US job growth continues to plod along behind schedule; China cracks down on Tiananmen Square remembrance in Hong Kong. Tonight's Sentences was written by Gregory Svirnovskiy. TOP NEWS The country added 559,000 jobs in May, another step toward gradual recovery Paul Weaver/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images - After anemic growth in April meant the US added just 278,000 jobs while expecting roughly a million, May's jobs report was better. Jobs are up by 559,000; unemployment is down to a pandemic low of 5.8 percent. [[WSJ / Amara Omeokwe](]
- May is the second straight month in which overall job growth has underperformed societal expectations. Experts expected the country to add 671,000 new jobs. [[CNBC / Jeff Cox](]
- Itâs a mixed bag of results. Businesses and other facilities continue to reopen amid rising vaccination rates, and federal stimulus money continues to benefit Americans. But a mass labor shortage is plaguing true growth. [[MarketWatch / Jeffrey Bartash](]
- Experts say the labor shortage is being caused by a number of complex factors: lack of child care options for young families, lingering fears regarding the Covid-19 pandemic, and generous unemployment benefits. They expect hiring to pick up once in-person schooling opens up in the fall. [[MarketWatch / Jeffry Bartash](]
- Bottom line: Just like the pandemic, this economic recovery figures to be unprecedented. Weâre facing shortages of labor, ketchup packets, cars, and computer chips. And jobs arenât gaining in number as quickly as experts thought they would. But they are going up. And thatâs a big deal. [[Vox / Emily Stewart](] [Learn more about RevenueStripe...]( Hong Kong is increasingly under the thumb of the Chinese government - For the first time since Hong Kong was brought back into Chinaâs orbit in 1997, the cityâs annual candlelight vigil in Victoria Park commemorating the Tiananmen Square Massacre is being silenced by the state, officially designated as an unauthorized assembly. Suspected organizers and demonstrators are being arrested. [[CNN / James Griffiths](]
- For years, the vigil stood as a barometer of public interest in government, and also in the governmentâs capacity to sanction democratic activity. Mass unrest in 2019 compelled the Chinese government to ban attendance this year and last, officially citing coronavirus concerns. [[NYT / Vivian Wang](]
- Police have already arrested top Democracy activist Chow Hang Tung, vice chair of the Hong Kong Alliance, for promoting the vigil on social media despite its ban. [[The Hill / Lexi Lonas](]
- A security law passed last year furthered a state crackdown over dissent in Hong Kong, making it easier to punish protesters and reducing the influence of local leaders. [[BBC](] MISCELLANEOUS [Utah Gov. Spencer Cox is asking residents to pray for rain as the state continues to experience severe and prolonged drought conditions.]( [[Deseret News / Katie McKellar](] - Donald Trump thinks he, former Arizona Sen. Martha McSally, and former Georgia Sen. David Perdue will be back in Washington by August, claiming election audits will repeal established Democrat victories in the White House and in Congress. [[National Review / Charles C.W. Cooke](]
- Just 50 days before the start of the postponed 2020 Tokyo Olympics, nearly 10,000 volunteers have told organizers they will not help with the running of the games, likely due to concerns over the coronavirus pandemic. [[CNN / Chie Kobayashi, Selina Wang, and Joshua Berlinger](]
- Alaska, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Wyoming â among the states with the country's lowest vaccination rates â are âsitting ducksâ for a new covid wave, according to National Institutes of Health Director Dr. Francis Collins. [[CNN / Madeline Holcombe](] Support our journalism Reader contributions help keep Vox and newsletters like Sentences free for all. Support our work from as little as $3. [Contribute]( CROSSWORD OF THE DAY [Can you solve today's crossword?]( What's that frozen treat with an animal in its name? [Solve today's new Vox crossword puzzle](, and stay tuned for more puzzles coming out Monday through Saturday. VERBATIM "There are many people who believe it was not appropriate for a private company like Facebook to suspend an outgoing President from its platform, and many others who believe Mr. Trump should have immediately been banned for life." [[Facebook vice president of global affairs Nick Clegg on the company's decision to suspend former President Donald Trump from its platform for at least two years](] LISTEN TO THIS [The lab leak theory]( The idea that Covid-19 emerged from a Chinese lab once sounded too fringe to take seriously. Thatâs starting to change. [[Spotify](] [Read more from Vox](#) [The fastest way to get more people to buy electric vehicles]( [America still needs to learn from its biggest pandemic failure]( [How Congress wrecked its own science bill, explained in 600 words]( [Japanese Breakfast isnât the artist she used to be]( [When Elon Musk tweets, crypto prices move]( [Learn more about RevenueStripe...]( [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 Voxâs unique explanatory journalism, support our work with a one-time or recurring [contribution](.
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