Daily Archives: 2019-09-24

2019-09-24: News Headlines

Andre Vltchek (2019-09-25). Hong Kong is Scared of the Rioters. dissidentvoice.org It was once a British police station, as well as the Victoria Prison Compound. Hong Kong inhabitants used to tremble just from hearing its name mentioned. This is where people were detained, interrogated, humiliated, tortured and disappeared. Now, after Hong Kong 'returned to China', it was converted into the Tai Kwun Center — one of …

WSWS (2019-09-24). Government minister, journalists challenged on Australian TV over persecution of Assange. wsws.org A WikiLeaks supporter denounced the "media blackout about Julian Assange" and declared that journalists could no longer deny that he was being held as a "political prisoner."

ACLU (2019-09-24). International Human Rights Bodies Provide a Case for Reparations. aclu.org International human rights programs provide models for reparations. | It is common for nations where mass atrocities have taken place to engage in the process of reparation and repair. This process happened in Germany after the Holocaust, South Africa after apartheid, and here in the United States, forty years after the internment of Japanese-Americans during World War II. As a result, international human rights bodies have sought to lend their expertise to the process, often by holding hearings an…

Evelyn Leopold (2019-09-24). How Serious People Planned to Avert Climate Catastrophe at the UN (While Trump Hung Out in the Basement). commondreams.org Trump spent most of the day at an event on religious discrimination, held in a basement room and not attended by many world leaders but appreciated by American evangelists. (Photo: Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/trump_29.jpeg

Staff (2019-09-24). Purdue Hires PR Firm That Helped BP After Catastrophic 2010 Oil Spill. truthout.org | | Purdue Pharma, the pharmaceutical firm that manufactures OxyContin and allegedly helped fuel widespread addiction to painkillers, has turned to some of the same corporate spin doctors hired by BP after the Deepwater Horizon disaster. | The relationship was revealed in a legal document disclosed on September 15 when Purdue filed for bankruptcy protection. The filing, designed to settle thousands of lawsuits over its role in the opioid epidemic, revealed creditors seeking payments from the Conn…

Staff (2019-09-24). Headlines for September 24, 2019. democracynow.org Greta Thunberg and Youth Activists Take On World Leaders at U.N. Climate Action Summit, Trump Admin Tells U.N. to Drop Term "Reproductive Health and Rights", Trump Ordered Hold on Ukrainian Aid Before Call with President Zelensky About Bidens, U.K. Supreme Court: Boris Johnson's Suspension of Parliament Is Unlawful, U.K., France & Germany Say Iran Responsible for Saudi Oil Attacks as Trump Addresses UNGA, Afghanistan: At Least 40 Civilians Killed by U.S.-Afghan Attack, Haiti: Senator Shoots AP Photographer in Face During Anti-Gov't Protests, Video of Blindfolded Prisoners in Xinjiang Adds to Fears of Mass Human R…

ACLU (2019-09-23). We're in Court to Protect Family Planning Care for Millions of Low-Income Patients. aclu.org The Trump Administration is dismantling the Title X family planning program and compromising crucial health care for millions of people. | Title X is a federally funded family planning program that guarantees low-income people can receive critical health care services for free or at a reduced cost. For decades it's been one of the most effective federal health care programs, providing a wide range of vital reproductive and other services for millions of people across the country who wouldn't otherwise be able to afford them. | However, the Trump administration wants to undermine that success as part of an overall…

Kathryn Casteel (2019-09-23). Opportunity Costs: Community corrections program offers a roadmap for client success. splcenter.org Positive client outcomes indicate promising investment for fiscally sound prison alternatives, rather than prison construction.

WSWS (2019-09-23). US Justice Department sues Edward Snowden to block proceeds of memoir. wsws.org The 26-page lawsuit is aimed at intimidating other whistleblowers and publishers who might be thinking about telling the truth and exposing the crimes of the US government.

Fight Back (2019-09-21). Aurora ICE Warden Johnny Choate confronted at his home. fightbacknews.org Aurora, CO – Immigrant rights groups from the greater Denver area came together on September 19 to confront Johnny Choate, the warden of Aurora's notorious ICE detention facility, at his Aurora home. | Over the past several years, the Aurora detention facility, operated by private prison giant GEO and which many liken to a concentration camp, has become notorious for human rights abuses. There have been at least two recorded deaths as well as cases of denial of proper medication and poor medical treatment. Other practices include cover-ups and torture via solitary confinement of trans, gay and mentally ill detain…

Fight Back (2019-09-21). New York activists demand: Never again to martial law in the Philippines. fightbacknews.org New York, NY – 25 people gathered September 20 at noon in front of the Consulate General of the Philippines in New York City to commemorate the 47th anniversary of martial law in the Philippines under the regime of late dictator Ferdinand Marcos. The action was called by BAYAN USA NorthEast, to say, "Never again to martial law," and to call attention to the continuation of state repression in the Philippines under the current, U.S.-backed Duterte regime. | Rodrigo Duterte's so called "war on drugs" has led to the killings, torture and imprisonment of many Filipino activists and human rights defenders, just like…

Staff (2019-09-20). Ending Temp Work Is at Center of Auto Workers Strike. therealnews.com Auto Worker Jessie Kelly talks about the oppression of being a temp worker, how it keeps workers impoverished & works to diminish unions.

Danny Haiphong (2019-09-20). Late stage U.S. capitalism fosters death and despair, but can it foster class unity? mronline.org Self-determination is still an unknown concept to many despite the efforts of the movement for Black lives and related organizations. | Source

ACLU (2019-09-20). The Supreme Court Considers Mandatory Government Funding of Religious Education. aclu.org A case out of Montana could result in the church-state separation being stripped to the bone. | In Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue, the Supreme Court will address a question that would have been unthinkable to ask even until quite recently: Can a state be forced to underwrite religious education with taxpayer dollars? Although the court has previously allowed the government to adopt school-voucher programs that provide indirect government aid to religious schools, it has never suggested that the U.S. Cons…

Staff (2019-09-20). Kelsey Juliana v. U.S.: Meet the Young Woman Suing the Federal Government over the Climate Crisis. democracynow.org Among those joining today's Global Climate Strike will be Kelsey Juliana, lead plaintiff in Juliana v. United States, the landmark youth climate lawsuit against the U.S. government. She joins us for a roundtable discussion, along with Jerome Foster II, White House Climate Strike organizer, founder and executive director of OneMillionOfUs.

ACLU (2019-09-19). California Is Ready to Ensure Every Public College Student Has Access to Abortion. aclu.org The state legislature has passed the first bill in the nation ensuring medication abortion is available on UC and CSU campuses. | In a year when we've seen states throughout the South and Midwest move to ban abortion and restrict access to reproductive health, California could soon cement its reputation as a leader in reproductive freedom. This past week, the state legislature passed SB 24 to ensure that medication abortion is available to college students in public universities. | Jessy Rosales, a UC student, stru…

patrick (2019-09-18). Join the Global Climate Strike. Oppose Israel's climate apartheid. bdsmovement.net Join the Global Climate Strike. Oppose Israel's climate apartheid.: Action AlertTell multinational corporations to stop investing in fossil fuels and in Israel's oppression of the Palestinian people. | Economic BoycottSeptember 19, 2019 | By: | | Palestinian BDS National Committee (BNC)

ACLU (2019-09-16). AmeriCorps Adopts Health Screening Process That's Fair to Candidates with Disabilities. aclu.org Susie was disqualified from AmeriCorps NCCC for seeking therapy. Now they're changing their screening process so everyone can apply to serve. | Susie Balcom was overjoyed when she received a conditional offer to serve as a support team leader in Mississippi with AmeriCorps National Civilian Community Corps (NCCC), a national, residential service program for young adults. After graduating from college with a 4.0 GPA and spending two terms in the AmeriCorps state program, Susie was ready, willing, and able to fulfill her dream of serving in the national program. | However, a few weeks later, AmeriCorps NCCC to…

splcenter (2019-09-15). Remembering the Birmingham church bombing. splcenter.org Fifty-six years ago today, four precious little girls were murdered in one of the most heinous acts of white supremacist terror of the civil rights era.

ACLU (2019-09-11). Being Black is Not a Crime: Yunek's Story of Police Brutality. aclu.org A personal story of police brutality at the hands of the police in Peoria, Illinois. | My name is Yunek Moore. I am a Black woman, a college graduate, and a survivor of police brutality. I'm choosing to tell my story because, sadly, this wasn't the last time something like this happened to a person of color in Peoria, Illinois, and that must change. | On June 4, 2013, I was a happy 17-year-old looking forward to attending college at Millikin University. I had just graduated high school, where I was ranked 11th in my entire class and spoke at graduation as one of my final duties as Senior Class President. | That n…

splcenter (2019-09-05). Judge blocks ICE from denying parole to asylum-seekers. splcenter.org A federal judge ordered the Trump administration today to change its blanket policy of locking up people lawfully seeking asylum in the United States as a lawsuit filed by the SPLC and the American Civil Liberties Union of Louisiana makes its way through the federal courts.

ACLU (2019-09-03). A New York Jail Forced a Trans Woman Into a Men's Facility. aclu.org Trans women routinely face harassment and discrimination in jails and prisons. | Jena Faith's experience in the Steuben County Jail was a living nightmare. | The military veteran spent four weeks in the jail awaiting trial last spring. She was initially housed in the jail's women's facility without incident, but things changed when officials suddenly transferred her to the men's facility, despite the fact that she is a woman. | During the weeks that Jena spent as a woman in a men's jail, she was routinely targeted with physical and verbal harassment from other incarcerated people and guards. On her first day in t…

ACLU (2019-08-29). Taxpayers Have Been Ordered to Pay Over $2 Million For Discriminating Against LGBTQ People. aclu.org Government officials should know that discrimination comes with a cost to taxpayers. | Last week, a federal appeals court ruled that the Commonwealth of Kentucky was liable for $224,000 for the actions of Kim Davis, who refused to do her job and issue marriage licenses (to same-sex or different-sex couples) as county clerk. | While Davis' story made national headlines, her case isn't the only one in the past year where a court case filed by the ACLU has led to a bill for discriminatio…

ACLU (2019-08-27). New Resource Tool Sheds Light on Government's Prepublication Review System. aclu.org Millions of current and former government employees are subjected to this far-reaching censorship system. | This piece was originally published in Just Security. | For more than three years, the American Civil Liberties Union and the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University have been litigating a series of Freedom of Information Act requests relating to "prepublication review." Under this far-reaching censorship system, millions of current and former government employees, con…

SAMIR (2019-08-15). The BDS movement calls to boycott three anti-Palestinian German clubs. bdsmovement.net The BDS movement calls to boycott three anti-Palestinian German clubs: PACBI StatementConne Island, Golden Pudel and : //about blank are complicit in Israel's oppression of Palestinians | Cultural Boycott Right To BoycottAugust 15, 2019…

2019-09-24: Social Media Postees

Hong Kong is Scared of the Rioters
Andre Vltchek | dissidentvoice.org | 2019-09-25
It was once a British police station, as well as the Victoria Prison Compound. Hong Kong inhabitants used to tremble just from hearing its name mentioned. This is where people were detained, interrogated, humiliated, tortured and disappeared. Now, after Hong Kong 'returned to China', it was converted into the Tai Kwun Center — one of …
dissidentvoice.org/2019/09/hong-kong-is-scared-of-the-rioters/

Government minister, journalists challenged on Australian TV over persecution of Assange
wsws.org | 2019-09-24
A WikiLeaks supporter denounced the "media blackout about Julian Assange" and declared that journalists could no longer deny that he was being held as a "political prisoner."
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2019/09/24/assa-s24.html

International Human Rights Bodies Provide a Case for Reparations
aclu.org | 2019-09-24
International human rights programs provide models for reparations. | It is common for nations where mass atrocities have taken place to engage in the process of reparation and repair. This process happened in Germany after the Holocaust, South Africa after apartheid, and here in the United States, forty years after the internment of Japanese-Americans during World War II. As a result, international human rights bodies have sought to lend their expertise to the process, often by holding hearings an…
aclu.org/blog/racial-justice/race-and-economic-justice/international-human-rights-bodies-provide-case

How Serious People Planned to Avert Climate Catastrophe at the UN (While Trump Hung Out in the Basement)
Evelyn Leopold | commondreams.org | 2019-09-24
Trump spent most of the day at an event on religious discrimination, held in a basement room and not attended by many world leaders but appreciated by American evangelists. (Photo: Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/trump_29.jpeg
commondreams.org/views/2019/09/24/how-serious-people-planned-avert-climate-catastrophe-un-while-trump-hung-out?cd-origin=rss

Purdue Hires PR Firm That Helped BP After Catastrophic 2010 Oil Spill
Staff | truthout.org | 2019-09-24
| Purdue Pharma, the pharmaceutical firm that manufactures OxyContin and allegedly helped fuel widespread addiction to painkillers, has turned to some of the same corporate spin doctors hired by BP after the Deepwater Horizon disaster. | The relationship was revealed in a legal document disclosed on September 15 when Purdue filed for bankruptcy protection. The filing, designed to settle thousands of lawsuits over its role in the opioid epidemic, revealed creditors seeking payments from the Conn…
truthout.org/articles/purdue-hires-pr-firm-that-helped-bp-after-catastrophic-2010-oil-spill/

We're in Court to Protect Family Planning Care for Millions of Low-Income Patients
aclu.org | 2019-09-23
The Trump Administration is dismantling the Title X family planning program and compromising crucial health care for millions of people. | Title X is a federally funded family planning program that guarantees low-income people can receive critical health care services for free or at a reduced cost. For decades it's been one of the most effective federal health care programs, providing a wide range of vital reproductive and other services for millions of people across the country who wouldn't otherwise be able to afford them. | However, the Trump administration wants to undermine that success as part of an overall…
aclu.org/blog/reproductive-freedom/were-court-protect-family-planning-care-millions-low-income-patients

Opportunity Costs: Community corrections program offers a roadmap for client success
Kathryn Casteel | splcenter.org | 2019-09-23
Positive client outcomes indicate promising investment for fiscally sound prison alternatives, rather than prison construction.
splcenter.org/20190924/opportunity-costs-community-corrections-program-offers-roadmap-client-success

US Justice Department sues Edward Snowden to block proceeds of memoir
wsws.org | 2019-09-23
The 26-page lawsuit is aimed at intimidating other whistleblowers and publishers who might be thinking about telling the truth and exposing the crimes of the US government.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2019/09/23/snow-s23.html

Aurora ICE Warden Johnny Choate confronted at his home
Fight Back | fightbacknews.org | 2019-09-21
Aurora, CO – Immigrant rights groups from the greater Denver area came together on September 19 to confront Johnny Choate, the warden of Aurora's notorious ICE detention facility, at his Aurora home. | Over the past several years, the Aurora detention facility, operated by private prison giant GEO and which many liken to a concentration camp, has become notorious for human rights abuses. There have been at least two recorded deaths as well as cases of denial of proper medication and poor medical treatment. Other practices include cover-ups and torture via solitary confinement of trans, gay and mentally ill detain…
www.fightbacknews.org/2019/9/21/aurora-ice-warden-johnny-choate-confronted-his-home

New York activists demand: Never again to martial law in the Philippines
Fight Back | fightbacknews.org | 2019-09-21
New York, NY – 25 people gathered September 20 at noon in front of the Consulate General of the Philippines in New York City to commemorate the 47th anniversary of martial law in the Philippines under the regime of late dictator Ferdinand Marcos. The action was called by BAYAN USA NorthEast, to say, "Never again to martial law," and to call attention to the continuation of state repression in the Philippines under the current, U.S.-backed Duterte regime. | Rodrigo Duterte's so called "war on drugs" has led to the killings, torture and imprisonment of many Filipino activists and human rights defenders, just like…
www.fightbacknews.org/2019/9/21/new-york-activists-demand-never-again-martial-law-philippines

The Supreme Court Considers Mandatory Government Funding of Religious Education
aclu.org | 2019-09-20
A case out of Montana could result in the church-state separation being stripped to the bone. | In Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue, the Supreme Court will address a question that would have been unthinkable to ask even until quite recently: Can a state be forced to underwrite religious education with taxpayer dollars? Although the court has previously allowed the government to adopt school-voucher programs that provide indirect government aid to religious schools, it has never suggested that the U.S. Cons…
aclu.org/blog/religious-liberty/religion-and-public-schools/supreme-court-considers-mandatory-government

Late stage U.S. capitalism fosters death and despair, but can it foster class unity?
Danny Haiphong | mronline.org | 2019-09-20
Self-determination is still an unknown concept to many despite the efforts of the movement for Black lives and related organizations. | Source…
mronline.org/2019/09/20/late-stage-u-s-capitalism-fosters-death-and-despair-but-can-it-foster-class-unity/

Ending Temp Work Is at Center of Auto Workers Strike
Staff | therealnews.com | 2019-09-20
Auto Worker Jessie Kelly talks about the oppression of being a temp worker, how it keeps workers impoverished & works to diminish unions.
therealnews.com/stories/ending-temp-workers-is-at-center-of-auto-workers-strike

Kelsey Juliana v. U.S.: Meet the Young Woman Suing the Federal Government over the Climate Crisis
Staff | democracynow.org | 2019-09-20
Among those joining today's Global Climate Strike will be Kelsey Juliana, lead plaintiff in Juliana v. United States, the landmark youth climate lawsuit against the U.S. government. She joins us for a roundtable discussion, along with Jerome Foster II, White House Climate Strike organizer, founder and executive director of OneMillionOfUs.
www.democracynow.org/2019/9/20/youth_climate_lawsuit_juliana_v_united

California Is Ready to Ensure Every Public College Student Has Access to Abortion
aclu.org | 2019-09-19
The state legislature has passed the first bill in the nation ensuring medication abortion is available on UC and CSU campuses. | In a year when we've seen states throughout the South and Midwest move to ban abortion and restrict access to reproductive health, California could soon cement its reputation as a leader in reproductive freedom. This past week, the state legislature passed SB 24 to ensure that medication abortion is available to college students in public universities. | Jessy Rosales, a UC student, stru…
aclu.org/blog/reproductive-freedom/abortion/california-ready-ensure-every-public-college-student-has-access

Join the Global Climate Strike. Oppose Israel's climate apartheid
patrick | bdsmovement.net | 2019-09-18
Join the Global Climate Strike. Oppose Israel's climate apartheid.: Action AlertTell multinational corporations to stop investing in fossil fuels and in Israel's oppression of the Palestinian people. | Economic BoycottSeptember 19, 2019 | By: | | Palestinian BDS National Committee (BNC) …
bdsmovement.net/news/join-global-climate-strike-oppose-israels-climate-apartheid

AmeriCorps Adopts Health Screening Process That's Fair to Candidates with Disabilities
aclu.org | 2019-09-16
Susie was disqualified from AmeriCorps NCCC for seeking therapy. Now they're changing their screening process so everyone can apply to serve. | Susie Balcom was overjoyed when she received a conditional offer to serve as a support team leader in Mississippi with AmeriCorps National Civilian Community Corps (NCCC), a national, residential service program for young adults. After graduating from college with a 4.0 GPA and spending two terms in the AmeriCorps state program, Susie was ready, willing, and able to fulfill her dream of serving in the national program. | However, a few weeks later, AmeriCorps NCCC to…
aclu.org/blog/disability-rights/americorps-adopts-health-screening-process-thats-fair-candidates-disabilities

Remembering the Birmingham church bombing
splcenter.org | 2019-09-15
Fifty-six years ago today, four precious little girls were murdered in one of the most heinous acts of white supremacist terror of the civil rights era.
splcenter.org/news/2019/09/15/remembering-birmingham-church-bombing

NYC: Fight continues for 'No new jails!'
Michaela Warnsley | liberationnews.org | 2019-09-13
"It's up to us to keep the pressure on these shameless, opportunistic politicians, hold them accountable, and fight back!"
liberationnews.org/nyc-fight-continues-for-no-new-jails/

Being Black is Not a Crime: Yunek's Story of Police Brutality
aclu.org | 2019-09-11
A personal story of police brutality at the hands of the police in Peoria, Illinois. | My name is Yunek Moore. I am a Black woman, a college graduate, and a survivor of police brutality. I'm choosing to tell my story because, sadly, this wasn't the last time something like this happened to a person of color in Peoria, Illinois, and that must change. | On June 4, 2013, I was a happy 17-year-old looking forward to attending college at Millikin University. I had just graduated high school, where I was ranked 11th in my entire class and spoke at graduation as one of my final duties as Senior Class President. | That n…
aclu.org/blog/criminal-law-reform/reforming-police-practices/being-black-not-crime-yuneks-story-police

Judge blocks ICE from denying parole to asylum-seekers
splcenter.org | 2019-09-05
A federal judge ordered the Trump administration today to change its blanket policy of locking up people lawfully seeking asylum in the United States as a lawsuit filed by the SPLC and the American Civil Liberties Union of Louisiana makes its way through the federal courts.
splcenter.org/news/2019/09/05/judge-blocks-ice-denying-parole-asylum-seekers

A New York Jail Forced a Trans Woman Into a Men's Facility
aclu.org | 2019-09-03
Trans women routinely face harassment and discrimination in jails and prisons. | Jena Faith's experience in the Steuben County Jail was a living nightmare. | The military veteran spent four weeks in the jail awaiting trial last spring. She was initially housed in the jail's women's facility without incident, but things changed when officials suddenly transferred her to the men's facility, despite the fact that she is a woman. | During the weeks that Jena spent as a woman in a men's jail, she was routinely targeted with physical and verbal harassment from other incarcerated people and guards. On her first day in t…
aclu.org/blog/lgbt-rights/criminal-justice-reform-lgbt-people/new-york-jail-forced-trans-woman-mens-facility

Taxpayers Have Been Ordered to Pay Over $2 Million For Discriminating Against LGBTQ People
aclu.org | 2019-08-29
Government officials should know that discrimination comes with a cost to taxpayers. | Last week, a federal appeals court ruled that the Commonwealth of Kentucky was liable for $224,000 for the actions of Kim Davis, who refused to do her job and issue marriage licenses (to same-sex or different-sex couples) as county clerk. | While Davis' story made national headlines, her case isn't the only one in the past year where a court case filed by the ACLU has led to a bill for discriminatio…
aclu.org/blog/lgbt-rights/lgbt-nondiscrimination-protections/taxpayers-have-been-ordered-pay-over-2-million

New Resource Tool Sheds Light on Government's Prepublication Review System
aclu.org | 2019-08-27
Millions of current and former government employees are subjected to this far-reaching censorship system. | This piece was originally published in Just Security. | For more than three years, the American Civil Liberties Union and the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University have been litigating a series of Freedom of Information Act requests relating to "prepublication review." Under this far-reaching censorship system, millions of current and former government employees, con…
aclu.org/blog/free-speech/employee-speech-and-whistleblowers/new-resource-tool-sheds-light-governments