(2020-04-04). Angola 3 Newsletter: DECARCERATE!!!! indybay.org We dedicate this newsletter to the men, women and children in detention centers, jails and prisons, where they are unable to social distance or sanitize–leaving them to anxiously wait for the virus to take hold in their facilities. Please encourage your local governments to take action before the virus hits.
(2020-04-04). Coronavirus Pandemic Makes the Case for Criminal Justice Reform. zcomm.org "We need to think of our jails and our prisons as part of our community"
(2020-04-04). 'We Will Not Sit Back and Let Transit Workers Be Treated Like Cannon Fodder'. thenation.com 'We Will Not Sit Back and Let Transit Workers Be Treated Like Cannon Fodder'
(2020-04-03). Are NYC cops contributing to coronavirus epidemic by sending people to packed jails for violating social distancing? rt.com 
As Covid-19 lockdowns keep three-quarters of Americans indoors and see crime rates drop, New York police are arresting people for social distancing violations in a move that flies in the face of safety advisory and public policy. | New York Mayor Bill de Blasio has released hundreds of low-level offenders from city jails, including the notoriously overcrowded Rikers Island, citing the risk of uncontrollable coronavirus contagion. New Yorkers are being told — constantly — to stay home and do their part to "flatten the curve." | But police don't seem to have received that message, continuing to arrest…
(2020-04-03). Protect Immigrant Communities: Fear Mounts of Deadly COVID-19 Outbreak in U.S. Border Camps, ICE Jails. democracynow.org 
The Congressional Hispanic Caucus has joined thousands of medical professionals and immigration rights groups to demand that Immigration and Customs Enforcement release all prisoners from immigration jails as the coronavirus continues to spread. Meanwhile, immigration advocates are working to prepare crowded encampments of asylum seekers across the U.S.-Mexico border for a potentially catastrophic outbreak of COVID-19. Since the implementation of the Trump administration's "Remain in Mexico" policy, tens of thousands of asylum seekers from regions like Central America and Africa have been stranded in Mexican bord…
(2020-04-03). Former vice detectives charged with fraud and violating civil rights. nationofchange.org "The FBI and the Southern Ohio Public Corruption Task Force are committed to rooting out public corruption and working to ensure that those who abuse their law enforcement privileges are held accountable."
(2020-04-03). WAFA: "10 Detainees At Ofer Embark On Hunger Strike" imemc.org RAMALLAH, Thursday, April 2, 2020 (WAFA) — Ten Palestinian political prisoners at Ofer detention camp, southwest of Ramallah, embarked today on an open-ended hunger strike in protest against the ongoing solitary confinement of two fellow prisoners, as well as against Israel's failure to provide the conditions to prevent a high …
(2020-04-03). Inmates at Privately-Run ICE Camp Go on Hunger Strike Amid COVID-19 Outbreak, Deteriorating Conditions. mintpressnews.com ICA Farmville already has a reputation for overcrowding and poor sanitation. Last year the private ICE prison was hit with an outbreak of mumps, a classic disease of overcrowding and poor sanitation.
(2020-04-03). "He's Got Eight Numbers, Just Like Everybody Else" dissidentvoice.org On April 4, 2020, my friend Steve Kelly will begin a third year of imprisonment in Georgia's Glynn County jail. He turned 70 while in prison, and while he has served multiple prison sentences for protesting nuclear weapons, spending two years in a county jail is unusual even for him. Yet he adamantly urges supporters …
(2020-04-03). Political prisoners should be among first released in pandemic response, says UN rights chief. news.un.org The decision by many Governments to release prisoners to slow the transmission of new coronavirus, was welcomed on Friday by the UN's top rights official, Michelle Bachelet.
(2020-04-03). The Apartheid Wars: Non-Accountability and Freedom for Perpetrators. counterpunch.org The Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) was a vital means to save the country from unending civil war. These had raged with increasing intensity since 1960, and in 1994 the forces of oppression were militarily intact. As Archbishop Desmond Tutu, soon to be chair of the Commission observed in 1995, "Nuremberg trials" were not for
(2020-04-02). Fighting for immigrant rights during a pandemic. splcenter.org As people across the country are confined to their homes during the COVID-19 pandemic, little attention has been given to a group of people whose health is in danger because they are locked away from the outside world — people in immigrant detention centers.
(2020-04-02). COVID-19 Doesn't Discriminate — Neither Should Congress' Response. aclu.org Congress' third bill addressing the impacts of COVID-19, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act), was a necessary attempt to respond to this public health crisis but its exclusion of immigrant communities is downright racist and xenophobic. Immigrants were
(2020-04-02). Alabama prisons hold more than 1,100 older people at greater COVID-19 risk. splcenter.org More than 1,100 people age 65 or older are locked away in Alabama prisons, putting a group already highly susceptible to the deadly COVID-19 virus at an even greater risk, according to an SPLC analysis of the state's prison system.
(2020-04-02). Archbishop Hanna Calls For Releasing All Detainees As Coronavirus Detected In Prison. imemc.org Archbishop of Sebastia from the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of occupied Jerusalem, Attallah Hanna, issued a statement calling on Israel to release the Palestinian political prisoners in its jails, especially after a recently released detainee was found to be infected with the Coronavirus. The Archbishop said that Israel must release all …
(2020-04-02). PPS Calls for Immediate Release of over 1,000 Palestinian Prisoners. imemc.org The Palestinian Prisoners' Society (PPS), on Tuesday, released a statement regarding fears for the fate of 5,000 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli occupation jails, after the declaration of jailers and investigators being infected with the coronavirus, COVID-19. The Prisoners's Society added that they have experienced great difficulty in obtaining prisoner health …
(2020-04-02). 'People Should Not Be Forced to Put Their Lives on the Line to Vote'. thenation.com 'People Should Not Be Forced to Put Their Lives on the Line to Vote'
(2020-04-01). Headlines for April 1, 2020. democracynow.org No Longer Downplaying Virus, Trump Says Up to 240,000 Will Die in U.S. from COVID-19, FEMA Sends 85 Refrigerated Trucks to NYC as Makeshift Morgues as COVID-19 Deaths Grow, As Confirmed U.S. Cases Top 188,000, Unhoused People Forced to Sleep in Las Vegas Parking Lot, Chicago COVID-19 Nurse Quits over Critical Lack of Personal Protective Equipment, Fed Economists: U.S. Unemployment Could Reach Record 32% in June, Congressional Hispanic Caucus Demands Release of All Jailed Immigrants Amid Pandemic, Captain Calls for Evacuation of Infected U.S. Aircraft Carrier: "Sailors Do Not Need to Die", Governor Won't Allow Sic…
(2020-04-01). COVID-19: International community must step up to prevent pandemic from devastating vulnerable on the run. news.un.org Given how quickly the COVID-19 pandemic is spreading, an outbreak is "looking imminent" in the world's refugee camps, crowded reception centres or detention facilities where migrant families are sheltering, the Executive Director of the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) said on Wednesday.
(2020-04-01). The Added Importance of the Census, in Light of COVID-19. aclu.org Last year around this time, my biggest worry was how the inclusion of the Trump administration's proposed citizenship question would depress participation in the decennial census. Thankfully, our Supreme Court victory means there is no citizenship question on the census. Now, I have a new worry: a global pandemic and the health of my loved ones. As it turns out, the 2020 Census plays a role here too, as it will have enormous implications on our health care for decades to come. | Specifically, the census will determine the allocation of $300 billion dollars of federal aid for the states' health care — mo…
(2020-04-01). New York Mobilizes Rikers Island Prisoners To Dig Mass Graves for Coronavirus Victims. mintpressnews.com Rikers Island itself is on the verge of near collapse, over 300 inmates and staff have tested positive and human rights campaigners warn conditions in the notorious prison are dire.
(2020-03-31). Brazil's ex-President Lula on Venezuela: Maduro is democratic, Guaidó should be in prison, US blockade kills civilians. thegrayzone.com In comments ignored by English-language media, Lula da Silva slammed the US coup attempt against Venezuela, calling Nicolás Maduro a…
(2020-03-31). Palestinians face two enemies: Occupation and pandemic. greenleft.org.au 
The number…
(2020-03-31). Government inaction puts staff and inmates in immigration detention at risk. greenleft.org.au 
(2020-03-30). Is Location Tracking Technology the Magic Pill to Stemming the Coronavirus? aclu.org This piece first appeared on
(2020-03-30). Headlines for March 30, 2020. democracynow.org Trump Extends Social Distancing, Says U.S. Coronavirus Death Toll Could Reach 100,000 | , States Mandate Quarantines, Set Up Checkpoints to Limit Cross-State COVID-19 Infections , ER Doctor Who Blasted Lack of Worker & Patient Protections at WA Hospital Removed from Post, Coronavirus Cases Mount in Prisons and Among Law Enforcement Workers | , 9-Month-Old Is First Known Infant to Die from the Coronavirus in U.S. | , Cigna and Humana to Waive Copays for Coronavirus Treatment | , CBS News Executive and Cancer Survivor Maria Mercader Dies from Coronavirus | , | New York Scrambles to Build Hospitals, Imposes Fines fo…
(2020-03-30). The Rev. Dr. Joseph E. Lowery played key role in launching SPLC's legal battle against Ku Klux Klan. splcenter.org The Rev. Dr. Joseph E. Lowery, who died on Friday at 98 years old, was a longtime friend of the Southern Poverty Law Center and played a leading role in the SPLC's first lawsuit against the Ku Klux Klan in 1980.
(2020-03-30). Civil rights groups condemn COVID-19 authoritarianism. greenleft.org.au 
(2020-03-27). Weekend Read: SPLC demands ICE act amid pandemic to save the lives of countless immigrants trapped in its crowded detention centers. splcenter.org …
(2020-03-27). Headlines for March 27, 2020. democracynow.org U.S. Leads World in Reported COVID-19 Cases as Hospitalizations Surge, Trump Doubts New York City's Need for 30,000 Life-Saving Ventilators, Politico: President Trump Failed to Follow Pandemic Playbook, Squandering Precious Time, Detroit and Chicago Join New Orleans as U.S. Coronavirus Hot Spots, House to Vote on Record-Shattering $2.2 Trillion Coronavirus Relief Package, Three Unaccompanied Migrant Children Test Positive for COVID-19, Jailed Asylum Seekers Stage Hunger Strike, Demanding Release During Pandemic, Activists Demand Release of Aging Prisoners as Coronavirus Spreads, Hospitals in Spain and Italy on th…
(2020-03-26). Asylum Seekers Stranded in Mexico Face a New Danger: COVID-19. aclu.org 
Since the Trump administration first unrolled its policy of
(2020-03-24). Arbitrary & excessive: Marijuana trafficking sentences in Alabama. splcenter.org Alabama resident Lee Carroll Brooker garnered national attention in 2016 when the U.S. Supreme Court declined to review the marijuana trafficking case that put Brooker, in his 70s at the time, in prison for life.
(2020-03-24). [Correspondence] Immunosuppression for hyperinflammation in COVID-19: a double-edged sword? thelancet.com Mehta and colleagues1 postulate that hyperinflammation in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) could be a driver of severity that is amenable to therapeutic targeting since retro-spective data have shown that systemic inflammation is associated with adverse outcome. However, correlation does not equal causation, and it is equally plausible that increased virus burden (secondary to failure of the immune response to control infection) drives inflammation and consequent severity (as shown for other viruses2) rather than augmented inflammation being an inappropriate host response that requires correction.
(2020-03-23). This is No Time to Play Politics with our Democracy. aclu.org Update 03/27/2020: Congress passed a $2 trillion stimulus package intended to address the broad impacts of the COVID-19 global pandemic. While it included $400 million for states to expand access to the ballot for eligible voters, as outlined in this blog, more can and must be done to safeguard our democracy. , , To ensure elections proceed and eligible Americans can vote, any federal legislative package addressing the impact of COVID-19 on our elections must include an immediate, substantial infusion of federal funding and federal requirements for no-excuse mail-in absentee voting and early in-person voting.
(2020-03-20). How the ACLU Organized to end Racial Profiling on Greyhound Buses. aclu.org 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 — this practice is unconstitutional and blatantly racist. By pushing aggressively with the help of our membership and…
(2020-03-19). We Know Prisons Need COVID-19 Plans, but our Arizona Prison Tour Suggests it's not Happening. aclu.org Earlier this month, the
(2020-03-04). [Research Paper] Gender discrimination and depressive symptoms among child-bearing women: ELSPAC-CZ cohort study. thelancet.com 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.
(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…
(2020-02-28). Carol Anderson on Voter Suppression. fair.org 
Media…
(2020-02-04). Biden Threatens Lawsuit to Halt Release of Real Iowa Caucus Results. theantimedia.com American democracy—ain't it grand?>