(2019-03-13). Blackface and the American Idea of Race. counterpunch.org 
The price of scandal Periodically the American punditocracy convenes on cable TV for a "conversation about race." But, whether sparked by a celebrity chef's use of a racial slur, or a Black president's comment about the shooting of a Black teen, or a white president's remarks about "fine people on both sides" of a racist More
(2019-03-13). Union leader and members imprisoned in Myanmar. peoplesdispatch.org On March 1, the chairman and five other leaders and members of the workers' union at The Hotel @ Tharabar Gate in Myanmar's Bagan Archaeological Zone were sentenced to imprisonment for a period of one month. The six union members were convicted of protesting police intervention in the union's solidarity camp on December 12, when the camps were brutally destroyed by the police. | According to announcements made by the authorities, trade union activities have now been criminalized in the entire country. "The fact that the convicted trade unionists were arrested immediately following the verdict suggests that the lo…
(2019-03-13). Bangladesh unions demands release of garment workers. peoplesdispatch.org Following the imprisonment and framing of workers in false cases, unions in Bangladesh have asked the government to intervene. In a letter addressed to the Minister of Labour and Employment last week, IndustriALL Bangladesh Council demanded that the authorities take the initiative of reinstating the dismissed workers who were forced to resign for taking part in the mass protests last December. | Activists said that the Sheikh Hasina-led government has arrested more tha…
(2019-03-13). Jailing Chelsea Manning. counterpunch.org "I will not comply with this, or any other grand jury." So explained Chelsea Manning in justifying her refusal to answer questions and comply with a grand jury subpoena compelling her to testify on her knowledge of WikiLeaks. "Imprisoning me for my refusal to answer questions only subjects me to additional punishment for my repeatedly More
(2019-03-13). "The uprising in Sudan is building on decades of protests against the regime" peoplesdispatch.org As protests intensify in Sudan against president Omar al-Bashir, Peoples Dispatch talks to Dr. Fathi Elfad of the Sudanese Communist Party, who was recently released from prison, on the origins of the uprising and the repression unleashed by the state…
(2019-03-13). Governor to Place Moratorium on Death Penalty in California. truthdig.com SACRAMENTO, Calif.—The 737 inmates on California's largest-in-the-nation death row are getting a reprieve from Gov. Gavin Newsom, who plans to sign an executive order Wednesday placing a moratorium on executions. | Newsom also is withdrawing the lethal injection regulations that death penalty opponents already have tied up in courts and shuttering the new execution chamber at San Quentin State Prison that has never been used. | "The intentional killing of another person is wrong and as governor, I will not oversee the execution of any individual," he said in prepared remarks. | Newsom called the death penal…
(2019-03-13). Students and youth across the US demand freedom for Chelsea Manning. wsws.org The International Youth and Students for Socialist Equality is leading the fight to organize opposition to the imprisonment of whistleblower Chelsea Manning by holding a series of meetings and rallies.
(2019-03-13). Cardinal Pell Gets 6 Years, Registers As Sex Offender for Life. telesurenglish.net Australian Cardinal George Pell, who once served as the Vatican's chief financial officer and adviser to the pope, was handed a six-year prison sentence Wednesday. The disgraced clergyman will also be required to register as a sex offender for the rest of his life. | RELATED: | French Cardinal Convicted for Hiding Pedophile Priest's Abuses | The cardinal had been facing a maximum sentence of 50 years for the sexual abuse of two 13-year-old boys in 1996. Pell was found guilty of…
(2019-03-13). Justice for Stephon Clark; Chelsea Manning Back in Jail; Sheriff Still Wants Urban Shield. indybay.org Stephon Clark, AB392, Chelsea Manning, and Urban Shield are discussed in this morning's UpFront program on KPFA.
(2019-03-13). Defamed by media, Covington Catholic student sues CNN for $275 million. rt.com 
Nick Sandmann, the face of the Covington Catholic controversy, has filed a $275 million defamation lawsuit against CNN, framing the network's depiction of him as the "face of an unruly hate mob" as a false and "vicious attack."
(2019-03-13). What the Boycott of Manny's in the Mission Is All About. indybay.org The Mission is a cornerstone of progressive San Francisco. Galería de la Raza, Eric Quezada Center, the Mission Cultural Center and Brava Theater represent Mission communities and are critical spaces for conversations that challenge racism, class inequities and gender oppression. These institutions' roots lie in black and brown, poor and working class, queer and community organizing communities essential to the Mission's character. Enter Manny's.
(2019-03-12). Members of Congress Take Bold Step Towards Ending Discriminatory Bans on Abortion Coverage. aclu.org A new bill would end the Hyde Amendment and other related bans on insurance coverage of abortion. | Members of Congress on Tuesday took a bold step toward making the right to abortion a reality for everyone. The EACH Woman Act was reintroduced in the House — and introduced in the Senate for the first time ever. | This trailblazing legislation would end the Hyde Amendment and related bans on insurance coverage of abortion, which for over four decades have pushed…
(2019-03-12). Florida Is Using Facial Recognition to Convict People Without Giving Them a Chance to Challenge the Tech. aclu.org The Constitution requires the government to give defendants the chance to test technology used against them for bugs and biases. | If the government uses an error-prone face recognition system to identify you as the perpetrator of a crime, you have a constitutional right to probe its accuracy before you are convicted based on its results. But amazingly, a Florida appeals court disagrees. | So on Monday, the ACLU, the Electronic Frontier Foundation, the Georgetown Center on Privacy and Technology, and…
(2019-03-12). Budget cuts: Trump fiscal plan is a right-wing wish list. peoplesworld.org 
WASHINGTON—If proposed federal budgets are political documents—and they are then-President Donald Trump's budget for fiscal 2020, which starts Oct. 1 and ends just before next year's election, is a right-wing wish list, with a trillion dollars of red ink, tailored to appeal to his base. From $8.6 billion more for his racist Mexican Wall, to …
(2019-03-12). Whistleblower Chelsea Manning Stands Up for Press Freedom, Gets Jailed by US Gov't. mintpressnews.com 
President Donald Trump's 2010 statement that the WikiLeaks' staff should be executed and Hillary Clinton's suggestion to drone Assange, are reflective of a deeply disturbing trend to terrorize the press.
(2019-03-12). NAACP LAWSUIT SUPPORTING PROTECTED STATUS FOR HAITIANS MOVES FORWARD FEDERAL COURT REFUSES TRUMP ADMINISTRATION REQUEST TO DISMISS CASE. naacp.org 
BALTIMORE (March 12, 2019)—A federal court in Maryland today denied the government's attempt to block the NAACP's lawsuit challenging the Trump administration's decision to terminate Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitian nationals residing in the United States since the 2010 earthquake in Haiti. "This is a win for Haitians, NAACP members and immigrants of color," …
(2019-03-12). Fox News Commentator Uses Racist and Homophobic Language. telesurenglish.net A day after releasing audio of Tucker Carlson making numerous misogynist remarks, Media Matters for America (MMFA) published a new video with clips of the Fox News commentator using racist and homophobic language to describe Iraqi people, African Americans, gay people and immigrants while speaking on the radio program "Bubba the Love Sponge Show." Media Matters for America said the clips originated from between 2006 and 2011. | RELATED: | US: 200 'Peacekeeping' Troops to Remain in Syria | In th…
(2019-03-12). Marx for today: a socialist-feminist reading. mronline.org CONSIDERING HIS WORK as a whole, Marx had little to say directly about women's oppression or the relationship between patriarchy and capitalism.(1) And some of what he had to say was, well, misguided. Yet Marxist feminists have drawn on his thought to create a distinctive approach to understanding these issues.(2) | Source
(2019-03-12). International Women's Day in Tampa: Fight Trump's war on women. fightbacknews.org Tampa, FL – On March 10, over a dozen Tampa community, student and labor leaders gathered at Lykes Gaslight Park for a protest against President Donald Trump's anti-woman agenda. Since coming into office, Trump has led an all-out assault on women's rights, including defunding abortion services, erasing sections of Title IX that protect women from sexual assault and discrimination, and locking asylum-seeking women and children in cages in the southwestern United States. In the spirit of the women's marches that occurred in response to Trump's inauguration, protesters chanted "Pro-life is a lie, you don't care if p…
(2019-03-12). NAACP-Opposed judicial nominee coming up this week. naacp.org President Trump has nominated Ms. Neomi Rao to serve as a judge on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. Ms. Rao has an extraordinarily long record of hostility to the rights of people of color and other historically marginalized people. The NAACP is strongly opposed to this nomination, which may come before the full Senate for …
(2019-03-12). Fox News Condemns Host's Comments About Ilhan Omar. theantimedia.com Host Jeannine Pirro said Omar may not support the US Constitution because she wears a hijab. (MEE) — Fox News has condemned recent comments by host Jeannine Pirro about US Democratic Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, which prompted accusations of racism and Islamophobia, as well as calls for Pirro to resign, over the weekend. Pirro, host of the Fox News show …
(2019-03-12). Tucker Carlson on Rupert Murdoch in 2010 Radio Segment: "I'm 100 Percent His Bitch" theintercept.com "I only have, you know, American, white servants," Carlson said in 2009. "It's not because I'm racist, it's because I'm not. It's because I feel better beating them."
(2019-03-12). Banning Trans Girls From School Sports Is Neither Feminist Nor Legal. aclu.org Policing what it means to be a girl harms all girls. | Andraya Yearwood, a junior at Cromwell High School in Connecticut, recently finished second in the 55-meter dash at the state open indoor track championships. But instead of well-deserved accolades from her community, she now finds her achievements being publicly challenged — simply because she is transgender. | There is a long legacy of sex discrimination in athletics. Myths, such as the idea that physical exertion would harm wom…
(2019-03-11). NAACP 110th Convention Mobilizing in Detroit. naacp.org NAACP 110th Convention Mobilizing in Detroit Thousands Expected to Join in Setting NAACP 2020 Agenda Fighting Racism and Defending the Vote, Among Key Issues to be Discussed BALTIMORE (March 8, 2019) — The nation's foremost civil rights organization will kick off its 110th national convention on July 20-24, 2019 in Detroit, Michigan. "In a country shaped by race relations, pollution and polarizing political struggles, Detroit stands out as the …
(2019-03-11). The Leniency Shown to Paul Manafort Should Be the Norm for Everyone — Not Just Rich White Men. aclu.org To end mass incarceration, the criminal legal system should stop pushing long prison sentences as a default solution to punishing crime. | Last week, Americans got a front row seat to the two systems of justice we have in America, one reserved for rich white men and the other for communities of color. Unfortunately, though, many people may have drawn the wrong lessons from these examples. | On Thursday, Paul Manafort, a white man, got a 47-month sentence for massive tax and bank fraud, far less than the 24 years recommended by prosecutors. People were outraged, rightfully pointing out that every day in America, B…
(2019-03-11). Headlines for March 11, 2019. democracynow.org Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 Crashes, Killing All 157 On Board, Judge Jails Chelsea Manning For Refusing to Testify About WikiLeaks, Trump to Request $8.6 Billion for Border Wall in 2020 Budget, 1000s More Could Join ACLU Lawsuit over Trump Family Separation Policy, House Passes Election Reform Act Despite GOP Resistance, NYT Report Contradicts U.S. Claim That Maduro Responsible for "Aid" Convoy Fire, Guaidó to Declare Emergency as NYT Reports U.S. Sanctions Exacerbate Blackout, Netanyahu: "Israel Is Not a State of All Its Citizens", Gaza: Israeli Forces Shoot Palestinian Protesters, Killing 1, Fox Host Under Fi…
(2019-03-11). Court Blocks Unconstitutional Government Seizure of Mongols Motorcycle Club Trademark. aclu.org In a win for free speech, a federal judge soundly rejected "the government's affronts to the First Amendment." | More than 10 years ago, the Department of Justice launched an unconstitutional campaign of censorship against a motorcycle club and its mostly Latino membership. Now a federal court has decided against the government, sharply criticizing its overreach and abuse of power. | Under the guise of a racketeering prosecution using a law known as RICO, the government sought to seize the Mongols Motorcycle Club's trademark in its logo and strip members of the right to wear their distinctive patch. | On Feb. 28,…
(2019-03-11). "I Know No One More Patriotic": Daniel Ellsberg Praises Chelsea Manning After She Is Jailed Again. democracynow.org 
U.S. Army whistleblower Chelsea Manning has been sent back to jail after refusing to answer questions before a grand jury investigating WikiLeaks and its founder, Julian Assange. Manning had been subpoenaed by federal prosecutors in Virginia's Eastern District to appear for questioning about her 2010 leak to WikiLeaks of hundreds of thousands of State Department and Pentagon documents about the U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Manning was imprisoned from 2010 to 2017 for the leak. President Obama commuted her sentence before he left office. We speak with Pentagon Papers whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg about the s…
(2019-03-11). Glenn Greenwald: Chelsea Manning's Refusal to Testify Against WikiLeaks Will Help Save Press Freedom. democracynow.org 
Chelsea Manning has been sent back to jail after refusing to answer questions before a grand jury investigating WikiLeaks and its founder Julian Assange. Manning, a U.S. Army whistleblower, had been subpoenaed by federal prosecutors in Virginia's Eastern District to appear for questioning about her 2010 leak to WikiLeaks of hundreds of thousands of State Department and Pentagon documents about the U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. We speak with Glenn Greenwald, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and one of the founding editors of The Intercept.
(2019-03-11). The Wrong Stuff: Peinovich Co-Host Fired From EMT Job After Racist Comments Fall Under Scrutiny. splcenter.org Alex McNabb, co-host of the hate podcast "The Daily Shoah," was fired from his job as an emergency medical technician (EMT) on Sunday, according to WSLS, a Roanoke, Virginia-based NBC affiliate.
(2019-03-11). VIDEO: Inside the Decades-Long Republican Campaign to Suppress the Vote. thenation.com VIDEO: Inside the Decades-Long Republican Campaign to Suppress the Vote…
(2019-03-11). A GOP Bill in Georgia Would Jail Doctors Who Perform Abortions in a Post-Roe America. theintercept.com Five states have already passed a so-called trigger law, which would ban nearly all abortions if the Supreme Court were to overturn Roe v. Wade.
(2019-03-11). Billionaire Owners of Purdue Pharma Pushed Opioid Drug OxyContin Knowing it Could Kill. therealnews.com 
Released depositions revealed that Richard Sackler, owner of Purdue Pharma, lied to physicians about the danger of OxyContin. Now Purdue Pharma is considering declaring bankruptcy to avoid lawsuits. Tarbell.org founder Wendell Potter discusses the case…
(2019-03-11). Rally opposes Christmas Island plan. greenleft.org.au 
About 80 people attended a rally called by the Refugee Action Collective on March 2 to protest against the Australian government's plan to reopen the detention centre on Christmas Island and send refugees from Manus Island and Nauru there. | The rally heard Shamindan Kanapadhi, a Tamil refugee on Manus, speak by phone about the conditions there, including inadequate medical care. He said "all of us on Manus are mentally sick," because of the inhumane and humiliating treatment to which they are subject. | Rally co-chair Tara Josem read a message from David Price, the CEO of Christmas Island shire, who said th…
(2019-03-11). Dungay family 'want the truth' on death in custody. greenleft.org.au 
"The family just want the truth to come out," Leetona Dungay told supporters and the media outside the New Coroners Court on March 4. Dungay is the mother of Aboriginal man David Dungay Jnr, who died in Long Bay Jail as a result of assault by prison guards in 2015. | Members of the Dungay family and supporters had gathered at the entrance to the court to express solidarity with Leetona in her quest for justice from the NSW legal system at the coroner's inquiry beginning that day. | "Me and my family have endured so much grief over my son's death," she said. "But we will not stop until we achieve justice…
(2019-03-10). CNN may be sued for over $250mn in damages for 'vicious' attacks on Covington 'MAGA kids' — lawyer. rt.com 
CNN will be slapped with a massive lawsuit for its "vicious" and "direct attacks" on Covington Catholic student Nick Sandmann, the kid's lawyer told Fox News. The Washington Post has already been hit with a similar suit. |
(2019-03-09). Letter to Donors from President Johnson. naacp.org Strategic Realignment for a Stronger, Unified NAACP: A Letter to Donors from NAACP President and CEO Derrick Johnson As you know, in October 2017, following the same Board meeting where I was appointed President/CEO, the NAACP Board of Directors announced its plan to expand our national structure to include a new organization, tax-exempt under section …
(2019-03-09). Chelsea Manning off to jail: Mainstream media would care if this was Russia. rt.com 
Does the American media care that a whistleblower was hauled off to jail for refusing to testify to a secret grand jury? Not really. After all, there's 'Russian collusion' to chase. |
(2019-03-09). Chelsea Manning Jailed for Refusing to Cooperate with Wikileaks Grand Jury. therealnews.com 
Chelsea Manning said her testimony before her court martial is all she has to say, standing by her resistance to secret grand juries as her activist ancestors did before her. Kevin Gosztola, Managing Editor of Shadowproof, discusses the case…
(2019-03-09). US women footballers go to court for pay equality. greenleft.org.au 
United States football (soccer) players filed a federal gender discrimination lawsuit on International Women's Day on March 8 seeking pay equal to that of their male counterparts. | The action comes just three months before the women's national team will defend its title at the Women's World Cup. | The class-action lawsuit was filed today in a Los Angeles federal court under the Equal Pay Act and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. It alleges gender-based discrimination by the US Football Federation. | The players allege they have been subject to ongoing "institutionalised gender discrimination". This includes une…
(2019-03-08). Weekend Read: Why is racism still America's biggest problem? splcenter.org It rained on marchers from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama, in 1965, and it rained on them again last weekend as they commemorated the day when police beat civil rights marchers so badly that the date became known the nation over as Bloody Sunday.
(2019-03-08). NAACP Commends House Passage of For the People Act — H.R. 1 Election Reform Bill. naacp.org Contact: Malik Russell /mrussell@naacpnet.org BALTIMORE (March 8, 2019)—The nation's leading civil rights organization issued the following statement regarding today's passage of groundbreaking election reform bill For the People Act/H.R. 1 by the U.S. House of Representatives. "The For the People Act represents a powerful effort to reinforce the truest principles of our democracy and pushes …
(2019-03-08). A Federal Appeals Court Confirms That the Constitution Guarantees Immigrants Access to Courts. aclu.org In a landmark decision, a federal appeals court struck down a law limiting judicial review of expedited removal orders as unconstitutional. | In a major decision on Thursday, a federal appeals court held that immigrants are entitled to seek judicial review of their "expedited removal" orders in federal court. This decision is a significant step towards ensuring that vulnerable asylum seekers and others will get a fair shot to prove their claims that our immigration laws and the U.S. Constitution guarantee. | Vijayakumar Th…
(2019-03-08). International Women's Day 2019: We have had enough of Trump and the war on women. fightbacknews.org Enough is enough. Trump, his administration, and his backers are waging war on women, and millions of women are making it clear that we are not going to be pushed backwards. From the massive Women's Marches, to the midterm elections, to the constant, everyday resistance, women are standing up against Trump's reactionary agenda. | Trump and his supporters in the Senate want to pack the Supreme Court and roll back reproductive rights, and they have gotten a start by appointing the drunken misogynist Brett Kavanaugh. Accompanying the administrations outrageous policy of placing immigrants in detention, Trump's Justi…
(2019-03-08). It's Time to Tell the Truth: Israeli Journalist Gideon Levy Supports Ilhan Omar's Critique of Israel. democracynow.org 
The House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed a resolution Thursday condemning anti-Semitism, anti-Muslim discrimination, white supremacy and other forms of hate, following a week of debate among congressional Democrats. The controversy began after some lawmakers accused Democratic Congressmember Ilhan Omar of invoking anti-Semitic tropes while questioning U.S. foreign policy on Israel. The House leadership initially drafted a resolution condemning anti-Semitism in what was seen as a direct rebuke of Omar. But many progressive Democrats said Omar, one of the first two Muslim Congresswoman in U.S. history, wa…
(2019-03-08). Debate over Ilhan Omar Highlights New Willingness in U.S. to Question Power of Pro-Israeli Lobby. democracynow.org 
Following a week of debate surrounding Democratic Congressmember Ilhan Omar's comments about U.S. foreign policy in Israel, the House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed a resolution Thursday condemning anti-Semitism, anti-Muslim discrimination, white supremacy and other forms of hate. We host a discussion with Gideon Levy, Haaretz columnist and member of the newspaper's editorial board; Phyllis Bennis, a fellow at the Institute for Policy Studies who serves on the national board of Jewish Voice for Peace; and Remi Kanazi, a Palestinian-American poet, writer and organizer based in New York City.
(2019-03-08). Ilhan Omar in Her Own Words: I Know What Hate Feels Like. democracynow.org 
The House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed a resolution Thursday condemning anti-Semitism, anti-Muslim discrimination, white supremacy and other forms of hate. The vote was 407 to 23, with nearly two dozen Republicans voting against it. The vote capped a week of intense debate among congressional Democrats that began after some lawmakers accused Democratic Congressmember Ilhan Omar of invoking anti-Semitic tropes while questioning U.S. foreign policy on Israel at an event last week. Omar said, "I want to talk about the political influence in this country that says it is OK for people to push for allegianc…
(2019-03-08). As Manning Goes to Jail, Watch the 19th Vigil for Assange. consortiumnews.com As Chelsea Manning is jailed for refusing to testify against Julian Assange, watch the discussion on 19th online vigil for Julian Assange. The guests included Greg Palast, Brian Becker, Lee Stranahan, John Kiriakou, George Szamuely and hosts Elizabeth Vos and… Read more →
(2019-03-08). The Manafort Sentence Is a Lesson in White Privilege. thenation.com The Manafort Sentence Is a Lesson in White Privilege…
(2019-03-08). Labour's Fight Over Israel Long Time in Coming. consortiumnews.com The party is being dragged into the modern world by Corbyn's anti-racist leadership towards Palestinians, writes Jonathan Cook. By JonathanCook Jonathan-Cook.net An announcement this week by the Jewish Labour Movement that it is considering splitting from the British Labour Party… Read more →