(2018-12-16). Slowing Down the Beast of American Empire: A Salute to the Life and Legacy of William Blum. globalresearch.ca "I'm a member of a movement which has the very ambitious goal of slowing down, if not stopping, the American Empire, to keep it from continuing to go round the world doing things like bombings, invasions, overthrowing governments, and torture. …
(2018-12-16). US sanctions on Iran threaten Iraq's energy supply. aljazeera.com Iraq relies on Iranian gas for nearly half of its energy, but US sanctions are threatening the supply.
(2018-12-16). Iran Can Teach Others The 'Art Of Evading Sanctions': Zarif. iranian.com "Trump has called for negotiations despite his hostile policies, and we have responded to him, [asking] if he was joking," the Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said while addressing the 18th edition of Doha Forum in the Qatari capital on Saturday. "Negotiating with Donald Trump's administration is futile," Zarif stressed. "Iran used to be […]
(2018-12-16). 100% of Congress Approves Anti-Nicaragua Sanctions, HR1918. indybay.org All members of Congress in both houses, Democrats and Republicans together, approved the Nicaraguan Investment Conditionality Act of 2017, HR1918 (NICA), placing sanctions on the democratically elected government of Nicaragua which is fighting CIA sponsored gangsters, with the last vote taken in the Senate on November 27, 2018 and in the House on December 11, 2018. See www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/hou……
(2018-12-16). Advanced Leadership Training: Emergent Leadership. indybay.org Berkeley Animal Rights Center | 2425 Channing Way, Berkeley, CA 94704…
(2018-12-16). Animal Rights Meetup: Organization & How to Become a Leader. indybay.org Berkeley Animal Rights Center | 2425 Channing Way, Berkeley, CA 94704…
(2018-12-16). Advanced Chicken Care Training. indybay.org Berkeley Animal Rights Center | 2425 Channing Way, Berkeley, CA 94704…
(2018-12-16). January Vegan Pop-Up. indybay.org Berkeley Animal Rights Center | 2425 Channing Way, Berkeley, CA 94704…
(2018-12-16). Animal Rights Meetup: The Power of Nonviolence. indybay.org Berkeley Animal Rights Center | 2425 Channing Way, Berkeley, CA 94704…
(2018-12-16). Animal Rights Meetup: New Community Member Celebration. indybay.org Berkeley Animal Rights Center | 2425 Channing Way, Berkeley, CA 94704…
(2018-12-16). Sustainable Activism Workshop: Berkeley, CA #ChangeMakersTour. indybay.org Berkeley Animal Rights Center | 2425 Channing Way, Berkeley, CA 94704…
(2018-12-16). Animal Rights Meetup: The Legal Case for Animal Rights. indybay.org Berkeley Animal Rights Center | 2425 Channing Way, Berkeley, CA 94704…
(2018-12-16). Advanced Leadership Training: DxE's History and Vision. indybay.org Berkeley Animal Rights Center | 2425 Channing Way, Berkeley, CA 94704…
(2018-12-16). Brexit fishing rights: Questions about North Sea ownership. aljazeera.com Fishing in troubled waters – how Europe's fishing industry could get tangled in Brexit.
(2018-12-15). Guatemala: Ombudsman Demands Probe Into Migrant Girl's Death. telesurenglish.net Guatemala's Human Rights Ombudsman Jordan Rojas demanded Friday a thorough investigation be carried out to find out the causes behind the death of the 7-year-old migrant girl who died in United States custody, after being captured by the U.S. border patrol. | RELATED: | Guatemala Prepares Law Punishing Criticism of Politicians | Through an official statement, the prosecutor requested consular authorities in the U.S. to accompany the investigation to verify the treatment and healthcar…
(2018-12-15). The Case of Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou: American Sheriffs Acting Outside of Their Jurisdictions. globalresearch.ca The December 1 arrest by Canadian authorities in Vancouver of Huawei Technologies chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou, based on a US extradition warrant, represents a draconian extraterritorial application of a dubious US law and claim of Huawei's sanctions violations regarding …
(2018-12-15). We have no choice but to live like human beings. mronline.org 
One in eight people across the world live in informal settlements. This, despite the "right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family" as declared by the International Declaration of Human Rights. Reality, however, is very far from this. | Source
(2018-12-15). Scandal-Hit CBS to Give $20M to 18 Women's Rights Groups. truthdig.com NEW YORK — CBS on Friday pledged to give $20 million to 18 organizations dedicated to eliminating sexual harassment in the workplace as the network tries to recover from a scandal that led to the ouster of its top executive, Les Moonves. | The announcement comes as the network's crisis deepens, with details emerging from an ongoing investigation into Moonves' conduct and news surfacing of other instances of sexual misconduct at CBS. | In the latest revelation, CBS acknowledged that it reached a $9.5 million confidential settlement last year with actress Eliza Dushku, who said she was written off the show "B…
(2018-12-15). This Holiday Season, I'm Standing With Migrants. truthout.org This holiday season — a time so often associated with bringing family together — my thoughts keep turning to the families in the migrant caravans making their way to the US southern border. | I had the privilege of spending four days in Mexico last month with my organization, the American Friends Service Committee, to assess the needs of participants in the caravan and expand human rights monitoring. | As I crept into my children's bedrooms to give them a kiss when I got back, resisting the urge to wake them up for cuddling and conversation, I thought about what would make me pick up with them and…
(2018-12-15). Cameroon: Release of 289 people must lead to end of wrongful detentions. amnesty.org Following the decision to pardon and release 289 people arrested in connection with the unrest in the Anglophone regions of Cameroon, Marie Evelyne Petrus Barry, Amnesty International West and Central Africa Regional Director said: | "Cameroon President's decision to pardon and release nearly 300 people arrested in connection with the unrest in the Anglophone regions is a welcome step and a catalyst for human rights change. |
(2018-12-14). Every Single Member of US Congress Approved Crushing Sanctions on Nicaragua. mintpressnews.com After defeating a violent US-backed coup attempt, Nicaragua's elected government faces the NICA Act. The bill aims to force the Sandinistas from power by ratcheting up economic despair.
(2018-12-14). Principles and Morality Versus Cash and Profit? No Contest. counterpunch.org 
Imagine Western reaction if a British or American citizen had been detained in Russia or China then subjected to months of solitary confinement followed by being put on trial for less than five minutes without legal representation or an interpreter, and finally sentenced to life imprisonment. The media in Britain and the US would have gone berserk More
(2018-12-14). The Yellow Vest Insurgency — What's Next? counterpunch.org 
Paris, France, April 2017: Macron Unveils Assault on Workers' Rights. Paris, France, December 2018: A potential worldwide insurgency of the working class starts in France as Yellow Vests occupy the streets. "Some 75% of the French back the gilets jaunes. And this support has held up despite the violence." (Source: La République en Flammes, The More
(2018-12-14). Know Your Rights or You Will Lose Them. counterpunch.org If a nation expects to be ignorant and free in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be." —Thomas Jefferson We are approaching critical mass, the point at which all hell breaks loose. The government is pushing us ever closer to a constitutional crisis. What makes the outlook so much More
(2018-12-14). Every Single Member of US Congress Approved Crushing Sanctions on Nicaragua. grayzoneproject.com After defeating a violent US-backed coup attempt, Nicaragua's elected government faces the NICA Act. The bill aims to force the…
(2018-12-14). The Right to Record Police Doesn't Disappear When You Put Your Phone in Your Pocket. aclu.org In Massachusetts, a federal court affirmed that the First Amendment protects secret recording of police performing their duties in public. | The First Amendment right to record the police is a critical check and balance for people living in a free, open, and democratic society. It promotes the free discussion of governmental affairs as well as protects the democratic process. And for some communities, it's a vital tool for uncovering, if not deterring, police misconduct. | But Boston-based civil rights activists Eric Martin and René Pérez were afraid to record the police. Under a state wiretap law passed in 1968,…
(2018-12-14). Headlines for December 14, 2018. democracynow.org Senate Votes to End U.S. Support for Saudi-Led War on Yemen, Senate Passes Resolution Condemning Saudi Crown Prince for Khashoggi Murder, 7-Year-Old Guatemalan Girl Dies in U.S. Border Agents' Custody, Trump's 2016 Inauguration Being Probed for Misuse of Funds and Illegal Donations, Russian Gun Activist Pleads Guilty to Acting as Foreign Agent, Global Calls Mount to Release Burmese Journalists, Nobel Peace Prize Winner Nadia Murad Addresses Iraqi Officials, Argentina: Ex-Ford Execs Convicted of Kidnapping & Torture During Dirty War, France: Police Kill Suspect of Strasbourg Mass Shooting, Bolton Calls for Western…
(2018-12-14). Paul Rosenberg on GOP Power Grabs, Mariana Viturro on Domestic Workers Bill of Rights. fair.org 
Media…
(2018-12-14). Nicaragua: Government Crackdown on Media, Activists. hrw.org (New York) — The government of President Daniel Ortega has begun a sweeping crackdown against the free press and activists in Nicaragua, Human Rights Watch said today. The government has shut down nine respected nongovernmental organizations and raided several of their offices. | Between November 29 and December 13, 2018, Congress stripped the nine groups of their legal registration, effectively forcing them to shut down. Congressman Filiberto Rodríguez of the ruling Sandinista Front of National Liberation (FSLN) introduced the motions stripping them of r…
(2018-12-14). France: Police Crowd Control Methods Maim People. hrw.org 
| | Riot police barricade, Jardin des Tuileries, Paris, December 8, 2018. | © 2018 Human Rights Watch | (Paris) — French police used crowd control and anti-riot tactics during demonstrations in Paris in November and December 2018 that caused physical harm to peaceful demonstrators, including high-school students, and journalists, Human Rights Watch said today. Law enforcement should exercise greater restraint in demonstrations planned to take place on D…
(2018-12-14). Hungary's Latest Assault on the Judiciary. hrw.org 
| | Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban addresses the supporters after the announcement of the partial results of parliamentary election in Budapest, Hungary, April 8, 2018. | © 2018 Reuters | This week, Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban and his ruling party Fidesz rammed a law through parliament that poses a new threat to the independence of the country's judiciary. | The law creates a separate administrative court system that will handle cases directly affecting basic human rights, such as elections, right to a…
(2018-12-14). 7-Year-Old Migrant Girl Dies in US Border Patrol Custody. hrw.org 
The headline alone made my heart sink. "7-year-old migrant girl taken into Border Patrol custody dies of dehydration, exhaustion." I felt a wave of deep sadness, but no surprise. | | | A girl stands in the lobby of the Adelanto immigration detention center, in Adelanto, Californ…
(2018-12-14). Australia: Vet Foreign Soldiers Receiving Training. hrw.org 
| | The Philippine Navy band welcomes the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) vessel Her Majesty's Australian Ship (HMAS) Adelaide (III) upon arrival for a goodwill visit as part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) Joint Task Group, Indo-Pacific Endeavour 2017, at the Pier 15, south harbor in Metro Manila, Philippines on October 10, 2017. | © 2017 Reuters/Romeo Ranoco | (Sydney) — The Australian government should require human rights vetting for all foreign military…
(2018-12-14). CAR: Up to 100 civilians shot and burnt alive as UN peacekeepers leave posts in Alindao. amnesty.org The United Nations must carry out a thorough investigation into UN peacekeeping troops' response to a recent attack that killed as many as 100 civilians in a displaced persons camp in the Central African Republic, Amnesty International said today in a new report. | According to multiple eyewitnesses, UN peacekeepers did not engage an attack by an armed group but instead retreated in an armoured vehicle to their central base, leaving thousands of civilians unprotected at the camp in Alindao on 15 November. | An immediate and impartial inquiry m…
(2018-12-14). The extraordinary and ordinary story of Gulzar Duishenova. amnesty.org 
Gulzar Duishenova is one of the nine women human rights defenders featured in Amnesty's 2018 Write for Rights campaign. She shared her story with Amnesty International. Every possible effort was made to translate the story into English representing Gulzar's style of speaking faithfully and precisely. | Every activist, like any other person, has her or his story. Some have been actively defending human rights since they were young. In other cases, human rights work found the defenders. My story is both extraordinary and very ordinary at the same time. | This year I have been featured, along with other eight wom…
(2018-12-14). China: Further information: Singer-song writer activist sentenced: Xu Lin. amnesty.org Activist Xu Lin was sentenced to three years in prison for "picking quarrels and provoking trouble" on 7 December 2018. The singer-songwriter has composed and published songs online about his democratic aspirations and critical of the government for various injustices. He has refused to repent and maintained his innocence.
(2018-12-14). Somalia: Use of lethal force to quell protests in Baidoa unjustifiable. amnesty.org Following news that Somali security forces in Baidoa opened fire this morning on protestors, killing a parliamentarian, Abdishakur Yaqub Ibrahim as known as Abdishakur Bule, and a young boy in ongoing protests that erupted on 13 December, Amnesty International's Deputy Director for East Africa, the Horn and the Great Lakes Sarah Jackson said: |
(2018-12-14). Police must end use of excessive force against protesters and high school children in France. amnesty.org French authorities must exercise restraint when policing demonstrations expected on Saturday and avoid any repetition of the injuries caused by their extremely heavy-handed response to protests by the "gilets jaunes" and high school movements, said Amnesty International. | Police used rubber bullets, sting-ball grenades and tear gas against largely peaceful protesters who did not threaten public order and the organisation has documented numerous instances of excessive use of force by police. |
(2018-12-14). Mexico: Bill could further pretrial detentions. amnesty.org The Mexican Congress could pass a constitutional amendment in the following weeks that would force judges to order pretrial detention in cases involving a broad series of crimes. Contrary to international law, the reform does not provide that judges can waive it or assess any evidence before determining if such deprivation of liberty is appropriate.
(2018-12-14). LA GUARDIA NACIONAL DEL PRESIDENTE LàìPEZ OBRADOR: CINCO REALIDADES QUE HAY QUE SABER. amnesty.org Uno de los puntos centrales de la estrategia de seguridad propuesta por el nuevo presidente Andrés Manuel López Obrador es la creación de una Guardia Nacional, conformada por entre 50 a 60 mil elementos de la Policía Militar, la Policía Naval, y de la Policía Federal, además de elementos del Estado Mayor y "elementos de tropa." | En lo propuesto queda claro que usaría una estrategia muy semejante a gobiernos anteriores, y la realidad es que la Guardia Nacional es una amenaza para la seguridad y los derechos humanos de las personas en México.
(2018-12-14). A conversation between Marielle and God. amnesty.org Nine months have passed since 14 March and, during this time, Marinete and I have been waiting for answers about the barbaric and cowardly killing of Marielle Franco, our daughter. Nine months was also how long we waited, with great excitement and anticipation, for Marielle's birth in 1979. | I imagine what a conversation between Marielle — still in her mother's belly, before being born — and God might have been like. | Lord, I'm here in this small space, comfortable and protected by this woman who will be my mother, who gives me affection and caresses. She talks to me and takes me to church and to un…
(2018-12-14). Civil Society Worldwide Demands Answers to the Enforced Disappearance of Sombath Somphone. amnesty.org Six years after the enforced disappearance of Lao civil society leader Sombath Somphone, civil society organizations across the world renew calls on the Lao government to conduct an independent, impartial and effective investigation to reveal his fate and whereabouts.
(2018-12-14). Belarus: Further information: Two prisoners at risk of imminent execution: Aliaksandr Zhylnikau and Viachaslau Sukharko. amnesty.org There is grave concern that the only two known prisoners on death row in Belarus, Aliaksandr Zhylnikau and Viachaslau Sukharko, are at risk of imminent execution.
(2018-12-14). Nijeriya: 'Sun dauke mazajenmu suka tilasta mana zama masoyansu' — Mata a arewa maso gabashin nijeriya da suke fama da matsananciyar yunwa suna kuma fuskantar fyade a hannun masu ikirarin ceto su. amnesty.org Mata 'yan gudun hijira a arewa maso gabashin | Nijeriya suna fama da gallazawa da cin zarafi | daga sojojin Nijeriya wanda hakan zasu iya zama | laifukan yaki da kuma laifukan da suka shafi kin | jinin bil Adama. Wadannan mata na neman | hakkinsu da kuma neman a hukunta masu | wannan laifi da kawo karshen kama-karya.
(2018-12-14). Paraguay: Queer artists at risk of going to prison: Bruno Almada Comas. amnesty.org Bruno Almada Comas, a young queer artist, is being accused of "acts of exhibitionism" based on a performance denouncing violence and discrimination faced by LGBTI people in Paraguay. The preliminary hearing is scheduled for 19 December. If he is found guilty he could face one year in prison.
(2018-12-14). Nigeria: UNICEF suspended amid absurd smear campaign. amnesty.org Responding to the Nigerian army's suspension of UNICEF from operations in northeast Nigeria over allegations of spying and collaborating with Boko Haram, Osai Ojigho, Director of Amnesty International Nigeria, said: | "Amnesty International strongly condemns attempts by the…
(2018-12-14). The Islamic State's toxic legacy is an environmental catastrophe, too | Opinion. amnesty.org Note: This originally appeared in Newsweek. | As we drive up, the desolate farm in the shadow of north-western Iraq's Sinjar Mountain looks like many others in the area. The farmhouse is abandoned, the fields are barren. A neighbour, curious about our visit, wanders over and explains that the owner used to grow olives, wheat and vegetables. But, like half of the farmers in this village, he and his family haven't returned since fleeing from the armed group calling itself Islamic State (IS) four years ago. | Why? One clue is…
(2018-12-14). Julian Assange denounces his illegal detention in Ecuadorian embassy. wsws.org The WikiLeaks publisher, whose health appears to be deteriorating, made the comments at a hearing against the Ecuadorian government's "Special Protocol," aimed at forcing him into British and US custody.
(2018-12-14). Nearly 15,000 children held in detention camps across the US. wsws.org The growth of the child detainee population and the Trump administration's escalation of workplace raids represent an attack on the entire working class.
(2018-12-13). Supreme Court considers scope of Bill of Rights. peoplesworld.org 
WASHINGTON — December 15 is Bill of Rights Day. The Bill of Rights protects our most cherished rights, including free speech, freedom of religion, and trial by jury. But the Bill of Rights starts with the words "Congress shall make no law." It doesn't say "The states shall make no law." In 1833, the U.S. …