastal towns and beach resorts of Mexico’s Yucatan peninsula.The Sahara dust cloud traveled three thousands of kilometers from North Africa before reaching the Caribbean and now Mexico.Antonio Ladino, a researcher at the National Autonomous University of Mexico’s Atmospheric Sciences Center is urging people to wear face masks to prevent nose and throat irritations. He also said high concentrations of dust ingested can be very dangerous.Weather experts say the heavy dust will hover over Mexico and the southeastern United States, including Florida until the middle of next week.The presence of the dust cloud in Florida could be especially problematic because the state is experiencing a surge in COVID-19 cases.  People with preexisting conditions, who are already urged to restrict travel because of the coronavirus, are encouraged to avoid outdoor activities when the dust turns the skies hazy.Health authorities say the dust can be especially harmful to people with respiratory and heart illnesses. 
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The U.S. coronavirus task force is expected to hold a public briefing Friday. Vice President Mike Pence will lead the session, the first public briefing in nearly two months.Late Thursday, as the coronavirus cases in the U.S. climbed to record highs, the White House filed a brief with the U.S. Supreme Court seeking to invalidate the Affordable Care Act, the health care insurance also known as Obamacare.Unlike most Western countries, U.S. health coverage is tied to jobs. Since the lockdowns started in the U.S., tens of millions of people have lost their jobs and their health insurance.In addition, not all U.S. jobs provide health insurance, forcing people to buy their own health insurance. The intention of the ACA was to help the public purchase health insurance at reasonable rates.’Unfathomable cruelty’House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said in a statement, “President Trump and the Republicans’ campaign to rip away the protections and benefits of the Affordable Care Act in the middle of the coronavirus crisis is an act of unfathomable cruelty.”The Supreme Court justices will hear oral arguments in October.The U.S. leads the world in coronavirus infections. It has 2.4 million cases, followed by Brazil with 1.2 million cases and Russia with more than 613,000 infections, according to Johns Hopkins University.The number of new single-day coronavirus infections in the U.S. is near record highs as the government revealed more than 20 million people in the U.S. could have contracted the virus.The U.S. states reported 39,327 new cases Thursday, according to The  Washington Post, the highest one-day total since the outbreak began in December.Johns Hopkins University recorded 34,300 cases Wednesday, just shy of its reported record high of 36,400 on April 24.Premature reopenings trigger spikeHarvard Global Health Institute director Ashish Jha said in an interview Thursday on NBC’s “Today” show that the recent increase in U.S. infections was due to the premature reopening of the country’s economy without appropriate safety procedures.Meanwhile, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday the number of coronavirus cases may be 10 times greater than has been reported.A count by Johns Hopkins University puts the number of cases at 2.5 million.But the real number of estimated cases could be about 20 million, the CDC said.Officials have long believed the actual number of cases has been underreported.The CDC says it bases its new estimate after studying blood samples from across the country. It says many cases were not caught because early testing was limited or carried out only on those people who showed symptoms.The CDC estimates that 6 percent of the U.S. population has had COVID-19.Officials report the number of single-day deaths in the U.S. fell last week, but the number of cases appears to be growing.Several states set new one-day records this week – mostly in the South and West. They include Arizona, California, Nevada, Oklahoma and Texas. Other states are also reporting a rise in the number of new cases.Pregnant women at riskOfficials are generally blaming the surge in new cases on young people who they say refuse to wear masks, won’t heed calls for social distancing, and are spreading the virus to more vulnerable older adults.Texas Governor Greg Abbot said Thursday that the state would delay reopening plans to contain surges of new infections. He signed an executive order suspending elective surgery at hospitals in four counties to guarantee adequate space for coronavirus patients.“The last thing we want to do as a state is go backwards and close down businesses,” Abbott said.Also Thursday, the CDC updated its list of those it says are at higher risk for a severe case of COVID-19 to include pregnant women.It also says a person’s age does not necessarily put him or her at an increased risk.The CDC also added sickle cell disease as an underlying condition that would make a COVID-19 victim suffer more.CDC officials say they expect to come out with recommendations for racial and ethnic minority groups soon.Dr. Rick Bright, a top government medical researcher, is charging the Trump administration of increasing what he called a “coordinated effort” to punish him for exposing what he said is a bungled response to the coronavirus.Bright has filed a new complaint with the federal watchdog agency to which government whistleblowers can turn.Bright was the head of the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority.His complaint said he has been downgraded to a much lesser role in the National Institutes of Health, and that because of his reduced role, he “is cut off from all vaccine work, cut off from all therapeutic work, and has a very limited role in the diagnostic work.”According to the complaint, a former colleague said Health and Human Services chief Alex Azar warned him and others that if anyone were to help Bright, “there would be hell to pay.”Bright apparently tried to warn the White House and HHS earlier this year that the country was unprepared for the coronavirus pandemic. He also balked at pushing hydroxychloroquine –- the drug Trump has touted as an effective treatment for COVID-19, but which could have deadly side effects.Trump called Bright an “angry, disgruntled employee.”  
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The United Nations marks the 75th anniversary of its founding on Friday, in a much different world than it was born into. VOA U.N. Correspondent Margaret Besheer looks at how the organization has matured and the challenges it faces going forward.
Produced by: Jesusemen Oni
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New hashtags are circulating in the #Black Lives Matter movement to include Black lives that have been historically marginalized within the community: #Black LGBTQ Lives Matter.“I hope when y’all are out here screaming ‘Black Lives Matter’ that you are talking about ALL black lives, and by all black lives, I mean black women, black men, gay black women, gay black men, black trans men, black trans women, etc.,” tweeted @Cuyler_Nichole on June 24. “Because I’m sure there are people out here screaming black lives matter but are discriminating our black brothers and sisters of the LGBTQ+ community … they matter too.”Historically, LGBTQ+ members of the Black community have experienced ostracization, bullying, isolation and violence, according to studies. LGBTQ youth of color and transgender teenagers report the highest levels of rejection and isolation, in a poll of 12,000 respondents ages 13 to 17. The 2017 study drew from all 50 states and Washington, D.C.“Only 11% of youth of color surveyed believe their racial or ethnic group is regarded positively in the U.S,” according to the 2017 LGBTQ Teen Survey, the largest of its kind, conducted by the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) Foundation and the University of Connecticut.“A black gay person who is a sexual conundrum to society is already long before the question of sexuality comes into it, menace and marked because he’s black or she’s black,” said James Baldwin, an gay African American novelist, on being black and gay in James Baldwin: The Last Interview.“The sexual question comes after the question of color; it’s simply one more aspect of the danger in which all black people live,” he said.Higher rates of biasWhile members of the LGBTQ+ community experience higher rates of bias, violence and suicide, Black LGBTQ+ members experience even higher incidence, according to  the U.S. Transgender Survey (USTS).USTS respondents were more than twice as likely as the U.S. population to be living in poverty. But people of color — including Latino/a (43 percent), American Indian (41 percent), multiracial (40 percent) and Black (38 percent) — were more than three times as likely as the U.S. population (12 percent) to be living in poverty, the report said.In 2016, when the survey was taken, unemployment among transgender people of color (20 percent) was four times higher than the U.S. unemployment rate (5 percent).Human Rights Watch reports that most transgender deaths in 2018 were Black transgender.A national survey by Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network (GLSEN) found 75 percent of transgender youth feel unsafe at school. Their grade-point averages were significantly lower, they were more likely to miss school out of fear and less likely to continue their education.“RIP to Nigel Shelby. At 15 he took his own life due to constant horrific bullying for being gay,” hip-hop artist @Drebae tweeted on June 18. “His school IGNORED his cries for help. He deserved to be loved & appreciated. When you say ‘Black Lives Matter’ don’t forget the LGBT ones.”Drebae also cited the stabbing death of Kirvan Fortuin in Cape Town, South Africa.“Kirvan Fortuin was a 28 year old professional dancer & activist. His life was taken by a 14 year old girl who stabbed him for being gay. Homophobia is TAUGHT. ALL ‘Black Lives Matter’ Stop poisoning your children with hateful ideals because lives are LOST,” Drebae tweeted.’Appalling at best’On June 4, Pose actor Billy Porter posted a video to his Instagram account addressing the Black Lives Matter protests, the Black LGBTQ+ community, and the attack on a Black transgender woman named Iyanna Dior.”The black community’s relationship with the LGBTQ+ community is appalling at best and eerily similar to that of white supremacists versus black folk,” Porter wrote.“Hear me, black people, and hear me well. I’m calling you out right here and right now. You cannot expect our demands of equality to be met with any real legislative policy and change when y’all turn around and inflict the same kind of hate and oppression on us,” Porter said in the video captioned, “This is my message to America.”“The tragic reality here is that black trans, as well as gender nonconforming, women and men are being killed in the United States by cis black men to such a degree that it is nearly the worst emergency for trans women on the planet,” he added. 
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A new policy ordering U.S. public schools to share emergency COVID-19 relief funds with private schools regardless of their wealth will take effect immediately, Education Secretary Betsy DeVos said, despite opposition from many public education supporters.  “The CARES Act (Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security) is a special, pandemic-related appropriation to benefit all American students, teachers and families impacted by coronavirus,” DeVos said. “There is nothing in the law Congress passed that would allow districts to discriminate against children and teachers based on private school attendance and employment.” FILE – Education Secretary Betsy DeVos speaks in the James Brady Press Briefing Room, March 27, 2020, in Washington.DeVos said she expects most of the emergency funds to go toward building cleaning, equipment to protect the health of students and teachers, and virtual classroom training for teachers. She said the department will discourage what she calls “financially secure private schools” from seeking such help.  “Most private schools serving low- and middle-income communities are under great financial strain due to COVID-19 because they are typically dependent on tuition from families and donations from their communities. … More than 100 private schools have already announced they will not be able to reopen following the pandemic, and hundreds more are facing a similar fate,” DeVos said. Under the new rule, private schools would be eligible for the aid based on their total enrollment.  But some U.S. public school officials say it should instead be based on the number of low-income students in private schools – the same policy in other federal rules for aiding schools passed by Congress. Under the DeVos plan, the money allocated for private schools would be at a higher rate than what federal law usually requires. “The Department should be providing clear leadership and guidance to help students, parents, and school districts cope with the impact of the pandemic. Instead, it has issued another confusing directive that will undermine efforts to maintain access to education during this pandemic. I urge the Secretary to withdraw this rule and follow the law that Congress enacted,” Democratic Congressman Bobby Scott of Virginia said Thursday.  DeVos, who is known as a champion of private schools, said all kinds of schools hit hard by the coronavirus outbreak deserve relief. 
 
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An exiled Iranian Arab rights activist says a minority Arab teacher in southern Iran has been sentenced to nine years in prison for using social media to blame Iranian authorities for the poor living conditions of local villagers.In a Tuesday phone interview with VOA Persian, London-based researcher Karim Dahimi said an Iranian court in the southwestern province of Khuzestan sentenced rural schoolteacher Adel Asakereh last week.Asakereh, a history graduate, had been working at a school in the town of Shadegan when security forces arrested him in May 2019. They kept him in solitary confinement for several months as they interrogated him about his social media posts before releasing him on bail, Dahimi said.Reputation for credibilityDahimi has a reputation as a credible source on the human rights situation of his ethnic Ahwazi Arab minority group that lives mainly in Khuzestan. His research is cited by international human rights organizations such as the Washington-based Abdorrahman Boroumand Center and the Oslo-based Iran Human Rights group.Dahimi told VOA that Asakereh had posted online criticism of Iranian authorities for allowing a sugarcane producer to requisition agricultural lands of Shadegan villagers and for prioritizing local Islamic seminaries in government spending. He said Asakereh had complained that such policies were further impoverishing the villagers.For expressing such sentiments on social media, Dahimi said, the court convicted Asakereh of creating public anxiety, threatening national security, and insulting Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and other officials.صدور حكم 9 سال حبس براى يك معلم عرب به دليل دفاع از حقوق روستاى #سفحه
عادل عساكره،فوق ليسانس تاريخ از اهالى دارخوين و معلم آموزشگاه اشرفى اصفهانى در روستاى #سفحه(صفحه) از توابع شهرستان فلاحيه(شادگان)، به 9 سال حبس به اتهام توهين به رهبر و مقامات محكوم شدhttps://t.co/pUH88YsFwOpic.twitter.com/e4J9lJaL00
— KhakZadegan (@KhakZadegan) June 20, 2020The first online report of the sentencing of the Iranian Arab teacher came Saturday in a Twitter post by the KhakZadegan channel, which shares news of what it calls the suffering of Iranian Arabs. The post included a video clip of what appeared to be Asakereh playing with his students.There was no mention in Iranian state media of recent legal actions against Asakereh. It was not clear whether he faces imminent imprisonment or can remain free while appealing the verdict reported by Dahimi.VOA Persian contacted Iran’s U.N. mission in New York by email and phone on Thursday seeking comment on Asakereh’s case but received no response.Minorities targetedThe U.S. State Department’s latest annual report on human rights in Iran, released in March, said the predominantly Persian and Islamist-ruled nation’s estimated 2 million Ahwazis were among several minority groups “disproportionately targeted” by authorities for “arbitrary arrest, prolonged detention, disappearances and physical abuse.”The report also said a widespread complaint among Ahwazis was that the Iranian government diverted and mismanaged natural resources, primarily water, often for the benefit of contractors affiliated with Iran’s most powerful military force, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.This article originated in VOA’s Persian service. Click here for the original Persian version of the story.
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