Weekend Reads 5/30/20

Did You Really Think Trump Would Mourn With Us?

The president’s indifference to collective mourning is of a piece with a political movement that denies our collective ties as well as the obligations we have to each other. If Trump represents a radical political solipsism, in which his is the only interest that exists, then it makes all the sense in the world that neither he nor his allies would see or even understand the need for public and collective mourning — an activity that heightens our vulnerability, centers our interconnectedness and stands as a challenge to the politics of selfishness and domination.

Far-Right Extremists Are Hoping to Turn the George Floyd Protests Into a New Civil War

Their approach to police brutality links the victims of the deadly standoff with federal agents at Ruby Ridge in 1992, to the victims of modern police brutality, including Floyd. But unlike the vast majority of protesters, they refuse to acknowledge the fact that police brutality is an issue that disproportionately impacts people of color.

States Are Reopening, But Many Americans Say They Aren’t Rushing Back To Normal Life

Some people have changed their behavior as states have reopened, but the majority are still taking social-distancing measures. According to the latest Navigator Research poll from Global Strategy Group and GBAO (from May 21-25), 74 percent of registered voters are spending almost all their time at home, down from a high of 87 percent in early April. And 56 percent are still avoiding in-person interactions with family and friends, down from 73 percent. However, the share who are avoiding public gatherings or going out to eat or drink has remained pretty steady over time (each currently at 81 percent).

Feds flew an unarmed Predator drone over Minneapolis protests to provide “situational awareness”

“No government agency should be facilitating the over-policing of the Black community, period. And CBP has no role in what’s happening in Minneapolis at all,” said Neema Singh Guliani, senior legislative counsel at the American Civil Liberties Union, in a statement. “This rogue agency’s use of military technology to surveil protesters inside US borders is deeply disturbing, especially given CBP’s lack of clear and strong policies to protect privacy and constitutional rights.”