Antarctica more widely impacted by humans than previously thought

Only 16% of the continent's Important Bird Areas are located within negligibly impacted areas

UNIVERSITY OF THE WITWATERSRAND

 

IMAGE: A WEDDEL SEAL (LEPTONYCHOTES WEDDELLII), A LARGE AND ABUNDANT SEAL SPECIES, IS SEEN SUNBATHING IN ANTARCTICA. ANTARCTICA HOSTS A DIVERSITY OF ORGANISMS, WHICH MAY BE SENSITIVE TO EVEN PASSING DISTURBANCE. view more 

CREDIT: STEVEN CHOWN

Antarctica is considered one of the Earth's largest, most pristine remaining wildernesses. Yet since its formal discovery 200 years ago, the continent has seen accelerating and potentially impactful human activity.

How widespread this activity is across the continent has never been quantified. We know Antarctica has no cities, agriculture or industry. But we have never had a good idea of where humans have been, how much of the continent remains untouched or largely unimpacted, and to what extent these largely unimpacted areas serve to protect biodiversity.

A team of researchers led by Monash University, including Dr Bernard Coetzee from the Global Change Institute at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg (Wits University), has changed all of that. Using a data set of 2.7 million human activity records, the team showed just how extensive human use of Antarctica has been over the last 200 years. The research was published in the journal Nature.

With the exception of some large areas mostly in the central parts of the continent, humans have set foot almost everywhere.

Although many of these visited areas have only been negligibly affected by people, biodiversity is not as well represented within them as it should be.

"We mapped 2.7 million human activity records from 1819 to 2018 across the Antarctic continent to assess the extent of wilderness areas remaining and its overlap with the continent's biodiversity," says Coetzee, a conservation scientist at Wits University. Based in Skukuza in the Kruger National Park in South Africa, Coetzee helped conceptualise the study and collated a spatial database from multiple sources to map the extent of human activity in Antarctica.

"In a region often thought of as remote, we showed that in fact human activity has been extensive, especially in ice-free and coastal areas where most of its biodiversity is found. This means that "wilderness" areas do not capture many of the continent's important biodiversity sites, but that an opportunity exists to conserve the last of the wild."

A tourist is seen visiting Hardy Cove in Antarctica. Hardy Cove forms part of the South Shetland Islands on the Antarctic Peninsula.

The study found that only 16% of the continent's Important Bird Areas, areas identified internationally as critical for bird conservation, are located within negligibly impacted areas, and little of the total negligibly impacted area is represented in Antarctica's Specially Protected Area network.

High human impact areas, for example some areas where people build research stations or visit for tourism, often overlap with areas important for biodiversity.

Lead author, Rachel Leihy, a PhD student in the Monash School of Biological Sciences, points out that "While the situation does not look promising initially, the outcomes show that much opportunity exists to take swift action to declare new protected areas for the conservation of both wilderness and biodiversity."

"Informatics approaches using large data sets are providing new quantitative insights into questions that have long proven thorny for environmental policymakers," says Steven Chown, the corresponding author based at Monash University.

"This work offers innovative ways to help the Antarctic Treaty Parties take forward measures to secure Antarctica's Wilderness."

The transdisciplinary team delivering this work includes researchers from Australia, the Netherlands, New Zealand, and South Africa.

NEWS RELEASE 17-JUL-2020

St Petersburg University scientists count all the tiny snails in the Arctic

The information gathered will help to learn more about marine ecosystem pollution and climate change.

ST. PETERSBURG STATE UNIVERSITY

 

IMAGE: 1 - SKENEA TROCHOIDES (SKENEIDAE); 2 - ANATOMA CRISPATA (ANATOMIDAE); 3 - MOELLERIA COSTULATA (COLONIDAE); 4 - LEPTOGYRA BUJNITZKII (MELANODRYMIIDAE); 5 - NEPOTILLA AMOENA (RAPHITOMIDAE); 6 - ALVANIA VERRILLI (RISSOIDAE);... view more 

CREDIT: SPBU

Shell-bearing microgastropods are snails whose size is less than five millimetres. They represent one of the least studied groups of metazoan living organisms in the oceans. Ivan Nekhaev is a senior research associate at the Department of Applied Ecology at St Petersburg University, and Ekaterina Krol is a doctoral student. They have summarised and analysed the currently known information on the species composition and lifestyle of these animals in the eastern sector of the Arctic.

In total, at least 66 species of microgastropods, belonging to four subclasses, live in the region. Two of the species have already been described during recent studies by the authors of the present review. Also, descriptions of two more species are being prepared for publication. More than half of the species have had only the external appearance of the shell studied. Important details of the internal structure and sequence of genes, traditionally used in the classification of animals, remain unknown in microgastropods, as a rule.

'Starting from the 18th century, snails were classified according to their shell - each species was believed to have its own shape. Later molluscs began to be dissected and only at the current stage scientists have started studying their DNA. These studies have shown inconsistency in the classification by shell,' explained Ivan Nekhaev, the first author of the article. 'Studying these animals is not easy. Imagine a two-millimetre mollusc in front of you. From it, you need to extract its reproductive system, which is already tenths of a millimetre. This is a very delicate, laborious and meticulous work.'

According to Ivan Nekhaev, the biological diversity of the Arctic has been studied extremely unevenly. There is a relatively large amount of data on large animals that are easy to see. However, there is very little information on other groups such as micromolluscs, which include shell microgastropods. Scientists need this information in order to understand: what the Arctic is like; how its fauna was formed; and how ecosystems respond to climate changes associated with human activities.

Arctic molluscs regularly become central figures in publications on climate change. This is usually due to the fact that snails living in more southern areas are found in the northern territories. However, such conclusions do not often have enough scientific background, since researchers do not have comprehensive data on the types of micromolluscs. Theoretically, a migrant snail from the south may turn out to be a little-known 'northerner'.

'Despite the formal resemblance, the physiology and requirements for living conditions of these animals can vary significantly. The shape of the shell of some species is typical of the more southern areas. When they are found, it is often written that this is due to climate change. Such publications raise information noise, which makes it difficult to capture real changes in ecosystems,' said Ivan Nekhaev.

Arctic snails can tell scientists not only about the effects of climate warming, but also about the level of environmental pollution. The large numbers and relatively simple identification of some common species make them very useful objects for such studies. For example, it has been found that snails Boreocingula martyni and Onoba aculeus, have iposex - an anomaly in the development caused by organotin compounds. It is characterised by the fact that male reproductive organs appear in female snails. Until 2008, organotin compounds were used as a part of paints to protect ships and port facilities from being encrusted with the marine growth. However, the negative effects of the use of these toxic substances are still recorded.

Additionally, microgastropods perform many functions in marine ecosystems. They vary greatly in type of diet and lifestyle. Some of them feed on algae or plant detritus. Many species eat unicellular animals - foraminifera, or even smaller metazoans. Some species are parasites and symbionts of echinoderms and polychaete worms. Despite their small size, in some cases, especially in coastal regions, micromolluscs can make up a significant part of the biomass of marine communities.

The Barents Sea, and especially its southwestern part, is the habitat for most species -- 51 out of 66. In other seas of the eastern Arctic, only 10-20 species are known, and only nine species are found in the deep-water Arctic basin. This distribution is largely due to insufficient knowledge of most of the Arctic regions. However, an analysis of the similarity of species composition in different regions has also revealed a connection between the distribution of species complexes and hydrological conditions.

Unlike other animal groups, interest in the study of microgastropods has not increased with the advent of new methods for studying the morphology of small organisms. According to Ivan Nekhaev, this can be explained by two factors: 'Firstly, despite the development of electron microscopy, the methods of collecting samples have not changed since the middle of the last century. We cannot properly collect this fauna during major marine expeditions in the Arctic, because the use of electron microscopy requires the prompt fixation of samples. Doing this on board the ship is problematic. Secondly, negative feedback works - the less is known about the animals, the less specialists are interested in them. This is bad if we are talking about assessing biological diversity and the data that such studies can bring. However, for modern zoology, this is a normal situation. The fact is that there are a lot of animals, and there are few people who study them.'

###

CUTTING NOSE TO SPITE FACE
EU leaders slash climate budgets by tens of billions to cover coronavirus recovery package

Nations compromise with arrival of proposals decimating climate and science funds

Andy Gregory,
Harry Cockburn
THE INDEPENDENT

European Council President Charles Michel (L) speaks with Emmanuel Macron (R) and Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte ( John Thys, Pool Photo via AP )

European Union leaders are set to slash tens of billions of euros from funds aimed at preventing catastrophic climate breakdown, after agreeing a coronavirus recovery package after almost five days of difficult talks.

The Brussels summit brought 27 leaders face-to-face after five months of remote diplomacy, in which time the pandemic brought existing cracks across the bloc into sharp focus.

With some diplomats fearing talks over a record €1.1trn budget and €750bn coronavirus stimulus could be “make or break” for the bloc, the distance between the aims of four so-called “frugal” nations – led by the Netherlands – and other member states, finally began to diminish on Monday, albeit at the cost of environmental schemes.

During a dinner meeting on Monday night, EU Council president Charles Michel unveiled new proposals which tabled cuts to climate change schemes in a bid to rework the package into something all countries could agree upon, following days of Dutch-led dissent.

The proposal earmarked 30 per cent of both the EU budget and the coronavirus recovery fund for climate protection, and said all spending must comply with a principle to “do no harm” to EU green goals.
Read more

Coronavirus reveals another example of EU disarray

But it slashed the size of the EU’s Just Transition Fund, its flagship pot of money to help wean countries off fossil fuels, and watered down the climate ambitions required for countries to access the money.

Under the plans, the fund will now receive a combined €17.5bn from the budget and recovery fund – down from the €37.5bn set aside in a previous proposal.

To access the money, countries previously needed to have a national target for cutting emissions. Under the new plans, they must commit to the EU’s goal to become “climate neutral” by 2050 – a condition expected to allow Poland to access the fund without pledging to hit net-zero emissions itself.

The coal-heavy country is now expected to receive the largest chunk of the Just Transition Fund, and was the only country which refused to commit to the 2050 climate target at an EU summit in December.

InvestEU, a pot of money earmarked under previous proposals to help meet green goals, was also decimated – to a baseline allocation of less than €4bn, down from more than €31bn previously.

Proposed funding for scientific research will also be slashed from €11.5bn to €5bn.
Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte, left, elbow bumps with European Council president Charles Michel as the 'breathtaking' 100-hour talks drew to a close (AP)

While some described the plans as likely representing a huge blow to the climate, some observers said the green credentials of the deal would depend on what safeguards are used to ensure money goes to green technologies, and not polluting investments.

Others pointed out that the proposals fell short of the 40 per cent climate spending share needed to align the package with EU climate goals.

Anything below this level “would place a significantly higher burden on national budgets and additional regulatory reform measures to close the ensuing investment gap,” said Andreas Graf, EU energy policy expert at think tank Agora Energiewende.


The new proposals came days after all of the bloc’s 27 environment ministers signed a joint statement calling for a green recovery as countries emerge from the pandemic.

The talks are the longest EU summit in two decades, with Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte leading a charge backed by Austria, Finland, Sweden and Denmark to limit costs and impose strict reform guarantees on any rescue plan for needy nations.

The €750bn coronavirus fund, partly based on common borrowing, was initially to be comprised of loans and grants sent to member states hit hardest by the virus.


But Mr Rutte said he wanted any grants – which the “frugals” have long opposed completely – to be tied to welfare, tax and pension reforms, and to ensure that it will go towards improving and creating infrastructure and green investment.

A deal envisaging €400bn in grants – down from a proposed €500bn – was rejected by the north on Sunday, which said it saw €350bn as the maximum.The latest compromise proposal stands at €390bn in grants.
Read more

Green coronavirus recovery ‘could generate $10 trillion a year’

After unveiling his proposals on Monday ahead of the agreement, Mr Michel said he was confident the compromises would clinch the deal, saying: “I know that the last steps are always the most difficult but ... I am convinced that an agreement is possible.”

Mr Michel tweeted “Deal” shortly after the 27 leaders finally reached agreement at 5.15am.

“This agreement sends a concrete signal that Europe is a force for action,” Michel said at a dawn news conference.

“It is about a lot more than money. It is about workers and families, their jobs, their health and their well-being. I believe this agreement will be seen as a pivotal moment in Europe’s journey, but it will also launch us into the future.”

French President Emmanuel Macron described the deal as “truly historic” and said he was convinced the recovery plan and budget could meet the challenge of the coronavirus pandemic.

“This was a summit whose conclusions are truly historic. We have put in place the capability to borrow collectively, to put in place a collective recovery plan, for the first time,” Mr Macron said.

“With this recovery plan, we will reach a near doubling of the European budget over the next three years.”

Officials said the deal was critical to dispel doubts about the bloc’s entire future.

Additional reporting by Reuters

WW3.0 INTER IMPERIALIST RIVALRY

'Too late to stop': Egypt and Turkey ramp up Libya war preparations

Both sides are eager to avoid confrontation, but the escalation continues as Egypt's parliament votes to approve military intervention
Borzou Daragahi International Correspondent THE INDEPENDENT

Egypt and Turkey edged closer to the possibility of armed conflict this week over Libya, with both sides preparing for an impending battle over a key city.

Egypt’s obsequious parliament voted unanimously behind closed doors late Monday to authorise President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi’s proposed military intervention in support of renegade Libyan warlord Khalifa Haftar. Mr Sisi on Monday reportedly spoke with United States President Donald Trump in a likely attempt to get Washington to convince Ankara to stand down.

Meanwhile, Turkey and its Libyan allies of the internationally recognised Government of National Accord positioned heavy weaponry and fighters along the battlefront near the city of Sirte, the central Libyan city that is the gateway to the country’s crucial eastern oil infrastructure.

Libya was plunged into conflict following the toppling of longtime ruler Muammer Gaddafi in 2011 in a Nato-backed war. Mr Haftar’s Libyan Arab Armed Forces and the GNA and its antecedents have been battling for control of the country for more than six years.

The battle over Sirte, the hometown of Gaddafi, is also shaping up as a confrontation between two axes in the Middle East. On the one side are the authoritarian regimes of Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, backed by Russia and France, who support Hafar’s Libyan Armed Armed Forces. On the other are populist Islamist-leaning governments in Turkey, Qatar and Libya’s Tripoli.
Read more

Egypt’s military threats suggest Trump could face a disaster in Libya

Mr Haftar was winning the war until Turkey forcefully intervened earlier this year, turning the tide of the conflict with its sophisticated domestically-made surveillance and combat drones, air defence systems, and Nato-calibre battle planning.

On Monday, Qatar’s defence minister Khalid bin Mohamed al Attiyah, Turkish defence minister Hulusi Akar and Libyan interior minister Fathi Bashagha conferred in Ankara over the impending conflict. Turkey has been flooding Libya with weapons, flying transport planes to the recently captured al-Watiya airbase to avoid French attempts to intercept its ships at sea.

“It’s not like anything I have ever seen in my lifetime,” said Yoruk Isik, an open source intelligence analyst who closely monitors Turkish ship and plane movements. “This is probably the limit that our planes can travel. It’s not executed just well, it’s executed exceptionally well.”

Read more

Nato continues to ‘turn a blind eye’ to Turkish arms to Libya

Video footage posted on the internet showed convoys of trucks full of GNA fighters from nearby Misrata and other cities heading to Abugrein, which lies about 90 minutes from Sirte. Turkish media reported the deployment of T-122 Sakarya multiple rocket launchers and Korkut anti-aircraft systems outside Sirte.

Egypt faces a more formidable logistical challenge. Its eastern border lies a long day’s drive from the city. Its longer range fighter jets would have limited utility without close air support for ground troops.

Libya’s eastern-based parliament, which is under Mr Haftar’s sway, welcomed the potential Egyptian intervention. But Mr Sisi has strongly hinted that the threat of Egyptian military intervention was meant to deter a Turkish-backed incursion into Sirte and the southern city of Jufra, another flashpoint in the confrontation.

“I don't think that Egypt will go for war,” said Karim Salem, a Libya expert at the Cairo Centre for Human Rights Studies, a Geneva-based advocacy organisation. “Even if they enter the east, they will not go for confrontation. For now, it’s a way to push from both sides that Sirte and Jufra be empty of military presence.”

The threat of military confrontation has prompted international players to refocus efforts on Libya. On Saturday, Germany, France and Italy issued a statement vowing to enforce a longstanding UN arms embargo on Libya that is now openly flouted by all sides.

“No one wants to see an escalation in Libya,” Mirette Mabrouk, a scholar at the Middle East Institute in Washington, wrote in a note on Monday. “The threat of spiraling violence, with the capacity to turn into another fully fledged proxy war, might be just the spur to political settlement that was needed.”

But forces loyal to the GNA have said repeatedly that they are poised to enter Sirte, with senior officials publicly stating that they are only awaiting the go-ahead from Turkey. Officials in Ankara have been negotiating with Moscow for a withdrawal of suspected Russian mercenaries deployed to both Sirte and Jufra, but the talks appear to have reached a stalemate.

Mr Isik called the Sirte operation “inevitable,” driven as much by Turkey’s domestic political calculations as what’s happening on the ground in Libya. The city is the last major urban outpost before Libya’s “oil crescent,” which includes refineries, storage facilities and export terminals in Ras Lanuf, Brega and al-Sidr.

“They’re going to take the opportunity in Sirte,” he said. “Maybe they will figure out some bizarre arrangement with the Russians. But they’re going to take [Haftar] out. The process has already started and it's too late to stop it.”

Oregon to sue federal agencies over response to Portland protests

July 18 (UPI) -- Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum said Saturday that the state will sue federal law enforcement agencies over their response to Black Lives Matter protests in Portland.

Rosenblum announced in a Twitter post that the lawsuit would be filed specifically in response to federal officers allegedly seizing and detaining residents without probable cause and excessive force. The agencies named included U.S. Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Marshals Service, U.S. Marshals Service, U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the Federal Protection Service

Nightly protests against police violence have attracted hundreds to sometimes thousands in Portland for more than six weeks in the aftermath of the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis on Memorial Day.

Since at least Tuesday, federal officers have been using unmarked vehicles to grab protesters off the streets and detain them with little explanation of why they are being arrested in an apparent escalation of federal force, witnesses told Oregon Public Broadcasting.

"I share the concerns of our state and local leaders -- and our Oregon U.S. senators and certain congressional representatives -- that the current escalation of fear and violence in downtown Portland is being driven by federal law enforcement tactics that are entirely unnecessary and out of character with the Oregon way," Rosenblum said in a statement.

"These tactics must stop. They not only make it impossible for people to assert their First Amendment rights to protest peacefully. They also create a more volatile situation on our streets."

The American Civil Liberties Union Foundation of Oregon also filed a lawsuit Friday against the DHS and the U.S. Marshals Service over the federal agencies' treatment of protesters, journalists and legal observers.

Last week police shot a Portland protester in the head with an impact munition, causing serious injuries, OregonLive reported.

Rosenblum announced a state criminal investigation with the Multnomah County District Attorney into the injury. She blamed the incident on a federal police officer.

"The federal administration has chosen Portland to use their scare tactics to stop our residents from protesting police brutality and from supporting the Black Lives Matter movement. Every American should be repulsed when they see this happening. If this can happen in Portland, it can happen anywhere," Rosenblum said

During a Friday interview with National Public Radio, DHS Deputy Secretary Ken Cuccinelli suggested the tactics employed recently could be used elsewhere.

"With as much lawbreaking is going on, we're seeking to prosecute as many people as are breaking the law as it relates to federal jurisdiction. That's not always happening with respect to local jurisdiction and local offenses. But, you know, this is a posture we intend to continue not just in Portland but in any of the facilities that we're responsible for around the country," he said.

On Saturday afternoon Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) announced on Twitter that he and Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) plan to introduce an amendment to the defense bill to "stop the Trump administration from sending its paramilitary squads onto America's streets.

"We won't let these authoritarian tactics stand," Merkley wrote.

Also Saturday, the New York Times reported on an internal DHS memo that hinted at future encounters in other cities and warned that the federal agent dispatched in Portland were not specifically trained in riot control or mass demonstrations.

"Moving forward, if this type of response is going to be the norm, specialized training and standardized equipment should be deployed to responding agencies."

Tensions between the city of Portland and federal agencies heated up after Acting Secretary Chad Wolf of the Department of Homeland Security arrived downtown on Thursday afternoon, KOIN reported. Federal officers deployed tear gas outside the federal courthouse after protesters stood their ground late Thursday night when they were told to disperse. By the end of the night, 20 people were arrested.

CBP said it arrested "violent anarchists" over the past several weeks, accusing them of damaging and destroying federal property.

CBP Commissioner Mark Morgan tweeted Friday that his agency "will continue to arrest the violent criminals that are destroying federal property and injuring our agents/officers in Portland."

"CBP will restore and maintain law and order."

Two separate marches were scheduled that night, one a "fight for Black Lives," by the PNW Youth Liberation Front against "the rise of fascism and hate in America," according to Radical Guide website. The other a "March for Black Education," which according to the PDX Black Lives Matter Events page was to bring awareness to the lack of black representation in Portland Public Schools and the treatment of Black, Indigenous, and people of color students and faculty.

Early Saturday morning, after Portland police declared the downtown demonstration to be unlawful, federal and local officers advanced on protesters and used tear gas -- whose use has been temporarily restricted in the city -- as well impact munitions and stun grenades at least twice to break up the demonstrations. Multiple outlets with reporters at the scene said it was not clear what precipitated the use of force.

On Saturday afternoon the Portland Police Bureau issued a press release announcing seven arrests and saying PPB did not use tear gas, also known as CS gas, on protesters.

"Beginning tonight command from the Federal Protective Service will not work in the Portland Police incident command center," the release added.

It is not clear when the Federal Protective Service started using the command center, though that aspect of collaboration between the agencies was first mentioned in a July 9 OPB story.

City leaders have placed distance between local and federal police in some public statements, but Portland police have since acknowledged "sharing updates in real time," OregonLive reports.

The total number of arrests since federal officers came to Portland has not been disclosed.

Last week federal officers arrested a protester for vandalizing a federal courthouse. According to a series of Portland police tweets, federal officers also arrested two other people for unlawfully pointing lasers into federal officers' eyes and another person for breaking a hole in the door of the federal courthouse with a hammer and striking one of the federal officers who responded to the scene in the head and shoulder with a hammer.


DAILY MAIL COVERAGE CHECK IT OUT 34 PHOTOS PLUS VIDEOS
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8538459/Protester-Navy-sweatshirt-shrugs-baton-beating-tear-gas-attack-federal-cops.html

Women Formed a 'Wall of Moms' to Protect Protesters From Federal Police in Portland

 BY ROBIN ZLOTNICK

Black Lives Matter protests may have left the media cycle, but they're still happening regularly in cities across the United States. And in Portland, Ore., unidentified federal police have been deployed by the president. They've been snatching protesters in the street and throwing them into unmarked cars and tear-gassing crowds.

In order to protect protesters from these federal agents, women formed a "Wall of Moms" between the police and the protesters. There were more than 30 moms who linked arms to create a barricade during these demonstrations. They chanted, "Feds stay clear! Moms are here!" and "Leave our kids alone" at the protest outside the federal courthouse, according to BuzzFeed News.

More protesters have arrived. A line of women haves linked arms to block the street. I’m told they call themselves the “wall of moms.” They’re chanting “feds stay clear, the moms are here” pic.twitter.com/eyYpUuoSRV
— Emily Gillespie (@emilygillespie) July 19, 2020

Protesters say that these federal officers have only served to escalate tensions in Portland. Not only are they grabbing people and shoving them into unmarked vans, but they're tear-gassing crowds, chasing and beating them with batons, and firing flash bangs.

The Mayor of Portland, Ted Wheeler, said on CNN that the presence of the federal police officers is "actually leading to more violence and more vandalism." He continued, "They're not wanted here. We haven't asked them here. In fact, we want them to leave."

NBC News reports that Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum filed a lawsuit against the Department of Homeland Security and other agencies, alleging "that federal law enforcement officers sent to Portland to suppress protests violated the Constitution by unlawfully detaining and arresting demonstrators without probable cause."

Oregon Governor Kate Brown wrote of the federal police presence on Twitter, "This political theater from President Trump has nothing to do with public safety. The President is failing to lead this nation. Now he is deploying federal officers to patrol the streets of Portland in a blatant abuse of power by the federal government."

Wall of Moms, Justice Center Portland. 7/18/20. #wallofmoms #resist #blacklivesmatter pic.twitter.com/Q575eb9niP
— Julia Peattie (@repeattie) July 19, 2020

"We are about protecting peaceful citizens' right to protest," Bev Barnum, the organizer of "Wall of Moms," told BuzzFeed News. She created a Facebook event to organize the moms after she saw a viral video in which two armed federal officers exit an unmarked van and grab someone. They had no identifying features.

On the Facebook event, Barnum wrote, "Calling all moms. Let's do what we do best — protect people. As most of you have read and seen on the news, protesters are being hurt (without cause). And as of late, protesters are being stripped of their rights by being places in unmarked cars by unidentifiable law enforcement. We moms are often underestimated. But we're stronger than we're given credit for."

Barnum urged moms to wear white in order to stand out from the crowd and to wear a helmet in case things got violent. "We wanted to look like we were going to Target, like normal people," Barnum said.

Although she hoped that their "nonthreatening" appearance would stop federal officers from using violent measures against them and other protesters, the entire crowd was eventually tear-gassed. Still, Barnum said the moms will be out there "until no protester needs protecting."

Again, this is a chemical weapon of war being deployed against civilians who are exercising their right to protest an unwanted, militarized occupation of their city—not even by the entire federal government—but by specific orders of a president who aspires to be dictator. https://t.co/sgCwaeQPd9
— Bree Newsome Bass (@BreeNewsome) July 20, 2020

While the Saturday night protest ended in violence, the moms returned on Sunday to continue to provide protection to protesters. Julia Peattie, one of the members of the Wall of Moms Facebook group, said, "There's all the times in one's life when you hear about things in authoritarian regimes and Nazi Germany, and you say, 'I wouldn't put up with that.' This is that time."

Barnum clarified that while the Wall of Moms was there to protect protesters, they didn't want to take any attention away from the Black voices who need to be heard. Brenna Burnett, who participated in the Wall of Moms, said, "This is about Black moms every day losing their children, husbands, brothers, friends. This is about Black Lives Matter. This is not about white women coming in to save the day."

Moms Form Human Shield To Protect Portland Protesters From Federal Police
By Morgan Brinlee ROMPER
July 20, 2020
Reports that federal officers in Portland, Oregon, were detaining citizens without explanation and employing aggressive tactics against protesters has galvanized mothers of all ages to join the city's nightly protests against police brutality and systemic racism. Over the weekend, dozens of Portland moms formed a human shield to protect protesters from law enforcement officers. Videos shared across social media networks captured the group standing arm-in-arm, chanting, "Feds stay clear, moms are here!" before being teargassed by federal officers.

Nightly demonstrations sparked by the police killing of George Floyd have been ongoing in Portland since late May. Although largely peaceful, the demonstrations have frustrated President Donald Trump, who dispatched federal officers from the U.S. Marshals Special Operations Group and U.S. Customs and Border Protection to Portland in early July, according to a statement from the Department of Homeland Security.

But while Trump may have hoped to quell protests in Portland, reports that federal officers were allegedly using aggressive tactics against peaceful protesters and grabbing civilians off the street in unmarked cars, as Oregon Public Broadcasting reported, have served only to re-energize demonstrators and, most recently, mothers.

Dozens of moms outraged over law enforcements' aggressive response to peaceful protesters organized to form a "Wall of Moms" at protests in Portland over the weekend. On Saturday, a group of moms who identified themselves as Moms Against Police Brutality linked arms to form a human shield between protesters and police.

They chanted "This is what democracy looks like," "Feds go home, moms are here" and "Leave our kids alone" while standing between protesters and Portland's Hatfield Federal Courthouse. Video shared over Twitter by preschool educator Lindsey Smith showed federal officers fire flash bangs and tear gas at the line of moms as they stood chanting outside the courthouse.

But footage of federal officers firing tear gas at protesting moms on Saturday inspired even more mothers to show up to Sunday night's protest, this time wearing yellow.
"The wall of moms were in white yesterday, and they were tear gassed and shoved," one mother present at Sunday's protest told Willamette Weekly when asked what drew her to attend that evenings demonstration. "So we came in yellow today and we're alongside the fence telling them: 'Feds go home, the moms are here.'"

On Sunday, the moms, the majority of whom were white, once again linked arms to form a human shield around protesters and federal officers once again deployed tear gas against them, according to videos shared across social media.

"I am a 49 year old mother with a Masters in Education and I just got gassed by my own government," a woman who identified herself as a protesting mom in Portland wrote on Twitter in the pre-dawn hours Monday. "We were peaceful."

These are, of course, not the first mothers to have taken to the streets to protest police violence or to support Black Lives Matter protests. In fact, Black mothers have long been at the center of these protests. Still, Portland's protesting moms show mothers everywhere have had enough.

DAILY MAIL COVERAGE CHECK IT OUT 34 PHOTOS PLUS VIDEOS

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8538459/Protester-Navy-sweatshirt-shrugs-baton-beating-tear-gas-attack-federal-cops.html

Protester dubbed 'Naked Athena' strips off and dares police to shoot her with tear gas during tense stand-off in the 50-day 'Battle of Portland'

Unidentified woman struck a series of ballet and yoga poses in front of officers 

Surreal video footage from the scene shows the woman striding towards cops 

The 'Naked Athena' protester wore nothing but a beanie and face mask 

In Portland, courts have recognized nudity as a form of political protest which overrides public decency laws.
By SOPHIE TANNO FOR MAILONLINE

PUBLISHED: 21 July 2020

A protester dubbed 'Naked Athena' confronted Portland police wearing only a face mask and beanie.

The unidentified woman struck a series of ballet and yoga poses in front of anti-riot officers at around 1.45 am on Saturday morning.

Surreal video footage from the scene shows the woman striding towards the officers, who were in heavy protective gear including gas masks and helmets, almost completely naked.

Oregon state law is pretty lenient on public nudity, and in Portland it is only illegal to be naked in public with the intent to arouse.

The standoff comes after the city of Portland marked its 50th consecutive night of unrest following the death of George Floyd, with crowds taking to the streets to denounce racial injustice.

A protester dubbed 'Naked Athena' confronted Portland police wearing only a face mask and beanie



Surreal video footage from the scene shows the woman marching towards the officers, who were in heavy protective gear including gas masks and helmets, almost completely naked

The unidentified woman struck a series of ballet and yoga poses in front of anti-riot officers at around 1.45 am on Saturday morning

And then? Naked Athena appeared and the little boys didn’t know what to do. pic.twitter.com/Elo69SsV0t— Donovan “It was the blurst of times” Farley 💻🐒 (@DonovanFarley) July 18, 2020

Officers proceed to fire pepper balls at the woman's feet and another protester is filmed rushing to protect her with a makeshift shield.

However she side-steps him to perform a series of yoga poses in front of the officers and even reclines onto the street at one point.

Her graceful poses stand in stark contrast to the heavily-armed guards.
According to Dave Killen, a photographer for The Oregonian, the officers left around 10 minutes after the naked woman showed up.

'She was incredibly vulnerable,' he told the news outlet.

'It would have been incredibly painful to be shot with any of those munitions with no clothes on.'
'Naked Athena' Portland protester dares police to shot tear gas at her




Officers proceed to fire pepper balls at the woman's feet and another protester is filmed rushing to protect her with a makeshift shield

The woman is then seen lying on the pavement as she strikes another pose in front of federal officers

In Portland, courts have recognized nudity as a form of political protest which overrides public decency laws

THERE ARE MORE PHOTOS FROM THE WEEKEND PROTESTS HERE
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8540579/Naked-Athena-protester-confronts-Portland-police.html

Christopher David's altercation with federal officers went viral after they hit him with batons and sprayed him with pepper spray

‘They just started whaling on me’: Veteran speaks out after video of federal officers beating him at Portland protests goes viral


‘I stood my ground at that point and just stayed there,’ Christopher David, 53, told The Independent 


Danielle Zoellner @dani__zoellner

Christopher David, a 53-year-old disabled Navy veteran, was so angry at the sight of federal officers sweeping up protesters in the last few nights on the streets of Portland, Oregon, that he decided to go and talk to them about it.

The city resident, who served more than eight years with the US Navy, got on a public bus on Saturday and headed to a protest in front of the city courthouse in the hope he could ask them some questions.

“I was enraged simply because I did not think they were taking their oath of office seriously or they were compromising their oath of office,” Mr David told The Independent. “So I actually went down because I wanted to talk to them about it.”

His advances were rebuffed, however, and he was the victim of a brutal attack that was caught on video and went viral on Sunday.

In the video, first shared by a reporter from the Portland Tribune, Mr David is seen taking a series of baton blows from a federal agent, without reacting to any of them, before he is finally forced back by pepper spray to the face.

“I stood my ground at that point and just stayed there ... I did nothing provocative. They just started whaling on me with batons, and I let them,” Mr David said.

“I probably could’ve taken a lot more baton blows if they had not sprayed pepper spray all over my eyes,” he added.

The use of federal agents to quell protests in Portland has drawn heavy criticism from local and national leaders. Federal officers from the US Customs and Border Protection, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and the Department of Homeland Security‘s Federal Protective Service have been deployed to Portland on orders from the Trump administration.

Their mandate was to protect federal buildings, but they have been accused of driving unmarked cars and seizing people from the street in recent days in the city, which has seen nightly protests for racial justice since the police killing of George Floyd.

Mr David detailed how the federal officers streamed out of the courthouse building Saturday night and immediately started “pushing people down in the intersection”.

“It was just chaos,” Mr David said about the moment. “That is when I wanted to walk over to them and talk to them because they were not adhering to their oath of office.”

“Were any of you enlisted? Why are you not keeping your oath of office?” Mr David shouted at the officers over the noise of the crowd.

The moment was described as chaotic from Mr David because the officers were already taking “aggressive” and “crazy” action against protesters within minutes of leaving the courthouse.

“There didn’t seem to be any design, or strategy, or plan to what they were doing,” he said. “It was bizarre. It almost looked like they were scared.”

Footage then showed Mr David standing still in front of the officers with his hands down at his side. He was carrying nothing in his hands and only had a backpack on him holding his ID and wallet.

One officer then started beating him with a baton when another sprayed pepper spray in his eyes, which encouraged the man to finally step away from the federal agents and move back towards the crowd.

The moment went viral after it was first shared on Twitter, with people calling Mr David “Captain Portland” and commending him for not moving when officers used aggressive force.

“That guy is a brick. And wow. Can’t believe that is how someone harmless-looking is treated,” one Twitter commenter wrote after viewing the footage.

Footage stopped with Mr David walking away, but that wasn’t the end for him.

A street medic named Tav, who uses the pronouns they/them, helped move the man away from the crowds because the pepper spray left him struggling to see. Then, with the assistance of friends, the medic got Mr David into an ambulance so he could be taken to the VA hospital nearby.

Although the altercation with officers was brief, the moment left the man’s hand severely damaged after one baton hit slammed right against his knuckles.

“It is pretty damaged. I am probably going to have to have surgery,” Mr David said.

It was in the emergency room when Mr David found out he’d become a viral star from his clash with federal agents.

“I exchanged phone numbers with Tav so I could call them later and thank them for rescuing me out of the park,” he detailed. Tav was the one who then called him and revealed that everyone was now referring to him as “Captain Portland” following the altercation.

“I had no freaking idea,” he added.

State and local officials have spoken out against the Trump administration for its use of federal agents to quell protests. Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler has called for the agents to be removed from the city, calling their use “a direct threat to democracy,” but the Trump administration hasn’t budged.

In a tweet published on Sunday, Mr Trump claimed his administration was trying to “help” Portland, not “hurt it”.

“We must protect Federal property, AND OUR PEOPLE. These were not merely protesters, these are the real deal,” he wrote.

But residents like Mr David saw the administration’s response as an effort to create discontent in “any big, blue city”.

“This is just the first domino to fall,” he said. “He is trying to see how far he can push it in Portland and create some kind of model for other cities so he can stir up enough chaos and discontent to try and win the election again. All of this is just doubling down on his strategy of division and chaos.”

Mr David admitted there were protesters showing more aggressive behaviour during Saturday night’s protest, including breaking down fences outside the courthouse and placing them up against the front doors. But how federal officers responded, he said, was not justified.

“Their response is incredibly disproportionate and it is designed to incite anger, division, chaos, and riots,” he said about the federal agents. “That’s the only reason they’re here. They’re not trying to quell the city or dominate it. They’re trying to stir up chaos, because that is how Trump operates.”

Despite the injury to his hand, Mr David was considering attending another Portland protest. But now he has considered using his voice in different ways following his altercation with officers.

“I’d do it again but sometimes I have to listen to better advice from other people,” he said. “I am 53 and am not indestructible.”


DAILY MAIL COVERAGE CHECK IT OUT 34 PHOTOS PLUS VIDEOS

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8538459/Protester-Navy-sweatshirt-shrugs-baton-beating-tear-gas-attack-federal-cops.html

New footage shows the moment federal agents hit a protester wearing a Navy sweatshirt before spraying tear gas in the man's face during another night of demonstrations that have been taking place since the death of George Floyd as President Donald Trump claims his administration is just 'trying to help'

In the footage, the unidentified protester is seen being struck at least three times with a baton by one officer

Another officer is then seen spraying the man in the face with tear gas (pictured) The incident was shared on Twitter early Sunday morning

As the man starts to walk away, an officer hits him at least two more times before the protester threw his middle fingers in the air

Trump Shouldn’t Push Schools To Reopen, 63% Of Americans Report In New Poll

By Casey Suglia July 16, 2020 ROMPER

As teachers and parents are concerned about what education will look this fall and the Trump administration continuously calls for schools to reopen for in-person learning, even threatening to cut funding if they don't, a new poll has found that many Americans don't agree with the president's stance. In fact, a new survey conducted by YouGov for Yahoo! News found that 63% of Americans believe that President Donald Trump shouldn't push schools to reopen in the midst of a global pandemic.


Using a sample of 1,504 adult U.S. residents, the new YouGov and Yahoo! News survey conducted this week found that people are concerned about the speed at which the nation is reopening during the current pandemic, especially when it comes to schools. Over half of those surveyed reported that they believe states with a large number of new COVID-19 cases should not reopen schools for in-person learning. According to the survey 52% of respondents said they don't support schools reopening in hot spots for the virus, while 23% reported that they are OK with it.

The survey also touched on President Trump's repeated attempts to push schools to fully reopen in the fall. On July 6, Trump tweeted in all caps "SCHOOLS MUST OPEN IN THE FALL!!!" and two days later threatened to cut funding from schools if they do not. "In Germany, Denmark, Norway, Sweden and many other countries, SCHOOLS ARE OPEN WITH NO PROBLEMS. The Dems think it would be bad for them politically if U.S. schools open before the November Election, but is important for the children & families," Trump tweeted on July 8. "May cut off funding if not open!"

YouGov and Yahoo! News' new survey found that 63% of Americans don't think Trump should put pressure on schools to reopen while 25% reported they think he should be doing it.

Even with growing number of coronavirus cases — the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports there are more than 3 million confirmed cases of the coronavirus in the United States —Trump has continued to push for students to return to in-person instruction.

"It is a balancing act, but we have to open our schools," Trump said in an interview with CBS News. "We have learned one thing very strongly. Young people are in great shape when it comes to the coronavirus or whatever you want to call it. Young people are very, very, very much in good shape. And without question, they should open their schools, keep 'em safe, practice distancing, wash your hands."

While the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has supported the idea of students returning safely to schools this fall, the organization said in a statement this week the decision must be made by public health agencies and science — not politics.

"Returning to school is important for the healthy development and well-being of children, but we must pursue re-opening in a way that is safe for all students, teachers and staff. Science should drive decision-making on safely reopening schools. Public health agencies must make recommendations based on evidence, not politics," the AAP said in a statement dated July 10. "We should leave it to health experts to tell us when the time is best to open up school buildings, and listen to educators and administrators to shape how we do it."

If schools return to in-person learning, the CDC has released guidelines for reopening, which Trump tweeted are "expensive" and "tough." Among several others, the CDC's recommendations for schools include installing physical barriers like sneeze guards or Plexiglass and spacing out desk seating in classrooms.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, one of the nation's top infectious disease experts, said in a Senate panel in June that schools should reopen based on how their state is reopening, and follow the guidelines accordingly. According to CBS News, Fauci said: "The basic fundamental goal would be as you possibly can to get the children back to school and use the public health efforts as a tool to help the children get back to school."

If you think you’re showing symptoms of coronavirus, which include fever, shortness of breath, and cough, call your doctor before going to get tested. If you’re anxious about the virus’s spread in your community, visit the CDC for up-to-date information and resources, or seek out mental health support. You can find all of Romper’s parents + coronavirus coverage here.

AMAZON, FEDEX WORKERS FOUGHT EXPLOITATION IN A PANDEMIC, THEN JOINED AN UPRISING

Paul Abowd, Mary Jirmanus Saba
July 15 2020, THE INTERCEPT

WHEN EMPLOYEES AT Amazon and FedEx were deemed essential in the midst of a coronavirus pandemic, they formed a national organizing effort to press for workplace safety, hazard pay, and a voice on the job. When protests against police brutality spread across the country after the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis, essential workers took to the streets, calling out their bosses for trying to turn Black Lives Matter into a corporate PR slogan.

This video was captured mostly during May and June 2020. On July 13, 2020, video producer Mary Jirmanus Saba checked back in with Adrienne Williams, who continued driving for Amazon after recovering from heat stroke. “Nothing has really changed,” Williams said, besides temperature checks before entering the warehouse on foot. Williams continued to be critical of Amazon’s response, especially in California and Texas, which are now suffering new outbreaks of Covid-19. Williams continues to organize with a group called Bay Area Amazonians. “I saw how terrible Amazon is, and I felt like something had to be done, but nobody else was going to do it,” Williams said. “I still don’t know why I haven’t been fired.”

In a statement, Amazon said, “Nothing is more important than the safety of our employees and partners.” In response to Williams’s assertions about the Mentor app, Amazon said that the app is only required on delivery devices provided to workers, not on their personal devices. FedEx said, “The safety and well-being of our 500,000 team members is our top priority.