This article was published more than 1 year agoCommentGift ShareThe plywood boards that have for months covered glass windows and doors in downtown Washington have . Window displays and happy hour specials outnumber the wooden shields and painted placards for the first time since racial justice protests began nearly a year ago, following the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis.Tall, no-scale fencing that for the better part of a year has been replaced by waist-high aluminum barriers.But behind this easing exterior, the District has amped up its police presence, placing...…This article was published more than 1 year agoCommentGift ShareThe plywood boards that have for months covered glass windows and doors in downtown Washington have . Window displays and happy hour specials outnumber the wooden shields and painted placards for the first time since racial justice protests began nearly a year ago, following the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis.Tall, no-scale fencing that for the better part of a year has been replaced by waist-high aluminum barriers.But behind this easing exterior, the District has amped up its police presence, placing...WW…

This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareThis article is free to access.Why?The Washington Post is providing this news free to all readers as a public service.Follow this story and more by Leaders in the District, Maryland and Virginia made a joint request to the federal government this week, asking that it take responsibility for vaccinating tens of thousands of essential federal workers who live in the Washington region.“Our request, we acknowledge, is a little bit unconventional and unique. But we would like for it to be entertained and approved,” D.C. Health...…This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareThis article is free to access.Why?The Washington Post is providing this news free to all readers as a public service.Follow this story and more by Leaders in the District, Maryland and Virginia made a joint request to the federal government this week, asking that it take responsibility for vaccinating tens of thousands of essential federal workers who live in the Washington region.“Our request, we acknowledge, is a little bit unconventional and unique. But we would like for it to be entertained and approved,” D.C. Health...WW…

This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift SharecorrectionEarlier versions of this story misattributed a quote. It was Anita Jenkins of Howard University Hospital who said: “We were ‘voluntold’ ... No, no, we were given the opportunity — it didn’t matter to any of us who we got.”  In addition, Bonnie Levin’s comment about officials not anticipating problems with vaccine signups referred to public health officials in general, not specifically to D.C. officials.The first precious boxloads of the frozen elixir arrived in December, bearing great promise for curtailing the...…This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift SharecorrectionEarlier versions of this story misattributed a quote. It was Anita Jenkins of Howard University Hospital who said: “We were ‘voluntold’ ... No, no, we were given the opportunity — it didn’t matter to any of us who we got.”  In addition, Bonnie Levin’s comment about officials not anticipating problems with vaccine signups referred to public health officials in general, not specifically to D.C. officials.The first precious boxloads of the frozen elixir arrived in December, bearing great promise for curtailing the...WW…

This article was published more than 2 years agoGift ShareThis article is free to access.Why?The Washington Post is providing this news free to all readers as a public service.Follow this story and more by Indoor restaurants can reopen Friday in the District, even as the rate of new daily coronavirus infections in the city has stayed well above the target for such activities for more than two months.Mayor Muriel E. Bowser (D) ordered in December what she termed a “holiday pause” on indoor dining and several other activities. At the time, she promised to allow those activities to resume...…This article was published more than 2 years agoGift ShareThis article is free to access.Why?The Washington Post is providing this news free to all readers as a public service.Follow this story and more by Indoor restaurants can reopen Friday in the District, even as the rate of new daily coronavirus infections in the city has stayed well above the target for such activities for more than two months.Mayor Muriel E. Bowser (D) ordered in December what she termed a “holiday pause” on indoor dining and several other activities. At the time, she promised to allow those activities to resume...WW…

This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareThis article is free to access.Why?The Washington Post is providing this news free to all readers as a public service.Follow this story and more by D.C. lawmakers advocated for changing coronavirus vaccine policies Wednesday during a contentious meeting, saying White residents are edging out Black residents in vying for scarce appointments during the first week vaccines are being administered to seniors.Health Director LaQuandra Nesbitt defended her department’s process for allocating vaccines, in which residents register...…This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareThis article is free to access.Why?The Washington Post is providing this news free to all readers as a public service.Follow this story and more by D.C. lawmakers advocated for changing coronavirus vaccine policies Wednesday during a contentious meeting, saying White residents are edging out Black residents in vying for scarce appointments during the first week vaccines are being administered to seniors.Health Director LaQuandra Nesbitt defended her department’s process for allocating vaccines, in which residents register...WW…

This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareD.C. Mayor Muriel E. Bowser (D) ordered indoor restaurants and museums to remain closed until two days after President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration, in a mayoral fiat meant to both curb the rising coronavirus infections in the city and make Washington less hospitable to visitors considering traveling to see Biden sworn in.On Monday morning, Bowser said at a news conference that she urged all Americans to stay home rather than travel to Washington, a city that normally welcomes the quadrennial flood of inauguration...…This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareD.C. Mayor Muriel E. Bowser (D) ordered indoor restaurants and museums to remain closed until two days after President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration, in a mayoral fiat meant to both curb the rising coronavirus infections in the city and make Washington less hospitable to visitors considering traveling to see Biden sworn in.On Monday morning, Bowser said at a news conference that she urged all Americans to stay home rather than travel to Washington, a city that normally welcomes the quadrennial flood of inauguration...WW…

This article was published more than 2 years agoGift ShareAn officer was hit with a bat. Another was struck with a flagpole. A third was pinned against a statue. A fourth was clobbered with a wrench. One became stuck between two doors amid a frenzied mob. Many were hit with bear spray.The number of injuries suffered by police as they attempted to fend off supporters of President Trump who seized the U.S. Capitol last week runs long. They include swollen ankles and wrists, bruised arms and legs, concussions and irritated lungs.How those injuries occurred is varied: pushed down stairs,...…This article was published more than 2 years agoGift ShareAn officer was hit with a bat. Another was struck with a flagpole. A third was pinned against a statue. A fourth was clobbered with a wrench. One became stuck between two doors amid a frenzied mob. Many were hit with bear spray.The number of injuries suffered by police as they attempted to fend off supporters of President Trump who seized the U.S. Capitol last week runs long. They include swollen ankles and wrists, bruised arms and legs, concussions and irritated lungs.How those injuries occurred is varied: pushed down stairs,...WW…

This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareTianna Mills moved to Washington to work in politics. But when the coronavirus pandemic struck, she found herself yearning to help fight the virus. She quit her job on a political campaign and applied to work for the District government as a contact tracer.The job, she found, was challenging but rewarding — long calls with patients who were sick and scared and often reluctant to say where they had been and with whom they had interacted. She says she cajoled and comforted them and explained the importance of sharing...…This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareTianna Mills moved to Washington to work in politics. But when the coronavirus pandemic struck, she found herself yearning to help fight the virus. She quit her job on a political campaign and applied to work for the District government as a contact tracer.The job, she found, was challenging but rewarding — long calls with patients who were sick and scared and often reluctant to say where they had been and with whom they had interacted. She says she cajoled and comforted them and explained the importance of sharing...WW…

This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareA bill passed by the D.C. Council on Tuesday would allow children as young as age 11 to obtain vaccinations without their parents’ consent.Under the legislation, if a doctor determines that a minor is capable of informed consent, they would be able to seek government-recommended vaccinations their parents object to on religious grounds. They also could get vaccinated against the human papillomavirus — which is recommended for older children but opposed by some parents because the virus is sexually transmitted and they...…This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareA bill passed by the D.C. Council on Tuesday would allow children as young as age 11 to obtain vaccinations without their parents’ consent.Under the legislation, if a doctor determines that a minor is capable of informed consent, they would be able to seek government-recommended vaccinations their parents object to on religious grounds. They also could get vaccinated against the human papillomavirus — which is recommended for older children but opposed by some parents because the virus is sexually transmitted and they...WW…

This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareSeventeen of the candidates running for the D.C. Council’s hotly contested at-large seats staked out a wide range of positions during more than four hours of debate this week about how the city should confront its months-long public health emergency, the budget crunch resulting from the coronavirus pandemic, and a public outcry over policing practices and racial inequity.Some candidates vying for attention in the crowded field proposed that the District save money by canceling recently established programs including paid...…This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareSeventeen of the candidates running for the D.C. Council’s hotly contested at-large seats staked out a wide range of positions during more than four hours of debate this week about how the city should confront its months-long public health emergency, the budget crunch resulting from the coronavirus pandemic, and a public outcry over policing practices and racial inequity.Some candidates vying for attention in the crowded field proposed that the District save money by canceling recently established programs including paid...WW…