2020-09-10: News Headlines

Eds. (2020-09-10). Wikileaks helped end secret U.S. killings, Assange extradition hearing is told. mronline.org REVELATIONS published by Wikileaks helped to end a secret U.S. assassination programme and freed unlawfully detained prisoners from Guantanamo Bay, the Julian Assange extradition hearing was told today.

Workers World Party (2020-09-10). PDF of September 10 issue. workers.org Download the 12-page PDF. Anti-racists defy police, fascist terror Fight the right with united worker action! editorial ALSO: Kevin Zeese, °presente! Capitalist 'gifts': evictions and hunger. Battling racism on many fronts Pensacola and Greensboro; Sports focus on Black lives; Tribute to Chadwick Boseman. Labor's militant rank and file Save the . . . |

Larry Holmes (2020-09-10). ATTICA REBELLION: Paris Commune of the Black Liberation struggle. workers.org The following excerpted article first appeared online Sept. 14, 2016, to mark the 45th anniversary of this historic uprising of incarcerated workers and revolutionaries. The story of Attica, Sept. 9, 1971, is the story of how prisons can be incubators of revolutionaries — like George Jackson, assassinated 2 Ω . . . |

A Guest Author (2020-09-10). Railroaded Underground: A voice from inside San Quentin. workers.org This is a slightly edited interview of a prisoner at San Quentin State Prison, by Tahir Asad, an Associated Press award-winning and Emmy-nominated journalist and educator in Philadelphia. By Tahir Asad San Quentin State Prison opened 168 years ago in July 1852, making it the oldest prison in California. Located . . . |

April Rodriguez (2020-09-10). Lower Courts Agree — It's Time to End Qualified Immunity. aclu.org Earlier this month, Mississippi federal court judge Carlton Reeves

news.un (2020-09-10). Belarus: Ensure 'full respect' for workers' rights during protests, ILO urges President Lukashenko. news.un.org Voicing deep concern over detention and arrests of trade unionists in Belarus, the head of the UN International Labour Organization (ILO) called on President Alexander Lukashenko to ensure a climate free from violence and intimidation against peacefully protesting workers.

_____ (2020-09-10). 'Green' Billionaires Behind Suppression Of 'Planet Of The Humans'. popularresistance.org It is hard to think of an American film that provoked a greater backlash in 2020 than "Planet of the Humans." Focused on the theme of planetary extinction and fanciful proposals to ward it off, the documentary was released for free on YouTube on April 21. The date was significant not only because it was the eve of the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, but because a global pandemic was tearing through America's social fabric and exposing the human toll of the country's globalized, growth-obsessed economic model.

Rachel Reeves (2020-09-10). The Trump Administration's Attack on Abortion Access Disproportionately Harms Communities of Color Already Devastated by COVID-19. aclu.org Six months into the COVID-19 pandemic, it is devastatingly apparent that the United States' longstanding racial inequalities have only been amplified during this crisis. Nowhere is that truer than in health care, including reproductive health care., , Even before the pandemic, people of color faced severe barriers to accessing essential reproductive health care as a result of interrelated factors such as structural racism, gendered oppression, and associated economic disparities. Abortion restrictions, such as bans on insurance coverage for abortion or laws mandating delays in abortion care and an extra unnec…

Call Out for Black Lives Matter (2020-09-10). Protesters on GG Bridge Tell Police: "Take Off Your Riot Gear!" indybay.org 3 min mp4 video | Credit: @deathbywoodz (instagram) | Filmed on Labor Day 2020, protesters for Black Lives Matter and workers' rights demand entrance to the Golden Gate Bridge. A week earlier, Trump supporters held a rally at the same location with police protection.

Staff (2020-09-10). Prison Reforms Can Actually Increase Size and Scope of Incarceration. truthout.org Brian Sonenstein and Kim Wilson welcome back Maya Schenwar and Victoria Law to discuss their new book, The book provides a comprehensive and thought-provoking critical analysis of popular reforms to policing and incarceration, such as electronic monitoring, diversion courts, so-called sex worker rescue programs, and a lot more. Impor…

_____ (2020-09-09). Julian Assange, Prometheus Bound. strategic-culture.org He is being punished not for stealing fire — but for exposing power under the light of truth and provoking the god of Exceptionalism. | Pepe ESCOBAR | This is the tale of an Ancient Greek tragedy reenacted in AngloAmerica. | Amid thundering silence and nearly universal indifference, chained, immobile, invisible, a squalid Prometheus was transferred from the gallows for a show trial in a faux Gothic court built on the site of a medieval prison. | Kratos, impersonating Strength, and Bia, impersonating Violence, had duly chained Prometheus, not to a mountain in the Caucasus, but to solitary confinement in a h…

Staff (2020-09-09). WikiLeaks Founder Julian Assange May Face Up to 175 Years in Prison. truthout.org Image Credit: Julia Quenzler | As the long-awaited extradition hearing for WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange gets underway in London, his legal adviser, Jennifer Robinson, says the case could set a chilling precedent for press freedoms around the world. "He faces 175 years in prison for doing his job as a journalist and a publisher. That's why this case is so dangerous," says Robinson. Assange faces numerous charges, including under the U.S. Espionage Act, related to the release of diplomatic cables pu…

Kathryn Shihadah (2020-09-09). UN: Israel's Handling of Palestinian Prisoners Amid COVID-19 "Discriminatory" "Violation of Int'l Law" mintpressnews.com In hopes of reducing the risk of COVID-19 exposure for its Jewish population, the Israeli Prison Service approved the transfer of five hundred Israeli prisoners to house arrest, but have subsequently refused to provide the same for Palestinian prisoners.

Vasudha Talla (2020-09-09). ACLU Calls On Tech Companies to End Their Alliance with ICE and CBP. aclu.org Westlaw and Lexis databases are the backbone of every ACLU lawyer's job. Whether we're filing legal briefs in court, lobbying for legislative change, or compiling research, the duo hold information that's vital for our advocacy. Thomson Reuters, which owns Westlaw, and Reed Elsevier (RELX), which runs Lexis, are the two publicly-traded companies behind each of these products. Though they claim to "advance human welfare" and help their customers "move society forward" by providing the necessary knowledge, information, and analytical tools for researchers, lawyers, and government agencies, they are fueling the m…

Mike Whitney (2020-09-09). Is "Black Lives Matter" (BLM) the Mask Behind Which the Oligarchs Operate? globalresearch.ca Here's your BLM Pop Quiz for the day: What do "Critical Race Theory", "The 1619 Project", and Homeland Security's "White Supremacist" warning tell us about what's going on in America today? | They point to deeply-embedded racism that shapes the behavior …

Peoples Dispatch (2020-09-09). Protests follow yet another custodial death in Egypt. peoplesdispatch.org 26-year-old Islam Al-Ostraly was arrested after an an argument with a police officer last week. While the police claim that he fell ill in prison and died of a 'circulatory attack, signs of extreme torture were reportedly found on his body…

What Happened to Free Speech? (2020-09-09). Arrests at Labor Day GG Bridge Protest for Workers and BLM. indybay.org Last week Trump supporters held a rally on the Golden Gate Bridge. At that event, police were seen fist bumping with Trumpers. Fast forward to Labor Day and a workers' rights and Black Lives Matter protest at the same location. Protesters were greeted with a show of force by the California Highway Patrol inordinate to the number of demonstrators who were there for the cause of justice.

No Justice Under Capitalism (2020-09-09). Sunday 9/13: Rise in Power – Recognizing Resistance San Quentin to Attica and Back Again. indybay.org Meet at Larkspur Ferry Terminal at 5: 30 pm, walk to San Quentin Prison West Gate at 6 pm.

sputniknews (2020-09-09). 'I Committed the Crime': Danish Inventor Confesses to Kim Wall Murder in New Documentary. sputniknews.com Peter Madsen, who was sentenced to life in prison for the murder of Swedish journalist Kim Wall in 2017, admitted to the crime for the first time in a documentary series entitled "Secret Recordings with Peter Madsen," which was broadcast for the first time Wednesday.

Staff (2020-09-09). Department of Justice Moves to Defend Trump in Rape Accuser's Defamation Suit. truthout.org The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) took the unprecedented step on Tuesday evening of seeking to defend President Trump against a private lawsuit by advice columnist E. Jean Carroll who has accused Trump of sexual assault. Carroll sued Trump for defamation after he denied ever having met her and accused her of lying. | Numerous legal analysts immediately decried the move as a "debasement" of the DOJ by Attorney General William Barr. | "So now Barr has decided (1) that Trump somehow was actin…

commondreams (2020-09-09). CCI Statement on Charleston Climate Lawsuit. commondreams.org ______________________________…

WSWS (2020-09-09). Saudi regime declares Khashoggi assassination case "closed forever" after sham verdict. wsws.org After a closed trial, the Saudi court announced its sentencing of eight unnamed individuals to prison terms, while none of those who ordered the grisly murder were held accountable.

Staff (2020-09-08). COVID-19 could be a death sentence for elderly prisoners. therealnews.com Members of the group Releasing Aging People in Prison talk about officials' refusal to release aging prisoners with violent offenses, although studies show the chances of someone reoffending as they age are minimal.

Anthony Cartalucci (2020-09-08). Thailand's "Youth Protests" Made in USA. thealtworld.com US repeats "soft power" strategy targeting youths used to destroy North Africa and the Middle East amid the "Arab Spring" in 2011 to target China-friendly nations in Asia today. | Imagine the reaction if the Russian government funded programs and events for years inside the US to create youth groups indoctrinated in support of Moscow's interests — particularly in regards to voting in US elections and the shaping of the US government itself. | It would be considered up to and including an act of war, with Russian-funded organizations in the US dismantled, those involved jailed for sedition and even treason, a…

Monica Moorehead (2020-09-08). Black Lives Matter holds court in sports. workers.org Two months before George Floyd was publicly lynched May 25 by a Minneapolis police officer pressing a knee on his neck for almost nine minutes, Breonna Taylor was lynched in late March by three Louisville, Ky., police officers. Thousands attend Justice for Breonna Taylor protest outside Kentucky Derby, Sept. 5. . . . |

Tim Wheeler (2020-09-08). Rural America fights gun violence and Trump-backing thugs. peoplesworld.org SEQUIM, Wash. — Left and progressive forces in rural communities are fighting back against racist provocations in this election year, picketing in "Black Lives Matter" vigils on street corners, and at post offices in defense of the right to vote by mail. Small towns are a target because the right-wing extremists see rural America as …

yenisafak (2020-09-08). US envoy meets new Taliban chief negotiator as Afghan peace talks near. yenisafak.com U.S. special envoy Zalmay Khalilzad has held a meeting in Doha with the head of the new Taliban team due to open peace talks with a team representing the Afghan government, the Islamist insurgent group said on Tuesday.The negotiations, the result of an agreement between Washington and the Taliban, are to begin in Doha after the release of the last half-dozen or so of 5,000 Taliban prisoners.The Afghan negotiators had been expected to fly from Kabul to Doha this week, but are awaiting a signal from the Afghan government that the release – to which Western governments have objected – is going ahead.In Doha, the hea…

Fight Back (2020-09-08). UIC workers ready to strike. fightbacknews.org Chicago, IL – SEIU Local 73, which represents about 4000 workers at the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) gave notice of their intent to strike September 3. Key demands of the workers include safety, pay and respect. 94 % of the members voted for the open-ended strike which is set to begin on September 14. | 1400 members of the Illinois Nurses Association at UIC have also voted to authorize a strike, which could begin as early as September 12. | The majority of UIC workers are Black or Latino who have faced a pattern of racist discrimination.

Saadi A. (2020-09-08). The Silence and Sorrow of Miscarriage. jamanetwork.com In this narrative medicine essay, a neurologist relates the story of her miscarriage while touring immigration detention centers in Texas documenting medical care and human rights violations and shares her deep sorrow for the women who lost children either by force or miscarriages while incarcerated.

Tanya Wadhwa (2020-09-08). Rafael Correa barred from contesting in the 2021 elections in Ecuador. peoplesdispatch.org The court of cassation of the National Court of Justice of Ecuador, on September 7, ratified the 8-year prison sentence against former president Rafael Correa and 15 other officials from his government in the "Bribes 2012-2016" case. The court also confirmed that Correa will be barred from electoral politics for the next 25 years. With the confirmation of the sentence, Correa is officially and definitively disqualified from contesting as a vice-presidential candidate in the 2021 general elections in Ecuador. | The former president, who is currently residing in Belgium, rejected the ruling through his Twitter acco…

Sit. Walk. Listen (2020-09-08). Sunday 9/13: Sit. Walk. Listen. Because Black Lives Matter. indybay.org Frank H. Ogawa Plaza (14th Street/Broadway) | Oakland, CA…

sputniknews (2020-09-08). Cohen Hints Falwell Jr.'s Trump Endorsement Was Quid Pro Quo for Preventing Explicit Photo Leak. sputniknews.com Disbarred attorney and former legal confidante to US President Donald Trump, Michael Cohen, serving 3 years in prison after pleading guilty to tax evasion and campaign finance violation, has written a book on his time with Trump during the latter's campaign and administration.

yenisafak (2020-09-08). Tension mounts at Israeli prison after detainee's death. yenisafak.com Tension escalated inside Israel's Ofer prison on Tuesday following the death of a Palestinian detainee a few months before his release.According to the Palestinian Prisoner Society (PPC), prison guards stormed two sections inside the prison and transferred many detainees to solitary confinement.It said that detainees were tortured by prison guards and their belongings were damaged."The situation is difficult and complicated inside the prison," PPC head Qadora Fares told Anadolu Agency.Last week, Palestinian detainee Daoud al-Khatib, 45, died inside the prison's section 20, a few months before he completes his 18-…

Peoples Dispatch (2020-09-08). Saudi court revises sentence of convicts in Jamal Khashoggi murder case. peoplesdispatch.org The eight unidentified convicts in the Jamal Khashoggi murder case will spend between seven and 20 years in jail. Agnes Callamard, UN's special rapporteur, welcomed the commuting of death sentences but called the judgement a parody of justice…

Peter Oborne (2020-09-07). Julian Assange: Future Generations of Journalists Will Not Forgive Us if We Do Not Fight Extradition. globalresearch.ca Let's imagine a foreign dissident was being held in London's Belmarsh Prison charged with supposed espionage offences by the Chinese authorities. | And that his real offence was revealing crimes committed by the Chinese Communist Party — including publishing video footage …

The Canary (2020-09-07). Assange supporters gather outside Old Bailey ahead of extradition hearing. thecanary.co Dozens of Julian Assange supporters have gathered outside the Old Bailey, where the WikiLeaks founder is set to continue his fight against extradition to the US.The 49-year-old, who has been in high-security Belmarsh Prison for 16 months, is wanted over the publication of hundreds of thousands of classified documents in 2010 and 2011.He is expected to appear in court in person on Monday for the first time in months, facing 18 charges — including plotting to hack computers and conspiring to obtain and disclose national defence information.Wikileaks founder Julian Assange's father, John Shipton, arrives at the…

Lisa Newcomb, staff writer (2020-09-07). 'This is Not Normal': Human Rights, Press Freedom Advocates Denied Remote Access to Assange Hearing. commondreams.org The WikiLeaks founder, who exposed U.S. war crimes, faces up to 175 years in prison if the U.K. agrees to extradite Assange. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/getty-assange_protestors.jpg

Max Blumenthal (2020-09-07). 'Green' billionaires behind professional activist network that led suppression of 'Planet of the Humans' documentary. thegrayzone.com The Michael Moore-produced 'Planet of the Humans' faced a coordinated suppression campaign led by professional climate activists backed by the same 'green' billionaires, Wall Street investors, industry insiders and family foundations skewered in the film. By Max Blumenthal "We must take control of our environmental movement and our future from billionaires and their permanent war …

_____ (2020-09-07). On Contact: Chevron Vs Donziger. popularresistance.org On the show this week, Chris Hedges talks to Steven Donziger about the reach of corporate power. Donziger battled corporate oil giant Chevron over environmental pollution and destruction in Ecuador and won a settlement of $9.5 billion for indigenous communities. Since then, Chevron has waged a campaign against Donziger to try and destroy him economically, professionally and personally. He is on trial in federal court in New York on September 9 for contempt charges, which could send him to jail for six months.

Staff (2020-09-07). Cornel West & Ben Jealous on Whether Progressives Can Push Joe Biden Leftward If He Defeats Trump. democracynow.org In a Democracy Now! special, Harvard professor Cornel West and Ben Jealous, president of People for the American Way and former president of the NAACP, discuss the 2020 DNC, Joe Biden's vow to fight systemic racism and "overcome this season of darkness in America," the historic nomination of Kamala Harris as his partner on the ticket, and how the convention was a showcase for a broad anti-Trump coalition, including prominent Republican figures given plum speaking slots, but few voices from the party's insurgent left wing. "At this moment, with the decline and fall of the American empire, it looks as if the system…

Susie Day (2020-09-07). Shut Up, History: Paul Coates and Eddie Conway Are Talking. counterpunch.org Awhile back, a friend and I were talking about History and rebellions, and I lamented how the 1871 Paris Commune had failed. My friend, a self-avowed psychic, said, "Yes, history records very few total victories over oppression. That's because, on this worldly plane, most things are not supposed to work out. It's all about the

Ken Hanly (2020-09-07). Owners of Oil Tankers Seized by the US File Lawsuits. globalresearch.ca The US unilaterally imposes its own sanctions universally as much as it can becoming the self-appointed global policeman. Many countries obey because of the financial and military power of the US. | *** | US must prove oil is from Iran and …

WSWS (2020-09-07). DSA member in Spokane, Washington detained by unidentified officers before police violence protest. wsws.org Jeremy Logan was snatched by five plainclothes police officers, and held in jail for over a day, where federal agents attempted to interrogate him, before being released.

_____ (2020-09-07). For Some, Homes And Neighborhoods Are Now Digital Prisons. popularresistance.org Eddie Conway: Welcome to this episode of Rattling The Bars. I'm Eddie Conway, your host, coming to you from Baltimore. Recently, there has been a new book out by two authors that has done extensive work in the prison system. The book is, Prisons By Any Other Name, and it was written by Maya Schenwar and Vicky Law. They're going to join me today to kind of explain what's in the book. Basically they're challenging the idea that alternative to incarceration is better and represents some kind of reform.

Melanie Gin (2020-09-07). Monday 9/7: Sit. Walk. Listen. Because Black Lives Matter. indybay.org Frank H. Ogawa Plaza (14th Street/Broadway) in Oakland, CA…

Sierra Club (2020-09-07). Friday 9/11: Green Friday: Ken Brower on "The Sierra Club and Point Reyes National Seashore" indybay.org virtual | To register go to: | act.sierraclub.org/events/details?formcampaignid=7013q0000020SiDAAU&mapLinkHref=

Staff (2020-09-07). Corporations Must Reckon With Their Spin of Black Lives Matter. truthout.org In a virtual town hall in June, Coca-Cola's Chairman and CEO James Quincy said: "Diversity and inclusion are among our greatest strengths … We must put our resources and energy toward helping end the cycle of systemic racism." Dow Chemical's Chairman and CEO Jim Fitterling similarly committed to being an "ally" helping overcome "systemic oppression." And Johnson & Johnson's Chairman and CEO Alex Gorsky stated, "unequivocally that racism in any form is unacceptable." These three proclamations echo others penned by Fortune…

Staff (2020-09-07). Labor Must Make Defense of Black Lives Its Own Imperative. truthout.org Black trade unionists across the U.S. are calling on the labor movement to defend Black Lives Matter protesters and to fight racism in their own ranks. The attacks by police and increasingly violent armed racist militias evoke the memory of many such violent incidents against Black people in earlier periods, from slavery to segregation to the civil rights era. | For Labor Day 2020, Truthout reached out to Christopher Silvera, secretary-treasurer of Teamsters Local 808 in Long Island City, NY; Elise Bryant, exec…

yenisafak (2020-09-07). Papua New Guinea: Cop falls asleep, prisoners flee home. yenisafak.com At least 31 prisoners escaped jail in Papua New Guinea last week, according to local reports on Monday.Senior police official Peter Guinness said the officer on guard had allegedly fallen asleep while intoxicated, allowing detainees remanded in custody to flee Lae Central police station last Wednesday, The National daily reported.The guard was suspended after the prisoners reportedly took his keys while he was unconscious."As a young policeman serving [before] in Lae, I have never experienced such," Guinness said. Guinness added that after the guard was tried in court, authorities would submit a recommendation fo…

yenisafak (2020-09-07). S.Africa announces gender based violence law. yenisafak.com South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said Monday the country will tighten laws on gender based violence and sexual offences which have been widespread in the rainbow nation.Writing in his weekly newsletter, Ramaphosa said people were angry that many perpetrators of gender based violence and sexual offences are exploiting legal loopholes to avoid imprisonment.He said citizens are frustrated that sentencing is often not proportionate to the crimes committed against women and children."The three amendment Bills are designed to fill the gaps that allow some perpetrators of these crimes to evade justice and to give…