Vaccine campaigns are underway across Asia

A grand jury has decided to bring no charges against police officers involved in the death of Daniel Prude; vaccine rollouts are occurring across Asia this week.   Tonight's Sentences was written by Gabby Birenbaum. TOP NEWS No charges to be brought against Rochester police Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images No charges will be filed against any of the seven police officers involved in the death of Daniel Prude, a 41-year-old Black man who died of asphyxiation in March 2020 following an encounter with police in which they pinned him to the ground while he was experiencing a mental health crisis. [NPR / Rachel Treisman and Vanessa Romo] New York Attorney General Letitia James announced Tuesday that a grand jury had decided not to charge the officers. James expressed her disappointment in the outcome, saying the criminal justice system was unwilling to prosecute law enforcement officials who kill unarmed Black Americans. [NYT / Sarah Maslin-Nir] Attorneys for the Prude family said the ruling was another way in which systems — including mental health care, law enforcement, and criminal justice — have failed Prude. [The Root / Zack Linly] On March 23, 2020, Prude's family called the police after he abruptly ran from their house. He had been evaluated at a hospital the prior day, but not admitted. Seven cops detained him naked, placed a hood over his head, and held his face against the ground with a knee on his back. He became unconscious and died in the hospital a week later. The Rochester Police initially called Prude's death a drug overdose, and did not release the video until six months later, fearing unrest. In the months after the video release, nightly protests occurred throughout Rochester. [AP / Michael Hill and Carolyn Thompson] A few hundred protesters marched in the streets Tuesday evening over the decision; there were no arrests or physical clashes with police. Organizers have vowed to continue protesting. [Rochester Democrat & Chronicle] Prude's death highlighted the problems with police response to mental health crises for organizers. One proposed solution is a divestment model in which police funding is diverted to another service, which would respond to mental health problems with nonviolent solutions. [Vox / Rachel Ramirez] Vaccine campaigns begin across Asia Thailand, Cambodia, Singapore, and Vietnam — all of which have had relative success keeping their Covid-19 case counts low ‚ are beginning to vaccinate their populations this week. The lack of a crisis has allowed them to take more time with their rollouts. [AP] Many Asian countries have received hundreds of thousands of doses of either the AstraZeneca or the Chinese Sinovac vaccine. [AP] In Malaysia, Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin received the vaccine Wednesday as the first of 26 million Malaysians aiming to be vaccinated. By this time next year, the goal is to inoculate 80 percent of the population. [Nikkei Asia / P Prem Kumar] Japan's vaccine campaign is particularly high-stakes because of the country's plans to host the Olympics this summer. Japanese authorities recently authorized the Pfizer vaccine. [Vox / Jariel Arvin] In South Korea, health care workers will begin receiving vaccines this week. Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun expects the country to achieve herd immunity by the fall. [BBC News / Laura Bicker] In Vietnam, where only 35 Covid-19 deaths have been reported, the vaccine rollout is scheduled to begin next month. The country has just started receiving shipments of the AstraZeneca vaccine from South Korea. [Reuters] MISCELLANEOUS President Biden is ordering a 100-day review of US supply chains after a shortage of semiconductors has harmed manufacturers. [Washington Post / David J. Lynch] The City Council in Tucson, Arizona, has banned dress codes that discriminate against someone's natural hairstyle. [Arizona Daily Star / Jasmine Demers] A former aide to New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) who alleged in December that he sexually harassed her and kissed her without consent released a new account of her accusations on Wednesday. [Politico / Erin Durkin] The parent company of the oat milk brand Oatly has announced it is going public after oat milk sales increased by more than 300 percent in 2020. [Intelligencer / Eve Peyser] VERBATIM "We know that inflation dynamics evolve over time, but they don't tend to change overnight. What I see is an economy where there is still a great deal of slack." [Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, on why concerns over inflation are overstated] LISTEN TO THIS Unexplainable is a new Vox science podcast about everything we don't know. New episodes drop every Wednesday starting March 10. Listen now to the trailer and subscribe wherever you get podcasts. [Spotify / Vox] Read more from Vox   The Black-white life expectancy gap grew in 2020 — but it can be reversed   The future of QAnon, explained by 8 experts   The scientist who's been right about Covid-19 vaccines all along predicts what's next   As Times Square sits idle, so do Mickey and Elmo   The wellness industry is coming for your mattress     Facebook Twitter YouTube This email was sent to milburnkennedy@hotmail.com. Manage your email preferences, or unsubscribe to stop receiving all emails from Vox. If you value Vox's unique explanatory journalism, support our work with a one-time or recurring contribution. View our Privacy Notice and our Terms of Service. Vox Media, 1201 Connecticut Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20036. Copyright © 2021. All rights reserved.