presidential daily brief

“Fight for my brother.” That’s what George Floyd’s loved ones begged the world at his funeral in Houston yesterday, hoping the movement seeking to dismantle American police brutality would continue. Protests inspired by Floyd’s death at the hands of Minneapolis police have been largely peaceful — and despite allegations that they’ve been infiltrated by a radical leftist movement known as antifa, there’s little to back that up. President Donald Trump, meanwhile, tweeted that a 75-year-old man who was pushed down and left bleeding by Buffalo police last week was an “ANTIFA provocateur.” There is no evidence for his claim.

Yesterday’s primary election in Georgia saw long lines and nonfunctional voting machines in what some fear is a preview of November’s general election. Some problems were pandemic-related: Social distancing meant longer lines and there were fewer polling locations due to a shortage of staffers. Many poll workers also reportedly had trouble with Georgia’s new $104 million voting system, which reintroduced paper ballots for the first time in 18 years. Still, others blame structural racism and voter suppression, especially as problems appeared to be concentrated in minority-heavy neighborhoods. The Republican secretary of state has opened an investigation.

As congressional Democrats push for police reform, some GOP lawmakers are planning their own bills to deal with the crisis of systemic racism brought to light over the last few weeks. The Republican plans largely revolve around better training, data collection and body camera requirements for officers. But passing legislation relies on lawmakers reaching across the aisle, and the fact that it’s an election year — and President Trump appears reluctant to back such reforms — could mean compromise remains elusive. Sen. Minority Leader Chuck Schumer says he wants a vote on the Democratic reform package before the July recess.

Despite the coronavirus pandemic, Britain has continued to insist it won’t seek an extension on negotiating Brexit, making a no-deal exit more likely and creating further economic risk — not just for its own citizens, but for European economies that rely on U.K. trade. The eurozone is already predicted to see a recession unrivaled in the postwar period, with the economy likely to shrink by 8.7 percent. That’s also caused squabbling over countries’ shares of the EU’s massive proposed recovery fund. Britain is scheduled to end its transition period and officially withdraw from the EU at the end of this year.

Seattle protesters have claimed a six-block area of the city as a police-free “autonomous zone.” Having lost more than $2 billion, AMC says it will reopen most of its movie theaters in July. And CrossFit’s CEO has resigned after a backlash to his offensive tweets about George Floyd.

Coronavirus update: Brazil had stopped publishing updated death tolls on an official website — but the country’s Supreme Court has ordered officials to restart after public outcry.

Take a Minute: Need a distraction from all the unrest? The latest episode of OZY’s new history podcast, Flashback, can feed your curiosity while giving you a break from the day-to-day. This week, Sean Braswell takes you on a journey back to the Dust Bowl years of the 1930s to discover how an unhappy accident in a Massachusetts garden was responsible for two of the fastest spreading ecological pests in modern America.

The official story: It was a heart attack that felled President Pierre Nkurunziza after he was hospitalized Saturday. But local media reported that he was brought in for COVID-19, and that his wife was taken to Kenya recently to be treated for the disease. If true, Burundi’s leader of 15 years would be the first sitting head of state to die of the coronavirus. Nkurunziza had refused to implement many COVID-19 precautions and last month expelled World Health Organization officials for expressing concerns about large campaign rallies ahead of May’s election.

Explore Burundi’s Blue Bay with OZY.

They’re facing forward. In a letter to Congress, IBM CEO Arvind Krishna said the company will no longer develop facial recognition technology or provide it to police due to its record of racially profiling people and its potential for harm. Even as the technology has progressed, studies have found that the algorithms it’s based on are racially biased. Companies like Amazon and Microsoft are still selling facial recognition systems to law enforcement, despite concerns about both mass surveillance and racial bias — and show no sign of following IBM’s lead.

Maybe next you can read them the riot act. Since lockdowns began, celebrities and authors have been reading books aloud via Twitter, YouTube and other platforms to keep kids engaged and learning. But as teachers themselves take up the practice, some worry they’re courting lawsuits, as it could infringe on copyright as a “public performance,” OZY reports. Still, scores of educators and experts have signed on to an initiative arguing that this counts as fair use and doesn’t violate authors’ rights, though others worry that ignoring the law is teaching kids dodgy ethics along with the ABCs.

They fought the law and the law did not, in fact, win. The long-running reality show has hopped networks since its debut in 1989, but now it has been removed from the schedule altogether, announced Paramount Networks. Old episodes of Cops available on WGN’s streaming service are also disappearing at the end of June. It’s not the only law-enforcement-themed reality show getting a rethink amid massive protests against police brutality: Networks like A&E and Discovery have pulled episodes of their own police-focused reality shows.

Time for the Lost Cause to get lost. While NASCAR discourages fans from bringing Confederate flags to races, it hasn’t stopped them. Now Bubba Wallace, NASCAR’s only top-tier Black driver, says it’s time for the organization to take a stronger stance and ban the racist symbol. Wallace, who’s encouraged other drivers to speak up against racism, wore an “I can’t breathe” shirt honoring George Floyd ahead of Sunday’s race, when cars stopped for a moment of silence. He’ll debut his Chevrolet’s new #BlackLivesMatter paint scheme at tonight’s Martinsville Speedway race.

Read OZY on NASCAR as afantasy sport.