Author: Natalia Perez

Natalia Perez is a digital intern at Unmutedco.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Wednesday that wearing a double layer of face masks, specifically a surgical mask under a cloth one, can block about 83 percent of viral particles from an unmasked individual. What We Know: The new CDC report found that “simulated breathing” experiments, surgical masks alone blocked only 42 percent of the viral particles that are deemed to be the “most important for transmitting SARS-CoV-2.” Wearing just a cloth mask alone also did not protect much, only blocking about 44 percent from an unmasked person. The Food and Drug Administration also says on its…

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The NBA responded that all teams were required to play the national anthem after the Dallas Mavericks stopped playing it before home games at the direction of owner Mark Cuban, reports NBC News. What We Know: The “Star-Spangled Banner”, which is traditionally played before sporting events, has not been played at any of the 13 preseason and regular-season games played at American Airlines Center so far. The Mavs owner, Mark Cuban confirmed to The Athletic and ESPN that he had altered the pregame ritual, but declined to explain further. In response to the media attention as a result of the change,…

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A 63-year-old woman from northern Texas reportedly gave $100K to a man she met online and who she believed to be popstar Bruno Mars. What We Know: A third-degree felony money laundering charge was filed against the catfish con artist, Chinwendu Azuonwu. He appeared before a Harris County criminal court on Tuesday morning for a probable cause hearing, according to online court records. According to the charge documents, Azuonwu began the catfishing scheme via Instagram back in September 2018. The victim claims that the person pretending to be Bruno Mars reached out to her on social media and tricked her…

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Two former White House staffers from the Obama administration have created a scholarship opportunity for Latino students in Washington DC. What We Know: The founders of the Latinx44 Scholarship Program are two lawyers, Antoinette Rangel, and Alexa Kissinger. This nonprofit program is designed to award Latino students with scholarships that will help fund internships that promote public service. The program is being funded by Latinos44, which is made up of hundreds of Latino officials who worked at the White House during Obama’s administration. It has already raised more than $10,000 and will provide $1,500 scholarships to Latino students in DC.…

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The Washington Post has conducted an analysis of federal data, which found that the Department of Education is disproportionately auditing black and Latino students. What We Know: The Post found that almost a fourth of last year’s Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) applicants were chosen to be audited. They compare this to the less than half a percent of tax returns audited by the IRS. The major finding results that FAFSA applicants from Black-majority communities were 1.8 times more likely to be audited than students from white-majority neighborhoods. Students from Latino-majority communities were 1.4 times more likely to…

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“Nearby” is an online storefront that handles marketing, orders, fulfillment, and shipping for local businesses so that they can compete with online retail giants. What We Know: The ongoing Covid-19 pandemic has had a devastating impact on small businesses. In contrast, retail giants like Amazon, Target, and Walmart have seen an average of 39% more in profit during Covid than in the previous year. According to the business review site, Yelp, over 160,000 businesses have closed since the pandemic began. The company’s founder, April Underwood, first ran the program with a website called “Keep Oakland Alive,” which features 40 small…

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Teachers at Patrick Marsh Middle School in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, have been placed on administrative leave after giving students an unapproved lesson about slavery. What We Know: Sixth graders at the school were assigned homework discussing ancient Mesopotamia. This assignment included a question about how a slave should be treated, the school’s principal said in a letter to students on Monday. The question under fire meant to educate students on the Code of Hammurabi, the code of law that set punishments in the ancient region of Mesopotamia. It read, “A slave stands before you. This slave has disrespected his master…

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A luxury car rental service in Los Angeles is suing Offset over the unexplained disappearance of one of their cars. What We Know: Court documents obtained by TMZ show that the Migos rapper is being sued by Platinum Transportation Group claims to have drawn up a contract with Offset last May. The contract agreed that Offset would pay nearly $600 per day to rent the company’s new 2020 Bentley Bentayga. The document explains that the rental was only supposed to last a few days. However, Offset kept requesting extensions to the rental period. PTG and Offset allegedly then came up…

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South Africa has suspended the use of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine on front-line workers after a small trial suggested it isn’t effective against the country’s dominant variant. What We Know: The small study tested 2,000 people, most of which were young and healthy as the average age was 31. The study has yet to be peer-reviewed. The study suggests that the AstraZeneca vaccine offers only “minimal protection against mild-moderate disease” against the Covid-19 variant in prominent in South Africa. This variant is said to be more infectious and now accounts for more than 90 percent of the Covid cases in the…

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Country singer Morgan Wallen’s record label, Big Loud, announced they are suspending Wallen’s contract after a video surfaced showing the country star saying the n-word during a night out. What We Know: The video, first released by TMZ, shows a drunken Wallen shouting expletives, including the n-word, to a group of friends after a night out in Nashville. Big Loud is now affiliated with the prestigious Republic Records group, a supplementary label of Universal Music Group that is home to stars like Taylor Swift, Drake, Post Malone, and The Weeknd. It remains unclear what specifically an indefinite suspension to Wallen’s…

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