PROGRESSIVE INDEPENDENT JOURNALISM: “As Last Confederate Statue is Removed in New Orleans, Will School Names, and Street Signs Follow?” / Democracy Now! / Amy Goodman and Juan González ☮

New Orleans has removed the last of four Confederate statues in recent weeks. Workers wore bulletproof vests and face coverings to conceal their identities as they used a crane to remove the statue from its pedestal. New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu said threats and intimidation necessitated the overnight work and extra safety precautions. White nationalists have staged a series of protests and issued threats in the lead-up to the memorials’ removals. Though the four most prominent Confederate monuments have been removed, activists are calling for New Orleans officials to remove all monuments, school names and street signs in the city dedicated to white supremacists. We speak with Malcolm Suber, co-founder of Take ’Em Down NOLA.

PROGRESSIVE INDEPENDENT JOURNALISM: “Donald Trump’s Affluenza Has Fueled His Corruption” / Ring of Fire / Farron Cousins / MUST WATCH! ☮

Donald Trump has lived a life without consequence, much like the drunk driving Ethan Couch who killed several people but was let off easy by claiming “affluenza.”  And Donald Trump’s “affluenza” is what has created so many of the scandals that are quickly sinking his presidency. Ring of Fire’s Farron Cousins discusses this.

CANNABIS: “Vermont’s Legislature Voted to Legalize W-E-E-D!” / The Humanist Report / Mike Figueredo ☮

The state of Vermont delivered some good news to us! Their legislature passed a bill legalizing recreational marijuana. Although their Republican Governor is a self-proclaimed “marijuana skeptic” and may veto it, the passage of the bill is a victory in and of itself seeing that it marks the first time recreational marijuana has passed legislatively.