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| Good morning, Daily Briefing readers. President Joe Biden is expected to sign the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act into law during a ceremony at the White House. And, Israel has unleashed more airstrikes on Gaza, despite Biden's more forceful call for a cease-fire. |
| Steve and Jane are here with Thursday's news. |
| 🌎 New this morning: Nearly a year after George Floyd's death, workers are demanding that corporate America confronts systemic racism. |
| 🚨 Two reporters for the USA TODAY Network were arrested while covering a protest for Andrew Brown Jr., an unarmed Black man who was shot and killed by deputies. |
| ⚖ Thirty-five Republicans joined Democrats in passing a House bill to create a bipartisan, independent commission to investigate the Capitol riot on Jan. 6. |
| 🔵 Two former Colorado police officers face criminal charges in the arrest last year of a 73-year-old woman with dementia, prosecutors said. |
| 🔴 From the world of sports: LeBron James hit a huge shot late to help send the Los Angeles Lakers out of the play-in tournament and into the playoffs. In Texas, New York Yankees pitcher Corey Kluber threw Major League Baseball's sixth no-hitter of the 2021 season. |
| 🎧 On today's 5 Things podcast, national correspondent Marc Ramirez discusses the U.S. hitting a record for the killings of transgender people . You can listen to the podcast every day on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or on your smart speaker. |
| 💻 Join us at 7 p.m. ET Thursday on Twitter Spaces! Our journalists will be talking about our coverage in Minneapolis before, during and after the Derek Chauvin trial for the murder of George Floyd. Follow @usatoday on Twitter to see the Space when it goes live. |
 | | USA TODAY's "This is America" | | USA TODAY graphic | |
| Here's what's happening today: |
Biden to sign COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act into law |
| President Joe Biden will sign the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act into law Thursday, according to his official schedule. The House overwhelmingly passed the bill Tuesday, which sent it to Biden's desk as reports of hate incidents against Asian Americans have drastically climbed for more than a year. After a mass shooting in Georgia in March that killed eight people – six of whom were women of Asian descent – lawmakers in both chambers of Congress called for quick action on the legislation, which will become law during Asian Pacific American Heritage Month. Rep. Judy Chu, D-Calif., said Tuesday "after a year of the Asian American community crying out for help," that "Congress is taking historic action." |
Israel unleashes more airstrikes after vowing to press on in Gaza |
| Israel unleashed a wave of airstrikes across the Gaza Strip early Thursday, killing at least one Palestinian and wounding several others. The strikes came after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pushed back against U.S. pressure to wind down the offensive against Gaza's militant Hamas rulers, who have fired thousands of rockets at Israel. Israel's Foreign Ministry says ministers from Germany, the Czech Republic, and Slovakia will arrive in the country Thursday "to express their solidarity and support" for Israel during its campaign against Hamas. Israel faces mounting international pressure to de-escalate hostilities after 10 days of heavy fighting in Gaza. |
What else people are reading: |
| 🔵 Fact check: Businesses can legally ask if their patrons have been vaccinated. To be clear, the HIPAA federal privacy law does not apply. |
| 🔵 Investigations into former President Donald Trump and those in his close orbit gathered pace Tuesday. This is what we know about the probes. |
| 🔵 Comedian and actor Paul Mooney, known for his writing for Richard Pryor and appearances in "Bamboozled" and "Chappelle's Show" has died at the age of 79. |
| 🔵 "I do not believe that my daughter committed suicide." A day after the Massachusetts medical examiner's ruling, Mikayla Miller's mother and supporters say they do not accept the findings. |
| 🔵 You've likely started to hear the term "nonbinary" more. Singer Demi Lovato announced they were nonbinary and changed their pronouns to they/them. Here's what that means. |
 | | Demi Lovato performs during the OBB Premiere Event for YouTube Originals Docuseries "Demi Lovato: Dancing With The Devil" in March 2021. | | Getty Images for OBB Media photo; USA TODAY graphic | |
Apple introduces new features for Global Accessibility Awareness Day |
| Thursday is Global Accessibility Awareness Day, which promotes digital access and inclusion for people living with disabilities. To mark the day, Apple will roll out SignTime , which lets customers communicate with AppleCare and other retail services by using American Sign Language in the United States, British Sign Language in the United Kingdom, and French Sign Language in France through a web browser. Customers visiting Apple Stores in those countries can also use SignTime to remotely access a sign language interpreter without booking one ahead of time. |
Newsmakers in their own words: At AAPI event, Harris denounces efforts to restrict voter rights |
 | | Vice President Kamala Harris delivers remarks virtually at the Asian Pacific American Heritage Month Unity Summit on May 19, 2021. | | Getty Images photo; USA TODAY graphic | |
| In an address to the first AAPI Victory Alliance Unity Summit, Vice President Kamala Harris slammed efforts in Republican-led states to enact legislation that civil rights groups fear could suppress the vote of marginalized groups, and make it harder to vote overall. |
Actor Danny Masterson in court facing rape allegations |
| A judge in Los Angeles will determine whether there is enough evidence for "That '70s Show" and "The Ranch" star Danny Masterson to stand trial accused of raping three women in the early 2000s. Graphic testimony at a preliminary hearing Wednesday saw a woman identified in court only as Christina B., who was five years into a relationship with Masterson, say she awoke one night to find he was raping her. Masterson, 45, has pleaded not guilty and his lawyer, Thomas Mesereau, has said he would prove his client's innocence. |
PGA Championship tees off in South Carolina |
| The 103rd PGA Championship begins Thursday from Kiawah Island Golf Resort's Ocean Course in South Carolina. Collin Morikawa won last year's event, which was played in August due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He will open the tournament alongside 2021 Masters champion Hideki Matsuyama and 2020 U.S. Open winner Bryson DeChambeau. Tiger Woods, golf's most recognizable player, is still recovering from injuries sustained in a car accident and will not play. |
ICYMI: Some of our top stories published Wednesday |
| 🚨 A video shows an 11-year-old Florida girl escaping an attempted kidnapping while waiting for a school bus. |
| ⚖ Texas Gov. Greg Abbott signed into law legislation that prohibits abortion once a fetal heartbeat is detected, effectively banning most abortions in the state. |
| ⚾ "It's as dangerous now as it's ever been": As the New York Mets' Kevin Pillar recovers from getting hit in the face, unease has grown in Major League Baseball. |
| 🏅 "A ridiculous idea": Japan, which continues to struggle with COVID-19, is growing anxious ahead of the controversial Summer Olympics in Tokyo. |
📸 Photo of the day: Italian village emerges after decades underwater 📸 |
 | | The village of Curon, Italy, was submerged underwater in 1950 when Lake Resia was created. Now, tourists can see the once lost town after maintenance required the lake to be temporarily drained. | | Courtesy: Luisa Azzolini | |
| The lost Italian village of Curon is resurfacing for the first time in over 70 years. Hundreds of people lived there before it was flooded for a hydroelectric plant and the merger of two nearby lakes in 1950, according to BBC News. |
| The lake is being temporarily drained for maintenance, giving tourists and locals the chance to see the village for the first time. Check out more photos from the scene. |
| Contributing: The Associated Press |
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