Daily Archives: 2020-09-15

2020-09-15: News Headlines

Staff (2020-09-15). Colonization Made California a Tinderbox: Why Indigenous Land Stewardship Would Help Combat Climate Fires. democracynow.org We examine California's history of forest management and how a century of fire suppression has made the current climate fires even more destructive. For thousands of years, Native American tribes in California would regularly burn the landscape to steward the land, but colonization led to the suppression of these tactics and decades of misguided policy. A return to these Indigenous practices could help better steward the land and foster greater climate resiliency, says Don Hankins, a pyrogeographer and Plains Miwok fire expert who teaches geography and planning at California State University, Chico. "If we all wo…

Binoy Kampmark (2020-09-15). Assange's Fifth Day at the Old Bailey: Supermax Prisons and Special Administrative Measures. dissidentvoice.org Having had a coronavirus scare towards the end of last week, necessitating a brief suspension of proceedings for September 11, the extradition proceedings for Julian Assange resumed with Eric Lewis. The chairman of the board of Reprieve, who has cut his teeth on representing Afghan detainees in US custody and those in Guantánamo, has not …

Staff (2020-09-15). Headlines for September 15, 2020. democracynow.org Trump Doubles Down on Climate Crisis Denial as West Coast Burns, World's Largest Vaccine Maker Says It Could Take 5 Years for Universal COVID-19 Vaccination, Trump Calls COVID-19 "The Plague" in April Interview with Woodward as He Called for U.S. to Reopen, Nevada City Fines Venue That Hosted Trump Rally Which Violated State's Coronavirus Restrictions, Appeals Court Gives Trump Greenlight to End Immigration Protections for 400,000 TPS Holders, Whistleblowing Nurse Says Georgia Immigration Jail Performing Forced Hysterectomies, Palestinians Form Unified Front as Israel, UAE and Bahrain Sign Deal Normalizing Relati…

Staff (2020-09-15). Remembering Kevin Zeese: A fighter for peace and justice. therealnews.com Peace activist and human rights attorney Kevin Zeese died of a heart attack on the morning of September 6. As his life partner, Dr. Margaret Flowers, and their community grieve, they celebrate his life by carrying on the work that they began together. | Zeese was known for organizing around many human rights issues, centering opposition to U.S. imperialism abroad and mass incarceration at home. He brought national attention to

Eds. (2020-09-15). The revolutionary answers of C.L.R. James. mronline.org The Black Lives Matter movement across the U.S. against police violence and racist inequality is one of the most dynamic political developments in years.

Raul Diego (2020-09-15). Steve Bannon's Plans for a Privately-Funded Border Wall Are Crumbling. mintpressnews.com As Steve Bannon faces 40 years in prison for wire fraud and money laundering, the trend of privately-funded border walls his organization started comes up against federal, international, and political barriers…

a guest author (2020-09-15). In Buffalo, N.Y., Black Lives Matter protest cop brutality. workers.org On Sept. 4, hundreds of protesters took to the streets and gathered outside the district police station in North Buffalo in the busy Hertel Avenue shopping area. The demonstrators demanded the firing of over a dozen cops with histories of police brutality and called for their salaries of almost $1.5 . . . |

a guest author (2020-09-15). We as workers are powerful'. workers.org By Dominic Harris The following article is based on a talk given during a Sept. 10 webinar,"Workers Defend Black lives," sponsored by Workers World Party. Dominic Harris is president of UE Local 150, Charlotte, N.C. United Electrical Workers has been in the leadership of U.S. labor organizing to defend Black . . . |

A Guest Author (2020-09-15). Labor calls for work stoppage for Black Lives. workers.org This statement by Labor for Black Lives was issued Aug. 31 and signed by over 50 labor organizations. Signers include United Electrical, Radio & Machine Workers of America (UE), United Auto Workers Region 9A (covering eastern New York, New England and Puerto Rico), Fight for $15, International Coalition of Black . . . |

The Canary (2020-09-15). ITV praises Diversity's 'authentic and heartfelt' Black Lives Matter BGT routine. thecanary.co ITV has praised Diversity for the group's "authentic, heartfelt" performance on Britain's Got Talent, which was inspired by Black Lives Matter and has since … | By | ITV has praised Diversity for the group's "authentic, heartfelt" performance on Britain's Got Talent, which was inspired by Black Lives Matter and has since been the subject of thousands of complaints to the broadcasting watchdog.

The Canary (2020-09-15). Jailed former Tory MP Elphicke is a 'sexual predator who told pack of lies', judge says. thecanary.co Charlie Elphicke was sentenced after being convicted of three counts of sexual assault on two women. | By | Former Dover MP Charlie Elphicke has been described by a judge as a "sexual predator" who "told a pack of lies" as he was jailed for two years for sexually assaulting two women, nearly a decade apart.The disgraced 49-year-old father of two showed no emotion as judge justice Whipple sentenced him to an immediate prison term for three counts of sexual assault, following a month-long trial which heard trained lawyer Elphicke lied to police,…

_____ (2020-09-15). On Its 27th Anniversary: Defeat Oslo, Confront Normalization, Escalate BDS. popularresistance.org The agreement signed on the White House lawn and the famous handshake of Yitzhak Rabin and Yasser Arafat was falsely billed as a promise of peace and hope for Palestinians, denied both for decades upon decades, but was in reality a program for continued and intensified colonization and the suppression of the Palestinian liberation struggle. The entire project of Oslo was always intended to intensify the repression, division and fragmentation of the Palestinian people, while imposing a Palestinian "security" framework over the Palestinian people struggling for their rights, for return and liberation.

Michael R. McBrearty (2020-09-15). Fighting Evictions: The 1930s and Now. zcomm.org The fight for housing security has already become a part of the general struggle against inequality made possible by the epochal rise of the Black Lives Matter movement…

The Canary (2020-09-15). Louisville to pay millions to Breonna Taylor's mother and reform police. thecanary.co The black woman was shot dead by police at her apartment. | By | The city of Louisville will pay several million dollars to the mother of Breonna Taylor and introduce police reforms as part of a settlement of a lawsuit from her family. | The settlement is reportedly the largest sum paid by the city for a police misconduct case. | Taylor's fatal shooting by police serving a narcotics warrant at her home sparked months of protests in Louisville and calls nationwide for the officers to be charged. | State attorney general Daniel Cameron is investi…

Peoples Dispatch (2020-09-14). Day 5 of Assange trial: Wikileaks' publication of Afghan War Logs was basis for ICC case. peoplesdispatch.org Today's witness presented by the defense, Eric Lewis, tried to impress upon the fact that once Assange could be subjected to arbitrary detention methods and highlighted the tremendous contributions of Wikileaks in advancing an ICC investigation of the US…

Staff (2020-09-14). Headlines for September 14, 2020. democracynow.org Historic Climate-Fueled Wildfires Kill 35 People, Burn 5 Million+ Acres Across West Coast, Trump Holds Packed Rally as U.S. Coronavirus Deaths Near 200,000 , ICE Flew Migrant Prisoners to Virginia, Fueling Outbreak, to Skirt Rules on Flying ICE Staff, WHO Says World Saw Biggest Daily Rise in Global Cases, Court Blocks Floridians with Unpaid Felony Conviction Fines from Voting, Trump Defends Police Killing of Portland Anti-Fascist Activist, Palestinians Decry Israeli Normalization Deals with UAE and Bahrain, Intra-Afghan Peace Talks Kick Off in Doha, Salvadoran Ex-Colonel Convicted for 1989 Murder of Jesuit Priest…

Brett Wilkins, staff writer (2020-09-14). Former US-Backed Salvadoran Colonel Sentenced by Spanish Court to 133 Years in Prison for 1989 Jesuit Massacre. commondreams.org Col. Inocente Orlando Montano led an elite U.S.-trained army unit that massacred six Jesuit priests, their housekeeper, and her teenage daughter during El Salvador's 12-year civil war. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/montano.jpg

WSWS (2020-09-14). COVID-19 outbreak at Virginia migrant detention center caused by repression of anti-police brutality protesters. wsws.org The outbreak at the Farmville detention center demonstrates the capitalist class's disdain for democratic rights and the lives of the entire population.

Jimmy Golen (2020-09-14). Black Lives Matter fills NFL stadiums. peoplesworld.org (AP)— Jason Myers kicked off to start the Seahawks' season-opener against the Falcons, and the ball sailed through the end zone for a touchback. No one moved a step. Instead, the players all dropped to one knee. After years of pleading with the NFL to act against systemic racism, they were willing to wait another …

Julian Rose (2020-09-14). Freedom or Fascism? "Refusal to be Derailed from the Path of Truth" globalresearch.ca Here we are. No more speculation about 'what awaits around the corner'; the jail keepers are escorting us down the concrete corridor and the cell keys are hanging from his belt. Each one of us, in turn, convicted — without …

WSWS (2020-09-14). Tennessee law seeks to criminalize protests on public property. wsws.org Protests on Tennessee state property could mean up to six years in prison under a new law.

Middle East Eye (2020-09-14). Saudi Officials Must Testify in 9/11 Lawsuit, Says US Judge. globalresearch.ca A US judge ordered Saudi Arabia to make 24 current and former officials, including a former ambassador to the United States, available for questioning in a lawsuit claiming it provided assistance for the attacks that took place on 11 September …

_____ (2020-09-14). Long-Awaited Win For Water Protectors. popularresistance.org On Thursday, September 10, 2020, in a long-awaited ruling, United States District Court Judge Daniel Traynor (District of North Dakota) allowed a lawsuit challenging law enforcement's 2016 use of fire hoses and munitions against water protectors opposing the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) to move forward with discovery. The case had been stalled for more than two years after Morton County and other defendants filed a motion asking the court to dismiss the case. | Plaintiff Vanessa Dundon is a member of the Navajo/ Diné Nation who was shot in the eye with a teargas canister while attempting to aid another person.

_____ (2020-09-14). Our Unjust System Of Mass Supervision. popularresistance.org Wisconsin's disastrous system of mass supervision is at odds with our widely shared values of justice, human dignity and compassion. Detaining people struggling with poverty, housing insecurity, mental health issues and addiction issues for alleged rule violations is at odds with common sense approaches to justice. Yet, public officials in Wisconsin have been keeping its prisons and jails overcrowded for many years by doubling down on this unjust practice. | A new report by Human Rights Watch and the ACLU demonstrates the deep racial injustice and extent of the harm caused by mass supervision in Wisconsin.

Staff (2020-09-14). Black Lives Matter Is a Continuum of Black Protest Over Centuries. truthout.org The world is watching as Donald Trump and his team incite violence against nonwhite Americans across the United States. Trump's team spans a broad array of warriors: his core staffers at the White House, senior Justice Department officers, many police departments across the country, key politicians in Congress, Fox News and other extreme media outlets, invisible right-wing trolls behind keyboards, armed vigilante militias, and many others. Their violent rhetoric spawns physical violence and emotional tr…

Dana Drugmand (2020-09-14). Australian teens bring class action climate lawsuit to stop coal mine expansion. nationofchange.org "I believe that the government has a duty to young people to protect our futures from the impacts of climate change, including stopping the impact of the Vickery Extension Project."

commondreams (2020-09-14). Leave Patriot Act out of Continuing Resolution: ACLU, Demand Progress, FreedomWorks, NAACP, and More. commondreams.org ______________________________…

Lisa Newcomb, staff writer (2020-09-14). To Counter 'Misinformation Flowing From the Highest Levels,' ACLU Launches Voter Preparedness Campaign. commondreams.org "We're calling on voters to make a plan, request their ballot where they can, and to encourage their friends to do the same." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/getty-aclu.jpg

commondreams (2020-09-14). Connecticut Sues Exxon in Fast-Growing Wave of Climate Lawsuits. commondreams.org ______________________________…

Jessica Corbett, staff writer (2020-09-14). Taking Aim at ExxonMobil, Connecticut Joins 'Fast-Growing Wave of Climate Lawsuits' Targeting Fossil Fuel Giants. commondreams.org "This avalanche of climate litigation is Exxon's worst nightmare. The public increasingly understands Big Oil's role in causing and lying about the climate crisis." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/minnesota-sues-koch-exxon-api_0.jpg

Paul Craig Roberts (2020-09-14). What Hath White Liberals Wrought? thealtworld.com A black walked up to a police car in which two Los Angeles County deputy sheriffs were sitting and shot both multiple times. Both officers are in intensive care fighting for their lives. Black Lives Matter, called "protesters" by the presstitute media, blocked entries and exists to the hospital chanting "we hope they die." | A black female onboard an airliner refused to cooperate with a white female flight attendant, telling the white female that her "white privilege was over" a…

Dave Zirin (2020-09-14). We've Entered the Era of 'Branding for Black Lives'. thenation.com We've Entered the Era of 'Branding for Black Lives'

_____ (2020-09-13). A Tale of Two Mass Gatherings: Sturgis 'Super Spreader' Bike Rally vs. Black Lives Matter 'Fiery but Mostly Peaceful' Protests. strategic-culture.org Judging by the way the media and medical authorities are reprimanding public events organized by right-leaning organizations, it appears beyond doubt that the coronavirus outbreak is being used as a political weapon to influence the outcome of the 2020 presidential election. | In early August, an estimated 460,000 motorcyclists took part in the annual pilgrimage to South Dakota. The Sturgis Biker Rally, which has been a major draw since 1938, is a 10-day event that generates hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue, much of it made on alcohol-fueled fun and revelry. In other words, as the party poopers would sa…

Fight Back (2020-09-13). New Orleans trans community celebrates name change, housing victories, keeps up fight. fightbacknews.org New Orleans, LA- On the morning of September 12, trans activists and supporters gathered in front of New Orleans City Hall for a press conference and community update. Participants celebrated the trans and gender non-conforming (TGNC) people's victories of the summer, and talked about next steps. | Real Name Campaign NOLA organized the event, with House of Tulip in support. The Real Name Campaign is an organization fighting for accessible ID changes, like name changes and the "M" and "F" on IDs. Incorrect IDs insult TGNC people's dignity and expose us to discrimination. House of Tulip is creating sustainable hous…

_____ (2020-09-13). Anti-Racism Protests In UK As Police Officers Face Court In US. popularresistance.org Anti-racism demonstrations took place across the UK on 11 September as the four officers charged over the killing of George Floyd in the US went on trial. | Protesters said they are determined to show that previous Black Lives Matter demonstrations were not "just a moment". | Mass protests were staged across the world after footage emerged of officers kneeling on the neck of Floyd, a Black man, killing him. | The four men are charged over the death, but it's understood they will push for separate trials in order to diminish their roles in the incident.

Michael Winship (2020-09-13). The Loudest Voices Make the Greatest Changes. commondreams.org Playwright and screenwriter Richard Wesley on Black Lives Matter, Black Power, Trump and the noise from the balcony.

Monica Moorehead (2020-09-12). Voting, self-determination and social change. workers.org Below is a slightly edited talk by Monica Moorehead at the Workers World Party webinar on Sept. 3 on "Save the people's post office." Voter suppression is an issue I have both personal and political knowledge of. I was born and raised under segregation in Alabama. Black and white activists . . . |

The Canary (2020-09-12). Anti-racism protests in UK as officers face court in US over George Floyd killing. thecanary.co Anti-racism demonstrations took place across the UK on 11 September as the four officers charged over the killing of George Floyd in the US went on trial.Protesters said they are determined to show that previous Black Lives Matter demonstrations were not "just a moment".Mass protests were staged across the world after footage emerged of officers kneeling on the neck of Floyd, a Black man, killing him.The four men are charged over the death, but it's understood they will push for separate trials in order to diminish their roles in the incident.Protesters outside the US embassy in London as part of an anti-racism d…

RT (2020-09-12). 'Makes it sound like a coffee spill': NAACP blasted as 'tone deaf' after labeling 9/11 attacks as 'horrific INCIDENT'. rt.com The NAACP has been accused of downplaying the gravity of the 9/11 attacks, with critics up in arms after the organization deemed them a "horrific incident" with no mention of terrorism in a tweet to mark their 19th anniversary. | "Today we remember all the lives lost and families affected during the horrific incident that occurred in 2001. #NeverForget," the organization wrote in a tweet on Friday, captioning an image of the New York skyline featuring the words "Always remember." | #NeverForget pic.twitter.com/63FVBl2qu8— NAACP (@NAACP) _____ (2020-09-12). September 19: A Nationwide Day Of Protest. popularresistance.org Despite the unprecedented wave of "Justice for George Floyd" protests that put more than 20 million people in the streets in every region of the nation in June, and the appearance of "Black Lives Matter" murals on the streets of Washington DC, New York City, Seattle, Oakland, Tulsa and other cities, police killings of Blacks have continued their grisly pace. Citing the subsequent murders of Trayford Pellerin in Lafayette, Louisiana, Miguel Vega in Chicago, Dijon Kizzee in Los Angeles, "the recent evidence of the murder of Daniel Prude at the hands of Rochester police and the continued denial of Justice for Breonn…

_____ (2020-09-12). Clear-Cuts: Cause Hot Catastrophic Wildfires. popularresistance.org Pack billions of the same-age trees close together, wait for dry-lightning or another ignition source, and you have an unnatural firebomb. The cause of thousands of annual catastrophic hot fires around the world are tree farms created by timber industry clear-cutting and fire suppression to prevent timber inventory loss. | I have seen it happen. About five years ago, driving home on Interstate 5 North of Lake Shasta, a dry-lightning storm began. It looked like the finger of God came down as lightning struck a conifer and it burst into smoke.

_____ (2020-09-12). 'When You Talk About White Supremacy, You've Got To Take A Hard Look At Our Culture'. popularresistance.org We are in troubling times, listeners know, with people being attacked for simply saying that Black Lives Matter and a president encouraging those attacks. It's what many feared when Trump came into office. But at the same time, we acknowledge that Trump didn't create the phenomenon of white supremacist violence. There's a whole history there that media should be using to shape their recording of present day events, give them context—and hopefully put an end to the "troubled individual" trope to describe people who are, in fact, part of something larger. CounterSpin talked about this in June of 2017 with Hei…

_____ (2020-09-12). Time To Acknowledge Hutu Genocide And Rwandan Occupation Of DR Congo. popularresistance.org My first contribution to Black Agenda Report was "Madame President? No, Madame Prisoner," a profile of Rwandan political prisoner Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza published in January 2014. Late Black Agenda Report Editor Bruce A. Dixon had asked me to write it after following my conversations with Victoire and other Rwandan dissidents for some years. Those conversations began in January 2010, when I looked into why no viable challengers to incumbent Rwandan President Paul Kagame were being allowed into that year's presidential election.

Humanist Community in Silicon Valley (2020-09-12). Sunday 9/13: Race, Police, and Prisons: The American Gulag. indybay.org Online…

Mehr News Agency (2020-09-12). Iran, Belarus stress finalizing prisoners transfer agreement. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Sep. 12 (MNA) — The Iranian ambassador to Minsk and the consular director general of the Belarusian Foreign Ministry stressed the need to finalize an agreement on the transfer of convicts between the two countries.

Workers World Party (2020-09-11). 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 . . . |

Martha Grevatt (2020-09-11). Outrage over death of Black trans woman in Cleveland jail. workers.org Cleveland Anger over the tragic death of 28-year-old Lea Rayshon Daye in Cleveland's Cuyahoga County Jail came out forcefully in a virtual press conference held Sept. 4. Daye's was the second jail death here in less than two months and the 11th in two years. Found unresponsive in her cell . . . |

CP Editor (2020-09-11). 175 Years in a U.S. Prison? Extradition Trial of WikiLeaks Founder Julian Assange Begins in London. counterpunch.org

ACLU (2020-09-11). The Myth of the "Bad" Immigrant. aclu.org Immigrant communities are often asked to "get right with the law," but is the law right in the first place? That's what Alina Das asks in her new book, No Justice in the Shadows. She delves into her experience as the daughter of immigrants, an immigration attorney, and a clinical law professor to explore the intersection of immigration and the criminal justice system. , , Too often, she argues, our immigration system is used as a tool of discrimination and oppression, rather than as a tool of justice, and the consequences are dire. Our current immigration system is breaking up families, and forcing people to f…

A Guest Author (2020-09-11). Remembering Frank 'Big Black' Smith. workers.org by Ida Robinson Ida Robinson is a co-founder with Families with a Future. She is an ex-prisoner, ex-fugitive and a current activist working with women and LGBTQ2S+ people. This is an edited version of her talk during the Aug. 29 WWP webinar, "Black Lives Matter: Justice for Peaceful Soledad Prisoners." . . . |