2020-05-28: News Headlines

Juan Cole (2020-05-28). Top 6 Reasons Authorities Are Cracking Down Hard on Black Protesters While Treating White Supremacist Reopeners With Kid Gloves. commondreams.org The establishment, of systematic racism, in everything from school resegregation to residential segregation to employment discrimination, needs to be addressed through a second generation of civil rights legislation. (Photo: Wolfram Kastl/Getty Images) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/blmberlin.jpg

Kevin Zeese (2020-05-28). Baton Rouge Inmates Sue For Release Due To COVID-19, Potential 'Death Sentence'. popularresistance.org The inmates are seeking class-action status in an attempt to protect other current and future inmates. Their lawsuit also seeks to have a federal judge order East Baton Rouge to improve jail conditions and inmate treatment, including providing sufficient cleaning supplies and requiring staff to wear personal protective equipment. At least 70 inmates have tested positive and 48 of them have recovered, according to the sheriff's office. Several civil rights attorneys and organizations teamed up on the lawsuit, including the Advancement Project and the Center for Constitutional Rights. David Utter, an attorney on th…

Peoples Dispatch (2020-05-28). Hirak protests continue across Algeria in solidarity with political prisoners. peoplesdispatch.org Algeria witnessed a fresh round of anti-government protests on May 25, Monday in solidarity with political prisoners associated with the Hirak movement, who are being held in jails on frivolous and motivated charges. Rallies and demonstrations were conducted in cities across Algeria, coinciding with the Eid-ul-Fitr celebrations. A ban on public demonstrations and other restrictions are in force in the country due to the COVID-19 pandemic. | One of the main sites of Monday's protest was Kherrata city in Bejaia province, east of Algerian capital Algiers. The city holds particular significance as it is where the Hir…

Monica Moorehead (2020-05-27). Want justice for George Floyd? Jail & convict killer cops! — a WW commentary. workers.org Protesters at the Minneapolis police department before being assaulted by cops, May 26. May 27 — It was déjà vu, all over again. Another Black man captured on videotape, first, being tortured and, then, being choked to death by a white police officer. It was almost six years ago when, . . . |

Betsey Piette (2020-05-27). International movement demands: 'Justice for Major Tillery! workers.org On May 17, word spread via social media that Major Tillery, a political prisoner at Pennsylvania's State Correctional Institution Chester, was sick with chills, a sore throat and a fever for several days. On hearing of Tillery's illness and knowing that COVID-19 was running rampant in U.S. prisons, the international . . . |

Staff (2020-05-27). Sanitation Workers Striking For PPE And Pay Replaced By Prison Labor. therealnews.com Dr. Talitha LeFlouria talks with TRNN about the New Orleans sanitation strike where workers were fired and replaced by prison labor from nearby Livingston Parish, and the historical roots of the exploitation of prison labor.

Alexia Ramirez (2020-05-27). ICE Records Confirm that Immigration Enforcement Agencies are Using Invasive Cell Phone Surveillance Devices. aclu.org For years, immigration enforcement agencies have been using invasive cell phone surveillance technology known as Stingrays in near-total secrecy. To find out more, the ACLU and New York Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit under the Freedom of Information Act, and now we've forced the agencies to turn over documents revealing new details about the agencies' practices. Today, we are publishing

Julia Kaye (2020-05-27). The FDA is Making Needless COVID-19 Risks a Condition of Abortion and Miscarriage Care. We're Suing. aclu.org The COVID-19 pandemic has swept the globe and upended normal life. In the four months since the first U.S. case was reported, more than 1.5 million people have been infected and 100,000 people have died in the United States. To mitigate risk, public health authorities tell us to get our

commondreams (2020-05-27). Coalition Files Lawsuit to Protect Federal Clean Car Rules. commondreams.org ______________________________…

commondreams (2020-05-27). Science Group Joins Lawsuit to Reverse Vehicle Standards Rollback. commondreams.org ______________________________…

commondreams (2020-05-27). New Lawsuit Challenges FDA Restriction That Imposes Life-Threatening Risks on Patients Seeking Abortion and Miscarriage Care. commondreams.org ______________________________…

Ken Ward Jr. and Alex Mierjeski (2020-05-27). The billionaire governor who's been sued dozens of times for millions in unpaid bills. nationofchange.org Gov. Jim Justice is West Virginia's richest man. Over the last three decades, lawsuits over unpaid bills have cost his constellation of companies more than $128 million in judgments and settlements.

commondreams (2020-05-27). Lawsuit Targets Trump Administration Push to Gut Car Pollution Standards. commondreams.org ______________________________…

Nkechi Taifa (2020-05-26). Reparations — Has the Time Finally Come? aclu.org During a lull one afternoon when I was a high school student selling Black Panther Party newspapers on the streets of downtown Washington, D.C., in 1971, I sat down on the curb and opened the tabloid to the 10-point program, ""We believe that this racist government has robbed us and now we are demanding the overdue debt of forty acres and two mules … promised 100 years ago as restitution for slave labor…

Staff (2020-05-26). Grassroots Organizers Continue To Move The Needle For Change Despite Little Fanfare. therealnews.com Activists like Cameron Miles, Vonya Quarles, Erica Smith, and Amber Rose-Howard discuss organizing tactics that work in the continued fight for social justice and prison abolition.

IMEMC & Agencies (2020-05-26). Israeli Military Abducts Two Palestinians from Tulkarem. imemc.org Israeli military reportedly abducted, on Tuesday, two Palestinian young men from the northern occupied West Bank city of Tulkarem. Head of the Palestinian Prisoners' Society in the city, Ibrahim Alnemr, confirmed earlier today, that Israeli troops placed a mobile roadblock at the entrance of the city of Qalqilia, near Tulkarem …

Tyler Durden (2020-02-04). Biden Threatens Lawsuit to Halt Release of Real Iowa Caucus Results. theantimedia.com American democracy—ain't it grand?>

Jessica Corbett, staff writer (2020-05-28). ACLU Sues Tech Firm to Halt 'Unlawful, Privacy-Destroying' Facial Recognition Activities. commondreams.org The ACLU and law firm Edelson PC on Thursday filed a lawsuit in Illinois state court to end the "unlawful, privacy-destroying surveillance activities" of Clearview AI, a U.S.-based facial recognition technology startup that has contracted with hundreds of law enforcement agencies across the country. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/gettyimages-1080200068_0.png

Andrea Germanos, staff writer (2020-05-27). ACLU Sues FDA Over Abortion Care Restrictions in Midst of Covid-19 Crisis. commondreams.org The federal government's decision "results in discrimination in access and threatens to harm patients and their clinicians during a time of national crisis." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/fda-rule-inperson-abortion-lawsuit.jpg

Staff (2020-05-28). Headlines for May 28, 2020. democracynow.org U.S. Coronavirus Death Toll Tops 100,000, Minneapolis Erupts in Flames as Protesters Rage Against Police Killing of George Floyd, China Tightens Grip on Hong Kong with New National Security Law, House of Representatives Holds First-Ever Remote Vote Amid Coronavirus Pandemic, Protesters Surround Sing Sing Prison Demanding Release of Prisoners at Risk of COVID-19, Researchers: 6 Feet of Social Distancing Might Not Be Enough to Stop Coronavirus Spread, Doctors Without Borders Warns of Spike in Coronavirus Cases Among Florida Farmworkers, Brazilian Police Raid Fake News Network Linked to Son of Far-Right President, A…

Staff (2020-05-27). "Horrifying Neglect": COVID-19 Deaths in ICE Custody Spark New Calls for Mass Release of Prisoners. democracynow.org Calls are growing for Immigration and Customs Enforcement to release people from detention during the pandemic, as two people have died from COVID-19 while in custody. We speak with The Intercept's Ryan Devereaux, who reported on how Carlos Ernesto Escobar Mejia, held at the Otay Mesa Detention Center, suffered horrifying neglect before he passed away. We are also joined by Erika Andiola with RAICES Action. "None of those folks — especially people who migrated seeking asylum — they did not do anything to deserve a life sentence in a detention center," Andiola notes.

Staff (2020-05-26). Headlines for May 26, 2020. democracynow.org U.S. Nears 100,000 Deaths from COVID-19 as Trump Shuns Face Masks, Goes After Democrats on Twitter, Trump Threatens to Pull RNC Out of North Carolina If Dem Governor Refuses to Allow Packed Crowds, Second Immigrant in ICE Jail Dies from COVID-19, U.S. to Deport Haitian Death Squad Leader and COVID-Positive Haitians Amid Pandemic, U.S. Restricts Travel from Brazil as It Becomes Second Most Infected Country, South American Nations Experience Mounting Cases as New Epicenter of the Pandemic, Boris Johnson Faces Pressure over Reopening Country and Lockdown-Flouting Adviser, WHO Suspends Tests of Hydroxychloroquine as…

RT (2020-05-28). Trump signs social media executive order challenging platforms' liability protections. rt.com US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order aimed at the major social media platforms, denouncing the tech behemoths as "tantamount to a monopoly." The order may alter Section 230, which protects them from litigation. | Trump signed the order, which aims to modify the legal protections currently shielding Big Tech from lawsuits over content hosted on its platforms, on Thursday as he addressed reporters at the White House. | Excoriating the platforms for what he and many others believe to be editorial bias, the president added that US Attorney General William Barr will also be tasked with working wi…

RT (2020-05-28). Arizona sues Google for 'misleading' users by secretly tracking their personal data on smartphones. rt.com Google has been accused of collecting data on people's whereabouts and their searches even when they disabled these options on their mobile devices. | The lawsuit, filed by Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich, alleges that certain apps developed by the Silicon Valley-based company tracked and stored location records and search history on Android-running smartphones even when users turned off these options. | The apps that allow the collection of personal data without users' consent include mapping and weather, which violates Arizona's consumer protection laws, the lawsuit says. | "When consumers try to opt…

2020-05-27: News Headlines

Staff (2020-05-27). Sanitation Workers Striking For PPE And Pay Replaced By Prison Labor. therealnews.com Dr. Talitha LeFlouria talks with TRNN about the New Orleans sanitation strike where workers were fired and replaced by prison labor from nearby Livingston Parish, and the historical roots of the exploitation of prison labor.

Betsey Piette (2020-05-27). International movement demands: 'Justice for Major Tillery! workers.org On May 17, word spread via social media that Major Tillery, a political prisoner at Pennsylvania's State Correctional Institution Chester, was sick with chills, a sore throat and a fever for several days. On hearing of Tillery's illness and knowing that COVID-19 was running rampant in U.S. prisons, the international . . . |

Julia Kaye (2020-05-27). The FDA is Making Needless COVID-19 Risks a Condition of Abortion and Miscarriage Care. We're Suing. aclu.org The COVID-19 pandemic has swept the globe and upended normal life. In the four months since the first U.S. case was reported, more than 1.5 million people have been infected and 100,000 people have died in the United States. To mitigate risk, public health authorities tell us to get our

Alexia Ramirez (2020-05-27). ICE Records Confirm that Immigration Enforcement Agencies are Using Invasive Cell Phone Surveillance Devices. aclu.org For years, immigration enforcement agencies have been using invasive cell phone surveillance technology known as Stingrays in near-total secrecy. To find out more, the ACLU and New York Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit under the Freedom of Information Act, and now we've forced the agencies to turn over documents revealing new details about the agencies' practices. Today, we are publishing

WSWS (2020-05-27). Thomson Reuters actively helping Trump administration target immigrants. wsws.org The parent company of the Reuters news agency has been aiding Immigration and Customs Enforcement with the targeting of immigrants for arrest, detention and deportation.

commondreams (2020-05-27). Science Group Joins Lawsuit to Reverse Vehicle Standards Rollback. commondreams.org ______________________________…

Ken Ward Jr. and Alex Mierjeski (2020-05-27). The billionaire governor who's been sued dozens of times for millions in unpaid bills. nationofchange.org Gov. Jim Justice is West Virginia's richest man. Over the last three decades, lawsuits over unpaid bills have cost his constellation of companies more than $128 million in judgments and settlements.

commondreams (2020-05-27). Coalition Files Lawsuit to Protect Federal Clean Car Rules. commondreams.org ______________________________…

commondreams (2020-05-27). New Lawsuit Challenges FDA Restriction That Imposes Life-Threatening Risks on Patients Seeking Abortion and Miscarriage Care. commondreams.org ______________________________…

commondreams (2020-05-27). Lawsuit Targets Trump Administration Push to Gut Car Pollution Standards. commondreams.org ______________________________…

Kevin Zeese (2020-05-26). Why China Is Not The Aggressor. popularresistance.org To reverse the Pentagon's reckless drive towards potentially catastrophic confrontation, people in this country need to be aware of the true nature of relations between the United States and China. In fact, it is the United States that is engaged in a comprehensive push to encircle and isolate China using military, economic and political aggression. The result of this atmosphere of non-stop hostility has been a marked increase in instances of discrimination and racist violence towards Chinese-Americans and other Asian communities within the United States. | The war hawks want you to believe that China is bullying…

Nkechi Taifa (2020-05-26). Reparations — Has the Time Finally Come? aclu.org During a lull one afternoon when I was a high school student selling Black Panther Party newspapers on the streets of downtown Washington, D.C., in 1971, I sat down on the curb and opened the tabloid to the 10-point program, ""We believe that this racist government has robbed us and now we are demanding the overdue debt of forty acres and two mules … promised 100 years ago as restitution for slave labor…

Staff (2020-05-26). Grassroots Organizers Continue To Move The Needle For Change Despite Little Fanfare. therealnews.com Activists like Cameron Miles, Vonya Quarles, Erica Smith, and Amber Rose-Howard discuss organizing tactics that work in the continued fight for social justice and prison abolition.

Peoples Dispatch (2020-05-26). Afghan government to release 900 more Taliban prisoners, urges Taliban to extend Eid ceasefire. peoplesdispatch.org The Afghan government has released close to 1,100 Taliban prisoners since February this year, in response to which the Taliban has released about 300 Afghan security forces personnel…

Michael Flynn, Katie Welsford (2020-05-26). COVID-19 Reveals the Inherent Vindictiveness of Migration Detention. commondreams.org Asylum seekers protest inside the Mantra Hotel in Preston, Melbourne, Australia. May 16, 2020. (Picture by Micheal Dodge/AAP/PA Images. All rights reserved) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/asylum.jpg

commondreams (2020-05-26). Big Oil Loses Appeals in California Climate Lawsuits. commondreams.org ______________________________…

IMEMC & Agencies (2020-05-26). Israeli Military Abducts Two Palestinians from Tulkarem. imemc.org Israeli military reportedly abducted, on Tuesday, two Palestinian young men from the northern occupied West Bank city of Tulkarem. Head of the Palestinian Prisoners' Society in the city, Ibrahim Alnemr, confirmed earlier today, that Israeli troops placed a mobile roadblock at the entrance of the city of Qalqilia, near Tulkarem …

Leila Rafei (2020-05-25). For Betty Riddle, Amendment 4 Win Makes Her A Part of Society, Not Apart. aclu.org Betty Riddle made sure she was first in line to vote in the Florida primary this year. At age 62, it was her first time voting. "It was one of the greatest moments of my life," she told the ACLU. Her family made her a T-shirt just for the occasion, which read first in line, first time voting. | As a Floridian, Betty was subject to one of the nation's harshest felony disenfranchisement laws. Before

Dante Strobino (2020-05-25). Safe Jobs Save Lives': N.C. union rallies to free prisoners, support city workers. workers.org Union workers and community members organized a car caravan protest in front of Neuse Correctional Institute in Goldsboro, N.C., on May 12 to demand the freedom of all prisoners. This was in response to the fifth COVID-19 related death of a prisoner in state prisons the week prior. At Neuse . . . |

IMEMC & Agencies (2020-05-25). Hamas's Political Head : No Prisoners Swap Deal without an Acceptable Price. imemc.org Hamas's political head, Ismail Haniyeh, reportedly said over the weekend, that his Islamist party, that rules the Gaza Strip, will agree to a prisoner swap deal with the state of Israel, only in return for an acceptable price. Haniyeh's remarks came on the eve of the Al-Fitr Muslims' Feast or …

Tyler Durden (2020-02-04). Biden Threatens Lawsuit to Halt Release of Real Iowa Caucus Results. theantimedia.com American democracy—ain't it grand?>

Julia Conley, staff writer (2020-05-26). New York Uber and Lyft Drivers Sue Cuomo Over Refusal to Pay Unemployment Benefits During Pandemic. commondreams.org Joined by the New York Taxi Workers Alliance, four Uber and Lyft drivers in New York filed a lawsuit against Gov. Andrew Cuomo and the state Labor Department on Tuesday over the government's failure to pay the drivers unemployment benefits during the coronavirus pandemic. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/gettyimages-1219233550_1.jpg

Staff (2020-05-27). "Horrifying Neglect": COVID-19 Deaths in ICE Custody Spark New Calls for Mass Release of Prisoners. democracynow.org Calls are growing for Immigration and Customs Enforcement to release people from detention during the pandemic, as two people have died from COVID-19 while in custody. We speak with The Intercept's Ryan Devereaux, who reported on how Carlos Ernesto Escobar Mejia, held at the Otay Mesa Detention Center, suffered horrifying neglect before he passed away. We are also joined by Erika Andiola with RAICES Action. "None of those folks — especially people who migrated seeking asylum — they did not do anything to deserve a life sentence in a detention center," Andiola notes.

Staff (2020-05-26). Headlines for May 26, 2020. democracynow.org U.S. Nears 100,000 Deaths from COVID-19 as Trump Shuns Face Masks, Goes After Democrats on Twitter, Trump Threatens to Pull RNC Out of North Carolina If Dem Governor Refuses to Allow Packed Crowds, Second Immigrant in ICE Jail Dies from COVID-19, U.S. to Deport Haitian Death Squad Leader and COVID-Positive Haitians Amid Pandemic, U.S. Restricts Travel from Brazil as It Becomes Second Most Infected Country, South American Nations Experience Mounting Cases as New Epicenter of the Pandemic, Boris Johnson Faces Pressure over Reopening Country and Lockdown-Flouting Adviser, WHO Suspends Tests of Hydroxychloroquine as…

Lynda Carson (2020-05-27). California and mail-out ballot plan sued by Republicans. indybay.org Lawsuit By Republicans Against California & Mail-Out Ballot Plan:…

Animal Liberation Press Office (2020-05-27). Animal Liberation Prisoner Walter Bond Will be Released from Prison June 18. indybay.org Walter was arrested July 23, 2010 as the alleged ALF "Lone Wolf" charged with arson of the Sheepskin Factory in Colorado. The FBI alleged Bond admitted to an informant to setting two additional fires — one at Tandy Leather Factory, the other at Tiburon (foie gras restaurant), both in Utah. In anonymous communiques, "A.L.F. Lone Wolf" took credit.

RT (2020-05-27). Defeating Trump more important: Tulsi Gabbard drops lawsuit against Hillary Clinton over 'Russian asset' smear. rt.com Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawaii) has chosen to let Hillary Clinton get away with calling her an agent of the Kremlin, dropping the defamation lawsuit for the sake of party unity and defeating President Donald Trump. | While Gabbard and her campaign "remain certain of the action's legal merit," the new reality of the Covid-19 pandemic requires them to "focus their time and attention on other priorities, including defeating Donald Trump in 2020, rather than righting the wrongs here," her attorney Dan Terzian wrote in the court filing withdrawing the lawsuit on Wednesday. | It was a far cry from the fiery t…

RT (2020-05-25). 'Brazen power grab': GOP sues California Gov. Newsom over plan to send mail-in ballots to ALL registered voters. rt.com Republicans have filed a lawsuit to overturn the California Governor's executive order, that will see every voter receive an absentee ballot for the November election, denouncing it as a "direct assault" on the vote's integrity. | "In a direct usurpation of the legislature's authority, Governor [Gavin] Newsom issued an executive order purporting to rewrite the entire election code for the November 2020 election cycle," the lawsuit, which was filed on Sunday, reads. | Slamming Newsom's decision to mail ballots to all registered voters, which means that inactive voters will also be covered by the scheme, the pla…

yenisafak (2020-05-27). Turkey exports more than 1,000 mechanical ventilators. yenisafak.com Turkey has exported more than 1,000 mechanical ventilators crucial in treating COVID-19 so far, the country's industry and technology minister said on Wednesday.Addressing a meeting of a local trade chamber via a video link, Mustafa Varank said Turkey is also carrying out apace innovative projects for diagnostic kits and systems that will make a name for the country worldwide.Varank pointed that many countries face crisis of producing basic medical equipment."The discrimination between developed or developing countries has disappeared."Countries boasting their economic and technological power have been late in co…