Links to today’s show transcripts:
Cholera Death Toll Tops 859 in War-Torn Yemen as U.S.-Backed Saudi Assault Continues
In Yemen, a civilian is dying nearly every hour from a massive cholera outbreak, as the ongoing U.S.-backed, Saudi-led bombing campaign and naval blockade has devastated the country’s health, sanitation and water systems. The World Health Organization says the number of suspected cholera cases in Yemen has now reached 101,820 and continues to rise, accounting for 859 deaths. Yemen’s healthcare system is also on the verge of collapse as many hospitals have shut down because of the ongoing U.S.-backed Saudi war. Only 45 percent of Yemen’s hospitals are still operational.
Puerto Rico Backs Statehood in Referendum Boycotted by Opposition Groups
Tens of thousands turned out Sunday for the National Puerto Rican Day Parade in New York. The parade came on the same day when Puerto Rico held a controversial referendum on political status. Ninety-seven percent of those who cast ballots voted in favor of Puerto Rico becoming the 51st state, but just 23 percent of eligible voters took part. Many Puerto Rican opposition parties called for a boycott of the vote.
Freed Political Prisoner Oscar López Rivera Joins Tens of Thousands at NYC Puerto Rican Day Parade
Tens of thousands took part in Sunday’s National Puerto Rican Day Parade here in New York. Marchers at the parade included Puerto Rican independence activist Oscar López Rivera, who was imprisoned for about 35 years. This year’s organizers chose to honor López Rivera as the parade’s first “National Freedom Hero.” But after a boycott campaign was organized by a right-wing conservative group funded by donors close to both President Trump and to Breitbart News, Oscar López Rivera announced he would march not as an official honoree but as a humble Puerto Rican and a grandfather. Democracy Now!’s Juan González was at the parade on Sunday.
The Beleaguered Tenants of “Kushnerville”: Jared Kushner Accused of Slumlord Practices in Baltimore
“The Beleaguered Tenants of ‘Kushnerville.’” That’s the headline of a recent piece in ProPublica about the real estate dealings of Trump’s son-in-law and White House senior adviser Jared Kushner. The piece looks at how Kushner’s former company Kushner Companies has acted as a “neglectful and litigious” landlord of low-income housing units in Baltimore. ProPublica reporter Alec MacGillis chronicles how Kushner Companies hounded low-income tenants with a barrage of lawsuits, eviction notices and late fees—even when the tenants were in the right. Tenants also described terrible maintenance practices, which created nearly unlivable conditions for some families.
Trump Associate & “Slumlord” Tom Barrack Resigns One Day After Probe of Housing Crisis
We end today’s show looking at the real estate dealings of another one of Donald Trump’s closest associates: Thomas Barrack. Last week, the reporter Aaron Glantz of the investigative news site Reveal exposed how Barrack profited off the housing crisis by buying 31,000 single-family homes—mostly foreclosures—then bumped up the rents and in many cases allowed the properties to fall into disrepair. Glantz reported that Barrack’s actions as head of Colony Starwood Homes made him tantamount to a modern-day slumlord. On Friday—one day after Glantz’s piece was published—Barrack sold all of his stock in Colony Starwood Homes and resigned his position as co-chair of its Board of Trustees.
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