2020-02-28: News Headlines

Robert Scheer (2020-02-28). Julian Bond Was a Radical Long Before MLK. truthdig.com A new book shows how the activist's positions on issues like the Vietnam War and environmental justice helped move civil rights leaders left.

CounterSpin (2020-02-28). Carol Anderson on Voter Suppression. fair.org Media…

RT (2020-02-28). 100s of DEAD voters still registered for 2020 election in Pennsylvania — lawsuit. rt.com An Indiana-based law firm is suing Allegheny County, Pennsylvania in federal court for having hundreds of dead people registered to vote in the upcoming 2020 election, among other bizarre irregularities. | The lawsuit alleges that some 1,600 dead people are registered to vote in the 2020 election, while almost 1,200 people are registered to vote without a date of birth listed, and some have even listed the 1800s as their birth years, all violations of the National Voter Registration Act of 1993. | "One registrant is stated as being born in 'June 1800,' the same year Thomas Jefferson won eight of Pennsylvania's…

RT (2020-02-28). Kabul officials meet Taliban members in Qatar to discuss prisoner swap. rt.com Afghan officials met Taliban members in Qatar on Friday to discuss a prisoner swap plan. The meeting in Doha was part of crucial confidence-building mechanism between the warring sides, two senior government officials in Kabul said. | The Taliban wants the release of over 5,000 detainees before launching direct negotiations with Kabul for a permanent ceasefire, a stumbling block in efforts to end the war. | The meeting came ahead of the US and Taliban deal that will set the timeline for the withdrawal of American troops who have been fighting in Afghanistan for 18 years. | A senior Taliban leader in Doha said…

teleSUR (2020-02-28). Civil Rights Advocates Reject Trump's Denaturalization Office. telesurenglish.net The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC)and other NGOs defending the rights of migrants criticized the creation of a special office responsible for withdrawing citizenship because President Donald Trump administration could use it as a tool for his "xenophobic and racist" agenda. | RELATED: | "The Trump Administration creates an office to try to abuse, frighten, and intimidate Latinos and all immigrants or refugees…

WSWS (2020-02-28). Julian Assange's father demands immediate bail for imprisoned son. wsws.org John Shipton outlined his son's decade-long history of arbitrary detention in the UK.

Ben Norton (2020-02-28). US and OAS lobby for Nicaraguan 'political prisoners' who butcher their pregnant girlfriends. thegrayzone.com Ben Norton reports from Nicaragua, where the US embassy and OAS successfully lobbied for the release of violent criminals who…

commondreams (2020-02-28). ACLU Challenges New Border Wall Funds Transfer. commondreams.org ______________________________…

commondreams (2020-02-28). ACLU Comment on Federal Appeals Court Ruling Blocking Trump Forced Return to Mexico Policy. commondreams.org ______________________________…

WSWS (2020-02-28). Alberta to criminalize protests that threaten "critical infrastructure" wsws.org The Alberta government has tabled a bill that would enable state authorities to declare almost any protest or picket line illegal, and subject participants to punitive fines and even jail terms.

WSWS (2020-02-28). Lawsuit reveals that nearly 44,000 US Postal Service workers have been fired after being injured on the job. wsws.org The grievances expressed in the lawsuit are the result of the subordination of the US Postal Service to the relentless demands of the capitalist profit system in which it operates.

(2020-02-28). Endangered Species in America: "Moose, Western Bumblebee, Venus Flytrap, … Plants and Animals in Desperate Need of Help" globalresearch.ca The Center for Biological Diversity sued the Trump administration today for failing to decide whether 241 plants and animals across the country — from the Midwest's golden-winged warbler to Venus flytraps in the Carolinas — should be protected under the …

Ebe Daems (2020-02-28). The Unspoken War against Organic Farming in Africa: Tanzanian Farmers Are Facing Heavy Prison Sentences if They Continue Their Traditional Seed Exchange. globalresearch.ca This article was originally published in 2016. | In order to receive development assistance, Tanzania has to give Western agribusiness full freedom and give enclosed protection for patented seeds. "Eighty percent of the seeds are being shared and sold in an …

Ahmed bin Qasim (2020-02-28). Delhi Is On Fire, and My Kashmiri Parents Are in Prison. thenation.com Delhi Is On Fire, and My Kashmiri Parents Are in Prison…

RT (2020-02-27). Pants on fire! Joe Biden's campaign says he was never 'arrested' trying to visit Nelson Mandela. rt.com Democratic presidential hopeful Joe Biden claimed he was arrested in the 1970s while trying to visit jailed South African civil rights campaigner Nelson Mandela. After critics called him out, his campaign now denies the claim. | Courting the black vote in South Carolina and Nevada this month, Biden brought up his 1970s visit to South Africa when he was a senator for Delaware. He told a South Carolina crowd that he "had the great honor of being arrested with our UN ambassador on the streets of Soweto trying to get to see [Mandela] on Robben Island." At a black history awards event in Las Vegas last week, he cla…

RT (2020-02-27). 84yo Frenchman who was charged with shooting 2 in mosque attack dies in hospital — report. rt.com An 84-year-old man who has been accused of setting fire to the main entrance of a mosque in the French town of Bayonne and shooting two people, died in hospital on Wednesday, media reports say. | The prosecutor of Mont-de-Marsan, Olivier Janson, has opened an investigation to determine the cause of the death of Claude Sinke, Le Parisien wrote. The man was imprisoned at the Mont-de-Marsan Penitentiary Center since October 30, 2019 "under the provisional detention regime." | Sinke wanted to "avenge the destruction of Notre Dame Cathedral," which he claimed was done by Muslims, prosecutor Marc Mariee said in late…

RT (2020-02-27). WATCH protesters hurl stones at police during second night of riots against migrant camps in Lesbos. rt.com Scores of angry Greeks clashed with police on Wednesday night as violent protests continued over plans to build a new detention center for irregular migrants on the island of Lesbos, with dozens reported injured. | The Greek government plans to build new camps for refugees in response to overcrowding on Lesbos and four neighboring islands, Samos, Chios, Leros and Kos. Local residents were enraged with the news and used stones, sticks and fire to express their anger. The Greek police used tear gas and rubber bullets against the demonstrators on Wednesday night as rioting entered its third consecutive night. | T…

teleSUR (2020-02-27). Assange is a Political Prisoner and by Law Cannot Be Extradited. telesurenglish.net The charges brought by the United States against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange are purely political and the extradition to the U.S. is not permitted by law, the Australian journalist's defense said Wednesday. | RELATED: | Julian Assange, 48, could receive a sentence of up to 175 years in prison in the United States on charges of espionage and computer hacking, "but these crimes are purely political," the lawyer for…

Nyla Ali Khan (2020-02-27). Jammu and Kashmir Cannot be Reduced to Rubble. counterpunch.org While I have been highly critical of the extended detentions of former heads of government, former legislators, and a former civil services officer under the Public Safety Act (PSC), I cannot forget the 200 Kashmiri men being held in jails outside the Valley. These incarcerated Kashmiris have been detained under the Public Safety Act (PSC)

IMEMC News (2020-02-27). Fateh Secretary In Jericho Receives Six-Month Administrative Detention Order. imemc.org An Israeli court issued, Thursday, a six-month administrative detention order against the secretary of Fateh Movement in Jericho and the Jordan Valley, the Detainees' Affairs Committee has reported. The committee stated that the Israeli army abducted Na'el Abu al-'Assal three days ago, after storming the house of his father, Jihad …

Aya Majzoub (2020-02-27). Return to Bahrain: Nine Years After the Uprisings, the Nation's Human Rights Record Has Worsened. counterpunch.org It's been nine years since Bahrain's February 2011 uprising. Tens of thousands of demonstrators marched in cities and towns across the country to protest the ruling Al Khalifa family's tight grip on power, discrimination against the country's majority Shia population, and arrests of political critics. The 2011 uprising itself came 10 years after the 2001

WSWS (2020-02-27). Tennessee carries out fifth electric chair execution since 2018. wsws.org Nicholas Todd Sutton, convicted and sentenced to death in 1986 for the stabbing death of a fellow prisoner, had spent his entire adult life in prison.

IMEMC News (2020-02-27). Israeli Soldiers Abduct Thirteen Palestinians In West Bank. imemc.org The Palestinian Prisoners' Society (PPS) has reported that Israeli soldiers abducted, on Thursday at dawn, thirteen Palestinians, including a child and a former political prisoner, from their homes in several parts of the occupied West Bank. The PPS said the soldiers abducted Mohammad Daoud Abu Khalil, 29, from Hizma town, …

yenisafak (2020-02-27). Fire breaks out on Turkey's Imrali Island. yenisafak.com A forest fire broke out on Thursday on the small Turkish island notorious for housing Abdullah Ocalan, head of the terrorist PKK, a group which has killed over 40,000 people.The fire broke out on Imrali Island in the Sea of Marmara, near Istanbul, where Ocalan has been incarcerated since his capture in 1999."The fire is under control," Bekir Pakdemirli, Turkey's agriculture and forestry minister, told reporters, adding that the fire started in shrubs far from the prison.A helicopter, 20 water trucks, and two bulldozers were dispatched to the site this morning to fight the fire, Pakdemirli said.Speaking at Anadolu…

Eva Lopez (2020-02-27). Defending Immigrants' Rights and Reproductive Freedom in the U.S. Supreme Court. aclu.org The U.S. Supreme Court will hear a number of cases this term that will have a crucial impact on civil rights and civil liberties — from LGBTQ equality to reproductive freedom and immigrants' rights. Earlier in the term, the ACLU had two cases asking whether workers can be fired for being LGBTQ. On March 2, we will be arguing a case on immigrants' rights, and we have filed or will file friend-of-the-court briefs in major cases involving reproductive freedom, contraceptive access, and religious freedom. | We sat down with David | Cole, the ACLU's national legal director, to discuss what's in store for the…

Leila Rafei (2020-02-26). Family Separation, Two Years After Ms. L. aclu.org When the ACLU filed

Mnar Muhawesh (2020-02-26). Podcast: Abby Martin Resists Anti-BDS Laws & The Israeli Lobby. mintpressnews.com Abby Martin discusses her lawsuit against the state of Georgia over it's anti-BDS law, the Israeli government's heavy hand in pushing anti-free speech laws, the pro-Israel Democratic candidates and more.

Anjali Salvador (2020-02-26). Stopping the Anti-Abortion Ordinances of East Texas. aclu.org Waskom. | Naples. Joaquin. Tenaha. Rusk. Gary. Wells. These names might sound unfamiliar | now, but you'll be hearing more about them soon enough. | They | are seven cities in East Texas that, within the last several months, each | passed so-called "sanctuary city for the unborn" ordinances — moves that are | blatantly unconstitutional. | Waskom, Texas was the

splcenter (2020-02-26). As Alabama primary nears, voter suppression is alive and well. splcenter.org All across this country, the right to vote is under attack. But with your support, we're fighting back in Southern courts and state legislatures with a newly formed team of legal, policy, and grassroots advocates.

IMEMC News (2020-02-26). Israeli Soldiers Abduct Eight Palestinians, Including Children, In Hizma. imemc.org Israeli soldiers invaded, on Wednesday at dawn, the town of Hizma, northeast of occupied East Jerusalem, searched and ransacked many homes, before abducting eight Palestinians, including three former political prisoners, and three children. The Palestinian Prisoners' Society (PPS) has reported that the soldiers abducted three former political prisoners, identified as …

IMEMC News (2020-02-26). PPS: "Israeli Soldiers Abduct 27 Palestinians, Including Children, In West Bank" imemc.org The Palestinian Prisoners' Society (PPS) has reported that Israeli soldiers abducted, on Wednesday at dawn, 27 Palestinians, including children and the father of a slain young man, from their homes during extensive and very violent searches of property across the occupied West Bank, including Jerusalem. The PPS stated that the …

Global Research News (2020-02-26). Selected Articles: The Wuhan Virus Outbreak, COVID-19. globalresearch.ca Online independent analysis of US-led wars, rampant corruption, corporate greed, civil rights and fraudulent monetary transactions is invariably relegated to the bottom rung of search engine results. | As a result we presently do not cover our monthly running costs which …

Eoin Higgins, staff writer (2020-02-26). Netanyahu, Trump, and Kushner Named in 'War Crimes' Lawsuit Filed by Palestinians in US Court. commondreams.org The suit claims that the behavior of U.S. President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is a "violation of the Nuremberg principles." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/gettyimages-1077343584-1547140810-e1547141434550-2_0.jpg

Julia Conley, staff writer (2020-02-26). "Fire Chris Matthews," Women's Rights Group Says After MSNBC Host Grills Warren Over Discrimination Claims Against Bloomberg. commondreams.org Women's advocacy group UltraViolet called on MSNBC to fire host Chris Matthews Wednesday after he deployed what critics called typical tactics aimed at sowing doubt about discrimination allegations against former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, following Tuesday evening's Democratic debate. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/screen_shot_2020-02-26_at_11.20.28_am1.jpg

Jon Queally, staff writer (2020-02-26). 'Taking a Page From His Dictator Friends Around the World': Sanders Hits Trump Over NYT Libel Lawsuit. commondreams.org The 2020 Democratic frontrunner said the president is "trying to dismantle the right to a free press in the First Amendment by suing the New York Times for publishing an opinion column about his dangerous relationship with Russia." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/bernie_sanders_iowa_trump_impeachment_0.jpg

Daniel Taylor (2020-02-25). What does it mean to be a Marxist? mronline.org What's in a name? Being a Marxist means being a revolutionary anticapitalist, a fighter against all forms of oppression, an internationalist who wants to end capitalism around the whole world, and a believer in the power of the working class. |

RT (2020-02-25). 'Not a real Democrat!' Florida lawsuit seeks to REMOVE Bernie Sanders from primary ballot. rt.com A pair of Democrats in Florida have sued to strike 2020 hopeful Bernie Sanders from the state's primary ballot, arguing the socialist stalwart is not a true member of their party and demanding votes in his favor be nullified. | The two Tallahassee men filed their lawsuit in a Leon County circuit court on Monday, calling for Sanders — who has surged to the head of the Democratic pack in recent weeks — to be disqualified from the Florida primary. As a declared independent, they argue, the Vermont senator would be "interloping improperly" and "unlawfully" in the upcoming vote in March. | Welcome to Flor…

RT (2020-02-25). Man arrested after trying to blow up a car in Pentagon parking lot. rt.com An Arkansas man led Pentagon security on a wild chase after allegedly trying to blow up a car parked near the building. He was arrested in Arlington National Cemetery and faces charges that could land him in prison for 20 years.

Staff (2020-02-25). Headlines for February 25, 2020. democracynow.org Harvey Weinstein Found Guilty of Rape, 2020 Democratic Candidates Gear Up for Debate as More Damning Comments by Bloomberg Surface, Bernie Sanders Defends Praise for Fidel Castro's Literacy Program, Protests in India Kill At Least 7 as Trump Continues Visit, Former Egyptian Dictator Hosni Mubarak Dies, U.K. Court Opens Deliberations on Julian Assange's Extradition Case, As Coronavirus Spreads Around the Globe, White House Requests Emergency Funding, China Sentences Bookseller Critical of Chinese Government to 10 Years in Prison, Clashes Between Haitian Police and Soldiers Leave One Dead as Anti-Gov't Protests Rag…

Staff (2020-02-25). "It's a Beginning": Rosanna Arquette on Weinstein Rape Conviction & How He Assaulted, Spied on Her. democracynow.org A jury has found Harvey Weinstein guilty of rape and sexual assault, following a seven-week trial in Manhattan. The jurors convicted the disgraced Hollywood producer Monday of raping then-aspiring actress Jessica Mann in a hotel room in 2013 and of sexually assaulting production assistant Miriam Haley at his apartment in 2006 by forcibly performing oral sex on her. Weinstein was convicted of first-degree commission of a criminal sexual act and third-degree rape. But he was acquitted of two more serious charges of predatory sexual assault and first-degree rape. He faces a total sentence of up to 29 years in prison…

Ashoka Mukpo (2020-02-24). From Being Tortured in Sri Lanka to the U.S. Supreme Court. aclu.org On a frigid day in early February, Vijayakumar Thuraissigiam | stands under an awning on a street corner in lower Manhattan along with one of | his attorneys, Celso Perez of the ACLU. Both are bundled in heavy winter | jackets. Perez is holding his phone up and squinting as he concentrates on the | tinny voice of a translator emanating from its speaker. | "I want them to be aware that you're traveling," Perez says | into the phone. | The voice on the other line translates what Perez said into | Tamil, the native language of Sri Lanka's largest ethnic minority. Thuraissigiam, | heavyset in his late 40s with a…

Jeffery Robinson (2020-02-24). Honoring Black History Month Means Respecting the Foundation That it Stands On. aclu.org Black History Month is meant to be a | celebration of the achievements of Black Americans, in spite of our country's | history of blatant, intentional racism. Despite that intention, the American | narrative surrounding the enslaving of Black Americans has always attempted to | rewrite our past, generating a kinder, gentler image of slavery. | President Trump and his appointees are | the embodiment of that attempt to rewrite Black history. Recently, President | Trump and his appointee, Philadelphia U. S. Attorney William McSwain, mocked | the history that serves as the foundation for Black History Month. Whil…

Fight Back (2020-02-24). Tampa students rally for justice for Jamee Johnson. fightbacknews.org Tampa, FL – Tampa Bay Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) held a rally at the University of South Florida calling for justice and all victims of police brutality, highlighting Jamee Johnson, a Black man who was murdered by officers in Jacksonville. At the February 19 protest, about 15 students promoted the need for community control of the police through police accountability councils. They also demonstrated for their ongoing campaign to increase Black enrollment at USF. | With chants saying, "USF shame on you! Black lives matter too!" the students used the rally to reach out to the student body about the wa…

Fight Back (2020-02-23). "We want to show the DNC that the people have the power," says Milwaukee coalition. fightbacknews.org New York, NY – On February 22, a Wisconsin delegation invited a conference of nearly 60 organizations to join a major protest at the Democratic National Convention taking place in Milwaukee in July. | The members of the Coalition to March on the DNC made their announcement on the second day of the United National Antiwar Coalition (UNAC) national conference. The UNAC conference is a major gathering of international solidarity and anti-oppression activists from across North America, taking place at the People's Forum in New York City. | The coalition is calling on all progressive, left, democratic and socialist or…

Staff (2020-02-21). Malcolm X's Daughter Ilyasah Shabazz on Her Father's Legacy & the New Series "Who Killed Malcolm X?" democracynow.org Fifty-five years ago today, Malcolm X was assassinated. The civil rights leader was shot to death on February 21, 1965, at the Audubon Ballroom in New York City. He was only 39 years old. Details of his assassination remain disputed to this day. Earlier this month, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance said he was considering reopening the investigation, just days after a new documentary series about the assassination was released on Netflix called "Who Killed Malcolm X?" It makes the case that two of the three men who were convicted for Malcolm X's murder are actually innocent and that his uncaught killers wer…

Staff (2020-02-21). Headlines for February 21, 2020. democracynow.org Roger Stone Sentenced to 40-Month Prison Term, Trump Lashed at Intel Chief over Warning of Russian Meddling in 2020 Election, Germany Mourns Victims of Right-Wing Terror Attacks, Suspect Arrested in Stabbing at London Mosque, U.K. to Close Borders to "Unskilled" and Non-English-Speaking Immigrants, Protests Erupt as Acting ICE Director Challenges New York Pro-Immigrant Laws, Mexican Radio Journalist Murdered in Ciudad Juárez, February Flowers Bloom in Moscow Amid Record-High Winter Temperatures, 28 Arrested in Seattle Protesting Chase Bank Fossil Fuel Ties, Rail Blockades Continue as Protests Grow Against Coastal…

splcenter (2020-02-21). Weekend Read: SPLC files civil rights complaints as asylum seekers wage hunger strikes. splcenter.org

Ezekiel Edwards (2020-02-21). Racist Drug Laws Lead to Racist Enforcement in Cities Across the Country. aclu.org The way which America enforces its drug laws has been Across racial and ethnic groups, Americans use and sell drugs at rates, but law enforcement has targeted Black and brown people for stops, arrests, prosecution, and | imprisonment at wildly disproportionate rates. | This race-…

Nicky Vogt (2020-02-20). The Supreme Court Will Decide Whether Asylum Seekers Receive Their Day in Court. aclu.org In March, we will be in front of the U.S. Supreme Court to defend the right to a day in court for asylum seekers and other vulnerable noncitizens. That decision w…

Jonathan Hafetz (2020-02-20). U.S. Resident Indefinitely Detained Without Charge Secures His Day In Court. aclu.org Adham Hassoun will | finally have his day in court. A federal judge has rejected the government's sweeping | claim that it can, on its own say-so, indefinitely imprison him without charge | and without a fair trial. | Adham is a long-time U.S. resident and a father of three. As we previously his criminal sentence and was set to be released from prison almost three years | ago. But the government — claiming unprecedented and unconstitutional…