(2018-12-23). Al Jazeera's Mahmoud Hussein marks two years in Egyptian prison. aljazeera.com In violation of Egyptian and international law, Hussein completes two years in Egyptian jail without charges or trial.
(2018-12-23). Japan court extends ex-Nissan chief Ghosn's detention by 10 days. aljazeera.com Former Nissan chief will spend Christmas and beginning of 2019 behind bars as Tokyo court extends his detention.
(2018-12-23). Iraq/Kurdistan Region: Double Jeopardy for ISIS Ties. hrw.org 
| | Cigarette burns cover the hands and arms of 18-year-old "Karim." Kurdish authorities held him for 13 months. He then returned home and was rearrested by authorities under Baghdad's control, who tortured and held him for months. | © 2018 San Saravan | (Beirut) — Sunni Arab boys who serve prison time in Iraq's Kurdistan region for Islamic State (also known as ISIS) connections risk rearrest after their release if they try to reunite with their families…
(2018-12-23). They Rescued Pigs and Turkeys From Factory Farms — and Now Face Decades in Prison. theintercept.com In the fall of 2017, Glenn Greenwald reported on a nationwide FBI manhunt for two pigs named Lily and Lizzie. The pigs had been removed from a factory farm in Utah by animal rights activists from a group called Direct Action Everywhere. From the perspective of the activists, the pigs were rescued. From the perspective of Smithfield Farms, the Chinese-owned multinational corporation that owns the factory farm, they were stolen. | Direct Action Everywhere, also known as DxE, engages in a practice calle…
(2018-12-23). Congress Is Trying to Use the Spending Bill to Criminalize Boycotts of Israel. indybay.org According to recent reports, congressional leaders from both sides of the aisle are planning to sneak a bill criminalizing politically motivated boycotts of Israel into the end-of-the-year omnibus spending bill.
(2018-12-22). Dancing FBI Agent Accidentally Shoots Man, Dodges Jail Time. telesurenglish.net A former FBI agent who accidentally shot and wounded a man at a bar in Denver, Colorado after performing a backflip on the dance-floor pleaded guilty to misdemeanor assault Friday, under a plea deal that spares him from serving jail time. | RELATED: | Police Shoot Dead African-American Security Guard in Chicago | According to a statement from prosecutors, 30-year-old Chase Bishop pleaded guilty to third-degree assault for shooting Thomas Reddington in the leg at the Mile High Spiri…
(2018-12-22). NAACP Launches Boycott of Facebook. zcomm.org Platform Is Unhealthy for African Americans & U.S. Democracy…
(2018-12-22). Video: School Pathologist Loses Her Job for Refusing to Sign a Pro-Israel Oath. globalresearch.ca Bahia Amawi, an American citizen of Palestinian descent, lost her job in a Texas school because she refused to sign a pro-Israel oath. | She is now filing a lawsuit in the Federal District Court in Austin. | . | * | Note to …
(2018-12-22). Chicago city council candidates support community control of police. fightbacknews.org Chicago, IL – There are 212 candidates for the 50 seats in the February 19, 2019 Chicago city council elections. Of this total, 38 came out to a December 20 forum in support of an elected civilian police accountability council (CPAC). It's unusual for so many candidates to be together in one room unless they're seeking the support of a powerful union or political organization. But this wasn't an endorsement session. The candidates came to join the movement establish community control over the Chicago Police Department. | The forum was convened by the Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression, the o…
(2018-12-22). The First Step Act Could Be a Big Gift to CoreCivic and the Private Prison Industry. theintercept.com 
As people continue to die inside CoreCivic's prisons, the First Step Act opens opportunities for the company to keep profiting from incarceration.
(2018-12-22). Coal Ash Dumps Are Contaminating Groundwater in 22 States. truthout.org Ten years ago today, the earthen wall of a coal ash impoundment in Kingston, Tennessee, ruptured, sending 1.1 billion gallons of coal ash slurry rushing across the countryside, destroying homes and chocking streams and wetlands with the toxic leftovers from burning coal for electricity. Luckily, no one died in the flood, but more than 30 workers have died after cleaning up the spill. Another 200 workers are now sick or dying from blood cancer and other illnesses linke…
(2018-12-21). "Cultural Marxism": The Quixotic Catch-All Term to Cover Feminism, Multiculturalism, Identity Politics, Civil Rights, … globalresearch.ca "The whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace alarmed (and hence clamorous to be led to safety) by menacing it with an endless series of hobgoblins, all of them imaginary." — H. L. Mencken | Cultural Marxism is …
(2018-12-21). US Gov't in Partial Shutdown After Trump's Wall Debacle. telesurenglish.net The United States government partially shut down early Saturday in a fierce dispute over President Donald Trump's demands that Congress assign US$5 billion to build a wall along the southern border with Mexico. | RELATED: | Trump's 'Racist' Wall Approved by House | After failing to come to an agreement Friday, congressional leaders and the White House said talks would continue through the weekend to strike a deal that could end the shutdown ahead of the Christmas holiday. | The deadlock came after Trump…
(2018-12-21). Extremists' collectibles used to fund today's hate movement. splcenter.org Attempts to sell neo-Nazi memorabilia online are nothing new, but a recent marketing ploy attempts to use the sale of racist antiquities to fund modern-day racist activities.
(2018-12-21). Houthis to Demand Body of Slain Journalist Jamal Khashoggi as Part of Saudi Prisoner Exchange. mintpressnews.com 
"If [slain journalist Jamal] Khashoggi's sons ask or if they want us to demand their father's body [as part of the Saudi-Yemeni prisoner swap] then we will do it." — Mohammed Ali al-Houthi, President of Ansar Allah's Supreme Revolutionary Committee
(2018-12-21). The Death Penalty in 2018: A Punishment on the Decline. aclu.org We have much to celebrate in 2018, and much work towards abolition in the years ahead. | An annual survey conducted by the Death Penalty Information Center shows a significant decline in 2018 in the use of the death penalty nationwide. This is as it should be — the nation is turning away from the barbaric practice of killing its people as punishment. | In 2018, 25 people were executed, marking the fourth year in a row the United States has had fewer than 30 executions. That's down dramatically from the peak of 98 executions we saw in 1999. Death sentenc…
(2018-12-21). Donorbox Shutters BDS Fundraising After Complaint by Israeli-Government Linked Group. mintpressnews.com 
JERUSALEM (AP) — A U.S. software company said Friday it blocked the fundraising account of the Palestinian-led boycott movement against Israel following a complaint by a pro-Israel group that the campaign has links to militant organizations. | Donorbox, which makes fundraising management software, confirmed that the BDS campaign's account was temporarily blocked while it investigates the allegations. | The BDS movement called the Israeli move "McCarthyite." | The decision came in response to a complaint from Shurat HaDin, an Israeli advocacy group that files lawsuits around the world against Israel's foes,…
(2018-12-21). Spanish regional elections: Socialist Party falters, far-right advances. peoplesworld.org 
In what seems a replay of recent German and Italian elections, an openly authoritarian and racist party made major electoral gains in Spain's most populous province, Andalusia, helping to dethrone the Socialist Party that had dominated the southern region for 36 years. Vox (Voice)—a party that stands for "Spain First," restrictions on women's rights, ending …
(2018-12-21). Congress Touts First Step Act as Criminal Justice Victory—But Critics Fear Bill Makes False Promises. democracynow.org 
A major criminal justice reform bill is poised to become law after the U.S. House of Representatives overwhelmingly voted in its favor Thursday. The First Step Act, passed in the Senate earlier this week with an 87-12 vote, would roll back sentences for federal prisoners, including mandatory life terms for third-time offenders and mandatory sentences for nonviolent drug users. The bill is now heading to the desk of President Trump, who has pledged to sign it into law. The bill only affects federal prisoners, who make up less than 10 percent of the more than 2 million U.S. prisoners. It has been endorsed by a wide…
(2018-12-21). Single Moms Get Sucked Into the Cruelest Debtors' Prison We've Ever Seen. aclu.org In Lexington County, SC, moms struggling to make ends meet get jailed for weeks or months at a time when they can't afford to pay court fines and fees | Twanda Marshinda Brown is a single mom in South Carolina who was supporting her children by working at Burger King. In 2016, a court in Lexington County fined her around $2,300 for two traffic offenses. The judge ordered her to make monthly payments of $100, even though she explained she could only afford to pay $50 a month whil…
(2018-12-21). The Bolton Speech on Africa: A Case of the Wolf and the Foxes. counterpunch.org 
Malcolm X reminded us that we had to be careful about the difference between the wolf and the fox. The wolf for black people were the hardcore, racist white folks with the hoods and clearly articulated stance in support of white supremacy. The fox, on the other hand were the liberals who were supposed to More
(2018-12-21). Trump's War on Children. counterpunch.org Children are in the news yet again. Not the 12,800 immigrant children that were in shelters for migrant children in the United States in September 2017, a significant increase from May 2016. In that month there were 2700 immigrant children in detention facilities that Trumpsters describe as similar to summer camps. And not the 85,000 children who Save More
(2018-12-21). United Arab Emirates: Further Information: Possible Verdict For Human Rights Defender: Ahmed Mansoor. amnesty.org On 24 December 2018 the Federal Supreme Court in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is set to hear the appeal of prominent human rights defender and prisoner of conscience, Ahmed Mansoor. The court may issue a final verdict. On 29 May 2018, Ahmed Mansoor was convicted and sentenced to 10 years in prison on charges including "insulting the UAE and its symbols".
(2018-12-21). #SaveHakeem — Stop deportation of Bahraini refugee. greenleft.org.au 
Bahraini refugee Hakeem Al-Araibi has been held in detention in Thailand since November 27, facing the terrifying prospect of deportation to the country where he was tortured. | Al-Araibi fled to Australia in 2014 and was accepted as a refugee. In November, he travelled on UN travel documents to Thailand for a short holiday with his wife. When he arrived at Bangkok airport, Al-Araibi was arrested under an Interpoll "Red Notice" (an international arrest warrant) issued by the Bahrain government. | Interpol is not meant to issue red notices for refugees, so this red notice should never have been issued for Al-Araib…
(2018-12-21). Critics Say First Step Act Makes False Promises About Criminal Legal Reform. truthout.org A major criminal justice reform bill is poised to become law after the House of Representatives overwhelmingly voted in its favor Thursday. The First Step Act, passed in the Senate earlier this week with an 87-12 vote, would roll back sentences for federal prisoners, including mandatory life terms for third-time offenders and mandatory sentences for nonviolent drug users. The bill is now heading to the desk of President Trump, who has pledged to sign it into law. The bill only affects federal prisoners, who make up less than 10 percent of the more than 2 million prisoners. It has been endorsed by a wide range…
(2018-12-20). Anti-Lynching Bill Passes the U.S. Senate. naacp.org Late in the afternoon of 12/19, the U.S. Senate unanimously passed S. 3178, the Justice for Victims of Lynching Act, which was originally introduced by Senators Kamala Harris (CA), Cory Booker (NJ) and Tim Scott (SC). This crucial legislation would make lynching a hate crime, therefore eligible for the additional federal tools and resources used […]
(2018-12-20). Screen Shot 2018-12-20 at 7.46.15 AM.png. progressive.org "It was Paul Ryan and Reince Priebus who transformed the politics of Wisconsin with racist dog-whistle messaging, and that laid the foundation for Donald Trump."
(2018-12-20). 'Domestic Workers Don't Have Protections Against Discrimination and Harassment' – CounterSpin interview with Mariana Viturro on Domestic Workers Bill of Rights. fair.org 
Janine Jackson interviewed Mariana Viturro about the Domestic Workers Bill of Rights for the December 14, 2018, episode of CounterSpin. This is a lightly edited transcript. | Media…
(2018-12-20). Congress Just Took a Big Step Toward Ending the Shackling of Pregnant Prisoners. aclu.org Passing the First Step Act will be a step toward upholding the rights and protecting the health of pregnant prisoners. | Congress on Thursday passed the Senate version of the First Step Act, which is now headed for signature to President Trump. He is expected to sign it on Friday. | The First Step Act would, in addition to enacting other important criminal justice reforms, prohibit the shackling of p…
(2018-12-20). The Lives We Changed in 2018. aclu.org 
Because of the generosity of ACLU members, these people are free to live their lives again. | This year hasn't been easy: Thousands of families are still suffering the effects of family separation; the Muslim ban continues to keep loved ones apart; and whole generations of family trees are being decimated by an unfair, out-of-control mass incarceration machine. But beneath the headlines, the news alerts, and the legal battles are a few glimmers of hope that ACLU supporters made possible., , Here are some of our favorite moments from 2018. | Ansly Breathes Free Again : | Ethics teacher Ansly Damus fled…
(2018-12-20). NAACP Launches Boycott of Facebook: Platform Is Unhealthy for African Americans & U.S. Democracy. democracynow.org 
Facebook is under fire again, this time for new revelations that Russian trolls targeted African Americans on social media in an effort to influence the vote ahead of the 2016 election. A pair of bipartisan reports published by the Senate Intelligence Committee Monday claim the Russian government focused on African Americans in its effort to suppress the turnout of voters likely to cast ballots for Hillary Clinton, spreading fake news and sowing discord in the run-up to the election. The NAACP has launched a Facebook boycott in response, demanding the social media giant be held responsible. We speak with Derrick…
(2018-12-20). PRISON AND SENTENCING REFORM PASSES THE US SENATE. naacp.org On December 18, 2018, the U.S. Senate passed, by a vote of 87 yeas to 12 nays, its version of the First Step Act, legislation which begins to reform our nation's sentencing laws and prison terms. This bipartisan legislation, which has been strongly supported and promoted by the White House, offers some important improvements to the current federal criminal […]
(2018-12-20). Déjà vu on the Greek-Turkey Border. hrw.org 
| | Migrants that crossed the land border between Greece and Turkey are seen at the Pre-Removal Detention Center in the village of Fylakio, Northern Greece, February 24, 2017. | © 2017 Alexandros Avramidis /Reuters | Ten years ago, I documented a systematic pattern of brutal Greek border police pushbacks of migrants and asylum seekers at the Evros River border that divides Greece and Turkey. Last week, as I edited a new Human Rights Watch report, I felt as though I was re-reading my old report. | Here's a paragraph fro…
(2018-12-20). US Deporting Iraqis Without Valid Documents. hrw.org 
| | Protesters rally outside the federal court just before a hearing to consider a class-action lawsuit filed on behalf of Iraqi nationals facing deportation, in Detroit, Michigan, US, June 21, 2017. | © 2017 Reuters/Rebecca Cook | (Beirut) — The United States government has deported at least 30 of a planned 1,400 people originally from Iraq back to their country, in some cases threatening long imprisonmen…
(2018-12-20). Iran: Imprisoned Dissident Dies. hrw.org 
| | Rajai Shahr Prison, Karaj, Iran. | © 2004 Private | (Beirut) — Iranian authorities should immediately carry out an independent and impartial investigation into the death of an imprisoned activist on a hunger strike, Human Rights Watch said today. Anyone found responsible for wrongdoing in the death of Vahid Sayadi Nasiri should be held accountable. Iranian authorities have systematically failed to conduct transparent investigations into at least prio…
(2018-12-20). United Arab Emirates: Further Information: Hunger-Striking Academic In Critical Condition: Dr Nasser bin Ghaith. amnesty.org Dr Nasser bin Ghaith's health has severely deteriorated. The prominent Emirati economist and academic has been on hunger strike for over 70 days in al-Razeen prison in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to protest the detention conditions and the denial of access to medical care. He is a prisoner of conscience.
(2018-12-20). UAE: Fears grow for health of unjustly imprisoned academic. amnesty.org The authorities in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) must immediately and unconditionally release Dr Nasser bin Ghaith, a prisoner of conscience whose health has deteriorated sharply in recent days, said Amnesty International today. | Dr Nasser bin Ghaith is serving a 10-year sentence for criticizing the UAE in comments posted on Twitter after a grossly unfair politically motivated trial. | "News that Dr Nasser bin Ghaith's health has deteriorated sharply…
(2018-12-20). Algeria: Forced to leave: Stories of injustice against migrants in Algeria. amnesty.org Over the past two decades Algeria has become a country of transit or final destination of many nationals from West and Central Africa looking for employment opportunities in a variety of sectors, mainly construction and agriculture. Yet despite the large number of Sub-Saharan migrants, asylum seekers and refugees in the country, Algeria still lacks a clear legal framework for migrant workers and has a law criminalizing irregular migration making it an offence punishable by up to five years in prison. | Arbitrary arrests and mass expulsions of migrants from Sub-Saharan Africa have reached an all-time high, in star…
(2018-12-20). Revisiting the Taco Bell Killing. theintercept.com 
In the fall of 2001, lawmakers in Cook County, Georgia voted to raise taxes for the coming year. The $1.75 million hike passed "unanimously but reluctantly," according to the Adel News Tribune, which cited large expenditures in the name of law and order. There was the opening of the new county jail, requiring new staff and equipment, but, more significantly, the previous spring Adel had seen its first death penalty trial in a generation. The weeklong trial of 20-year-old Devonia Inman for the killing of a single mother named Donna Brown "quadrupled the Superior Court budget," according to the newspaper. The seque…
(2018-12-20). Episode One: Murder at Taco Bell. theintercept.com A murder in a small Georgia town sent a man to jail for 20 years. While he awaited trial, three more people were brutally killed. Did police get the wrong man?
(2018-12-20). Despite Assurances From Trump, the U.S. Battle Against ISIS in Eastern Syria Is Far From Over. theintercept.com 
Despite assurances from President Donald Trump that the Islamic State is no more, the U.S.-led battle to oust the militant group from its last Syrian stronghold has intensified in recent weeks. | Amid heavy fighting between the Kurdish-led, U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces and hardened Islamic State fighters, scores of civilians and prisoners have been killed by American airstrikes in the eastern province of Deir al-Zour, according to sources on the ground. | As part of that campaign, U.S. warplanes bombed a hospital in the village of Al Shaafa…
(2018-12-19). Federal Judge Blocks Trump's Policy Gutting Asylum for People Fleeing Domestic and Gang Violence. aclu.org Once again, the Trump administration's attacks on asylum are held unlawful. | The Trump administration's campaign to dismantle our asylum system just suffered another major setback. | A federal judge in Washington, D.C., permanently blocked a June 2018 "expedited removal" policy that gutted asylum protections for immigrants fleeing domestic violence and gang brutality. Holding that "there is no legal basis for an effective categorical ban on domestic violence and gang-related claims," Judge Emmet Sullivan struck down the policy for being c…
(2018-12-19). Brutality Against Prisoners Is Often Unseen. In this Virgin Islands Jail, It Was Caught on Video. aclu.org 
The latest assault follows years of abuse and neglect at the St. Thomas jail. | When Benjamin Hodge, who is serving a nine-month sentence at the Criminal Justice Complex on St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands, told a corrections officer he had found a cockroach in his food, he did not expect that officer would choke him to near unconsciousness. | Though the jail's own chief investigator found that the officer, Jamal Crooke, had used excessive force and lied in his account of the incident, Crooke continues to work at the jail to this day. No criminal investigation was opened into potential assault charges. No kn…
(2018-12-19). NAACP to Host National Townhall on Thursday Dec. 20. naacp.org 
Leaders, activists, and organizers join in a candid conversation about #livingwhileblack, justice reform, protecting our vote, Facebook and more issues impacting black America FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE MEDIA CONTACT: Malik Russell/ mrussell@naacpnet.org and Vanessa Mbonu/ vmbonu@naacpnet.org BALTIMORE (December 19, 2018) — NAACP will host its final national tele townhall of the year on Thursday, December 20that 8 pm EST. The townhall is an opportunity to […]
(2018-12-19). Justice for Jakelin: Lawmakers Demand Answers in Death of 7-Year-Old Girl in Border Patrol Custody. democracynow.org 
Outrage is mounting over the death of a 7-year-old indigenous Guatemalan girl in Border Patrol custody, as lawmakers demand answers for the conditions that led Jakelin Caal Maquín to die after being detained at the U.S.-Mexico border. Maquin died on December 8, two days after she and her father presented themselves at the border alongside 161 other Central American asylum seekers. She had been held in detention for more than eight hours when she began to have seizures. Border Patrol agents brought the girl to the hospital after her body temperature spiked to 105.7 degrees. The 7-year-old died of dehydration, shoc…
(2018-12-19). CYNTOIA BROWN DESERVES CLEMENCY — THIS IS NOT A DEBATE. naacp.org 
This story is one that meets at the intersection of sex-trafficking and mass incarceration. Cyntoia Brown has been imprisoned since she was 16 years old in 2004, during which time she was charged with first-degree premeditated murder and first-degree felony murder and tried as an adult. Although she was a teenager, she was tried as an […]
(2018-12-19). Trump Administration Recommends Slashing Civil Rights Protections for Students of Color. aclu.org A federal commission's post-Parkland recommendations include reversing an Obama-era guidance on racial disparities in school discipline. | On Tuesday, the Federal Commission on School Safety issued recommendations that it claims will help makes schools safer following the mass shooting in Parkland, Florida. But at the center of the report is a proposal that will endanger millions of public school students, especially students of color and students with disabilities, by reversing federal guidance intended to address racial disparities in school discipline. Doing away with the guidance will weaken federal civil rig…
(2018-12-19). Uganda: Drop absurd charges against academic Stella Nyanzi. amnesty.org The Ugandan authorities must immediately drop charges against radical academic Stella Nyanzi and put a stop to the charade that has seen her spend weeks in jail, Amnesty International said today as her case finally went to trial. | The charges levelled against Stella Nyanzi under the Computer Misuse Act are in direct contravention of Uganda's constitution and its international human rights obligations to respect, protect, promote and fulfil the right to freedom of expression. |
(2018-12-19). ALP National Conference a sham. greenleft.org.au 
Bill Shorten surprised no one with his laughingly tiny reforms at the Australian Labor Party National Conference over December 16—18. | If you expected debate, let alone proposals to stop the Adani coalmine or refugee boat turn-backs or the closure of off-shore detention centres, then you would have been disappointed as these things did not happen. | If you were hoping that there might be a commitment to increase the Newstart Allowance or to back progressive industrial relations reforms that will actually change the rules for workers, you would be doubly disappointed as these things were also rejected. | Cl…
(2018-12-19). Trump's Criminal Justice Reform Act Is a Meaningless Smoke Screen (Pt 1/3). therealnews.com 
Congress's Criminal Justice Reform Act boosts privatization, fails to dismantle mass incarceration, nor does it implement sentencing reform. We speak to Eddie Conway and Natasha Pratt Harris about the proposed reform