Alabama military base 1st in U.S. to order troops to show COVID vaccine proof
15 July 2021
The commanding general of Fort Rucker has announced that the Alabama military base will require service members not wearing face masks "to show proof of vaccination" while on duty to combat rising COVID-19 cases.
Why it matters: The order, issued Wednesday, makes Fort Rucker the "first military base in the continental" U.S. to permit leaders to "check the vaccination status of those in uniform," the Washington Post notes.
Details: Maj. Gen. David Francis said in a video that due to "the rising rates in the counties around us and some on Fort Rucker," leaders were implementing the guidance.
- "[I]f you are not wearing a mask, the leadership will be able to ask you, ask soldiers, to prove that they’ve been vaccinated by showing their vaccination card," Francis said.
Yes, but: The order does not apply to civilians, who "must be taken at their word unless the supervisor has good reason not to," according to the guidance.
The big picture: There's been an uptick in coronavirus cases across the U.S., driven by the B.1.617.2 (Delta) variant.
- Roughly 70% of military personnel have had at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose. In Alabama, just over 40% of the population has received at least one dose, per WashPost.
- Alabama is among several Republican-led states to ban agencies, schools and businesses from requiring COVID-19 vaccine passports to access services.
Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times
Section2Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.
Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.
The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.
- The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.
What the transcripts say:
- Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
- The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
- Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."
Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.