welcome to bbc news. i'm lewis vaughan jones. our top stories: independence day in the us is overshadowed by another big increase in coronavirus cases, and president trump defends the nation's past heroes. we will not throw away our heroes. we will honour them and we will prove worthy of their sacrifice. and at the washington monument in the capital — fireworks lit up the fourth ofjuly night sky as protestors gathered in large numbers. a major easing of the coronavirus lockdown in england with pubs, restaurants and hotels able to re—open. more than 200,000 people are back in lockdown in part of spain's catalonia region.

welcome to the programme. president trump has declared the united states to be the greatest and most virtuous nation in the history of the world in a speech marking independence day. his optimistic tone contrasted with muted fourth ofjuly celebrations in much of the us as coronavirus infections continue to soar. 0ur north america correspondent david willis reports. after a fiery speech on the eve of independence day in which he accused angry mobs of seeking to tear down america's history, president trump struck a more conciliatory tone in an online address to the nation. the country, he said, was on its way to what he called a "tremendous victory". we were doing better than any country had ever done

in history — and not just us, any country — and then we got hit with this terrible plague from china and now we're getting close to fighting our way out of it. on an independence day unlike any other, americans were urged to celebrate freedom by staying indoors. some ignored the call, despite the recent surge in coronavirus cases here. but across the nation, thousands of events fell to the pandemic and on a day that celebrated america's —— victim to the pandemic and on a day that celebrated america's founding, the country's divisions were once again sharply in evidence. shut it down! black lives matter protesters gathered just a short distance from the white house as the president played host to a lavish fourth ofjuly fireworks party and, once again, took up the theme of american nationalism. those that are lying about our history, those

who want us to be ashamed of who we are not interested injustice or in healing. their goal is demolition. our goal is not to destroy the greatest structure on earth, what we have built — the united states of america. the event drew thousands to the national mall, despite repeated calls from health officials here for people to avoid gathering in large groups. cheering. david willis, bbc news, los angeles. steve herman is the white house bureau chief for the international media organisation voice of america. he says the president was trying to appeal for votes in the run—up to november elections. well, he is trying to appeal to his supporters and independent voters that he desperately needs for re—election in november, that there is this threat from the far left,

"anarchists," as he calls them, "socialists" and others, who want a revisionist view of american history, literally tearing down these statues of people that have long been considered heroes in this country and doesn't want to see this discussion take place about a more balanced view of american history. well, on that slightly rebalancing view of american history, just stay there, steve — i just want us all to just listen to these — because the bbc went out and spoke to three young african americans who are among protesters out on the street, calling for an end to racism today, and actually calling forjuneteenth, which celebrates the official end of slavery in america, to be a more appropriate holiday for black americans to celebrate. let's take a listen. the fourth ofjuly is not a day for me, it's not a day for people who look like me. as a new nation, even as we were celebrating our

independence, we were still widely practising slavery. so, for black americans, that story of independence is historically inaccurate. as you grow older and older, you start to realise that all of the men in these wonderful pictures who were the founders of this country, none of them look like you and, even worse, some of them actually owned black people. we have still this identity crisis. a lot of people are trying to figure out what does it mean to be a black american? for some black americans, celebrating this holiday means they made it into citizenship. they fought 400 years to celebrate this holiday. for a lot of black americans, there's been this big push to reinvigorate celebrating juneteenth, which happens onjune i9. i think now, with everything that is happening in our cultural and political climate, that a lot of black americans specifically are turning to that holiday instead of the fourth ofjuly. it is interesting. i should say, for people who don't know, the fourth ofjuly, obviously, is independence for the united states from the uk

and no—one, i don't think, is arguing that that shouldn't be remembered and remarked upon. but this year, there is such a wider conversation going on about american history. sure, and juneteenth is also getting the support of senators in the president's own party. so there is some likelihood that that could become the next new official federal holiday in the united states. but the question that the republicans are asking, and the president has put front and centre, is on this approach to reviewing history and tearing down statues is where does it stop? george washington, thomasjefferson, early presidents of the united states, heroes of the country's founding, they were slave owners. so should all images of them be removed from public? and that is a bridge too far, and maybe even for mainstream democrats as well.

so that at least is one point that the president is hammering on that may find a wider audience beyond his base. do you think that is the calculation, then? because his speech yesterday at mount rushmore is very similar — amplifying this kind of culture war and a fightback against, in his words, "the ha rd left". is he setting up and teeing up this fight deliberately to try and, well, not only appeal to his base, but actually appeal to more moderate voters? well, there is no doubt about that is what he's attempting to do, but what we are hearing from some republican lawmakers, they are very worried about this approach, that, yes, this resonates with the core, but painting everybody who doesn't fully support the president's policies across the board as anarchists and that basically taking approach to everybody who's been on the streets in past weeks in the united states are elements that are dangerous, painting

the black lives matter movement in one sweeping hand as a bunch of marxists. there is a lot of empathy for what these people on the streets are demonstrating for, against the police brutality, and for the president to take such a stark view could backfire. interesting. steve herman. let's get some of the day's other news. the polish president andrzej duda has called for the country's constitution to be amended to enshrine the current ban on same—sex couples adopting children. mr duda, an ally of the governing right—wing law and justice party, made the comments while campaigning after cases fell in april, the daily rate has risen again.

towns and cities in five provinces have been put back into lockdown. president hassan rouhani said people caught not complying will be denied basic state services. workplaces which break the new rule will be closed for a week. thousands have ta ken to the streets of paris for a pared—down celebration of pride. the french capital's official pride parade was postponed to november because of the coronavirus pandemic, but organisers decided to hold a march they said should be more politically driven and support the black lives matter movement. those taking part in the lgbt+ rally called for racial equality and protested against police violence. after three months of coronavirus lockdown, england has taken a big step towards normal life with the largest lifting of restrictions so far. in the last 2a hours, a further 67 people are reported to have died after testing positive for coronavirus, bringing the total number of deaths

in the uk to 44,198. the major relaxation of rules in england means pubs, restaurants, and hairdressers can reopen. our business editor simon jack reports from torquay in the south—west. no—one really knew what to expect today. would people be battering down the doors of the pubs, three deep at the bar, desperate for a pint, or would it be completely deserted ? neither of those feared outcomes happened, but it depended on which business you were in. it was slow and steady, certainly at the start today for the pub trade, but there was certainly no lack of demand for a long overdue post—lockdown haircut. 7am in torquay and alex walker is opening up his hair salon for the first time in nearly four months. visors on, a last—minute team briefing, before the first customers arrive at 8:00. everybody will be happy to be here, so let's just take care of everybody. excited! they didn't seem fazed

by the new procedures. at the end of the day, it's worth adapting a little bit to be able to come back and sort out, and look like ourselves again and not worzel gummidge! she's happy, he's happy. despite the extra cost, alex is confident the business is viable. i would not be stood here if i couldn't make any money, so, yeah, we've adjusted our system, we've had a small adjustment to our prices to make it sustainable, but i think if you don't do that, then you might not have a business. the big moment, iiam — opening time for the rock garden pub. there was certainly no early, unmanageable crush. customers trickled, rather than flooded in. but by midday... cheers, guys! cheers! ..folks were getting back into the swing of it. as long as everyone keeps away from each other and sticks to the guidelines, i can't see it being too much of an issue. with all the staff members wearing their face masks, it's what you want. feels safe, definitely. the other fear was that not enough people would turn up

to make economic sense to reopen. 0wner dave walsh said that while it was quieter than expected or hoped, it was still important to reopen today. it is great to reopen. everyone needs to reopen — not just for ourselves, it's also for employees, the job security, and the community as a whole. this feels like an important moment for the national psyche — a welcome glimpse of normality, welcome signs of economic activity, so important in tourist towns like torquay. but it's also a nervous moment. businesses and the government will be watching carefully to see whether we're getting enough economic bang for the health risk buck. around town, there were reminders of the economic risks to one of the sectors hardest hit by the virus. this crisis is definitely not over, jobs—wise. we know that businesses are saying a third of premises may not reopen, and that means 500,000 jobs remain still at risk over the next three months. 2pm at the pier point restaurant, and lorraine arnold fears she's one of the 75% of businesses who will make a loss this year.

we've spent an awful lot of money getting it prepared, ready to open it, and then we could not open it. we have written it off, we are likely to break even this year, but at least we are going to get open and say "we're back". —— we have written it off, we are lucky to break even this year, but at least we are going to get open and say "we're back". the danger of another spike and lockdown is still out there but, for an industry crippled by this virus, today was an important step forward. simonjack, bbc news, torquay. to spain now. in the catalan capital barcelona, one of the most famous churches in the world is reopening to visitors. but in another area, more than 200,000 people are facing a new lockdown due to a surge in coronavirus cases. alanna petroff has the latest. ba rcelona's sagrada familia is the most—visited building in spain, attracting millions of tourists a year. this it is re—opened from lockdown for a select —— this weekend, it has re—opened from lockdown

for a select, special group — frontline workers. healthcare professionals were invited to look around, with barcelona's archbishop leading the tour. translation: it is the first time i have come here and for me, it represents a gift for our efforts and hours of work in recent months. so i am quite grateful. i think it shows recognition of our contribution. even for those who do not believe in a higher power, new confirmed cases in spain are down significantly. the country has been reopening. but that is not the case in another part of catalonia. about a two—hour drive west in the county of segria, a new lockdown is now in force after local authorities saw a spike in cases. in this hospital in the city of lleida, the number of patients coming in with covid—i9 has tripled in the last ten days. translation: we believe that we have to take specific measures in lleida to protect

the most vulnerable people, to reinforce the protection in our health centres and the hospital itself. new police checks ensure locals stay in, outsiders stay out. the lockdown is expected to run for about 15 days. it is part of a new plan designed to ensure this outbreak does not get out of control again, cutting down on scenes like this — flashing lights on ambulances, patients on stretchers. alanna petroff, bbc news. this is bbc news. our main headline this hour. independence day in the us is overshadowed by another big increase in coronavirus cases, as president trump defends the nations past heroes. well, independence day celebrates freedom for most americans, but how are black americans thinking about the day at a time of nationwide protests for racial equality? some prominent black american

commentators have been sharing the famous anti—slavery speech, "what to the slave is the fourth ofjuly," by frederick douglass. he was a former slave who escaped and later became a leader of the abolition—ist movement and confidant of president abraham lincoln. a little earlier we spoke to dr rashawn ray at the brookings institution. much of his research focusses on race and social activism. i began by asking him to read us part of that anti—slavery speech. i mean, frederick douglass gave this speech onjuly 5th, actually, 1852, and one of the statements he made was: "what to the american slave is your 4th ofjuly? i answer; a day that reveals to him more than all other days in the year. the gross injustices and cruelty to which he is the constant victim. to him, your celebration is a sham; your boasted liberty, an unholy license; your national greatness,

swelling vanity; your sounds of rejoicing are empty and heartless; your denunciations of tyrants, brass—fronted impudence, your shouts of liberty and equality, hollow mockery; your prayers and hymns, your sermons and thanks—givings, with all your religious parade and solemnity, are to him, mere bombast, fraud, deception impiety and hypocrisy — a thin veil to cover up crimes which would disgrace a nation of savages. there is not a nation on the earth guilty of practices more shocking and bloody than are people of these united states, at this very hour." thank you so much for reading that. you can feel the power as you read them there. and it's not surprising so many people have been sharing that on social media today. what do those words mean to you?

i think what they mean is continuing to have dreams deferred, to actually give a shout—out to langston hughes, and thinking about frederick douglass, him being a slave in maryland, on a very gruesome plantation where he was beating regularly, where others were beaten, he taught himself how to read and write. he then freed himself by actually breaking away from his master, actually beating his master and then heading north, going on to become one of america's and the world's greatest writers. greatest orators. he also helped president lincoln to rethink slavery and of course he was part of the abolitionist movement and helped to found the north star periodical. and what do you make of the conversations that we're having right now of course, but have been having throughout the day today, on the 4th ofjuly? it feels a very different year this year than previous years. really serious questions being asked about what it actually means.

what do you make of it? well, i think what is happening right now isjuly 4th has always been a holiday of contradictions. if we go back, people like myself up until 60 years ago couldn't vote, couldn't live in any neighbourhood that they wanted to. now these sorts of things are possible. however, what is happening right here at this moment with a global pandemic related covid—i9, the fact that millions of americans are still out of work, the fact that covid—i9 is hitting the united states worse than basically any other country in the world, and then of course this is coupled with a continuation of police brutality, a continuation of structural racism. so i think it's a lot of people, black, white, and otherwise who are hurting in the united states, who don't necessarily see thisjuly 4th, 2020, as something to celebrate but instead an opportunity to reflect, to rethink what we want to see in november and what we want to see

in 2021 and moving forward. and rashawn, your thoughts on one final issue before we leave it. in the last hour we heard from people talking about juneteenth again and calling for that to be the real day that americans mark. what is your reaction to that? well, obviously juneteenth is the day when some of the last slaves in galveston, texas, learned of their freedom. and as i have written about it at the brookings institution, i thinkjuneteenth should not only be a national holiday, but a rallying cry for reparations. what we're seeing is college—educated blacks have seven times less wealth than college—educated whites. what we're seeing is black americans are 3.5 times more likely than whites to be killed by the police when they're not attacking. what we're seeing is black houses, not houses in predominantly black neighbourhoods, are worth $50,000 less than those in predominantly white neighbourhoods, and we put all of these stats together and again

we see dreams deferred. in supposedly the home of the free and the home of the brave, we aren't seeing that, and we need to invest in policies and i thinkjuneteenth can help in this, i think reparations can help in this, and i think more progressive policies can get us into a point where racial equality and freedom is something that america really stands for. injapan, fourteen people are believed to have died at a nursing home and more than 200,000 have been ordered to leave their homes. it comes after floods and landslides hit the southern island of kyushu. here's reged ahmad. at first glance, it looks like a normal river flowing through a valley. but a closer look reveals the brown, fast—moving floodwaters swirling around submerged homes, with just the tops of houses visible. this is just one of the multiple towns and cities in southern japan's kumamoto prefecture hit by devastating flooding after torrential rains. much of it is due to

the swollen kuma river bursting its banks in several places. japan often experiences a wet season, but authorities have described the amount of water falling in this area as "unprecedented". translation: i instructed officials to take every possible measure to deal with the rain disasters in the country's south—west, with the priority to save lives. the government plans to send some 10,000 self—defense force members to the regions. military helicopters have already been airlifting stranded residents in dramatic rescues as floodwaters trap people in their homes. translation: i asked my neighbour for help after my house was flooded to the second floor. the neighbour carried me on his back, because i have problems with my feet. translation: the building floated up and i was washed away. it happened in an instant. more than 200,000 people have

been ordered to leave, as authorities made a grisly find at a nursing home facility that was flooded. some of the residents had died, while others were suffering from hypothermia. some of the missing may also have been caught up in massive landslides in the area, and there are reports rescue services have been overwhelmed by calls for help — something that will no doubt continue as more rain is forecast over the weekend. reged ahmed, bbc news. earl cameron, one of the first black actors to forge a successful career in british film and television, has died at the age of 102. his career spanned more than sixty years. the bbc‘s tim allman looks back. seven, six, five, four, three... october 1966, and a little bit of history is being made. for the first time anywhere, a black astronaut is depicted on screen.

and the man doing the honours is earl cameron. 0k, bluey. check velocity, i'll do ground check. his was a familiar face on both cinema and television screens, a mix of power, charisma and reassurance. so one of them is left to face the 0rdeal of the key. tributes flooded in on social media. american filmmaker ava duvernay tweeted: fellow actor paterson joseph called him: and film historian matthew sweet said:

earl cameron was born in bermuda in 1917. as a young man, hejoined the british merchant navy, arriving in the uk just after the start of world war ii. eventually, he began acting, and would appear in films as diverse as thunderball and inception. in a statement, his children said he refused to take roles that demeaned or stereotyped the character of people of colour. he was truly a man who stood by his moral principles, and was inspirational. the actor earl cameron — who's died at the age of 102. a reminder of our top story: independence day in the us is overshadowed by another big increase in coronavirus cases, as president trump defends the nations past heroes. you can reach me on twitter —

i'm @lvaughanjones. this is bbc news. hello, the first half of the weekend was grey and breezy for most of us. the second half of the weekend is looking thoroughly windy, unusually windy for the time of year. expecting gales and places through the day ahead. it should be a bit of sunshine but also some showers. low pressure firmly in charge of the scene. this looks more autumnal than summer. lots of white lines you can see on the chart, isobars, with the wind is strong throughout the day. a frontal system bringing patchy cloud into the south—east first thing, which will clear quickly, and then a fair amount of sunshine. some showers as well, some of those will be really heavy. particularly across parts of northern england, northern england and scotland.

there could be the odd flash of lightning, the rumble of thunder mixed in. these are the wind gusts you can expect. the windiest weather of all across parts of ireland, scotland. gusts of 50—60 miles per hour and maybe stronger winds to the east of the pennines. that could cause disruption to travel, particularly for high—sided vehicles. it will feel relatively cool. as we head through sunday night, you can see further showers in the forecast, particularly across the northern half of the uk. it stays fairly windy. i think the winds will ease a little as we head into the first part of monday. and also its going to be a slightly cooler, fresher night. temperatures in a few spots getting down into single digits. so on monday, we'll see low pressure sliding away towards scandinavia. high pressure starting to build in from the south—west, between the two, still fairly brisk winds across the country. these winds coming down from the north—west. so that's never going to be a particularly warm wind direction. but as you can see, not as many showers through the day on monday. a fair amount of dry weather and some spells of sunshine.

but those temperatures, 16—20 degrees, just a touch below what we might expect at this point injuly. now, tuesday looks like a dry day for most. patchy rain in the far north of scotland, otherwise a fair amount of dry weather. but it looks like more rain will work in from the west as we head towards the afternoon and evening. as temperatures again on the low side, 14—21 degrees. and as we head through the middle part of the week, wednesday into thursday, some further outbreaks of rain at times. and those temperatures just a bit below par.

this is bbc news. the headlines: president trump has declared the united states to be the greatest and most virtuous nation in the history of the world in a speech marking independence day. his optimistic tone contrasted with muted fourth ofjuly celebrations in much of the us as coronavirus infections continue to soar. a fireworks display took place at the washington monument in the capital. protestors from the black lives matter campaign group and pro—trump make america great again demonstrators gathered close by. catalonia, in north—eastern spain, has placed 200,000 people back into lockdown because of a local rise in coronavirus cases. the region has the highest number of current infections. people will not be able to enter or leave some areas without permission. a major easing of the coronavirus lockdown has taken place in england with many bars, restaurants, and hotels able to re—open.