(2018-12-17). French court rules against former students in discrimination case. aljazeera.com Three former students accused state of racism after they were stopped and searched by police on a school trip in 2017.
(2018-12-17). NAACP Leads #LogOutFacebook Protest, Returns Donation from Facebook in Response to Data Breaches Targeting People of Color. commondreams.org ______________________________…
(2018-12-17). Trump, the Quintessential American. commondreams.org The for-profit Trump University was denounced as a fraud and went out of business after being hit with lawsuits. (Photo: Google Images) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/trump-u.png…
(2018-12-17). Marc Lamont Hill's Detractors are the True Anti-Semites. zcomm.org It beggars the imagination to consider why Temple's Board of Trustees would ignore the abhorrent and overtly racists posts in the account of one professor, while exceeding its mandate in order to rebuke an avowedly anti-racist professor…
(2018-12-17). Mexico's top court ruling can change lives of domestic workforce. aljazeera.com The ensuing legal changes can revolutionise the lives of nearly two million domestic workers facing discrimination.
(2018-12-17). Leading Civil Rights Group Calls for Congressional Action Against Russian Efforts to Exploit African American Vote. commondreams.org ______________________________…
(2018-12-17). California firefighters dodge death, face harrowing conditions on the job. peoplesworld.org 
On the first day fighting the deadly Northern California wildfire that destroyed the city of Paradise last month, a crew setting a back burn to stop the blaze was suddenly overrun by flames when erratic winds suddenly shifted. One state prison inmate firefighter tried to escape the flames and ran into a barbed wire fence …
(2018-12-17). Theresa May Days in Britain, Stonewalled in Europe and the Parliament. globalresearch.ca It is hard to envisage sympathy for a person who made a name as a home secretary (prisons, detentions, security and such) taking the mast and banner of her country before hopeless odds, but inadequate opponents will do that to …
(2018-12-17). Malaysia Files Criminal Charges Against Goldman Sachs. truthdig.com KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — Malaysia filed criminal charges against Goldman Sachs and two former executives on Monday for their role in the alleged multibillion-dollar ransacking of state investment fund 1MDB. | Attorney General Tommy Thomas said the government is seeking several billion dollars in fines from Goldman Sachs for breaches of securities laws that involved it making false and misleading statements to investors. | He said his office will seek prison sentences of up to 10 years for the former Goldman executives, Roger Ng Chong Hwa and Tim Leissner, who is married to model Kimora Lee Simmons. | Malays…
(2018-12-17). MSF reveals "mental health suffering" in Australia's Nauru refugee detention camp. wsws.org Médecins Sans Frontières said the mental health problems were among the worst it had ever seen anywhere in the world.
(2018-12-17). UK: "Stansted 15" anti-deportation protesters found guilty of terrorism charges. wsws.org The defendants, who are preparing to appeal the verdict, potentially face life in prison for preventing the departure of an immigration removal flight.
(2018-12-17). Morocco: Hirak El-Rif appeal must deliver justice after deeply flawed trial. amnesty.org Dozens of journalists, protesters and others detained in connection with Hirak El-Rif peaceful protests have been denied their right to a fair trial by Casablanca's first instance court, said Amnesty International, as it published analysis exposing serious flaws in the trial, as the second appeal hearing session gets underway. | Fifty-four people with ties to the Hirak El-Rif social justice protests were convicted of security-related offences and sentenced to prison terms of up to 20 years by a Casablanca court in June 2018, in relation to prot…
(2018-12-17). Maroc: Le procès d'appel du Hirak El-Rif est une occasion pour annuler des peines prononcées à l'issue d'un procès inéquitable. amnesty.org Les 26 et 28 juin 2018, une cour de Casablanca a condamné 54 personnes à de lourdes peines de prison pour avoir participé aux manifestations du mouvement du Hirak El — Rif qui ont eu lieu dans la région du Rif, dans le nord du Maroc, en 2017. Le 21 août, 11 d'entre elles ont été graciées par le roi. Quatre autres ont bénéficié d'une libération provisoire en juin et juillet 2017. Les 39 personnes restantes purgent leur peine à la prison d'AàØn Sebaâ 1 (Okacha), à Casablanca. | Le 17 décembre, la cour d'appel de Casablanca procèdera à l'audition des cas des 43 personnes déclarées coupables lors de la d…
(2018-12-17). Morocco: Hirak El-Rif appeal, a chance to reverse unfair trial. amnesty.org On 26 and 28 June 2018, a Casablanca court sentenced 54 people to heavy prison terms for their involvement in the Hirak El-Rif protests that took place in the northern Rif region of Morocco in 2017. On 21 August, 11 of them were granted a royal pardon. Four of them were provisionally released in June and July 2017; the other 39 are serving their sentences in Casablanca's Ain Sabaa 1 (Okacha) prison. | On 17 December, Casablanca's appeal court will hear the cases of the remaining 43 individuals convicted in the second session.
(2018-12-17). Anti-BDS Laws Challenged as Unconstitutional After Speech Pathologist Loses Job at Texas School for Refusing to Sign Pro-Israel Pledge. commondreams.org Texas officials are facing an onslaught of criticism after a speech pathologist lost her job at an elementary school for refusing to sign a pro-Israel pledge mandated by state law—a case that has cast a spotlight on efforts to neutralize the global Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement, which opposes Israel's oppression and slaughter of Palestinians. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/speech_teacher_tx_the_intercept.jpg…
(2018-12-17). Texas school pathologist files lawsuit after being denied work for refusing to sign pro-Israel oath. rt.com 
A Texas elementary school speech pathologist has filed a federal lawsuit after her school district refused to renew her contract unless she signed a pro-Israel oath.
(2018-12-16). Bangladesh Marks 48th Year of Victory Against Pakistan's Army. telesurenglish.net Bangladesh celebrated its 48th Bijoy Dibosh (Victory Day) Sunday to mark its victory against Pakistan's army. | RELATED: | Bangladesh Creating Island 'Prison Camps' for Rohingya Refugees | As the whole country geared up for celebrations, the President and Prime Minister of the South Asian country sent messages to the people. | "There is no alternative to working together, irrespective of political party or philosophy if we want to offer our people the advantages of the freedom ear…
(2018-12-16). NAACP Calls Recent Prada Ads Reprehensible. naacp.org BALTIMORE—(December 16, 2018) The NAACP President Derrick Johnson issued the following statement regarding Prada's recent advertisement: "Although Prada did the right thing by removing this particular product line, their initial choice to display such items is reprehensible and just dumbfounding. Blackface is no laughing matter, and has no place in their window displays or any […]
(2018-12-16). Bahrain: Joint letter to Bahraini authorities: Drop all charges and release Nabeel Rajab. amnesty.org We the undersigned call on Bahraini authorities to release Nabeel Rajab immediately, to repeal his convictions and sentences, and drop all charges against him. On 31 December 2018 the Court of Cassation in Bahrain may issue its verdict in the appeal of the five-year prison sentence handed to him for peaceful comments posted and retweeted on his Twitter account about the killing of civilians in the Yemen conflict by the Saudi Arabia-led coalition, and allegations of torture in Jau prison.
(2018-12-16). 'This Is a Child Prison': Visiting Texas Detention Center, Democrats Demand Release of Children to Family Sponsors. commondreams.org Democratic lawmakers joined protesters in a demonstration Saturday in the border town of Tornillo, Texas, where about 2,700 young immigrants are currently being held in a detention center—with some having languished there for months. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/screen_shot_2018-12-16_at_9.38.43_am.jpg…
(2018-12-16). Butina may have pleaded guilty under 'pressure' & in order to get back home — ex-state senator to RT. rt.com 
The US may have used months of solitary confinement to "pressure" jailed Russian gun activist Maria Butina into pleading guilty, international law attorney and former Pennsylvania State Senator Bruce Marks told RT.
(2018-12-15). Cameroon: Release of 289 people must lead to end of wrongful detentions. amnesty.org Following the decision to pardon and release 289 people arrested in connection with the unrest in the Anglophone regions of Cameroon, Marie Evelyne Petrus Barry, Amnesty International West and Central Africa Regional Director said: | "Cameroon President's decision to pardon and release nearly 300 people arrested in connection with the unrest in the Anglophone regions is a welcome step and a catalyst for human rights change. |
(2018-12-14). Bill improving young offenders passes the Congress! naacp.org After 16 years, more than 6 bills, strong bipartisan support, and countless hours of letter-writing campaigns and advocacy, the U.S. House and the U.S. Senate both passed — unanimously — legislation to reauthorize the Juvenile Justice Delinquency and Prevention Act (JJDPA) and sent the bill to the President for his signature. While the final bill […]
(2018-12-14). Principles and Morality Versus Cash and Profit? No Contest. counterpunch.org 
Imagine Western reaction if a British or American citizen had been detained in Russia or China then subjected to months of solitary confinement followed by being put on trial for less than five minutes without legal representation or an interpreter, and finally sentenced to life imprisonment. The media in Britain and the US would have gone berserk More
(2018-12-14). The Right to Record Police Doesn't Disappear When You Put Your Phone in Your Pocket. aclu.org In Massachusetts, a federal court affirmed that the First Amendment protects secret recording of police performing their duties in public. | The First Amendment right to record the police is a critical check and balance for people living in a free, open, and democratic society. It promotes the free discussion of governmental affairs as well as protects the democratic process. And for some communities, it's a vital tool for uncovering, if not deterring, police misconduct. | But Boston-based civil rights activists Eric Martin and René Pérez were afraid to record the police. Under a state wiretap law passed in 1968,…
(2018-12-14). China: Further information: Singer-song writer activist sentenced: Xu Lin. amnesty.org Activist Xu Lin was sentenced to three years in prison for "picking quarrels and provoking trouble" on 7 December 2018. The singer-songwriter has composed and published songs online about his democratic aspirations and critical of the government for various injustices. He has refused to repent and maintained his innocence.
(2018-12-14). 7-Year-Old Migrant Girl Dies in US Border Patrol Custody. hrw.org 
The headline alone made my heart sink. "7-year-old migrant girl taken into Border Patrol custody dies of dehydration, exhaustion." I felt a wave of deep sadness, but no surprise. | | | A girl stands in the lobby of the Adelanto immigration detention center, in Adelanto, Californ…
(2018-12-14). Woman's bizarre, racially charged, NY subway fight sparks citizen's arrest (VIDEOS, PHOTOS). rt.com 
A Brooklyn woman caught on video repeatedly kicking and racially abusing her fellow subway passengers has been hit with charges after being placed under citizen's arrest by another commuter. |
(2018-12-13). Arkansas Is Attempting to Ban a Safe and Effective Abortion Method. aclu.org Banning D&Es is part of a national campaign to push abortion out of reach. | The ACLU is in a federal appeals court on Thursday, challenging a slate of Arkansas laws intended to prevent women from being able to get abortions. One of the four laws we are challenging is a ban on the dilation and evacuation (D&E) procedure, a safe and effective abortion method. If enforced, the ban would prevent women from being able to obtain an abortion at all. | Arkansas' ban is part of an anti-abortion campaign being orchestrated by state…
(2018-12-13). Headlines for December 13, 2018. democracynow.org Former Trump Lawyer Cohen Sentenced to 3 Years in Prison, National Enquirer Admits to Suppressing Trump Affair Story to Aid 2016 Presidential Bid, Yemen: Hodeidah Ceasefire Declared, Rep. Pelosi Secures Votes for House Speaker Role, Guardian: FBI Was Surveilling Members of Environmental Group 350.org, NYT: ALEC & Oil Industry Secretly Campaigning to Weaken Car Emission Standards, U.K.: Prime Minister May Survives Leadership Challenge, China Detains 2 Canadians as Huawei CFO Gets Out on Bail, Turkey Threatens Offensive Against U.S.-Backed Kurds in Syria, Australian Media Barred from Reporting on Vatican Official C…
(2018-12-13). Prisoner Swap, Hodeida Ceasefire Mark Successful First Step in Yemen Peace Talks. mintpressnews.com The Saudi-led coalition and Ansar Allah, the political wing of the Houthi resistance movement, have agreed to a ceasefire in Hodeida and in the Taiz Province of northwestern Yemen.
(2018-12-13). Occupied Western Sahara: A rare look inside Africa's last colony. greenleft.org.au 
In an exclusive broadcast, US-based independent news outlet Democracy Now! broke the media blockade and visited the occupied Western Sahara in the northwest of Africa to document the decades-long Sahrawi struggle for freedom and occupying power Morocco's violent crackdown. | Morocco has occupied the territory since 1975 in defiance of the United Nations and the international community. Thousands of Sahrawi people have been tortured, imprisoned, killed and disappeared while resisting the Moroccan occupation. A 1700-mile wall…
(2018-12-13). Iran: Escalating Crackdown on Lawyers. hrw.org 
| | Human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh and Farhad Meysami, a human rights defender, protest the suspension of Sotoudeh's law license in front of the Tehran bar association in Tehran, February 2015. | © Private 2015 | (Beirut) — Iranian authorities have escalated their crackdown on lawyers, Human Rights Watch said today. Over the past month, revolutionary courts have sentenced at least three lawyers to long prison terms for their human rights activ…
(2018-12-13). No Justice for Horrors of Brazil's Military Dictatorship 50 Years On. hrw.org 
| | Tanks occupy the Avenida Presidente Vargas in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, April 4, 1968. | © 1968 Correio da Manh࣠| Fifty years ago today, Brazil ¥s military regime unleashed all-out repression with the publication of Institutional Act 5. Brazil's president, army general Artur da Costa e Silva, immediately invoked the Act to close Congress and state legislatures, arrest opposition politicians, and revoke their political rights. He established widespread censorship and suspended habeas corpus for offenses th…
(2018-12-12). Africa, Diaspora Must Collaborate to Develop. naacp.org 
For Immediate Release From the office of Ghana Vice President: Dr Mahamudu Bawumia Africa, Diaspora must collaborate to develop — Ghana Vice Presiden Bawumia The Vice President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, has called for greater interaction and collaboration between Africa and people of African descent across the world in order to help achieve our collective aspirations.This […]
(2018-12-12). Hatewatch Headlines 12/13/2018. splcenter.org Campus racism thrives in age of Trump; Gohmert says SPLC stirs up hate; Heyer's mother questions 'Bikers for Trump' presence; and more.
(2018-12-12). Donald Trump's Travel Ban Faces a New Day in Court. theintercept.com Opponents of Donald Trump's travel ban have a chance to chip away at it this week by challenging the way it's been implemented. If they're successful, Trump will have only his own administration to blame. | The argument that a group of plaintiffs is making is straightforward: Because the travel ban was upheld, individuals impacted by it can only enter the United States through a waiver system that was said to be a safeguard against arbitrarily keeping people out of the country. Yet the administration has done next to nothing to set the waiver system up, which suggests that a total ban of Muslim travelers from the…
(2018-12-11). Jury recommends life plus 419 years for James Alex Fields in Unite the Right attack. splcenter.org A jury in Charlottesville has handed up a life prison sentence plus 419 years behind bars for a neo-Nazi sympathizer convicted of driving his car into a crowd of counter-protesters after the "Unite the Right" rally.
(2018-12-10). NRA: You Can No Longer Stay Silent. naacp.org NAACP, the nation's foremost civil rights organization released the following statement to the National Rifle Association (NRA): "The senseless killing of Emantic J. Bradford and the silence from the NRA has confirmed that the 2nd amendment does not apply to legally licensed Black gun owners. Instead of standing by their principles, the NRA continues to demonize and […]
(2018-12-10). Doctors Who Facilitate Torture Must Be Held to Account. aclu.org To prevent further stains on the medical profession, the names of those involved in torture and executions need to be made public. | Physicians hold a special position in U.S. society. They are given a place of honor in return for the expectation that they will use their knowledge and skills in the public interest and adhere to a clear set of ethical standards. | Under pressure from the government to misuse their expertise, though, some doctors have been willing to rationalize cooperation in unethical behavior. In recent years, nowhere has such ethical deviation been so starkly on display as in the case of the pa…
(2018-12-10). How the 'Unite the Right' murder trial helped debunk alt-right myths. splcenter.org Within hours of the arrest of neo-Nazi sympathizer James Alex Fields Jr. and the death of 32-year-old paralegal Heather Heyer after the "Unite the Right" rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, the racist "alt-right" began spinning conspiracy theories about the collision that killed Heyer and wounded multiple other people.
(2018-12-08). A day after a neo-Nazi is convicted of murder, associates of the country's oldest, most violent skinhead groups charged with hate crimes. splcenter.org Individuals associated with some of the country's oldest and most violent racist skinhead groups have been charged with hate crimes in Washington state, just hours after a jury convicted a neo-Nazi of murder for his actions at the "Unite the Right" rally in Charlottesville, Virginia.
(2018-12-07). New NYPD Drone Policy Represents a Serious Threat to Privacy. aclu.org The police department's drone policy places no meaningful restrictions on the invasive technology's use and threatens New Yorkers' privacy. | The New York Police Department announced this week that it will deploy 14 new drones as part of its policing activities across New York City. The use of this highly invasive technology represents a new frontier for both public safety and abuses of power. | The department did reach out to the NYCLU to ask us for input on a draft of the policy governing the use of its dr…
(2018-12-07). Neo-Nazi sympathizer found guilty in 'Unite the Right' trial of murdering Heather Heyer. splcenter.org James Alex Fields Jr., a young neo-Nazi sympathizer from Ohio, was found guilty of first-degree murder and multiple other charges on Friday in a trial stemming from last year's racist "Unite the Right" rally in Charlottesville, Virginia.
(2018-12-07). CIA Torture Killed My Father. I Want to Know What They Did With His Body. aclu.org The truth hurts, but it also helps. | This piece was originally published by The Washington Post. | I believe there are two paths in life — the paths of right and wrong — and that all people know the right path in their hearts. So I believe that people in America, if they can read this, will know the right thing for their government to do is tell me and my family what happened to my father's body. | My father was Gul Rahman. Sixteen ye…
(2018-12-07). No Relief: William Barr Is as Bad as Jeff Sessions — if Not Worse. aclu.org Barr's record suggests he will continue the former attorney general's worst policies while promoting a sweeping view of executive power. | Donald Trump's nomination of William Barr to succeed Jeff Sessions as attorney general ought to raise alarm bells across the country. Barr is as bad as Sessions was on the full range of civil rights issues that fall with the Justice Department's purview. And he's a longstanding advocate of expansive executive power. | It's almost certainly the latter view that attracted President Trump, whose own power is likely to be called into question should the Mueller investigation…
(2018-12-04). Sorry To Bother You offers rich lessons in seeking radical social change. greenleft.org.au 
Sorry to Bother You
| Written & directed by Boots Riley
| In cinemas now | This review includes mild spoilers. | As an Australian living abroad, incidents of Australians being racist and/or misogynistisic that attract attention from international media outlets are frequently forwarded to me in anticipation of a seething refrain. | My response is typically motivated by a mix of rage and embarrassment, as well as a deep concern for how racial capitalism has been almost completely normalised. I am deeply concerned by the fact that not only is our social and political climate ill-equipped to address racism, i…
(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…
(2018-10-18). Trump Administration's Warped View of Religious Freedom Abroad. zcomm.org Religious freedom arguments are increasingly being used to challenge anti-discrimination policies and access to services…
(2018-10-18). A Tribute to Ron Dellums, Radical. zcomm.org Ron Dellums appreciated the struggle against racism is permanently joined with those against sexism, militarism, and capitalism…