Chelsea Manning attempted suicide in her jail cell
Chelsea Manning, a former Army intelligence analyst, attempted suicide in her jail cell in Virginia on Wednesday.
Manning was sentenced to 35 years in jail in 2010 after she disclosed 750,000 classified or highly sensitive government documents to Wikileaks. Obama commuted her 35-year sentence and Manning was released in 2017. She was imprisoned again last year when she refused to testify against Julian Assange.
A federal judge has ordered Manning’s immediate release.
New York state allowed gender changes in birth certificates for minors
On Tuesday, New York state announced that it will allow people under 18 years to change the gender markers on their birth certificates without medical evidence. The decision was catalyzed by a lawsuit brought by a 14-year old trans boy when he was not allowed to change his official gender to match his gender identity. Underage trans people can officially change their genders if through their parents or legal guardians.
Harvey Weinstein was hospitalized for heart problems after he was sentenced
Harvey Weinstein was hospitalized on Thursday after experiencing chest pains shortly after he was sentenced to 23 years in prison. Weinstein was determined to have extremely high blood pressure and was transferred to Bellevue Hospital in New York City.
Mike Bloomberg donated $2 Million to increase African-American voter registration
Only a few weeks after he dropped out from the Democratic race, former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced that he will invest $2 million to increase African-American voter turnout for the November elections. Bloomberg’s donation will go to Collective Future, a nonprofit that aims to increase Black voter turnout.
Zaya Wade made her red carpet debut
Zaya Wade, the 12-year old daughter of former NBA star Dwayne Wade, made a public appearance at the sixth annual Truth Awards in Los Angeles just weeks after she came out as trans. Needless to say, she looked fierce AF.
Several celebrities and public figures tested positive for coronavirus…
Tom Hanks and Rita Hanks
The American actor and his wife announced on Wednesday night that they had tested positive for coronavirus while they were on a film shoot in Australia working on an Elvis Presley biopic. THe couple has since then quarantined themselves. Both Tom and Rita seems to be in good spirits and their son, Chet Hanks, took to social media to reassure fans that his parents were doing well.
Sophie Trudeau
Sophie Trudeau, wife of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, also tested positive for coronavirus after a speaking engagement in the UK, according to CNN. The couple will separately isolate themselves for 14 days.
and an NBA player
Mark Cuban reacts moments after the NBA season was suspended. pic.twitter.com/4g8Z7yLts6
— ESPN (@espn) March 12, 2020
A Utah Jazz player tested positive for the coronavirus on Wednesday shortly before a scheduled game in Oklahoma City. The NBA announced that it would suspend the entire season shortly after the news.
… plus. #ShutDownNYC has been trending on Twitter
I just want to make this clear. We are going to have to #shutdownNYC in the coming days, just like they are doing in Spain and France today. @NYCMayor @NYGovCuomo We have two options-Option 1) We can shut down in an orderly, rational way starting tomorrow morning that accounts 1/
— (((Stephen Levin))) (@StephenLevin33) March 15, 2020
As coronavirus cases in New York City continue to skyrocket, several politicians and public figures have called for New York City to close its public spaces. Stephen Levin, a council member who represents last swaths of Brooklyn, was the first elected official to publicly urge the city to shut down.
Cover photo: Jack Taylor/Getty images
