Tuesday, June 1st, 2021
Race Massacre: 100 Years Later, Rideshare Rates Up & French Open Exit
All the news in about 10 min:
This episode is brought to you by HelloFresh.com/NEWSWORTHY12 and Noom.com/newsworthy
Story Summaries
All the news stories mentioned in today's episode are listed with links below, so you can spend as much -- or as little -- time as you want to read the latest happenings...
100 Years Since Tulsa Race Massacre
Exactly 100 years ago, the Tulsa race massacre happened. That’s when a white mob stormed a successful Black economic hub in the Greenwood neighborhood of Tulsa, Oklahoma that was often referred to as Black Wall Street. The mob, with the help of local police officers, rioted for two days, randomly shooting and killing Black people. They torched 35 blocks of Black-owned businesses, churches, homes, a library, a school, and a hospital. Historians say as many as 300 people were killed and no one was ever charged in their deaths. Black Wall Street was never rebuilt.
Read More: History, Axios, AP, WaPo
Biden Proclamation
President Biden issued a proclamation calling for a day of remembrance for the victims of the Tulsa race massacre. He called on Americans to “recommit to the work of rooting out systematic racism across our country.” He also said his administration was “committed to acknowledging” how federal policy affected Greenwood in particular. Today, the President will visit Tulsa. He’s going to tour the Greenwood Cultural Center and meet with surviving members of the community.
Read More: Politico, Tulsa World, CNN, White House
Republicans Block Riot Commission
A bipartisan investigation into the January 6th capitol riot won’t be happening. A lot of lawmakers wanted an independent commission, similar to what was created to look into the 9/11 terror attacks, but the final vote came up short. Ahead of the vote, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell urged his Republican colleagues to vote against it. He argued that Democrats would use the commission for political reasons and he said there’s no need for the commission since law enforcement and congressional committees are already investigating the riot. Some top Democrats aren’t giving up though, planning to form a commission with or without Republicans.
Read More: WaPo, WSJ, NY Times, The Hill
Texas Voting Bill Blocked
Texas Democrats staged a walkout in a last-ditch effort to block a controversial new bill. It would have tightened the state’s already strict voting laws. Republicans say the changes are necessary to make elections more secure in the state while Democrats say this is all meant to discourage people from voting. The bill had to be passed by the end of the day on Sunday to make it into this legislative session. Since Republicans hold the House majority in Texas, Democrats realized they would likely lose if they stayed to vote, so they walked out instead. This left the State House without enough members to vote on the bill, which now faces an uncertain future. Democrats say it’s dead, while the Republican governor of Texas says he’s going to order state lawmakers to come back for a special session to approve it.
Read More: Texas Tribune, WSJ, NY Times, Fox News
FL Mass Shooting
There’s a manhunt underway for the three people behind a mass shooting in South Florida. It happened outside a banquet hall in the city of Hialeah. Police say the shooters started shooting randomly into the crowd before driving off. Two men in their 20s died and at least 20 other people were hurt. Officers think it was part of a continuing rivalry between two groups. This was only one incident in a series of shootings in the Miami area in recent days, with at least 30 people having been shot in and around the city over three days.
Read More: Miami Herald, NY Times, Fox News, AP, WaPo
China 3-Child Policy
China is now going to let married couples have up to three children. Remember, for decades, China had a policy of each family only being allowed to have one child, with the idea being that this would help prevent overpopulation. About five years ago, it was changed to two children per family. Now, it’s three. Last month, Chinese census numbers came out that showed China’s population growth is slowing. The existing population is aging so much the country could have a hard time paying for things like healthcare and retirement if there’s not a younger population to support them.
Read More: WSJ, CNN, BBC, Reuters
Post Office Prices Increase
The U.S. Postal Service plans to raise prices by nearly 7% across the board later this summer as a part of a ten-year plan to cut tens of billions of dollars of debt. A first-class stamp would go from 55 cents to 58 cents while mailing a letter overseas would cost an extra ten cents. Items businesses tend to mail out, like catalogs and larger envelopes, are set to cost 16 cents more. The Postal Regulatory Commission still has to approve the increases, but if they do, the price hikes will take effect by the end of August.
Read More: Forbes, Axios, WaPo, AP, USPS, Delivering for America Plan
Rideshare Prices Up, Wait Times Longer
Those who have ordered an Uber or Lyft ride recently may have noticed longer wait times and higher prices than usual. As the U.S. starts to open up again, the demand for rides is surging while the companies deal with a driver shortage. A recent analysis found the cost of a ride on Uber or Lyft in April was up 40% from a year ago. Both Uber and Lyft have used incentives to recruit new drivers, and while these have helped, it is still going to take time for the workforce to match the demand.
Read More: NY Times, Fox Business, Houston Chronicle, Bloomberg
Google Photos Unlimited Storage Ends
Starting today, Google Photos will have a limit on how many pictures and videos you can upload for free. Users can now only upload up to 15 gigabytes of new photos and videos (not including ones uploaded before today), after which you’ll have to pay for extra storage. For more space, customers can subscribe to Google One. Then, an extra 100 gigabytes of space will cost $2 per month. More than a billion people use Google Photos to store their pictures and videos online. Google says more than 28 billion new photos and videos are uploaded every week.
Read More: CNET, Engadget, Google, 9to5Google
Naomi Osaka Withdraws from French Open
Four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka withdrew from the French Open over the weekend. She revealed she deals with “huge waves of anxiety” before speaking to the media. This explanation comes after she was fined $15,000 for skipping a news conference after her first-round victory. She quit before the second round and said she’d take a break from all competition for a while. In tennis, athletes have contracts that say they have to speak to reporters and it doesn’t look like that rule is changing any time soon.
Read More: NBC News, AP, Naomi Osaka, FFT President
Trivia Tuesday
Q1: On what date did The NewsWorthy publish its very first episode?
Q2: Which letter represents the number 1,000 in Roman numerals?
Play along on today’s Instagram Stories Quiz. We’ll also have the answer right here next week.
Last Week’s Trivia Tuesday Answer
Q: Which is the only edible food that never goes bad?
A: Honey
Read More: Smithsonian Magazine, Gizmodo