Daily Archives: 2020-09-17

2020-09-17: News Headlines

Staff (2020-09-17). Daniel Ellsberg Warns U.S. Press Freedom Under Attack in WikiLeaks' Julian Assange Extradition Case. democracynow.org Legendary Pentagon Papers whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg says Julian Assange's extradition hearing in London could have far-reaching consequences for press freedoms. The WikiLeaks founder faces an ever-evolving array of espionage and hacking charges related to the release of diplomatic cables that revealed war crimes committed by U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan. Assange faces almost certain conviction, if extradited, and 175 years in prison. "The American press has remained in kind of a state of denial for 40 years, really, since my case, that the Espionage Act has wording in it that could be aimed directly at…

_____ (2020-09-17). Assange Court Report September 16: Afternoon. popularresistance.org A famous Vietnam era whistleblower, 89-year-old Daniel Ellsberg, has told a court that he feels "a great identification," with both Julian Assange and his source Chelsea Manning, who, he said, "were willing to suffer the risk of imprisonment or even death to get information to the American public." | Ellsberg, a former US Marine officer who served with the US State Department in Vietnam during the war years, is best known for leaking a huge tranche of US government documents on the war to the New York Times in 1970, documents that showed that the government had been lying to the American people about the conflict…

Abdul Rahman (2020-09-17). WikiLeaks' Guantanamo files exposed inhumane American 'war on terror'. peoplesdispatch.org The documents published by Wikileaks in 2011 revealed how top US officials were directly involved in the torture and illegal detention of many innocents. This explains the US attempt to punish Julian Assange for revealing their failures…

_____ (2020-09-17). Nurse Alleges Forced Sterilizations, Medical Malpractice At Immigrant Detention Center. popularresistance.org A whistleblower complaint filed on behalf of a nurse who worked at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention center in southern Georgia until July alleges that a number of immigrant women detained there were subjected to sterilization through hysterectomies without their consent. | In the complaint, filed by the legal advocacy group Project South, the former nurse describes conditions at the center as akin to an "experimental concentration camp." | The complaint also details the refusal of the center's administrators to carry out COVID-19 testing or implement protective measures, putting detainees an…

Shakeer Rahman — Brendan McQuade (2020-09-17). Police Bureaucracy and Abolition: Why Reforms Driven by Professionals will Renew State Oppression. counterpunch.org The demands are clear: defund and abolish police. As those calls grow, so will efforts by reformers to propose new rules and regulations that they say will "improve" and restore "legitimacy" to policing. These bureaucratic reforms reflect the failed thinking that built up the carceral state, and they will make policing harder to dismantle.

RT (2020-09-17). Princeton president's letter decrying 'racism' of institution BACKFIRES as Dept of Education announces investigation of university. rt.com The Department of Education has announced it will investigate Princeton University after President Christopher Eisgruber wrote a letter decrying his school's "racism" and the US's "anti-blackness." | A formal records request has been sent to the university to make sure they are not using racist practices and violating Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which says that no person "on the ground of race, color, or national origin, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance." | If found…

A. Majumdar (2020-09-17). PDF of September 17 issue. workers.org Download the 12-page PDF. Philly encampment: 'Housing now!' ALSO: COVID: Is it genocide yet? 'Disability Visibility'; TPS workers' Journey for Justice; New poll tax on voting; Climate crisis fires; Editorial 9/11—pretext for war. Labor Defends Black Lives Work stoppage call; Athlete strikes inspire; 'Workers move the world'; Kenosha activist for . . . |

WSWS (2020-09-17). No charges in Missouri police murder of 25-year-old Hannah Fizer. wsws.org As another killer cop goes free, protesters against the police killing of Ricardo Munoz in Lancaster, Pennsylvania remain in jail, with bail set at $1 million.

Build Back Better (2020-09-17). Build Back Better with Reform, Justice, Equality, Democracy, Truth… indybay.org Want reform, equality, justice, liberty? Want Black Lives to Matter?Learn about how you can help Biden and Harris Build Back Better.

Friends of Gualala River (2020-09-17). Lawsuit Challenges Logging Threat to Endangered Wildlife in Northern California Redwoods. indybay.org The proposed logging, on 342 acres of private land in Sonoma County, would remove mature redwoods from the lower Gualala River watershed.

ACLU Northern California (2020-09-17). Thursday 9/24: Virtual Speak Out: Tell UC Health System to Protect LGBTQ+ and Reproductive Healthcare. indybay.org Online…

Families Belong Together (2020-09-17). Wednesday 9/16: Emergency Action: Forced Sterilizations in ICE Detention Centers (urgent webinar). indybay.org Online via zoom…

Build Back Better (2020-09-17). Build Back Better with Reform, Justice, Equality, Democracy, Rights… indybay.org Want reform, equality, justice, liberty? Want Black Lives to Matter? Learn about how you can help Biden and Harris Build Back Better.

Elizabeth Woodworth (2020-09-17). The Battle for Pandemic Sanity: Hydroxychloroquine Efficacy vs. Its Suppression. globalresearch.ca Covid-19 cases are on the rise again in the U.S. | Why are Dr. Anthony Fauci's NIAID, the FDA, and the CDC so blind to the real-world success of HCQ+azithromycin? | If this combination is the simple, cheap, safe way to prevent …

Asiah Williams (2020-09-17). Of Course Republicans Want to Suppress the Youth Vote. thenation.com Of Course Republicans Want to Suppress the Youth Vote…

Binoy Kampmark (2020-09-16). Assange's Sixth Day at the Old Bailey: US Prison Conditions and Politicised Prosecutions. dissidentvoice.org September 15. Central Criminal Court, London. Today, witnesses appearing in the extradition trial of Julian Assange fleshed out some points touched upon the previous day: the fate awaiting the WikiLeaks publisher in the US prison system, and the political nature of process. Before commencing, Judge Vanessa Baraitser was a touch peeved. She noted that one …

Binoy Kampmark (2020-09-16). Assange on Trial: Supermax Prisons and Special Administrative Measures. counterpunch.org DAY FIVE 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,

WSWS (2020-09-16). London bus drivers resolve to fight for Assange's freedom. wsws.org The first action of the newly formed London Bus Drivers Rank-and-File Safety Committee was to pass a resolution calling for the defence of imprisoned WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange.

_____ (2020-09-16). Day Nine: Julian Assange Extradition Hearing. popularresistance.org Things became not merely dramatic in the Assange courtroom today, but spiteful and nasty. There were two real issues, the evidence and the procedure. On the evidence, there were stark details of the dreadful regime Assange will face in US jails if extradited. On the procedure, we saw behaviour from the prosecution QC that went well beyond normal cross examination and was a real attempt to denigrate and even humiliate the witness. I hope to prove that to you by a straightforward exposition of what happened today in court, after which I shall add further comment.

Staff (2020-09-16). Continue to Say Her Name: Breonna Taylor's Family Wants Cops Arrested After Historic $12M Settlement. democracynow.org The city of Louisville, Kentucky, will pay a historic $12 million settlement to the family of Breonna Taylor, more than six months after police shot and killed the 26-year-old Black emergency room technician in her own apartment and Taylor became a household name as part of the nationwide uprising in defense of Black lives. It is one of the largest payouts ever for a police killing of a Black person in the U.S. The city will also institute major reforms to the police department responsible for Taylor's death. Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer announced the settlement at a press conference, where he was joined by memb…

Staff (2020-09-16). Noura Erakat: Trump's Bahrain-UAE-Israel Deal Won't Advance Palestinian Peace & Will Up Repression. democracynow.org As the Trump administration celebrates deals establishing diplomatic ties between Israel and the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, we speak with Palestinian American legal scholar Noura Erakat, who says Trump's "peace" agreements are a sham. "This is not about advancing any kind of meaningful, enduring peace, but instead about entrenching a geopolitical alliance that would otherwise increase oppression for people of the Middle East," says Erakat, assistant professor at Rutgers University and author of "Justice for Some: Law and the Question of Palestine."

yenisafak (2020-09-16). Nearly 3,500 Palestinians killed during Netanyahu era. yenisafak.com During the prime ministry of Benjamin Netanyahu, who signed an agreement with the UAE and Bahrain to normalize relations, nearly 3,500 Palestinians, including many women and children, were martyred and thousands of others injured in the attacks of Israeli forces.Netanyahu, shown as one of the chief architects of Israel's oppression and violations against Palestine, served as the prime minister during the two bloody attacks on the Gaza Strip under the blockade by the Israeli army.According to the data of the Israeli rights group B'Tselem, nearly 3,500 Palestinian Palestinians have been martyred in the attacks of t…

WSWS (2020-09-16). Nurse alleges forced sterilizations, medical malpractice at Georgia immigrant detention center. wsws.org The chilling report provides further evidence of the sadistic abuse meted out by the Trump administration in its fascistic war on immigrants.

commondreams (2020-09-16). HHS is Withholding Health and Safety Data on Active Migrant Detention Center. commondreams.org ______________________________…

MEE and agencies (2020-09-16). Saudi Arabia 'holding 16,000 Ethiopian migrants' in single detention centre: Report. middleeasteye.net Saudi Arabia 'holding 16,000 Ethiopian migrants' in single detention centre: Report | Ethiopia's consul general in Jeddah says migrants are being held in all city's jails, with one facility holding 16,000 people | Wed, 09/16/2020 – 18: 46 | Thousands of Ethiopians made dangerous journey through Yemen into Saudi Arabia to seek employment (AFP/File photo) | Dozens of prisons in Saudi Arabia…

ACLU (2020-09-16). Why We Want to Vote By Mail. aclu.org Voting by mail is the safest way to cast a ballot for many voters, whether they are immunocompromised, have a disability, or simply want to protect the health of their community. Six voters from across the country shared with us why they want to vote by mail, and why it should be an option for all voters. No excuses. |

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: | "I have voted in every general election since 1972. The right to vote is my tool to manage those conditions that I want for my country, my children and my old age. Failure to vote is simply to alienate myself from what I criticize of the current government an…

Editor (2020-09-16). Los trabajadores piden un paro laboral para las vidas negras. workers.org Esta declaración de Labor for Black Lives fue emitida el 31 de agosto y firmada por más de 50 organizaciones sindicales. Entre los firmantes figuran United Electrical, Radio & Machine Workers of America (UE), United Auto Workers Region 9A (del este de Nueva York, Nueva Inglaterra y Puerto Rico), Fight . . . |

Ted Kelly (2020-09-16). Philadelphia houseless activists demand 'Housing now!'. workers.org As Philadelphia city officials and cops threaten eviction, hundreds of people come out to defend #HousingNow encampment, here Sept. 9. Philadelphia Sept. 14 — For over three months, "BLACK LIVES MATTER" was shouted in hand-painted white letters across a massive banner on 21st St. at the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, near . . . |

Monica Moorehead (2020-09-16). Prisoners denied the right to vote, a new form of poll tax — WW commentary. workers.org Voting in Lower Peach Tree, Ala., in Wilcox County, on May 3, 1966, after passage of the 1965 Voting Rights Act. Voter suppression in the United States is as "American as apple pie," especially when it comes to Black, Brown and other marginalized communities. Despite the passing of the Voting . . . |

Joe Sims (2020-09-16). I'm not voting for my favorite candidate this year. peoplesworld.org In 1968, I was persecuted for voting for civil rights activist and comedian Dick Gregory who ran for president as a write-in candidate of the Freedom and Peace Party. Well, actually I didn't vote for him, but I said I would in a straw poll conducted in my 5th-grade class. The teacher objected that Gregory …

Daniel Renken (2020-09-16). Media narratives about China endanger world peace. peoplesworld.org In recent months, Americans have received a barrage of news on TV, social media, and even late-night talk shows discussing the "aggressive" actions of the People's Republic of China. Whether it's the disputed waters of the South China Sea, the Hong Kong protests, or accusations of religious discrimination and genocide, the presentations of the national …

A Guest Author (2020-09-16). Growing old in prison after COVID-19. workers.org By Major Tillery Major Tillery is an innocent man who has spent 35 years in prison because gross prosecutorial and judicial misconduct led to his fraudulent conviction for murder in 1985. He has spent 20 years in solitary confinement. Major has become an advocate for prisoners' rights against the injustice . . . |

RT (2020-09-16). Feds worried drones might AIRLIFT prisoners over walls, says new DOJ report seeking permission to SHOOT THEM DOWN. rt.com The Federal Bureau of Prisons is worried drones might eventually be used in jailbreak attempts by physically lifting inmates out of the prison yard, a new report has revealed, adding that some drones can already elevate people. | Drones are hated and feared by prison guards for their capacity to serve as flying drug mules. But the Bureau of Prisons is also worried that drones may soon be used to carry prisoners themselves to freedom, according to a report published on Tuesday by the Justice Department's Office of the Inspector General. | Federal prison employees say they're worried that at some point, drones m…

_____ (2020-09-16). 'Palestinian Self-Determination Not For Sale'. popularresistance.org As US President Donald Trump brought together leaders from Israel, Bahrain, and the United Arab Emirates to sign deals to establish diplomatic relations, just outside of the White House, hundreds of Palestinians, civil rights and advocacy groups gathered in protest of the occasion, accusing the leaders of ignoring the voices of Palestinians. | Coming together with waves of Palestinian flags, donning traditional keffiyehs, and some wearing masks with the words "Free Palestine", the demonstrators shouted slogans: "No hate, no fear, Bibi is not welcome here", and "Occupation is a crime, normalisation is a crime".

WSWS (2020-09-16). Wisconsin Supreme Court blocks Green Party presidential campaign from 2020 ballot. wsws.org The Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled 4-3 to reject a lawsuit by the Green Party candidates seeking an injunction against the distribution of ballots to voters without their names on them.

Fight Back (2020-09-16). South Los Angeles continues to seek justice for Dijon Kizzee. fightbacknews.org Los Angeles, CA – Thousands of supporters from South LA, along with multiple political forces, continued to denounce the killing of 29-year-old Dijon Kizzee by the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department (LASD) at a protest on September 12. Kizzee was shot 20 times by deputies from LASD's South LA station for an alleged vehicle code violation that ended in a fatal altercation on August 31. Kizzee's family called for murder charges against the sheriff deputies responsible for his death. | Organized by Coalition for Community Control of Police, Black Lives Matter-LA and several other organizations, the action started…

Asher Luberto (2020-09-16). Voting in the United States: A Constant Uphill Battle. progressive.org A new documentary produced by Stacey Abrams explores the history of voter suppression, today's tactics, and what we need to do to fight it.

Peoples Dispatch (2020-09-16). Algerian journalist Khaled Drareni's prison term reduced but only by a year. peoplesdispatch.org The term of Algerian journalist Khaled Drareni, who was earlier sentenced to three years in prison, has been reduced by a year. Activists and journalists condemned the ruling, demanding his freedom…

WSWS (2020-09-16). Suppression of wages in US at centre of widening social inequality. wsws.org The reduction in labour's share of the national income by eight percentage points over five decades means that workers would be receiving $1.12 trillion more had the previous distribution between wages and profits applied.

Staff (2020-09-16). Trump's "Peace" Deals Will Worsen Oppression in Middle East, Legal Scholar Says. truthout.org As the Trump administration celebrates deals establishing diplomatic ties between Israel and the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, we speak with Palestinian American legal scholar Noura Erakat, who says Trump's "peace" agreements are a sham. "This is not about advancing any kind of meaningful, enduring peace, but instead about entrenching a geopolitical alliance that would otherwise increase oppression for people of the Middle East," says Erakat, assistant professor at Rutgers University and auth…

Staff (2020-09-16). How to Do More Than Panic About Voter Suppression. truthout.org Trump's attacks on Black protesters and Black people are inextricably bound to the arguments he will make to try to invalidate the election. In this episode, Truthout's Kelly Hayes talks with voting rights activist Anoa Changa about how you can defend voting rights in the homestretch of the presidential race. | Note: This is a rush transcript and has been lightly edited for clarity. Copy may not be in its final form. | TRANSCRIPT: | Kelly Hayes: Welcome to Movement Memos, a Truthout podcast about things you should…

yenisafak (2020-09-16). Palestinian inmate contracts COVID-19 in Israeli prison. yenisafak.com Another Palestinian detainee has been infected with coronavirus in an Israeli prison, raising the total count to 31, according to a Palestinian commission on Wednesday. In a statement, the Commission of Detainees and Ex-detainees Affairs said Eyad Abu Hashhash, who is held at the prison of Ashkelon, tested positive for COVID-19.The prisoner was transferred to Remon prison in southern Israel for isolation, it said.Around 4,500 Palestinians, including 41 women and 140 minors, are currently held in Israeli prisons, according to Palestinian figures.

yenisafak (2020-09-16). 'Hotel Rwanda' hero could face maximum life in prison, prosecution says. yenisafak.com Rusesabagina, who once called for armed resistance to the government in a YouTube video, was charged in a Kigali court on Monday with 13 counts including terrorism, complicity in murder and forming or joining an irregular armed group."For some of the crimes, he may face 25 years, and some even go up to life imprisonment," Faustin Nkusi, spokesman of Rwanda's prosecution authority, told Reuters on phone.Rusesabagina declined to respond to all the charges on Monday, saying he wanted to take a plea to each individual count. The court will rule on bail on Thursday.His case has thrust a spotlight on to President Paul…

Brett Wilkins, staff writer (2020-09-16). 'Tyrannical and Un-American': ACLU Rebukes Barr for Urging Sedition Charges Against Protesters. commondreams.org "Treating protest as a form of sedition won't hold up in court," said the ACLU. "But that is clearly not the point here." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/barr_3.jpg

Lisa Newcomb, staff writer (2020-09-16). Lawmakers Demand Probe into 'Horrifying' Allegations of Neglect, Mass Hysterectomies at ICE Detention Center. commondreams.org "These allegations are part of a larger pattern of reproductive injustices conducted by ICE officials." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/cd-jayapal.jpg

commondreams (2020-09-16). Reports of Forced Sterilization of Women in ICE Detention Deeply Alarming. commondreams.org ______________________________…

teleSUR (2020-09-16). EU Says Poland "LGBTQ-Free Zones" Violates Gay Community Rights. telesurenglish.net European Union Chief executive Ursula Von der Leyen on Wednesday rejected bloc members' discrimination against the LGBTQ community, precisely Poland's "LGBT-free zones" policy, violating queer people's rights. | RELATED: | "LGBTQI-free zones are humanity free zones. And they have no place in our (European) Union," Von der Leyen said in her annual allocution to the European Parliament. | In August, Poland Justice Mi…

Hannah La Follette Ryan (2020-09-16). Jails Are Designed to Keep Inmates Hidden. thenation.com Jails Are Designed to Keep Inmates Hidden…

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…