Jun 19, 2020 - Politics & Policy

Senate Democrats introduce legislation to make Juneteenth a federal holiday

Sens. Cory Booker and Kamala Harris during a Judiciary Committee hearing. Photo: Tom Williams/Pool/Getty Images

A group of Senate Democrats introduced legislation Friday that would make Juneteenth a federal holiday.

The big picture: 46 states and the District of Columbia recognize the holiday commemorating the end of slavery, but legislation to declare it a paid federal holiday has repeatedly stalled in Congress, according to the Congressional Research Service.

  • Sens. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and Tina Smith (D-Minn.) were behind the move.
  • Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) said on the Senate floor Thursday that he also planned to introduce similar legislation.
  • Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas) also put forth a resolution asking the House to recognize the holiday.

Why it matters: It's yet another tangible effect of the Black Lives Matter protests across the country, highlighting their ability to fast-track societal changes and recognition.

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Ina Fried
Jun 26, 2020 - Technology

Bill would ban police use of face recognition

Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

Democrats in both houses of Congress said Thursday they are introducing a bill that would ban government use of facial recognition technology.

Why it matters: A handful of cities have banned government use in their jurisdictions, but there are no national laws governing how facial recognition can be used, and there's wide concern over how the tech today encodes racial and other kinds of biases.

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Rebecca Falconer
Updated 28 mins ago - Science

Hurricane Isaias makes landfall in North Carolina

People walk through floodwaters on Ocean Blvd. in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, on Monday. Photo: Sean Rayford/Getty Images

Hurricane Isaias made landfall as a Category 1 storm near Ocean Isle Beach in southern North Carolina at 11:10 p.m. ET Monday, packing maximum sustained winds of 85 mph, per the National Hurricane Center (NHC).

What's happening: Hurricane conditions were spreading onto the coast of eastern South Carolina and southeastern N.C., the NHC said in an 11 p.m. update. Ocean Isle Beach Mayor Debbie Smith told WECT News the eye of the storm triggered "a series of fires at homes" and "a lot of flooding." Fire authorities confirmed they were responding to "multiple structure fires in the area."

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Axios
Updated 56 mins ago - Politics & Policy

Coronavirus dashboard

Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

  1. Global: Total confirmed cases as of 12:30 a.m. ET: 18,224,253 — Total deaths: 692,679 — Total recoveries — 10,865,548 — Map.
  2. U.S.: Total confirmed cases as of 12:30 a.m. ET: 4,713,500 — Total deaths: 155,401 — Total recoveries: 1,513,446 — Total tests: 57,543,852 — Map.
  3. Politics: White House will require staff to undergo randomized coronavirus testing — Pelosi says Birx "enabled" Trump on misinformation.
  4. Sports: 13 members of St. Louis Cardinals test positive, prompting MLB to cancel Tigers series — Former FDA chief says MLB outbreaks should be warning sign for schools.
  5. 1 🎥 thing: "Tenet" may be the first major film to get a global pandemic release.
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