Catching Our Eye: Black history, Black trans pride, and COVID-19 epicenters

Black history. The Sandusky Register’s Caitlin Nearhood is reporting, “Black history not properly taught to Ohio students.”

“Important parts of American history appear to be whitewashed in Ohio’s current history curriculum.

“In recent weeks, events like Juneteenth, the Tulsa Massacre and Black Wall Street have gained notoriety amid racial injustice protests in the wake of George Floyd’s killing.

“But Ohio’s history standards, adopted in 2018 by the state board of education, don’t seem to include those events…

“Huron Schools curriculum director Julie McDonald, who’s white, said educators, in their lessons, can choose to teach about Juneteenth, the Tulsa Massacre and more events on top of current state standards, which are the minimum requirements. State history curriculum is usually revised every five years.”

Black trans pride. The Columbus Dispatch’s Briah Lumpkins is reporting, “‘Pride is about uprising’: Local trans activist says of protesting for Black Lives Matter during Pride Month.”

“June is usually a time of celebration for those in the LGBTQ+ community, with organizations across the nation holding Pride parades and other events full of people waving flags, banners and rainbow-colored balloons.

“But in the midst of a global pandemic and protests over racial injustice by police following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis, this year’s Pride Month celebrations feels much different for the Black LGTBQ+ community.

“‘These moments feel unlike any other that I’ve ever experienced in my time as an organizer,’ said Dkeama Alexis, a black transgender activist and community organizer in Columbus. ‘The spirit of all of it just feels way different.’

“Still, the efforts — demanding change and rebuking police brutality — don’t feel out of place, Alexis said. They stem from a history of Black trans activists like Marsha P. Johnson who were on the front lines at the Stonewall Riots in New York City in 1969 but in some ways are only now receiving the credit due their trailblazing roles.”

COVID epicenters. The Washington Post’s Derek Hawkins, Michael Birnbaum, Meryl Kornfield, Siobhán O’Grady, Kareem Copeland, Marisa Iati and Felicia Sonmez are reporting, “Live updates: Arizona, Florida, Texas are latest coronavirus epicenters.”

“Confirmed coronavirus cases in the United States surpassed 2.5 million on Sunday as a crushing new wave of infections continued to bear down throughout the country’s South and West. Across the nation, more than 38,000 new daily cases were reported by 5:15 p.m. on Sunday.

“Florida, Texas and Arizona are fast emerging as the country’s latest epicenters after reporting record numbers of new infections for weeks in a row. Positivity rates and hospitalizations have also spiked. On Sunday, Arizona (3,857) and Georgia (2,225) hit new one-day case highs.

“Global cases of covid-19 exceeded 10 million, according to a count maintained by Johns Hopkins University, a measure of the power and spread of a pandemic that has caused vast human suffering, devastated the world’s economy and still threatens vulnerable populations in rich and poor nations alike.”