Daily Archives: 2020-11-16

2020-11-16: News Headlines

Brett Wilkins (2020-11-16). ICE deports immigrants who alleged medical abuse at detention facility. salon.com Advocacy groups slam "shameful" deportation of ICE medical abuse survivors…

Staff (2020-11-16). "I Need That Pardon": Ronnie Long, Free After 44 Years, Demands Justice for His Wrongful Conviction. democracynow.org "It's a blessing within itself for me to even be sitting here right now," says Ronnie Long, free after 44 years behind bars for a crime he did not commit. Long, who is African American, was convicted in 1976 of raping a white woman by an all-white jury and sentenced to 80 years in prison. In 2015, his lawyers learned that investigators had withheld exculpatory evidence proving his innocence — including semen samples and fingerprints taken from the crime scene that did not match his own — and witnesses for the state committed perjury at his trial. It would take several more years and a ruling by the 4t…

_____ (2020-11-16). First Nation To Launch Lawsuits For Damages Against Fishers. popularresistance.org Canada – A Mi'kmaq First Nation that encountered violence after it opened a self-regulated lobster fishery says it will launch a series of lawsuits against non-Indigenous fishers for alleged damages incurred by its members. | The band also intends to file a constitutional challenge against a provincial law that has prevented the band from selling its lobster catch, Ron Pink, the lawyer for Sipekne'katik First Nation, said Thursday. | "We're pursuing injuries to individuals and disruption to their fishing by certain individuals," Pink told a news conference at the band office.

Mohammad Ayesh (2020-11-16). Arabic press review: Algerian court sentences media mogul to five years in prison. middleeasteye.net Arabic press review: Algerian court sentences media mogul to five years in prison | Meanwhile, Jordanian MPs are due to be prosecuted over alleged 'vote buying', and more than 200 prominent Palestinians campaign for one-state solution | Mon, 11/16/2020 – 14: 32 | Anis Rahmani's organisation served as the media wing of President Abdelaziz Bouteflika's administration (Facebook) | Algerian cour…

Ralph Nader (2020-11-16). Trump's Ongoing Crime Wave Requires a Special Prosecutor. counterpunch.org There are many reasons why loser Trump refuses to concede. Yes, delusion has been the counterfeit coin of his fantasy realm — "I won this election by a lot" he tweeted with all caps last Saturday. In his fevered mind — nourished by a bullying career — all victories are his triumphs, and all losses are fake due

Kamran Abbasi (2020-11-16). COVID-19: Politicisation, "Corruption," and Suppression of Science. globalresearch.ca Politicians and governments are suppressing science. They do so in the public interest, they say, to accelerate availability of diagnostics and treatments. They do so to support innovation, to bring products to market at unprecedented speed. Both of these reasons …

WSWS (2020-11-16). Prisoners load bodies into mobile morgues in El Paso, Texas as COVID-19 infections skyrocket. wsws.org The winter surge in the US is well underway, with fatalities climbing as hospital systems from one region to the next reach capacity.

news.un (2020-11-16). UN human rights experts denounce 'concerted attempt' to erode civic space in Cambodia. news.un.org Voicing concerns over increasing restrictions on the civil society in Cambodia, a group of independent UN human rights experts have called for an immediate end to the systematic detention and criminalization of activists.

Kamran Abbasi (2020-11-16). COVID-19: Politicisation, "Corruption," and Suppression of Science. The British Medical Journal. globalresearch.ca Politicians and governments are suppressing science. They do so in the public interest, they say, to accelerate availability of diagnostics and treatments. They do so to support innovation, to bring products to market at unprecedented speed. Both of these reasons …

_____ (2020-11-15). The Ongoing Incarceration Of California's Indigenous Peoples. popularresistance.org For 25 years, Indigenous rights activists fought for an official UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples — for a document that doesn't just affirm our individual human rights, but asserts our inherent and inalienable collective rights as Indigenous peoples. In 2007, that document was finally adopted by the General Assembly. Article 10 of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples states that "Indigenous peoples shall not be forcibly removed from their lands or territories.

Takirra Winfield Dixon (2020-11-15). Monuments to Black lives have no value without justice and meaningful change. salon.com My city named a building in my father's memory. He would have preferred economic equality for his workers…

_____ (2020-11-14). Update: Abby Martin's Lawsuit Over Israel Loyalty Oath Mandate In US. popularresistance.org New developments in Abby Martin's major lawsuit challenging unconstitutional pro-Israel, anti-BDS law in the state of Georgia. | Abby Martin: "In February of this year, I was supposed to give a keynote speech at Georgia Southern University. Before the event, I refused to sign a state-mandated pledge to not boycott Israel in order to speak. My invitation was rescinded and the conference canceled as a result. I decided to sue the state of Georgia because signing an anti-BDS clause in order to work in the state is a direct violation of my rights to Constitutional free speech and to participate in political boycotts.

Dana Drugmand (2020-11-14). Norway's Supreme Court to decide on climate lawsuit challenging offshore Arctic oil drilling. nationofchange.org "To disregard this is to disregard Norway's international responsibilities and science."

Deirdre Griswold (2020-11-14). Class oppression and the virus. workers.org The United States continues to lead the world — in the number of COVID-19 cases as well as in deaths. As of Nov. 9, this rich, high-tech imperialist country has now registered 243,302 deaths from the virus. This is twice as many coronavirus deaths as in India, even though the . . . |

Jim McMahan (2020-11-14). Seattle: Anti-racist marches continue during election week. workers.org Seattle Black-led marches against racist and economic oppression continued during election week in Seattle. Trump's racism has led more people to stay in the streets. While the vote for Biden was big, the election definitely didn't take people out of the streets. "Count Every Vote — Protect Every Person" rally, . . . |

Sophia Purdy-Moore (2020-11-14). Netpol reveals 'institutional racism' in the policing of Britain's Black Lives Matter protests. thecanary.co The Network for Police Monitoring (Netpol) has released a new Netpol's report comes days after a Joint Committee on Human Right…

Nicole Karlis (2020-11-13). Amazon worker who was fired after leading COVID-19 safety protest files lawsuit against tech giant. salon.com Chris Smalls' class action suit filed claims that Amazon violated federal and state laws…

Fred Fuentes (2020-11-13). Women of Steel: Check out upcoming screenings near you. greenleft.org.au Denied jobs at Wollongong's steelworks, working-class migrant women refused to accept discrimination. They began a campaign for the right to work that lasted for 14 years. Women of Steel tells their story, writes Kerry Smith.

The Canary (2020-11-13). Black nurses 'petrified' of being sent to frontline without adequate protection. thecanary.co Black nurses are "petrified" they will be sent back to the frontline without adequate protection or risk assessment during the second coronavirus wave, a support organisation has said. Equality 4 Black Nurses, a nurse-led organisation which aims to eradicate racial discrimination in the NHS, also raised concerns that stresses caused by the pandemic were "bringing racial inequalities to the surface".Discrimination: A survey conducted by the organisation found that a third (32%) of Black nurses were not supplied with adequate personal protective equipment (PPE) during the peak of the first wave. The study al…

Lyn Neeley (2020-11-13). After Defund Police victory, Portland keeps marching. workers.org Portland, Ore. After 170 days of uninterrupted protests against racism, fascism and police brutality, 82 percent of Portlanders have voted for a community oversight board to investigate and discipline cases of police violence. Rally for Black Lives Matter and to defend workers' rights, Portland, Ore., Nov. 8 Since the brutal . . . |

Mirinda Crissman (2020-11-13). Commentary: New Jersey releases 2,261 — but to what? workers.org The State of New Jersey released 2,261 incarcerated workers from its state prisons on Nov. 4. This largest single-day release in U.S. history comes on the heels of state law S2519, passed in September, which calls for the release of nearly 3,000 people in prisons to stop the rampant spread . . . |

The Canary (2020-11-13). Met Commissioner admits force 'not free of discrimination, racism or bias'. thecanary.co The Metropolitan Police commissioner has said she feels "very sorry" that trust among Black communities is so low, as she admitted her force "is not free of discrimination, racism or bias".Cressida Dick issued a statement as the force outlined plans for 40% of new recruits to be from Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds (BAME) from 2022.It comes as London mayor Sadiq Khan published an action plan to address concerns over the use of police powers affecting Black Londoners, including stop and search and the use of Tasers. It also comes after the mother of Stephen Lawrence argued "that there has been very li…

commondreams (2020-11-13). G20 Plan Is 'Thin Gruel for Debt Prisoners'. commondreams.org ______________________________…

The Canary (2020-11-13). Comedian says she is 'disabled and proud' after Question Time speech. thecanary.co Comedian Rosie Jones said she is "bloody proud" to be disabled after speaking on Question Time 25 years since the introduction of the Disability Discrimination Act. | "Groundbreaking": | The legislation, which was introduced in 1995, prohibited discrimination on the grounds of disability, and was significantly extended in 2006 to include areas such as employment and education. | Jones, who has cerebral palsy, appeared on the BBC's discussion programme to talk about her experience, and said that the "groundbreaking" act had helped her lead a better life. She told Fiona Bruce: Without a doubt my life has bee…

ACLU (2020-11-13). How COVID-19 is Setting Working Women Back. aclu.org In early October, the United States Labor Department reported that women were leaving the workforce at four times the rate of men. A few months earlier, a report from McKinsey Global revealed that while women made up 43 percent of the workforce, they had borne 56 percent of COVID-related job losses. This data — and much more — led one news source to call this moment "America's First Female Recession.", , This week, Colleen Ammerman joined At Liberty to discuss why this is happening, and what we can do about it. Ammerman is the director of Harvard Business School's Gender Initiative. She is also the…

Peoples Dispatch (2020-11-13). As conflict in Ethiopia continues, observers fear return of repressive state. peoplesdispatch.org Soon after coming to power in 2018, prime minister Abiy Ahmed had opened up the political space by freeing political prisoners and allowing other political parties to operate freely. The war in Tigray may lead to a reversal of these gains…

Simon Hooper (2020-11-12). 'Hostile environment' supporter appointed to EHRC equality watchdog. middleeasteye.net 'Hostile environment' supporter appointed to EHRC equality watchdog | David Goodhart, who says he has 'grown used to being accused of racism even by my own children', appointed to Equality and Human Rights Commission board | Thu, 11/12/2020 – 14: 59 | David Goodhart described Black Lives Matter complaints of systemic racism in the UK as "statistically naive" (Screengrab) | The UK government has appoin…

Steve Sweeney (2020-11-12). South Africa's Communists condemn possible release of Chris Hani's assassin. peoplesworld.org The South African Communist Party (SACP) is voicing strong opposition to the application for the release of the murderer of its former general secretary Chris Hani. Janusz Walus was jailed for life for the 1993 killing, which took place while negotiations to end the country's racist apartheid system were at an advanced stage. Walus's latest …

teleSUR (2020-11-12). Dominican Republic: Odebrecht Trials Continue. telesurenglish.net A Dominican Republic's Court Thursday continued the trial against six defendants involved in the Odebrecht corruption case in the country. | RELATED: | The Lawsuit presented by the Public Ministry shows that over US$90 million were paid by the Brazilian construction company Odebrecht to secure the allocations of state works. | Businessmen Angel Rondon, Victor Diaz, Andres Bautista, Juan Rodriguez, Conrado Pittaluga,…