Eds. (2019-04-04). White supremacist symbol found spray-painted at the site of fire, civil rights center says. mronline.org Someone painted a white supremacist symbol at the scene where fire ravaged a building tied to the civil rights movement, according to a statement from the Highlander Research and Education Center. | Source

commondreams (2019-04-04). Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law Opposes Historic Senate Rule Change. commondreams.org ______________________________…

splcenter (2019-04-04). SPLC seeks release of detained journalist whose work challenged ICE, a year after he was arrested. splcenter.org Memphis journalist Manuel Duran filed a habeas petition yesterday, seeking his immediate release from detention.

STAFF (2019-04-04). What California's Death Penalty Moratorium Means For The Marginalized. therealnews.com Davey D discusses Governor Gavin Newsom's executive order and California's prison industrial complex—from Tookie Williams to Prop 66…

W. T. Whitney Jr. (2019-04-04). Fascist-like attack hits Highlander Center. peoplesworld.org The deadly racist spree in Charlottesville in 2017 and the killing of 12 congregants at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburg in 2018 were fire bells in the night. Another rang out in New Market, Tennessee on March 29 as the main building at the Highlander Research and Education Center burned to the ground, …

STAFF (2019-04-04). McConnell Goes Nuclear to Help Trump Pack the Courts With Extremists. truthout.org NAACP attorney Janai Nelson said it was an "insult to African Americans" when President Trump nominated Thomas Farr to a federal district court bench in North Carolina last year. The Republican attorney's fingerprints were all over efforts to suppress and sideline voters of color in North Carolina, and he was linked to a campaign committee for segregationist Sen. Jesse Helms accused of intimidating Black voters in the late 1980s with postcards suggesting they would be arrested…

STAFF (2019-04-04). Harvard's Tacit Endorsement of Slavery. truthdig.com The haunting gaze of Papa Renty peers from the 1850 daguerreotype. The enslaved man was forced to pose, naked, for a study being conducted by a racist Harvard anthropologist named Louis Agassiz. The Swiss-born scientist promoted "polygenism," a theory that held that different races were separate species, and that the white race was far superior to the black race. To validate this, Agassiz traveled from Harvard to South Carolina seeking authentic, "pure" black slaves, those whose original, African racial makeup hadn't been diluted, as all too often occurred, by the rape of slave women by their white masters. Agass…

Text: R.R. Photos: Chris Cassell (2019-04-04). Day After Fed Judge Okays High Capacity Gun Magazines in CA, Teenagers Rally in San Jose. indybay.org South Bay teenage activists demonstrated for legislation to stop senseless gun use in America. Supporters from Black Lives Matter and Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense stood with them in solidarity at a "Rally for Change" on March 30. | Photos by Chris Cassell, Pro-Bono Photo. Please credit the photographer.

Center for Biological Diversity (2019-04-04). Lawsuit Aims to Protect West Coast Salmon for Starving Orcas. indybay.org Southern Resident Population Drops to 75 as Trump Administration Ignores Fisheries' Impact…

Fight Back (2019-04-03). Activists in Oshkosh, WI host vigil for Amber Evans. fightbacknews.org Oshkosh, WI – On March 31, local activists and members of United Action Oshkosh (UAO) held a vigil to honor and commemorate the life and work of activist Amber Evans. | Evans, whose body had been identified a week prior after being pulled from the Scioto River in Columbus, Ohio, was a 28-year-old organizer involved heavily with movements such as Black Lives Matter, the Juvenile Justice Coalition, the People's Justice Project, and local anti-fascist projects. | Gathering in the Opera House Square in downtown Oshkosh, attendees of the vigil held a moment of silence for two minutes, symbolizing the two months…

ACLU (2019-04-03). Legislation Would End Debt-Based Driver's License Suspensions in Minnesota. aclu.org Courts are supposed to deliver justice, not act as debt collectors. | Minnesota is one of more than 40 states across the country that suspends people's driver's licenses for outstanding tickets and fees, a practice that disproportionately harms low-income people. But the Minnesota Legislature may act to end this wealth-based penalty through legislation introduced in both chambers. If it becomes law, more than 50,000 Minnesotans will have their licenses restored. | The bill would repeal the provision of Minnesota law that allows…

George Ochenski (2019-04-03). A Rare Win for Water Quality. counterpunch.org Montana's environment isn't getting much help from the legislature, but thanks to a lawsuit filed by the Upper Missouri Waterkeeper group, the state is going to have to re-do its 20 year variance on acceptable discharge levels for the nutrients/pollutants nitrogen and phosphorus. Make no mistake, this is a definite win for Montana's water quality More

Janine Jackson (2019-04-03). 'A Lot of That Science They Point to Is Science They Paid For' – CounterSpin interview with Carey Gillam on Monsanto lawsuit. fair.org Janine Jackson interviewed Carey Gillam about Hardeman v. Monsanto for the March 29, 2019, episode of CounterSpin. This is a lightly edited transcript. | Media…

Beyond Prisons (2019-04-03). Beyond Prisons: Rachel Herzing On Political Education. shadowproof.com Rachel Herzing joins Beyond Prisons for a conversation on political education, transformation, and more. | Rachel is the co-director of Center for Political Education, a resource for political organizations on the left, progressive social movements, the working class and people of color. She has been an organizer, activist, and advocate fighting the violence of policing and imprisonment for over 20 years. | She is a co-founder of Critical Resistance, a national grassroots organization dedicated to abolishing the prison industrial complex. She was also the director of research and training at Creative Intervention…

Kevin Gosztola (2019-04-03). Supreme Court Deems Torture Of Prisoners During Executions Permissible. shadowproof.com The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Missouri may use lethal injection against a prisoner with a medical condition that will cause him to choke to death on his blood.

splcenter (2019-04-03). DOJ: Conditions in Alabama prisons likely unconstitutional. splcenter.org The Alabama prison system is already fighting a years-long SPLC lawsuit over the neglect of prisoners with medical and mental health needs. Now, the U.S. Justice Department is threatening to sue the state because its prisons are beset by "rampant violence," "unchecked extortion," and "severe and widespread sexual abuse."

Adam Lee (2019-04-03). NAACP supported Violence Against Women Act reauthorization and strengthening coming to House floor tomorrow. naacp.org H.R. 1585, legislation to strengthen and support programs authorized by the hugely successful and NAACP-supported Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) is expected to be voted on by the full U.S. House tomorrow, 4-4-19. We need to pass it by a strong majority of Members to demonstrate our support for strengthening VAWA and protecting all survivors. …

teleSUR (2019-04-03). Women Sue Walt Disney Studio for Contributing to Gender Pay Gap. telesurenglish.net The Walt Disney Company is being sued by a pair of female employees who allege that the company subscribes to "widespread" gender discrimination and pays women significantly less than their male counterparts, the New York Times reported Tuesday. | RELATED: | Germany: Women Pay Less for Public Transport to Mark Berlin's 'Equal Pay Day' | Plaintiffs L…

WSWS (2019-04-03). Chelsea Manning files motion for immediate release pending appeal. wsws.org Manning was imprisoned by District Judge Claude Hilton on civil contempt charges for courageously refusing to testify before a secret grand jury preparing a frame-up case against WikiLeaks publisher Julian Assange.

ACLU (2019-04-02). America's Pretrial System Is Broken. Here's Our Vision to Fix It. aclu.org We envision a country where pretrial incarceration is all but eliminated. | Every year, millions of people are arrested, required to pay money bail they cannot afford, separated from their families and loved ones, or subjected to long periods of incarceration based on the mere accusation of a crime. This all occurs while people are presumed innocent under the law. Black and brown people, their loved ones, and those without the economic resources to thrive suffer the worst harms. | Yet while there is broad consensus that our money bail system is in dir…

Michael Edison Hayden (2019-04-02). White Supremacist Symbol Found Spray-Painted at the Site of Fire, Civil Rights Center Says. splcenter.org Someone painted a white supremacist symbol at the scene where fire ravaged a building tied to the civil rights movement, according to a statement from the Highlander Research and Education Center.

Democracy Now! (2019-04-02). As Trump Threatens Another Obamacare Repeal, Mother Warns That Losing ACA Would "Wipe Me Out" democracynow.org Just a week after President Trump's Justice Department supported a federal court ruling to wipe out the Affordable Care Act, Trump changed course in a series of tweets Monday and said he is willing to wait until after the 2020 presidential election for Congress to vote on a new healthcare plan. Trump has vowed to replace the ACA so that the Republican Party will be known as "the party of healthcare." We speak with Jamie Davis Smith, a mother of four, civil rights attorney and member of Little Lobbyists and Health Care Voter. Her daughter Claire has multiple severe disabilities. In a recent op-ed for The Washingto…

Kevin Gosztola (2019-04-02). Chelsea Manning's Attorneys Challenge Prolonged Solitary Confinement, Demand Her Release From Jail. shadowproof.com Chelsea Manning remains in conditions of prolonged solitary confinement, and her attorneys argue she should be released from jail pending her appeal. | "Ms. Manning's conditions of confinement must either be modified so as not to constitute punishment or she must be released," Manning's attorneys declared. "Since the jail cannot turn back the clock on punishment that has already occurred, her confinement in adseg in excess of 15 days already constitutes an incurable due process violation. She must therefore be released." | On March 8, Manning was detained at the William G. Truesdale Adult Detention Center in Alex…

ACLU (2019-04-02). The Government's System of Censoring Its Former Employees Is Unconstitutional. aclu.org Our lawsuit argues that the government's review process for writings by millions of former government employees violates the First Amendment. | Individuals don't lose their First Amendment rights by entering into government service. By now, that is black letter law. You wouldn't know this, though, from the system of lifelong censorship that the government imposes on former intelligence agency employees and military personnel. | Under this system, known as "prepublication review," millions of former public servants must submit their writing to the government for review prior to publication. And the government can…

Kymberly Smith and Nicky Jones (2019-04-02). Challenging South Carolina prison officials' lies. liberationnews.org On January 8, members of the Party For Socialism and Liberation secured a meeting with Bryan Sterling, the director of the South Carolina Department of Corrections, along with Nena Walker-Staley and Wayne McCabe. This meeting came as the result of the months of struggle before, during and after the National Prison Strike of 2018.

Austyn Ross (2019-04-02). Young Black Excellence at 50th Image Awards. naacp.org Over the weekend we celebrated 50 years of the NAACP Image Awards in Los Angeles, California. The Image Awards celebrates the accomplishments of people of color in television, music, literature and film. Black excellence radiated through the theater as the stars celebrated their achievements over the past year. There was huge presence of young talent in …

Vanessa Mbonu@naacpnet (2019-04-02). NAACP Condemns GOP Rule-Breaking to Pack the Courts. naacp.org April 2, 2019 Derrick Johnson, President and CEO of the NAACP, made the following statement in response to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's reckless move to shorten the Senate's consideration for district court nominees and certain executive nominees. "The NAACP strongly condemns Senate Majority Leader McConnell's approach for breaking the rules once again to harm our justice system. "This power grab should fail. Contrary …

Alex Emmons (2019-04-02). Widespread Censorship of Former Government Employees Violates the First Amendment, Lawsuit Says. theintercept.com For officials in the Trump administration, leaving the government and writing a book has become a reliable and lucrative exit strategy — so much so that it has created a small army of literary agents who specialize in snapping up the next tell-all memoir. For anyone with name recognition in D.C., it has perhaps never been easier to scoop up a sizable advance and make the best-seller list. | But for rank-and-file members of the intelligence community, the process is not so easy. Employees who formerly had access to sensitive in…

Vanessa Mbonu@naacpnet (2019-04-01). Civil Rights Leaders and Advocates to Hold Press Conference Ahead of First-Ever, Historic Equality Act Hearing. naacp.org FOR PLANNING PURPOSES ONLY: March 29, 2019 Will McCullough | HRC | Will.McCullough@hrc.org | 559-892-3038 Shin Inouye | Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights | Inouye@civilrights.org | 202-869-0398 LGBTQ advocates will meet on the Hill to discuss historic federal civil rights legislation that will protect millions of LGBTQ Americans and their families from discrimination WASHINGTON — …

STAFF (2019-04-01). WitchHunt: Controversy Over Anti-Semitism and the British Labour Party. therealnews.com Filmmaker Jon Pullman discusses his film WitchHunt, about the suppression of critical voices in the Labour Party and the influence of the Israeli lobby…

Zachery Bowersock (2019-04-01). Islamophobic attack on San Diego area mosque: interview with Yusef Miller of Islamic Society of North County. liberationnews.org "There is no such thing as a time, since the colonization of this country, when this country has been free of racism, or sexism, or any type of xenophobia."

Vanessa Mbonu@naacpnet (2019-04-01). New NAACP Report "Fossil Fueled Foolery": Group Highlights Top Ten Ways in Which Fossil Fuel Companies Fool the Public. naacp.org BALTIMORE (April 1, 2019) On April Fools' Day, the NAACP Environmental and Climate Justice Department is releasing, "Fossil Fueled Foolery: An Illustrated Primer on the Top 10 Manipulation Tactics of the Fossil Fuel Industry." Read the report here The report takes aim at the well-documented strategies and tactics employed by fossil fuel companies, lobbyists and advocates …

Vanessa Mbonu@naacpnet (2019-04-01). What to Know About the Census. naacp.org Today marks exactly one year out from the 2020 Census — the official counting of the United States population, a constitutional requirement occurring once every ten years. The decennial Census is a crucial facet of our Republic because its results serve as the basis for redistricting, the enforcement of voting rights laws, and allocating congressional …

Fight Back (2019-04-01). Hundreds march against NATO. fightbacknews.org Washington DC — Hundreds of people gathered in Lafayette Square, a park opposite the White House, March 30, to respond to the call to action against NATO, racism and war. The organizers also strongly emphasized the slogan "Hands off Venezuela" to protest the Trump administration and NATO's attempts to overthrow the democratically-elected government of Nicolás Maduro. | The park was full of banners, signs and flags held by protesters who loudly cheered and chanted throughout the program. The chants ranged from, "Hands off Venezuela" to "How do you spell racist? N-A-T-O!" | The speakers each masterfully high…

ACLU (2019-03-31). Rights for All Will Put Civil Rights and Civil Liberties Front and Center in the 2020 Presidential Race. aclu.org The ACLU will press the candidates for president to adopt bold policies that advance civil liberties in the run-up to the 2020 election. | Jose Ivan Parga is a member of a multi-status, Mexican-immigrant family in Minnesota. Even though he is a citizen, every day he witnesses the fear and uncertainty that his extended family has because of their immigration status. For decades they have worked, worshiped, and raised families in the state. Yet at any moment, immigration agents could — and have — detained a member of his family without warning or cause, despite their deep roots in the community. With no…

Vanessa Mbonu@naacpnet (2019-03-31). WINNERS OF 50th NAACP IMAGE AWARDS ANNOUNCED DURING LIVE BROADCAST ON TV ONE HOSTED BY ANTHONY ANDERSON. naacp.org Presenters Included Chris Rock, Viola Davis, Kamala Harris, Letitia Wright, Lupita Nyong'o, Kerry Washington, Cory Booker, Issa Rae, Lena Waithe, and more Beyoncé Announced as NAACP Entertainer of the Year LOS ANGELES (March 30, 2019) — The winners of the 50th NAACP Image Awards were announced tonight during the live broadcast on TV One from The Dolby Theatre in Hollywood. The live special was hosted by Anthony Anderson, who also doubled as nominee, and …

Adam Lee (2019-03-31). Violence Against Women Act key re-authorization vote due next week. naacp.org Congresswoman Karen Bass (CA) and Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick (PA) have introduced H.R. 1585, the bipartisan Violence Against Women Act Reauthorization Act of 2019. This legislation not only gives necessary funding increases to NAACP-supported Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) programs, but it also makes modest yet vital enhancements to existing law, based on input from VAWA service …

Bryan Wall (2019-03-30). Chelsea Manning's lawyers file an appeal against her detention. thecanary.co Chelsea's Manning's legal team have filed an appeal on her behalf. They've asked that the fourth circuit court order her release from detention. On … | Read more Chelsea Manning's lawyers file an appeal against her detention | By Bryan Wall

Vanessa Mbonu@naacpnet (2019-03-30). WINNERS OF THE 50th NAACP IMAGE AWARDS ANNOUNCED LAST NIGHT DURING NON-TELEVISED AWARDS DINNER AT THE BEVERLY HILTON. naacp.org HOSTS ADRIENNE HOUGHTON, LONI LOVE, AND TAMERA MOWRY HOUSLEY OF THE REAL AND PRESENTERS INCLUDING LYNN WHITFIELD, JOY REID, JAY ELLIS AND MORE CELEBRATED THE EVENING WITH WINNERS IN OVER 40 CATEGORIES FROM MUSIC AND TELEVISION TO LITERATURE AND FILM Awards Dinner Ended wtih a Special Performance by Ledisi LOS ANGELES, CA — March 30, 2019 — Winners in over forty categories …

Democracy Now! (2019-03-29). 43 Years: Meet the Man Held in Solitary Confinement Longer Than Any Prisoner in U.S. History. democracynow.org Albert Woodfox is a former political prisoner who was held in solitary confinement for 43 years until he won his freedom just over three years ago. Now he is traveling the world and joins us in studio to discuss his new memoir, "Solitary: Unbroken by Four Decades in Solitary Confinement. My Story of Transformation and Hope." ‚Ä®‚Ä®In it, he writes about his childhood and how his mother struggled to keep the family cared for, how as a teenager and young man he was in and out of jails and prisons, and how he became radicalized when he met members of the Black Panther Party and went on…

CounterSpin (2019-03-29). Carey Gillam on Monsanto Lawsuit. fair.org Media…

Democracy Now! (2019-03-29). Headlines for March 29, 2019. democracynow.org NY Sues Sackler Family, Purdue & Other Drug Cos. for Profiting from Opioid Crisis, Dems Press AG William Barr on 300+-Page Mueller Report, HUD Sues Facebook over Discriminatory Housing Ads, Puerto Rico Gov. Rosselló to Trump: "I'll Punch the Bully in the Mouth", Philippines: Rappler Founder Maria Ressa Arrested for 2nd Time, Venezuela: Gov't Bans Opposition Head Guaidó from Running for Office, Saudi Authorities Temporarily Release 3 Women Activists, Somalia: At Least 15 People Killed in al-Shabab Attack, Egyptian Activist Alaa Abd El-Fattah Freed After 5 Years in Prison, U.K.: Lawmakers to Vote on Key Text Two We…

pip.hinman (2019-03-29). 'Love Aotearoa, hate racism' rally draws thousands in Auckland. greenleft.org.au A week after the Christchurch mosque attacks, thousands of people mobilised in Auckland for the "Love Aotearoa, hate racism" rally on March 24. | A number of speakers addressed the rally, including Mike Treen, national director of Unite Union and Global Peace and Justice. | "We need to organise, we need to connect," Treen told the rally. "Not just on an individual level to challenge every racist that we come across … not just on an individual level to speak up when we need to speak up. We need to connect, we need to organise in our churches, in our unions, in our schools, in our universities, in every instituti…

ACLU (2019-03-28). When Taking a Walk at Night Was an Act of Civil Disobedience. aclu.org Oregon remembers Minoru Yasui, a civil rights icon who broke the law to protest the curfews put on Japanese Americans at the start of World War II. | Seventy-six years ago, Minoru "Min" Yasui sat in a cell at the Multnomah County Jail in Oregon when he read a newspaper article detailing how Walter Pierce, the state's former governor and U.S. congressman, called for Japanese immigrants in the United States to be sent to Japan. Ever the racist and xenophobe, Pierce wasn't done. He even suggested revoking birthright citizens…

ACLU (2019-03-28). A Mentally Ill Man in Solitary Cut Off a Body Part at the Broward County Jail. aclu.org Broward County Jail has a sordid history of damage and death due to its dangerously substandard mental health system and unsafe conditions. | Around midnight on Sept. 5, 2018, guards responded to prisoners banging on their cell doors inside a lockdown unit at Broward County Jail's main facility in downtown Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. They went to the solitary cell of J.I.* and made a gruesome discovery. | "I have a real medical emergency," J.I. told an officer. "I just cut my penis off and flushed it down the toilet. I have no need for it anymore." | J.I. had used a razor blade to cut himself. This grisly act of se…

Democracy Now! (2019-03-28). Fighting Racial Bias in an Age of Mass Murder: Prejudice from the Coffee Shop to Charlottesville. democracynow.org As avowed neo-Nazi James Alex Fields pleaded guilty Wednesday to 29 counts of hate crimes in a federal court for plowing his car into a crowd of anti-racist protesters in Charlottesville in August of 2017, we look at a new book that addresses the tragic event, as well as the rising number of race-based mass shootings, hate crimes and police shootings of unarmed men in the past several years. It also examines cases of discrimination against African Americans for simply sitting in coffee shops or trying to vacation in Airbnb-hosted homes. Professor Jennifer Eberhardt is the author of "Biased: Uncovering the Hidden…

Fight Back (2019-03-28). All charges dropped against Jussie Smollett, victim of Chicago police. fightbacknews.org Chicago, IL – Immediately after all charges were dropped Tuesday morning, March 26 against actor Jussie Smollett and the record of his arrest and prosecution expunged, Frank Chapman, Co-Chairperson of the Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression, addressed the media. Smollett is a star of the Fox Television series "Empire." | "This is another example of the CPD doing what they do," Chapman declared. "They have falsely accused people, tortured confessions and framed-up innocent people, killed people — there is no justice when it come to the CPD. The people of this city are tired of this. We n…

pip.hinman (2019-03-28). MUA rally in solidarity with Pakistani dockworkers. greenleft.org.au Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) members rallied outside the Pakistani Consulate on March 26 to demand the dropping of all charges against the Karachi Dockworkers Union president and another unionist who were arrested following a dispute at Hutchison Ports' Karachi International Container Terminal (KICT). | The arrests occurred as Karachi dockworkers were protesting about safety conditions on the site after a worker was run over by a vehicle on March 17. The union leaders were released on bail after 10 days in detention. | The KICT Labour Union has joined with the International Transport Workers' Federation…

James Kilgore (2019-03-27). Mass Incarceration Since 1492: Native American Encounters With Criminal Injustice. shadowproof.com Critical accounts of police abuse and mass incarceration overlook structural violence visited upon Native peoples for centuries, and how it relates to and differs from Black peoples' experiences.

ACLU (2019-03-27). The Department of Homeland Security's Attack on Asylum Seekers at the Border Continues. aclu.org The U.S. is systematically violating the rights of asylum seekers and turning them back into Mexico where they are often abused. | In a desperate attempt to escape immediate threats to their life, the Castro* family fled their home country of El Salvador, hoping to make it to the U.S.-Mexico border to seek refuge. What they found instead at the port of entry in Eagle Pass, Texas, were cruel U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers and no protection to be found. | After being physically pushed back into Mexico by CBP officers, the Castro family was told that they must get on a list in Mexico and wait. In…