In the spotlight: opening schools during a pandemic in the United States

Text by: Stefanie Schüler Follow

5 mins

Publicity

"  Never has a new school year been so chaotic  ", headlines the Washington Post this morning . "  Across the country, plans for resuming classes diverge and change daily depending on the geographic location of schools, the rate of Covid-19 infection and the political orientation of local authorities,  " notes the newspaper which continues: “  The protocols of recovery evolve so quickly and so often that parents and pupils have difficulty to follow. Teachers are threatening to go on strike. And where school has already started again, the first coronavirus contaminations are everywhere in classrooms  ”.

Much ink has been written about a school in the state of Georgia: Photos of a compact crowd of students in the halls of North Paulding High School had been around social media last week. None of the teenagers wore a mask. "  Nine of them tested positive,  " local newspaper Mercury News reported. “  The school is closed from this Monday for at least two weeks.  "

To make matters worse, schools do not know how they will be funded. The White House and the Democrats have yet to agree on a new plan to help the US economy.

Donald Trump's latest decrees confuse unemployed Americans

On Saturday, Donald Trump broke this blockage in Congress. He signed several executive orders to help Americans in financial difficulty because of the pandemic. But according to several newspapers this morning, the executive orders have only caused confusion, especially "  among the tens of millions of unemployed Americans and among the countless companies seeking financial support after the expiration. government aid  ”, for example the New York Times. "  In a series of television appearances on Sunday, the president's advisers tried to reassure the unemployed: they will quickly receive the aid of $ 400 per week promised by Donald Trump,  " the newspaper notes.

“  But this allocation should on the one hand be financed by the States - already plagued by budget deficits due to the economic crisis - and on the other hand come from the federal fund intended for aid in the event of natural disasters. All in the middle of hurricane season  ”. And the New York Times concluded: "  Since Congress has the constitutional power to allocate federal spending, Mr. Trump will likely need his agreement and legislation to provide additional financial support to families and businesses  ."

Bolivia is going through a serious political crisis amid the coronavirus epidemic

The presidential election last fall was invalidated due to massive irregularities. Faced with the anger of the street and let loose by the army, Socialist President Evo Morales, who was a candidate for re-election, had to resign and leave the country. Bolivia has since been in the hands of a provisional government led by an interim conservative president, Jeanine Áñez. A new presidential election should have been held in May. But since the poll has been postponed three times. The provisional team in power justifies these postponements by the health crisis. But sympathizers of the MAS, the political formation of Evo Morales, accuse him of wanting to gain time. Indeed, it is for the moment the candidate of the MAS, Luis Arce, the dolphin of the former president, who dominates the polls. While Jeanine Áñez, also a candidate for the presidency, only comes third.

In this context, attempts at dialogue to agree on a date for the presidential election failed this weekend. The Supreme Electoral Tribunal had set the new date for October 18, which angered pro-Morales who have been blocking the country's main roads since last week.

"  After the failure of the negotiations, the tension mounts in the country  ", headlines the newspaper Correo del Sur . La Razón reports clashes between protesters and rival groups who attacked several roadblocks.

For its part, the newspaper El Deber announced this morning the “  radicalization of the mobilization of pro-Morales  ”. To their demand to hold the presidential election as quickly as possible is now added another: these movements demand the resignation of the provisional president Jeanine Áñez and her government. To make themselves heard, several organizations of peasants, natives and minors not only want to extend the dams but also announce their intention to march on La Paz, explains El Deber.

In a very polarized country, this movement is far from unanimous. All the more so as the demonstrators at the roadblocks prevent all passage, including that of trucks carrying oxygen. The management of a hospital in La Paz “  begged  ” the protesters this morning: “  people with Covid-19 are dying,  ” she argues in the columns of Los Tiempos. The president of the College of Medicine accuses the MAS, the political formation of Evo Morales, of being responsible for these deaths which he describes as “  assassinations  ” and “  crimes against humanity  ”, reports El Diario.

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