The Intersection Received A Grant From National Association Of Black Journalists — Issue #40
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Big News
Last week, I learned that The Intersection Mag will receive a grant from the National Association of Black Journalists, a historic journalism organization. I will be using the grant to report on at the intersection of COVID-19, the Black community, and education in Prince George’s County. I will be producing four articles on this topic.
As you know, reporting on COVID-19 is one of the topics of the publication and newsletter. Black people and other people of color in Maryland remain disproportionately impacted by COVID-19. People are still dying, and families are still trying to navigate the virus.
Prince George’s County leads the state of Maryland in Covid-19 cases. The county’s vaccination rate, according to the Health Equity Tracker, are one of the highest in the states. This is a good. With few resources, the Prince George’s County Department of Health has worked tirelessly to get relevant information to its residents. However, Dr. Ernest Carter, health officer at the department, announced that he would departing the agency. Who will take his position? Will the next person have a background in virology? I reached out to the agency, asking these questions. No one has returned my phone calls or emails as of yet.
Over the summer, the local health department acknowledged the rise in Covid-19 cases — and encouraged residents to return to masking to slow the spread. To me, it’s not clear if all residents participated in doing so. Some did. I saw them at the Target in Forestville Mall! Cases continued to increase. What we know now is that Dr. Monica Goldson, CEO of Prince George’s County Public Schools, has reinstated a mask mandate for all staff and students.
The BA.5 variant is a highly contagious variant. This variant is so contagious that the White House has predicted that this fall it is possible that 100 million people may contract the virus. Pfizer and Moderna have developed a new booster specifically for this variant for teenagers and adults. Vaccinations help to reduce death and severe illness.
There are also data gaps in the county, as well as everywhere else. Though cases are still relatively high, we don’t know exactly how high because people haven’t consistently reported positive home testing kits to the state. The lack of data has been a concern for many local health departments throughout the U.S. In addition to all of this, Monkey Pox is spreading in Maryland.
About one year ago, I interviewed Dr. Stuart Ray, vice chair of medicine for data integrity and analytics at Johns Hopkins University, during the summer of 2021. During that time, the spread of the Delta variant was declining, and the White House was still rolling out the new vaccines.
He advocated for as many people to get vaccinated during the summer months. With data and expertise backing him, he believed that if people waited until the fall to get vaccinated, it wouldn’t be enough to limit the spread. It is during the cold months when the virus rapidly spreads. People spend more time inside than outdoors.
Ray is worried about the fall. In the fall of 2020 — Covid -19 cases spiked. The Delta variant could also spike during the fall or another kind of variant. Ray said now is the time for people to take advantage of getting vaccinated.
“I don’t think we can wait until things get bad to start vaccinating people,” he explained. “That is not how the vaccine works. You need to give it time to work.”
Muiltigenerational households seem to be hit the hardest during this time. The time to apply mitigation strategies — masking, ventilation, and boosters — would have been during the summer months. This concern was recently reported in a piece by the Atlantic Magazine.
Health News
Black and Breastfeeding: A Lactation Specialist on Helping More Women Do It — Word In Black — wordinblack.com
Certified breastfeeding specialist, Sterling Grey-Simmons, overcame miseducation and lack of medical care — and now she’s out to help others.
Prince George’s Residents Meet With MDOT About Maintenance of State Roads — NBC4 Washington — www.nbcwashington.com
A Maryland state delegate organized a Tuesday evening town hall with residents and the Maryland Department of Transportation after a News4 report about grass…
We’re Asking the Next Booster to Do Too Much — The Atlantic — www.theatlantic.com
New boosters that target Omicron may be our most important COVID vaccines since 2020 — but the U.S. may be setting up the new shots to fail.
The federal government is issuing 8 free Covid-19 tests until Sept. 2. The link is below. Just click on it, input in your address and USPS will deliver 8 free tests in 2 boxes.
COVID.gov/tests — Free at-home COVID-19 tests — www.covid.gov
Every home in the U.S. is eligible to order a 3rd round of free at-home tests. Order yours today.
Two Hyattsville teenage drug overdose incidents prompt police warning — WTOP News — wtop.com
After two separate incidents of drug overdoses involving teenagers within three days, the Hyattsville Police Department is issuing a warning to the public.
UMD to lift classroom mask mandate — dbknews.com
The decision comes just days before the start of this university’s fall semester.
Politics
Black August: Radical Black History and the Persistence of Black Resistance — wordinblack.com
Black August is a time to unlearn, learn anew and to teach within “they schools” and beyond, and it is a time to discipline your mind.
13 current Prince George’s Co. officers and 1 retired officer accused of double-dipping — WTOP News — wtop.com
Thirteen Prince George’s County, Maryland, police officers and a recently retired officer were indicted Thursday on charges of theft and of misconduct in office.
How election-denying GOP governors could tilt the 2024 presidential election — Maryland Matters — www.marylandmatters.org
Republican candidates who claim that the 2020 election was stolen from Donald Trump have been nominated for governor in four critical swing states, raising concerns that if elected they could try to sway election results in 2024 and beyond.
State IG finds Prince George’s school board ethics panel reports inaccurate — The Washington Post — www.washingtonpost.com
The IG’s investigation was prompted in part by a group of parents and activists who accused the ethics panel of using “taxpayer funds to conduct an apparently improper investigation.”
Education
Prince George’s County Teens Learn to Advocate at Library ‘Social Justice Camp’ — NBC4 Washington — www.nbcwashington.com
High school students who are interested in creating change in their communities are learning how to advocate for what they want in Prince George’s County,…
How One HBCU Is Working To Grow Plants On Mars — The Plug — tpinsights.com
KEY INSIGHTS: Winston-Salem State University is the only HBCU with an astrobotany lab. The research is conducted in partnership with NASA. The experiments are
UMD to lift classroom mask mandate — dbknews.com
The decision comes just days before the start of this university’s fall semester.
Back to School August 29 — Greenbelt News Review
www.greenbeltnewsreview.com
The paper, published by the Greenbelt Cooperative Publishing Association, Inc., was established in 1937 shortly after the construction of Greenbelt, one of The New Deal Green Towns. It has been published weekly without interruption since that time and is delivered free to most Greenbelt residents.
Tech
Black Businesses Spotlighted in Prince George’s — The Washington Informer — www.washingtoninformer.com
Various Black-owned businesses in Prince George’s are celebrating National Black Business Month.
Lawmakers, activists seek remedies to make clean drinking water more accessible and affordable — Maryland Matters — www.marylandmatters.org
A new report details spiking water costs in Maryland and across the U.S., and the threat those skyrocketing prices pose to residents having access to clean, affordable water.
Maryland becomes Technology First State Member News — Maryland Tech Council — members.mdtechcouncil.com
August 15, 2022 — Baltimore, MD — Maryland Department of Health’s (MDH) Developmental Disabilities Administration (DDA) today hosted a kickoff event highlighting Governor Larry Hogan’s August 15, 2022 proclamation making Maryland a Technology First State. Maryland becomes the eighth U.S. state to…
