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"Today he's turned his back on the kids ... in favor of the teachers union ... and what they have to demand and it's really shameful," DeVos said.

POSTED SEPTEMBER 21, 2020 10:34 PM

The family of David McAtee, a Black Louisville, Kentucky restaurateur who was shot and killed in June by cops and the National Guard during protests over the police killing of local emergency medical technician Breonna Taylor, filed a wrongful death lawsuit on Monday, just over 48 hours after the man’s nephew was shot and killed in virtually the same spot.It was the latest harrowing episode in a cycle of bloodshed that has seemingly singled out a beloved local family.The lawsuit targets the Louisville Metro Police Department, the Kentucky National Guard, and a slew of officers and National Guard members the family says were involved in the June 1 shooting. It also names the two white Louisville cops previously identified as having been party to the killing—Katie Crews and Austin Allen. When, after the shooting, it was revealed that neither officer had their body camera activated, Mayor Greg Fischer fired Steven Conrad, the local police chief.As has become routine in an era of increased scrutiny of police killings of people of color, the two officers were placed on leave, and a joint state-federal investigation was announced. But attorney Steve Romines, who is representing the McAtees, said the probe into the fatal shooting of the celebrated barbecue chef had been virtually invisible, and seemed to go nowhere.“They had indicated that [the investigation] would be transparent and all the information would be provided,” Romines told The Daily Beast. “Literally none of it has been provided, and we’re left with no other option but to go forward [with our lawsuit]. I understand the need for a proper, thorough investigation to ensure justice, but there’s a big difference between that and dragging it out like this.”The elder McAtee was killed when police and National Guard arrived to enforce a curfew amid the peak of Black Lives Matter protests sparked in part by the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis—as well as the killing Taylor—this spring. On the night in question, a large crowd was eating at McAtee’s restaurant, Yaya’s BBQ Shack, and McAtee’s niece, Maychelle, was threatened by police projectiles as she stood by the doorway. In the lawsuit, McAtee claims she was hit three times. Police have said—and provided surveillance footage they say shows—that McAtee fired his own gun at least once from the restaurant as police and National Guard made their approach.Almost as soon as police say McAtee fired, a hail of police and National Guard gunfire erupted, killing him. State officials later said they concluded that the fatal shot was fired by a member of the National Guard, and that the shooting was justified.In a statement, a spokesperson for the Louisville Metro Police Department said it did not comment on pending litigation. Crews could not immediately be reached for comment on the lawsuit, and the National Guard did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Crews had reportedly mocked a demonstrator she encountered earlier that night, posting on Facebook: "I hope the pepper balls that she got lit up with a little later on hurt."When reached by phone Monday, Allen told “I wish I could comment, but you know how it is.”Law enforcement officials claim McAtee fired at least two rounds from a 9mm pistol he wore on his belt. Crews and Allen fired at McAtee at least 19 times, according to officials. The family’s lawsuit does not say McAtee fired on officers during the incident, but explains that he had been advised by police officers who regularly ate at YaYa’s to carry a gun for his own protection.The family is seeking unspecified monetary damages, including funeral expenses. And now they are facing an even fresher tragedy.Marvin McAtee—David McAtee’s nephew—took over YaYa’s BBQ after his uncle’s death. Over the weekend, Marvin was reportedly shot and killed in an apparently unrelated incident just steps from where David was gunned down. Police said they have not yet identified any suspects.Reached by phone, Odessa Riley, David McAtee’s grandmother, said she was planning her second funeral in three months—and couldn’t talk for long.“Everybody’s on their way over,” Riley told The Daily Beast. “The family’s on their way over, the funeral home people are on their way over. Today is a bad day.”Read more at The Daily Beast.Got a tip? Send it to The Daily Beast hereGet our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.

POSTED SEPTEMBER 21, 2020 1:13 PM

Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), one of the first Muslim women elected to Congress, has faced constant threats of violence since her election in 2018. They include public threats from Republicans set to join her in the House in January — and absolutely no condemnation from congressmembers on the other side of the aisle, she tells the The New York Times Magazine.In an interview with the Times, Omar discussed "hateful" attacks against her from Fox News' Tucker Carlson, as well as the rise of Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Republican House candidate in a far-right Georgia district who held a gun next to a photo of Omar's "Squad" in a campaign video. Greene's video is just one of many "dangerous" people spouting "bizarre, ill-informed conspiracies" about Omar and other Democrats and "terrorizing so many of us," Omar said.But despite receiving "a few death threats that have been very publicized where people have been arrested and are incarcerated for it," Omar said she has received no support or condemnation from Republicans. "I can't remember a public statement or private comment of support," she continued.> Interesting juxtaposition here between Biden-esque cries that there are good and decent Republicans who are simply too scared to speak out publicly against Trump and the reality that Ilhan Omar describes. pic.twitter.com/hxAjTS6XSV> > — Eoin Higgins (@EoinHiggins_) September 21, 2020Despite being "discouraged" by this lack of unity "sometimes," Omar said she has "hope" that "the lived reality of what exists in American cities and towns" isn't the same as what's online. Read more at The New York Times Magazine.More stories from theweek.com Trump told Bob Woodward that with Mitch McConnell by his side, he's 'broken every record' on judges McConnell unexpectedly rejects Democrats' funding bill, leaving U.S. on the verge of government shutdown The audacious case for Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett

POSTED SEPTEMBER 21, 2020 12:10 PM

Chinese officials have admitted that birth rates have plummeted among its ethnic Uighurs, fuelling claims that Beijing is subjecting its Muslim minority to a campaign of forced birth control. Official statistics show that in Xinjiang, the north-western province where most of the 10 million strong Uighur community live, birth rates dropped by almost a third in 2018. The figures follow accusations that Beijing is attempting to reduce the Uighur population by threatening women with fines or spells in mass detention camps if they flout harsh family planning measures. At least a million Uighurs are believed to have passed through the detention camps in recent years, which Beijing insists are voluntary schools to teach Uighurs of the dangers of Islamic extremism. Human rights groups say they are used to eradicate Uighur culture, in tandem with forced abortion and sterilisation policies that amount to "demographic genocide".

POSTED SEPTEMBER 21, 2020 1:48 PM

Lake Ozark Mayor Gerry Murawski said last week that he didn't expect motorcyclists to wear masks to Bikefest because "that's just the way they are."

POSTED SEPTEMBER 20, 2020 11:39 AM

The official Black Lives Matter website no longer includes language encouraging the “disruption” of the “Western-prescribed nuclear family structure.”The language had been featured on the site's "What We Believe" page, in which the group had laid out its support for various extreme policies and ideals that went beyond police reform and brutality. Attempts to access the page now yield a message that reads, "Page Not Found. Sorry, but the page you were trying to view does not exist," the Washington Examiner first discovered on Monday.The page had described the group as a "global Black family" that engages "comrades with the intent to learn about and connect with their contexts," according to an archive."We make our spaces family-friendly and enable parents to fully participate with their children. We dismantle the patriarchal practice that requires mothers to work 'double shifts' so that they can mother in private even as they participate in public justice work," the organization wrote. "We disrupt the Western-prescribed nuclear family structure requirement by supporting each other as extended families and 'villages' that collectively care for one another, especially our children, to the degree that mothers, parents, and children are comfortable."The website still features an “About" page that explains the origin of the organization — it was founded in 2013 after the death of Trayvon Martin — and features a shorter list of its goals. The "About" page says the group’s mission “is to eradicate white supremacy and build local power to intervene in violence inflicted on Black communities by the state and vigilantes.”“We affirm the lives of Black queer and trans folks, disabled folks, undocumented folks, folks with records, women, and all Black lives along the gender spectrum,” the page reads.“We are working for a world where Black lives are no longer systematically targeted for demise,” it adds.The organization has received criticism for its extremist views, including co-founder Patrisse Cullors 2015 admission that she and her fellow co-founders are “trained Marxists.”"I actually do think we have an ideological frame. We are trained Marxists," Cullors said.

POSTED SEPTEMBER 21, 2020 2:56 PM

The newly formed U.S. Space Force is deploying troops to a vast new frontier: the Arabian Peninsula.

POSTED SEPTEMBER 21, 2020 6:51 AM

A post attributes a 2016 quote to the late jurist about presidential power to appoint Supreme Court justices. The post is missing context.

POSTED SEPTEMBER 21, 2020 4:59 PM

The man told one of the women he had inappropriate photos of her, police say.

POSTED SEPTEMBER 20, 2020 12:42 PM

Victim was airlifted to Miami hospital with a serious bite wound

POSTED SEPTEMBER 21, 2020 3:56 PM