Page 28 - bon-dia-aruba-20210507

A28 u.s. news
Diabierna 7 Mei 2021

CDC sets rules for trial cruises with volunteer passengers

ship operators final technical sures "and that sailing dur-
guidelines Wednesday for the ing a pandemic is an inher-
trial runs. The CDC action is ently risky activity," the CDC
a step toward resuming cruis- guidelines state.
es in U.S. waters, possibly by
July, for the first time since Passengers must be examined
March 2020. for COVID-19 symptoms
before and after the trip, and
A spokeswoman for the at least 75% must be tested at
cruise industry's trade group the end.
said the group was reviewing
the CDC instructions. Restrictions on board will in-
clude face masks and social
Each practice cruise — they'll distancing. The CDC will al-
run two to seven days — low guided shore excursions
must have enough passen- — no wandering about on
gers to meet at least 10% of their own — if tour operators
the ship's capacity. Volunteers follow certain standards.
must be 18 or older and ei-
ther fully vaccinated or free Ships must make at least one
of medical conditions that practice run before resuming
would put them at high risk regular cruises in U.S. wa-
for severe COVID-19. ters, although operators will
be able to avoid the require-
Cruise lines can soon be- passengers helping test The ship operator must tell ment if they vouch that 98%
gin trial voyages in U.S. whether the ships can sail The Centers for Disease passengers that they are sim- of crew and 95% of passen-
waters with volunteer safely during a pandemic. Control and Prevention gave ulating untested safety mea- gers are vaccinated.

Vigils, rallies mark day of awareness for Indigenous victims

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — She believes the nation has reached combing through public records and the Phoenix Indian Center and the
Some shared agonizing stories an inflection point, and said it's time requesting data from nearly two doz- motorcycle group Medicine Wheel
of frustration and loss. Others to solve the crisis. en law enforcement agencies to better Ride, which has been carrying a mes-
prayed and performed ceremo- understand the scope of the problem. sage of awareness for missing and
nies. All called for action. In Montana, a few dozen members Only five agencies responded. murdered Indigenous women.
of the state's eight federally recog-
Across the U.S. on Wednesday, fam- nized tribes gathered in front of the Even with such limited data, they Shelly Denny, a citizen of the Leech
ily members, advocates and govern- Capitol in Helena, including many pointed to an estimated 660 cases in- Lake Band of Ojibwe and member of
ment leaders commemorated a day relatives of missing and slain Indig- volving missing Indigenous people Medicine Wheel Ride, noted support
of awareness for the crisis of violence enous women. Some wore red or between 2014 and 2019 in the state's for the cause has been growing as
against Indigenous women and chil- had handprints painted over their largest urban center, putting Albu- more members of Native communi-
dren. They met at virtual events, mouths, symbolizing the Missing querque among U.S. cities with the ties share their stories.
vigils and rallies at state capitols, and and Murdered Indigenous Women's highest number of cases.
raised their voices on social media. movement. Bryan Newland, principal assistant
In Arizona, people marched with secretary for Indian Affairs at the In-
In Washington, a gathering hosted Marvin Weatherwax, a Democratic signs reading "MMIW" and "No terior Department, said staffing at the
by U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haa- state representative and member of More Stolen Sisters," and listened Bureau of Indian Affairs unit will go
land and other federal officials started the Blackfeet Tribal Business Coun- to speakers in Window Rock, on the from a team of 10 to more than 20
with a prayer asking for guidance and cil, said legislative initiatives to ad- Navajo Nation. As night fell, they lit officers and special agents with ad-
grace for the Indigenous families who dress the issue have given tribal citi- candles in honor of victims. ministrative and support staff it pre-
have lost relatives and those who have zens hope. The Blackfeet tribe has viously didn't have.
been victims of violence. two ongoing searches for missing Earlier, a couple of dozen people
members. wearing red shirts and skirts gathered "We're really looking to build upon
Before and after a moment of silence, in front of the state Capitol in Phoe- many of the things that have been
officials from various agencies vowed The event ended with a ceremony nix. They included several state law- done, to expand them and bring focus
to continue working with tribes to called the "Wiping Away of Tears," makers, along with representatives of to them," Newland said.
address the problem. where victims' family members
were given colorful shawls. The gifts
As part of the ceremony, a red memo- marked the coming out of mourning,
rial shawl with the names of missing said Jean Bearcrane, a citizen of the
and slain Indigenous women was Crow tribe and executive director of
draped across a long table to remem- Montana Native Women's Coalition.
ber the lives behind what Haaland
called alarming and unacceptable sta- The sisters, mothers and aunts of
tistics. More names were added to the missing women shed tears as they re-
shawl Wednesday. ceived their shawls.
Haaland, the first Native American Indigenous women have been victim-
U.S. Cabinet secretary and a former ized at astonishing rates, with federal
Democratic U.S. representative from figures showing that they — along
New Mexico, recalled hearing fami- with non-Hispanic Black women —
lies testify about searching for loved have experienced the highest homi-
ones on their own and bringing a red cide rates.
ribbon skirt to a congressional hear- In New Mexico, members of the
ing that represented missing and slain state's task force on Wednesday shared
Native Americans. some of the findings of their work
over the past year, which included