U.S. Senate confirms Zahid Quraishi as country’s first Muslim American federal judge
The Senate voted last week to confirm Zahid Quraishi, a former United States magistrate judge in New Jersey.
Racial justice
U.S. Justice Department indicts four on federal charges for George Floyd’s death
Such federal charges are rare, notes npr.org, because it is difficult to meet the high legal bar they require.
U.S. Department of Justice charges three Georgia men accused of killing Ahmaud Arbery with federal hate crimes
All three defendants have also been charged in a separate state proceeding with malice murder, felony murder, aggravated assault, false imprisonment, and criminal attempt to commit a felony.
A historically Black community in Houston will be home to largest urban solar farm in the U.S.
The solar panels will create enough electricity for about 5,000 homes annually, offsetting 120 million pounds of carbon dioxide annually. Construction is slated to start later this year with plans to be in operation by 2022.
Chloé Zhao is the first woman of color to win an Oscar for Best Director
The Nomadland director was also the first woman to get four Oscar nominations in a single year, in ‘best film editing,’ ‘best-adapted screenplay,’ ‘best director,’ and ‘best picture’ categories.
Derek Chauvin found guilty of the murder of George Floyd
“But today I won’t get that time to sleep, because I’m going to stay up and I’m going to celebrate, because this is a day of celebration. I’m happy, man,” Philonise Floyd told CNN’s Don Lemon.
St. Louis elects Tishaura Jones as first Black female mayor
Running on a progressive platform, Tishaura Jones has committed to the “reimagining” of public safety, stricter gun control, and the closure of one of the city’s pretrial detention centers accused of inhumane conditions.
Getty and City of Los Angeles announce new project to identify and protect African American historic places
As of now, just over three percent of the city’s 1,200 designated local landmarks are linked to African American heritage.
Morehouse College and Spelman College co-create Center for Black Entrepreneurship with $10 million from Bank of America
The Center for Black Entrepreneurship will be the first-ever academic center to assemble, educate, and empower a new class of Black entrepreneurial talent.
Wales make Black history courses mandatory in school curricula
Wales has recently announced that all school children in the country will have to take mandatory courses about racism and the contributions of Black, Asian, and minority ethnic (BAME) communities to Welsh society.