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The Point, Feb. 3, 2025: What happened after Black farmers received 'historic' payout?

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The stories near you

Left: John Nix looks on at an oak tree on his farm’s property. Right: His grandparents and their children pose for a photo under the same tree more than 50 years earlier. (Rose Schnabel & Katie Hyson/WUFT News)
Left: John Nix looks on at an oak tree on his farm’s property. Right: His grandparents and their children pose for a photo under the same tree more than 50 years earlier. (Rose Schnabel & Katie Hyson/WUFT News)

• WUFT News: Black farmers received a “historic” payout from the USDA six months ago. It didn’t fix everything. "WUFT shared the story of John “Ronnie” Nix, a cattle rancher in eastern Alachua County, when the funding was first announced in 2022. Today, six months after the check arrived, he reflects on what it did – and didn’t – do."

• WUFT News: $500,000 grant to help Gainesville curb regional gun violence, focus on tech hubs. "These hubs, designed as mobile technology carts equipped with up to 18 laptops each, will provide youth and families with essential digital resources, such as homework assistance, tutoring and access to community programs, according to the funding proposal."

• WUFT News: Cedar Key hosts second public workshop on the future of Dock Street and the Marina. "The event, held at Cedar Key City Hall, was geared toward addressing the challenges in rebuilding after the damage caused by Hurricane Helene and a fire on Dock Street in September."

• WUFT News: Gainesville Developmental Review Board approves new parking garage amid citizen concerns. "A new parking garage, originally part of a plan approved when Nokia sold the most popular phones, is coming to Gainesville."

• Florida Storms: It’s official: Last month was the coldest January in +15 years for most of Florida. "As we close the books on January, it comes as no surprise that this January in particular, was colder than most in recent years. In fact, most of the National Weather Services around the state say 2025 was one of the coldest January in 10-15 years. Some cities had their coldest January since the 1800s."

• WUFT News: Florida Springs Council director explains the problem with a rule designed to protect the springs. "The 'Springs Harm Rule,' which the Florida Department of Exnvironmental Protection first proposed in 2016, was designed to stop withdrawals harmful to Florida’s springs. But eight years later, no real steps have been taken to implement this rule."

• Florida Storms: ´Tis the season... for fog, the science behind it. "In Florida, fog can form at any time of year if the right atmospheric conditions are present. However, it highly depends on cooling temperatures and moisture and forms more frequently between late fall, winter, and early spring."

• WUFT News: Photo gallery: Villain Arts Tattoo Festival brings color to Jacksonville. "Tattoo artist Madelynn Shively, of Gainesville, said the festival is a great way to see different personalities and cultures that one might not be exposed to on a day-to-day basis."


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Around the state

Betsy DeVos served as Secretary of Education during first Trump administration.
Betsy DeVos served as Secretary of Education during the first Trump administration. (Matt York/AP)

• Associated Press: U.S. colleges are returning to Title IX sexual assault rules created during Trump's first term. "Schools and universities responding to complaints of sexual misconduct must return to policies created during President Donald Trump's first term, with requirements for live hearings and more protections for accused students, according to guidance issued Friday by the Education Department."

• WGCU-Fort Myers: Bird flu 'existential threat to the world’s biodiversity'. "The outbreak is being described as the fastest spreading and largest ever, posing a significant threat to biodiversity worldwide."

• New York Times: Trump administration revokes protections for Venezuelans in the U.S. "The Trump administration has revoked temporary protected status, or TPS, for more than 300,000 Venezuelans in the United States, leaving the population vulnerable to potential deportation in the coming months, according to government documents obtained by The New York Times."

• WLRN-Miami: 'We want to contribute to the community': The fight over tuition waivers for immigrants. "Last school year, about 6,500 undocumented immigrant students benefited from the program, according to an analysis from the Florida Policy Institute. 'If it wasn't for in-state tuition, I would have never become a doctor,' Flores told WLRN."

• News Service of Florida: DeSantis Administration seeks more money for prison deployment. "National Guard members have helped at prisons for more than two years, as the correctional system struggles with high job-vacancy rates and an increase in the number of inmates."

• WFSU-Tallahassee: Florida officials are backing President Trump's idea to 'get rid of FEMA'. "A proposal to eliminate the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is gaining ground. Some officials in Florida are backing the idea as they believe it would give states more control over disaster relief efforts."

• WLRN-Miami: A major sargassum season could be in store for Florida. "Sargassum is the formal name of the leafy brown seaweed that floats on top of the ocean and is blown ashore in Florida beginning in the spring. There’s a lot of it out in the Atlantic Ocean now and it could be headed to the sands of South Florida later this spring."


From NPR News

• Business: Trump imposes new tariffs on imports from Mexico, Canada and China in new phase of trade war

• Health: On the frontline against bird flu, egg farmers fear they're losing the battle

• Politics: A 2nd U.S. judge says Trump administration must pause its federal spending freeze

• World: Trump says airstrikes on ISIS in Somalia killed terrorists without 'harming civilians'

• Business: Elon Musk's X sues Lego, Nestlé and more brands, accusing them of advertising boycott

• Business: Costco raises pay above $30 an hour for many, as Teamsters union threatens strike

• Health: Trump used fentanyl to justify tariffs, but the crisis was already easing

• National: How did racist mass texts bypass some anti-spam guardrails after the election?

Kristin Moorehead curated today's edition of The Point.