Americans not welcome

Another 1.5 million Americans filed unemployment claims last week; the US handling of the coronavirus could get Americans barred from EU travel. Tonight's Sentences was written by Cameron Peters. TOP NEWS The US has had more than 1 million jobless claims for 14 straight weeks John Tlumacki/Boston Globe via Getty Images - On Thursday, the Labor Department reported almost 1.5 million jobless claims for the previous week, approximately the same as past weeks in June. Currently, about 19.5 million people are receiving unemployment benefits. [[WSJ / Sarah Chaney](] - It’s the 14th straight week that the number of US unemployment claims has cleared 1 million, an unheard-of figure prior to the coronavirus pandemic. Thursday’s number — 1.48 million claims — was worse than the 1.35 million predicted by economists. [[NBC News / David Gura](] - Earlier this month, economists concluded that the US economy officially entered a recession in February this year; monthly unemployment data puts the current US unemployment rate at about 13.3 percent, up from just 3.5 percent in February. [[CBS News](] - As Vox’s Dylan Scott points out, the push to reopen businesses in order to alleviate economic pain could have major public health repercussions, some of which are already becoming apparent as states experience a surge in cases. [[Vox / Dylan Scott](] - In Texas Thursday, for example, Gov. Greg Abbott froze the state’s reopening timeline in response to its burgeoning Covid-19 disaster. “The last thing we want to do as a state is go backwards and close down businesses,” he said in a statement. [[Twitter / Priscilla Thompson](] - But the surge in cases spooked markets: The Dow Jones stock index closed 700 points down on Wednesday as markets had their worst day in two weeks. [[MarketWatch / Joy Wiltermuth and Sunny Oh](] - The future also looks worrying: The enhanced unemployment benefits included in the CARES Act — an additional $600 per week — are set to expire at the end of July. When that happens, CNBC reported earlier this week, many Americans could be facing an “income cliff.” [[CNBC / Alicia Adamczyk](] - Those benefits could still be renewed by another stimulus package from Congress, and President Donald Trump reportedly also supports another round of direct payments to Americans. Still, the prospects of a July stimulus package — and what will be included in it — remain unclear. [[Washington Post / Jeff Stein, Josh Dawsey, and Erica Werner](] - In any case, a broader economic recovery might have to wait. As Vox’s Dylan Matthews writes, what’s needed right now is “income support in the form of unemployment insurance or some other program for people put out of work who are struggling to afford food and rent. Only once the pandemic is well and truly behind us is a regular recovery possible.” [[Vox / Dylan Matthews](] A ban on US travel to Europe? - When the European Union reopens its borders next week on July 1, it’s likely that Americans won’t be included. The US failure to stop the coronavirus pandemic — cases this week are surging to record highs in several states — could see US travelers barred from entry. [[Axios / Jacob Knutson](] - The prospective ban was first reported by the New York Times earlier this week; there are reportedly two different lists under consideration for which countries travelers can come from, and the US is included on neither. [[NYT / Matina Stevis-Gridneff](] - Along with the US, countries like Brazil and Russia, which have the second and third most reported coronavirus cases behind the US, are expected to be excluded when the EU begins reopening, though nothing is certain yet. [[BBC](] - President Donald Trump banned travel from Europe in March this year when countries like Italy and Spain were seeing catastrophic numbers of coronavirus cases and deaths; since then, however, Europe has largely succeeded in controlling its outbreaks, while the US has not. [[The Verge / Nick Statt](] MISCELLANEOUS After Tuesday’s primaries, two openly gay Black candidates are set to make history this November. [[Washington Post / Eugene Scott](] - The Supreme Court just made it easier for the Trump administration to deport tens of thousands of immigrants. [[Vox / Nicole Narea](] - Coronavirus cases are rising in the US, but contact tracing suggests that antiracism protests aren’t the cause. [[NPR / Christianna Silva](] - "A defining moment": The Georgia legislature finally passed a hate crime bill earlier this week. [[AJC / Maya T. Prabhu](] - NASA is naming its Washington, DC, headquarters after Mary W. Jackson, the first Black female engineer to work there. [[NASA](] VERBATIM "If we are truly at the precipice of a transformative moment, the most tragic of outcomes would be that the demand be too timid and the resolution too small. If we are indeed serious about creating a more just society, we must go much further than that." [[Nikole Hannah-Jones on why she believes reparations are necessary / NYT Magazine](] WATCH THIS [Why are the police bringing military assault rifles to protests? And where did they get them?]( Why are the police bringing military assault rifles to protests? And where did they get them? [[YouTube / Madeline Marshall, Adam Freelander, and Dion Lee](] [Read more from Vox](#) [Facebook’s war against one of the internet’s worst conspiracy sites]( [Coronavirus is changing bars as we know them]( [Trump’s reelection polling is looking really bad]( [The head of US broadcasting is leaning toward pro-Trump propaganda. Biden would fire him.]( [Martha McSally’s bailout proposal for the travel industry, explained]( [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.