Monday Briefing | March 15 - Journal of Political Inquiry

Photo: Defense attorney Eric Nelson left, and defendant, former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, right, during a hearing before jury selection. Credit: https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/08/us/derek-chauvin-trial-jury/index.html

Stories to Follow:

Decades of progress on extreme poverty now in reverse due to COVID-19: Two decades of progress in the reduction of extreme poverty, the elimination of which is one of United Nations’ sustainable development goals, have been pushed into a sharp reverse as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the growing climate emergency, and increasing global debt.

COVID-19 also threatens to undo years of progress made to improve women’s empowerment, plunging 47 million more women and girls below the poverty line worldwide.

Global rise in childhood mental health issues amid the pandemic: The pandemic’s impact on the mental health of children and adolescents is extremely worrying, with pediatric hospitals seeing a sharp increase in the number of teenagers requiring treatment after attempted suicides. Pediatric psychiatrists have also voiced their concerns over children with coronavirus-related phobias, tics, and eating disorders, obsessing about infection in an unhealthy way.

Biden administration ends migrant parent deportations: The Biden administration said it would rescind a 2018 policy that discouraged caregivers from picking up migrant children in custody at the U.S. southern border in its latest move to overhaul the hardline immigration system upheld by Donald Trump over the past four years.

Derek Chauvin trial updates: A seventh juror has been added to the murder trial of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin as the city agreed to pay $27 million to settle a wrongful death lawsuit with George Floyd’s family. Concern has been voiced over the racial makeup of the jury, with four of the seven jurors identifying as white.

Happening This Week:

AAPI Rally Against Hate at Washington Square Park: Rally against Asian American Pacific Islander hate crimes hosted by AAPI Rally Against Hate 2021 and The Fung Bros. Read more about it here.

In Your Free Time:

Support local small businesses, whenever you can! As of February 2021, more than 47 percent of NYC’s small businesses remained closed, while revenue for those that have opened dropped by roughly 60 percent.

Get tickets for the immersive Van Gogh exhibit coming to NYC this June. Tickets have already sold out for all of June and the first half of July. You can get tickets and read more about the exhibit here.

This week’s Monday Briefing was brought to you by Kristen Varganova.