Today is Monday, June 22, 2020. Let's get caught up.
These non-virus headlines are in the news this morning: NASCAR and the FBI have launched an investigation after a noose was found in the garage stall of Bubba Wallace, the only Black driver in the elite Cup Series; two people were killed and seven others were wounded in an early Monday shooting in Charlotte, N.C.; and President Donald Trump's weekend rally in Oklahoma highlighted growing vulnerabilities.
Read on for these stories, other top headlines, celebrity birthdays and more.
Top stories
Bubba Wallace stands for the national anthem before a NASCAR Cup Series auto race Sunday, June 14, 2020, in Homestead, Fla.
FBI investigating noose left in NASCAR stall
NASCAR and the FBI have launched an investigation after a noose was found in the garage stall of Bubba Wallace, the only Black driver in the elite Cup Series who just two weeks ago successfully pushed the stock car series to ban the Confederate flag at its venues.
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NASCAR said the noose was found on Sunday afternoon and vowed to do everything possible to find who was responsible and “eliminate them from the sport.” Read the full story here:
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Police tape is seen near the scene of a shooting early Monday, June 22, 2020, in Charlotte, North Carolina, that resulted in two deaths and several more people wounded or injured.
2 dead, 7 wounded in shooting at North Carolina block party
Two people were killed and seven others were wounded in an early Monday shooting in North Carolina's largest city, police said, while five others were hit by vehicles.
The shooting happened at an “impromptu block party" that was a continuation of Juneteenth celebrations, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Deputy Chief Johnny Jennings told reporters.
Police responding to a call about a pedestrian hit by a car found hundreds of people in the streets around 12:30 a.m., a police statement said. As officers arrived, they heard several shots nearby. Read the full story:
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President Donald Trump walks on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, early Sunday, June 21, 2020, after stepping off Marine One as he returns from a campaign rally in Tulsa, Okla.
Trump rally highlights vulnerabilities heading into election
President Donald Trump's return to the campaign trail was designed to show strength and enthusiasm heading into the critical final months before an election that will decide whether he remains in the White House.
Instead, his weekend rally in Oklahoma highlighted growing vulnerabilities and crystallized a divisive reelection message that largely ignores broad swaths of voters — independents, suburban women and people of color — who could play a crucial role in choosing Trump or Democratic challenger Joe Biden.
The lower-than-expected turnout at the comeback rally, in particular, left Trump fuming. Read the full story here:
In other news today ...
- A statue of President Theodore Roosevelt in front of the American Museum of Natural History in New York City will be removed, a statement from New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio's office said Sunday. The announcement comes as several states grapple with how to handle removals of confederate monuments and other controversial statues.
- An American man was among the three victims stabbed to death in a park in the English town of Reading that is being treated as a terror attack, the U.S. ambassador to Britain confirmed Monday.
- One person was wounded in what was the second shooting in Seattle’s protest zone in less than 48 hours, police said. The shooting happened late Sunday night in the area near Seattle’s downtown that is known as CHOP, for “Capitol Hill Occupied Protest,” police tweeted, adding that one person was at a hospital with a gunshot wound.
- A preliminary official vote count Monday of Serbia’s parliamentary election confirmed an overwhelming victory for populist President Aleksandar Vucic’s right-wing governing party, the state RTS television said.
- Wildlife advocates fear that poor families are turning to hunting animals such as gazelles for food or chopping down trees to eke out a living. Authorities in India worry about endangered tigers and leopards as well as the species those big cats depend on to survive.
- The Black Lives Matter protests have encouraged a reckoning in the fashion world, with insiders saying the industry must confront its decades of racism.
- Eight children drowned in a river in southwestern China after one fell in and the others jumped in to help, state media said. The children, described as elementary-school age, had gone to play at a beach Sunday on the Fu River, according to state broadcaster CCTV. Their bodies were recovered by Monday morning.
- No red carpet, no house band or monologue poking fun at the past year's top athletes and moments. This was a different version of The ESPYS. The focus of Sunday night's show on ESPN was hope and inspiration.
Click on the links below for full versions of these stories and scroll further for trending stories, a look at today in history and celebrity birthdays.
Today's national forecast
Almost a third of Americans could see storms that could be severe. CNN meteorologist Derek Van Dam has the details on who will be impacted by the worst of the weather. Watch here:
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Image of the day
A man prepares to wear his mask as fish vendors chat on a rainy day in Kochi, Kerala state, India, Monday, June 22 2020.
