(2020-12-18). Remembering protest singer Phil Ochs on his 80th birthday. peoplesworld.org 
For those not fortunate enough to recall, Phil Ochs was one of our nation's most profound singer/songwriters in the period that bridged the Civil Rights, antiwar, and feminist movements. He was born on December 19, 1940: This week, he would have been 80 years old. His topical songs called for peace and an equitable society. They called for …
(2020-12-18). Assange Hearing Outcome Could Set An "Alarming Precedent" For Free Speech. popularresistance.org Assange's partner, Stella Moris, is remaining resolute despite his extradition hearing decision being less than a month away and him being held in a prison that has recently had a Covid-19 outbreak. | Speaking over the phone to Index, Moris discusses the hearing's details and what it could mean for the future of freedom of expression. And she talks about the deep implications it has had for her and her young family. | "Obviously it is very difficult. I speak to Julian on a daily basis unless there is a problem. [But] he is in prison. Soon to be for two years. He has been there for longer than many violent prisone…
(2020-12-18). Workers of Leica plant in Portugal protest wage discrimination. peoplesdispatch.org The workers at the Lousado plant of the German company Leica in Portugal organised a protest demanding a salary hike and an end to the harassment faced by workers…
(2020-12-18). Google faces major antitrust lawsuits for alleged search monopoly. nationofchange.org "As the gateway to the internet, Google has systematically degraded the ability of other companies to access consumers."
(2020-12-18). Air Force Veterans of Plutonium Dust Disaster Win Class Action Standing. counterpunch.org Air force veterans exposed to plutonium after a first-ever US nuclear weapons disaster in Spain have won extremely rare recognition as a class in a lawsuit against the Department of Veterans Affairs. On Jan. 17, 1966, an air force B-52 bomber exploded over the village of Palomares, Spain during a routine airborne refueling. Seven airmen
(2020-12-18). The Winner of the 2020 Election: Drug Legalization. aclu.org The 2020 election was notable for many reasons, but one winner really stood out: drug legalization. Five states legalized either medicinal or adult use of marijuana. Oregon and went even further, becoming the first state to decriminalize the personal use and possession of small amounts of illegal drugs, including cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamine. The momentum garnered from these cross-country wins helped push the
(2020-12-18). Free Speech Protest in Downtown Santa Cruz. indybay.org Watch the free speech protest held on Church Street on December 11th in downtown Santa Cruz, challenging for city of 1st and 14th Amendment rights violations. Also, recently published survey results of Santa Cruz County residents on political issues ranging from their media to Black Lives Matter. Eye-opening.
(2020-12-18). Sunday 12/20: Jail Support Simulation Training. indybay.org Online Zoom…
(2020-12-18). We Are Not Done With Abolition. zcomm.org The framers of the 13th Amendment did not intend to establish an empire of prison labor…
(2020-12-18). 2020 Saw Resurgence of Strikes as a Key Tactic for Labor Around the World. truthout.org Like every other social movement in the U.S. this year, the compounding crises of 2020 proved a catalyzing force for the labor movement, compelling essential and frontline workers to join picket lines to ensure basic protections and increased pay as they continue to face disproportionate risks and increasingly perilous working conditions amid the COVID-19 pandemic. | But essential workers weren't the only sector on strike this year: Prisoners and tenants across the country also withheld their la…
(2020-12-17). Car hits anti-ICE march in New York Cit. workers.org 
New York Since the beginning of the Black Lives Matter movement in 2014, there have been at least 100 car attacks on protesters in the U.S. Most recently, in Manhattan near 39th St. and Third Ave., a car plowed at high speed through a group of protesters on Dec. 12. . . . |
(2020-12-17). Incarcerated rise up against COVID deaths, raging infections. workers.org 
Coffin of a Stafford Creek incarcerated person. On Dec. 9 an incarcerated person at Stafford Creek "men's" prison, near Aberdeen, Wash., died of COVID-19. The same week, coronavirus infections tripled from 85 to 237 among the imprisoned there. In response to this person's death and the alarming increase in infections, . . . |
(2020-12-17). Arabic press review: Egypt, UAE say improvement in Saudi-Qatari relations 'not welcome'. middleeasteye.net 
Arabic press review: Egypt, UAE say improvement in Saudi-Qatari relations 'not welcome' | Meanwhile, British diplomat says UK 'very concerned about continuing tensions in the Gulf', and number of people held in Algerian prisons without legal basis now 'exceeds 20,000', says human rights group | Thu, 12/17/2020 – 16: 20 | Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed (L) and Egyptian President Abdel…
(2020-12-17). Saudi Arabia: British MPs urge UK to impose sanctions on Riyadh for detaining royals. middleeasteye.net 
Saudi Arabia: British MPs urge UK to impose sanctions on Riyadh for detaining royals | Cross-party probe concludes that Mohammed bin Nayef and Prince Ahmed are being mistreated in detention | Thu, 12/17/2020 – 13: 30 | Saudi Arabia did not accept the MPs request to see Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Nayef (right) after he was detained in an unknown location since March 2020 (AFP) | British MPs have called on…
(2020-12-17). Report details widespread illegal extraction of smartphone data by US law enforcement. wsws.org An extensive report from Upturn, a nonprofit civil rights organization, shows that law enforcement agencies at the local, state and federal levels are each day routinely extracting smartphone data in violation of the Fourth Amendment's guarantee against unreasonable searches and seizures.
(2020-12-17). Major victory in MN: 'Myon is free!'. fightbacknews.org Bayport, MN – After 18 long years, Myon Burrell walked out the doors of Stillwater prison, to a cheering crowd of family and 100-plus community supporters. First embraced by his sister Ianna Burrell from the front, and his son Myon Burrell, Jr. from the back, he slowly made his way to the outside stairs to chants of, "Welcome home!" and "Myon's free!" | Burrell made his way through the crowd, and then said, "I thank everybody who came out and supported me. I can't even explain my gratitude. All my supporters, I love y'all. Y'all take care. And y'all keep on pushing, man, we fighting for justice. There's too much…
(2020-12-17). Antitrust Lawsuits Hold Google Accountable. commondreams.org ______________________________…
(2020-12-17). NSW government under scrutiny for strip searches, 'war on drugs'. greenleft.org.au The push back against NSW Police's 'war on drugs' is growing as they pay up hundreds of millions of dollars in lawsuits and restrictions on strip-searches are being considered by the parliament. Rachel Evans reports.
(2020-12-16). Conservation Groups Challenge Blackfoot River Timber Sale That Threatens Elk, Grizzly Bear, Bull Trout, and Lynx Habitat. counterpunch.org 
Two conservation groups, Alliance for the Wild Rockies and Native Ecosystems Council filed a lawsuit in Federal District Court in Missoula on December 11th challenging the 1,112 acre Stonewall Logging Project in the Blackfoot River valley in the Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest about four miles northwest of Lincoln, MT. The proposed changes to the
(2020-12-16). Defend incarcerated workers! workers.org 
These comments were given at a Dec. 10 webinar of the Prisoners Solidarity Committee of Workers World Party. The theme of tonight's webinar is "Build class solidarity with incarcerated workers: No walls in the workers' struggle." The PSC wanted to sponsor this webinar on International Human Rights Day — the . . . |
(2020-12-16). 14 convicted over Charlie Hebdo & Paris terrorist attacks in 2015, key suspect sentenced to 30 years in prison. rt.com 
A French court on Wednesday found 14 people guilty of being accomplices in the Paris 2015 terrorist attacks on satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo and a Jewish supermarket, with one person jailed for 30 years for funding the attacks. | Hayat Boumeddiene, the ex-partner of main attacker Amedy Coulibaly, was given a 30-year sentence after being convicted of financing terrorism and belonging to a criminal terrorist network. | She was among three suspects to be tried in absentia after the trio reportedly fled to Syria to join the Islamic State group (IS, formerly ISIS). Two of them are said to have been killed during…
(2020-12-16). Kempis Ghani Songster: 'The struggle of working people in the prison system'. workers.org 
Kempis Ghani Songster co-produces the podcast "Move It Forward" which can be listened to at: transom.org/2020/move-it-forward/ These slightly edited comments are from a Dec. 10 webinar organized by the Prisoners Solidarity Committee of Workers World Party. Co-moderator Monica Moorehead: We're very excited to welcome to the panel Kempis Ghani Songster. . . . |
(2020-12-16). VIDEO: SA holding migrants in inhuman conditions. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Dec. 16 (MNA) — Human Rights Watch has released footage of a detention center for foreigners in Riyadh, proving that Saudi officials have detained and tortured hundreds of foreign workers. As reported, three have lost lives by the present.
(2020-12-16). Civil Rights Groups Urge Biden to Nominate Attorney General Dedicated to 'Bedrock Principle of Equal Justice'. commondreams.org "We need an attorney general… committed to ending discrimination; addressing white supremacy and hate violence; and advancing racial, gender, disability, ethnic, religious, immigrant, and LGBTQ justice." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/black_lives_matter_solidarity.png …
(2020-12-16). New Report Details the Shocking Growth of the Prison Exploitation Across the US. mintpressnews.com "This report is really hoping to unveil the prison industry, the government and corporate actors who are exploiting the fact that they have been in the shadows," — Bianca Tylek, Founder of Worth Rises…
(2020-12-16). Abuse on the Mainland: Australia's Medevac Hotel Detentions. dissidentvoice.org Governments that issue press releases about the abuse of human rights tend to avoid close gazes at the mirror. Doing so would be telling. In the case of Australia, its record on dealing with refugees is both abysmal and cruel. It tends to be easier to point the finger at national security laws in Hong …
(2020-12-16). Maeve in America: How We Can Do Better. progressive.org The racial oppression codified into the formation of the United States has been tinkered with, modified, lessened, but still rules the land.
(2020-12-16). Proud Boys Destroy Churches' Black Lives Matter Signs During Protest in Washington, D.C. splcenter.org Proud Boys attended a pro-Trump rally in Washington, D.C., on Saturday that ended with members of the group tearing down and destroying Black Lives Matter banners from two historic Black churches.
(2020-12-16). China undermining human rights by locking up rights lawyers, UN independent expert says. news.un.org China has mounted a "shocking" five-year assault on lawyers who stand up for human rights, putting them in prison and even torturing them, an expert mandated by the UN Human Rights Council said in a statement on Wednesday.
(2020-12-15). W.E.B. Du Bois Is as Relevant as Ever. progressive.org Elvira Basevich's new book takes a look at the scholar's work through the lens of the Black Lives Matter movement.