(2020-05-04). Spy Plane Resumes Flights Over Baltimore Amid COVID-19. therealnews.com 
The expensive aerial surveillance program won't help heavily disinvested Baltimore, say Ceasefire co-founder Erricka Bridgeford and author Brandon Soderberg.
(2020-05-04). Judge tosses out equal pay discrimination claims made by Women's soccer. peoplesworld.org 
On International Workers' Day, May 1, a federal judge quietly tossed out part of the U.S. Women's National Team's pay discrimination lawsuit—the unequal pay argument—while allowing their allegations of discriminatory working conditions to proceed to trial. It was a shocking judgment and a loss for players. Led by Alex Morgan, players filed their lawsuit in March …
(2020-05-04). Headlines for May 4, 2020. democracynow.org U.S. Makes Up a Third of Known Cases as Trump Revises Predicted Death Toll, NYC Nursing Home Reports Nearly 100 Deaths Linked to COVID-19, Trump Admin Continues Attack on China, Insists COVID-19 Developed in Wuhan Lab, White House Blocks Anthony Fauci from Testifying to House, Senators Return to Work in Coronavirus Hot Spot Washington, D.C., SCOTUS to Hear Cases by Phone, Arguments Will Be Open to Public, NYPD Violently Attack Two Black Men During Social Distancing Enforcement, Guards Sue ICE Jail for Failing to Protect Workers, Georgia Restaurants Refuse to Reopen After Gov. Kemp Lifts Lockdown, Spain, Italy Eas…
(2020-05-04). Trump, Pence, G W Bush, Hannity and Sen. Rick Scott's best sheriff fried under DOJ investi. indybay.org The Justice Department and Florida Department of Health are investigating Sheriff Carmine Marceno for civil rights abuses, human rights abuses, ADA violations and felony abuse of a disabled adult.
(2020-05-04). SFPD Wore "Blue Lives Matter" Face Masks While Responding to Protests. indybay.org Photos of the scene at a May 1 housing protest in San Francisco show a row of police wearing face masks that depict the Blue Lives Matter flag. At least one policeman at a reopen rally the same day wore the same mask. Police regulation states that officers cannot alter their uniform. City Police Chief Bill Scott says he is seeking "neutral" face coverings for the city's rank and file.
(2020-05-04). West Australian principal stood down for warning of coronavirus dangers in schools. wsws.org The victimisation of Bronwyn White is a warning that the reopening of schools is being accompanied by the suppression of opposition.
(2020-05-04). Return of Iranian scientist in US jail to country confirmed: MP. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, May 04 (MNA) — Referring to the latest status of Iranian scientist imprisoned in the US, Spokesman for the Iranian Parliament's National Security Committee, Hossein Naghavi Hosseini said according to representatives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Defense and Intelligence, Asgari's return to the country has been confirmed.
(2020-05-04). May Day Caravan in Santa Cruz. indybay.org #COLA4ALL activists in Santa Cruz organized a May Day Caravan to support those "striking and fighting for their right to live in this city". Beginning on the UC Santa Cruz campus to support the striking COLA graduate students, the caravan traveled downtown to the Santa Cruz Main Jail, and then on to support Food Not Bombs at Front and Laurel Streets. (Photos taken downtown by Keith McHenry of Santa Cruz Food Not Bombs.)…
(2020-05-04). Scotland: Journalist Craig Murray charged with contempt of court over Alex Salmond trial. wsws.org Journalist Craig Murray could face up to two years in jail following his reporting of the trial of former SNP leader Alex Salmond.
(2020-05-04). The COVID-19 Crisis Profoundly Exposes African Americans to the Scourge of Poverty and Racism. globalresearch.ca They live below the poverty level. They are prison …
(2020-05-04). 24-year-old Egyptian filmmaker Shady Habash dies in prison. peoplesdispatch.org Habash was in a Cairo prison since 2018 after directing a music video which mocked and ridiculed Egyptian president Abdel Fattah el-Sisi and spoke out against government corruption…
(2020-05-04). Inmates at Michigan prisons exposed to COVID-19 in unsanitary conditions. wsws.org As of May 2, almost 2,000 inmates have tested positive with 41 prisoners succumbing to the coronavirus.
(2020-05-04). Iraqi MP criticizes Salih for delay in approval of ISIL terrorists' death penalty. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, May 04 (MNA) — An Iraqi lawmaker criticized President Barham Salih for not approving the execution sentences of the IISL terrorists imprisoned in Iraq.
(2020-05-04). Uruguay: May First Feminist Manifesto. zcomm.org The exit from this crisis must be feminist, migrant, plurinational, anti-patriarchal, anti-racist, anti-prison, anti-capitalist, anti-extractivist and anti-fascist…
(2020-05-03). Challenging the Narrative: Media Propaganda Launches Conspiracy Theories Against Covid-19 Skeptics. globalresearch.ca Following the September 11th attacks in New York City, it instantaneously changed everything, from expanding US wars abroad against Afghanistan and Iraq, the dismantling of whatever civil rights you had left to the increased use of drones for surveillance and …
(2020-05-03). SFPD Wore "Blue Lives Matter" Face Masks While Responding to Protest. indybay.org Photos of the scene at a May 1 housing protest in San Francisco show police wearing face masks that depict the Blue Lives Matter flag. Police regulation states that officers cannot alter their uniform. City Police Chief Bill Scott is seeking "neutral" face coverings for the city's rank and file.
(2020-05-03). Female Genital Mutilation Finally Banned in Sudan. telesurenglish.net In a significant victory for women and girls' rights in Sudan, the country's transitional government banned on April 22 and reported by The Guardian on Friday, the practice of female genital mutilation (FGM), making it punishable by three years in jail and a fine. | RELATED: | Women's rights groups praised the move saying it would help to end FGM but warned about the difficulty of changing mentalities as the practice is deeply…
(2020-05-03). Parl. Secuiry Commission to address condition of Iranian scientist jailed in US. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, May 03 (MNA) — Parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Commission is set to hold a meeting to address the situation of an Iranian scientist who has contracted COVID-19 in a US jail.
(2020-05-03). Israeli Troops Abduct Twelve Palestinians, Including Former Prisoner. imemc.org Israeli troops reportedly abducted, early on Sunday, a dozen Palestinians from different parts of the Palestinian territories, prisoners sources said. The Ramallah-based Palestinian prisoners forum said that Israeli troops invaded the al-"Isawiya neighborhood of the old city of Jerusalem, which is internationally-recognized as an Israeli-occupied Palestinian area. The forum added …
(2020-05-02). New York caravan celebrates May Day. fightbacknews.org New York, NY – Dozens of cars gathered in different boroughs of New York City on Friday May 1 in honor of May Day, or International Workers Day. Due to the city being on pause, protesters used a caravan to display signs and drive through different neighborhoods in the city, showing solidarity with workers and other oppressed groups. A special focus was put on COVID-19 and how workers, prisoners and immigrants lack protection from COVID-19. | The three contingents started in the Bronx, Brooklyn and Queens. Their demands included cancel the rents, hazard pay and PPE, free healthcare and COVID testing, free them al…
(2020-05-02). Louisiana prisons are 'death concentration camps'. workers.org By: Quess Moore/transcribed by Mirinda Crissman This slightly edited talk is by Quess Moore speaking at the April 9 Workers World Party webinar. Moore organizes with New Orleans Workers Group and Take 'Em Down NOLA, a group which has been working to take down symbols of white supremacy and slavery. . . . |
(2020-05-02). [Editorial] COVID-19: remaking the social contract. thelancet.com "Allegiance, after all, has to work two ways; and one can grow weary of an allegiance which is not reciprocal." The British playwright David Hare quoted this line by the American writer James Baldwin in his recent reflections on the UK Government's response to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Baldwin's reminder and warning in the context of civil rights in the mid-20th century USA speak now in the pandemic to communities the world over who are unsure of their governments' allegiances to them.
(2020-05-02). Sudan bans female genital mutilation, UNICEF vows to help support new law. news.un.org The United Nations Childen's Fund (UNICEF) welcomed the landmark move by Sudan's transitional government this week to criminalize female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C), with a three-year jail sentence for offenders.
(2020-05-02). PA prisoners tortured for protesting racist policies. workers.org Eric McGill was locked up in Lebanon County Correctional Facility in Lebanon, Pa., on Jan. 19, 2019. For 15 months now he has been held there, not because he has been convicted of a crime, but because he cannot afford the preposterous $1 million bail the judge set. And during . . . |
(2020-05-02). [Perspectives] Death of a courtier. thelancet.com A plague sweeps the nation, the head of state's health is threatened, and the business of government is rendered fragile and unsteady. It has been over a decade since Hilary Mantel began her Thomas Cromwell trilogy with Wolf Hall in 2009, and 8 years since 2012's Bring Up the Bodies, but what felt like an arduous wait now seems like nothing but impeccable timing. Cromwell even ends the novel under his own version of lockdown as a prisoner in the Tower of London. The world has been uncannily prepared for The Mirror & the Light.
(2020-05-02). Brazil: Prisoners Riot in Manaus and Take Hostages. telesurenglish.net Inmates at the Puraquequara prison in Manaus city started a riot on Saturday morning and took seven prison officers hostage. They demand better living conditions inside the prison, which have been notoriously degraded because of the COVID-19 crisis. | RELATED: | "Through social media, the prisoners indicated that they want improvements such as light, mattresses, fans, good food, and medicine for the sick," local outlet UO…
(2020-05-02). UN urged to take action for release of Iranian prof. imprisoned in US. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, May 03 (MNA) — Vice Chairman of Iranian Parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Commission Mohammad Javad Jamali Nobandegani on Sat. called on the UN Secretary General António Guterres to take necessary actions for the release of Iranian Scientist Dr. Sirous Asgari, imprisoned in the US, due to the critical situation of the United States in terms of COVID-19 outbreak.
(2020-05-02). [World Report] Prisons are "in no way equipped" to deal with COVID-19. thelancet.com Prisons are a hotspot for COVID-19. In theory, prisoners have the same right to health as anyone else, but the reality is very different. Talha Burki reports.
(2020-05-04). Coronavirus-positive scientist to return home from U.S. jail: Tehran. iranian.com Sirous Asgari, an Iranian scientist imprisoned in the United States who has contracted the novel coronavirus, will return home soon, according to Iran's Foreign Ministry. During a press conference on Monday, Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi said the ministry is following up on Asgari's case both in Iran and in the U.S. Asgari, who has …
(2020-05-03). Iran Under Siege from Humanitarian Imperialism amid Pandemic. iranian.com Iran is once again under siege from humanitarian imperialism. The United Nations (UN) has released multiple reports in recent weeks criticizing the Iranian government for supposed human rights violations in relation to the treatment of prisoners and its lockdown procedures during the COVID-19 pandemic. Nazanin Boniadi, a board of director at the Center for Human …
(2020-05-02). A Delaware prisoner's plea for PPE. workers.org This letter is from a prisoner at James T. Vaughn Correctional Center in New Castle County, Delaware. Two prisoners have died from COVID-19 in the Vaughn facility, and a combined 30 more have tested positive for the virus there and at a neighboring Sussex Community Corrections Center. On April 25, . . . |
(2020-05-01). How to Protest in a Pandemic. aclu.org 
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(2020-05-01). A County Jail Battles COVID-19 and the Opioid Crisis—At the Same Time. progressive.org The pandemic and an increase in immigration detainees create a double whammy for the rural Ohio jail.
(2020-05-01). A COVID-19 Balancing Act: Public Health and Privacy. aclu.org Some states are officially loosening their stay at home restrictions, and more will join in the coming months as Americans attempt to inch their way back to pre-COVID-19 life. Some of us will return to work, gather in small groups, and maybe even dine at a neighborhood restaurant. , , As we proceed, what will it take to keep us safe and prevent new spikes in infections? Many experts say we won't be out of the woods until there's a vaccine, but how would a national vaccination plan even work? At the same time, technological solutions are being proposed, especially related to contact tracing, the process b…
(2020-05-01). McDonald's Employees are Working through the COVID-19 Pandemic. So Why Don't They Have Access to Paid Sick and Family Leave? aclu.org Essential workers are on the front-lines during the COVID-19 pandemic, and have suffered
(2020-05-01). What Happened When I Needed an Abortion During the Pandemic. aclu.org I am a 30-year-old woman and mother of three kids living in Tennessee. My oldest is just over two years old. My two girls are nine-month-old twins. Because the twins were born prematurely, they have significant medical needs. I have no family living nearby, and very little caregiving support. I tried to get my son into daycare earlier this year, but the childcare facility — anticipating that they might have to shut down temporarily because of COVID-19 — declined to accept new enrollments., , After my girls were born, I knew I could not handle another child; I am already stretched almost to the brea…
(2020-05-01). McConnell's Stimulus Scam: Vaccinate Businesses, Expose Workers. thenation.com McConnell's Stimulus Scam: Vaccinate Businesses, Expose Workers…
(2020-05-01). Chicago Tribune lends its press to racism. fightbacknews.org Chicago, IL – The headline in the Chicago Tribune Wednesday, April 19 blared: "Two charities have bailed scores of felony defendants out of Cook County Jail. Some were soon charged with new crimes." The headline could have said, with equal validity, that "Millions of Chicagoans were not arrested last year. Some were charged with new crimes." | The article is filled with racist 'dog whistles' about [Black and brown] people with guns and hysteria regarding violent crime. In actual fact, in the past three years the rate of violent crime in Chicago has declined significantly. The Tribune is blowing the racist 'get to…
(2020-05-01). Colombia: Medical Team to Assist Villavicencio Prison Inmates. telesurenglish.net Colombia's National Penitentiary and Prison Institute (INPEC) Thursday decided to send a medical team to the Villavicencio prison, a public facility located in the Meta department that has 1,738 inmates and at least 421 COVID-19 cases. | RELATED: | "They will have to ensure that the social isolation protocol is respected," the INPEC Director Norberto Mujica said. | He also explained that the Penitentiary Services Unit will be in charge of hi…
(2020-05-01). 'A New Low': Betsy DeVos Sued for Garnishing Wages of Nearly 300,000 Student Loan Borrowers During Pandemic. commondreams.org A home health aide who earns just under $13 per hour is the lead plaintiff in a class-action lawsuit against Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, whose department has continued collecting garnished wages from hundreds of thousands of student loan borrowers during the coronavirus pandemic. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/betsy_devos_3_0.jpg …
(2020-04-30). How the ACLU is Responding to the Pandemic, Visualized. aclu.org 
The COVID-19 pandemic has closed down many businesses, but the ACLU's work of defending and expanding civil liberties and civil rights continues, essential as ever. At the ACLU, our most immediate focus has been on issues arising from the government's response — or lack thereof — to the pandemic., , Since the start of the outbreak, we've filed over 90 legal actions and have seen thousands of people released from prisons, jails, and immigration detention. | We and ACLU offices across the country are working in nearly every state to save lives, advocate for vulnerable communities, safeguard the r…
(2020-04-30). Utah's Shiny Surveillance Technology to Address COVID-19 Fails Miserably. aclu.org 
How many times have you failed to get a new digital device working properly the first time? While toddlers can (amazingly) master iPhones in minutes, some tech gadgets require many troubleshooting attempts to activate. And even then, they might fizzle., , Last month, the state of Utah learned that simple tech lesson in a very public way., , As part of a series of measures to respond to the coronavirus outbreak, Utah Gov. Gary Herbert issued an executive order requiring every adult crossing the Utah border to submit an electronic State of Utah Travel Self-Declaration Form with details about their contact info…
(2020-04-30). Four Myths About Trans Athletes, Debunked. aclu.org For years state lawmakers have pushed legislation attempting to shut trans people out of public spaces. In 2020, lawmakers zeroed in on sports and introduced
(2020-04-30). In ICE Detention, Forced to Pay for Soap. thenation.com In ICE Detention, Forced to Pay for Soap…