(2020-08-10). Revolutionaries Living in a System of Growing Fascism. counterpunch.org Watching the documentary The Weather Underground (2002) (see Independent Lens review, PBS) is a painful experience. Included with this award-winning documentary about Vietnam-era revolutionaries is the smaller and separate interview with David Gilbert, who remains imprisoned in New York for his part in the 1981 Brinks robbery in which some of those involved in the robbery killed two policemen
(2020-08-10). Free Them All! Care Not Cages! March & Rally In SF Against ICE & Republicrats. indybay.org Activists protested at the ICE office in San Francisco against the imprisonment of children in cages and the ICE terrorism against immigrants and people of color. They also attacked California Governor Newsom, Pelosi and the Democrats for supporting these policies.
(2020-08-10). Not Just a Bad President, Trump is a "Holmesian Bad Man." Act Accordingly. aclu.org "If you want to know the law, you must look at it as a bad man does, who cares only for the material consequences," wrote legendary Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, "Not as a good one, who finds his reasons for conduct, whether inside the law or outside of it, in the vaguer sanctions of conscience." , , Donald Trump is a Holmesian bad man, and an even worse president, pushing the bounds of corruption and authoritarianism, unbound by norms, the rule of law, a sense of shame, or even care for others. To deal with such a bad man and bad president — one who truckles to adversaries like Russian P…
(2020-08-10). US Supreme Court defends deadly jail conditions in California. wsws.org The high court decision denies inmates their right to safety during a deadly pandemic and at the same time shows contempt for the lives of the poor.
(2020-08-10). Afghan government to release remaining 400 Taliban prisoners. peoplesdispatch.org The release is expected to pave the way for the beginning of intra-Afghan talks this week in Qatar. President Ashraf Ghani had earlier refused to release them saying their crimes were to heinous…
(2020-08-10). The Killing that Awakened the City that Never Sleeps. progressive.org A new documentary reflects on the killing of a Black teenager in 1989, drawing parallels to today's Black Lives Matter protests.
(2020-08-10). Chowchilla Women's Prison. indybay.org Demonstration of women and children in front of Chowchilla Women's Prison highlight desperate conditions inside…
(2020-08-10). Sunday 8/16: Anarchist Black Cross – Virtual Political Prisoner Support. indybay.org Online…
(2020-08-10). US Crimes Against Humanity At Home And Abroad. popularresistance.org The US crimes against humanity did not begin or end with the dropping of the nuclear bombs on Japan. As militant civil rights leader Jamil Abdullah Al-Amin (formerly H. Rap Brown) pointed out years ago, "Violence is as American as cherry pie." Since its inception, the US has been ingrained with a motor force of violent oppression against everyone and every country that stood in its way of its expansion for control of resources and its entitlement to a limitless accumulation of vast wealth for a few. | The original thirteen colonies that rebelled against England were not motivated solely by being taxed without rep…
(2020-08-10). McDonald's sues former CEO Stephen Easterbrook. yenisafak.com McDonald's Corp filed a lawsuit against former chief executive officer Stephen Easterbrook to recover compensation benefits after an internal investigation showed that he had sexual relationships with multiple employees, violating company policy, it said in a filing on Monday.Easterbrook lied during the investigation into his behavior, the filing showed.McDonald's dismissed Easterbrook in November over a consensual relationship with an employee, which the board then determined violated company policy. Easterbrook and McDonald's could not be immediately reached for comment.
(2020-08-09). Federal Judge Calls On Supreme Court To Overturn 'Qualified Immunity'. popularresistance.org Handing down a ruling to dismiss a civil lawsuit which alleged a police officer violated a Black man's Fourth Amendment rights during a traffic stop in 2013, a federal judge in Mississippi made clear that he sided with the plaintiff—and demanded the U.S. Supreme Court overturn legal precedent that makes it nearly impossible for the judicial system to hold officers accountable for rights violations. | Calling for an end to qualified immunity, which dates back to a 1982 ruling and shields police from civil liability in most cases, U.S. District Court Judge Carlton Reeves turned his ruling into a plea for just…
(2020-08-09). Afghanistan to free 400 Taliban to start peace talks. yenisafak.com The Afghan president, following a recommendation by a traditional Afghan council, pledged on Sunday to release the remaining 400 Taliban prisoners to pave the way for peace talks aimed at ending the nearly two-decade-long war."The Taliban must demonstrate they are not afraid of a comprehensive ceasefire… there is no great bravery required for war, but for peace," Ashraf Ghani told the Loya Jirga, which began on Friday.He promised to free the remaining prisoners on Aug. 19, Afghanistan's Independence Day.Over 3,000 public figures, who assembled in the capital Kabul, approved the release and called for an immedia…
(2020-08-09). Pakistan welcomes prisoner release in Afghanistan. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Aug. 10 (MNA) — Pakistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that the country welcomes Afghan Loya Jirga's recommendation on the release of prisoners.
(2020-08-08). Tribute to the outstanding communist Ka Fidel V. Agcaoili. fightbacknews.org On what would have been the 76th birthday of Ka Fidel V. Agcaoili, Freedom Road Socialist Organization joins in paying tribute to this great revolutionary and fighter for the liberation of the Philippines. Every communist can learn from his example and from his many contributions to the international communist movement. His passing is a cause for sadness among all of us who are working to end exploitation and oppression. | Ka Fidel was a revolutionary who devoted the whole of his life to the struggle for national liberation and socialism. He came from a privileged background, took up the science of Marxism, and i…
(2020-08-08). Portland protesters attack another police HQ, throw rocks and fireworks at officers (VIDEOS). rt.com 
Black Lives Matter protesters in Portland fired rocks and fireworks at police on the 71st night of demonstrations in the city, with some even wearing body armor and shields as they clashed with officers. | On Friday night, demonstrators made their way to the Penumbra Kelly Building in Portland, a headquarters shared by the Multnomah County Sheriff's Office and Portland Police Bureau. | Portland Police said in a statement on Saturday that they warned the crowd several times that arrests would be made for trespassing, but not all protesters cooperated. Some eventually took to launching rocks and fireworks at the…
(2020-08-08). Supreme Court Rules Jail Does Not Have to Provide Basic Protections to Inmates. indybay.org Even as prisons across the US report a surge in Covid-19 cases, the Supreme Court ruled on August 5th that prisons do not have to provide basic protections to inmates.
(2020-08-08). Former Colombian President Alvaro Uribe Under House Arrest. popularresistance.org The Colombian Supreme Court of Justice has ordered the preventive home detention of Senator and former President Alvaro Uribe for the crimes of procedural fraud and bribery. The Latin American right-wing leader became the first former president to receive this type of arrest order, suspected of trying to manipulate the statement of a defendant who linked him to the creation of paramilitary groups. "The deprivation of my freedom causes me deep sadness for my wife, for my family and for the Colombians who still believe that I have done something good for the country," lamented Uribe…
(2020-08-08). Street Artists Rise to the Occasion. progressive.org In the midst of international protests against racist violence, artists are using their skills to send a clear message: Black lives matter.
(2020-08-08). Video: Restrained detainee begs for life as guards kill him. nationofchange.org Neville's family has filed a civil lawsuit against the county of Forsyth and Wellpath, the medical agency that employs the nurse, for failing to save Neville's life and negligently causing his death.
(2020-08-08). Utah Protesters Face Charges With Potential Life Sentence. popularresistance.org Salt Lake City, UT – Some Black Lives Matter protesters in Salt Lake City could face up to life in prison if they're convicted of splashing red paint and smashing windows during a protest, a potential punishment that stands out among demonstrators arrested around the country and one that critics say doesn't fit the alleged crime. | The felony criminal mischief charges are more serious because they carry a gang enhancement. Prosecutors said Wednesday that's justified because the protesters worked together to cause thousands of dollars in damage, but watchdogs called the use of the 1990s-era law troubling, especial…
(2020-08-08). Abolishing Police Is a Step Toward Ending White Supremacy and Capitalism. truthout.org Something has come unstuck. The common sense about policing has abruptly changed. | This shift was a long time coming: Prison abolitionists — a movement of scholars and activists, notably spearheaded by Black women such as Angela Davis and Ruth Wilson Gilmore — have spent decades organizing toward a goal of abolishing the prison system. The Black Lives Matter movement and a new generation of Black-led organizing have kindled a new moment in which a world without police feels truly pos…
(2020-08-08). 'This Is a Five-Alarm Fire': With 2020 Election at Stake, Call Goes Up for Mass Mobilization to Save Postal Service. commondreams.org "Can't stress this enough— if the USPS is sabotaged, this will amount to the greatest voter suppression campaign in history." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/save_the_postal_service.jpg …
(2020-08-07). Susan Abulhawa Embodies the Spirit of Palestinian Resistance in Her New Book: Against the Loveless World. mintpressnews.com 
Writer and political activist Susan Abulhawa weaves a daring tale of a Palestinian woman's defiant experience in solitary confinement at an Israeli prison.
(2020-08-07). Neil deMause on Reopening Coverage, Nicole Porter on Covid and Prisons. fair.org 
Media…
(2020-08-07). 'Baseless & politically motivated': NRA counter-sues New York AG who seeks to shut down pro-gun organization. rt.com 
The National Rifle Association has filed its own lawsuit after New York's attorney general sued the group for fraud, hoping to put it out of business. The pro-gun org says the AG's case is politically motivated and frivolous. | Responding to a suit brought by New York state Attorney General Letitia James on Thursday — which accused top executives in the pro-Second Amendment group of misusing funds — the NRA filed a federal countersuit claiming James' case is based on a "rank political vendetta," rather than any "sincere belief" that the organization broke the law. | "This was a baseless, premeditated…
(2020-08-07). Prohibited From Holding Police Officer to Account, Federal Judge Calls on Supreme Court to Overturn 'Qualified Immunity'. commondreams.org Handing down a ruling dismissing a civil lawsuit which alleged a police officer violated a Black man's Fourth Amendment rights during a traffic stop in 2013, a federal judge in Mississippi made clear that he sided with the plaintiff—and demanded the U.S. Supreme Court overturn qualified immunity. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/gettyimages-1224873269.png …
(2020-08-07). 'Enraging and Inexcusable': Louisiana Supreme Court Rules Black Man Convicted of Garden Tool Theft 20 Years Ago Should Die in Prison. commondreams.org A 62-year-old Black man is expected to spend the rest of his life in Louisiana's largest maximum-security prison after the state Supreme Court denied his request to overturn his life sentence, 23 years after his conviction for attempting to steal a pair of hedge clippers. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/3936550016_1cac4a9184_o_1.jpg …
(2020-08-07). Amendment 4 is Back in Court as Florida Fights Our Victory Over its Modern-Day Poll Tax. aclu.org Betty Riddle, a grandmother and university graduate,
(2020-08-07). Waupaca, WI: Black Lives Matter protest disrupted by cops, protester violently arrested. fightbacknews.org Waupaca, WI – On the afternoon of August 1, members of United Action Oshkosh (UAO) and supporters of Black Lives Matter from the Fox Valley area gathered with local supporters in the small town of Waupaca for a march. Nearly 30 people plus a small caravan of cars turned out for the rural action. | The Black Lives Matter march was the second in Waupaca for many of those in attendance, including the organizers from UAO. At the first march, the protest was greeted by a resistant police force and a slew of racists in their cars. At one point, one of these cars tried to drive through the back of the small march, nearl…
(2020-08-07). None Of The World's Worst People Are In Prison: Notes From The Edge Of The Narrative Matrix. thealtworld.com Exactly zero of the world's worst people are in prison. | ~ | The main obstacle to humanity forming a collaborative relationship with each other and our ecosystem isn't because of "human nature", it's because manipulative psychopaths keep working their way into power. Finding a way to deal with psychopathy would solve most of our problems. | ~ | Some people find it offensive that I say Trump is no worse than his predecessors. I find it offensive that they ignore the barbarism of Trump's predecessors. | ~ | The way politicians pretend to despise their opponents' depraved actions and then get all cuddly later prove…
(2020-08-07). Thursday 8/6: Communities of Color: Communicating Safe Voting Options for November. indybay.org Online via livestream at Human Rights Campaign Facebook…
(2020-08-07). Thursday 8/6: Voting Rights Act 55th Anniversary: COVID19, Voter Suppression, Vote by Mail, & More. indybay.org Online via Twitter…
(2020-08-07). Resisting The Propaganda Of Status Quo Defenders. popularresistance.org First came the new names—Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, Rayshard Brooks, and others—all added one by one to the long list of tragic, unjustifiable police killings of Black Americans. Then came the batons, the pepper spray, the tear gas, the flash-grenades, the helicopters, the armored vehicles, and the rubber bullets wielded against nonviolent Black Lives Matter protesters across the United States, from Minneapolis to New York City to Portland. And then came the chorus of privileged beneficiaries of our country's discriminatory status quo, denying and defending the reality of brutal, racist, militarize…
(2020-08-07). Black August And Black Liberation: 'Study, Fast, Train, Fight.'. popularresistance.org Each August since 1979, the surviving sectors of the Black Liberation Movement, our supporters, and the new entrants into the ranks of resistors to the ongoing oppression against the African/Black masses and colonized peoples of this territory now called the United States and its settler state, have paid homage to our fallen freedom fighters and those incarcerated for decades in the cages of this country. | The struggle for African/Black freedom in the United States began with the arrival of the first enslaved Africans to this territory in 1619. The tradition of resistance to the settler state is different from t…
(2020-08-07). General Motors Pushing Lawsuit Against Fiat Chrysler Claiming It Has New Evidence of Corruption. sputniknews.com The new evidence is supposed to complement the racketeering lawsuit, initiated years ago by former FCA CEO Sergio Marchionne, who passed away in 2018.
(2020-08-07). Putin and Lukashenko discuss Belarus' detention of 33 Russians: Kremlin. yenisafak.com Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin expressed confidence on Friday that tensions over the detention of 33 Russian citizens in Minsk can be resolved, the Kremlin said.The arrests further strained relations between the two traditional allies, already soured this year by a dispute over oil, in the run-up to a presidential election in Belarus on Sunday, seen as Lukashenko's toughest political challenge in years.The two leaders spoke by telephone, the Kremlin added.
(2020-08-07). Judge Rules Trump Rape Accuser E. Jean Carroll's Defamation Suit Against President Can Proceed. commondreams.org A New York state judge ruled Thursday that a defamation lawsuit filed against President Donald Trump by journalist and columnist E. Jean Carroll—who last year accused Trump of raping her in the 1990s—can proceed while an appeals court weighs a separate, similar case of another woman who has accused the president of sexual assault. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/e-jean-carroll-defamation-trump_0_0.jpg …
(2020-08-07). Gun Lovers Should Be Thanking Tish James for Suing the NRA. thenation.com Gun Lovers Should Be Thanking Tish James for Suing the NRA…
(2020-08-06). The ACLU Has Never Done a Damn Thing for Me. counterpunch.org It's actually worse than that in terms of the ACLU. When I was a school counselor in a public high school, the ACLU screwed me royally, even though I had helped them with the case of a student. A federal district court found for the student in a freedom of speech case, and I was a
(2020-08-06). Neil Young sues Trump campaign, slamming use of famous tunes. peoplesworld.org 
NEW YORK (AP) — Neil Young sued President Donald Trump's reelection campaign Tuesday for copyright infringement, saying he doesn't want his music used as a theme song for a "divisive un-American campaign of ignorance and hate." The Grammy-award winning Canadian-born musician filed the lawsuit through his lawyers in Manhattan federal court, seeking up to $150,000 …
(2020-08-06). 'These are killers': Giuliani blasts BLM as 'terrorist group' that 'hate white people'. rt.com 
Rudy Giuliani, a lawyer for President Donald Trump, has slammed Black Lives Matter as a "domestic terrorist organization" full of "killers" who "hate white people" and want to "overthrow our way of life." | Trump and officials from his administration have been critical of aspects of the BLM protests happening across the country, but none have gone as far as Giuliani did on Thursday's 'Fox & Friends.' | The former New York City mayor compared BLM to the left-wing Antifa group, labeling both "domestic terrorist organizations." | Do you know who knows that best? African-Americans. I've actually had them tell me,…
(2020-08-06). Sergey Furgal for President? LDPR leader refuses to rule out choosing ousted Khabarovsk governor as 2024 presidential nominee. rt.com 
The former Governor of Khabarovsk, Sergey Furgal, won't be excluded from the opposition LDPR party,even if found guilty, and could stand for Russian President if acquitted of murder, according to its leader, Vladimir Zhirinovsky. | Furgal, who was elected to his post in September 2018, was arrested on July 9 on suspicion of ordering three murders —two successful and one failed— in the mid-2000s. Following his detention, he was flown to Moscow, where he is currently awaiting trial. | "We won't rule it out. He's still ours. We will keep him in the ranks of the LDPR, we will support him, we will give hi…
(2020-08-06). NY Attorney General announces lawsuit to dissolve National Rifle Association for 'years of self-dealing' and 'illegal conduct'. rt.com 
New York Attorney General Letitia James has said that she is filing a lawsuit with the intention of dissolving the National Rifle Association (NRA), alleging they are guilty of years of "illegal conduct." | Announcing the lawsuit on Thursday, James accused the NRA of diverting millions of dollars "away from its charitable mission" and into the pockets of "senior leadership." This, she says, violates New York's charity laws. | The lawsuit is targeting the gun-rights organization as a whole, but also names senior leadership, including NRA Chief Executive and Executive Vice President Wayne LePierre. | #BREAKING
(2020-08-06). New York attorney general sues National Rifle Association in bid to dissolve it. thecanary.co 
New York's attorney general has sued the National Rifle Association (NRA), seeking to put the gun advocacy organisation out of business.Letitia James's lawsuit, filed in state court in Manhattan on Thursday after an 18-month investigation, alleges high-ranking executives diverted millions of dollars for lavish personal trips, no-show contracts for associates and other questionable expenditures.The NRA's long-time leader Wayne LaPierre is accused of awarding himself a $17m (£12.9m) post-employment contract.Wayne LaPierre is accused of diverting millions of dollars for personal benefit (Jose Luis Magana/AP)Si…
(2020-08-06). Retired Federal Probation Officer: Stop Sending People to COVID-Filled Prisons Unnecessarily. aclu.org In early April, the Rikers Island jail complex in New York City suffered
(2020-08-06). Security Council condemns 'heinous and cowardly' terrorist attack in Jalalabad, Afghanistan. news.un.org Members of the UN Security Council have condemned "in the strongest terms" the terrorist attack at a prison complex in Jalalabad, Afghanistan, on Monday, that left at least 29 people — including civilians — dead.
(2020-08-06). Over 1,100 Policing Agencies in the U.S. Have Bought Drones Capable of Recording. truthout.org In early June, Julie Weiner was at a Black Lives Matter rally in downtown Yonkers, New York, when she spotted a small drone in the sky, monitoring the protest. Weiner, a long-time Yonkers resident, immediately asked her city councilperson, Shanae Williams, who had organized the rally, whether the drone was being operated by the Yonkers police. Williams went over to talk to a group of police and returned to report that, yes, the drone belonged to the Yonkers Police Department. | "That's a pro…
(2020-08-06). 'India not releasing jailed critics despite virus risk'. yenisafak.com India is among several countries where human rights defenders and activists imprisoned for criticizing the government have been kept in jail despite the risk of COVID-19, Amnesty International said in a report released on Thursday.The new briefing, Daring to Stand up for Human Rights in a Pandemic, states that India is one of the countries that has "left prisoners of conscience to languish in appalling conditions despite widely publicized prisoner release programs."According to the report, 131 people who speak up for human rights have been harassed, prosecuted, killed, or imprisoned on COVID-19-related pretexts i…
(2020-08-06). On 55th Anniversary of Voting Rights Act, Advocates Call on Congress to Fully Restore Law to Honor John Lewis's Fight for Justice. commondreams.org Civil rights advocates on Thursday marked the 55th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, both in celebration of the hard-won victory of activists in the 1960s and in honor of the late Rep. John Lewis, whose tireless organizing helped pressure lawmakers to sign the legislation. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/lewis.jpg …
(2020-08-06). 'Thoughts and Prayers': Gun Control Groups Send Ironic Condolences After New York AG Files Lawsuit Seeking to Dissolve NRA. commondreams.org Gun control advocates repurposed the pro-gun movement's frequent refrain Thursday, offering "thoughts and prayers" to the National Rifle Association after New York Attorney General Letitia James announced that she had filed a lawsuit seeking to dissolve the powerful gun rights organization. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/gettyimages-954767810_1.jpg …
