How deadly is COVID-19? How does it compare to seasonal flu? These are difficult and controversial questions. Above all, it should be emphasized that some sub-populations are definitely at much higher risk for bad outcomes if they become infected, such as people with compromised immune systems due to existing underlying illness or simply old age. […]
The live event scene, decimated for months by the COVID-19 shutdown of the economy, is holding a #RedAlertRESTART event on Tuesday, September 1, from 9pm to midnight, to illuminate the exteriors of publicly visible buildings with red light to draw attention to their desperate economic plight. “The hope is to get as many people involved […]
Slavery ended throughout the British Empire on “Emancipation Day,” August 1, 1834, when the Slavery Abolition Act came into force. Free Blacks in the United States began celebrating the anniversary as many had personal and community connections with the former slaves of the British West Indies, the Caribbean Islands (including Antigua and Barbuda, The Bahamas, […]
“Rhode Island and Providence Plantations” has been the official full name of the state since the colonial era, created by the unification of the original “four towns,” which in order of their dates of founding were Providence (1636), Pocasset/Portsmouth (1638), Newport (1639), and Shawomet/Warwick (1642). In 1643/1644, the towns were combined under their current name […]
On July 8, we sent out the first printed issue of Motif since April 1, a hiatus of three months. The world changed: On April 1 at least half of the usual distribution points were closed due to the coronavirus pandemic, but on July 8 the state was a week into Phase 3 of reopening […]
As Rhode Island literally leads the nation in rate of decline for cases of COVID-19, Gov. Gina Raimondo moved forward with plans to enter Phase 3 of reopening the state economy on Tuesday, June 30. Depending upon criteria, Connecticut and New Jersey are in contention for second place, but everyone agrees RI is first. The […]
Only 2.2% of Rhode Island residents have antibodies in their blood, known as “sero-prevalence,” against SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, Brown University Professor Philip Chan, MD, the consultant medical director for the Division of Preparedness, Response, Infectious Disease, and EMS at the RI Department of Health (RIDoH), announced this morning on a press conference […]
It’s 3 o’clock in the morning as I begin writing this, having just spent the last few hours watching Providence finally get the violent riot it had been lucky to avoid. I can’t sleep, not because of anxiety or psychological distress, but because, having tried to formulate the words for the past week, I need […]
Gov. Gina Raimondo praised Rhode Island protesters she described as “99.9% peaceful” in a special press conference at 10:30am today, saying that she supported their underlying demands for equality and empathized with their concerns, noting that the participants were observing COVID-19 pandemic precautions such as staying socially distant and wearing face coverings. Nationwide protests sparked […]
RI Gov. Gina Raimondo allowed her stay-at-home executive order to expire March 8, the next day beginning “Phase 1” of at least three such phases, each expected to last at least two weeks. On April 27, she laid out six specific criteria that all had to be met before any of the phased reopening could […]