Author: Virginia Martin

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Alabama Absentee Ballot Applications Rise as COVID-19 Outbreak Continues (Montgomery Advertiser)
Alabama COVID-19 Hospitalizations Rise by 400 Over 2 Weeks (Associated Press)
Reports: ‘Wonder Years’ Reboot to Be Set in 1960s Montgomery (WBRC)
Look up Who in Alabama got Paycheck Protection Program Loans During the Pandemic (Montgomery Advertiser)
Over 5,600 Fossil Fuel Companies, Including in Alabama, Have Taken at Least $3B in US COVID-19 Aid (The Guardian)

Alabama’s COVID-19 New-Case Averages Top 1,000 Per Day for First Time

Robert Carter,

Alabama reached an unwelcome milestone in its battle with the COVID-19 virus, as the number of new cases reported each day has passed the 1,000 mark in moving averages for the first time.

The BirminghamWatch weekly analysis of data reported by the Alabama Department of Public Health shows that the 7-day moving average of new cases has jumped to 1,140.29 per day, the second highest since the outbreak began; the average peaked at 1,212.29 on July 5.

The longer-term 14-day moving average now stands at a record high of 1,057.14, after surpassing 1,000 two days prior. Read more.

Fauci Says Alabama Still Could Rein in COVID-19, Even as Cases Spread Among Young People

Virginia MacDonald,

Dr. Anthony Fauci said even though Alabama has seen a rapid rise in the number of COVID-19 cases since Memorial Day, the state now has “a window of opportunity” to slow the virus outbreak.

Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said Tuesday in a press conference with Alabama Sen. Doug Jones that the methods to slow the spread of virus are known: washing hands, wearing masks, social distancing and closing bars.

“Indoor bars are the perfect setup for the virus to spread,” he said.

The reopening of bars and resumption of large events with little social distance has put younger people in the virus’ cross hairs.

Last month, Jones said, the median age of virus victims in the state dropped 15 years. In Alabama, the largest portion of people testing positive for the disease is now those in the 25- to 49-year age range. Read more.

Black at Samford Pushes for Changes in the University’s Culture, Treatment of Black Students

Sydney Cromwell,

Students at Samford University regularly talk about the “Samford bubble,” the idea that when they step onto campus, they leave the real world behind. Inside the bubble, there’s a sense they are more sheltered and there is more uniformity in the beliefs and backgrounds of students and faculty.

But not for students of color.

Many Black current and former Samford students are now sharing stories about how that bubble has concealed their experiences of racism, discrimination, isolation and pain on the Black at Samford Instagram account.

The stories run the gamut of racial experiences: exclusion from student groups’ events based on race; offensive stereotypes; different treatment by white professors or coaches compared to their white peers; casual use of racial slurs by white students; and the unofficial racial division of the campus cafeteria. Read more.

More on racist speech and attitudes

Sticks and Stones: Racist Comments Affect Policy, Law and Discrimination

A White Son Raised by a Black Man: Seeing Race From a Unique Perspective

A White Son Raised by a Black Man: Seeing Race From a Unique Perspective

Solomon Crenshaw Jr.,

Kevin Sims, who is white, remembers being on a beach when another white fellow asked him for a cigarette. As the pair talked, the subject of football came up.

And the other fellow showed his true colors.

“He was like, ‘Why I wanna watch football?’” Sims recalled. “I don’t wanna watch a bunch of (N-words) run up and down a field chasing each other.’”

Sims, who was raised by a Black man since the time he was 3, couldn’t stand for that. Read more.

Sticks and Stones: Racist Comments Affect Policy, Law and Discrimination

Nick Patterson,

One time she was in a beauty salon when it happened, Pam King remembers. Another time, she was in the drug store. One time it happened while she was driving down the street in Vestavia Hills.

In each instance, another white person — someone she didn’t know — decided it was OK to say something to her that was racist about Black people.

“You can hear it every day. You can hear it … anywhere,” King said. “You hear from white people, constantly, ‘Well, did you hear what the Black people are doing?’ Just all kinds of little comments, every day. It’s part of the conversation.” Read more.

2020 Primary Runoff Voter Guide: Your Source of Information for the July 14 Election

Jackson Sharman and Virginia Martin,

Alabama Secretary of State John Merrill expects the state runoff elections on July 14 to go smoothly, despite the complications of having an election during a pandemic.

He’s predicting a voter turnout of 17% to 22%, which is higher than turnout in the 2014 and 2016 party runoffs, when 11% and 12% of voters, respectively, cast ballots.

That’s despite a thin ballot. Only two statewide races are on the Republican runoff ballot and none on the Democratic ballot. But one of those Republican races is the fierce battle between Tommy Tuberville and Jeff Sessions to capture the party’s nomination to the U.S. Senate. An appellate court race also is on the ballot, along with local runoffs in some counties. Read more.

BirminghamWatch has put together a Voter Guide with information you’ll need before heading to the polls or filling out that absentee ballot. Inside you’ll find:

What’s on the Ballot?

Candidate Profiles

Voters’ Runoff Toolbox

  COVID-19

  • COVID-19 Count Surges by Record Daily Increase of 2,164 Cases in Alabama

    With four counties accounting for 41% of the growth, Alabama on Thursday recorded by far its biggest increase in the number of COVID-19 cases since the pandemic began in March.

    There were 2,164 new cases of the disease during the latest 24-hour period, the Alabama Department of Public Health’s COVID Dashboard showed. That was up from 1,161 on Wednesday and eclipsed the previous record of 1,758 on June 29. The overall total now stands at 48,588 cases, plus 522 listed as probably resulting from the coronavirus but not yet confirmed.

    There were 10 deaths during the period, raising the overall total for the pandemic to 1,042, plus 26 cases listed as probably from the disease.
    Read more.

  • Fauci Says Alabama Still Could Rein in COVID-19, Even as Cases Spread Among Young People

    Dr. Anthony Fauci said even though Alabama has seen a rapid rise in the number of COVID-19 cases since Memorial Day, the state now has “a window of opportunity” to slow the virus outbreak.

    Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said Tuesday in a press conference with Alabama Sen. Doug Jones that the methods to slow the spread of virus are known: washing hands, wearing masks, social distancing and closing bars.

    “Indoor bars are the perfect setup for the virus to spread,” he said.

    The reopening of bars and resumption of large events with little social distance has put younger people in the virus’ cross hairs.

    Last month, Jones said, the median age of virus victims in the state dropped 15 years. In Alabama, the largest portion of people testing positive for the disease is now those in the 25- to 49-year age range. Read more.

  Election

  2020 Election

  • Tuberville Tops Sessions in Fundraising for the Senate Race

    Former Auburn University football coach Tommy Tuberville is leading former Sen. Jeff Sessions in fundraising in the final weeks of their Republican runoff campaign for the Senate seat Sessions once held, according to reports they filed this week with the Federal Election Commission.

    The reports, covering the period of April 1 to June 24, show Tuberville took in $652,390, compared to $439,374 for Sessions. Still, Sessions had a cash balance of $500,331, compared to Tuberville’s $448,204.

    Both candidates continue to aggressively raise campaign cash in the final days of the race. With lists of contributors Read more.

  2020 Election

  Environment

  • This Fourth of July Will Be Different – Except for the Heat

    It’s the Fourth of July and you just ate a red pepper to cool down from the heat. Well, maybe there are better ways to cool down, but without a doubt it’s going to be hot on the Fourth. This year’s holiday will differ from previous years, with less of the usual trappings of parades, fireworks displays, concerts and picnics because of the pandemic, but as usual, you can count on scorching heat. Read more.

  Confederate Monument

  COVID-19

  • College Students to Be Tested for Coronavirus Using Federal Allotment

    Colleges and universities in Alabama and some underserved regions of the state will benefit from $30 million of the state’s federal allocation from the Cares Act, Gov. Kay Ivey announced Monday. Read more.

  • Jefferson County Plans to Set Up COVID-19 Nursing Home Unit

    Jefferson County Commissioners today OK’d establishing a dedicated unit to care for nursing home patients who have COVID-19 in one location. The commission authorized an agreement with the UAB board of trustees to establish the unit. The plan calls for Jefferson County to use a portion of its Cares Act funds for this project, which will put patients in a wing of Aspire Physical Recovery Center at Hoover. Read more.

  • People Succumbing to COVID Fatigue are Spreading the Virus, UAB Doc Says; NY Tells Alabama Travelers to Quarantine or Go Elsewhere

    The biggest challenge to stopping the spread of COVID-19 now is the public’s desire to return to the “old normal,” Dr. Molly Fleece, UAB assistant professor of infectious diseases, said Wednesday.

    “Masks work,” Fleece said as UAB and other health officials brace for increased summer activities and the Fourth of July.

    The number of COVID-19 cases in the state rose Wednesday by 954, one of the largest daily increases since the pandemic began, according to the Alabama Department of Public Health.

    Fleece said that, over the past 24 hours, Mobile and Lee counties had their highest number of new cases recorded.

    She said the spike in the number of cases can be attributed to summer travel and COVID fatigue as people just want to go back to their old lifestyles.

    Also Wednesday, New York, New Jersey and Connecticut barred travelers from Alabama from entering without quarantining for 14 days upon arrival. Read more.

  • Gov. Ivey Has Been Quiet On COVID-19. Does It Matter?

    Some governors have spent lots of time in front of the cameras talking about the coronavirus pandemic. New York Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo has held daily press briefings. Ohio Republican Gov. Mike DeWine has been out front almost daily as well.

    Meanwhile, Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey has been relatively quiet about COVID-19. That’s despite new cases increasing sharply around the state in June.

    “I think we’ve all got to do a much better job of educating people top to bottom,” U.S. Sen. Doug Jones said in a press conference last week.

    He said state leaders, not just the governor, should be talking about the pandemic. He added the message those leaders give should be based on science.
    Read more.

  • Low ICU Capacity Could Affect Non-Coronavirus Patients the Most

    WBHM

    Alabama’s ICU capacity has fallen to 19% as coronavirus cases continued to climb steadily across the state. That amounts to about 300 ICU beds of 1,600 available statewide. Alabama confirmed 787 new cases Friday, bringing the total to 28,583. While the number of hospitalizations has fluctuated slightly, overall it has trended upward since the pandemic began. That’s concerning to Dr. Don Williamson, president of the Alabama Hospital Association.

    For more on the impact on hospitals, WBHM spoke with Williamson. Read more.

  • Dr. Saag: Alabamians Get an F for Following Public Health Advice

    Dr. Michael Saag has become frustrated with the public. The infectious disease doctor and COVID-19 survivor said recently that he knows people have become impatient with the continuing pandemic and are tired of changing their lifestyles to accommodate it. But the reaction from the public has been “not very mature,” he said during the Community Foundation of Greater Birmingham’s Community Call last week.

    In fact, he said he’d give Alabamians an F in their ability to carry out public health advice that would have tamped down the virus – maintaining social distance, wearing face masks and staying home as much as is practical, among them. As a result, the state’s coronavirus cases have once again been rising, to the point that Alabama has shown more new cases than the entire country of Germany.

    That danger isn’t going away anytime soon. Saag said the novel coronavirus will be with us for a least another year – until doctors develop an effective vaccine or early treatment. Watch Saag’s presentation.

  • More Coronavirus News

    Read all of BirminghamWatch’s coronavirus coverage.

  BirminghamWatch Recommends

  About News

  • Execute Journalists? Don’t Think It Hasn’t Happened

    President Trump’s reported statement that journalists who publish leaked information should be “executed” is a more explicit and heinous extension of his repeated “enemy of the people” trope. It’s so far beyond the pale that the only necessary reaction is ridicule, then dismissal as nothing more than Trump venting berserkly in private*.

    Except for the fact that it has happened.

    The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) reports that in the past 18 months, 14 journalists around the world have been murdered because they were journalists. UNESCO reports some that CPJ does not, including one as recently as this month. Some of the assassinations have suspected ties to government officials, others to political or criminal groups.
    Read more.

  Don Siegelman

  • Former Governor Turns Attention to Criminal Justice System Following Release From Prison

    It has been three years since former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman was released from prison after being convicted of federal corruption charges in 2006. One thing remains unchanged about the case: Siegelman maintains he is innocent.

    A jury convicted Siegelman of bribery for soliciting a $500,000 donation from then-HealthSouth CEO Richard Scrushy for a fund to support his education lottery campaign. Prosecutors say in exchange, Siegelman appointed Scrushy to a state hospital regulatory board. Siegelman said the prosecution was politically motivated.

    In a new memoir, “Stealing Our Democracy: How the Political Assassination of a Governor Threatens our Nation,” Seigelman lays out how he saw the case and trial. But paints himself as a fighter for criminal justice reform after experiencing what he believes was an improper prosecution.
    Read more.

  Letter From the Birmingham Jail

  Protests

  • Woodfin Says He Received Death Threats After Removal of Monument

    Responding to questions this morning on the NBC Today show, Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin said he received death threats in response to his order to take down a Confederate monument in the wake of destructive protests Sunday night.

    “Unfortunately, in the state of Alabama, there’s a lot of people who like to participate in revisionist history,” Woodfin said, speaking with host Al Roker. “They believe it’s American to support the Civil War as relates to these competitive monuments. They’re mad because we took the statue down and, yes, there have been several threats.
    Read more.

  • Finding A Way Forward in Birmingham After Violence and Destruction

    A Confederate monument that stood in a downtown Birmingham’s Linn Park for 115 years is now gone. Crews removed the structure following protests over police treatment of black Americans that turned destructive on Sunday, damaging many buildings. This happened in a city that prides itself on its history of nonviolent protest during the civil rights era. Rev. Thomas Wilder leads Bethel Baptist Church in Collegeville. It’s the same church Birmingham civil rights leader Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth once led. Wilder spoke with WBHM’s Andrew Yeager. Read more.

  • Relief Fund Set Up for Small Businesses Damaged in Protest

    A coalition of community groups, in partnership with the city of Birmingham, has set up the Birmingham Business Relief Fund to give grants to small businesses affected by protestors’ vandalism Sunday night. “Many businesses were already suffering from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, and these funds will assist businesses as they rebuild, repair and renew their operations,” Ivan Holloway, executive director at Urban Impact, said in a statement announcing the program. Read more.

  CongressionalWatch

  About News

  • Coverage of Protests Brings Out Internal Newsroom Anger

    The homicide of George Floyd and the subsequent street protests have illuminated failings not only among law enforcement agencies but also among many mainstream news organizations. Along with other issues, the well-documented lack of racial diversity on newsroom staffs has shown itself in harmful and embarrassing ways.

    Perhaps a black journalist in The New York Times’ chain of editing, or simply a heightened awareness created by a more diverse department, would have anticipated the valid internal and external criticism that U.S. Sen. Tom Cotton’s published idea to send the military to “restore order” in American cities posed a safety threat to protesters and journalists, especially black ones. “This puts our Black staff members in danger,” the newsroom union wrote.
    Read more.

  Alabama Prisons

  Energy Production

  • PSC Gives Thumbs-Up for Alabama Power to Increase Fossil Fuel Use, Delays Solar Request

    UPDATED — Alabama regulators voted today to give the go-ahead to Alabama Power Company’s request to add almost 2 million megawatts of energy from natural gas sources to its capacity to generate electricity. The plan, proposed last year, would include a new 726-megawatt gas unit at its Plant Barry near Mobile.

    The commission also voted to delay consideration of Alabama Power’s additional request to add 400 megawatts in solar-plus-storage generation to its inventory.

    Combined, the requests are estimated to cost Alabama Power $1.1 billion, which ultimately would be paid by its customers. Read more.

  Law enforcement

  • ALDOT Considering Allowing Police Cameras, Plate Readers

    The Alabama Department of Transportation is considering allowing law enforcement agencies access to ALDOT rights-of-way and structures to install license plate readers and other surveillance equipment.

    At least one Alabama lawmaker said legislation may be needed to regulate the use of the devices and information they collect.

    Tony Harris, government relations manager for ALDOT, told Alabama Daily News the proposed rules are a result of recent requests from multiple police agencies.
    Read more.

  Jefferson County Commission

  • Jefferson County Commission Names New CFO

    Viewers of Tuesday’s Jefferson County Commission committee meeting were given a hint of what was to come in today’s commission meeting.

    Even if they didn’t realize it.

    Revenue Director Travis Hulsey, the county’s interim chief financial officer, was about to present financial resolutions when commissioners asked that deputy CFO Angela Dixon make the presentation instead.

    They did that because Dixon was hired today to be the county CFO, replacing John Henry, who left for a job in Washington, D.C., in January.
    Read more.

  Open Records

  • Nonprofits Target Open Records Law With Suit Against Three State Officials

    Two environmental groups filed suit this week under the Alabama Open Records Act seeking to force state officials to turn over documents related to the 35th Avenue Superfund federal bribery trial.

    Over the past few years many nonprofits, news organizations and others have attempted to use the law to gain access to information but often have been stonewalled by agencies and their officers.

    The Environmental Defense Alliance and Gasp, a clean air and human rights advocate, filed a lawsuit claiming that Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall, the director of the Alabama Department of Environmental Management and a member of the Alabama Environmental Management Commission violated the Open Records Act by denying access to public records.
    Read more.

  Economy/Trade

  • Farmers Federation Responds to Brooks’ Radio Criticism

    Alabama Farmers Federation President Jimmy Parnell is responding to comments recently made by 5th District Congressman Mo Brooks regarding the organization’s advocacy efforts for trade with China.

    During an appearance on the Dale Jackson radio show in Huntsville, Brooks accused farming groups, chambers of commerce, Walmart and other “entities” of siding with China over American interests.

    In a letter to Brooks obtained by Alabama Daily News, Parnell took serious issue with the congressman’s comments, calling them “not only unfair” but untrue.
    Read more.

  Alabama Public Service Commission

  Birmingham City Council

  Education

  Birmingham City Council

  • Ensley’s Ramsay-McCormack Building to be Razed, Replaced

    Ensley’s long-abandoned Ramsay-McCormack building will be demolished and replaced by a four-story, multi-use building, Mayor Randall Woodfin told the Birmingham City Council on Wednesday.

    An assessment by commercial construction firm Stewart/Perry revealed numerous structural problems in the 10-story, city-owned office building, which has been vacant since 1986.
    Read more.

  About News

  U.S. Senate Runoff Election

  • Sessions Targets China, Calls for ‘Reset’ in Relationship

    The outbreak of the new coronavirus has drastically altered the campaigns for Alabama’s runoff elections. Originally scheduled for March 31, runoffs for the Republican races for Congress and U.S. Senate are now postponed until July 14.

    The pandemic and its total consumption of the news cycle have also shifted the narrative for candidates. Former U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who is running for his former seat in the U.S. Senate, has capitalized on the situation to take an aggressive position against China and highlight his foreign policy bonafides.

    In the runoff, Sessions faces former Auburn University football coach Tommy Tuberville, who won 33% of the vote to Sessions’ 32% in the March 3 primary election. Todd Stacy of Alabama Daily News interviewed Sessions and talked about his campaign and the issues he is discussing.
    Read more.