Santa Rita Jail Solidarity During the Coronavirus Pandemic
IWOC Oakland | indybay.org | 2020-03-23
As businesses, schools, and institutions close to reduce the transmission of COVID-19, many people are wondering how to support people in jails, prisons, and immigration detention centers.
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/03/19/18831666.php

Jewish Activists Demand Governor Newsom Release Detainees In Light of Covid-19 Outbreak
Leon Kunstenaar | indybay.org | 2020-03-23
In a March 21 press release, Never Again Action Bay Area calls on Governor Newsom to take immediate steps to release migrants from unsanitary, overcrowded "death camp" detention centers…
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/03/21/18831710.php

Immigrants at New Jersey ICE detention center launch hunger strike over COVID-19 threat
wsws.org | 2020-03-23
Detainees at the Newark, New Jersey jail used by ICE are protesting filthy conditions that increase their risk of infection by the coronavirus and are demanding to be released.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/23/hung-m23.html

ACLU Demands the Release from Prisons and Jails of Communities Vulnerable to COVID-19
ACLU-NC | indybay.org | 2020-03-23
ACLU Also Calls for Release of People Currently in Pretrial Detention Because of Cash Bail to Prevent a Public Health Crisis…
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/03/19/18831668.php

Five Demands for Emergency COVID-19 Survival
Dave Id | indybay.org | 2020-03-23
With the Bay Area and now all of California on coronavirus lockdown, millions going without paychecks and health insurance, prisoners and unsheltered folks at great risk of contracting the virus, wheatpaste posters have gone up in Oakland making five reasonable demands to increase our collective chance at survival.
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/03/22/18831726.php

Two Sri Lankan prisoners killed and six injured amid national coronavirus lockdown
wsws.org | 2020-03-23
Reports indicate Sri Lankan prisons are so congested that, in some cases, 5,000 inmates are crammed into facilities meant to accommodate 800 people.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/23/slcr-m23.html

COVID-19 outbreak in New York prisons threatens lives of thousands
wsws.org | 2020-03-23
Thirty-eight people in the New York prison system test positive for COVID-19 as reports emerge that Harvey Weinstein has also been infected by the virus.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/23/jail-m23.html

Ramsey Orta denied basic safety measures in Solitary Confinement as COVID-19 virus spreads
WeCopwatch | indybay.org | 2020-03-23
Ramsey Orta and other inmates in the New York State Prison system are extremely vulnerable to the COVID-19 virus. If Governor Cuomo does not act now, it will be blood on his hands.
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/03/22/18831721.php

US Urged to Release Detainees at ICE Centers as Virus Spreads
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-22
Legal rights groups RAICES, Rapid Defense Network, and ALDEA-The People's Justice Center filed an emergency lawsuit on behalf of families and children detained by the United States (U.S.) Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to demand their immediate release as the new coronavirus is fast-spreading across the country. | RELATED: | Trump Dismissed Intel, Warned in January of COVID-19 Threat | The organizations said Saturday in a press release that all the migrant detention cen…
telesurenglish.net/news/US-Urged-to-Release-Detainees-at-ICE-Centers-as-COVID-19-Spreads-20200322-0008.html

Coronavirus hits US prisons: "thousands face death sentence"
Anya Parampil | thegrayzone.com | 2020-03-22
Red Lines host Anya Parampil speaks with Dr. Amanda Klonsky, the chief program officer at a prison education organization, about…
thegrayzone.com/2020/03/22/coronavirus-prisons-death-sentence/

Netanyahu's Power Grab
Stephen Lendman | globalresearch.ca | 2020-03-22
Netanyahu's main aims are staying in power and out of prison

Taliban-Afghan Gov't Skype Call Revives Hopes of Peace Process
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-22
Afghanistan's Taliban and the current government held a "virtual" meeting on prisoner releases Sunday, officials reported, breathing life back into the nascent peace process. | RELATED: | Afghanistan Suggests Ceasefire with Taliban to Fight Pandemic | The two sides spoke for over two hours in a Skype meeting facilitated by the United States and Qatar, officials said. | "Prisoner releases by both sides is an important step in the peace process, as stated in the U.S.-Taliban agree…
telesurenglish.net/news/Taliban-Afghan-Govt-Skype-Call-Revives-Hopes-of-Peace-Process-20200322-0010.html

Prison Protests Due to Overcrowding Ends in 23 Dead, 83 Wounded
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-22
At least 23 prisoners died and 83 were wounded in the La Modelo Prison in Bogotá during the riots last night, the Colombian Ministry of Justice reported on Sunday. According to the Ministry, several prisoners protested the overcrowding of these facilities amid fears of the coronavirus spreading. | RELATED: | Colombia: President Duque Faces Investigation for Vote Buying | "The result of the escape attempt in La Modelo was 23 dead and 83 wounded, of which 32 are in hospital centers,"
telesurenglish.net/news/Prison-Protests-Due-to-Overcrowding-Ends-in-23-Dead-83-Wounded-20200322-0005.html

Israel's Palestinian Inmates to Hunger Strike Due to COVID-19
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-22
Palestinians detained in Israel threatened to start an indefinite hunger strike to protest Israel's response to the coronavirus pandemic including a ban on meeting attorneys, absence of preventive measures, and refusal of protection gear, Haaretz reported Sunday. | RELATED: | 'Dear World, How Is the Lockdown?' Gaza Takes To Twitter | Prisoners affiliated with Hamas, the group governing Gaza, returned their breakfast and lunches Thursday, and others affiliated with Fatah, the faction tha…
telesurenglish.net/news/Covid-19-Israels-Palestinian-Inmates-Threaten-to-Hunger-Strike-20200322-0009.html

Because of the Threat of Coronavirus Turning ICE Detention Into 'Death Camps,' Groups Rallying to Free Families Held Around Country
Eoin Higgins, staff writer | commondreams.org | 2020-03-22
commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/border_3.jpg …

Coronavirus crisis causes surge in dangerous channel crossings by desperate refugees
The Canary | thecanary.co | 2020-03-21
Fears around the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic have caused a surge in refugees trying to cross the English channel to the UK. The refugees risk their lives making these journeys in dangerous inflatable boats.Border patrols have blocked more than a 100 refugees from entering the UK this week. There are fears that 3,000 refugees living in desperate conditions in northern France are at high risk of contracting coronavirus.Desperation: Care4Calais founder Clare Moseley said it was only a matter of time before the virus swept through refugee camps.Bella Sankey, director of charity Detention Action, told the P…
thecanary.co/discovery/news-discovery/2020/03/21/coronavirus-crisis-causes-surge-in-dangerous-channel-crossings-by-desperate-refugees/

Beyond the Death Penalty, Activists Are Fighting to End Death by Incarceration
Staff | truthout.org | 2020-03-21
With 2.3 million people behind bars, the United States is the world's largest jailer. Yet after decades of holding this dubious honor, many Americans have begun to question what Fordham law professor John Plaff calls "this massive experiment in punitive social control." Decarceration is being discussed in states across the…
truthout.org/articles/beyond-the-death-penalty-activists-are-fighting-to-end-death-by-incarceration/

How the ACLU Organized to end Racial Profiling on Greyhound Buses
Andrea Flores | aclu.org | 2020-03-20
Two years ago, the ACLU set a clear goal: push Greyhound to refuse Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers access to their buses to conduct warrantless searches. As part of the Trump administration's immigration crackdown, CBP officers were targeting bus passengers around the country, boarding their buses to racially profile, harass, and too often, detain people who they suspected of being undocumented. Of course, you can't tell someone's immigration status by how they look or sound

FRSO condemns the murder of Communist Party of the Philippines leader Julius Giron
Fight Back | fightbacknews.org | 2020-03-20
Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO) condemns the brutal government murder of the prominent Filipino communist Julius Giron, his wife Lourdes Tan Torres and their aide. We extend our condolences to his family, friends and our comrades of the Communist Party of the Philippines. | We are given to understand Julius Giron made a lifetime of huge contributions to revolutionary struggle of the people of the Philippines to end all oppression and exploitation. This cruel and cowardly killing, carried out by police thugs at 3 a.m., stands as an indictment of the Duterte regime and its imperialist masters. This crimi…
www.fightbacknews.org/2020/3/19/frso-condemns-murder-communist-party-philippines-leader-julius-giron

Four Palestinian Prisoners Suspected to be Corona Virus Infected
Rami Almeghari | imemc.org | 2020-03-20
Palestinian Committee for Prisoners Affairs said on Thursday that Israeli media reports, suggesting that four Palestinian prisoners have been infected by the widely-spread Coronavirus, are inaccurate. The committee said in a statement, that four Palestinian prisoners have been isolated under quarantine by the Israeli authorities, however, none of them show …
imemc.org/article/four-palestinian-prisoners-suspected-to-be-corona-virus-infected/

We Know Prisons Need COVID-19 Plans, but our Arizona Prison Tour Suggests it's not Happening
Corene Kendrick | aclu.org | 2020-03-19
Earlier this month, the Prison Law Office and the ACLU National Prison Project filed an emergency motion in federal court in Phoenix. The motion asks the judge to order the Arizona Department of Corrections (ADC) to consult with a correctional health care expert to develop a plan to prevent, manage, and treat any COVID-19 outbreaks in the state's 10 prisons. You might think this is an obvious request, but we've spent the last decade observing the Arizona pri…
aclu.org/news/prisoners-rights/we-know-prisons-need-covid-19-plans-our-arizona-prison-tour-suggests-its-not-happening

Preventing discrimination against people with disabilities in COVID-19 response
news.un.org | 2020-03-19
Unless Governments and communities take action, discrimination against people with disabilities could increase during the COVID-19 pandemic, an expert with the World Health Organization (WHO) has warned.
news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2020/03/1059762

The Military Should not be Searching Cars or Checking Documents at the Border
Shaw Drake | aclu.org | 2020-03-18
There's an old saying that goes, "When all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail." This adage is especially applicable to the Trump administration's approach toward border policy, which is ever more militarized. On March 6th, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials announced that the Department of Defense would deploy 160 active-duty troops to ports of entry at the border

Delay or Hold Primaries: Can the 2020 Election Be Safeguarded Amid the Coronavirus Pandemic?
Staff | democracynow.org | 2020-03-18
Tuesday night's primary election for the Democratic presidential nomination was marred by chaos, confusion and fears over the spread of coronavirus at polling places as former Vice President Joe Biden consolidated his lead as he won Florida and Illinois by a wide margin and scored a victory in Arizona. We are joined by Vanita Gupta, former head of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division in the Obama administration, now president of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, the nation's oldest and largest civil rights coalition. They issued a call with 100 voting rights groups for states to proce…
www.democracynow.org/2020/3/18/democratic_primaries_joe_biden_coronavirus_fears

Inside Prison Amid Coronavirus Pandemic: Incarcerated Journalist Says Millions Behind Bars at Risk
Staff | democracynow.org | 2020-03-17
As San Francisco takes the most severe measures in the country in response to COVID-19, telling 7 million people to shelter in place, we go inside the Bay Area's San Quentin State Prison, where two prison blocks are under partial quarantine, to speak with incarcerated journalist Juan Moreno Haines. We look at how the coronavirus pandemic is a growing threat to the 2.3 million people locked up in U.S. prisons and jails, as prisons across the country have been shut down in response to the spreading virus and calls grow for mass prison releases around the United States.
www.democracynow.org/2020/3/17/coronavirus_prisons_san_quentin

SPLC's Three Strikes Project helps nonviolent offenders move from prison to parole
splcenter.org | 2020-03-17
Drugs were a way of life in the economically struggling "Brickyard" neighborhood of Clarksdale, Mississippi, where Nicky Patterson grew up.
splcenter.org/news/2020/03/17/splcs-three-strikes-project-helps-nonviolent-offenders-move-prison-parole

SPLC offices, Civil Rights Memorial Center close
splcenter.org | 2020-03-14
Our work continues with fervor and is needed more now than ever.
splcenter.org/news/2020/03/20/splc-offices-civil-rights-memorial-center-close

The Government Has a Secret Plan to Track Everyone's Faces at Airports. We're Suing
Ashley Gorski | aclu.org | 2020-03-12
U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the Transportation Security Administration are putting us on an extraordinarily dangerous path toward the normalization of face surveillance. But because key facts about this surveillance are still secret, the public lacks the information it needs to hold these agencies to account. We're suing to bring some much-needed transparency., , Over the past few years, CBP and the TSA have dramatically expanded their use of facial recognition technology at the airport and other U.S. ports of entr…
aclu.org/news/privacy-technology/the-government-has-a-secret-plan-to-track-everyones-faces-at-airports-were-suing

This Law Makes Voting Nearly Impossible for Native Americans in Montana
Alora Thomas-Lundborg | aclu.org | 2020-03-12
Voting has never been easy for Native Americans living on rural reservations in Montana, which are often geographically isolated, with limited access to postal service and transportation. The passage of the Montana Ballot Interference Prevention Act (BIPA) has made these obstacles even greater, severely inhibiting Native Americans' access to the ballot. That's why we're suing. | In a state where the majority of individuals vote | by mail, rural tribal communities often work with get-out-the-vote organizer…
aclu.org/news/voting-rights/this-law-makes-voting-nearly-impossible-for-native-americans-in-montana

Keep Calm and Carry on Voting: How to Vote By Mail During the Coronavirus Outbreak
Nicole Hansen | aclu.org | 2020-03-11
Coronavirus should not be a political issue, but with presidential primaries and the general election coming up, it could soon directly impact our politics. We should protect not only our health, but our civil liberties at this time

Civil Rights Memorial Center closed through March
splcenter.org | 2020-03-10
The Civil Rights Memorial Center (CRMC) in Montgomery, Alabama, is closed and will remain closed through the end of March 2020.
splcenter.org/news/2020/03/10/civil-rights-memorial-center-closed-through-march

San Diego Police Stop Black People at a Rate 219 Percent Higher Than White People
Chelsey Birgisdóttir | aclu.org | 2020-03-10
"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

Are Our Prisons and Jails Ready for COVID-19?
Maria Morris | aclu.org | 2020-03-06
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…
aclu.org/news/prisoners-rights/are-our-prisons-and-jails-ready-for-covid-19

[Research Paper] Gender discrimination and depressive symptoms among child-bearing women: ELSPAC-CZ cohort study
Irena Stepanikova, Sanjeev Acharya, Safa Abdalla, Elizabeth Baker, Jana Klanova, Gary L. Darmstadt | thelancet.com | 2020-03-04
The findings provide the first evidence that perceived gender discrimination is associated with depressive symptoms among child-bearing women. Social intervention programs aimed at reducing gender discrimination can potentially contribute to better mental health of women.
thelancet.com/journals/eclinm/article/PIIS2589-5370(20)30041-9/fulltext?rss=yes

Extradition of Assange Would Set a Dangerous Precedent
Marjorie Cohn | zcomm.org | 2020-03-02
The Trump administration is seeking extradition of WikiLeaks founder, Julian Assange, to the United States for trial on charges carrying 175 years in prison…
zcomm.org/zmagazine/extradition-of-assange-would-set-a-dangerous-precedent/

Carol Anderson on Voter Suppression
CounterSpin | fair.org | 2020-02-28
Media…
fair.org/home/carol-anderson-on-voter-suppression/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=carol-anderson-on-voter-suppression