Monthly Archives: May 2021

2021-05-06: News Headlines

Staff (2021-05-07). #FreePalestinianStudents campaign update: Join a letter-writing action online; Israeli attacks on students continue. samidoun.net There are hundreds of Palestinian high school and university students among the approximately 4,500 Palestinian political prisoners in Israeli jails, in many cases specifically targeted for Israeli colonial imprisonment and repression for their student activism, organizing student events and participation in student elections and other political and social activities on campus. As Israeli settlers rampage through Jerusalem and Palestinians resist the threatened impending forced transfer and ethnic cleansing in Sheikh Jarrah, occupied Jerusalem, the attacks on Palestinian students — and their organizing and…

_____ (2021-05-06). Drone Whistleblower Jailed Ahead Of July Sentencing. popularresistance.org A federal judge ordered drone whistleblower Daniel Hale's arrest, and United States authorities took him into custody. | On April 23, Judge Liam O'Grady signed an order suggesting Hale violated the terms of his supervised release. An arrest warrant was issued, and on April 28, he was jailed. | Judge Theresa Carroll Buchanan, a different judge than the one who has presided over his case, held a hearing on the alleged "pretrial release violation." Hale maintained no violation had occurred, yet the court scheduled a bond revocation and detention hearing for May 4. | The chain of events came after a "special conditio…

Staff (2021-05-06). From Colombia to Palestine, resist imperialist crimes! Samidoun solidarity statement with the people of Colombia. samidoun.net Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network expresses its strongest solidarity with the people's movement and political prisoners of Colombia, facing the U.S.-backed right-wing regime of Ivan Duque, police murder and targeted assassinations, and harsh repression of mass protests. Thousands of people in Colombia have been marching for the past eight days against the tax policy of the right-wing Duque administration, supported by the United States and also involved in U.S.-directed regime change operations targeting Venezuela, Bolivia, and other progressive governments throughout Latin America. This movement h…

James Fleming (2021-05-06). Joleen Nez death shows continued brutality of ABQ police, jail. liberationnews.org The real crime: homeless, Indigenous, and an addict…

Joe Piette (2021-05-06). Protest for incarcerated loved ones. workers.org WW PHOTO: Joe Piette Our incarcerated loved ones are being treated inhumanely, and their voices are not being heard. Over 4,700 people are locked in Philadelphia's jails, more than when COVID-19 began. The majority of people incarcerated are waiting for a trial — some for over a year — in . . . |

Monica Moorehead (2021-05-06). Bashing China, U.S. commits crimes against humanity. workers.org It was announced April 7 that the Biden administration is being pressured by right-wing Republicans to either fully or partially boycott the 2022 Winter Olympic Games in Beijing, China, which will take place for two weeks that February. As part of the ongoing anti-China tirade that accelerated with the COVID-19 . . . |

Staff (2021-05-06). Justice Department Raises Concerns Over Cyber Ninjas' "Audit" of Arizona Ballots. truthout.org The Department of Justice's (DOJ) Civil Rights Division has expressed serious concerns over an audit of the 2020 election in Arizona's largest county, noting that the firm hired to conduct the review may be taking illegal actions. | In a letter written by Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Pamela Karlan, the DOJ worried that 2.1 million ballots from Maricopa County may be compromised due to the lack of security at the Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum where the audit is taking plac…

Staff (2021-05-06). Florida's DeSantis Bars All Media Except Fox at Voter Suppression Bill Signing. truthout.org Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill into law on Thursday imposing new restrictions on voting, such as making it harder to vote by mail and criminalizing the handing out of food and water to people in voting lines. | The governor made the signing of the bill, which would affect millions of voters in his state, a "Fox exclusive,"

Peoples Dispatch (2021-05-06). Protests erupt against decision to reinstate Atlanta police officer who killed Rayshard Brooks. peoplesdispatch.org Dozens of Black Lives Matter activists gathered outside the City Hall of Atlanta on May 5 to protest the decision to reinstate Garrett Rolfe to the Atlanta Police Department. Rolfe was earlier terminated from his job for the murder of Rayshard Brooks, a 27-year-old black man.

Rann Miller (2021-05-06). Public Service or Protests for Black Lives? progressive.org We must use all of the tools we have to achieve racial justice and end police brutality.

Bertha Martinez (2021-05-06). Social Activism of Black Lives Matter: Institutional Responses. indybay.org Institutions in America should show their support for the Black Lives Matter movement. By doing so, they demonstrate that they understand the severity of police brutality against black people.

Brett Wilkins, staff writer (2021-05-06). DOJ Warns GOP-Led Arizona Election Audit May Violate Civil Rights Law. commondreams.org The U.S. Justice Department on Thursday wrote to Arizona's GOP state Senate president warning that the Republican-run audit of the 2020 election may violate civil and voting rights law. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/audit_0.jpg

sputniknews (2021-05-06). Policeman Who Reportedly Raped 11-Year-Old Had a Record And Was Rehired Due to Police Negligence. sputniknews.com Last week, Alabama State Trooper Christopher Bauer was arrested on charges of sexually abusing an underage girl. He is currently being held in the Montgomery County Detention Facility under a $105,000 bail.

Leon Kunstenaar (2021-05-06). Vigil for Refugee Rights, Stop Child Detention, Recognize Asylum at UUSF. indybay.org Unitarian Universalist Society of S.F. holds Cinco de Mayo morning Vigil…

The Canary (2021-05-06). Home Office discriminating against Windrush generation's families, High Court rules. thecanary.co The Home Office's refusal to give the families of people from the Windrush generation preferential treatment when charging fees to enter the UK is unlawfully discriminatory, the High Court has ruled. | Discrimination: | Lynda Mahabir, a 52-year-old woman who was born in Trinidad, suffered a "colossal interference" with her right to family life when she was separated from her husband and five children for more than two years, a judge said on 6 May. | Judge Tim Smith ruled that the Home Office's insistence that Mahabir's family had to pay nearly £23,000 in fees to join her in the UK left her with "a t…

Sharon Kelly (2021-05-06). New lawsuit challenges 'fast-track' permits used for oil and gas pipelines nationwide. nationofchange.org For nearly a decade, pipeline companies have relied on the contested Nationwide Permit 12 when their projects cross waterbodies in the U.S.

May Day in San Francisco (2021-05-06). Call to Support Organized Labor, Free Mumia and Stand Up for Black/Brown/Asian Unity. indybay.org This year as every year in San Francisco, thousands marched to support organized labor. Many unions and workers' groups marched up Market Street to protest racism and call for passage of the PRO Act by the U.S. Congress. Signs said Mumia is a class war prisoner and called for an end to the death penalty. There was new emphasis this year on the importance of Black/Brown/Asian Unity.

Julia Conley, staff writer (2021-05-06). 'This Is How Fascists Operate': DeSantis Signs Anti-Voting Bill Behind Closed Doors for Fox News. commondreams.org "Democracy is literally dying in the dark," said one critic after Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the state's voter suppression law, allowing only Fox News to cover the signing. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/desantis.jpeg

WSWS (2021-05-05). Defend Julian Assange, jailed for exposing the crimes of American and world imperialism. wsws.org The founder of WikiLeaks has been jailed for more than two years in a British maximum security prison, after seven years of effective imprisonment in the Ecuadorian embassy in London.

David Sobelsohn (2021-05-05). At Supreme Court, billionaires argue they're like NAACP in 1958 Alabama. peoplesworld.org WASHINGTON (PAI)—In 1958, in the wake of Brown v. Board of Education and the Montgomery bus boycott, and using its power to regulate out-of-state corporations, Alabama demanded the NAACP disclose its Alabama members' names and addresses. Fearing the effect on its membership, the NAACP refused. A unanimous Supreme Court sided with the NAACP. The U.S. …

Staff (2021-05-05). After an alleged overdose days before his release, Bobby Sneed may lose his parole and spend the rest of his life in prison. therealnews.com After 47 years in Angola prison, Bobby Sneed was unanimously granted parole after a hearing only 17 minutes long. But the state may rip his impending freedom away at the last minute after an alleged overdose.

Staff (2021-05-05). Jailers Tortured and Murdered Marvin Scott III, Family Says After Viewing Video. truthout.org In their first one-on-one interview since viewing horrific footage of their son's in-custody homicide at the hands of eight Collin County, Texas, jailers on March 14, the parents of Marvin Scott III told Truthout that their son experienced a "whole day of torture" instead of receiving the help he needed during a mental health crisis. | The five-hour video, which lacked audio, was so horrible, LaSandra Scott tells Truthout, that, "They might as well have just shot him so it could be over qui…

Staff (2021-05-05). Cast An Informed Vote for Philadelphia District Attorney on May 18. aclu.org In the election for Philadelphia District Attorney, make sure you're informed about a name that isn't on the ballot —- the Philadelphia Fraternal Order of Police. | The Philadelphia FOP supports policies that increase mass incarceration and violate civil rights, and they oppose policies that would increase transparency and accountability. | Transparency and fairness in the criminal legal system matter, even if the FOP thinks they don't. | Whoever you vote for in the District Attorney election, be sure to cast an informed vote. Vote on May 18. |

2021-05-05: News Headlines

David Sobelsohn (2021-05-05). At Supreme Court, billionaires argue they're like NAACP in 1958 Alabama. peoplesworld.org WASHINGTON (PAI)—In 1958, in the wake of Brown v. Board of Education and the Montgomery bus boycott, and using its power to regulate out-of-state corporations, Alabama demanded the NAACP disclose its Alabama members' names and addresses. Fearing the effect on its membership, the NAACP refused. A unanimous Supreme Court sided with the NAACP. The U.S. …

Staff (2021-05-05). Jailers Tortured and Murdered Marvin Scott III, Family Says After Viewing Video. truthout.org In their first one-on-one interview since viewing horrific footage of their son's in-custody homicide at the hands of eight Collin County, Texas, jailers on March 14, the parents of Marvin Scott III told Truthout that their son experienced a "whole day of torture" instead of receiving the help he needed during a mental health crisis. | The five-hour video, which lacked audio, was so horrible, LaSandra Scott tells Truthout, that, "They might as well have just shot him so it could be over qui…

WSWS (2021-05-05). Defend Julian Assange, jailed for exposing the crimes of American and world imperialism. wsws.org The founder of WikiLeaks has been jailed for more than two years in a British maximum security prison, after seven years of effective imprisonment in the Ecuadorian embassy in London.

Staff (2021-05-05). Cast An Informed Vote for Philadelphia District Attorney on May 18. aclu.org In the election for Philadelphia District Attorney, make sure you're informed about a name that isn't on the ballot —- the Philadelphia Fraternal Order of Police. | The Philadelphia FOP supports policies that increase mass incarceration and violate civil rights, and they oppose policies that would increase transparency and accountability. | Transparency and fairness in the criminal legal system matter, even if the FOP thinks they don't. | Whoever you vote for in the District Attorney election, be sure to cast an informed vote. Vote on May 18. |