Vox Sentences - “The revival of Jim Crow in this state”

• After lockdowns and Covid waves dominated life in South America last year, the continent is now suffering through case rates at elevated levels. Hospitals are at or near capacity, inundated  with cases fueled in part by variants originating in Brazil, and plagued by a lack of vaccine distribution. [BBC]
• When Covid-19 hit last March, almost every country on the continent issued mask mandates and engineered strict lockdowns. [Washington Post / Lucien Chauvin, Anthony Faiola and Terrence McCoy]
• But Brazil has been a large exception in enacting strict measures. President Jair Bolaonaro has spent the entire pandemic denying its severity and impeding public safety efforts. [Washington Post / Lucien Chauvin, Anthony Faiola and Terrence McCoy]
• The P.1 variant, first found in Brazil's Manaus region last year, is now wreaking havoc on Brazil’s neighbors. The variant may be 2.5 times more contagious than the initial virus, and is often severe and deadly even in younger populations and among those without preexisting conditions. [Reuters]
• Once extolled for its success in tamping down the coronavirus, Uruguay is now seeing the highest number of Covid-19 deaths per capita anywhere outside of Europe; three out of four new infections are being caused by the P.1 variant. [Wall Street Journal / Luciana Magalhaes and Samantha Pearson]

[Axios / Sara Fischer]

• But it's not all peachy keen for Big Tech. The EU is accusing Apple of an antitrust breach over the company’s app store rules, stating in preliminary findings that Apple is distorting competition for music streaming. The company could face fines up to $27 billion. [The Verge / Tom Warren]

• 44 people were killed in a stampede at a religious gathering of ultra-Orthodox Jews in Mount Meron, Israel. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu traveled to the scene, calling it a “heavy disaster,” and announced Sunday would be a day of national mourning. [BBC]

• 100 days into his administration, 70 percent of Republicans still say they do not believe Joe Biden won enough votes to be elected president, according to a new CNN poll. [CNN / Jennifer Agiesta]