(2019-06-19). Stacey Abrams to Speak at Clarence Mitchell Luncheon during NAACP's 110th National Convention. naacp.org The Honorable Stacey Abrams will speak on the importance of ending voter suppression during the annual NAACP Convention in Detroit BALTIMORE — The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), the nation's foremost civil rights organization, has announced that politician, lawyer and author Stacey Abrams will be speaking at the prestigious Clarence Mitchell …
(2019-06-19). Prosecution falters in poisoning of Flint water. mronline.org 
Five years after it was confirmed that the water supply of Flint, Michigan, was a danger to human health, charges have been—at least temporarily—dropped against eight former and present officials who had been facing up to 20 years in prison for a host of felonies. These included charges of voluntary manslaughter in the deaths of […] | Source
(2019-06-19). Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe's husband insists Johnson's comments impacted on her. thecanary.co 
The husband of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe has insisted that comments made by Boris Johnson when he was foreign secretary "enabled a propaganda campaign" against her by Iran.Richard Ratcliffe directly contradicted claims by Mr Johnson in the Tory leadership TV debate that his remarks as foreign secretary had no bearing on the fate of the mother-of-one, who is in prison in Iran on spying charges.Apology: Mr Johnson was forced to apologise in 2017 after wrongly stating to a House of Commons committee that Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe had been in Iran to teach journalists.Referring to the remarks, Mr Ratcliffe told BB…
(2019-06-19). 'I will NOT be compared to shooter who murdered my classmates' — pro-gun activist Parkland survivor. rt.com 
Parkland survivor Kyle Kashuv hit back against ex-GOP congressman David Jolly for comparing him to a school shooter over racist comments he made online years ago. Harvard recently revoked Kashuv's admission over the controversy.
(2019-06-19). South African MP involved in 'racist incident' in Cape Town. cgtn.com 
Cape Town's popular V & A Waterfront apologized to South African MP Phumzile van Damme for its handling of what van Damme described as an incident of racism. | FILE — REUTERS | Van Damme explained that it all began during a visit on Tuesday to V & A. | She says she was standing in a queue when she had a quarrel with the mother of a family at one of the supermarkets. The mother allegedly told her she would "push [her] aside". | "Then when I went out, she was standing there with her family in a threatening manner. And I went to her and said, 'why are you looking at me in a threatening manner?' Then she said, '
(2019-06-19). The persecution of Caster Semenya. workers.org 
The ongoing persecution of South African runner Caster Semenya by the International Association of Athletics Federations has shone a spotlight on the ways sports, under the patriarchal structures of capitalism and imperialism, are used to police and define, in the most unscientific and racist way, rigid definitions of gender. Caster . . . | Continue reading The persecution of Caster Semenya at Workers.org
(2019-06-19). Bureau of Land Management Sued Again Over Climate Impacts of Oil and Gas. truthout.org An environmental group based in New Mexico is suing the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) over alleged violations of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) related to climate change. It's the second lawsuit the agency has faced over its approval of oil and gas leases on public lands in recent years. | WildEarth Guardians has filed a lawsuit against BLM and the Department of Interior, asking a federal court in New Mexico to vacate 210 oil and gas leases…
(2019-06-19). The Tory leadership wannabes think they're a 'boyband'. Yes really. thecanary.co 
On 18 June, Conservative leadership hopefuls met for a live TV debate on BBC. In theory, this was a chance for the UK to gain more insight into what we might expect from the next PM. But it turns out there's more focus on what to call the country's latest boyband. Yes really. | Brexit, racism and sheep farming: | There were some key 'moments' in the debate. Michael Gove, Jeremy Hunt, Sajid Javid, Boris Johnson and Rory Stewart shouted over each other so much that host Emily Maitlis told them to "shh": | pic.twitter.com/Ps0526Jlq5 | — Matthew Champion (@matthewchampion) (2019-06-18). Black Boys Aren't "Wolf Packs" and Abusive Prosecutors Aren't "Lone Wolves" aclu.org Ava Duvernay's "When They See Us" brings to light the racism that turned five innocent boys into the so-called "Central Park Five." | Ava Duvernay's new miniseries, When They See Us, retells the harrowing story of the five Black and Latinx boys wrongfully imprisoned for the rape and near murder of a young woman in New York's Central Park in 1989. In this telling, she tackles racist practices that echo to the past, but are very much present in the current era of mass incarceration. | The story is as complex as it is damning. Duvernay chronicles how police, prosecutors, judges, jailers, and the media worked in conc…
(2019-06-18). The Florida GOP's Assault on Democracy. thenation.com The Florida GOP's Assault on Democracy…
(2019-06-18). Democratic hopefuls roll out anti-poverty plans at Poor People's Campaign. peoplesworld.org 
WASHINGTON—Hoping to gain activists and energize a large voting bloc, nine 2020 Democratic presidential hopefuls — including one nobody's ever heard of — tackled the problems of the poor and voter suppression of black and brown people, among other topics, at a candidate forum here June 17. The eight-hour-long session, minus a dinner break, marked …
(2019-06-18). Charles E. Ruthenberg: The first leader of the Communist Party USA. peoplesworld.org 
At the time of his death in 1927, he was lauded as "one of the most indicted and imprisoned workers" in the history of the American labor movement. Yet today, few know the name Charles Emil Ruthenberg. When he passed away suddenly at the age of 44, he cheated a Michigan prison of its next …
(2019-06-18). Shrewsbury 24 flying picket Terry Renshaw: "Only the power of the working class, not the official courts, is going to provide any perspective for freeing Julian Assange." wsws.org The former building worker explains, "To defend class war prisoners like Julian Assange, the perspective has got to be to raise the awareness and mobilise the masses."
(2019-06-18). Julian Assange Indictment "Criminalizes the News Gathering Process," Says Pentagon Papers Lawyer. democracynow.org 
A London judge has ordered WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to appear before a court in February 2020 to face a full extradition hearing. Prosecutors in the U.S. have indicted Assange on 18 counts, including 17 violations of the Espionage Act. This is the first-ever case of a journalist or publisher being indicted under the World War I-era law. Assange said that his life was "effectively at stake" if the U.K. honors a U.S. request for his extradition. Assange is currently serving a 50-week sentence in London's Belmarsh Prison for skipping bail in 2012. We speak with James Goodale, former general counsel of The Ne…
(2019-06-18). Egypt's former president Morsi buried in Cairo. cgtn.com 
Egypt's former president Mohammed Morsi was buried early Tuesday morning under heavy security a day after his dramatic collapse and death inside a Cairo courtroom. | Deposed President Mohamed Mursi greets his lawyers and people from behind bars at a court wearing the red uniform of a prisoner sentenced to death, during his court appearance with Muslim Brotherhood members on the outskirts of Cairo, Egypt, June 21, 2015. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh /File Photo | Abdul-Moneim Abdel-Maqsoud a member of Morsi's defense team said he was buried at a cemetery in the Cairo's eastern district of Nasr City. | This was despit…
(2019-06-18). Julian Assange Indictment "Criminalizes the News Gathering Process" truthout.org A London judge has ordered WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to appear before a court in February 2020 to face a full extradition hearing. Prosecutors in the U.S. have indicted Assange on 18 counts, including 17 violations of the Espionage Act. This is the first-ever case of a journalist or publisher being indicted under the World War I-era law. Assange said that his life was "effectively at stake" if the U.K. honors a U.S. request for his extradition. Assange is currently serving a 50-week sentence in London's Belmarsh Prison for skipping bail in 2012. We speak with James Goodale, former general counsel of The…
(2019-06-18). Morsi, Egypt's freely elected and imprisoned president, killed by regime. peoplesworld.org 
After six years of solitary confinement at a secret prison, Egypt's legitimate president, Mohamed Morsi, died yesterday after the latest in a string of judges ignored pleas to deal with his failing health. He has suffered from numerous medical conditions including heart failure and diabetes for years and has had not received necessary medical attention …
(2019-06-18). Carnegie Medal Awarded for the First Time to a Black Woman. telesurenglish.net Dominican-American slam poet Elizabeth Acevedo is the first black woman to be awarded the Carnegie medal which is the United Kingdom's oldest and most prestigious children's book award, recognizing writing and illustration in books for children and young people. | RELATED: | US: Understaffed Prison Mailrooms Cause Ban on Book Donations | Acevedo is the daughter of Dominican immigrant parents and the piece that won her the award is her debut book "The Poet X," which is the story…
(2019-06-18). Charles E. Ruthenberg: The first leader of the Communist Party USA. peoplesworld.org At the time of his death in 1927, he was lauded as "one of the most indicted and imprisoned workers" in the history of the American labor movement. Yet today, few know the name Charles Emil Ruthenberg. When he passed away suddenly at the age of 44, he cheated a Michigan prison of its next …
(2019-06-18). Attorney General James Praises Passage Of Bill Protecting Immigrants In The Workplace. blackstarnews.com 
Attorney General Letitia James applauded Monday's passage of legislation creating penalties for discrimination or retaliation against immigrant employees. | This bill is a necessary and commonsense codification of federal case law interpreting the anti-retaliation provisions of New York's Labor Law and the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) as prohibiting threats to contact immigration authorities about an employee or an employee's family member. | "Every person deserves a workplace free of harassment, intimidation, and abuse," said Attorney General Letitia James. "Unfortunately, this is not always the…
(2019-06-18). Legal Victory Strengthens LGBT Activists as Threat From Bolsonaro Looms. truthout.org On Thursday, June 13, after months of postponement, Brazil's Supreme Federal Court officially made homophobia and transphobia —— locally known as "LGBTphobia" —— a crime and outlawed discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. In an eight to three ruling, the remaining judges of the Supreme Federal Court voted to criminalize LGBTphobia under existing anti-discrimination law…
(2019-06-18). Online fundraiser launched to help cover Farage milkshake attacker's costs. thecanary.co An online fundraiser has been set up to help the man who threw a milkshake over Nigel Farage cover his compensation and court costs. | The GoFundMe page was set up to raise the £520 Paul Crowther has been ordered to pay, and within three hours had almost reached its target. | Should it exceed its target, the organiser said he and the 32-year-old defendant will put the surplus towards an anti-racism cause. | Organiser Graeme Rayner wrote: I set up this page for Paul Cr…
(2019-06-18). Parkland survivor Kyle Kashuv's 'racist posts' are 'those of a shooter' — Former Republican. rt.com 
Former GOP congressman David Jolly praised Harvard's decision to reverse Parkland survivor and gun rights advocate Kyle Kashuv's admission over years-old racist messages, saying they were exactly like those of a school shooter.
(2019-06-18). Conservatives Play the Victim as Harvard Pulls Parkland Student's Acceptance. truthdig.com Right-wing pundits see college's decision over racist comments by shooting survivor Kyle Kashuv as part of a larger pattern of attacks.
(2019-06-18). US and Canada Are Backing an Elite White Supremacist Minority in Venezuela. globalresearch.ca "Racism is one of the main engines and expressions of the current counter-revolution. In Venezuela the revolutionary struggle to end white supremacy and for self-determination is slow, and complicated by white elites, backed by US imperialism, and by the denial …
(2019-06-18). Ocasio-Cortez Hits Back at Liz Cheney: 'What Do You Call Building Mass Camps of People Being Detained Without Trial?'. commondreams.org "Concentration camps are considered by experts as 'the mass detention of civilians without trial.' And that's exactly what this administration is doing." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/alexandria_ocasio_cortez.jpg…
(2019-06-18). AOC says 'fascist' Trump running 'concentration camps' on border. rt.com 
Firebrand Democrat congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez raised some eyebrows when she said that immigrant detention centers on the southern US border are "concentration camps," while calling President Donald Trump a "fascist."
(2019-06-18). Trump is holding thousands of people in 'concentration camps' on the US border. thecanary.co Donald Trump's administration is running "concentration camps" on the US-Mexico border, according to expert analysis. | "Mass detention of civilians without trial": | Andrea Pitzer is the author of One Long Night: A Global History of Concentration Camps. Her book examines the way "camp systems have been used as tools for civilian relocation, political repression, and extermination". It also explains: Of…
(2019-06-18). Brazil: Odebrecht to Avoid Bankruptcy Through A Recovery Plan. telesurenglish.net The Brazilian construction conglomerate, Odebrecht (ODB), which has admitted to paying out about US$7.88 billion in bribes over the past 20 years to win public contracts in Latin American countries, requested to file for bankruptcy Monday before a Sao Paulo court. The measure would allow the corporation to negotiate "recovery plan" with its creditors with the hope to avoid a shutting its doors. | RELATED: | Another Senior Peruvian Politician Gets Jail For Corruption | Given the "e…
(2019-06-18). Mohamed Morsi: Six Years After Coup, Egypt's First Democratically Elected President Dies in Court. democracynow.org 
Former Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi, 67, died Monday after collapsing while in a glass cage inside a Cairo courtroom. The Muslim Brotherhood leader was elected in 2012 in Egypt's first, and still only, democratic election. He was overthrown a year later in a military coup led by Egyptian army chief General Abdel Fattah el-Sisi. Morsi's death comes as el-Sisi continues to jail tens of thousands of people in what the Associated Press has described as the heaviest crackdown on dissent in Egypt's modern history. In his final comments, Morsi insisted he was still Egypt's legitimate president. Morsi spent the last…
(2019-06-18). Six Years After Coup, Egypt's First Democratically Elected President Dies. truthout.org Former Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi, 67, died Monday after collapsing while in a glass cage inside a Cairo courtroom. The Muslim Brotherhood leader was elected in 2012 in Egypt's first, and still only, democratic election. He was overthrown a year later in a military coup led by Egyptian army chief General Abdel Fattah el-Sisi. Morsi's death comes as el-Sisi continues to jail tens of thousands of people in what the Associated Press has described as the heaviest crackdown on dissent in Egypt's modern history. In his final comments, Morsi insisted he was still Egypt's legitimate president. Morsi spent the la…
(2019-06-18). WikiLeaks' Vault7 CIA leaker tried to start 'information war' against govt — prosecutors. rt.com 
The ex-CIA leaker who gave WikiLeaks the 'Vault7' documents smuggled phones into a Manhattan jail with the intention of waging an "information war" against the US government and "finally revers[ing] US jingoism" from behind bars.
(2019-06-18). Brazil: Odebrecht to Avoid Bankruptcy Through Recovery Plan. telesurenglish.net The Brazilian construction conglomerate, Odebrecht (ODB), which has admitted to paying out about US$7.88 billion in bribes over the past 20 years to win public contracts in Latin American countries, requested to file for bankruptcy protection Monday before a Sao Paulo court. The measure would allow the corporation to negotiate "recovery plan" with its creditors with the hope to avoid a shutting its doors. | RELATED: | Another Senior Peruvian Politician Gets Jail For Corruption | G…
(2019-06-18). Behind the Syrian network for human rights: how an opposition front group became Western media's go-to monitor. mronline.org 
Top media outlets turn to the Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR) for figures on deaths and detentions, never noting the group's seamless connection to Syria's opposition, the support it receives from states that waged war on the country, or its open lobbying for US military intervention. | Source
(2019-06-17). Chicago Police Killing of Laquan McDonald Exposed a System Built on Lies. truthout.org The documentary 16 Shots examines the 2014 murder of African-American teenager Laquan McDonald in Chicago and the attempt by the city's police department to cover up the events. McDonald, who was 17, was shot 16 times by former police officer Jason Van Dyke. Van Dyke was found guilty in 2018 of second-degree murder and sentenced to six years and nine months in prison for McDonald's murder. He was also found guilty on 16 counts of aggravated battery — one count for each of the 16 bullets he fired at McDonald. The film is screening on Showtime. We speak with Rick Rowley, director of 16 Shots. | TRANSCR…
(2019-06-17). Trump Offered to Suspend Sanctions While Negotiating with Iran, Khamenei Rejected the Offer: More Attacks Expected. globalresearch.ca Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzo conveyed a message from US President Donald Trump to the Iranian leadership, asking the release of 5 US prisoners and inviting Iran to sit around a negotiation table, adding "he [Donald Trump] would be ready …
(2019-06-17). The Coming Show Trial of Julian Assange. truthdig.com LONDON—On Friday morning I was in a small courtroom at Westminster Magistrates' Court in London. Julian Assange, held in Belmarsh Prison and dressed in a pale-blue prison shirt, appeared on a video screen directly in front of me. Assange, his gray hair and beard neatly trimmed, slipped on heavy, dark-frame glasses at the start of the proceedings. He listened intently as Ben Brandon, the prosecutor, seated at a narrow wooden table, listed the crimes he allegedly had committed and called for his extradition to the United States to face charges that could result in a sentence of 175 years. The charges include…
(2019-06-17). Headlines for June 17, 2019. democracynow.org More Mass Protests in Hong Kong as Activist Joshua Wong Freed from Prison, Iran Closes In on Uranium Stockpile Limit as U.S. Ratchets Up Tensions, 6-Year-Old Migrant Girl from India Dies in Arizona Desert on Way to Seek Asylum, Youngest Separated Migrant Was 4-Month-Old Baby, ICE Quarantines 5,000+ Migrants After Exposure to Mumps, Electrical Grid Failure Causes Massive Blackout in South America, Trump Lashes Out After NYT Report on U.S. Incursions into Russian Cyberspace, India Imposes Retaliatory Tariffs on U.S. Goods, Ex-First Lady Leads Presidential Vote Tally in Contested Guatemala Election, Sudanese Ex-Lead…
(2019-06-17). Drugs deaths linked to people facing considerable adversity, study finds. thecanary.co The majority of drugs deaths occur among people who have experienced considerable adversity in their lives, often from a young age, research has found. | In a report focused on drug deaths in Tayside last year, published by the local health board, 62 out of 78 people (79.5%) who died as a result of using drugs were recorded as having experienced at least one adverse event during their lifetime. | The study also found that just under half (46.1%) of the total number of drug death casualties had been in prison or had been on remand at least once in adulthood. | A majority of those who died from drug consumption wer…
(2019-06-17). "16 Shots": Chicago Police Killing of Laquan McDonald Exposed a System Built on Lies. democracynow.org 
The documentary "16 Shots" examines the 2014 murder of African-American teenager Laquan McDonald in Chicago and the attempt by the city's police department to cover up the events. McDonald, who was 17, was shot 16 times by former police officer Jason Van Dyke. Van Dyke was found guilty in 2018 of second-degree murder and sentenced to six years and nine months in prison for McDonald's murder. He was also found guilty on 16 counts of aggravated battery—one count for each of the 16 bullets he fired at McDonald. The film is screening on Showtime. We speak with Rick Rowley, director of "16 Shots."
(2019-06-17). What's Trending: Black News Weekly. naacp.org 
The New York Times: This Empty Lot Is Worth Millions. It's Also an African-American Burial Ground. The owner of a plot of land in Queens wants to sell it or develop it. Others want to memorialize one of the city's first communities for former and freed slaves. Blackpress USA: Rep. Waters Works …
(2019-06-17). Patrick Gaspard to Receive Prestigious NAACP Spingarn Medal. naacp.org 
BALTIMORE — The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), the nation's foremost civil rights organization, has announced that Ambassador Patrick Gaspard will be awarded the prestigious Spingarn Medal on July 24, 2019, during the 110th NAACP Annual Convention, taking place in Detroit, Michigan. The award recognizes Gaspard's lifelong commitment to equality and …
(2019-06-17). Climate crisis and the 2020 elections. nationofchange.org Trump and his party must be defeated | : | There are so many things wrong with Donald Trump that one hardly knows where to begin. He is a racist, habitual liar, tax evader, cruel cager of infants, misogynist, narcissist, bully, violator of numerous laws, both national and international, a friend of rich oligarchs and enemy of the poor, to mention only a few of his faults. He has made the United States resemble Germany, Italy or Spain in the 1930's, when fascism was on the rise. | However, most importantly for the future of human civilization and the biosphere, Trump has denied the reality of the climat…
(2019-06-17). A 'Poor People's Moral Budget' because 'everybody has the right to live'. nationofchange.org This week another new budget proposal was released. This time it didn't come from campaigning politicians or corrupt administrations but rather from two groups — the Poor People's Campaign and the Institute for Policy Studies — in an effort to show the people of the United States how to "invest in life." | The 'Poor People's Moral Budget' demands a "comprehensive response to the systemic racism, poverty, ecological devastation, militarism, and war economy plaguing our country today." It includes seven sections that detail…
(2019-06-17). The Dark Side of Brexit: Britain's Ethnic Minorities Are Facing More and More Violence. counterpunch.org Pictures of Daniel Ezzedine show him to be a fresh-faced 17-year-old with a warm cheerful smile. His parents are Lebanese but he was brought up in Germany where he had just left school. His teachers brought him to celebrate his graduation on a trip to Canterbury, where he was assaulted and beaten half to death by a gang of youths in what local people are convinced was a racist attack. More
(2019-06-17). Behind the Syrian Network for Human Rights: How an Opposition Front Group Became Western Media's Go-To Monitor. mintpressnews.com 
Top media outlets turn to the Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR) for figures on deaths and detentions, never noting the group's seamless connection to Syria's opposition, the support it receives from states that waged war on the country, or its open lobbying for US military intervention.
(2019-06-17). Lawsuit Seeks Info on Trump Administration Eliminating Environmental Grades. commondreams.org ______________________________…
(2019-06-17). Selected Articles: Trump and the Taiwan Gambit. globalresearch.ca Online independent analysis of US-led wars, rampant corruption, corporate greed, civil rights and fraudulent monetary transactions is invariably relegated to the bottom rung of search engine results. | As a result we presently do not cover our monthly running costs which …
(2019-06-16). Rasmea Odeh speaks on Palestine and political repression. fightbacknews.org New York, NY – A crowd gathered at The People's Forum on June 9 to hear Rasmea Odeh and Suzanne Adely speak on the repression of the Palestinian solidarity movement by the United States and Israel. Rasmea Odeh is a famous Palestinian woman leader who has dedicated her life to the Palestinian struggle and liberation of her people. She was a former political prisoner of Israel, and had her human rights violated. Odeh later became the target of political repression in the United States in 2013, after FBI raids and grand jury subpoenas targeting the Antiwar 23 were defeated. | Leading up to the event, pro-Israel righ…
(2019-06-14). Ola Bini Was Friends with Julian Assange. He Has Spent Two Months in Jail Without Charge in Ecuador. democracynow.org 
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange appeared before a magistrates' court in London Friday, saying his life was "effectively at stake" if the U.K. honors an extradition request from the United States, where he faces 17 counts of violating the Espionage Act. Meanwhile, a friend of Assange's, Swedish programmer and data privacy activist Ola Bini, is still in prison in Ecuador, after being arrested April 11, the same day Assange was forcibly taken by British authorities from the Ecuadorian Embassy in London, and has been jailed ever since without charges. We speak with Vijay Prashad, director of Tricontinental: Institut…