Informing, engaging & connecting the people of the world. JUNE 1, 2020

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Hong Kong police on Monday formally banned an annual candlelight vigil to mourn the victims of the crackdown on the 1989 Tiananmen Square pro-democracy movement that has taken place uninterrupted for 30 years. They said the event would pose a “major threat to public health,” according to organizers.

ON THIS DAY IN AMERICAN HISTORY On June 1, 1779, General Benedict Arnold is court-martialed during the American Revolutionary War. Arnold fought for the American Continental Army, but later defected to the British side. As a general on the American side, he secretly planned to surrender the fortifications at West Point, New York, which were under his command, to the British. Today, the name ‘Benedict Arnold’ is synonymous with treason and betrayal in the US.

U.S. companies typically are quiet during protests. Not this time. Technology, banking, apparel and entertainment firms issued messages of support for those demonstrating against police treatment of African Americans.

VIDEO: Turkey joins other countries in relaxing its strict lockdown measure because of the coronavirus pandemic by letting people go to mosques across the country to perform Friday prayers. Although this lifting of restrictions did not allow people older than 65 to participate in the Friday prayers, many of them nonetheless were seen at mosques. VOA reporters visited mosques in Ankara, Istanbul and Diyarbakir.

VIDEO: With the school year coming to an end, parents in the U.S. are facing a new challenge: how to entertain their children during their break. Usually, there would be hundreds of summer camps open, but as the coronavirus continues to affect daily life in the U.S., most facilities can’t guarantee they will open.

VIDEO: June 2nd was supposed to be the finish line for what seemed like an endless 2020 U.S. presidential primary campaign, but the coronavirus pandemic changed all of that.