We continue our series of suggested readings for anti-racist education with selections from James Baldwin's The Fire Next Time.

This week, Lia Uribe explores the lullaby, which is a song typically used to calm children to put them to sleep. We explore the style with selections from Amos Cochrane and Chucho Valdez.

Cases of COVID-19 in Arkansas increased by 520 over the last 24-hour testing period, according to the Arkansas Department of Health. Washington County had 152 new cases and Benton County had 33. Five more deaths occurred during the monitoring period, with a total 270 Arkansans having died from COVID-19. In advance of easing restrictions on visitations at most long-term care facilities, almost every resident and staff member has been tested. Arkansas Secretary of Health Nate Smith also said the

The Annie E. Casey Foundation has released the 31st edition of its Kids Count Data Book . The annual report looks at child well-being in the United States by analyzing economics, health, education, and family and community. While Arkansas’s overall ranking of childhood well-being remained the same as last year’s report at 40th, the state’s economic well-being rank dropped significantly from 36th to 46th.

The new Fayetteville Board of Public Health, comprised of top medical experts and physicians, will serve to educate and guide local lawmakers and residents about how to cope with and survive the COVID-19 pandemic.

Our Militant Grammarian, Katherine Shurlds, helps us remember the order of the planets and all of the Great Lakes with a time-proven device: mnemonics.

As of late, trying to discuss every major news story in one sitting has been a challenge, but John Brummett, political writer for the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette , and Roby Brock, with our partner Talk Business and Politics , give it a try.

On Monday, Governor Asa Hutchinson reported the state has seen 439 new cases of COVID-19 in the latest 24-hour reporting period, bringing the cumulative total to over 20,000. Washington County had 92 new cases, Benton County had 48 and Sebastian County had 22. There are now 300 people who are hospitalized, the highest total since the beginning of the pandemic. There have also been 265 deaths. The governor said there is some good news in the numbers as the most recent one-day positive total

About two weeks ago, the Arkansas Department of Health requested help from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as COVID-19 cases surged in both the Latino and Marshallese communities that reside in Northwest Arkansas. The CDC team has been tasked with analyzing the chains of transmission within those groups and providing mitigation recommendations for the state. We speak with Arkansas CDC Team Leader Angela Hernandez about how they've been gathering information and data.

Late last week, Arkansas Secretary of State John Thurston issued a formal opinion on absentee ballot procedures for the 2020 General Election. After fielding questions and concerns from citizens who seek to safely vote during the coronavirus pandemic, Thurston says registered voters can request absentee ballots if they expect to be “unavoidably absent” from their vote centers. Governor Asa Hutchinson says he supports the opinion, but it requires additional consideration.