Greenville News: Greenville County GOP leader Pressley Stutts dies from COVID-19. “Greenville County Republican Party leader Pressley Stutts died Thursday morning after battling COVID-19 for nearly a month. Stutts’ death was confirmed by Dan Harvell, who represents the Anderson County Republican Party on the South Carolina Republican Party’s executive committee.”
ABC 4: Charleston City Council meeting erupts into chaos during public comment. “The Charleston City Council meeting on Tuesday night erupted into a shouting match during the hour and a half public comment. Most of the people shouting were against a potential mask mandate for schools in the city limits, which eventually failed to pass.”
Daily Beast: South Carolina School Board Loses Second Member to COVID—but Won’t Make Kids Wear Masks. “A school board in Horry County, South Carolina, has been rattled by the COVID-19 deaths of two members within months, just as kids in the district are returning to classrooms without a mask mandate in place. Board member Ray Winters, 50, died Monday from COVID-19, months after a board colleague, 52-year-old John Poston, perished from the deadly virus.”
Greenville News: Clemson, USC requiring masks after SC Supreme Court approves mask mandates for public colleges. “Clemson University and the University of South Carolina announced Tuesday evening that masks will be required in all buildings effective immediately, after the South Carolina Supreme Court ruled that universities can require masks. Clemson said in a statement that the university will require masks for at least three weeks, as that is the greatest risk predicted by its public health experts and masks would significantly curb the spread of the virus.”
The State: Breaking with state law, Charleston County schools will make students wear face masks. “In a move that puts the school district at risk of losing state funding, Charleston County schools decided that everyone — students, employees and visitors — must wear a mask or face covering in schools until at least Oct. 15. The requirement takes effect immediately. The decision, made Monday by the school board during a special-called meeting, makes the Charleston County School District the first public school system to openly defy South Carolina law.”
WRAL: New research could help preserve Gullah Geechee lands. “Organized by the town’s Gullah Geechee Culture and Land Preservation Task Force, the Heritage Library of Hilton Head Island and the University of South Carolina Beaufort, the project aims to help Black Americans known as Gullah or Geechee. These slave descendants retained much of their African heritage passed down from ancestors who grew up isolated on coastal islands off North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida. Some of the Gullah Geechee land is particularly vulnerable, project organizers said in a statement, because of the way it was passed down without a formal will.”
CNN: South Carolina Republican congressman tests positive for Covid-19. “Rep. Ralph Norman has tested positive for Covid-19 after experiencing mild symptoms, the South Carolina Republican, who is fully vaccinated, announced Thursday in a statement.”
WACH: Company launches new tool to help people with disabilities enter workforce. “Hire Me SC, powered by Able SC and the South Carolina Disability Employment Coalition, says they are committed to helping family members of people with disabilities looking to enter the workforce through educating them and fostering connections with other families in similar circumstances.”
New-to-me, and apparently revamped to all our benefit, from The Post and Courier: South Carolina nonprofit creates archive of Palmetto State landmarks. “Today, its website features entries on over 2,000 landmarks. Most are still standing, but the project also catalogues locations that have fallen to ruin or disappeared. In addition to photographs, entries include write-ups adding historical context to the sites, along with addresses, links to similar landmarks and information about any other notable places nearby.”
College of Charleston: New Digital Exhibits Explore Untold Facets of Black History in the Lowcountry. “Since its launch in 2014, the Lowcountry Digital History Initiative (LDHI) has worked with scholars and students to produce online exhibits, each dedicated to illuminating the Lowcountry’s forgotten histories. With topics spanning enslaved African Muslims to Charleston’s first Latino communities, LDHI’s team believes digital interpretation can play a major role in the preservation of diverse stories. This semester, LDHI, hosted by the Lowcountry Digital Library at the College of Charleston, has debuted two new exhibits, Hidden Voices and the Morris Street Business District.”
AP: A rapid COVID-19 vaccine rollout backfired in some US states. “A surprising new analysis found that states such as South Carolina and Florida that raced ahead of others to offer the vaccine to ever-larger groups of people have vaccinated smaller shares of their population than those that moved more slowly and methodically, such as Hawaii and Connecticut.”
The State: Hard to find now, SC senators want to show you how the Legislature spends your money. “The proposal would create a state website with a searchable database showing what the state is spending on and who is receiving money. The S.C. Comptroller General’s website currently has a searchable database for payments made to organizations but doesn’t differentiate from grants, state contracts or budgeted earmarks.”
Route Fifty: In Alabama, South Carolina and Louisiana, CVS Vaccine Appointments Go Unfilled. “In many counties across the three states — particularly in rural areas — retailers and outpatient clinics are among the few places offering covid-19 shots. CVS and other large pharmacies, including Walgreens and Walmart, are among the biggest providers of the vaccinations. South Carolina health officials said they noticed demand was waning at some vaccine sites — and, as a result, lowered the age eligibility for the shots from 65 to 55 starting Monday.”
Post & Courier: SC could punish social media sites for suspending accounts under new proposal. “In the two months since Twitter banned President Donald Trump from its platform, leading Republican voices have lambasted the company for what they called acts of censorship — including U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina. Now, a freshman Upstate state lawmaker wants to go even further, requiring social media companies to inform holders of suspended Palmetto State-based accounts why they’ve been booted within 10 days or face punishment under the state’s Unfair Trade Practices Act.”
ABC Columbia: UofSC creates project to document the experiences of residents during the Black Lives Matter movement. “The University of South Carolina is documenting the experiences of residents during the expansion of the Black Lives Matter movement that took place over the summer.”
