Trump's Anti-Iran Campaign & NDAA Clause Behind 'Inhumane' Detention of PressTV Anchor Marzieh Hashemi
Whitney Webb | mintpressnews.com | 2019-01-16
The government's failure to comment on Hashemi's detention makes it difficult to analyze specifically what her arrest means. However, her detainment should serve as a chilling wake-up call for journalists, Muslim Americans, and all U.S. citizens. | The post Trump's Anti-Iran Campaign & NDAA Clause Behind 'Inhumane' Detention of PressTV Anchor Marzieh Hashemi appeared first on MintPress News.
mintpressnews.com/presstv-american-citizen-detained/253904/

Could Trump's Attorney General Pick William Barr Be "Worse Than Jeff Sessions" on Civil Rights?
Democracy Now! | democracynow.org | 2019-01-16
Senate confirmation hearings began Tuesday for William Barr, President Trump's nominee for attorney general to replace Jeff Sessions. Barr served as attorney general for George H.W. Bush from 1991 to 1993. During that time, he was involved in the pardon of six Reagan officials for the Iran-Contra scandal and oversaw the opening of the Guantánamo Bay military prison, which was initially used to indefinitely detain Haitian asylum seekers. Barr also openly backed mass incarceration at home and helped develop a secret Drug Enforcement Administration program which became a "blueprint" for the National Security Agency'…
www.democracynow.org/2019/1/16/could_trumps_attorney_general_pick_william

Peru: Judge in Keiko Case Ruled 'Partial' to State Prosecutors
teleSUR | telesurenglish.net | 2019-01-16
A Peruvian appeals court has ruled to dismiss Judge Richard Concepcion Carhuancho from the controversial case against legislator Keiko Fujimori who, along with several Fuerza Popular party advisors is accused of accepting at least US$1.2 million in bribes from Odebrecht for her 2011 presidential bid. | RELATED: | Peru: Court Upholds Preventive Prison For Keiko Fujimori | Lawyers of Fujimori's former campaign chief Jaime Yoshiyama requested the change. | "The Second National Criminal App…
telesurenglish.net/news/Peru-Judge-in-Keiko-Case-Ruled-Partial-to-State-Prosecutors-20190116-0011.html

US court rejects effort to require stricter Pentagon gun checks
aljazeera | aljazeera.com | 2019-01-16
The lawsuit was filed after a man invaded a church in Texas and killed 26 people.
aljazeera.com/news/2019/01/court-rejects-effort-require-stricter-pentagon-gun-checks-190116212958877.html

Chili's Denied Meagan Hunter a Promotion Because She Needed to 'Dress More Gender Appropriate'
ACLU | aclu.org | 2019-01-16
The ACLU is taking action against Chili's, which discriminated against a server for not fitting her boss' idea of what a woman should look like. | Meagan Hunter loved her job as a server at Chili's Grill & Bar in Phoenix, Arizona — and she excelled at it. She was thrilled when her supervisors suggested that she apply for a new training program to become a manager. | In order to learn more about the opportunity, she attended a seminar on Chili's Certified Shift Leader program. She wore a men's button-up shirt, fitted slacks, and boat shoes — an outfit similar to what male managers at Chili's wear. So s…
aclu.org/blog/womens-rights/womens-rights-workplace/chilis-denied-meagan-hunter-promotion-because-she-needed

Imprisoned Neo-Nazi Leader Says His Hate Group Is a Religion, Court Says No
splcenter | splcenter.org | 2019-01-16
A federal appeals court has ruled that Matthew Hale's hate philosophy, Creativity, isn't a religion because it focuses almost exclusively on preserving the white race and lacks a coherent set of "ultimate ideas."
splcenter.org/hatewatch/2019/01/16/imprisoned-neo-nazi-leader-says-his-hate-group-religion-court-says-no

Steve King's Racism Must Be Formally Censured
John Nichols | thenation.com | 2019-01-16
Steve King's Racism Must Be Formally Censured…
thenation.com/article/steve-king-bobby-rush-white-supremacy-congress-censure/

Judge Blocks Trump Plan to Add Citizenship Question to Census, Citing "Smorgasbord" of Broken Rules
Democracy Now! | democracynow.org | 2019-01-16
A federal judge in New York City has ruled against the Trump administration's decision to put a citizenship question on the census. In a lengthy opinion, U.S. District Judge Jesse Furman wrote that in deciding to add a citizenship question to the census, U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross violated a "veritable smorgasbord" of federal rules and "alternately ignored, cherry-picked, or badly misconstrued the evidence in the record before him." Ross announced the citizenship question in March, touting it as a way to enforce the Voting Rights Act and protect minorities against voter discrimination. Voting rights acti…
www.democracynow.org/2019/1/16/judge_blocks_govt_plan_to_add

I'm Out of a Job Because My Boss Didn't Think I Look Like a Woman
ACLU | aclu.org | 2019-01-16
A former Chili's employee speaks out after being forced to quit for not dressing more "gender appropriate." | I didn't look the part, so I was forced to quit. | Chili's, where I worked for nearly two years, was starting a new management training program and my superiors encouraged me to apply. It was a great opportunity, and I was excited about the prospect of a promotion. | I was planning to buy a home for the first time, and the pay increase would have helped a lot. I'm a single mother, so what I earn matters. I'm also a lesbian, a part of my identity that influences how I dress. | I'd started working at a Phoe…
aclu.org/blog/womens-rights/womens-rights-workplace/im-out-job-because-my-boss-didnt-think-i-look-woman

12 California kids 'disciplined' for forming human swastika, secretly exchanging racist messages
RT | rt.com | 2019-01-16
A middle school in California invoked disciplinary measures against a dozen kids after shocked parents discovered that they shared hateful messages in a private chat room and laid together in the shape of a swastika. | …
rt.com/usa/448929-ojai-school-swastika-chat/

William Barr Is a Danger to Civil Rights
Shared by Merula Furtado | truthout.org | 2019-01-16
When William Barr served as attorney general in the early 1990s, the war on drugs and the public panic it generated was reaching a fever pitch. In the years that followed, intensifying law enforcement and mandatory minimum sentencing for drug crimes caused prison populations to explode, devastating communities of color and making the United States the most incarcerated country on the planet. Now, president Trump has nominated Barr to serve as attorney general again. | Has Barr changed since the early 1990s? Civil rights groups demanded to know in the lead-up to the confirmation hearing before the Senate Judici…
truthout.org/articles/william-barr-is-a-danger-to-civil-rights/

Congress Considers Bill to Defend Freedom of People With Disabilities
Shared by Merula Furtado | truthout.org | 2019-01-16
On January 15, disability justice activists celebrated the reintroduction of the Disability Integration Act (DIA). This monumental piece of legislation is an important step forward for the full civil rights of those with disabilities. | The DIA would ensure that people with disabilities have the right to live in their homes and receive services to do so. Insurance companies and state governments would be barred from discriminating against people with disabilities through imposing what is essentially segregation. Far too many of those with disabilities are…
truthout.org/articles/congress-considers-bill-to-defend-freedom-of-people-with-disabilities/

Born Disposable: Trump's War on Youth
Shared by Merula Furtado | truthout.org | 2019-01-16
We live in an age in which the welfare of children is no longer a measure of the degree to which a society lives up to its democratic ideals. In an age of growing fascism, those in power no longer view children as the promise of a future but as a threat to the present. | In particular, poor Black and Brown children are being treated as what Teju Cole calls " unmournable bodies." Rather than being educated, many are being imprisoned; rather than living in communities that are safe and clean, many are relegated to cities where the…
truthout.org/articles/trumps-fascist-politics-treat-children-as-disposable/

#SaveHakeem: Stop the deportation of a Bahraini refugee
pip.hinman | greenleft.org.au | 2019-01-16
Bahraini refugee Hakeem Al-Araibi has been held in detention in Thailand since last November 27. He faces the terrifying prospect of being deported to the country where he was tortured. | Al-Araibi, a semi-professional footballer and former member of the Bahraini national football team, was on his honeymoon and had just landed in Thailand. Australian authorities alerted Thai authorities, whereupon he was arrested. Bahrain is demanding his extradition. | Yahya Alhadid, a spokesperson for the Gulf Institute for Democracy and Human Rights, said if Al-Araibi is extradited back to Bahrain he will face "continuous elec…
greenleft.org.au/content/savehakeem-stop-deportation-bahraini-refugee-0

Indian transit workers in Mumbai defy authorities, continue strike
WSWS | wsws.org | 2019-01-16
As soon as the strike began, Maharashtra's BJP state government invoked essential services legislation, threatening the strikers with mass incarceration, fines and dismissals.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2019/01/16/mumb-j16.html

French worker sentenced to six months' jail over Facebook call for demonstrations
WSWS | wsws.org | 2019-01-16
The French government has intensified police-state repression aimed at crushing "yellow vest" protests against social inequality.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2019/01/16/fran-j16.html

PG&E's Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing: Corporate executives again to get away with murder
WSWS | wsws.org | 2019-01-16
The company faces widespread litigation, including government investigation into the deadly Californian wildfires over the past two years, lawsuits from victims and over $30 billion in potential liabilities.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2019/01/16/bank-j16.html

Grenfell Tower: Class action lawsuit in US against flammable cladding manufacturer
WSWS | wsws.org | 2019-01-16
The suit claims Arconic "knowingly or recklessly supplied its highly flammable Reynobond polyethylene (PE) cladding panels for use in high-rise buildings."
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2019/01/16/gren-j16.html

San Francisco March: Annual MLK March/Parade Honoring Civil Rights History
NCDMJCF | indybay.org | 2019-01-16
San Francisco Caltrain Station then march to Yerba Buena Gardens 700 4th Street, San Francisco…
indybay.org/newsitems/2019/01/16/18820404.php

Pack to Court to Support Anti-Racist and Anti-Fascist Protesters in Sacramento
BAMN and Brown Berets de SacrAztlan | indybay.org | 2019-01-16
Sacramento Superior Court | Dept. 18 | 720-9th St. | Sacramento, CA…
indybay.org/newsitems/2019/01/16/18820407.php

NAACP Statement on CBS Election 2020 News Team
Rachel Johnson | naacp.org | 2019-01-15
Contact: Malik Russell/mrussell@naacpnet.org BALTIMORE (January 15, 2019) — The nation's leading civil rights organization issued the following statement: "CBS News' decision to not include Black reporters on their 2020 Election news team further proves the voting power and voices of Black America continue to be undervalued. As the voting bloc which will most certainly heavily determine […] | The post NAACP Statement on CBS Election 2020 News Team appeared first on NAACP.
naacp.org/latest/naacp-statement-cbs-election-2020-news-team/

SPLC statement on U.S. Rep. Steve King
splcenter | splcenter.org | 2019-01-15
If Republicans think they deserve applause for condemning Congressman Steve King's racism, they're sorely mistaken.
splcenter.org/news/2019/01/15/splc-statement-us-rep-steve-king

NAACP President Derrick Johnson Responds to Federal Judge Jesse Furman's Ruling on the 2020 Census
Rachel Johnson | naacp.org | 2019-01-15
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 15, 2019 CONTACT: Malik Russell/mrussell@naacpnet.org Derrick Johnson, President of NAACP, issued the following statement on federal Judge Jesse M. Furman's ruling to block of the Trump Administration's plan to put a question about citizenship on the 2020 census: "The ruling by Judge Jesse M. Furman is a step in the right direction to […] | The post NAACP President Derrick Johnson Responds to Federal Judge Jesse Furman's Ruling on the 2020 Census app…
naacp.org/latest/naacp-president-derrick-johnson-responds-federal-judge-jesse-furmans-ruling-2020-census/

Arizona Activists Face Jail Time for Providing Life-Saving Aid to Migrants Crossing Sonoran Desert
Democracy Now! | democracynow.org | 2019-01-15
As the longest government shutdown in U.S. history heads into its 25th day and President Trump continues to crack down on immigrants, we look at how the Trump administration is criminalizing humanitarian aid at the border. In Tucson, Arizona, activists with the humanitarian group No More Deaths go to trial today facing charges for a slew of federal crimes, all due to their efforts to leave water and food in the harsh Sonoran Desert to help refugees and migrants survive the deadly journey across the U.S. border. The charges were filed last year in January, just a week after No More Deaths published a report accusi…
www.democracynow.org/2019/1/15/arizona_activists_face_jail_time_for

The Birmingham Civil Rights Institute's Insult to Angela Davis Has Boomeranged
Mairav Zonszein | thenation.com | 2019-01-15
The Birmingham Civil Rights Institute's Insult to Angela Davis Has Boomeranged…
thenation.com/article/angela-davis-birmingham-civil-rights-institute/

NFL Coaching Hires: How Racist Is This League?
Dave Zirin | thenation.com | 2019-01-15
NFL Coaching Hires: How Racist Is This League?
thenation.com/article/nfl-coaches-football-podcast/

Will Trump's AG Pick William Barr Face Questions over Gitmo, Mass Incarceration & NSA Surveillance?
Democracy Now! | democracynow.org | 2019-01-15
Senate confirmation hearings begin today for William Barr, President Trump's nominee for attorney general to replace Jeff Sessions, who was fired in November. Barr served as attorney general for George H.W. Bush from 1991 to 1993. During that time, he was involved in the pardon of six Reagan officials for the Iran-Contra scandal and oversaw the opening of the Guantánamo Bay military prison, which was initially used to indefinitely detain HIV-positive asylum seekers from Haiti. Barr also openly backed mass incarceration at home and helped develop a secret Drug Enforcement Administration program which became a "blu…
www.democracynow.org/2019/1/15/will_trumps_ag_pick_william_barr

Court Blocks Trump's Plan to Add a Citizenship Question to 2020 Census
ACLU | aclu.org | 2019-01-15
A federal judge has ruled that the citizenship question violated federal law. | A federal court has blocked the Trump administration's decision to add a citizenship question to the 2020 census, stating that it constitutes an "egregious" violation of federal law. The ruling deals a serious blow to the administration's plan to use the 2020 census to attack the financial and political resources of immigrants and communities of color. | In a decision released Tuesday, Judge Jesse M. Furman deter…
aclu.org/blog/voting-rights/fighting-voter-suppression/court-blocks-trumps-plan-add-citizenship-question-2020

At Root a Radical. A New Book Re-Examines Martin Luther King's Quest for Economic Justice
Norman Stockwell | progressive.org | 2019-01-15
He refused to choose between economic equality and an end to racially-based discrimination.
progressive.org/dispatches/at-root-a-radical-new-book-martin-luther-king-jr-stockwell-190115/

Activists Demand Closure of Guantanamo Bay at White House Protest
Alexander Rubinstein | theantimedia.com | 2019-01-15
(MPN) — Friday marked the 17th anniversary of the opening of the United States prison compound in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. President Barack Obama failed to fulfill his promise of closing the facility and little attention has since been given to the issue by the Trump administration, but activists continue to work behind the scenes to shut down …
theantimedia.com/guantanamo-bay-protest/

Trump pushes racist wall, but Democrats push racist cruelty too
kathy_f | greenleft.org.au | 2019-01-15
When Donald Trump first announced he was running in the Republican primaries for the 2016 election, he signaled that his campaign would rely heavily on anti-Mexican racism, racism against all non-whites, anti-immigrant xenophobia and Islamophobia. | Part of this was his oft-repeated pledge to "build a wall" between the US and Mexico to keep out immigrants from Central America and Mexico. He slandered these migrants as rapists, murderers, thieves, drug dealers, sex traffickers and more. | That a person with such open racism was even able to be a candidate for the most powerful post in Washington is testimony to ho…
greenleft.org.au/content/trump-pushes-racist-wall-democrats-push-racist-cruelty-too

In North Carolina, Domestic Violence Laws Still Discriminate Against LGBTQ People
ACLU | aclu.org | 2019-01-15
Not all LGBTQ people can get a protective order for domestic violence under North Carolina law. | Same-sex couples in North Carolina won the freedom to marry in 2014, but LGBTQ people continue to be denied equal protection under the law in many other areas of life. | North Carolina is currently the only state in the nation that prevents those in same-sex relationships from accessing protective orders for domestic violence. The ACLU of North Carolina and attorney Amily McCool of the Scharff Law Firm are challenging that unequal policy in court on behalf of a survivor of domestic violence who was denied a protectiv…
aclu.org/blog/lgbt-rights/lgbt-relationships/north-carolina-domestic-violence-laws-still-discriminate-against

India: Administrative detention for facebook posts: Kishorchandra Wangkhem
amnesty | amnesty.org | 2019-01-15
Kishorchandra Wangkhem, a journalist based in Manipur, India, was arrested in August, and again in November 2018, because of Facebook posts where he criticised the government. While he was released on bail in both cases, on 27 November, he was arrested under the National Security Act (NSA). This draconian administrative detention law allows for him to be imprisoned for 12 months without charge or trial, in violation of regular criminal justice safeguards. The High Court of Manipur will hear his challenge to his detention under the NSA on 1 February 2019.
amnesty.org/en/documents/asa20/9687/2019/en/

Venezuela: Self-Proclaimed 'Interim President' Released After 'Irregular' Detention
Paul Dobson | venezuelanalysis.com | 2019-01-14
The officers responsible have been detained and suspended, reportedly on Maduro's orders.
venezuelanalysis.com/news/14218

William Barr Has a Long History of Abusing Civil Rights and Liberties in the Name of 'National Security'
ACLU | aclu.org | 2019-01-14
Barr's ideas of secret trials, profiling, and discrimination must face congressional scrutiny during his confirmation hearings. | On Tuesday, the Senate Judiciary Committee will begin hearings on William Barr's nomination to be the next attorney general of the United States, offering senators an opportunity to scrutinize his record and views. | Such scrutiny is especially crucial in the Trump era. As we've seen throughout his time in office, from imposing the Muslim ban to the recent shutdown fight over border wall funding, President Trump has tried to use "national security" as a pretext to justify discriminator…
aclu.org/blog/national-security/william-barr-has-long-history-abusing-civil-rights-and-liberties-name

Finland: Submission to the UN Human Rights Committee in advance of the adoption of the list of issues prior to reporting
amnesty | amnesty.org | 2019-01-14
Amnesty International provides the below information to the United Nations (UN) Human Rights Committee (the Committee) ahead of the adoption of the list of issues prior to reporting in advance of the 7th periodic report of Finland at its 125th session in March 2019. | This submission sets out some of Amnesty International's key concerns about the fulfilment of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (the Covenant), and in particular with regard to violence against women (Articles 2-3, 7 and 26), forced marriage (Articles 2 and 23), discrimination on the grounds of gender, gender identity and sexu…
amnesty.org/en/documents/eur20/9685/2019/en/

Exclusive: Angela Davis Speaks Out on Palestine, BDS & More After Civil Rights Award Is Revoked
Democracy Now! | democracynow.org | 2019-01-11
In a Democracy Now! exclusive, legendary activist and scholar Angela Davis speaks out after the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute rescinded a human rights award for her, reportedly due to her activism for Palestinian rights. In September, the institute announced that it would award Davis the Fred L. Shuttlesworth Human Rights Award, named after the civil rights icon. But last Friday, the institute voted to withdraw the award and cancel this year's gala event. The institute rescinded the award days after the Birmingham Holocaust Education Center sent a letter urging the board to reconsider honoring Davis due to he…
www.democracynow.org/2019/1/11/exclusive_angela_davis_speaks_out_on

Tucson protests Trumps border wall threat
Fight Back | fightbacknews.org | 2019-01-11
Tucson, AZ – Around 40 people chanting "No wall, never," joined a protest here January 10 in response to President Trump's bid to finance his racist border wall. Protesters' signs reading "Refugees welcome here!" drew many honks of solidarity from traffic in front the federal building. | Plans continue to build mobilization against the deployment of thousands of troops to the Mexico border and the threat of a border wall. The Tucson protest was organized in response to a call from by the Legalization for All Network for national actions.
fightbacknews.org/2019/1/10/tucson-protests-trumps-border-wall-threat

William Barr's Unsolicited Memo to Trump About Obstruction of Justice
ACLU | aclu.org | 2019-01-11
Barr's critique of the Mueller investigation raises serious questions about his views of presidential power. Senators should demand answers. | Last month, news broke that in June 2018, President Trump's current nominee for attorney general, William P. Barr, sent an unsolicited 20-page memo to the Justice Department critiquing special counsel Robert Mueller's current investigation into Russian election interference. | Barr, who previously served as attorney general under Preside…
aclu.org/blog/executive-branch/william-barrs-unsolicited-memo-trump-about-obstruction-justice

The Scott Warren Case is Part of a Crackdown on Aid to Migrants
James Goodman | progressive.org | 2019-01-11
He offered food, water, and clothing to migrants on a deadly stretch of the U.S.-Mexico border. Now he's facing twenty years in prison. Humanitarian groups fear the situation will only get worse.
progressive.org/dispatches/crackdown-on-aid-to-migrants-goodman-180911/

SPLC releases online tool that tracks rising number of hate group flyers and banners
splcenter | splcenter.org | 2019-01-11
Emboldened by President Trump's rhetoric, white supremacist groups have increased their distribution of flyers and banners in public spaces across the country, spreading racist and antisemitic propaganda and seeking to recruit new members.
splcenter.org/news/2019/01/11/splc-releases-online-tool-tracks-rising-number-hate-group-flyers-and-banners

Deaths of Women in Custody During Hurricane Florence Could Have Been Prevented
ACLU | aclu.org | 2019-01-11
Law enforcement and corrections officials must have emergency plans in place to protect any person in their custody when extreme weather strikes. | Amid rising floodwaters from Hurricane Florence in September, two women in the custody of the Horry County Sheriff's Office were left to drown in the back of a transport van. | The facts are as straightforward as they are damning. The two deputies, Joshua Bishop and Stephen Flood, transporting Nicolette Green and Wendy Newton to a hospital for mental health treatment disregarded roadblocks indicating flooded roadways. Floodwaters quickly overtook the van, and it was s…
aclu.org/blog/prisoners-rights/deaths-women-custody-during-hurricane-florence-could-have-been-prevented

NAACP Kicks Off 2019 with Women in Power Town Hall
Regan Farley | naacp.org | 2019-01-11
Panel to feature Senator Kamala Harris, Congresswomen Karen Bass, Marcia Fudge and Lucy Mcbath BALTIMORE (January 11, 2019)–NAACP will host its first tele town hall of the year, the Women in Power Town Hall, on Tuesday, January 15, 2019, at 8pm EST. The telephone program, NAACP's first public forum of the year, will provide a […] | The post NAACP Kicks Off 2019 with Women in Power Town Hall appeared first on NAACP.
naacp.org/latest/naacp-kicks-off-2019-women-power-town-hall/

SPLC launches campaign with NAACP, other organizations to remove Confederate symbols across Georgia
splcenter | splcenter.org | 2019-01-10
The SPLC joined other advocacy organizations and elected officials today in demanding change to a Georgia state law that prohibits local communities from removing Confederate monuments.
splcenter.org/news/2019/01/10/splc-launches-campaign-naacp-other-organizations-remove-confederate-symbols-across-georgia

Facing Mass Deportation, Haitians Sue Trump to Preserve Temporary Protected Status
Democracy Now! | democracynow.org | 2019-01-10
A New York City trial is challenging the Trump administration's attempt to end temporary protected status–known as TPS–for more than 50,000 Haitians living in the U.S. Tens of thousands of Haitians were granted TPS after an earthquake devastated their country nine years ago this week. In November 2017, the Trump administration announced it would revoke TPS for Haitians, sparking protests and multiple lawsuits around the country. We speak with Marleine Bastien, executive director the Family Action Network Movement, or FANM, one of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit. She testified on Wednesday as a witness i…
www.democracynow.org/2019/1/10/facing_mass_deportation_haitians_sue_trump

Unjustly Jailed Blogger Faces New Charges in Azerbaijan
Human Rights Watch | hrw.org | 2019-01-10
Mehman Huseynov. | © 2017 Aziz Karimov | Azerbaijan authorities know no limits when it comes to silencing government critics. As everyone was celebrating the New Year, Azerbaijan authorities were busy pressing new charges against one of the country's most popular anti-corruption bloggers, Mehman Huseynov. | Huseynov has been serving a 2-year prison sentence after he was prosecuted for defaming an entire police station in Baku, because he…
hrw.org/news/2019/01/10/unjustly-jailed-blogger-faces-new-charges-azerbaijan

US: Suit Filed Over Immigration FOIA Request
Human Rights Watch | hrw.org | 2019-01-10
An image of the first page of the complaint from a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit filed on behalf of Human Rights Watch by Nixon Peabody. | © 2019 Human Rights Watch | (San Francisco, January 10, 2019) — Human Rights Watch filed suit today against the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for their failure to respond adequately to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request for detailed immi…
hrw.org/news/2019/01/10/us-suit-filed-over-immigration-foia-request

There Are Thousands of Cyntoia Browns: Mariame Kaba on Criminalization of Sexual Violence Survivors
Democracy Now! | democracynow.org | 2019-01-10
Cyntoia Brown was granted full clemency by Republican Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam on Monday after serving 15 years in prison. The decision follows months of intense public pressure and outrage over her case. Brown was sentenced to life in prison after being convicted of first-degree murder for shooting her rapist as a teenager. She had been sexually trafficked and repeatedly abused and drugged. The shooting happened when Brown was just 16 years old, but she was tried as an adult. We speak with Mariame Kaba, organizer and educator who has worked on anti-domestic violence programs, anti-incarceration and racial…
www.democracynow.org/2019/1/10/there_are_thousands_of_cyntoia_browns

Longtime Reporter Leaves NBC Saying Media Is "Trump Circus" That Encourages Perpetual War
Democracy Now! | democracynow.org | 2019-01-09
"Prisoners of Donald Trump." That's how longtime NBC reporter and analyst William Arkin described the mainstream media in a scathing letter last week announcing he would be leaving the network, accusing the media of warmongering while ignoring the "creeping fascism of homeland security." He issued the blistering critique after a 30-year relationship with NBC, calling for "Trump-free" media days and a reckoning about how the network encourages a state of perpetual warfare. We speak with Arkin, whose award-winning reporting has appeared in The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, The Washington Post. He is the author…
www.democracynow.org/2019/1/9/longtime_reporter_leaves_nbc_saying_media

The Wall: The Perfect Prop for Trump's Racist Stagecraft
Jud Lounsbury | progressive.org | 2019-01-09
Trump's political survival in the short term and in 2020 is dependent in keeping his base foaming at the mouth.
progressive.org/dispatches/wall-perfect-prop-trump-racist-Lounsbury-190109/