Jewish Activists Hold Solidarity Shabbat Defending Angela Davis in Birmingham & Across U.S
Democracy Now! | democracynow.org | 2019-02-18
Jewish supporters of Angela Davis across the nation held solidarity Shabbat on Friday evening, the night before the civil rights icon had been expected to receive the Fred L. Shuttlesworth Human Rights Award from the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute. The institute rescinded the honor in January due to Davis' support of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement targeting the Israeli government and Israeli institutions. The institute later reversed this decision after international outcry, but Davis has yet to accept the award. Democracy Now! was in Birmingham on Friday and attended a Shabbat in support of An…
www.democracynow.org/2019/2/18/jewish_activists_hold_solidarity_shabbat_defending

Angela Davis Returns to Birmingham, Reflecting on Palestinian Rights & Fight for Freedom Everywhere
Democracy Now! | democracynow.org | 2019-02-18
Civil rights icon and scholar Angela Davis returned to her hometown of Birmingham, Alabama, over the weekend. She originally planned the visit to receive the Fred L. Shuttlesworth Human Rights Award from the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute, but the institute withdrew the award last month, soon after the Birmingham Holocaust Education Center sent a letter urging the board to reconsider honoring Davis due to her support of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement targeting the Israeli government and Israeli institutions. Facing swift and widespread outcry, the institute then reversed its decision and reinst…
www.democracynow.org/2019/2/18/angela_davis_returns_to_birmingham_reflecting

Birmingham Civil Rights Group Reoffers Award to Angela Davis–But She Says Community Should Decide
Democracy Now! | democracynow.org | 2019-02-18
The Birmingham Civil Rights Institute sparked international outrage in January when it rescinded the Fred L. Shuttlesworth award for civil rights icon Angela Davis, soon after the Birmingham Holocaust Education Center sent a letter urging the board to reconsider honoring her due to her support of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement. Facing swift and widespread outcry, the institute then reversed its decision and reinstated the award, but Davis has yet to accept it. Democracy Now! spoke with the president and CEO of the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute, Andrea Taylor, on Saturday, before an alternate e…
www.democracynow.org/2019/2/18/birmingham_civil_rights_group_reoffers_award

Protests Break Out in Brazil After Young Black Man Killed
teleSUR | telesurenglish.net | 2019-02-18
Hundreds protested Sunday in cities across Brazil in what commentators are calling Brazil's Black Lives Matter moment, sparked by the death of a young Black man as a result of restraining choke hold used by a supermarket security guard. | RELATED | Released Emails Show NYPD Spied on Black Lives Matter | Pedro Gonzaga, 19, a young Black Brazilian man was put into a chokehold when confronted by two security guards at an Extra supermarket in the affluent neighborhood of Barra da Tijuca in…
telesurenglish.net/news/He-Cant-Breathe-Protests-Break-Out-in-Brazil-After-Young-Black-Man-Killed-20190218-0006.html

Indigenous Activists In Mexico Freed After Wrongful Conviction
teleSUR | telesurenglish.net | 2019-02-18
Three Indigenous activists from Mexico were set free over the weekend after being wrongly imprisoned for 13 years. | RELATED: | Thousands Strike At Mexican Factories, 'It's Become a Social Movement' | Lorenzo Sanchez, Dominga Gonzalez and Marco Antonio Perez from Tenango del Valle were freed Sunday night after spending 11 years in jail for the murder of…
telesurenglish.net/news/Indigenous-Activists-In-Mexico-Freed-After-Wrongful-Conviction-20190218-0013.html

Marches Take Place Across US Against Trump's 'Fake Emergency'
teleSUR | telesurenglish.net | 2019-02-18
Activists are protesting in Washington and various U.S. cities Monday to demonstrate against President Donald Trump's declared state emergency that he's using in order to obtain some US$8 billion to fund 376 km of his proposed fortified wall the White House wants to see built between Mexico and the United States. | RELATED: | Trump Declares National Emergency to Fund His 'Racist' Wall | The organizers of the D.C. demonstrations, non-profit organization MoveOn.org, are also helping t…
telesurenglish.net/news/Marches-Take-Place-Across-US-Against-Trumps-Fake-Emergency-20190218-0010.html

Minnesotans stand up to racists to defend Representative Omar
Fight Back | fightbacknews.org | 2019-02-18
Minneapolis, MN – A group calling itself Patriots United put out a racist, anti-Muslim call for Minnesotans to come out on February 17 to protest U.S. Representative Ilhan Omar at her office near Target Field in Minneapolis. Jewish Voice for Peace-Twin Cities called for a counter-protest and over 80 people came out strong with signs like "Jews for Ilhan" and "Minnesotans against Islamophobia" against Patriots United's contingent of six people, holding three signs and two American flags. | Newly elected Representative Omar, of Minnesota's 5th Congressional District, which includes Minneapolis, started a national c…
fightbacknews.org/2019/2/17/minnesotans-stand-racists-defend-representative-omar

Minneapolis erupts in protest over Trump's 'National Emergency' declaration
Fight Back | fightbacknews.org | 2019-02-18
Minneapolis, MN — Hundreds of people poured into the streets on Saturday, February 16, to demonstrate against the latest escalation of President Trump's anti-immigrant policies. | The day before, Trump had declared a so-called "National Emergency Concerning the Southern Border of the United States." Under the National Emergencies Act, the declaration could grant Trump new executive powers to allocate billions of dollars in funding toward further militarizing the U.S.-Mexico border. Trump claimed these measures will allow him to fulfill the racist "build the wall" narrative that he has used to mobilize his w…
fightbacknews.org/2019/2/18/minneapolis-erupts-protest-over-trump-s-national-emergency-declaration

States Prepare Legal Challenge to Trump's Emergency Declaration
Shared by Anton Woronczuk | truthout.org | 2019-02-18
At least five states are preparing a legal challenge to President Donald Trump's national emergency declaration, which he made on Friday to secure funding for a border wall after congressional Democrats refused to approve $5.7 billion in funds for the project. | California Attorney General Xavier Becerra appeared on ABC's "This Week" on Sunday to say a lawsuit he's preparing with officials in Minnesota, Hawaii, New Mexico, and Oregon will be filed "definitely and imminently." | "We knew something like…
truthout.org/articles/states-prepare-legal-challenge-to-trumps-emergency-declaration/

25 Years Jail-time for Protecting the Planet?
Frida Berrigan | thenation.com | 2019-02-18
25 Years Jail-time for Protecting the Planet?
thenation.com/article/nuclear-activism-kings-bay-plowshares/

Racial Equity Groups Mobilize In Support of Voting Rights Act Hearings
Aba Blankson | naacp.org | 2019-02-18
Atlanta Event 2nd in Series of National Hearings to Restore Voting Rights ATLANTA (February 18, 2019) — On Tuesday, February 19, all eyes will be on Georgia when the Subcommittee on Elections of the Committee on House Administration holds its "Field Hearing on Voting Rights and Election Administration in Georgia." Scheduled for 9: 30 AM EST […] | The post Racial Equity Groups Mobilize In Support of Voting Rights Act Hearings appeared first on NAACP.
naacp.org/latest/racial-equity-groups-mobilize-support-voting-rights-act-hearings/

Saudi Arabia: Clarify Status of 'Corruption' Detainees
Human Rights Watch | hrw.org | 2019-02-18
(Beirut) — Saudi Arabia announced an end to its high-profile anti-corruption campaign on January 31, 2019, but some of those rounded up remain in detention without a clear legal basis, Human Rights Watch said today. Saudi Arabia carried out the mass arrests, including of princes, current and former government officials, and prominent businessmen, on November 4, 2017, holding some for months at Riyadh's five-star Ritz Carlton Hotel and forcing them to turn over assets in exchange for their freedom outside of any legal process. | Those who re…
hrw.org/news/2019/02/18/saudi-arabia-clarify-status-corruption-detainees

The Cost of Civil Rights Violations in Vallejo
Geoffrey W. King | indybay.org | 2019-02-18
On February 9, the police in my hometown shot Willie McCoy to death in a Taco Bell drive-through. I hadn't planned to write that when I began this post, which grew out of a dialogue with a neighbor frustrated by the crumbling schools, neglected parks, and casual brutality of this beautiful city.
indybay.org/newsitems/2019/02/17/18821223.php

11yo arrested after refusing to stand for Pledge of Allegiance to 'racist' flag in Florida
RT | rt.com | 2019-02-18
An 11-year-old boy was arrested in Florida after his refusal to stand for the Pledge of Allegiance escalated into an argument with his teacher, who called in security because she "did not want to continue dealing with him." | …
rt.com/usa/451722-pledge-allegiance-student-arrested/

Appeals Court Rejects Big Oil's Lawsuit Against Youth Groups, LA
Dan Bacher | indybay.org | 2019-02-18
"For decades the oil industry has put our health and safety in jeopardy," said Nalleli Cobo, an activist with the South Central Youth Leadership Coalition. "Now we the youth are fighting back, and we're winning. It's time for justice and it's time to put people's health over profit."
indybay.org/newsitems/2019/02/18/18821234.php

How the Federal Government Undermines Prison Education
Jordan Smith | theintercept.com | 2019-02-18
Aaron Kinzel grew up poor in Toledo, Ohio, and from an early age, he was pulled into a life of crime. He didn't know his father, and his mother's partners encouraged him to break into houses, sell drugs, and engage in various forms of violence. "I just grew up around a lot of bullshit," he says. "I was really groomed to be a professional criminal." | He was a teenager on probation in 1997 when he left the Midwest on an ill-fated road trip to Maine with his girlfriend. He was carrying drugs and a loaded gun when he was pulled over by a state trooper. With the officer standing outside his car window, Kinzel panicke…
theintercept.com/2019/02/18/pell-grants-for-prisoners-education-behind-bars/

Politicians jump ship as Jussie Smollett hate hoax sinks amid revelations
RT | rt.com | 2019-02-18
As the narrative of a 'racist, homophobic attack' on actor Jussie Smollett in Chicago continues to collapse, politicians and celebrities who fueled the outrage over the incident are quietly backing away and hoping no one notices. | …
rt.com/usa/451774-jussie-smollett-hoax-politicians/

Roseanne Barr's Racism is Welcome in Israel
Middle East Monitor | theantimedia.com | 2019-02-18
(MEMO Op-ed) — The disgraced American actor-comedian Roseanne Barr was welcomed warmly in Israel last month. No surprise in that, you may think, but it now appears that this was precisely because of her racism. Once the toast of the liberal Hollywood establishment, Barr has over the past few years re-modelled herself as a rabid supporter of US …
theantimedia.com/roseanne-barr-israel/

Border Patrol Detained Me for Speaking Spanish in Montana. Then My Town Turned Against Me
Ana Suda | commondreams.org | 2019-02-17
"After Mimi and I told the officer that we were born in the U.S., he demanded that we show identification. I didn't feel like I could say no since he was in uniform and armed." (Photo: ACLU) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/screen_shot_2019-02-17_at_1.07.32_pm.jpg…
commondreams.org/views/2019/02/17/border-patrol-detained-me-speaking-spanish-montana-then-my-town-turned-against-me?cd-origin=rss

NAACP Restructures to Advance Advocacy Strategy
Austyn Ross | naacp.org | 2019-02-16
New York (February 16, 2019)–The nation's most prominent civil rights organization announced today during its annual national board meeting in New York, a strategic restructuring which better positions the organization to lead the critical policy advocacy and social justice work needed to ensure the rights of all people. The group also signed memoranda of understanding […] | The post NAACP Restructures to Advance Advocacy Strategy appeared first on NAACP.
naacp.org/latest/naacp-restructures-advance-advocacy-strategy/

Response underway to Trump's National Emergency to fund wall
Fight Back | fightbacknews.org | 2019-02-16
Washington, D.C. — Progressive organizations around the country are taking a stand against Trump's declaration of a State of Emergency, which would divert federal funds towards building a wall on the border with Mexico. | Many groups have signed on to a call initiated by the Legalization for All Network, that read in part, "To get the funding for his racist wall, Trump is taking it a step further by threatening to declare a state of emergency. With already thousands of U.S. troops mobilized to the border, a State of Emergency would heighten the tension of armed troops and border agents who already unleashed…
fightbacknews.org/2019/2/16/response-underway-trump-s-national-emergency-fund-wall

Mueller recommends 19+ year sentence for Manafort
RT | rt.com | 2019-02-16
Special Counsel Robert Mueller's office has requested that former Trump campaign chair Paul Manafort get 19 years in prison after the would-be cooperator was found to be lying to the FBI, special counsel and a grand jury. | …
rt.com/usa/451602-mueller-sentencing-manafort-lying/

Locked Inside a Freezing Federal Jail, They United to Protest Their Conditions — Only to Face Reprisals
Emma Whitford | theintercept.com | 2019-02-16
In some units where incarcerated people protested, the toilets were shut off — leaving them sleeping next to their own feces. | The post Locked Inside a Freezing Federal Jail, They United to Protest Their Conditions — Only to Face Reprisals appeared first on The Intercept.
theintercept.com/2019/02/16/metropolitan-detention-center-mdc-brooklyn-jail/

Chicago PD releases 'persons of interest' in shady Jussie Smollett attack case
RT | rt.com | 2019-02-16
Fueling suspicions that the 'racist, homophobic' attack on actor Jussie Smollett was a hoax, Chicago police have released the two Nigerians arrested as "persons of interest" without charges, claiming they have more work to do. | …
rt.com/usa/451603-police-release-suspects-jussie-smollett/

Black Civil Rights Advocate Takes Control of Neo-Nazi Hate Group the National Socialist Movement
splcenter | splcenter.org | 2019-02-15
The antisemitic and neo-Nazi group the National Socialist Movement (NSM) is now under the control of a black civil rights advocate from California who once dissolved a notorious Ku Klux Klan chapter in Mississippi.
splcenter.org/hatewatch/2019/02/15/black-civil-rights-advocate-takes-control-neo-nazi-hate-group-national-socialist-movement

There Is No 'National Emergency' at the Border, and Trump's Declaration Is Illegal
ACLU | aclu.org | 2019-02-15
President Donald Trump admits he's making his move because he didn't get his way with Congress, and in the process, he hurts American communities. | After more than a month of threats, a government shutdown, and bipartisan action by Congress, President Trump has finally declared a national emergency to spend billions of taxpayer dollars on his border wall obsession. In response, the ACLU will file a lawsuit early next week challenging this blatantly illegal executive action. | Let's get something straight upfront: There is no em…
aclu.org/blog/executive-branch/there-no-national-emergency-border-and-trumps-declaration-illegal

Asylum Seekers Are Being Imprisoned in an Abandoned Factory in Mexico Under Trump Admin Policy
Democracy Now! | democracynow.org | 2019-02-15
As Trump plans to declare a national emergency, we look at what some have called the real humanitarian crisis at the border. Riot police in northern Mexico blocked hundreds of desperate Central American migrants Wednesday as they tried to escape an abandoned factory complex where they've been imprisoned while waiting for the U.S. to process their asylum claims. More than 1,700 migrants have been held in the maquiladora in the Mexican border town of Piedras Negras since February 5, after they arrived in a caravan of people seeking asylum in the U.S. The vast majority have remained prisoners at the site, after the…
www.democracynow.org/2019/2/15/asylum_seekers_are_being_imprisoned_in

Ibram X. Kendi on Surviving Cancer & His Anti-Racist Reading List for Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam
Democracy Now! | democracynow.org | 2019-02-15
As we celebrate the remarkable life and legacy of Frederick Douglass on his 201st birthday, we are joined by Ibram X. Kendi, a professor of history and international relations and founding director of the Antiracist Research and Policy Center at American University. Kendi spoke Thursday night at the Library of Congress at an event honoring Frederick Douglass. He is the National Book Award-winning author of "Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America" and a contributing editor at The Atlantic.
www.democracynow.org/2019/2/15/ibram_x_kendi_on_frederick_douglass

Trump judges blow big hole in age discrimination law
Mark Gruenberg | peoplesworld.org | 2019-02-15
CHICAGO — Thanks to a Trump-appointed judge it's now OK to discriminate against workers on the basis of age when they are applying for a job. According to the judge it's only workers on the job who are protected by law against age discrimination. A top union lawyer lays the blame for the ruling at …
peoplesworld.org/article/trump-judges-blow-big-hole-in-age-discrimination-law/

Egypt: End the cruel denial of family visits to detainees
amnesty | amnesty.org | 2019-02-15
Egyptian authorities are flagrantly violating international law by denying family visits to scores of detainees, Amnesty International said today. The organization has examined an official document which confirms there is an open-ended ban on family visits in a number of sections at two major prison complexes in Cairo and Alexandria. | Amnesty International has also recorded at least 61 cases of people who were prevented from receiving family visits for protracted periods — in some cases for up to two years – at Tora prison in Cairo and Borg al-Arab in Alexandria. The total number of detainees barred from r…
amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2019/02/egypt-end-the-cruel-denial-of-family-visits-to-detainees/

Egypt: Further Information: Egypt: Pre-Trial Detention For Human Rights Defender: Ezzat Ghoniem and Azzoz Mahgoub
amnesty | amnesty.org | 2019-02-15
On 9 February, a judge ordered the pre-trial detention of human rights defender and lawyer Ezzat Ghoniem for 45 days pending investigation. Ezzat Ghoniem and Azzoz Mahgoub were detained on March 1, 2018. The court ordered their release on probation on 4 September 2018, provided they report to a police station twice a week. They were never released, and on September 14 they were forcibly disappeared by the authorities. On 20 October 2018, an arrest warrant was issued against them for not respecting the probational terms — which they could not apply as being forcibly disappeared. Ezzat Ghoniem remained forcib…
amnesty.org/en/documents/mde12/9847/2019/en/

Qatar: Promises yet to be fulfilled: Amnesty International submission for the UN Universal Periodic Review, 33rd session of the UPR Working Group, May 2019
amnesty | amnesty.org | 2019-02-15
While the partial abolition of the exit permit and the establishment of the fast-track labour courts are positive steps towards reforming the current labour system, domestic workers remain excluded from the new reforms and the law passed to protect their rights falls short of international standards. The government's promise to fully reform the kafala sponsorship system is yet to be delivered. Further, women continue to face discrimination and are still unable to pass on their nationality to their children despite a change in the law.
amnesty.org/en/documents/mde22/9783/2019/en/

Trump Administration Is Illegally Forcing Asylum Seekers Out of the United States
ACLU | aclu.org | 2019-02-14
The administration is once again breaking the law in order to shut the door on immigrants. | Last September, Bianca* was forced to flee Honduras because her partner's father threatened to kill her for being a lesbian. Bianca could not go to the police in Honduras because they do not protect LGBTQ people from harm. So she left home to save her life. | After traveling through Guatemala and Mexico, Bianca reached Tijuana, where she got in line to enter the United States through the border station and ask for asylum.
aclu.org/blog/immigrants-rights/trump-administration-illegally-forcing-asylum-seekers-out-united-states

U.S. Border Patrol Detained U.S. Citizens for Speaking Spanish in Montana
ACLU | aclu.org | 2019-02-14
Illegal arrests and seizures reflect an out-of-control agency emboldened by Trump's anti-immigrant agenda. | For Ana Suda and Martha "Mimi" Hernandez, May 16, 2018, began like any other in Havre, Montana: work, school, and a trip to the gym once their kids were in bed. They stopped by Town Pump — a local convenience store — to pick up groceries. While in line, the friends were chatting in Spanish, just two people having an ordinary conversation. But the Customs and Border Protection agent standing in line behind them did not see it that way. | He demanded to know where Ana and Mimi were born. After t…
aclu.org/blog/immigrants-rights/ice-and-border-patrol-abuses/us-border-patrol-detained-us-citizens-speaking

Border Patrol Detained Me for Speaking Spanish in Montana. Then My Town Turned Against Me
ACLU | aclu.org | 2019-02-14
Customs and Border Protection violated our rights as U.S. citizens just for speaking Spanish in a grocery store. | I moved to Havre, Montana — near the U.S.-Canada border — in 2014 with my husband and our two young children. Home to around 10,000 people, I've always found Havre to be a friendly town, one where I felt good about raising my kids. But that all changed last May when my friend and I were illegally targeted and detained by a Customs and Border Protection agent, just for speaking Spanish to each other in a convenience store. | I didn't think it was possible for one incident to change our liv…
aclu.org/blog/immigrants-rights/ice-and-border-patrol-abuses/border-patrol-detained-me-speaking-spanish

New Hampshire Is Trying to Stop College Students From Registering to Vote
ACLU | aclu.org | 2019-02-14
Voting is my right. I shouldn't have to jump through hoops to exercise it. | Growing up, my parents taught me that voting is not only a right, but a privilege. They voted in every local, midterm, and presidential election, and every time they did so they were sure to show me their "I voted" sticker. | As I grew older, they discussed propositions or candidates with me, asking me what I thought and even providing me with sample ballots. My dad and I would talk about why our opinions were the same or different, and what information we were basing those votes on. When 2016 rolled around, I still wasn't old enough to…
aclu.org/blog/voting-rights/fighting-voter-suppression/new-hampshire-trying-stop-college-students-registering

Rapper, 21 Savage, released after being held by ICE
Michelle Zacarias | peoplesworld.org | 2019-02-14
After spending more than a week in immigration customs detention, rapper 21 Savage was released on bail Wednesday. The 26-year-old rapper was arrested Feb. 3 by immigration officials after allegedly overstaying his visa. The musician, whose real name is Sha Yaa Bin Abraham-Joseph, was brought to the United States at the age of seven and …
peoplesworld.org/article/rapper-21-savage-released-after-being-held-by-ice/

NAACP Youth and College Division hosts State of the Union: For the Counter Culture
Austyn Ross | naacp.org | 2019-02-14
On Tuesday, February 12, 2019, our Youth and College Division teamed up with Baller Alert to put on their own State of the Union: For the Counter Culture. Our Youth and College Director, Tiffany Dena Loftin served as moderator. The panelists were Kendrick Sampson, Philip Agnew, and Blair Imani, all young black people between the […] | The post NAACP Youth and College Division hosts State of the Union: For the Counter Culture appeared first on NAACP.
naacp.org/latest/naacp-youth-college-division-hosts-state-union-counter-culture/

Is the refugee rights movement at a turning point?
Fred_F | greenleft.org.au | 2019-02-14
Children are off Nauru, Hakeem is back in Australia and parliament has passed the medical evacuation bill. For what feels like the first time in forever, the refugee rights movement is making gains. | True, these gains are small and limited — but they are gains, nonetheless. | The passing of the Home Affairs Legislation Amendment (Miscellaneous Measures) Bill 2018, better known as the medivac bill, was met with celebrations on Manus Island and Nauru as well as within the refugee rights movement. | People have died because of the federal government's refusal to evacuate refugees from offshore detention centr…
greenleft.org.au/content/medivac-bill-passed-hakeem-saved-kids-nauru-refugee-rights-movement-turning-point

Thailand: New lawsuits brought by Thammakaset Company Limited against human rights defenders
amnesty | amnesty.org | 2019-02-14
The 89 undersigned organizations write to express our deep concern regarding recent spurious complaints brought by Thammakaset Company Limited against several human rights defenders in Thailand. We respectfully urge the Thai government to take immediate action to oppose and seek the dismissal of cases filed by Thammakaset that run counter to your government's proclaimed policy to support business and human rights as well as Thailand's interests, legal obligations, and international human rights law commitments.
amnesty.org/en/documents/asa39/9867/2019/en/

Egypt: Set Independent Torture Inquiry
Human Rights Watch | hrw.org | 2019-02-14
Egyptian policemen secure Egypt's national police academy. | © 2015 AP Photo/Amr Nabil | (Beirut) — The Egyptian authorities' failure to end or impartially investigate torture and mistreatment in detention facilities reinforces an urgent need for an independent international inquiry, Human Rights Watch said today. As a party to the United Nations Convention Against Torture, Egypt should also allow the United Nations special rapporteur on torture an…
hrw.org/news/2019/02/14/egypt-set-independent-torture-inquiry

New Hampshire Law Illegally Targets Young Voters Ahead of 2020 Primary
ACLU | aclu.org | 2019-02-13
The state wants students to face criminal penalties if they don't pay to change their out-of-state licenses after voting. | The New Hampshire 2020 primary is still almost a year away, but state legislators are already working to disenfranchise voters. HB 1264, a law set to go into effect in July 2019, will change the definition of what it means to be a "resident" of New Hampshire, forcing people with out-of-state driver's licenses or car registrations to switch to the state versions if they register to vote. | While it may sound like an archaic DMV issue, it's actually a burden on the right to vote. In New Hamps…
aclu.org/blog/voting-rights/fighting-voter-suppression/new-hampshire-law-illegally-targets-young-voters-ahead

Betsy DeVos Is Pushing a Terrible Double Standard on College Campuses
ACLU | aclu.org | 2019-02-13
The education secretary's proposed rules on treatment of sexual harassment and assault claims in school settings discriminate on the basis of sex. | This piece originally ran at The Washington Post. | In her proposed rules governing the treatment of sexual harassment and assault claims on college campuses and K-12 schools, Edu…
aclu.org/blog/womens-rights/womens-rights-education/betsy-devos-pushing-terrible-double-standard-college

Background checks on gun sales
Adam Lee | naacp.org | 2019-02-13
Legislation to bar direct firearms sales between unlicensed people, including at gun shows or online, without a background check has been introduced in the US House and Senate and is moving in the House. Firearms could be sold only by licensed dealers, manufacturers, or importers, who are required to conduct comprehensive background checks. Currently, as many […] | The post Background checks on gun sales appeared first on NAACP.
naacp.org/latest/background-checks-gun-sales/

Peru: Supreme Court confirms annulment of Fujimori's pardon and supports victims' rights
amnesty | amnesty.org | 2019-02-13
The Special Criminal Chamber of the Supreme Court of Justice has confirmed an earlier ruling that the pardon granted to former President Alberto Fujimori on 24 December 2017 has no legal effect. In an initial response to the decision, Erika Guevara-Rosas, Americas Director at Amnesty International, said: | "This decision represents the closure that victims of the crimes against humanity and serious human rights violations — crimes for which former President Fujimori was sentenced to 25 years in prison — have been waiting for. It comes after wounds were unnecessarily reopened by the decision to grant F…
amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2019/02/peru-al-confirmar-la-nulidad-del-indulto-a-fujimori-la-corte-suprema-respalda-los-derechos-de-las-victimas/

Egypt steps up executions as six people put to death within two weeks
amnesty | amnesty.org | 2019-02-13
Egyptian authorities today hanged three prisoners convicted of killing a police officer during clashes that erupted in the weeks following the deadly Rabaa massacre. The executions brought the total number of executions in Egypt to six within a span of two weeks. | Responding to the news, Amnesty International's North Africa Campaigns Director Najia Bounaim said: | "These executions, which come just days after three other people were put to death in separate cases, mark an alarming escalation in executions so far this year. | "The death pe…
amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2019/02/egypt-steps-up-executions-as-six-people-put-to-death-within-two-weeks/

Immigrant Rights Groups Trash Border Deal: "Immigrant Families Will Pay the Price"
Aída Chávez | theintercept.com | 2019-02-13
Immigrant rights groups are reacting angrily to the border deal to keep the government open, which President Donald Trump has said that he will sign into law, averting a shutdown. The bill, which has not yet officially been drafted, gives Trump more than $1 billion in funding for new barriers on the southern border, and funds a potential increase in immigrant detention capacity. | The barriers that the bill would fund are a rhetorical downgrade from Trump's signature policy of erecting a border wall, which House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., has repeatedly rejected to fund. Funding for immigration detention, wh…
theintercept.com/2019/02/13/border-deal-immigration-detention-trump/

'Policing For Profit' Is Alive and Well in South Carolina
ACLU | aclu.org | 2019-02-12
An investigative series finds that police have amassed millions through civil asset forfeiture, mostly affecting the poor and people of color. | In Conway, South Carolina, a 72-year-old widow hides inside, her curtains drawn, fearing that local law enforcement will attempt to take away her home for a third time. Ella Bromell has never been convicted of a crime. So how has her house been at risk of seizure for over a decade? | The answer is simple, but the process is obscure, discriminatory, and all-too commonplace: civil asset forfeiture. | Civil asset forfeiture grants law enforcement officers the authority to t…
aclu.org/blog/criminal-law-reform/reforming-police-practices/policing-profit-alive-and-well-south-carolina

In Venezuela, White Supremacy Is a Key Driver of the Coup
Greg Palast — Truthout | venezuelanalysis.com | 2019-02-12
Greg Palast examines the relationship between racism and right-wing politics in the Latin American nation.
venezuelanalysis.com/analysis/14318

SPLC responds to Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey's prison construction plan
splcenter | splcenter.org | 2019-02-12
Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey announced today that her administration will seek bids for building three regional prisons for men, at an estimated cost of nearly $1 billion — part of a larger effort to address the state's dangerous and overcrowded prison system.
splcenter.org/news/2019/02/12/splc-responds-alabama-gov-kay-ivey%25E2%2580%2599s-prison-construction-plan