(2018-10-26). International declaration against fascism in Brazil. greenleft.org.au 
Five hundred academics, Nobel prize winners, human rights activists and celebrities have released an international statement against the rise of fascism in Brazil. | Among the initial signatories are: Argentine Nobel Peace prize winner Adolfo Pérez Esquivel, African-American rights activist Angela Davis, US Senator Bernie Sanders, US actor Danny Glover, Chilean socialist academic Marta Harnecker, US academic Noam Chomsky, British-Pakistani writer Tariq Ali and economist Thomas Piketty. | A number of former heads of state have also signed on including: Cristina Fernández de Kirchner (Argentina), Eduardo Duhalde (A…
(2018-10-26). Headlines for October 26, 2018. democracynow.org Investigators Narrow in on Florida in Ongoing Mail Bomb Case, Turkish President Urges Saudis to Reveal Who Ordered Khashoggi Murder, U.N. Calls for International Investigation into Khashoggi Murder, Trump Sends Troops, Threatens to Close U.S.-Mexico Border over Migrant Caravan, Caitlyn Jenner Denounces Trump's Attacks on Trans Rights in Op-ed, Trump Administration Approves Plan to Drill off Alaska Coast, Officers Involved in Drowning Death of Two SC Women Detainees Fired, Sen. Grassley Asks DOJ to Investigate Avenatti and Julie Swetnick over Kavanaugh Statements, Reporter Body-Slammed by Rep. Gianforte Tells Cong…
(2018-10-26). Trans Rights Are Human Rights! indybay.org Santa Cruz Town Clock | Water St. & Pacific Ave., Santa Cruz…
(2018-10-26). Will Israel's Gaza Massacres Finally Prod the ICC into Action? mintpressnews.com 
Both Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, normally reserved in their criticism of Israel, have accused the occupying state of "war crimes." Some hope the sheer scale of Israeli fire against unarmed civilians, along with the copious documentation of it, will prod the ICC to action.
(2018-10-26). Trump, Saudi Arabia and the Khashoggi Murder. counterpunch.org 
Is there no crime so obvious, so egregious and so blatant that it won't be overlooked by United States President Donald Trump, if doing so suits his twisted needs? He looks past Israeli barbarity, despite the obvious, unspeakable human rights abuses that that rogue, racist apartheid nation commits. He ignores the abject suffering caused by More
(2018-10-26). Protest Tax: Trump Administration Wants to Charge for First Amendment Rights. truthout.org Janine Jackson interviewed Mara Verheyden-Hilliard about Trump's new anti-protest rules for a October 19, 2018, episode of CounterSpin. This is a lightly edited transcript. | Janine Jackson: What is clear is that the Trump White House wants what it wants, decades of carefully forged law and tradition be damned. One of the things it wants is the eradication of public expressions of dissent. Donald Trump has said that protest (against him and his friends) should be illegal, that those who engage in it should lose their job…
(2018-10-26). Trump's HHS and the Renewed Culture Wars. counterpunch.org 
The New York Times recently reported on a secret memo circulating within the Trump bureaucracy seeking to narrow the definition of gender to "a biological, immutable condition determined by genitalia at birth." The Times considers this "the most drastic move yet in a government wide effort to roll back recognition and protections of transgender people under federal civil rights law." More
(2018-10-26). CIA director briefs Trump on Khashoggi torture tape. wsws.org CIA Director Gina Haspel, dispatched to Turkey to investigate the murder of the Saudi journalist, has intimate familiarity with acts of torture and tapes recording them.
(2018-10-26). Anti-War Voices Applaud 'Must-Read' Sanders Op-Ed Demanding End to Yemen War. theantimedia.com 
(CD) — Anti-war voices are praising a new "must-read" New York Times op-ed in which Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) called on Congress "to redefine our relationship with Saudi Arabia, and to show that the Saudis do not have a blank check to continue violating human rights" by revoking U.S. support for the Saudi and UAE-led war in Yemen. Noting that …
(2018-10-26). How can we make "Abolish ICE" a reality? mronline.org 
Two of the immigrant rights movement's historic demands provide a basis for actually closing the agency, and beyond that for building a movement to demand more fundamental changes. | Source
(2018-10-26). Repeal of Workers' Rights in Ontario? Ford Government Takes on Bill 148, But There is Resistance. globalresearch.ca When the Tories were elected to govern Ontario this past June, it was a day that many were both dreading and expecting. | The Ontario government has finally unveiled their legislation that would repeal the gains workers made from Bill 148. …
(2018-10-26). Mail bomb suspect detained, in FBI custody — report. rt.com 
Federal agents have arrested and detained a suspect in connection with a string of suspicious packages sent to prominent Democratic and left-wing figures over the last week, law enforcement sources say. |
(2018-10-26). Anti-War Voices Applaud 'Must-Read' Sanders Op-Ed Demanding End To Yemen War. iranian.com Anti-war voices are praising a new "must-read" New York Times op-ed in which Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) called on Congress "to redefine our relationship with Saudi Arabia, and to show that the Saudis do not have a blank check to continue violating human rights" by revoking U.S. support for the Saudi and UAE-led war in Yemen. Noting that […]
(2018-10-26). Hatewatch Headlines 10/26/2018. splcenter.org Judge restores funding to sanctuary cities; Civil rights groups call for tech hate-group crackdown; Shea wants to create a 51st state; and more.
(2018-10-26). EU Mechanism For Iran Trade To Be Ready On Nov. 4. iranian.com A new European Union mechanism to facilitate payments for Iranian exports should be legally in place by Nov. 4, when the next phase of U.S. sanctions hit, but it will not be operational until early next year, three diplomats said. The mechanism, a so-called special purpose vehicle (SPV), is designed to circumvent the sanctions, under […]
(2018-10-26). White Ribbon's failures go well beyond reproductive rights backflip. greenleft.org.au 
Australian Conservatives leader Cory Bernardi must have been furious when, in the space of less than 24 hours, White Ribbon Australia (WRA) back flipped on its decision to drop support for what he claimed was a "radical abortion policy". | WRA initially redacted its 2017 statement supporting reproductive rights on October 18, with CEO Tracy McLeod telling Buzzfeed that day that the organisation was now "agnostic" on reproductive…
(2018-10-26). Large #WontbeErased march resists Trump's anti-trans threats. greenleft.org.au 
Assembling in front of the White House on October 22, members of the LGBTI community and their allies gathered to deliver a clear message to President Donald Trump: transgender people "Won't Be Erased", writes Julia Conley. | The phrase became a rallying cry at demonstrations and on social media the day after reports surfaced of a Trump administration proposal to officially deny the existence of transgender people. The proposal would define gender as biological and determined o…
(2018-10-26). European Union steps up Internet censorship in the name of opposing "disinformation" wsws.org The EU summit threatened with sanctions and penalties any party that diverges from the prescribed political line in the 2019 European election campaign.
(2018-10-26). Mission Neighbors: Stand Up for Sex Workers' Rights and Safety! indybay.org Redstone Building 2940 16th Street, #217 @Capp Street…
(2018-10-25). Khalida Jarrar's Administrative Detention Renewed. imemc.org Palestinian parliament member Khalida Jarrar, has been in prison since July 2 of 2017, and her sentence has been extended by four additional months, a Maan reporter posted a copy of the renewal order. Jarrar was initially detained in 2015, spent 14 months in Israeli prison, and spent a year …
(2018-10-25). Post-Khashoggi: Israel's Loss, Bin Salman's Retreat And Erdogan's Advance. iranian.com The usually-talkative Israel when it comes to claims of democracy and human rights has been silent over what it fears to be the dangerous retreat, or even collapse, of one of the pillars of its camp in the region and its most important ally, who Trump described as "our boy" — Saudi Arabia. This is […]
(2018-10-25). Israeli Soldiers Abduct A Young Man In Jerusalem. imemc.org Israeli soldiers abducted, on Wednesday at night, a young Palestinian man from Silwan town, south of the Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem, while the military prosecutors' office demanded remanding a detained child. The Wadi Hilweh Information Center In Silwan (Silwanic) has reported that the police summoned Jadallah Rajabi for …
(2018-10-25). Two Stories from the Propaganda War. mintpressnews.com Two recent stories about Russians have demonstrated how the news is selected and manipulated in the United States. The first is about Maria Butina, who apparently sought to overthrow American democracy, such as it is, by obtaining a life membership in the National Rifle Association. Maria, a graduate student at American University, is now in detention in a federal prison, having been charged with collusion and failure to register as an agent of the Russian Federation. She has been in prison since July, for most of the time in solitary confinement, and has not been granted bail because, as a Russian citizen, she i…
(2018-10-25). Tampa students stand against attacks on trans rights. fightbacknews.org Tampa, FL — More than 50 Tampa area students and community activists gathered at the University of South Florida's MLK Plaza, October 24, for a rally against Trump's attacks on transgender rights. The protest was organized by Tampa Bay Students for a Democratic Society (SDS). | Earlier this week it was announced that Trump administration officials were moving to alter Title IX rules to exclude trans people from basic services and protection from discrimination. This is only the latest attack on the LGBTQ+ community from the Trump administration. | "We need to organize against Trump's attacks on trans righ…
(2018-10-25). The Political Hypocrisy — Skripals and Khashoggi. globalresearch.ca Russia is accused, without substance, proof, nor evidence of a Salisbury poisoning saga; a saga played out, in almost boring repetition, by Prime Minister May and her Cabinet, supported by Trump, Merkel, et al with sanctions, and the expelling of …
(2018-10-25). There's Something Suspicious Going On With Georgia's Voting Machines. truthdig.com The Georgia governor's race is in a deadlock, according to CNBC News, with Democrat Stacey Abrams and Republican Brian Kemp each polling at 47 percent as of Wednesday. In such a tight race, every vote will count, but voting rights advocates are raising the alarm over reports of voter suppression. | As Michael Harriot reports in The Root, the NAACP Georgia State Conference has filed complaints with the state Board of Elections over alleged (2018-10-25). NAACP Partners with Members of the Faith Community to Galvanize Black Voters Ahead of Midterms. naacp.org In less than two weeks, Americans from coast to coast will take part in one of the most important elections of a generation, and as the nation's largest and foremost civil rights organizations, NAACP has partnered with its allies in the faith community to ensure the Black community is mobilized and ready to vote. Bishop […]
(2018-10-25). ACTION ALERT: While Rangers Fight Wildfires, USA Today Fans Flames of Gun Paranoia. fair.org 
The story under this USA Today headline ( 10/25/18) never mentions the Second Amendment—because it's not relevant to the topic at hand. | The main front-page headline on USA Today's October 25 print edition reads: | Is the Second Amendment Under Fire in the West? | Online, the story's headline ( 10/24/18) asks a similarly alarmist headline—"Gun Rights Unde…
(2018-10-25). PCHR Weekly Report On Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (18 — 24 October 2018). imemc.org Israeli forces continued with systematic crimes in the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt) for the week of (18 — 24 October, 2018. Israeli soldiers continued to use excessive force against unarmed civilians and peaceful protestors in the Gaza Strip. A Palestinian youngster was killed in eastern Deir al-Balah, in central Gaza, …
(2018-10-25). Sciences of inequality. mronline.org 
Last month, Philip Alston, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights (whose important work I have written about before), issued a tweet about the new poverty and healthcare numbers in the United States along with a challenge to the administration of Donald Trump (which in June decided to voluntarily remove itself from […] | Source
(2018-10-25). My Boss Fired Me From My Funeral Home Job for Being Transgender. aclu.org 
Aimee Stephens spent most of her life struggling with her gender identity. When she finally came out to her boss, she was fired. | I was in funeral services for nearly three decades before I was fired in 2013 for being transgender. In March, a federal appeals court agreed that it was wrong to fire me just because of who I am. Now, the Supreme Court will consider whether to review that court ruling. | While studying to be a pastor in college, I needed a job, and I found one in a funeral home. There are a lot of different ministries people can pursue, and I realized comforting people during one of the most vulnerab…
(2018-10-25). Top Chinese Refiners Not Booking Iranian Oil For November. iranian.com China's largest refiners, state-held Sinopec and China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), haven't booked any crude oil cargoes from Iran for November due to fears that in doing so, they would be in breach of the U.S. sanctions on Iranian oil returning in less than two weeks, Reuters reported on Wednesday, quoting two people with direct […]
(2018-10-25). Indian police detain thousands of striking Tamil Nadu auto workers. wsws.org Stalinist union leaders have sought to isolate the strikers, fearing that their struggle could become the focal point for a broader movement of the working class.
(2018-10-24). City Officials Stoke Mob Mentality in Front of Sex Offender's Home. aclu.org The city government of Providence, Rhode Island, is ignoring its own law on residential protests and feeding vigilantism. | When Richard Gardner, a convicted child sex offender, was released from prison after serving almost 30 years, he quietly moved into the Washington Park neighborhood in Providence. One would not have expected a welcome wagon — but an angry mob should not have been the result either. | Because his crimes were committed so long ago, Gardner is not subject to the community notification provisions that apply to more recent offenders under the state's Megan's Law. But the police leaked his a…
(2018-10-24). Aimee Stephens Was Fired Because She Is Transgender. That's Sex Discrimination. aclu.org The ACLU is asking the Supreme Court to let stand a lower court ruling that Aimee's firing was unlawful. | Jeff Sessions and Donald Trump think federal law shouldn't protect transgender people. They think it should be legal to fire someone just because she's trans. Five federal appeals courts disagree. On Wednesday, the ACLU asked the Supreme Court to let stand one of those rulings, in the case of Aimee Stephens. | Aimee had worked at a funeral home in Detroit for nearly six years when she wrote a letter telling her boss and coworkers that she is transgender. Two weeks after she came out as a woman to her employe…
(2018-10-24). NAACP Sues Shelby County Over Allegedly Defective Voter Registration Applications. naacp.org Tennessee County Should Allow Voters to Fix Applications and Vote Regular Ballots on Election Day BALTIMORE (October 24, 2018) The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), America's foremost civil rights organization, announced today that its Memphis Branch filed suit yesterday against the Shelby County (TN) Election Commission for its refusal to allow […]
(2018-10-24). Privatisation harms poor and needy, says UN poverty expert. mronline.org 
Widespread privatisation of public goods in many societies is systematically eliminating human rights protections and further marginalising those living in poverty, according to a hard-hitting new report. The report was transmitted to the UN General Assembly on 19 October. | Source
(2018-10-24). Stacey Abrams Stands By Burning the Racist, Segregationist Georgia State Flag in 1992. democracynow.org 
During Tuesday's debate, Georgia Democratic gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams defended her actions in 1992 when she helped burn the Georgia state flag, which at the time contained a prominent Confederate battle flag. In a victory for civil rights advocates, the flag was later changed. We speak to Leah Wright Rigueur, professor at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.
(2018-10-24). Who's Behind ICE? How Amazon, Palantir, Microsoft & Tech Giants Are Powering Trump's Deportations. democracynow.org 
A shocking new investigation by immigrant rights groups reveals how corporations like Amazon, Palantir and Microsoft are profiting from and expediting Trump's incarceration and deportation operations. Some 10 percent of the Department of Homeland Security's $44 billion budget is dedicated to data management. The report was published as new documents obtained by the Project on Government Oversight show Amazon is pushing Immigration and Customs Enforcement to start using its controversial facial recognition technology that could identify immigrants in real time by scanning faces in a video feed. We speak with Jacin…
(2018-10-23). Headlines for October 23, 2018. democracynow.org Turkish President: Khashoggi Murdered in Premeditated, Political Act, Mnuchin Meets Saudi Crown Prince as Trump Sends CIA Chief to Turkey, Hackers Target Saudi Investment Conference Website, Yemen: Tropical Storm Kills 12, Exacerbating Cholera Crisis, Bolton Meets with Russians as U.S. Plans Nuclear Treaty Withdrawal, Central American Caravan Continues Toward U.S. Despite Trump Threats, Mexico: Tropical Storm Vicente Kills 12 as Hurricane Willa Approaches, Human Rights Watch: British Academic Jailed by UAE Denied Rights, Trans Rights Protests Target Plans to Narrow Definition of Gender, Trump Admin to Expand Reli…
(2018-10-23). Thousands rally in Sydney for workers' rights. greenleft.org.au 
Thousands of trade unionists marched through Sydney streets on October 23 as part of nationwide "Change The Rules" mobilisations coordinated by the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU). | The spirit of the marchers was buoyed by the federal Coalition government's loss of its one-seat parliamentary majority after its defeat in the October 20 Wentworth byelection. | Several union leaders, including Maritime Union of Australia assistant national secretary Warren Smith and ACTU president Michele O'Neil, warned that this was not an "elect Labor campaign", but a campaign to change the rules that are currently stac…
(2018-10-23). Fred Nile's foetal personhood bill is going to parliament, again. greenleft.org.au 
News that NSW MLC Fred Nile is using the last sitting weeks of state parliament before the March 2019 election to push his "Zoe's law" bill — which would give foetuses legal rights — should alarm us all. | Women's rights activists emailed MPs and organised a snap action outside NSW Parliament on October 25, the day Nile tried, but failed, to introduce his private member's bill. Greens MLCs Cate Faehrmann and Jenny Leong and Labor MLC Penny Sharpe joined the action, comm…
(2018-10-22). Headlines for October 22, 2018. democracynow.org Trump to Withdraw from 1987 U.S.-Russia Nuclear Deal, Plans to Establish Biological Definition of Gender Threatens Trans Rights, Saudi Arabia Says Khashoggi Killed in "Fistfight" Amid Mounting U.S. Pressure, NYT: Saudi Troll Farm Targeted Khashoggi, Other Critics on Twitter, Afghanistan: 27 Killed, 100 Injured as Voters Head to Polls, Gaza: Israeli Forces Shoot and Injure 130 Palestinian Protesters, Israel Delays Plans to Evict Bedouin Village in West Bank, Central American Caravan Crosses into Mexico as Trump Threats Mount, Honduras: Lawyers for Victim Berta Cáceres Removed from Murder Trial, Florida: $339 Milli…
(2018-10-22). The Trump Administration Is Trying to Erase Trans People, but the Law Clearly Protects Them. aclu.org A recently leaked memo is attempting to undermine decades of court decisions saying federal law protects transgender and nonbinary people. | Over the weekend, The New York Times revealed that officials within the Trump administration are pushing for a definition of the term "sex" in federal civil rights laws that would eliminate non-discrimination protections for transgender people. Transgender people and their families understandably panicked at that news. | The reality, though, is that transgender pe…
(2018-10-22). FRSO leader condemns Trump administration's attacks on transgender rights. fightbacknews.org Minneapolis, MN — Steff Yorek, the Political Secretary of Freedom Road Socialist Organization, sharply condemned the Trump administration, October 22, for orchestrating attacks on the democratic rights of transgender people. | According to widespread media reports, officials in the Trump admiration are moving to alter Title IX rules to exclude transgender people for any legal protections. | "The reactionary and right-wing bigots of the Trump administration are preparing an attack on the democratic rights of transgender people. They are attempting to erase people's existence, and roll back the framework fo…
(2018-10-22). "Reminiscent of South Africa's Grand Apartheid": Israeli Human Rights Group Slams Israel at U.N. democracynow.org 
Shortly after Israel announced a new "zero tolerance" policy toward demonstrations in Gaza, some 130 Palestinians were injured Friday while protesting ongoing Israeli occupation and demanding the right of return. Four paramedics and 25 children were among the injured. Ten thousand protesters gathered along Israel's heavily militarized separation barrier with Gaza as part of the weekly Great March of Return protests that began March 30. Since then, Israeli forces have killed at least 170 Palestinians, including more than 30 children, and injured thousands more. We speak with Hagai El-Ad, the executive director of…
(2018-10-22). Trump NLRB moves to restrict unions right to picket. fightbacknews.org Tampa, FL – A recent ruling of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) said that janitors who were picketing for better working conditions were not protected from unfair labor practices committed by their employer. The Board ruled that the janitors, who were being contracted by a building management company, were engaged in secondary picketing. With a Trump-appointed NLRB, workers fighting for rights on the job will be facing new challenges. | The janitors were working for Rafael Ortiz, under a company called Ortiz Janitorial Services (OJS), which was hired by Preferred Building Services to fulfil a contract wi…
(2018-10-22). Blaming Saudis for Corrupting Otherwise Human Rights—Loving US. fair.org 
As FAIR has noted for years, one of the primary ideological functions of US corporate media is to maintain the mythology that the US is a noble protector of democracy and arbiter of human rights. When material facts—like wars of aggression, massive spying regimes, the funding and arming right-wing militias and the propping up of dictators—get in the way of this mythology the response by most pundits is to wave away these inconsistencies (FAIR.org, 2/1/09), ignore them altogether (FAIR.org, (2018-10-22). Children march for refugees in Melbourne. greenleft.org.au 
More than 4000 young people and adults packed into Birrarung Marr park on October 21 for a Children's March for Nauru, to demand all refugees imprisoned on the Pacific island be resettled in Australia. | Chanting "nurture not torture" and "kids out, all out", participants marched into the city. | The action was organised by the Artists' Committee and Melbourne Youth with Refugees. | Artists' Committee's Kylie Wilkinson told Green Left Weekly: "It was so heartening to see so many people come out in support of people trapped in Australia's offshore prisons. | "People genuinely wanted to give young people a ch…
(2018-10-22). SPLC statement on Trump administration's efforts to remove civil rights protections from transgender Americans. splcenter.org The Trump administration has apparently redoubled its efforts to exclude transgender Americans from the protection of federal civil rights laws.