George Floyd Laid to Rest as Lawmakers Debate Police Reform

Currents News Staff

Today in Houston, the final goodbye to George Floyd. An emotional funeral for the man whose death began a national movement.

“America, it is time for a change. Even if it should begin with more protests. No Justice, No Peace,” said Brooke Williams, George Floyd’s Niece.

The 46 year old was killed more than two weeks ago – igniting nationwide outrage over police brutality.

“We speak, and we decree, and we declaim, that right now, lord, God, there shall be justice,” said Rev. Mary White.

At the funeral, a sign of hope for a silver lining amidst the tragedy.

“He changed the world. George Floyd changed the world. And we’re gonna make the world know that he made a difference,” said Rep. Al Green.

Around the country the has been a push for sweeping police reform measures.

Some – including the Minneapolis city council – believe defunding the police and re-modeling the force, while reallocating funds to other areas is the answer-

“We need to make deeper change than we have in the past,” said Lisa Bender, the Minneapolis City Council President.

Both President Trump and his democratic opponent, Joe Biden, have spoken out against defunding the police.

Congresswoman Karen Bass – who helped craft a sweeping democratic proposal for police reform – agrees.

“I don’t think that that’s the appropriate thing to do,” said Bass.

But those who have been protesting for days want change.

Whether Floyd’s death can bridge the gap between both sides will become apparent soon enough.

Currents News full broadcast for Mon, 6/08/20 (Catholic news)

Currents News reports secular and religious news from the Catholic perspective.

Some of the top stories on this newscast:

Backlash against the blue – some are calling for police departments in America to be dismantled or defunded.

And kicked out of a protest – the Mayor of Minneapolis is told to ‘go home’ because he won’t back shutting down the city’s police force.

Brooklyn’s Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio with a powerful homily against the sin of racism.

Plus, New York City is declaring victory of the coronavirus.

Mayor de Blasio Announces Plans to Cut NYPD Budget as Police Warn of Potential Dangers

By Emily Drooby

Mayor Bill de Blasio is planning on cutting the NYPD’s budget in response to demands from protesters for change.

During a press conference on June 7, he said, “People did not protest for the sake of protest. They protest to achieve change, and now we must deliver that change,”

The mayor said he would move money from the NYPD and use it for social and youth services.

“We are committed to shifting resources to ensure that the focus is on our young people,” he said.

Calls to defund or even abolish the police have become top demands among protesters throughout the country, including in New York City.

“When more funding is put into policing than it is education, than housing, social services, it’s an issue, it shows that there is an imbalance and a bias in the priorities,” explained Anthony Beckford, the President of Black Lives Matter Brooklyn.

Paul DiGiacomo, the president of the Detectives’ Endowment Association, Inc, warned that

slashing the police budget will have consequences.

“The bottom line is this,” he said,”if you cut the funding from the New York City Police Department, the only people who will suffer is the people of the city.”

The detective is also calling out politicians he accuses of not supporting the police.

“It’s not fair to the members of the NYPD and my detectives who are out there putting their lives on the lines I have said it many times,” DiGiacomo further explained. “If you assault one of my detectives, we will go after you with civil litigation. That is a promise. We are done being abused.”

Former police officer and current professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, Peter Moskos, added that any funding cuts will almost definitely mean less police.

“If you start talking about major cuts you’re talking about laying off police officers, you can easily cut an organization where 80% plus of the funding goes to labor costs,” he explained. “So at least, we should be honest about what is being proposed.”

Some are talking about stripping a billion dollars out the NYPD’s six-billion-dollar budget. While de Blasio has yet to release a number, he insists it won’t be a billion.

In Albany this week, the Democrat-led legislature is being expected to pass a slew of bills that address police practices. One hot-button measure would end secrecy surrounding the discipline records of police. It’s known as “50-A,” and abolishing it is something else that protesters have repeatedly demanded.

Minneapolis City Council Plans to Dismantle Police Department Following Death of George Floyd

Currents News Staff

Nine of 13 Minneapolis City Council members have publicized their desire to not reform the police department, but abolish it.

It’s “our commitment is to end our city’s toxic relationship with the police department, to end policing as we know it,” described Lisa Bender, President of the Minneapolis City Council.

A rally at a Minneapolis park served as an incubator of sorts to share ideas about a post-police world. Redirecting the department’s budget toward youth programs, mental health services and addiction treatment was part of it.

Also part of the conversation was having a choice about who to call for help, maybe neighbors or social workers.

“Police are not the right response for a myriad of issues, mental health crises, domestic violence calls, opioid overdoses,” said city council member Phillipe Cunningham, who is looking toward revising the city budget this month due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“”There is an opportunity for us to be able to explore what our next steps are,” he added, “but really, we’re going to be hitting 2021’s budget very hard.”

Mayor Jacob Frey says he’ll work with the police chief on community-led public safety strategies to address systemic racism in police culture, but he doesn’t support the police department’s abolition.

However, dismantling the police department may or may not happen. Many people in the crowd Currents News spoke with say they’ve lost hope with reform.

“We have had citizen review boards, body cameras and a black chief, but we are still here watching black people get murdered and tear gassed in our streets,” said Noor from the Black Visions Collective. “We have never looked to the police for our safety. We have looked to each other.”

In Wake of George Floyd’s Death, Vigils Allow for Healing and Unity

By Jessica Easthope

The death of George Floyd struck a chord within the hearts of millions around the world. Amidst the ongoing protests, dozens of vigils are being held in cities across the U.S. demonstrating the power of prayer.

“There’s a window and we need to take advantage of that so the killings, just like Mr. Floyd’s, those come to an end and they become an anomaly, and they never happen again,” said Kojo Addo, organizer of the Minneapolis vigil.

The vigils celebrated the lives of Floyd along with Breonna Taylor and Ahmaud Arbery. Taylor was killed by police in March after plain-clothes officers entered her apartment on a ‘no-knock’ warrant. On June 5, she would have turned 27.

A common theme throughout the vigils was a moment of silence, lasting eight minutes and 46 seconds, the time ex-police officer Derek Chauvin’s knee was on George Floyd’s neck during his arrest.

“We are George Floyd, we are taking on that moment with him,” said Lekie Dwanyen, who participated in the moment of silence at a vigil in Minneapolis.

DeSaeles Media, Currents News’ parent company also held a vigil this weekend, led by Father John Gribowich.

“This is clearly a burst of hope right now, because we can see the great power of this man’s horrible death and how it’s transforming, essentially, the world,” Fr. John said.

He also said moments of silence are key to understanding the work that needs to be done.

“I think that if we’re able to understand what that time means, it’s a way for us to be in better communion with that individual death of a man and also hopefully allow us to be motivated to be people of action,” he explained.

Unlike protests or marches, vigils allow participants to heal in a unique way by coming together in prayer.

“I think it just brought this emotion and reality to the surface, so it really takes when an injustice is done to one member of the body for the rest of the body to run to healing,” Fr. John said.

George Floyd will be buried next to his mother on Tuesday.

‘Don’t Claim Victory Too Soon’ Warns Pope Francis as Countries Reopen

Currents News Staff

In Italy, data reveals the coronavirus situation is improving. However, in the June 7 Angelus, the Holy Father recommended not claiming victory too soon and to remember the countries where the situation is still critical.

“Pay attention, don’t claim victory before its time, don’t claim victory too soon. Thank God we are coming out of the hardest moments, but continue to comply with the rules, given by authorities,” said Pope Francis. “Unfortunately, in other countries, I can think of some, the virus is still taking the life of many victims.”

Minutes before, he had reflected on the Sunday’s feast – that of the Holy Trinity.

“Today, thinking of God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, leads us to remember the love of God. It would be very beautiful if we felt loved. God loves me. This is today’s feeling,” he explained.

The pontiff suggested reflecting on this sentiment over the next few days in light of the upcoming liturgical feasts.

In St. Peter’s Square, the lack of tourists is still noticeable. Italy has opened its airports to countries within the European Union. However, many countries still do not allow travel to the country.

Currents News full broadcast for Sat, 6/06/20 (Catholic news)

Currents News reports secular and religious news from the Catholic perspective.

Some of the top stories on this newscast:

We’re coming off a week of both peaceful protests and violent unrest in the wake of George Floyd’s death at the hands of a police officer. We’ll show you the moments of unity and the moments of conflict.

Then to a hunt for an heirloom. One Catholic family no longer has a precious piece of jewelry. Instead, they think a necklace was stolen from their grandfather as he lay dying of coronavirus.

He spent his life as one of New York’s bravest. Hear why an 88-year old is now one of the city’s smartest. He’s got the grades to prove it.

http://netny.tv

Currents News full broadcast for Fri, 6/05/20 (Catholic news)

Currents News reports secular and religious news from the Catholic perspective.

Some of the top stories on this newscast:

Millions of Americans are back on the job. The big jump in employment surprising the experts.

Catholics and Evangelical Christians could be pulling back on their support for President Trump.

We begin introducing you to the special men who’ll soon be priests in the Diocese of Brooklyn.

And the doctor is in – with offices and work places reopening, what should people do to stay safe.

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Surprise Report: U.S. Adds 2.5 Million Jobs in May

By Paula Katinas and Currents News Staff

WINDSOR TERRACE — The U.S. economy showed strong signs of rebounding from the near-Depression era downfall caused by the coronavirus pandemic – with the nation’s unemployment rate ticking down to 13.3 percent – the federal government’s monthly jobs report for April showed.

A record 2.5 million jobs were added in May — the biggest gain reported in new jobs since the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics started keeping track in 1939, catching many economists by surprise. Most experts had predicted a loss in jobs, with some estimating that number to be up to 8 million.

The monthly jobs figures for May, released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics on June 5, were a sharp contrast from April when the unemployment rate stood at 14.7 percent and 20.7 million jobs were lost.

President Donald Trump was quick to claim credit for the surprisingly good news in the U.S. labor market.

“Really Big Jobs Report,” the president wrote on Twitter shortly after the numbers were released. “Great going President Trump (kidding but true)!”

The job numbers are an indication that the country is coming out of the dark days of the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown when the U.S. economy was for all practical purposes shut down, U.S. Secretary of Labor Eugene Scalia said in a statement.

“Today’s report shows much higher job creation and lower unemployment than expected, reflecting that the re-opening of the economy in May was … more robust, than projected,” Scalia said.

But the country is not out of the woods just yet, according to Scalia.

“Millions of Americans are still out of work, and the department remains focused on bringing Americans safely back to work and helping states deliver unemployment benefits to those who need them,” Scalia added. ”However, it appears the worst of the coronavirus’s impact on the nation’s job is behind us.”

Construction jobs increased by 464,000 in May, gaining back nearly half of the jobs lost in April across that sector.

The improving economic picture comes at a time when the large parts of the country are starting to reopen.

“These improvements in the labor market reflected a limited resumption of economic activity that had been curtailed in March and April due to the coronavirus pandemic and efforts to contain it,” William W. Beach, commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, said in a statement.

As Economy Reopens & Protests Continue, Should We Be Concerned About Virus Spikes? We Ask the Doc

Currents News Staff

As the economy begins to open and protests continue across the country, there are concerns about the coronavirus spreading.

Currents News reporters have been on the ground with the protesters and say there’s no social distancing and some aren’t wearing masks. Should we be concerned about a surge in virus infections?

Keeping with the protests, the CDC says chemicals used by police to control the crowds like pepper spray causes coughing, which could spread the virus.

As the economy begins to reopen, many will be going back to their offices. Even if they practice social distancing, can the virus spread through vents in office buildings?

Many will also be getting back on the subways. The MTA has said it may be hard to social distance yourself from other commuters, so everyone is being asked to wear masks.

To offer his insights and answer some of these questions is Dr. Robert Tiballi, an infectious disease expert with the Catholic Medical Association.

Send Currents News your questions about the coronavirus at [email protected]. And tune in on Fridays – the doctor could have an answer.