100 million cases

President Biden makes racial equity a focus of his executive orders; the world has reached 100 million coronavirus cases.   Tonight's Sentences was written by Gabby Birenbaum. TOP NEWS Biden prioritizes equity, even in executive orders that target other policy areas Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images In a series of executive orders aimed at creating racial equity through efforts across government agencies, President Biden made clear that combating racism is a cornerstone of his administration's vision for government. [CNN / Stephen Collinson] Biden's executive orders ranged from symbolic measures to agency directives. He condemned racism toward Asian Americans, directed the Department of Housing and Urban Development to enforce the Fair Housing Act, strengthened tribal sovereignty recognition, and ended the Justice Department's contracts with private prisons. [Vox / Fabiola Cineas] With his Housing and Urban Development directive, Biden will return the department to Obama-era interpretations of litigating discrimination cases based on impact, rather than intent. [Housing Wire / Alex Roha] Activists praised Biden's efforts as a first step, but aim to create urgency around going further. The private prison order, for example, will affect 9 percent of federal inmates — but does not apply to Immigration and Customs Enforcement facilities. [NPR / Brian Naylor] Susan Rice, the head of the White House Domestic Policy Council, said racial equity is critical to two of Biden's top priorities: creating unity and improving the economy. [Politico / Nick Niedzwiadek] Biden's embrace of using executive orders to confront racial inequities mark a relatively new use of the power of the president, which officials say is unprecedented in its scope and immediacy. [Politico / Maya King] Racial justice will factor into Biden's Wednesday climate executive orders as well. He will create an interagency council on environmental justice, create an environmental justice office in the Justice Department, and tell agencies to invest in communities that have experienced greater pollution. [Washington Post / Juliet Eilperin, Brady Dennis, and Darryl Fears] Under the new policies, 40 percent of sustainability investments will be spent in disadvantaged communities. [Washington Post] A year later, the world hits 100 million coronavirus cases Just over a year ago, the first case of a novel coronavirus was discovered in China. Yesterday, Johns Hopkins University confirmed 100 million cases of the virus have been reported across the globe. [WSJ / Talal Ansari] The figure represents a dramatic escalation of the case count this winter. There were 10 million confirmed global cases in June 2020, 50 million in early November, and 90 million three weeks ago. [CNN / Laura Smith-Spark] The US far outpaces the rest of the world, with over 25 million confirmed cases. We're followed by India, with nearly 10.7 million cases, Brazil at 8.9 million, and then Russia with over 3.7 million. [Al Jazeera / Mohammed Haddad] January is shaping up to be one of the worst months of the pandemic, even as vaccination efforts get underway. Around the world so far this year, one person is infected every 7.7 seconds on average. [Reuters / Shaina Ahluwalia and Roshan Abraham] Earlier this month, another grim figure was reached as the global death count topped 2 million people — though that only counts those whose official cause of death was listed as Covid-19. [Forbes / Tommy Beer] MISCELLANEOUS Redditors drove a surge in the price of GameStop stock, squeezing Wall Street traders who had been short-selling it. [Vox / Emily Stewart] Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) liked posts calling for the execution of Democrats, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, before running for office. [HuffPost / Nick Visser] The pandemic has led to a turning point in people's tolerance of multilevel marketing companies, or MLMs, with anti-MLM sentiment rising on Reddit and TikTok. [Atlantic / Kaitlyn Tiffany] Inaugural poet Amanda Gorman will deliver a new poem honoring three heroes of the pandemic at the Super Bowl next weekend. [Vulture / Zoe Haylock] VERBATIM "Now is the time where we all set our intentions on the table. ... We know that they're listening, and that they're moving forward on some of the demands that we have made." [Executive director of the Black Lives Matter global network Patrisse Cullors, on Biden's racial equity executive orders] LISTEN TO THIS Vox senior correspondent German Lopez joins Matt and Dara to discuss some of the motivations, obstacles, and oppositions to the Biden administration's early signals on immigration policy, as well as a white paper on a natural experiment in the effects a reduction in the number of police staff had on crime. [Spotify / Matt Yglesias and Dara Lind] Read more from Vox   "My life literally flashed before my eyes": Freshman Rep. Mondaire Jones on a jarring start to his first term   A year into the pandemic, shame still doesn't work   White rage won't just go away   The Great Gatsby has one of the most iconic covers ever printed. How do you redesign it?   The $1.3 billion lawsuit that could bring down Rudy Giuliani, explained Facebook Twitter YouTube This email was sent to edwardlorilla1986.paxforex@blogger.com. 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