YouTube culture is broken
THE BIG STORY
The Oath Keepers are facing new membership and money issues following the Capitol riot
The Oath Keepers saw a significant surge in interest and profile after the 2020 election. At least 3,000 people joined the group in November and December, in a period when the militant group's founder Stewart Rhodes was a frequent guest on far-right media and at rallies calling for the election results to be overturned.
Things look different now. Since some of the group's members were arrested following the Jan. 6 riot in the Capitol, the Oath Keepers are facing significant new obstacles to spreading their message and raising money. We examined the data and found a steep decline in the number of new member accounts registered since January.
But it's not just declining new membership. We reviewed leaked financial documents, state and federal corporate filings, and online fundraising appeals. Our investigation opens a new window into how the organization operates and the way it has capitalized on moments of civil unrest to recruit and raise money. STAYING ON TOP OF THIS
A mother who was separated from her sons at the border was reunited with them more than three years later
Keldy Mabel Gonzáles Brebe de Zúniga missed two calls from her attorney while she was praying. When she was done, she played an audio message telling her that her prayer had been answered — in a week she would be allowed into the US to see her two sons whom Border Patrol agents had forcibly separated her from.
Gonzáles Brebe's family were among the first families whom the Biden administration is planning on reuniting after being separated at the border under the Trump administration. Since July 2017, 5,500 families are believed to have been separated.
Three other parents were expected to be reunited with their families this week in the US on humanitarian parole. But the process is not without its problems. Read this excellent reporting from Adolfo Flores.
By the way, here's a photo of that reunion: Mino and his brother Erick hug their mother, Keldy Mabel Gonzáles Brebe de Zúniga, more than three years after they were separated at the border by the Trump administration. Australian Broadcasting Corporation SNAPSHOTS
A man killed his girlfriend and five others at a birthday party, then himself. In the early hours of Sunday morning, a man opened fire at a birthday party in Colorado Springs, killing six people including his girlfriend. Police said he then killed himself. Research shows that on average, 57 women are shot and killed by an intimate partner in the US every month.
The winner of the Kentucky Derby failed the post-race drug test. Medina Spirit now faces possible disqualification. Bob Baffert, who is Medina Spirit's trainer and a Hall of Fame racehorse trainer, denied any wrongdoing. This is the fifth horse trained by Baffert to have failed a drug test in just over 12 months, the Associated Press reported.
Derek Chauvin and three former Minneapolis cops have been charged with violating George Floyd's civil rights. Chauvin, Thomas Lane, Tou Thao, and J. Alexander Kueng allegedly violated Floyd's constitutional rights during a deadly arrest in 2020.
YouTube culture is broken. Just check out this video from the Bucket List Family. When you're turning a serious injury into a clickbait video with a cliffhanger, it may be time to reevaluate what you're willing to do for content. LOVE AND LIMBO
Trump policies and COVID have left immigrant couples trying to get marriage-based visas in limbo
For people trying to get a marriage-based visa, it's been a tougher time than usual. The United States immigration system has been gutted by the pandemic in multiple ways — there are the threats of mass government furloughs during COVID, the near-complete shutdown of consular offices abroad, and former president Donald Trump's hard line against immigration.
This means the Biden administration has inherited not only a crisis at the southern border, but also a virtual freeze on marriage-based visa applications that has left couples stranded. Now, hundreds of thousands of people are waiting in limbo as the effects of COVID-19 and restrictive Trump-era policies continue to slow visa processing to a crawl.
Read Nisha Venkat's reporting on the chaos and frustration of people waiting for marriage-based visas. COORDINATED OUTFITS This green dress is going viral because so many Muslim women bought it for Eid
Eid is this week, and it will be a particularly emotional one in parts of the world that are beginning to ease restrictions on public gathering. It also means a return to form in terms of Eid being an occasion to look fly af.
Take a moment to be intentional about what you want out of today, Elamin 📝 This letter was edited and brought to you by Elamin Abdelmahmoud and BuzzFeed News. You can always reach us here.
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