(2019-05-30). Learn Costs of War & Celebrate Peace Heroes Assange & Manning. indybay.org To counteract the jingoism of all capitalist media in this country in its promotion of the war machine which only exists to maximize the profits of the oil companies and the munitions makers, a few websites are in order to remind us all of the Costs of War and the Peace Heroes Assange & Manning currently jailed by the US war machine.
(2019-05-30). Comoros president pardons 17 jailed opposition figures. cgtn.com 
Comoros President Azali Assoumani pardoned 17 jailed opposition figures in a decree issued on Wednesday. | Among those freed was Hassane Ahmed el-Barwane, secretary general of the main Juwa opposition party, who was sentenced to seven years in prison for assaulting a soldier. | All those pardoned were jailed for up to 20 years on charges linked to unrest that followed a controversial constitutional referendum to extend the president's term last year. | Four others sentenced to life on charges of attempting a coup and threatening state security had their terms reduced to 20 years, said presidential adviser Mohamed…
(2019-05-30). WikiLeaks expresses 'grave concerns' as Julian Assange's health deteriorates further. thecanary.co Julian Assange was unable to appear in court via videolink for his US extradition hearing on 30 May amid "grave concerns" for the WikiLeaks founder's health. This news is a predictable result of the UK's wilful neglect of Assange's well-being. | "Grave concerns": | On 28 May, Reuters reported that Assan…
(2019-05-30). Amid grave concerns for his health, Assange transferred to Belmarsh Prison medical wing. wsws.org The WSWS demands Assange's immediate release from the maximum security prison and his transfer to a hospital with the best medical care available and with doctors of his choice.
(2019-05-30). SPLC lawsuit: ICE illegally denying parole to asylum seekers in Southeast. splcenter.org The SPLC and the American Civil Liberties Union of Louisiana filed suit today against the Trump administration for categorically denying release to hundreds of people who are languishing in immigration prisons after lawfully seeking asylum in the United States.
(2019-05-30). Sydney Peace Prize recipients urge support for Julian Assange. greenleft.org.au 
The Council for Peace with Justice (CPJ) University of Sydney released the following statement on May 26. | *** | As Julian Assange faces US Espionage Act charges, which carry 175 years prison, high profile recipients of Australia's prestigious international Peace Prize are calling on the Australian government to "protect the human rights of this distinguished Australian citizen". | Professor Noam Chomsky; Dr. Vandana Shiva; artist George Gittoes; Julian Burnside QC; journalist and film maker John Pilger; and Senator Sekai Holland, have joined former Chair of the Sydney Peace Foundation, Mary Kostakidis and Found…
(2019-05-30). US Welcomes Turkey's Decision to Free Former NASA Scientist From Prison. theantimedia.com (MEE) — Turkey has freed a dual US-Turkish citizen Serkan Golge from prison, the US State Department confirmed, in the latest conciliatory gesture that may help ease some ongoing tensions between the two countries. The US State Department welcomed the news of Golge's release on Wednesday, almost three years after the former NASA scientist was rounded …
(2019-05-30). Julian Assange and the degraded spectacle of Britain's Guardian. wsws.org Under conditions in which the WikiLeaks journalist is facing life in prison or worse, the Guardian cannot bring itself to defend him.
(2019-05-30). Trial Begins for Man Facing 20 Years in Prison for Giving Water to Migrants in Desert. theantimedia.com (CD) — Human rights advocates accused the U.S. Justice Department of "criminalizing compassion" as a federal trial began in Arizona Wednesday for activist Scott Warren, who faces up to 20 years in prison for providing humanitarian aid to migrants in the desert. Warren, a 36-year-old college geography instructor from Ajo, Arizona, is a volunteer for the humanitarian organization No More Deaths/No …
(2019-05-30). Ecuador Judge Admits Lack of Evidence Against Ola Bini. telesurenglish.net Programmer and digital privacy activist Ola Bini was denied bail again Wednesday evening by an Ecuadorean judge, continuing his indefinite imprisonment that is currently at 51 days. | RELATED: | UN: 'Nothing in This Story Connects Ola Bini With Any Crime' | Prosecutors have, so far, failed to formally charge the 37-year-old Swede with violating any Ecuadorean law, prompting one of his lawyers, Jose Davalos, to tweet that "Ecuador's justice system, yesterday and today, is at the se…
(2019-05-30). Colombia: FARC Leader Jesus Santrich Freed at Top Court's Order. telesurenglish.net Colombia's Prosecutor office announced Thursday the release of Jesus Santrich, less than a day after the country's Supreme Court ordered his release, the latest development in a legal saga concerning his detention and possible extradition to the United States. | RELATED: | Supreme Court of Colombia Orders Release of Jesus Santrich | From prison, Santric…
(2019-05-30). Trump Admin's Move to Delay Placing Harriet Tubman on $20 Bill Is "Rooted in Misogyny & Racism" democracynow.org 
The Trump administration is under fire for delaying plans to replace Andrew Jackson's portrait on the $20 bill with abolitionist leader Harriet Tubman. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin made the announcement last week, saying Tubman won't appear on the bill until at least 2026. Under a 2016 Obama initiative, Tubman was originally scheduled to replace Andrew Jackson by 2020—the 100th anniversary of women being granted the right to vote. She will be the first woman in over a century and the first African American to appear on the front of a U.S. banknote. Andrew Jackson was a slaveholder who in 1830 signed th…
(2019-05-30). Harriet Tubman Snub Is a Reflection of Trump's Worldview. commondreams.org Donald Trump is, put simply, expressing and enacting an overtly racist agenda. (Photo: Screenshot) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/harriet-tubman-stamp-2-1-720×580-1.jpeg…
(2019-05-30). Milwaukee agrees to pay $6.75M to family of inmate who died of dehydration. nationofchange.org Milwaukee County officials have | agreed to pay nearly $7 million to settle a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the | family of a mentally ill man in police custody who died of severe dehydration. | The officers responsible for the inmate's death were charged with neglect, | misconduct, and obstruction. | In April 2016, Terrill Thomas was | arrested and charged with reckless endangerment and felony firearms violations | after he allegedly shot a man in front of his residence and later fired a gun | inside a casino.
(2019-05-30). 3 white women sue 'totalitarian' diversity-obsessed NYC school system for discrimination. rt.com 
Three white New York City school administrators are suing the Department of Education, claiming they were demoted and replaced with less-qualified but racially-diverse colleagues as part of a crusade against "toxic whiteness."
(2019-05-30). Class action lawsuit brought in US against generic-drug makers for colluding to fix prices. wsws.org The soaring cost of prescription drugs is directly linked to criminal practices by giant corporations.
(2019-05-30). Rally vows to defend refugees' rights. greenleft.org.au 
Three hundred people rallied on May 24 to show solidarity with refugees, who face increasing attacks following the re-election of the Coalition government. | Lucy Honan, representing the Refugee Action Collective which called the rally, said the election result had been "bruising" for refugees and their supporters. Even though Labor and the Coalition shared bipartisan policies of offshore detention and boat turnbacks, refugees had hoped for some changes from a Labor government. | Labor had promised to accept New Zealand's offer to take 150 refugees a year from Manus and Nauru. This had raised the hopes of th…
(2019-05-30). 'Fire Zuck' Projected onto Hotel as Facebook Shareholders Arrive for Annual Meeting. commondreams.org Accusing the social media giant Facebook of actively working in opposition to "democracy and human rights," the internet freedom and civil rights group Fight for the Future greeted the company's shareholders arriving for their annual meeting with a demand that they fire CEO Mark Zuckerberg. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/screen_shot_2019-05-30_at_11.08.13_am.jpg…
(2019-05-30). Raising Some Issues at Oral Communications. indybay.org Continued delay and inaction on providing homeless shelter and services (to say nothing of civil rights) for homeless folks was the silent part of yesterday's Santa Cruz City Council agenda. Several of us raised issues at Oral Communications…
(2019-05-30). NAACP President: "Mueller's Statement Confirms Integrity of Our Democracy Continues to be at Risk" naacp.org NAACP president and CEO, Derrick Johnson, released the following statement: "Special Counsel Robert Mueller's statement on the Russia investigation confirms that the integrity and security of our democracy continues to be at risk. Mueller reminded us that '[t]here were multiple, systematic efforts to interfere in our election. And that allegation deserves the attention of …
(2019-05-29). Baltimore Cop Charged with Perjury, Misconduct. therealnews.com 
Baltimore police officer Michael O'Sullivan was indicted Tuesday by a grand jury for falsely accusing a city resident of committing a crime. The charges allege the officer perjured himself when he testified that a Baltimore youth possessed a gun, despite body camera footage that allegedly contradicts his testimony. | O'Sullivan was indicted on one count of perjury and one count of misconduct in office. | The charges stem from testimony against a Baltimore resident, who O'Sullivan accused of possessing a handgun during a district court trial last year. The Baltimore resident spent several months in jail before pro…
(2019-05-29). Scott Warren Provided Food & Water to Migrants in Arizona; He Now Faces Up to 20 Years in Prison. democracynow.org 
An Arizona humanitarian aid volunteer goes to trial today for providing water, food, clean clothes and beds to two undocumented migrants crossing the Sonoran Desert in southern Arizona. If convicted, Scott Warren could spend up to 20 years in prison. Warren, an activist with the Tucson-based No More Deaths, is charged with three felony counts of allegedly "harboring" undocumented immigrants. For years, No More Deaths and other humanitarian aid groups in southern Arizona have left water and food in the harsh Sonoran Desert, where the temperature often reaches three digits during summer, to help refugees and migran…
(2019-05-29). Pope Francis to Lula: 'Good Will Defeat Evil'. telesurenglish.net Pope Francis sent a letter to imprisoned Brazil's former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in order to give him hope and faith, as reported by Brazilian daily Folha de S. Paulo. | RELATED: | Thousands of Brazilians Join the 'Free Lula' Campaign | "Good will defeat evil, truth will defeat lies and Salvation will defeat condemnation," said the pope, adding th…
(2019-05-29). Six Children Have Died While in ICE Custody — Why? therealnews.com 
Undocumented immigrants seeking asylum are being separated from their children and detained in prison camps as more restrictive racist policies are being imposed by Trump. We discuss the policy with the Border Rights Center Director of ACLU Texas, Astrid Dominguez…
(2019-05-29). The Government Needs to Get a Warrant if It Wants Access to Our Private Health Information. aclu.org Choosing between obtaining health care and giving up one's privacy rights is no choice at all. | The Drug Enforcement Administration is once again trying to access private prescription records of patients — this time in New Hampshire — without a warrant, despite a state law to the contrary. Today the ACLU filed a brief in support of the state of New Hampshire's fight to defend the privacy of our sensitive medical information against unwarranted searches by law enforcement. | New Hampshire — like 48 other states, the…
(2019-05-29). ACLU Lawyer: "Abortion Today Is Still Legal in All 50 States" Despite Draconian Anti-Choice Bills. democracynow.org 
As states around the country ramp up their attacks on reproductive rights, the Supreme Court on Tuesday declined to rule on an Indiana law that would bar abortions based on the sex, race or disability of the fetus. The decision will keep in place a lower court's injunction on the measure. However, the Supreme Court decided to allow Indiana's so-called fetal burial law to go into effect, which stipulates that abortion clinics must dispose of fetal remains either through burial or cremation. The measure was signed into law by then-Governor Mike Pence in 2016. We speak with Alexa Kolbi-Molinas, senior staff attorney…
(2019-05-29). Dayton: KKK rally vastly outnumbered by anti-racist protest. liberationnews.org 
Message sent: broadest masses of workers reject all forms of divisiveness and bigotry.
(2019-05-29). The only certainty of Brexit is rising racism in the UK. thecanary.co This article is one of three Opinion pieces looking at what's next for Brexit in the aftermath of the EU elections. You can also read Josh Funnell argue why Labour must now campaign fully to Remain and Tracy Keeling on why Labour mustn't support a second referen…
(2019-05-29). Here's how much the democrat-when-it-suits-us Remainers have now fu*ked up Britain. thecanary.co This article is one of three Opinion pieces looking at what's next for Brexit in the aftermath of the EU elections. You can also read Josh Funnell argue why Labour must now campaign fully to Remain and Frea Lockley on how racism has been the biggest winner from Brexit. | Nigel Farage's…
(2019-05-29). Delay of Harriet Tubman $20 bill undergirded by racism, misogyny. splcenter.org Throughout my life, Harriet Tubman symbolized strength, courage, and determination.
(2019-05-29). Corbyn-supporting Labour members like me have tried to make Brexit work, but it's time to dump it completely. thecanary.co This article is one of three Opinion pieces looking at what's next for Brexit in the aftermath of the EU elections. You can also read Tracy Keeling argue why Labour mustn't support a second referendum and Frea Lockley on how racism has been the biggest winner from Brexit. | You don't hear much about people like…
(2019-05-29). Call both your US Senators! The Violence Against Women Act needs to be updated and strengthened. naacp.org On 4-4-19, the House passed, by a bipartisan margin of 263 yeas to 158 nays, H.R. 1585, a bill to reauthorize, or update, and strengthen the NAACP-supported and very successful Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). Despite its huge successes, the current law establishing VAWA expired on February 15, 2019. We must now let the Senate know …
(2019-05-28). MOVE 9 women freed after 40 years. workers.org 
MOVE 9 members Janet Holloway Africa, 68, and Janine Phillips Africa, 63, were freed on parole May 25, after over 40 years of incarceration. That included a decade of consistently being denied parole petitions by the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections. Janine (left) and Janet Africa upon their release. While two . . . | Continue reading MOVE 9 women freed after 40 years at Workers.org
(2019-05-28). Georgia Project Organization Raises Alarms About Persistent Voter Suppression Amid Plans To Close Minority Polling Place. blackstarnews.com 
Civic engagement leaders across Georgia raise concern over the possible closing of a majority minority polling place in Jeff Davis County, GA. Atlanta. | The New Georgia Project together with allies, issued the following statements in response to the Jeff Davis County Board of Elections' possible closure of a majority minority polling place in their already consolidated voting precincts. | New Georgia Project's purpose is to grow political engagement in historically underrepresented communities. | Nsé Ufot, Executive Director of the New Georgia Project Action Fund stated that Wednesday's "decision in Jeff Da…
(2019-05-28). Marijuana Activist Faces 10 Years in Prison for Using Facebook Live. therealnews.com 
A 20-year-old student activist was charged with felony wiretapping for using Facebook Live while in the office of Rep. Andy Harris, known for pushing back against the legalization of marijuana in DC…
(2019-05-28). Police Brutality Protest Erupts After New Jersey Cop's Acquittal For Assaulting Black Teenager in 2017. blackstarnews.com 
Did Officer Joseph Reiman's brother Mayor Daniel Reiman help him escape justice? | On Sunday, New Jersey protesters marched in demonstration against Friday's acquittal of Officer Joseph Reiman who brutally beat teenager Monte Stewart in 2017, during a traffic stop in Carteret, New Jersey. | Marchers poured into the streets of Carteret Sunday to illustrate their outrage at the verdict, in a city where Officer Reiman is the brother of Carteret Mayor Daniel Reiman. The protests were peaceful. | How long will prosecutors continue to refuse to hold racist police accountable who criminally assault and kill Black…
(2019-05-28). Pack the court for NYC subway elevators, June 5! workers.org 
The fight for accessibility in New York's public transportation system is approaching a critical milestone on June 5. That's when New York State Supreme Court Judge Hagler will make a fateful decision on the lawsuit to mandate elevators in the subway. Christine Serdjenian-Yearwood addresses the courthouse rally before the hearing . . . | Continue reading Pack the court for NYC subway elevators, June 5! at Workers.org
(2019-05-28). What's Trending: Black News Recap. naacp.org 
The Root: Did You Know Lady Liberty Was a Monument to Slavery Abolition, Not Immigration? The new Statue of Liberty Museum, which opened Thursday in New York Harbor, brings to light a little-spoken-of aspect of the statue's history: Lady Liberty was originally intended celebrate the end of slavery, not the arrival of immigrants. …
(2019-05-28). DeJaun Davis-Correia & Ben Jealous on Billionaire's Pledge to Pay Debt of Morehouse Graduating Class. democracynow.org 
Earlier this month, the billionaire investor Robert Smith stunned many when he offered to pay off the student loans of the 2019 graduating class at the historically black Morehouse College. The average student debt is now $32,000. Nationwide, 44 million people owe nearly $1.5 trillion. Student debt is expected to increase to $2 trillion by 2022. We speak with Ben Jealous, former national president of the NAACP, and De'Jaun Davis-Correia, a 2019 Morehouse graduate who will benefit from Smith's donation.
(2019-05-26). UN Mission in Afghanistan gravely concerned about ill-treatment of prisoners by Taliban, following first-hand testimony. un.org The UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) expressed "grave concern" on Sunday over "credible accounts" it has been given that Taliban militants have been mistreating prisoners, which in some cases "may amount to torture".
(2019-05-26). After 200 days, Kurdish hunger strikes end in victory. thecanary.co Thousands of Kurdish activists have finally ended their hunger strike. Politicians, political prisoners and activists around the world had been starving themselves to protest the isolation of Kurdish leader Abdullah àñcalan. | Kurdish MP Leyla Gàºven started the hunger strikes in November 2019, and on 26 May — her 200th day without food — she announced…
(2019-05-25). Virginia Prisons Putting Up Obstacles to Ramadan Observance. theintercept.com For the last three weeks, Muslims around the world have been observing the month of Ramadan by fasting from food and drink from dawn to sunset — a period of about 16 to 18 hours in the United States. The six to eight non-fasting hours, then, are an important time to recharge and rehydrate. Yet in at least two Virginia state prisons, according to civil rights groups, Muslims are being denied basic rights, despite constitutional protections and federal laws around religious freedom. | In one Virginia prison, Muslims known to be fasting are not being served breakfast before sunrise, while at another prison, Mu…
(2019-05-25). Philippines: Expect the people's resistance to rise further. fightbacknews.org Fight Back News Service is circulating the following May 22 statement by Jose Maria Sison, the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) Chief Political Consultant. | Expect the people's resistance to rise further against the escalation of oppression and exploitation | As a result of his rigging the May 13 elections, Duterte has more than two-thirds majority in the Senate and is in a position to dictate the realization of his fascist dictatorship through charter change to bogus federalism and declare martial law nationwide at his whim. | Foreign monopoly capitalism, domestic feudalism and bureaucratic c…
(2019-05-24). Jeremy Scahill: New Indictment of Assange Is Part of a Broader War on Journalism & Whistleblowers. democracynow.org 
The Espionage Act charges filed against Julian Assange mark just the latest attempt by the Trump administration to criminalize journalism and whistleblowers. Army whistleblower Chelsea Manning is back in jail for refusing to testify before a grand jury. Two weeks ago, drone whistleblower Daniel Hale was arrested in Tennessee. We air a new video by The Intercept titled "Why You Should Care About Trump's War on Whistleblowers," featuring Jeremy Scahill. We also speak to Scahill and Pentagon Papers whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg about how the corporate media has failed to stand up for Assange and others.
(2019-05-24). US abortion rights attacks escalate. greenleft.org.au 
Legislative attacks on abortion rights in the US have escalated this year, as social conservatives have shifted tactics with an unprecedented wave of state abortion bans adopted. | The most restrictive legislation was signed into law by Alabama's governor on May 15. It bans abortion altogether, except for cases of medical emergency. Pregnancy resulting from sexual assault is no exception and doctors performing abortions are criminalised with penalties of up to 99 years in jail. | On May 7, Georgia became the fourth state this year (after Kentucky, Mississippi and Ohio) to sign into law an abortion ban from t…
(2019-05-24). Alabama Is Trying to Ban Abortion. Today We Filed Suit to Stop Them. aclu.org Abortion is a right and this attack on abortion rights won't succeed. | Last week, Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey signed legislation banning nearly all abortions. The law, which threatens doctors with up to 99 years in prison for performing abortions, is the anti-abortion opposition's true agenda on display: ban abortion, jail doctors, and push this essential health care out of reach. | These are undoubtedly dark times in the fight for reproductive freedom as Alabama and states across the South and Midwest aggressively push to place such onerous restrictions on abortion so that the procedure is all but rendered inaccessib…
(2019-05-24). Daniel Ellsberg: Espionage Charges Against Assange Are Most Significant Attack on Press in Decades. democracynow.org 
As the Justice Department charges WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange with 17 counts of violating the Espionage Act, we speak to Pentagon Papers whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg. In 1971, he was charged with violating the Espionage Act for leaking a top-secret report on U.S. involvement in Vietnam to The New York Times and other publications. At the time, Ellsberg faced over 100 years in prison. He tells Democracy Now!, "There hasn't actually been such a significant attack on the freedom of the press … since my case in 1971."
(2019-05-24). DHS Is Locking Immigrants in Solitary Confinement. aclu.org As ICE detention numbers reach record high, new reports are extremely troubling. | In 2012, I visited the federal supermax prison ADX Florence in Colorado and spoke with men living in solitary confinement. I listened closely to their stories of anguish, but I could not understand how they survived it. They told me of the horror of being trapped in a small room, without access to fresh air or sunlight, for at least 22 hours a day — alone, afraid, and not knowing when it would end. I learned that people in solitary confinement talk to the walls, to themselves, to no one — sometimes they stop talking alt…
(2019-05-24). When President Trump Rejects Congressional Subpoenas, He Rejects the Constitution and the Powers It Gave Congress. aclu.org What President Trump objects to so strenuously is nothing more than a system of accountability. | President Trump really, really doesn't like the fact that congressional committees are investigating him. On Wednesday, he was so mad that he stormed out of a meeting with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi about critically needed infrastructure legislation after only three minutes, much like the proverbial boy who takes the football home if he loses a disputed call. | Trump's tantrum reflects the fact that the American people and their representatives are getting closer to seeing behind the curtain of secrecy that Trump has…
(2019-05-23). An Outright Reversal of Roe V. Wade Isn't All We Should Fear. aclu.org The anti-abortion movement can decimate the right to abortion even without getting it overturned. | Across the country, people are talking about abortion as legislatures in the South and Midwest mount a full-scale attack on our reproductive freedom. Naturally, people are stressed and angry. I am too. I've been fighting to protect abortion access for more than 25 years. | I'm worried about the future of Roe v. Wade — deeply worried. But I'm worried about more than that. I'm worried that the courts will gut the right to abortion and that there won't be an ou…