(2019-12-29). Here Are Five Ways to Support Chelsea Manning in 2020. truthout.org The year 2019 has been a nightmare for whistleblower Chelsea Manning and her supporters. While Donald Trump cleared three members of the United States Army who reportedly murdered Afghani civilians, Manning is, once again, confined for acting in accord with her own principles. In 2010, she was imprisoned for leaking classified military and diplomatic documents that exposed U.S. war crimes, including the murder of Iraqi and Afghani civilians. | This time, Manning is not charged with or convicted of a crime. On March…
(2019-12-29). Environmental Activists Celebrate 'A Victory for Our Oceans'. truthdig.com Defenders of ocean habitats celebrated Friday after a federal court upheld a lower court ruling defending the right of the U.S. executive branch to set aside marine areas as national monuments. | Citing the authority found under the Antiquities Act of 1906 to establish marine national monuments, the U.S. Court of Appeals in the District of Columbia sided against a lawsuit brought by large fishing industry interests that challenged President Barack Obama's designation of the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument, which encompases 4,913 square miles of the Atlantic Ocean off the nation's northeas…
(2019-12-29). Iran lashes out at French 'interference' over jailed academic accused of espionage. rt.com 
Tehran has accused Paris of interfering in the case of an Iranian-French academic who has been arrested over accusations of spying. | France's protests against the imprisonment of Fariba Adelkhah and another academic, Roland Marchal, constitute an "act of interference" that has "no legal basis," Iran's foreign ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi said in a statement on Sunday. | "Creating hype cannot stop Iran's judiciary from handling the case, especially considering the security charges the two face," Mousavi said. | France announced on Friday that it had summoned Iran's ambassador in order to protest against Ad…
(2019-12-29). New Year's swap: Dozens head home as Ukraine & breakaway Donbass conduct 'all for all' prisoner exchange. rt.com 
Kiev is exchanging dozens of prisoners with the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Lugansk republics in the first such effort in two years. The swap was given a boost at the recent Normandy Four talks in Paris. | The self-declared Donetsk People's Republic has handed over 51 people to Kiev, while receiving 61 of their followers. The Lugansk region returned 25 and took in 63 prisoners; nine people held by Kiev refused to partake in the exchange. | The office of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed that Kiev had received a total of 76 people from Donetsk and Lugansk. | Donetsk's authorities said their list…
(2019-12-28). Julian Assange "slowly dying" and "often sedated" in Belmarsh prison. wsws.org Assange's phone call highlights the danger that he could die in jail, effectively at the hands of the British, US and Australian governments.
(2019-12-28). Chile: 6 Military Police Detained for Sexual Abuse in Protests. telesurenglish.net The 10th Guarantees Court of Santiago Friday issued preventive detention for six Military police accused of torturing and sexually abusing a young man during the curfew that President Sebastian Piñera ordered during the first days of the social outbreak in Chile. | RELATED: | Chile: Piñera Signs Decree Calling Constitutional Referendum | The six members o…
(2019-12-28). Voter Suppression Exposes the Paradox of Black Citizenship in a Racist Society. truthout.org Black citizenship has always been up for debate in the United States. The conditions in which Black people live — or survive — are a testament to this. Whether rich or poor, Black people live under the constant threat of state violence. There is no escape from it, and any Black person can fall victim to it. For many, citizenship can feel like a saving grace, despite continually being subject to constant threats. But the category of citizenship itself is a contradiction when we t…
(2019-12-28). After Nearly 100 Days Of Hunger Strike, Ahmad Zahran Still Imprisoned Without Charge. imemc.org After almost a record 100 days of hunger strike, Israel insists on keeping Ahmad Zahran behind bars, without charge or trial and based on secret evidence. The Palestinian Prisoners' Commission said in a statement, today, that Zahran, 42, has been on hunger strike for 97 consecutive days, demanding a fair …
(2019-12-28). Court Upholds Ruling Protecting Marine Area Against Oil and Fishing Interests. truthout.org Defenders of ocean habitats celebrated Friday after a federal court upheld a lower court ruling defending the right of the U.S. executive branch to set aside marine areas as national monuments. | Citing the authority found under the Antiquities Act of 1906 to establish marine national monuments, the U.S. Court of Appeals in the District of Columbia sided against a lawsuit brought by large fishing industry interests that challenged President Barack Obama's designation of the Northeast Cany…
(2019-12-28). Prison gave me a greater will to fight. zcomm.org Interview on the reality that Brazil is experiencing and the social protests that have occurred in several Latin American countries…
(2019-12-28). US military contractors sued for funding terrorism in Afghanistan with 'protection' payments to Taliban. rt.com 
Bribes paid by international military contractors in Afghanistan were used by the Taliban to fund attacks on companies that didn't make the payments, according to a lawsuit filed by families of those injured or killed as a result. | "Large corporations that had lucrative businesses in Afghanistan" paid off the Taliban through a series of subcontractors, bribing the Afghan militants in order to save money on security, according to a lawsuit filed on Friday in federal court by the families of 143 US soldiers and contractors injured and killed during the longest war in American history. The 288-page civil suit …
(2019-12-28). Your technology is mine! Doctor sues Apple over Apple Watch heart rate monitoring method. rt.com 
The technology that an Apple Watch uses to detect heartbeat irregularities violates a patent held by a New York University cardiologist, he has alleged in a lawsuit filed against the tech giant. | Dr. Joseph Wiesel asked a federal court in Brooklyn to order Apple to pay damages, claiming the company is violating his rights "with knowledge and understanding". | According to court papers, Dr. Wiesel invented a method and device for detecting atrial fibrillation, using photoplethysmography to "assess w…
(2019-12-27). Pro-Coup Venezuelan Soldiers Who Fled to the US Now Locked Up in ICE Detention Center. mintpressnews.com 
In an ironic twist worthy of an Alanis Morissette song, participants in U.S.-backed coup are now in an ICE detention camp.
(2019-12-27). "Bedlam": Film Shows How Decades of Healthcare Underfunding Made Jails "De Facto Mental Asylums" democracynow.org 
Are prisons and jails America's "new asylums"? A new documentary looks at how a disproportionate number of underserved people facing mental health challenges have been swept into the criminal justice system, where they lack adequate treatment. Nearly 15% of men and more than 30% of women in jails have a serious mental illness, such as schizophrenia, major depression or bipolar disorder. For many of them, jail is their first point of entry into mental health treatment. The documentary "Bedlam" was filmed over five years in Los Angeles County's overwhelmed and vastly under-resourced Emergency Psychiatry Services, a…
(2019-12-27). William Barr's Police-Fueled War on Civil Rights. thenation.com 
The attorney general's obsession with protecting the police is a throwback to the crackdown on protesters in the 1960s.
(2019-12-27). Wikileaks Still Holding Powerful to Account as Founder Julian Assange "Slowly Dies" in Prison. mintpressnews.com Julian Assange is dying inside Belmarsh Prison in London. Those are his own words, relayed through English journalist Vaughan Smith, who revealed that the Wikileaks founder called him on Christmas Eve to share his greetings. Smith also divulged that Assange told him he is kept in solitary confinement 23 hours per day and is often sedated. | His treatment has elicited protests around the world, from journalists, news organizations, human rights groups and celebrities. Last week a group of Australian doctors asked Foreign Minister Marise Pay…
(2019-12-27). Human Rights and Political Conflict in Cameroon: The Anglophone Secessionist State of "Ambazonia" globalresearch.ca On an ugliness scale of one to ten, if the U.S. Guantanamo prison is 7, the French military in Algeria 8, Pinochet's controls of Chile 9, and the Inquisition 10, the severity, scale and number of Cameroon military human rights …
(2019-12-27). Lula To Fight Neoliberalism to Restore Democracy in Brazil. telesurenglish.net The former president of Brazil, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, said Thursday that he has the will to fight to restore democracy in his country and to fight against the current situation of people under the government of Jair Bolsonaro. | RELATED: | Brazil's Senate Advances Bill That May Send Lula Back to Prison | In an exclusive interview for teleSUR, the Workers Party leader reiterated that the South American nation has "all the conditions to recover a democratic debate … and co…
(2019-12-27). Headlines for December 27, 2019. democracynow.org In Confidential Videos, Navy SEALs Say Gallagher Was "Toxic" & "Freaking Evil", Hospitals & Health Clinics Shuttered by Heavy Bombing in Idlib, Syria, Japan to Deploy Destroyer to Middle East Amid Rising Tensions in Gulf of Oman, Nigerian-American Journalist Omoyele Sowore Released from Prison, In India, Protests Rage Against "Anti-Muslim" Citizenship Law, Netanyahu Staves Off Party Leadership Challenge Ahead of General Election, Mexico to Bring Complaint Against Bolivia's Interim Government to ICJ, Congolese Asylum Seeker Died in Border Patrol Custody on Christmas Day, Los Angeles Prosecutors Consider Filing Cri…
(2019-12-27). Lula: Prison strengthened me and gave me a greater will to fight. peoplesdispatch.org In an exclusive interview for teleSUR, the former-president discussed the current context in Brazil as well as the anti-neoliberal uprisings that have occurred in several Latin American countries…
(2019-12-26). Independent UN rights experts raise alarm over 'incommunicado detention' of Chinese scholar. news.un.org Independent United Nations human rights experts expressed apprehension on Thursday over the "incommunicado detention" of a Uyghur Muslim academic who has reportedly been sentenced to death.
(2019-12-26). Headlines for December 26, 2019. democracynow.org Murkowski "Disturbed" by McConnell's "Coordination" with White House for Impeachment Trial, Trump Attacks Windmills with a Series of False Claims, The Intercept: Bloomberg Used Prison Labor to Make 2020 Campaign Calls, Thousands of Syrian Civilians Flee Government Offensive in Idlib, 35 Civilians Killed in Attack in Burkina Faso, China Calls on U.S. to Take "Concrete Steps" Toward Peace with North Korea, At Least 21 Killed as Typhoon Phanfone Slams into the Philippines, U.S. Ambassador to Zambia Recalled After Criticizing Criminalization of Homosexuality, Evo Morales Vows to Return to Bolivia by Next Christmas, H…
(2019-12-24). Immigration detention centers "rife with abuse," investigation reveals. peoplesdispatch.org An investigation into the detention centers maintained under the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), by USA Today, revealed rampant physical and sexual abuse of migrant detainees. The investigation, published on December 23, analyzed inspection reports since 2015, and identified more than 16,000 reports of violence, apart from hundreds of documents and records of inspections, lawsuits, finance reports and contracts. The investigation also documented 35 first hand accounts from current and former detainees, about the conditions inside the centers. | This is the largest and the most extensive i…
(2019-12-24). Across the Country Harsh Sentencing Laws are Tearing Apart Families and Communities. aclu.org During the holiday season, in the picturesque town of Petoskey, | Michigan, Kimiko Uyeda, and her son Marshall celebrate with an annual tradition | of selecting a new ornament to add to | their tree. Year after year, Kimko and Marshall add to their collection | of ornaments as a part of their tradition. | For years, however, they were separated from one another and | unable to enjoy this holiday tradition together. It all began in 2013 when Kimko was arrested for | filing what the local sheriff believed to be a false police report. Because of | broken sentencing laws, the prosecutor in the case was able to add…
(2019-12-24). A Trump Reelection Aide Just Said the Quiet Part Out Loud. thenation.com A Trump Reelection Aide Just Said the Quiet Part Out Loud…
(2019-12-24). Guterres stresses need for independent, 'impartial investigation' into Saudi journalist Khashoggi's death. news.un.org As Saudi Arabia handed death sentences to five people and sent three others to jail for the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, the United Nations Secretary-General continued to stress the need for "an independent and impartial investigation".
(2019-12-23). Much work needed to 'target unacceptable levels' of racism in Ecuador: UN experts. news.un.org Ecuador must implement and enforce laws and policies to protect the rights of Afro-Ecuadorians, the UN Working Group on People of African Descent said on Monday, calling for an end to the "discrimination, exclusion and extreme poverty they suffer."
(2019-12-21). Medical Opinion, Torture, and Julian Assange. dissidentvoice.org 
On November 27 this year, UN Special Rapporteur on Torture, Nils Melzer, delivered an address to the German Bundestag outlining his approach to understanding the mental health of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange. These comprised two parts, the initial stage covering his diplomatic asylum in the Ecuadorean embassy, the second dealing with his formal detention in …
(2019-12-20). Samsung boss sent to prison for union busting. peoplesworld.org 
There are roughly 7,111 languages spoken around the world. As we close out 2019 and enter 2020, that number will increase (or decrease) as we continue to understand, grasp, and document what constitutes a spoken or written language. In any case, and in any language, we can all agree: Union busting is disgusting. And, unlike …
(2019-12-20). Public housing residents sue NYC over slum conditions. liberationnews.org 
In addition to demanding repairs, residents involved in this lawsuit are demanding full public funding for NYCHA.
(2019-12-20). A Fair Chance at Opportunity: The U.S. Government Bans the Box. aclu.org When Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) reintroduced the Fair Chance Act earlier this year, he | said: "This bill would give individuals who are reentering society from prison | a fair chance at truly achieving the American dream." The Fair Chance Act would | ban the box that employers use to ask about arrest and conviction history on | job applications. It also requires that federal agencies and contr…
(2019-12-20). Four Lawyers. Four Projects. One Non-Stop Year. aclu.org 
It isn't news that the Trump administration has kept ACLU attorneys working at breakneck speed for the past three years. In 2019 alone, we saw historic moments and victories—from defeating the citizenship question on the 2020 census and bringing the first trans civil rights case to the Supreme Court, to blocking a wave of abortion bans and many of the administration's attempts to dismantle the asylum system. To name a few. | Here are some of our attorneys' takes on 2019 and the year ahead—what's changed for the better and for the worse, and how the outcome of the 2020 presidential election will a…
(2019-12-19). FBI Surveillance of Trump Aide Reflects Flaws in Secretive FISA System That Mostly Targets Muslims. democracynow.org 
Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz said Wednesday the FBI should have considered halting its surveillance of Trump's campaign aide Carter Page months before it did, after it was revealed that accusations against him may not be credible. Horowitz made the comments while testifying to the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, saying the FBI used false information to obtain approval to wiretap Trump campaign adviser Carter Page and raising wider concerns about the agency's use of surveillance. He testified a day after the highly secretive Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Co…
(2019-12-19). 10 LGBTQ Moments that Defined 2019. aclu.org 
1. Aimee Stephens goes to the Supreme Court: | In October, the Supreme Court heard its first trans civil rights case ever. The case was brought by our client Aimee Stephens, who was fired from her job at a funeral home solely for being transgender. That's sex discrimination and it violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. , | We have yet to see whether the Supreme Court will uphold the civil rights of trans people. But no matter what, history has already been made. , | "I'll never forget the feeling of coming out of the Supreme Court and seeing a crowd of trans people and allies chanting to…
(2019-12-18). A Secret CBP Team is Targeting and Detaining Innocent Travelers. We're Suing. aclu.org U.S. Customs and Border Protection is deploying secret teams that target, detain, and interrogate innocent travelers. We're suing to expose their activities. | In November 2018, three CBP officers detained Andreas | Gal, a former chief | technology officer at Mozilla Corporation and current Apple employee, at San | Francisco International Airport after he landed from a business trip to Sweden. | Andr…
(2019-12-18). A Tennessee City Banned Surgical Abortion Within the City Limits. We're Taking Them to Court. aclu.org For 30 years, I have | worked in reproductive health care. In my current role as Chief Operating | Officer of carafem, a nonprofit with a national network of health centers, I | know the difference compassionate and comprehensive reproductive health care | makes in the lives of our clients. I have witnessed the personal impact when | people who have the legal right to have a child or to have an abortion are denied | those rights due to outrageous societal barriers. Abortion providers are used | to opposition, but we've never experienced the kind of explicit targeting we | received from politicians in the city…
(2019-12-18). A Little-Known Privacy Battle Is Being Waged Over Encrypting the Nuts and Bolts of the Internet. aclu.org An important fight is brewing over the nuts and bolts of the | Internet that has significant implications for the privacy and security of all Internet | users. The fight has already pitted Google and Cloudflare against American | telecommunications companies, which are lobbying | Congress | to complain about the search giant. The fight is complicated, but at its core | are questions about c…
(2019-12-18). Headlines for December 18, 2019. democracynow.org House to Hold Historic Impeachment Vote Today, Top U.S. Diplomat to Ukraine William Taylor to Step Down, Rick Gates Sentenced to 45 Days in Jail and $20,000 Fine, FISA Court Orders FBI to Change National Security Wiretaps After DOJ Report, Democratic Primary Debate to Go Forward After Labor Dispute Resolved, Senate Approves One of the Most Expensive Military Spending Bills in U.S. History, Trump Meets with Outgoing Guatemalan President Jimmy Morales, Indian Supreme Court to Hear Challenge to Controversial Citizenship Law, Strikes Continue Nationwide in France over Pension Overhaul, Bolivia's Evo Morales Names Two…
(2019-12-17). Democratic Candidates Focus on Public Education at Historic Forum with Civil Rights & Labor Groups. democracynow.org 
Ahead of the last Democratic presidential debate of the year this Thursday, seven candidates appeared Saturday at the historic Democratic Presidential Forum on Public Education in Pittsburgh, an event organized by public education organizations, unions, civil rights organizations and community groups. We play highlights from the forum and get response from Keron Blair, director of the Alliance to Reclaim Our Schools in Atlanta; Jitu Brown, national director of the Journey for Justice Alliance; and Carol Burris, executive director of the Network for Public Education Action. She recently authored a report titled "S…
(2019-12-17). US Venezuelan embassy protectors denied right to fair trial. thegrayzone.com Four US activists protecting Venezuela's embassy in Washington, DC face prison time after the Trump administration illegally arrested them. And now…
(2019-12-17). It's Clear: In Oklahoma Cash Bail is Being Used as Ransom to Keep People Who Are Poor Behind Bars. aclu.org Imagine you are one of the 4,000 people arrested every year in Canadian County, Oklahoma, a county with less than 200,000 people. Maybe the police find marijuana in your car during a traffic stop, maybe the police have mistaken you for someone else, or perhaps you can't afford the $40 per month you owe the court from a different charge. | After you're arrested, things will go one of two ways. You may | spend an hour or two in the jail for booking and then go home until your court | date. Or, you might sit in jail for weeks or months until your court date, | eating substandard food and sleeping on a linoleum fl…
(2019-12-16). He spent 36 years in prison because he stole $100 in cash and $4 in food stamps. Now Willie Parker is free. splcenter.org It was pouring rain the day Willie Parker left William E. Donaldson Correctional Facility after 36 years in prison.
(2019-12-14). Cop Charged with Making Multiple False Arrests. therealnews.com 
Baltimore Police Sgt Ethan Newberg is facing 32 counts of false imprisonment and assault for using illegal arrests to intimidate the community, prosecutors allege.
(2019-12-13). Weekend Read: Amid Alabama's prison crisis, the voices of the people living through it should be heard. splcenter.org For years, Alabama's prison system has been under a microscope. Harsh sentencing laws coupled with chronic underfunding have led to horrific conditions for people behind bars.
(2019-12-04). SPLC lawsuit seeks to restore Mississippi citizens' right to vote. splcenter.org When they were children, Herman Parker and his three sisters went to their grandparents' house every election day.
(2019-12-02). Prison By Any Other Name: A Report on South Florida Detention Facilities. splcenter.org …
(2019-12-02). Civil Rights Are on the Chopping Block in New Supreme Court Term. zcomm.org Hello, A very small proportion of ZNet content is available only to Sustainers. You can become a sustainer for a small repeating donation – monthly or yearly via the links for Sustaining, or Donating, available on the top page of ZNet.
(2019-11-24). Just Trying to Get It. zcomm.org Front page of the Guardian Review I'm trying to get it: a US president who waged war against 7 Muslim countries; droned, murdered and terrorized thousands of civilians in some of the poorest countries on earth; just by the way got rid of habeas corpus; spent a trillion dollars on "modernizing" the US military and Read more…
(2019-11-21). After parole, Alabama man gets life back on track, helps others. splcenter.org Chris "Champ" Napier started speaking to students and at-risk youth about his experience in prison before he knew he would ever regain his freedom.
(2019-11-13). Neo-Nazi Group NSM Faces New Upheaval After James Hart Stern's Death. splcenter.org The leadership of the neo-Nazi National Socialist Movement (NSM) has been thrown into chaos again following the death of self-described civil rights activist James Hart Stern.