Jilly_in_VA
Jilly_in_VA's JournalSegregation's toxic past re-emerges in North Carolina's lead-poisoned playgrounds
Buck Blue fondly remembers growing up in Walltown, a tight-knit Black community in Durham, North Carolina, in the 1960s and 1970s. He would be out all day, playing football and basketball with buddies at the park near his house. They’d spend hours in the creek there, which turned different hues depending on a nearby textile mill’s dyeing work. They’d hang out in the tunnel that ferried the water across the road: “That was our clubhouse,” he said.
But his memories have been tainted. Last year, Duke University researchers found that some of the soil in Walltown Park, including sediment along the creek’s banks, is contaminated with lead. It’s a lingering remnant of the property’s days as a waste incinerator from around 1920 to 1942, one of five that the city operated.
At least four of those incinerators were located in Black neighborhoods. All four sites were eventually turned into parks, and three of them were cited in the Duke study as having spots with soil lead levels far exceeding those recommended by the EPA (the fourth site wasn’t tested).
As a neurotoxin, lead causes irreparable harm, particularly in kids’ rapidly developing brains. No amount of lead exposure is found to be safe, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have lowered the acceptable blood lead level threshold for children twice in the last three decades, most recently in 2021.
For Blue and his neighbors, the real betrayal was the fact that they didn’t learn the news from the city, nor from Duke. The researchers reportedly contacted Durham parks and recreation officials about their findings last November, but Walltown residents didn’t learn about them until a community member came across the information online in mid-May. No one had bothered to alert them.
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/oct/10/durham-north-carolina-lead-playgrounds-black-neighborhoods
North Carolina GOP Is Creating a 'Secret Police Force'
Republican state legislators In North Carolina are establishing a new investigative body that Democratic critics have aptly compared to a “secret police force.”
This new entity, formally known as the Joint Legislative Committee on Government Operations, or “Gov Ops” for short, will be chaired by Senate Leader Phil Berger (R) and House Speaker Tim Moore (R). It grants the state the authority to investigate various matters, including “possible instances of misfeasance, malfeasance, nonfeasance, mismanagement, waste, abuse, or illegal conduct.”
Gov Ops, a product of North Carolina’s most recent state budget, was established via a comprehensive bill passed in late September. Despite Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper’s refusal to sign the legislation, the Republican majority in the state legislature pushed it through just 10 days later, thanks to their veto-proof majority and the state’s laws restricting the governor’s ability to make line-item vetoes. Gov Ops is slated to take effect next week.
Any way you slice it, Gov Ops seems like a recipe for government overreach and abuse. If you find yourself under investigation by Gov Ops, you won’t be allowed to publicly discuss any alleged constitutional violations or misconduct by the investigators. All communications with committee personnel would be treated as “confidential.” Shockingly, you’d also be denied the right to seek legal counsel regarding your rights if Gov Ops were to search your property without a warrant, irrespective of whether it’s in a public or private space.
Nora Benavidez, a senior counsel with the nonprofit advocacy group Free Press, told The Daily Beast, “This is a question for the courts ultimately. But the powers granted to the Gov Ops appear to give them overreaching investigative authority, which invokes constitutionality questions.”
https://www.thedailybeast.com/north-carolina-republicans-are-creating-a-secret-police-force?ref=home
Scary stuff.
Family sues after 9-year-old boy handcuffed at school
The family of a 9-year-old boy is suing the city of Oviedo, Florida, and police after school resource officers handcuffed their child at school.
Two Oviedo police officers were in the mailroom Feb. 2 at Stenstrom Elementary School in Seminole County. According to a police report, staff attempted to deescalate a situation with a fourth-grade student who was cursing, screaming and throwing things.
The student had an Individual Education Plan and Behavior Intervention Plan that identified “physical aggression” as a behavior problem, according to a lawsuit later filed by his family.
Video of the incident shows staff using blocking pads made for situations like this, but officers later handcuffed the 9-year-old, while asking him to calm down. Officers continually speak with the child, as seen in the video.
https://www.whsv.com/2023/10/09/family-sues-after-9-year-old-boy-handcuffed-school/
My son had a classmate like this at one time. The teacher handled it by herself. Never called for backup, never called the security officer because there wasn't one. Se just dealt with him. No mess, no fuss.
So Long, Granny Haircuts. Here's What Women Are Doing Instead Today
It’s never too late to have a truly fabulous haircut. Yes, hair changes as we age, and you may not have the same thick and healthy tresses you sported when you were 18. But that’s no reason to resort to what some stylists call a “granny haircut.”
In the old days, it meant a tight perm and a blue rinse. Now, it refers to any wash-and-wear, low-maintenance cut.
But there are endless options to keep things fresh and lively, so there’s no need to resort to a full-on granny style (unless you absolutely want to). Hairstylists point to older style icons as inspiration.
“I always think of the women of Advanced Style on Instagram and how cool their hair always looks with their outfits,” said hair designer Luisa Popović. (If you haven’t followed it yet, it’s a project of photographer Ari Seth Cohen that’s dedicated “to capturing the sartorial savvy of the senior set.”)
Other stellar examples, she said, include Vivenne Westwood, who died in 2022, and who was famed for her signature bright orange hair. She also cited the “powerful looks” of Michèle Lamy, the raven-haired 79-year-old French fashion designer. “It all just emanates fearlessness,” Popović said.
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/say-goodbye-to-the-granny-haircut-heres-what-women-are-doing-instead_l_6508578be4b0c8ce433bb982
I'm 80 and wear mine in a short French bob. I also color it in an updated version of its natural color (just a little bit more reddish) because it's only gray at the temples. This weekend we were at an event in a neighboring county and I was struck by the variations on older women's hair, from short and spiky and buzz cuts to purple coloring jobs. Why not?
Toddlers with developmental delays are missing out on help they need. It can hurt them long term
Alexander watches Paw Patrol with fervor, bowls his baby brother over with hugs and does everything with gusto.
What the 3-year-old West Chicago toddler can’t do yet is speak more than a few words. His balance is wobbly and he isn’t able to let his preschool teachers know when he’s hurt or scared.
When his mother, Hilda Garcia, had him tested, the youngster qualified for five therapies through a U.S. program dedicated to treating developmental delays in babies and toddlers — treatment designed to help Alexander develop the tools he needs to thrive.
The relief she felt in identifying what he needed was short-lived.
The federally mandated Early Intervention program is plagued by chronic staffing shortages nationwide, leaving thousands of desperate parents frustrated: They know their children need support, they’re aware of proven therapies that could make a difference, but they have to wait for months to get the help they need.
After 14 months of phone calls, hours of research and pushing herself to the limit with work and childcare, Garcia finally landed an in-person early intervention appointment, but even then she couldn’t get Alexander all the therapies he needed. She tears up as she recounts how overwhelming the fight to secure access has been.
“I didn’t have any support,” she said.
https://apnews.com/article/toddler-early-intervention-developmental-delays-fdf1c65ef0b3c928326385e498ff72f7
Been there and done that, many many years ago. Nothing has changed, sadly. My "toddler" is now 50, and he never really caught up.
A Woman Was Denied Medication for Being of 'Childbearing Age.' She Just Sued the Hospital
Last September, New York resident Tara Rule posted a raw, emotional video on Tiktok saying she had been denied a medication to treat a debilitating condition called cluster headaches, because her neurologist told her she was of “childbearing age” and the medication could cause birth defects to a hypothetical fetus.
Rule said that as she sat in her neurologist’s office at Glens Falls Hospital, she told him she never planned to have kids and would have an abortion if she became pregnant; referencing the overturning of Roe v. Wade, he responded that getting the care she was seeking is “trickier now with the way things are going.” He also said she should bring her partner “in on the conversation” on her medical care. Rule asked if the issue preventing her from getting the “highly effective” medication was solely that she could become pregnant and, “If I was, like, through menopause, would [the medication] be very effective for cluster headaches?” The doctor affirmed it would. He also asked about her sex life and whether she’s “with a steady person.” Rule shared audio recordings of the appointment on TikTok at the time.
Last week, Rule filed a lawsuit against Albany Medical Health Partners charging the largest hospital system in upstate New York with discrimination over the denial of her medication and a string of incidents afterward. The suit alleges that denying her medication because she’s of “childbearing age” and prioritizing an imagined fetus over her health violates federal law—specifically, the Affordable Care Act’s anti-discrimination provisions and the Age Discrimination Act. “Where are we drawing the line here?” Rule told Jezebel. “Are hospitals going to require someone to share a pregnancy test, proof they’re on birth control, get a hysterectomy, to get life-saving health care?” She said she hopes her lawsuit can create more medical protections for people of “childbearing age” post-Roe.
In a similar example of post-Roe concerns around the mere possibility of pregnancy impacting people’s access to medication, several people who could become pregnant have reported being denied sometimes life-saving medications that are deemed “abortifacients” by doctors and pharmacists. Even before Roe was overturned, in 2021, a pregnant woman in Alabama was arrested and prosecuted for trying to pick up pain medication from her pharmacist to manage a chronic back condition, as police alleged she was endangering her pregnancy. Rule told Jezebel she’s heard from “people who say they were denied everything from acne medication to chemotherapy for the same reason.”
https://jezebel.com/childbearing-age-medication-denied-lawsuit-1850899899
Men attempting to control women for no reason except they CAN! JFC, is it ever going to stop?????
Alabama man killed by police in 'ambush' during truck repossession, family says
An Alabama man was killed by police in an "ambush," his family said Monday, that unfolded when a repo man tried to take his truck with the help of officers.
Neighbors' security footage captured some of the sights and sounds of officers confronting Steve Perkins, 39, on Sept. 29 at his home in Decatur, about 30 miles southwest of Huntsville.
A man could he heard saying, "Hey, give me my truck back!" according to footage made public by Perkins' family.
Then another male voice could be heard screaming, "Hey, hey, police! Get on the ground!"
There was only a fraction of a second between the word “ground” and the sound of gunfire, with more than a dozen rounds apparently being squeezed off in about four seconds.
"From the immediate footage that we're seeing, it looked like an ambush of him not even knowing who was in his yard," family spokesperson Brenton Lipscomb old NBC News on Monday.
"They were in uniform, but it's a very dark neighborhood. No police cars were in front of the house, they were parked down the street, hiding in neighborhoods' yards, hiding around the house."
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/alabama-man-killed-police-ambush-truck-repossession-family-says-rcna119504
More police overreach, it looks like.
Death of Atlanta deacon electrically shocked during arrest was a homicide, autopsy says
An autopsy has found that the Aug. 10 death of a 62-year-old church deacon who was electrically shocked by an Atlanta police officer was a homicide, although the medical examiner found that heart disease also contributed to his death.
Johnny Hollman became unresponsive while being arrested after a minor car crash. The officer shocked Hollman with an electrical stun gun and handcuffed him after Hollman refused to sign a traffic ticket.
The city has since changed its policy to let officers write “refusal to sign” on a traffic ticket instead of arresting someone who won’t sign. The policy requires officers to inform drivers that a signature is not an admission of guilt. It just acknowledges receipt of the ticket and court date.
The Atlanta City Council last week called on the city to release the video from the incident. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation, which is examining the officer’s actions, has asked the Atlanta Police Department not to release the video until the state agency’s investigation is complete.
Hollman’s death has contributed to discontent with police among some Atlantans that centers on a proposal to build a public safety training center.
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/death-atlanta-deacon-electrically-shocked-arrest-was-homicide-autopsy-rcna119442
Why was it necessary to use a stun gun for refusal to sign a traffic ticket? Seems like major overreach to me.
Dolly Parton on style, stardom and sexists: 'I know how to push men off and get the hell away'
You don’t, I suspect, say no to Dolly Parton, which is why the roll call of names on her new rock album is so ridiculous. She sings Let it Be with Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr, with Mick Fleetwood on drums and Peter Frampton on guitar; she has Debbie Harry and Stevie Nicks, Joan Jett and Judas Priest’s Rob Halford. And Elton John. It’s not just the ageing greats – Lizzo is there too, on Stairway to Heaven. The album, Rockstar, Parton’s 49th, started with her inauguration to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, which she initially felt unworthy of because she didn’t consider herself an artist in that genre. And so, at the age of 77, Parton became a rock star.
We meet in an expensive hotel in London where Parton has taken over the top floor. It is busy with assistants, bodyguards and publicists, though when I’m shown into a room where Parton, queenly, is to receive me – everything timed to the second – we are left alone. Not remotely grand, she is warm and funny, skilled at deflecting awkward questions with a joke. She is also luminous, as sometimes very famous people are, but with her it’s something else. Later, I realise it’s gratitude. “I’ve been grateful for every good thing ever happened,” she says. “God has always blessed me, surrounded me with good people. I pray that every day God will bring all the right things, all the right people, into my life.”
Recording these classic rock songs – the playlist is inspired largely by the favourites of Parton’s husband of nearly 50 years, Carl, “a real rock’n’roll freak” – has been “a big deal for me, and I felt very responsible. I didn’t want to maim them up, and I tried really hard to sing them well and stay as true as I could to the form, but with my voice.” Her version of Lynyrd Skynyrd’s Free Bird is, I think, even better than the original. Her roar of freedom, when you know the legend of her life story – the impoverished girl who grew up in the backwoods of Tennessee, defied all expectations and grew up to be the all-conquering country star – is made for it.
As well as the album, Parton is releasing a new book, Behind the Seams: My Life in Rhinestones, which documents her life and career in clothes and costume (next, she is planning the small matter of launching a TV network). “I’ve been at this so long, I’ve worn some of the most bizarre things – my hairdos have always been so out there,” she says. “At the time you think you look good, then you look back on it, like, what was I thinking?” She laughs, but the book is wonderful, documenting the dresses made from sacks she wore as a child, and her “coat of many colours”, sewn by her mother from fabric scraps, to the most lavish stage costumes. Blond hair that gets bigger and bigger, like a cake rising; jumpsuits in every colour; dresses weighed down with rhinestones and pearls.
Parton has always been sure of her look, even when she was young, a look – as she has said before – modelled on the “town tramp”, a local woman who wore high heels and tight skirts, who Parton would look out for on trips into town. “She was flamboyant. She had bright red lipstick, long red fingernails. She had high-heeled shoes, little floating plastic goldfish in the heels of them, short skirts, low-cut tops, and I just thought she was beautiful. When people would say, ‘She ain’t nothing but trash,’ I would always say, ‘Well, that’s what I’m gonna be when I grow up.’”
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2023/oct/09/dolly-parton-on-style-stardom-and-sexists-rockstar-behind-seams-my-life-in-rhinestones
Terrific article. Dolly is one of my all-time heroes.
Can cooking and gardening at school inspire better nutrition? Ask these kids
Farm to school events are happening all over the country this month aimed at bringing fresh food to students' plates.
And, after a decline in nutrition education in U.S. schools in recent decades, there's new momentum, to weave food and cooking into the curriculum again.
Remember the hands-on cooking in home economics class, which was a staple in U.S. schools for decades?
"I'd love to see it brought back and have the science around healthy eating integrated," says Stacy Dean, deputy under secretary for food, nutrition and consumer services at the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Dean told me she was inspired by a visit to Watkins Elementary, in Washington, D.C., where this idea is germinating. Students grow vegetables in their school garden. They also roll up their sleeves in the school's kitchen to participate in a FRESHFARM FoodPrints class, which integrates cooking and nutrition education. On the day we visited, 5th graders sauteed onions and collard greens.
"Who's next," asks instructional coach Regina Green, as kids toss veggies into the sizzling pan and the aroma of fresh ginger and caramelizing onions fills the air. "We grew these in our garden," Jessie Gibson, one of the students, says proudly. Then he measures and pours dry ingredients for a cracker recipe into a bowl.
"I'm whisking," Gibson says as they review a lesson on whole grains. "I've learned whole wheat has more nutrition, because it has the germ and the outer layer," of the wheat kernel he says, as he rolls out the dough with a rolling pin.
Teaching nutrition without a kitchen is a bit like swimming lessons without a pool, so this elementary school is fortunate to have a dedicated cooking classroom. But it also takes a lot of time, staff and resources.
"We really work hard to make it experiential which requires a lot of prep and a lot of clean up," says Jenn Mampara, director of education at FRESHFARM.
https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2023/10/09/1204077086/can-cooking-and-gardening-at-school-inspire-better-nutrition-ask-these-kids
Big Ag HATES this idea! But even when I worked in daycare and we had a little garden, the kids were eager to eat what they helped grow.
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