Maria and Julio react to the news of Queen Elizabeth II passing away, and they reflect on the British empire’s legacy of colonialism and imperialism. They also get into the Justice Department’s investigation of former president Donald Trump and his mishandling of classified documents, and they unpack the decades of neglect and disinvestment that contributed to an ongoing water crisis in the predominantly Black city of Jackson, Mississippi.

ITT Staff Picks:

• Candace McDuffie writes about Black Twitter’s response to the passing of Queen Elizabeth II in this article for The Root.

• “This opinion is an affront to anyone who believes that all Americans, whether a pauper or a former president, are subject to the same laws,” writes Ian Millhiser in explaining how Trump-appointed judge Aileen Cannon’s order could delay a Justice Department investigation in this piece for Vox.

• “The entire city of more than 150,000 was without safe drinking water, with no end in sight. Many residents here say they adapted long ago to catastrophic government failure,” Emmanuel Felton writes about the failing water system and ongoing water crisis in Jackson, Mississippi for The Washington Post.

Photo credit: AP Photo/Alastair Grant, Pool, File