Congressional Democrats want justice in policing

Democratic lawmakers release a sweeping proposal for police reform; New Zealand declares itself free of Covid-19. Tonight's Sentences was written by Catherine Kim. TOP NEWS Congress responds to George Floyd's killing Caroline Brehman/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images - Democratic lawmakers unveiled sweeping police reform legislation in response to the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis, which has sparked weeks' worth of protests nationwide and around the world. [[CNN / Lauren Fox, Manu Raju, and Clare Foran](] - Before the announcement, lawmakers held a moment of silence, read the names of black people killed by police violence, then knelt for 8 minutes and 46 seconds –– the amount of time a police officer pinned Floyd by the neck with his knee. [[AP / Lisa Mascaro](] - Some of the sweeping changes in the Justice in Policing Act, written by leaders of the Congressional Black Caucus, include a ban on chokeholds, a national database for police misconduct, and mandated use of body cameras. The ultimate goal is to eradicate the racial injustices in the policing system, Democratic leaders said. [[NPR / Claudia Grisales, Susan Davis, and Kelsey Snell](] - The bill would also make it easier for civilians to hold officers accountable: victims of excessive force only have to prove that officers "recklessly" infringed on their rights, rather than show that the violation was "willful." [[Washington Post / Paul Kane and John Wagner](] - The House Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing on Wednesday, followed by the Senate Judiciary Committee on June 16. The Democratic-led House plans to pass the bill as soon as possible, and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said he'd push for a vote in July. [[Washington Post / Paul Kane and John Wagner](] - Many had been waiting to see how Congress would react to the anti-police violence protests that have rocked the nation for the past two weeks. This is the most aggressive police reform act introduced by lawmakers in decades. [[The Hill / Mike Lillis and Scott Wong](] - But the legislation isn't entirely welcomed by the growing number of activists who want local governments to defund the police, as it doesn't touch police department budgets. [[NBC News / Leigh Ann Caldwell and Rebecca Shabad](] - And although the bill has more than 200 co-sponsors, it's unclear how the GOP-led Senate will vote on the issue, as President Donald Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell have yet to comment on it –– although Trump administration officials did recently deny the existence of systemic racism in law enforcement. [[NYT](] New Zealand eradicates Covid-19 - New Zealand announced that it's eradicated Covid-19, and most pandemic-related restrictions will now be lifted. [[New Zealand Herald / Amelia Wade](] - There have been no new Covid-19 cases in two weeks, and the last treated patient was released from the hospital 12 days ago. The country had a total of 1,154 confirmed cases and 22 deaths from the virus. [[U.S. News / Michael Baker and Nick Wilson](] - As a result, the country it's bringing its alert system down to Level 1 –– the lowest of the four ranks. Most restrictions will now be lifted: social distancing is no longer required and people can freely gather in public. Borders, however, will remain closed, and those arriving from abroad will still have to quarantine for 14 days. [[BBC](] - People will also have to use a government contact tracing app to scan a QR code whenever they enter a business. This will make it easier for officials to track and isolate the virus before a major outbreak occurs. [[NYT / Damien Cave](] - New Zealand has been applauded for its swift and drastic response to Covid-19 –– which at the time was criticized for being too strict. The country went into lockdown on March 23 when there were no deaths and just 102 confirmed cases. [[CNN / Ben Westcott](] - New Zealand now joins a small group of countries that have announced their eradication of the virus –– Montenegro, Fiji and the Faroe Islands –– and the only to do so with more than 1,000 cases. Meanwhile, Taiwan, Iceland, Cambodia, and Trinidad and Tobago say they have less than 10 actives cases. [[The Guardian / Charlotte Graham-McLay](] - Despite the good news from New Zealand, the virus is still raging worldwide (the global total of cases surpassed 7 million on Monday). It's why Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern is warning everyone to stay vigilant, as the threat of the virus still looms close by. [[NYT / Damien Cave](] MISCELLANEOUS It's official: The US is in a recession. [[CNBC / Jeff Cox](] - In response to requests made by protesters, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said he'd reallocate some of the NYPD's $6 billion budget to social services. [[NYT / Dana Rubinstein](] - Brazil, which now has the second-highest number of Covid-19 cases in the world, is no longer releasing its total numbers of Covid-19 cases and deaths. Critics say censorship of the data could be dangerous. [[Guardian / Dom Phillips](] - US prosecutors want to question Britain's Prince Andrew about his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein, who was arrested on sex trafficking charges before he died by suicide last summer. [[NBC News / Tom Winter and Yuliya Talmazan](] - BTS and its fans have donated more than $2 million to Black Lives Matter. This isn't the first time K-pop fans have organized for the movement: Last week, they drowned out anti-black hashtags on social media with videos and images of their favorite artists. [[CNN / Jake Kwon, Sol Han, and Lisa Respers France](] VERBATIM "Never again should the world be subjected to witnessing what we saw on the streets in Minneapolis, the slow murder of an individual by a uniformed police officer." [[Rep. Karen Bass (D-CA), the chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, on the Justice in Policing Act](] WATCH THIS What protest news coverage does — and doesn't — show you. [[YouTube / Danush Parvaneh and Christophe Haubursin](] [Read more from Vox](#) [Black kids are watching this moment. What will it teach them?]( [A detailed timeline of all the ways Trump failed to respond to the coronavirus]( [How wearing masks will change us]( [Some countries are using Covid-19 response to fight climate change]( [The narrative power of “abolish the police”]( [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [YouTube]( This email was sent to {EMAIL}. Manage your [email preferences](, or [unsubscribe]( to stop receiving all emails from Vox. If you value Vox’s unique explanatory journalism, support our work with a one-time or recurring [contribution](. View our [Privacy Notice]( and our [Terms of Service](. Vox Media, 1201 Connecticut Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20036. Copyright © 2020. All rights reserved.