(2020-03-11). Greece denies report of secret 'detention center' for migrants near Turkish border. rt.com 
The Greek government has dismissed a report in the New York Times newspaper that it was holding illegal migrants who cross the border from Turkey at a secret 'black site' where they are denied access to lawyers and cannot file asylum claims. | Tens of thousands of migrants have been trying to get into Greece, an EU member state, since Turkey said on February 28 it would no longer keep them on its territory as part of a 2016 deal with Brussels in return for EU aid for the refugees. | "There is no secret detention center in Greece," government spokesman Stelios Petsas told reporters on Wednesday, adding that if…
(2020-03-11). Julian Assange's mother, doctors warn he is at heightened risk due to coronavirus. wsws.org In comments to the WSWS, Dr Stephen Frost warned that "the UK government is effectively playing Russian roulette with Julian Assange's life" and demanded that he be released from Belmarsh Prison immediately.
(2020-03-11). Abuse, Oppression and Murder. zcomm.org The PA Does Israel's Dirty Work in the West Bank…
(2020-03-11). Weinstein to be sentenced for sex crimes after watershed #MeToo trial. yenisafak.com Former movie producer Harvey Weinstein, whose sexual assault conviction last month was hailed as a victory for the #MeToo movement against sexual misconduct by powerful men, is expected to be sentenced at a criminal court in Manhattan on Wednesday.Once one of Hollywood's most influential producers, Weinstein, 67, faces a maximum sentence of 29 years in prison, after a jury on Feb. 24 found him guilty of sexually assaulting former production assistant Mimi Haleyi and raping former aspiring actress Jessica Mann.Both women are expected to speak at Weinstein's sentencing.Prosecutors in court filings last week did not…
(2020-03-11). Hollywood producer Weinstein sentenced to 23 years on sexual assault charges. rt.com 
Disgraced movie mogul Harvey Weinstein has been sentenced to 23 years in prison for sexually assaulting two women, close to the maximum sentence he faced in the landmark case. | Judge James Burke handed down the harsh sentence to the 68-year-old former Miramax producer on Wednesday, siding with prosecutors' call for a stiff punishment for the erstwhile Hollywood titan. While scores of women have accused Weinstein of sex crimes, he was convicted last month specifically of third degree rape and first degree sexual assault charges against former production assistant Mimi Haleyi and aspiring actress Jessica Mann.
(2020-03-10). Immigrants in WA Detention Center Demand Protection from Coronavirus, Not Posters in English. democracynow.org 
As the world responds to the COVID-19 outbreak, we look at how the Trump administration's immigration policies may put everyone at risk. We go to Seattle, Washington, not far from the Life Care Center in the suburb of Kirkland, which was the epicenter of the U.S. coronavirus outbreak. In nearby Tacoma, Washington, our guest says she saw posters in English only when she went to visit immigrants held in the Northwest Detention Center, which is run by private prison company GEO Group. We speak with Maru Mora-Villalpando, an activist and undocumented immigrant with the groups La Resistencia and Mijente, who issued a…
(2020-03-10). Interview: Somali captive exposes conditions in bogus "refugee camp" peoplesworld.org 
I spoke with an enslaved person last week. An African man from Somalia trapped in a detention center in Libya. He told me his name, but I promised not to mention it. He fears the guards will kill him if they know he has spoken out. So let's call him Hufan. Several months ago, Hufan …
(2020-03-10). Prisons Worldwide Face Coronavirus Crisis: Overcrowding, Lack of Sanitation & Labor at Slave Wages. democracynow.org 
As Italy went on lockdown, nearly 30 prisons across the country broke into riots Sunday and Monday after visitation rights were suspended in response to the outbreak. In a prison in southern Italy, a riot left at least six incarcerated people dead and caused 50 people to escape. Prisoners have reportedly lit fires, charged guards and even escaped at multiple facilities. This comes as the United Nations confirmed that coronavirus had reached Iran's prisons, as the number of cases there continues to soar. Iran has temporarily freed some 70,000 prisoners in response to the coronavirus. And concerns are growing about…
(2020-03-10). Afghan president Ghani orders release of Taliban prisoners, important point of deal with US. rt.com 
President Ashraf Ghani has signed a decree pardoning Taliban fighters held in Afghan prisons. The move was part of the peace deal Washington made with the group, but official Kabul hesitated to act on it, demanding guarantees. | The Afghan president "has signed the decree that would facilitate the release of the Taliban prisoners in accordance with an accepted framework for the start of negotiation between the Taliban and the Afghan government," Ghani's spokesman Sediq Sediqqi tweeted on Tuesday, announcing the measure. | President Ghani has signed the decree that would facilitate the release of the Taliban pr…
(2020-03-10). Activists Call for Health Measures to Prevent Coronavirus at Immigrant Jails. truthout.org As the world responds to the COVID-19 outbreak, we look at how the Trump administration's immigration policies may put everyone at risk. We go to Seattle, Washington, not far from the Life Care Center in the suburb of Kirkland, which was the epicenter of the U.S. coronavirus outbreak. In nearby Tacoma, Washington, our guest says she saw posters in English only when she went to visit immigrants held in the Northwest Detention Center, which is run by private prison company GEO Group. We speak with…
(2020-03-10). Civil Rights Memorial Center closed through March. splcenter.org The Civil Rights Memorial Center (CRMC) in Montgomery, Alabama, is closed and will remain closed through the end of March 2020.
(2020-03-10). San Diego Police Stop Black People at a Rate 219 Percent Higher Than White People. aclu.org "They did what human beings looking for | freedom, throughout history, have often done. They left." | These | are the words of Pulitzer Prize-winning author Isabel Wilkerson in her book, "The | Warmth of Other Suns." The book | follows the story of three Black Southerners and their journey escaping racial | violence — a sharecropper's wife who | left Mississippi in the 1930s for Chicago, an agricultural | worker who left Florida for New York City in the 1940s, and a doctor who left Louisiana in the early 1950s. | Their | journey was part of the Great Migration that occurred between 1916 and 1970,…
(2020-03-10). Abuse, Oppression and Murder: The PA Does Israel's Dirty Work in the West Bank. mintpressnews.com Arbitrary arrests, torture, and violence are regular occurrences in occupied Palestine. While Israel is responsible for the greater share of the violation of Palestinian human rights, the PA is part and parcel of that same Israeli strategy.
(2020-03-10). Palestinian Rights Organization Challenges Meritless Lawsuit Filed Against It. globalresearch.ca Last night, the US Campaign for Palestinian Rights (USCPR) moved to dismiss a meritless lawsuit filed against it by the Jewish National Fund (JNF) and several individuals. Human rights attorneys say the lawsuit targets USCPR's support of Palestinian rights and …
(2020-03-10). Prisons Worldwide Face Coronavirus Crisis From Overcrowding, Lack of Sanitation. truthout.org As Italy went on lockdown, nearly 30 prisons across the country broke into riots Sunday and Monday after visitation rights were suspended in response to the outbreak. In a prison in southern Italy, a riot left at least six incarcerated people dead and caused 50 people to escape. Prisoners have reportedly lit fires, charged guards and even escaped at multiple facilities. This comes as the United Nations confirmed that coronavirus had reached Iran's prisons, as the number of cases there continue…
(2020-03-10). 41 Palestinian Children Arrested by Israeli Forces in February. imemc.org Israeli authorities, in February, arrested a total of 41 Palestinian children, imprisoning 20 of them in Ofer prison, according to the Committee of Prisoners and Former Prisoners. The Committee explained that, of the children arrested last month; 20 were kidnapped from their homes, 6 from the streets, 1 for not …
(2020-03-10). Death Toll Rises in Italy's Prison Riots Over Virus Measures. telesurenglish.net The number of dead from riots in Italy's overcrowded prisons over RELATED: | Seven inmates died in the Modena prison on Sunday and Monday. On Tuesday, two others were found dead there as well as three imprisoned in Rieti, north…
(2020-03-10). Prison riots erupt as Rome extends coronavirus lockdown to all of Italy. wsws.org Inmates' families protested outside prisons against the authorities' refusal to release prisoners or provide them with protection from contagion inside overcrowded prisons.
(2020-03-10). 'Missing the mark': Ex-Warren staffers face outrage over campaign tattoos eerily similar to Holocaust concentration camp numbers. rt.com 
Former staffers for Elizabeth Warren have been taken to the woodshed over tattoos meant to memorialize her ill-fated campaign — which just happen to closely resemble markings given to Holocaust concentration camp prisoners. Oops! | Intending to commemorate the Democratic senator's failed bid for the presidency, at least two former Warren staffers thought tattoos displaying the hex code for the campaign's "Liberty Green" theme would be a clever tribute — until Twitter caught wind of it. In an avalanche of criticism, netizens wasted no time in pointing out the obvious — albeit accidental — r…
(2020-03-10). 'Nightmare Waiting to Happen': Advocates Warn US Prison Conditions Risks Intense Coronavirus Outbreak. commondreams.org Public health experts and prisoners' rights advocates are warning that the coronavirus outbreak in the U.S. may soon have dire implications for the 2.2 million people living in the American prison system, as prison officials across the country share little about plans to keep inmates safe and many of the precautions Americans are being advised to take are unavailable in detention facilities. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/screen_shot_2018-08-24_at_4.40.40_pm.png …
(2020-03-09). Cuomo unveils New York-made hand sanitizer…made by prison 'slave labor' not allowed to use it themselves. rt.com 
New York's governor has put prison inmates to work making gallons of hand sanitizer to combat alleged "price gouging" by mass-market brands, but what many see as slave labor doesn't quite square with the state's progressive image. | Andrew Cuomo debuted a state-branded hand sanitizer in a showy press conference on Monday, touting the prison-made formula as a way to fight skyrocketing prices on the dwindling supplies of mass-market hand sanitizer flying off the shelves. After pretending to solicit solutions from his audience, the second-generation statesman staged a cheesy curtain-opening reveal on an eye-catch…
(2020-03-09). Minnesota International Women's Day: If we are organized, we can beat them, and we have a world to win! fightbacknews.org Fight Back News Service is circulating the following speech delivered by Freedom Road Socialist Organization leader Jess Sundin, at the Twin Cities celebration of International Women's Day. | Good afternoon, comrades and friends, and happy International Women's Day! | International Women's Day is about our liberation, but before we talk about liberation, we need to understand oppression, and how it shapes the lives of women and nonbinary folx today. I'm going to start by talking about the economic realities or the material basis of women's oppression. | It says in the Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO) U…
(2020-03-09). In Pre-Dawn Raids, Israeli Troops Abduct 12 Palestinians. imemc.org The Israeli forces launched pre-dawn raids Monday morning in various parts of the West Bank, abducting 12 Palestinians, including two previously-released prisoners. In Hebron, Israeli forces abducted: Abdel Karim Khaled Abu Sal (23 years), Amr Khaled Al-Badawi, Majid Tayseer Al-Titi (23 years), and Ahmed Ezzat Al-Sabatin, all from Al-Arroub camp …
(2020-03-06). Are Our Prisons and Jails Ready for COVID-19? aclu.org The | country and the world face a public health emergency in the new coronavirus | causing COVID-19. The media is filled with concerns about how we will respond. | Will we close schools? Cancel sporting events and other large gatherings? Work | from home? Avoid public transportation? | But | little has been said about one of the most vulnerable sectors of our | population: the people in our prisons and jails. Although people often think of | prisons and jails as closed environments, they are not. Medical staff, correctional | staff, and visitors come from the community into the facilities every day and | then…
(2020-03-05). Trump is Sending Special Forces-style Agents into Pro-Immigrant Cities. aclu.org As part of its governments that choose not to collaborate with Immigration and Customs | Enforcement (ICE), Trump administration officials have confirmed plans for two new tactics in their anti-immigrant | agenda. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will deploy Border Patrol's | special forces-style unit, known as BORTAC, and other Customs and Border | Protection (CBP) agents — dressed in plainclothes [m…
(2020-03-03). 'We Are Going to Be Back to Where We Were After Reconstruction—Unless We Stop It' – CounterSpin interview with Carol Anderson about voter suppression. fair.org 
Janine Jackson interviewed Emory University's Carol Anderson about voter suppression for the Media…
(2020-03-03). TRAP Laws are the Threat to Abortion Rights You Don't Know About. aclu.org This week, the Supreme Court is set to hear arguments in a case | that will have wide-reaching consequences for reproductive freedom and abortion | rights in America. It's the first time the Court has weighed those rights since | gaining a new conservative majority with the appointments of Justices Neil | Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh. And the stakes are high. | The case that the court will | hear, June Medical Services LLC v. Russo, | is being argued by the Center for Reproductive Rights (CCR), and it involves a | law in Louisiana known as a "TRAP" — Targeted Restriction on Abortion | Providers. The detai…
(2020-03-03). Headlines for March 3, 2020. democracynow.org Super Tuesday Kicks Off as Moderate Dems Coalesce in Support of Joe Biden, 6 Dead in Washington from Coronavirus, as Criticism Mounts over CDC Handling of Outbreak, U.S. to Start Troop Withdrawal as Taliban Vows to Resume Attacks and Afghan Gov't Rejects Prisoner Swap, Migrant Child Drowns Off Greek Coast, Refugees Attacked as Asylum Crisis Deepens, Iraqi Power Vacuum as Caretaker PM and Designated Successor Both Walk Away from Post, Benjamin Netanyahu Holds Lead Over Rival Benny Gantz But Falls Short of Outright Majority, Report: 80,000+ Uyghur Muslims Forced into Factory Labor for Nike, Apple, Revolutionary Nic…
(2020-03-02). Julian Assange Lawyer: What's at Stake in Extradition Case Is Freedom of the Press. democracynow.org 
British Judge Vanessa Baraitser has suspended the extradition hearing for WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange until mid-May. This comes after four days of intense deliberations last week between Assange's legal team and attorneys representing the United States government. Assange faces 18 charges of attempted hacking and breaches of the Espionage Act for his role in publishing classified documents exposing U.S. war crimes in Iraq and Afghanistan. He could be sentenced to up to 175 years in prison. Assange has been held in London's Belmarsh prison since last April, when he was removed from the embassy by British poli…
(2020-03-02). Extradition of Assange Would Set a Dangerous Precedent. zcomm.org The Trump administration is seeking extradition of WikiLeaks founder, Julian Assange, to the United States for trial on charges carrying 175 years in prison…
(2020-03-02). Contra-supporting CNN pundit Ana Navarro lobbied for corrupt right-wing Latin American governments. thegrayzone.com Bernie-bashing "Never Trump conservative" CNN pundit Ana Navarro lobbied for El Salvador's right-wing government, whose president was imprisoned for corruption,…
(2020-03-02). Can We Trust the Government to Respond to the Coronavirus in a Fair and Effective Manner? aclu.org A group of over 450 public health experts signed a It is essential that all govern…
(2020-02-28). Carol Anderson on Voter Suppression. fair.org Media…
(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…
(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…
(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.
(2020-02-21). Weekend Read: SPLC files civil rights complaints as asylum seekers wage hunger strikes. splcenter.org …
(2020-02-14). Weekend Read: Department of Justice may force Mississippi to fix deadly prison system. splcenter.org …
(2020-02-04). Biden Threatens Lawsuit to Halt Release of Real Iowa Caucus Results. theantimedia.com American democracy—ain't it grand?>