(2018-12-03). Bush Sr.'s Ignored Legacy: War Crimes, Racism, Obstruction of Justice. truthout.org George H.W. Bush died in Houston on Friday night at the age of 94. Bush was elected the 41st president of the United States in 1988, becoming the first and only former CIA director to lead the country. He served as Ronald Reagan's vice president from 1981 to 1989. Since Bush's death, the media has honored the former president by focusing on his years of service and his call as president for a kinder, gentler America. But the headlines have largely glossed over and ignored other parts of Bush's legacy. We look at the 1991 Gulf War, Bush's pardoning of six Reagan officials involved in the Iran-Contra scandal and…
(2018-12-03). SPLC brings first lawsuit challenging Florida sheriffs' latest collaboration agreements to detain people for ICE. splcenter.org The SPLC sued Monroe County Sheriff Rick Ramsay today for illegally holding a U.S. citizen in the county jail on a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) hold.
(2018-12-03). Standing Up against Racist, Fascist, Nazi, Swastikas in South L.A. counterpunch.org 
The defacing of an historical mural on Crenshaw Boulevard, Our Mighty Contribution," by placing swastikas over the faces of Black women members of the Black Panther Party, Thursday, November 29, is profoundly symbolic and real—a material reflection of the U.S. white settler state out of control. For us at the Strategy Center, the fight against racism, national oppression, More
(2018-12-03). The Government Is Trying to Keep Key NSA Spying Rules Secret. aclu.org We're telling a federal appeals court that democracy has no room for secret law on surveillance of Americans. | A federal appeals court in New York will hear oral argument on Tuesday in our lawsuit fighting for the public's right to know the legal justifications for government spying. | The Freedom of Information Act suit seeks the release of secret memos written by government lawyers that provided the foundation for the warrantless surveillance of Americans' international communications. In essence, these memos serve as the law that gove…
(2018-12-03). Senators to Verizon subcontractor: End pregnancy discrimination. peoplesworld.org 
MEMPHIS — Nine U.S. senators, led by Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, demanded that Verizon and the subcontractor that runs its Memphis warehouse, XPO Logistics, answer published details about unusually high levels of pregnancy discrimination there — and take definitive detailed steps to stop it. In letters to Verizon CEO Hans …
(2018-12-03). Mehdi Hasan on George H.W. Bush's Ignored Legacy: War Crimes, Racism and Obstruction of Justice. democracynow.org 
George H.W. Bush died in Houston on Friday night at the age of 94. Bush was elected the 41st president of the United States in 1988, becoming the first and only former CIA director to lead the country. He served as Ronald Reagan's vice president from 1981 to 1989. Since Bush's death, the media has honored the former president by focusing on his years of service and his call as president for a kinder, gentler America. But the headlines have largely glossed over and ignored other parts of Bush's legacy. We look at the 1991 Gulf War, Bush's pardoning of six Reagan officials involved in the Iran-Contra scandal and ho…
(2018-12-03). There's No Real Difference Between Border Walls and Border Fences. aclu.org 
Democrats, led by Sen. Chuck Schumer, are playing word games when it comes to funding Trump's border wall. | Sometime between now and Dec. 7, when the current appropriation for the Department of Homeland Security will expire, Congress needs to provide the agency with another's year's funds. A single word has become a sticking point for the politicians who will vote on that funding: "wall," as in President Trump's border wall. | Trump and his Republican allies are demanding billions of dollars for walls along the U.S.-Mexico border. Democrats, wanting to be seen as opposing Trump, say that they won't vote for bor…
(2018-12-03). Seattle Activists: Target ICE, Not Human Rights Defenders. truthout.org On December 3, we, the members of the "Anti-ICE Nine," are headed to a pre-trial hearing. We are each facing two misdemeanor charges — which could result in up to one year of jail time and a $5,000 fine apiece — for blocking traffic outside Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) downtown offices in Seattle, Washington, this past June. We were arrested for exposing the existence of ICE's regional headquarters in downtown Seattle, and for opposing the Trump regime's horrific trea…
(2018-12-03). Hatewatch Headlines 12/3/2018. splcenter.org Black workers recount Tesla factory racism; Facebook report targeted George Soros; Milo's court documents reveal he is deep in debt; and more.
(2018-12-03). No One Knows What's Happening in This Tent City for Migrant Kids. truthout.org 
This story was originally published by Reveal from The Center for Investigative Reporting, a nonprofit news organization based in the San Francisco Bay Area. Learn more at revealnews.org and subscribe to the Reveal podcast, produced with PRX, at revealnews.org/podcast. | Tornillo, Texas — About 40 miles southeast of El Paso, past the billboards for fast food joints and rugged desert hills, residents of this small community sometimes can see the lights of the nearby detention camp glowing in the night. | Some of them h…
(2018-12-03). How the FIRST STEP ACT Moves Criminal Justice Reform Forward. aclu.org The FIRST STEP Act is a modest piece of legislation that tackles harsh sentencing while mostly failing to apply its reforms retroactively. | It's not often that you'll find the ACLU on the same side of an issue as President Donald Trump. | But in the waning days of the 115th Congress, lawmakers have the rare opportunity to show bipartisanship isn't completely dead. For months, advocates and lawmakers have worked together to craft a criminal justice reform bill, known as the FIRST STEP Act, that enjoys broad support from the White House and members of Congress in both parties. | Only one thing stands in the way…
(2018-12-03). Black Lives Matter co-founder Alicia Garza to speak at GLIDE's Sunday Celebration, Decembe. indybay.org Glide Memorial | 330 Ellis St | San Francisco…
(2018-12-03). Trump says Michael Cohen should serve a 'full and complete' sentence for 'terrible' crimes. rt.com 
US President Donald Trump has called for his former attorney Michael Cohen to be jailed after he pleaded guilty to lying to Congress about a potential real estate deal in Moscow, tweeting that the lawyer "makes up stories." |
(2018-12-03). Andrés Manuel López Obrador inaugurated as new president of Mexico. wsws.org Popular illusions in promises by the new president to end decades of poverty and oppression in Mexico will crash against his limited, bourgeois program.
(2018-12-02). Israeli Settlers Slash Tires in Kafr Qassem. imemc.org The Palestinian village of Kafr Qassem, east of Tel Aviv was stormed by Israeli settlers Sunday, who vandalized many cars, local sources told Maan News. Dozens of settlers reportedly punctured tires of 32 vehicles belonging to Palestinians, and spray painted threats and racist slurs. Some of the slogans that damaged …
(2018-12-01). The Ignored Legacy of George H.W. Bush: War Crimes, Racism, and Obstruction of Justice. theintercept.com 
Hagiographies neglect to mention that Bush's presidency included a racist drug war, the Willie Horton ad, and massive civilian deaths in Iraq.
(2018-12-01). Mike Pence sparks QAnon theories after deleting tweet featuring badge. rt.com 
Vice President Mike Pence is fuelling QAnon conspiracists after he tweeted, and then deleted, a photograph of him standing next to a Florida sheriff deputy wearing a QAnon badge.
(2018-11-30). Not So Black & White: NYT Touts Rural Voters, Buries Racism in Mississippi Election Analysis. fair.org 
The New York Times ( 11/24/18) warns that Democrats speaking "boldly" risk turning off approximately one-seventh of the electorate. | Stop me if you've heard this one before: During a high-profile election, a major newspaper decides to stubbornly focus its coverage on an increasingly narrow sliver of white voters, while minimizing the racism that colors the electorate and the eventual Republican victor's campaign. | If this sounds like a repeat of the mainstream press's response to Trump's 2016 campaign, well, it is. B…
(2018-11-30). The five most compelling moments so far in the 'Unite the Right' murder trial. splcenter.org A juror clasped his hand over his mouth in court on Thursday as prosecutors played a video showing a young neo-Nazi sympathizer plowing his car into a group of anti-racist protestors after last year's "Unite the Right" rally in Charlottesville, Virginia.
(2018-11-30). In Major Threat to Due Process, Marsy's Law Gains Ground Nationwide. aclu.org A growing movement wants to amend the US Constitution and weaken its due process protections in its ill-advised pursuit of victims' rights. | Alongside the major criminal justice reform headlines that came out of the midterm elections, a quieter trend also gained momentum through the ballot box: a budding, national threat to due process and the Fifth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. | On Nov. 6, six states adopted, through ballot initiatives, what is known as "Marsy's Law," which e…
(2018-11-30). Thailand: Don't Send Back Bahraini Dissident. hrw.org 
(New York ) — Thailand's government should ensure that Hakeem Ali Mohamed Ali al-Araibi, a recognized refugee, is not returned to Bahrain, Human Rights Watch said today. If returned, he would face an imminent risk of wrongful detention and ill-treatment by Bahraini authorities. | | | Hakeem Ali Mohamed Ali al-Araibi in detention at Suvarnabhumi airport in Bangkok. | © 2018 Private | "The Thai government needs to realize the grave dangers facing Ha…
(2018-11-30). Morocco: Torture Suspicions Mar Mass Trial Verdicts. hrw.org 
| | Rabat, Morocco, July 15, 2018: demonstrators protest heavy jail sentences on imprisoned activists by wearing masks showing their faces. | © 2018 Fadel Senna/AFP/Getty Images | (New York) — The Casablanca Court of Appeals should weigh evidence that the police tortured the defendants when it reviews the convictions of protesters and activists from the Rif region, Human Rights Watch said today. The appeals case began on November 14, 2…
(2018-11-30). Eritrea: Visiting US envoy must demand action on deplorable record of arbitrary detentions. amnesty.org US Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, Tibor Nagy, should demand the release of all prisoners arbitrarily detained solely for peacefully exercising their freedom of expression and freedom of belief, including Ciham Ali who also holds US citizenship, when he visits Eritrea in the coming days, said Amnesty International. | Ciham Ali was arrested in 2012, when she was 15-years-old, for trying to leave the country in violation of Eritrea's national service policy. She has been held incommunicado and her family has not seen or heard from her since. |
(2018-11-30). Beaten and prosecuted for standing up to hate. amnesty.org Just over a year ago Elzbieta gathered with small group of women in central Warsaw with a large "Stop Fascism" banner. It was 11 November, Independence Day, and tens of thousands of people were marching through the city, many wielding flares and proudly displaying racist and fascist banners. The march – described by some journalists as "the biggest gathering of far-right activists in Europe in recent years"- might sound like an event best avoided, but not for Elzbieta. | She and 12 other women joined the march, and once in its midst, they unfurled their seven-metre long banner. Another woman from their group film…
(2018-11-30). US condemned for tear-gassing refugees, children. greenleft.org.au 
Legal experts and human rights advocates have denounced the tear gassing of children and other asylum seekers by US forces at the Mexico border on November 25. | "The migrants at our southern border include mothers and small children exercising their legal, human right to seek asylum," declared the ACLU in a tweet on November 26. It told the US Customs and Border Protection agency: "Tear gassing children is out…
(2018-11-30). Labor's promise to deliver in Victoria may well be illusive. greenleft.org.au 
While the final results of Victoria's November 24 state elections are yet to be announced, Labor looks set to go from 47 to 52 seats in the state's Legislative Assembly, after receiving a primary vote of 43%. | It also appears Labor will have 19 seats in the new Legislative Council, up from 14 seats, though it may pay a heavy price for preferencing some racist and anti-worker micro parties ahead of the Greens. | The Coalition received a combined primary vote of 36%, representing a 6.2% swing against it, with the Liberals predicted to go from 14 to 9 seats. The Liberals lost all its marginal seats in the south-eas…
(2018-11-29). We're Suing the CIA to Find the Body of a Torture Victim. aclu.org 
The U.S. government's obsessive secrecy has deprived a man's family of basic dignity and closure. | In November 2002, the CIA tortured Gul Rahman to death in a secret prison in Afghanistan. Sixteen years later, Rahman's family is still desperately trying to find out what the CIA did to his body. | To date, the CIA has told his loved ones nothing, and his daughter cannot even give her father a decent burial. | That same month, Gina Haspel oversaw the torture of Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri at a CIA black site in Tha…
(2018-11-29). Farr vote at noon TODAY. naacp.org Despite the fact that a large number of North Carolina NAACPers, led by North Carolina State Conference of NAACP branches President Rev. Anthony Spearman, spent all day yesterday on a bus to come the Washington, DC, to join President Derrick Johnson and others to express their strong opposition to the confirmation of Thomas Farr to a […]
(2018-11-29). Hatewatch Headlines 11/30/2018. splcenter.org Vote-suppressing judge's appointment falls shy; GOP offended by its racists being called out; Tucker Carlson is neo-Nazi site's favorite pundit; and more.
(2018-11-29). NAACP Statement on Black Voter Turnout in Mississippi Elections. naacp.org The incredible Black voter turnout in Mississippi on November 6 — and again in the November 27 runoff election — provides a powerful example of what can happen when African Americans and other voters of color are encouraged to participate actively in our democracy. This election illustrates what can happen when voters and politicians alike […]
(2018-11-29). My Black Son Was Sent Home From First Grade Because of His Natural Hair. aclu.org 
My 6-year-old was turned away from his school for the offense of wearing locs. | Six-year-olds never seem to run out of questions, and my son is no exception. But in August, CJ asked me a question that was harder than the rest: He wanted to know if there was something wrong with his hair. | As a father, I'd tried to shield him from racism for as long as I could. But we had just been turned away in humiliating fashion from A Book's Christian Academy in Apopka, Florida, on the first day of classes. The school's administrators, led by John Book, barred CJ from entering the building because of his locs. They treated…
(2018-11-29). Statement of Derrick Johnson on Postponement of Vote on Thomas Farr. naacp.org "The NAACP is encouraged by the Senate's decision today to postpone the vote on Thomas Farr's nomination to the Eastern District of North Carolina. The Senate does not have the votes to confirm Farr, and it hopefully it will never will. This week, a smoking gun was uncovered demonstrating that Farr himself coordinated voter suppression […]
(2018-11-29). Farr vote postponed until next week. naacp.org Due to a serious personal matter which has taken a solid vote in support of the Farr nomination out of Washington, DC, until next week, Senate leadership has postponed the final vote on the Thomas Farr confirmation until next week. This gives us more time to contact our Senators and let them know of our deep […]
(2018-11-29). Bangladesh: Further information: Activist released on bail after months in detention: Shahidul Alam. amnesty.org Shahidul Alam, photographer and outspoken social activist, has been freed on permanent bail after spending more than 100 days behind bars for comments he made in an interview with Al-Jazeera in August 2018. In detention, he was ill-treated and subjected to prolonged detention merely for peacefully exercising his right to freedom of expression.
(2018-11-29). State of Palestine: Social Justice Activist on Hunger Strike: Suha Jbara. amnesty.org Suha Jbara has been on hunger strike since 22 November in protest against her detention and torture by Palestinian security forces. Her next court hearing is scheduled for 6 December 2018.
(2018-11-29). Amnesty International launches worlds biggest human rights campaign. amnesty.org Women human rights defenders around the world are facing unprecedented levels of abuse, intimidation and violence, said Amnesty International as it launched its global Write for Rights campaign, in a bid to shine a spotlight on brave women who have been harassed, jailed, tortured or even killed for their human rights work. | Women continue to face multiple forms of discrimination, targeted because of their gender and other characteristics, as well as for their human rights work. However, women refuse to stay silent and have been at the forefront of the battle for human rights in 2018. | "Across the world, women a…
(2018-11-29). Viet Nam: Ludicrous charge against activist accused of 'insulting national flag' must be dropped. amnesty.org A charge of "insulting the national flag" against prominent Vietnamese human rights activist Huynh Thuc Vy amounts to an attack on freedom of expression by the authorities and must be dropped, Amnesty International said ahead of her trial on Friday. | It is rare for the authorities to prosecute a human rights activist for this charge, which carries a maximum penalty of three years' imprisonment, in a disturbing sign of the intensifying crackdown against peaceful dissent in the country. | "This ludicrous charge must be dropped as it is aimed solely at silencing a dedicated, peaceful human rights activist. This is…
(2018-11-28). A Mexican Perspective on Trump's Border Crisis. progressive.org "You've got a President of the United States who is a racist. Instead of having the United States be a world leader in human rights, Trump wants to be world leader of racism. It's very difficult."
(2018-11-28). NAACP YOUTH LEADERS COMMENT ON THE RESULTS OF THE MISSISSIPPI SENATORIAL RUNOFF ELECTION. naacp.org BALTIMORE — Youth leaders of the NAACP shared the following statements regarding the results of the Mississippi senatorial runoff election: "We are constantly in a war for a fair democracy, not only for voting rights but also for representation that is accountable to the people. Mississippi's election shows that we can't afford to ignore marginalized voters and young people […]
(2018-11-28). NAACP Comments on Mississippi Senatorial Runoff Election. naacp.org BALTIMORE — The NAACP issued the following statement regarding the results of the Mississippi senatorial runoff election: While we are hopeful that the Senator-Elect will prove herself worthy of her new office, this election demonstrates the need to continue broadening the tent of civic and democratic participation in our nation. We must continue to organize, […]
(2018-11-28). NAACP Statement on Recent Criminal Justice Reform Compromise Introduced in Senate. naacp.org NAACP released the following statement in support of the Crimianl Justice Reform Compromise: Our American criminal justice system is broken. Sentencing is disproportionately weighted against African Americans, and the current political climate continues to devalue black lives by reviving the same failed policies of the war on drugs that fueled mass incarceration," said NAACP President […]
(2018-11-28). Headlines for November 28, 2018. democracynow.org U.N. Report Warns World Falling Far Behind on Paris Climate Goals, Mexico Agrees to U.S. Demand to Hold Asylum Seekers While Claims Are Decided, Trump Administration Defends Tear Gas Use at U.S.-Mexico Border, Border Patrol Fired Tear Gas Dozens of Times Under President Obama, U.S. Waived Background Checks for Staff at Jail for Migrant Children, Mississippi: GOP's Cindy Hyde-Smith, Who Posed as Confederate Soldier, Wins Senate Seat, Ukraine's President Warns of "Full-Fledged War" with Russia, Trump "Not Even a Little Bit Happy" with Fed Chair Jerome Powell, Trump Says "We're Not Necessarily Such Believers" in Cli…
(2018-11-28). How Trump Weaponized the Government's Refugee Resettlement Agency. aclu.org The Office of Refugee Resettlement was supposed to protect vulnerable immigrant children. Now it's an arm of Trump's deportation force. | Back in April, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection, both under the Department of Homeland Security, entered into a memorandum of agreement with an obscure government agency known as the Office of Refugee Resettlement, a division of the Department of Health and Human Services. The office, known by its initials ORR, had traditionally served vulnerable immigrant youth coming to the United States without an adult. The agency took custody of those c…
(2018-11-28). 'Republicans Just Don't Want All the Votes to Count' – CounterSpin interview with Ari Berman on 2018 voter suppression. fair.org 
Janine Jackson interviewed Ari Berman about 2018 voter suppression for the November 16, 2018, episode of CounterSpin. This is a lightly edited transcript. | Media…
(2018-11-27). NAACP Calls for Withdrawal of Thomas Farr Nomination. naacp.org Statement of Derrick Johnson Calling for Withdrawal of Thomas Farr Nomination Thomas Farr needs to withdraw his nomination immediately. We've always known Thomas Farr as the architect of the worst voter suppression law in the country, however, we have now found that he was more deeply engaged than anyone knew in intimidating Black voters during […]
(2018-11-27). U.S. Prisons Have a Mental Health Crisis. This Story of a New York Prisoner's Death Helps Reveal Why. democracynow.org 
A major new Marshall Project investigation looks at the the mental health crisis in U.S. prisons by diving deep into the story of Karl Taylor, a prisoner who died at a maximum-security prison in the Catskills of New York after an altercation with prison guards in 2015. Karl Taylor was serving out a minimum 27-year sentence for a rape conviction when his life came to a sudden end at the Sullivan Correctional Facility in April of 2015. The African-American prisoner had been diagnosed with delusional disorder and paranoid personality disorder when he was taken into custody in 1995. By April of 2015, Taylor was house…
(2018-11-27). Hatewatch Headlines 11/28/2018. splcenter.org Facebook discrimination review still a mystery; Neuroscience explains bigotry's persistence; Proud Boys' new rules including less fighting; and more.
(2018-11-26). Jeff Sessions' Legacy Is Full of Dangerous Successes. aclu.org Attorney General Sessions proved how dangerous the nation's top prosecutor can be to criminal justice reform. | In his 636 days in office, former Attorney General Jeff Sessions secured a legacy that has been described as " unprecedented" and " dark." But Sessions' unwavering actions against criminal justice reform may also earn another descriptor for his time…
(2018-11-21). SPLC vows to sue Trump administration again over second approval of Kentucky Medicaid waiver scheme. splcenter.org The SPLC said today that it will sue the Trump administration again for approving Kentucky's Medicaid waiver plan a second time. This lawsuit will be brought in collaboration with the National Health Law Program (NHELP) and the Kentucky Equal Justice Center (KEJC). The law firm Jenner & Block is representing NHELP in the lawsuit.
(2018-11-12). Love Bollywood, hate apartheid! bdsmovement.net 
Love Bollywood, hate apartheid!: Action AlertThe Israeli government wants to use Bollywood stars to whitewash its oppression against Palestinians. Join us in urging them to refuse to participate. | Cultural BoycottNovember 12, 2018 | By: | | Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI)