How US Sanctions are Hurting Iran: A Firsthand Report
Medea Benjamin | zcomm.org | 2019-03-12
Trump's economic strangulation is having devastating people on the Iranian people…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/how-us-sanctions-are-hurting-iran-a-firsthand-report/
How US Sanctions are Hurting Iran: A Firsthand Report
Medea Benjamin | counterpunch.org | 2019-03-12
On a recent delegation to Iran, we experienced first-hand the legendary Iranian hospitality. Iranians are particularly thrilled to meet Americans, but as we discovered, our government's policies are hurting the very people who want to be our friends. As our 28-person delegation traveled through the country wearing messages on our jackets proclaiming "Peace with Iran"
counterpunch.org/2019/03/12/how-us-sanctions-are-hurting-iran-a-firsthand-report/
Brazil: 2 Former Police Arrested in Marielle Franco Murder
teleSUR | telesurenglish.net | 2019-03-12
Two former policemen were captured Tuesday in Rio de Janeiro as suspects in the murder of Marielle Franco, a councilwoman and human rights activist who was shot on Mar. 14, 2018. | RELATED: | Bolsonaro's Son Linked to Suspect of Marielle Franco's Murder | "Two police officers were arrested with a direct and effective participation in the crime," Marcus Vinicius Braga, Rio de Janeiro state police secretary, said and added that "with the these arrests, we get close to solving the cr…
telesurenglish.net/news/Brazil-2-Former-Police-Arrested-in-Marielle-Franco-Murder-20190312-0006.html
Two former police officers arrested over murder of Marielle Franco and Anderson Gomes
Brasil de Fato | peoplesdispatch.org | 2019-03-12
Two suspects in the killing of councilwoman and human rights activist Marielle Franco and driver Anderson Gomes were arrested this morning in Rio de Janeiro, almost one year after the crime. It is still unclear, however, who ordered the assassination and the motive. | At 4: 30 a.m. local time, 48-year-old retired military police officer Ronnie Lessa and 46-year-…
peoplesdispatch.org/2019/03/12/two-former-police-officers-arrested-over-murder-of-marielle-franco-and-anderson-gomes/
Italy Court Clears 2 Men of Rape Because Woman 'Too Manly'
teleSUR | telesurenglish.net | 2019-03-12
Two men, who were found guilty of rape in 2016, were cleared of the charges by an appeal court in the Italian city of Ancona because the victim was "not credible," a decision that triggered a strong reaction from different organizations concerned with the defense of the rights of women who protested Monday in front of the court shortly after the news became public. | RELATED: | Italy's Far-right Celebrate Women's Day With Sexist Flyer | The judges — who were all females –…
telesurenglish.net/news/Italy-Court-Clears-2-Men-of-Rape-Because-Woman-Too-Manly-20190312-0009.html
The Political Class's Disregard for Irish Life
Patrick Cockburn | counterpunch.org | 2019-03-12
The families of the 13 innocent people shot dead by the Parachute Regiment when they took part in a civil rights march against internment without trial in Londonderry in 1972 will learn in the coming week if soldiers, who are alleged to have carried out the killings, will be prosecuted. There is no doubt about…
counterpunch.org/2019/03/12/the-political-classs-disregard-for-irish-life/
NAACP-Opposed judicial nominee coming up this week
Adam Lee | naacp.org | 2019-03-12
President Trump has nominated Ms. Neomi Rao to serve as a judge on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. Ms. Rao has an extraordinarily long record of hostility to the rights of people of color and other historically marginalized people. The NAACP is strongly opposed to this nomination, which may come before the full Senate for …
naacp.org/latest/naacp-opposed-judicial-nominee-coming-week/
The UN Fails to Name and Shame Firms Aiding Israel's Illegal Settlements
Jonathan Cook | commondreams.org | 2019-03-12
A 2013 report on the ties between big business and the settlements noted the impact on the rights of Palestinians was "pervasive and devastating." (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files……
commondreams.org/views/2019/03/12/un-fails-name-and-shame-firms-aiding-israels-illegal-settlements?cd-origin=rss
Lavrov: US Sanction Against Russian Company Violates Int'l Law
teleSUR | telesurenglish.net | 2019-03-12
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is criminalizing Russian companies for doing business with the Venezuelan state, saying they are violated U.S. imposed sanctions by making transactions with Venezuela's sanctioned oil company Petroleos de Venezuela (PDVSA). | RELATED: | US Presses India to Stop Buying Oil from Venezuela | In a Monday press conference Pompeo said that the assets of Evrofinance Mosnarbank, a Russia-Venezuel…
telesurenglish.net/news/Lavrov-US-Sanction-Against-Russian-Company-Violates-Intl-Law-20190312-0005.html
The Media's 6 Biggest Lies About North Korea
Mike Whitney | globalresearch.ca | 2019-03-12
Here are six of the media's biggest lies about North Korea: | 1–Did North Korea end the negotiations in Hanoi because Trump refused to lift sanctions? | No. That's not what happened at all. Kim Jong un made a serious offer to …
globalresearch.ca/biggest-lies-north-korea/5671193
Is ICE Trying to Intimidate Anti-Trump and Anti-ICE Protest?
Shared by Jocelyn Dombroski | therealnews.com | 2019-03-12
An investigation published in The Nation discovered that ICE has been tracking anti-Trump and anti-ICE protests in New York City. Activists find this especially disturbing in light of ICE's effort to deport immigration rights activist Ravi Ragbir…
therealnews.com/stories/is-ice-trying-to-intimidate-anti-trump-and-anti-ice-protest
Socialist Equality Party files lawsuit against German secret service
WSWS | wsws.org | 2019-03-12
The SGP calls on all individuals, organizations, and institutions that defend democratic rights to support the suit against the secret service's attacks.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2019/03/12/sgpk…
Judging U.S. War Crimes
Kathy Kelly | counterpunch.org | 2019-03-11
Chelsea Manning, who bravely exposed atrocities committed by the U.S. military, is again imprisoned in a U.S. jail. On International Women's Day, March 8, 2019, she was incarcerated in the Alexandria, VA federal detention center for refusing to testify in front of a secretive Grand Jury. Her imprisonment can extend through the term of the Grand Jury, possibly 18 months, and the U.S. courts could allow formation of future Grand Juries, potentially jailing her again.
counterpunch.org/2019/03/11/judging-u-s-war-crimes/
Free Press Action and Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law Release Proposed 'Online Civil Rights and Privacy Act' to Combat Data Discrimination
commondreams | commondreams.org | 2019-03-11
______________________________…
commondreams.org/newswire/2019/03/11/free-press-action-and-lawyers-committee-civil-rights-under-law-release-proposed?cd-origin=rss
NAACP 110th Convention Mobilizing in Detroit
Aba Blankson | naacp.org | 2019-03-11
NAACP 110th Convention Mobilizing in Detroit Thousands Expected to Join in Setting NAACP 2020 Agenda Fighting Racism and Defending the Vote, Among Key Issues to be Discussed BALTIMORE (March 8, 2019) — The nation's foremost civil rights organization will kick off its 110th national convention on July 20-24, 2019 in Detroit, Michigan. "In a country shaped by race relations, pollution and polarizing political struggles, Detroit stands out as the …
naacp.org/latest/naacp-110th-convention-mobilizing-detroit/
Rally opposes Christmas Island plan
kathy_f | greenleft.org.au | 2019-03-11
About 80 people attended a rally called by the Refugee Action Collective on March 2 to protest against the Australian government's plan to reopen the detention centre on Christmas Island and send refugees from Manus Island and Nauru there. | The rally heard Shamindan Kanapadhi, a Tamil refugee on Manus, speak by phone about the conditions there, including inadequate medical care. He said "all of us on Manus are mentally sick," because of the inhumane and humiliating treatment to which they are subject. | Rally co-chair Tara Josem read a message from David Price, the CEO of Christmas Island shire, who said th…
greenleft.org.au/content/rally-opposes-christmas-island-plan
Kentucky teachers speak against attacks on public education
WSWS | wsws.org | 2019-03-11
Teachers in Kentucky are holding discussions and seeking to develop their fight for pension rights and the defense of public education in the face of sabotage by the state and local teacher unions.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2019/03/11/kent…
Huawei sues US govt. over federal ban on use on its products
Peoples Dispatch | peoplesdispatch.org | 2019-03-10
Huawei's chief financial officer, Meng Wanzhou, was arrested in Canada on December 1 on the request of the US. Her arrest was linked to violations of US sanctions against Iran, bank fraud and theft of technology, allegations she has denied…
peoplesdispatch.org/2019/03/10/huawei-sues-us-govt-on-federal-ban-on-use-of-its-products/
A Lakota historian on what climate organizers can learn from two centuries of indigenous resistance
Eds. | mronline.org | 2019-03-09
NICK ESTES DID not intend to write a book about Standing Rock. He was working on his dissertation about Indigenous rights at the United Nations when the movement against the Dakota Access pipeline exploded on the edge of one of the 16 northern Plains Indian reservations of the Oceti Sakowin people, known by the U.S. […] | Source…
mronline.org/2019/03/09/a-lakota-historian-on-what-climate-organizers-can-learn-from-two-centuries-of-indigenous-resistance/
'Fraud & election theft': Conservatives melt down after House Democrats pass voting rights bill
RT | rt.com | 2019-03-09
House Democrats have unanimously passed a sprawling voting rights, campaign finance, and ethics bill — which Republicans have unanimously opposed as a to-do list for "voter fraud and election theft." | …
rt.com/usa/453381-house-voting-rights-bill-fraud/
US women footballers go to court for pay equality
stuart_m | greenleft.org.au | 2019-03-09
United States football (soccer) players filed a federal gender discrimination lawsuit on International Women's Day on March 8 seeking pay equal to that of their male counterparts. | The action comes just three months before the women's national team will defend its title at the Women's World Cup. | The class-action lawsuit was filed today in a Los Angeles federal court under the Equal Pay Act and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. It alleges gender-based discrimination by the US Football Federation. | The players allege they have been subject to ongoing "institutionalised gender discrimination". This includes une…
greenleft.org.au/content/us-women-footballers-go-court-pay-equality
Weekend Read: Why is racism still America's biggest problem?
splcenter | splcenter.org | 2019-03-08
It rained on marchers from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama, in 1965, and it rained on them again last weekend as they commemorated the day when police beat civil rights marchers so badly that the date became known the nation over as Bloody Sunday.
splcenter.org/news/2019/03/08/weekend-read-why-racism-still-america%25E2%2580%2599s-biggest-problem
International Women's Day 2019: We have had enough of Trump and the war on women
Fight Back | fightbacknews.org | 2019-03-08
Enough is enough. Trump, his administration, and his backers are waging war on women, and millions of women are making it clear that we are not going to be pushed backwards. From the massive Women's Marches, to the midterm elections, to the constant, everyday resistance, women are standing up against Trump's reactionary agenda. | Trump and his supporters in the Senate want to pack the Supreme Court and roll back reproductive rights, and they have gotten a start by appointing the drunken misogynist Brett Kavanaugh. Accompanying the administrations outrageous policy of placing immigrants in detention, Trump's Justi…
www.fightbacknews.org/2019/3/8/internati…
A Federal Appeals Court Confirms That the Constitution Guarantees Immigrants Access to Courts
ACLU | aclu.org | 2019-03-08
In a landmark decision, a federal appeals court struck down a law limiting judicial review of expedited removal orders as unconstitutional. | In a major decision on Thursday, a federal appeals court held that immigrants are entitled to seek judicial review of their "expedited removal" orders in federal court. This decision is a significant step towards ensuring that vulnerable asylum seekers and others will get a fair shot to prove their claims that our immigration laws and the U.S. Constitution guarantee. | Vijayakumar Th…
aclu.org/blog/immigrants-rights/deportation-and-due-process/federal-appeals-court-confirms-constitution
NAACP Commends House Passage of For the People Act — H.R. 1 Election Reform Bill
Rachel Johnson | naacp.org | 2019-03-08
Contact: Malik Russell /mrussell@naacpnet.org BALTIMORE (March 8, 2019)–The nation's leading civil rights organization issued the following statement regarding today's passage of groundbreaking election reform bill For the People Act/H.R. 1 by the U.S. House of Representatives. "The For the People Act represents a powerful effort to reinforce the truest principles of our democracy and pushes …
naacp.org/latest/naacp-commends-house-passage-people-act-h-r-1-election-reform-bill/
Immigrant Advocates Just Got JPMorgan Chase to Stop Financing Private Prisons
Javier H. Valdés, Ana María Archila | thenation.com | 2019-03-08
Javier H. Valdés, Ana María Archila Immigrant Advocates Just Got JPMorgan Chase to Stop Financing Private Prisons…
thenation.com/article/jpmorgan-chase-private-prisons-detention/
End Venezuela Sanctions Says Rep. Ro Khanna and 15 Progressive Democrats
Shared by Jocelyn Dombroski | therealnews.com | 2019-03-08
16 progressive members of Congress sent a letter to the Trump administration, demanding an end to economic sanctions and to military threats against Venezuela. We speak to Rep. Ro Khanna, who led the initiative…
therealnews.com/stories/end-venezuela-sanctions-says-rep-ro-khanna-and-15-progressive-democrats
Parents, Civil Rights Groups Sue Maryland For Underfunding Public Schools
Shared by Hezvo Mpunga | therealnews.com | 2019-03-08
The State of Maryland is facing fresh allegations of failing to adequately fund majority black schools, according to a brief jointly filed by parents, American Civil Liberties Union of Maryland and NAACP Legal Defense fund on Thursday, March 7.
therealnews.com/columns/parents-civil-rights-groups-sue-maryland-for-underfunding-public-schools
The Government Is Detaining and Interrogating Journalists and Advocates at the US-Mexico Border
ACLU | aclu.org | 2019-03-07
DHS created a list of people who were reporting on or working with the migrant caravan to flag for lengthy questioning at the U.S. border. | In what looks like a coordinated attack on constitutional rights, the U.S. government has reportedly been targeting journalists, activists, and lawyers working to raise awareness of issues facing migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border. | On Wednesday, the NBC affiliate in San Diego revealed leaked docu…
aclu.org/blog/free-speech/freedom-press/government-detaining-and-interrogating-journalists-and-advocates-us
War Crimes in Yemen? U.S. & U.K. Arms Killed & Injured Nearly 1,000 Civilians in Saudi-Led Attack
Democracy Now! | democracynow.org | 2019-03-07
As Yemen faces the world's worst humanitarian crisis, a major new report has been released documenting the role that the U.S. and Europe have played in the deaths of hundreds of civilians in the Saudi- and UAE-led war on Yemen. A group of organizations, including a Yemen-based human rights organization, released the damning report on Wednesday, claiming that between April 2015 and April 2018, 27 coalition attacks killed at least 203 civilians and injured at least 749 people. The report found that 22 of the attacks likely involved weapons produced in the United States. The other five attacks were carried out eithe…
www.democracynow.org/2019/3/7/war_crimes…
U.S. Has Supplied UAE $27B in Arms Despite Nation's Links to Torture, Mercenaries & Child Soldiers
Democracy Now! | democracynow.org | 2019-03-07
We look at how U.S. weapons are supporting the ongoing devastation in Yemen with William Hartung, director of the Arms and Security Project at the Center for International Policy. He is the author of a new report about the role the United Arab Emirates has played in Yemen. It is titled "'Little Sparta': The United States-United Arab Emirates Alliance and the War in Yemen." We also speak with Ruhan Nagra, the executive director of the University Network for Human Rights, and Radhya Al-Mutawakel, chairperson of the Mwatana Organization for Human Rights. They recently published an investigation into the role of U.S.
www.democracynow.org/2019/3/7/us_has_sup…
SPLC joins civil rights groups in friend-of-the-court brief urging Supreme Court to uphold fair, non-partisan redistricting principles
splcenter | splcenter.org | 2019-03-07
The U.S. Supreme Court this month will hear oral arguments in two cases that will test the court's readiness to tackle the issue of partisan gerrymandering.
splcenter.org/news/2019/03/07/splc-joins-civil-rights-groups-friend-court-brief-urging-supreme-court-uphold-fair-non
NAACP Joins NABJ in Criticism of CNN's Lack of Diversity in Leadership Positions
Aba Blankson | naacp.org | 2019-03-07
Civil Rights Group Voices Concerns over Diversity Failure to CNN BALTIMORE — The nation's foremost civil rights organization issued the following response to CNN President Jeff Zucker's refusal to address the lack of diversity in leadership positions: "It is vital that news organizations reflect the diversity of our country, which includes people of color in …
naacp.org/latest/naacp-joins-nabj-criticism-cnns-lack-diversity-leadership-positions/
Andrew Bacevich: The U.S.-Saudi Relationship Is a Principal Source of Instability in the Middle East
Democracy Now! | democracynow.org | 2019-03-07
We look at a number of recent developments in U.S.-Saudi relations, a day after the Senate Foreign Relations Committee held a confirmation hearing for retired four-star general John Abizaid to become U.S. ambassador to Saudi Arabia. On Monday, the Trump administration gave a private briefing to senators on the investigation into the murder of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi, who was killed inside the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul in October. Senators slammed the briefing for providing no new information. Meanwhile, The New York Times has revealed new details about the jailing and torture of a doctor with…
www.democracynow.org/2019/3/7/andrew_bac…
UN Commission Report Accuses Israel of War Crimes in Gaza
Shared by Jocelyn Dombroski | therealnews.com | 2019-03-07
International law professor Kevin Jon Heller discusses the report of the UN Human Rights Council, which says Israel must be held accountable for war crimes committed against unarmed civilians and that Israeli courts do not hold them accountable…
therealnews.com/stories/un-commission-report-accuses-israel-of-war-crimes-in-gaza
Kirstjen Nielsen Continues to Insist That There Is No Family Separation Policy
ACLU | aclu.org | 2019-03-06
During her congressional testimony, Homeland Security Secretary Nielsen dodged questions about her department's vicious border policies. | Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen testified on Wednesday before the House Committee on Homeland Security, just days after the House passed a resolution to overturn President Trump's emergency declaration on the border wall. | Nielsen has helped Trump push lies and fabrications about the supposed security crisis at the border, when in fact the only crisis…
aclu.org/blog/immigrants-rights/ice-and-border-patrol-abuses/kirstjen-nielsen-continues-insist-there-no
As National Socialist Movement Falls Into Disarray, League of the South, Neo-Nazi Billy Roper Seek To Pick Off Members
splcenter | splcenter.org | 2019-03-06
After a black civil rights advocate took over the neo-Nazi National Socialist Movement (NSM), Kynan Dutton had enough.
splcenter.org/hatewatch/2019/03/06/national-socialist-movement-falls-disarray-league-south-neo-nazi-billy-roper-seek-pick
Congress, Let's Fix the Problems in H.R. 1 So We Can Enact the Bill's Much-Needed Reforms
ACLU | aclu.org | 2019-03-05
As currently drafted, the For the People Act of 2019 violates the First Amendment rights of American citizens and public-interest organizations. | Members of Congress are expected to vote this week on H.R. 1, the For the People Act of 2019. There is a lot to like about the bill. , , To begin, its aim is to strengthen and expand participation in our democracy. We are at a crucial moment where our democratic institutions are not adequately protecting the will of the people, and we strongly support the goals of H.R. 1 to correct these infirmities. , , But, as we de…
aclu.org/blog/free-speech/campaign-finance-reform/congress-lets-fix-problems-hr-1-so-we-can-enact-bills-much
Ending the NSA's Massive Phone Spying Program Would Be a Good Start — But There's a Lot More to Do
ACLU | aclu.org | 2019-03-05
The successor to the NSA's bulk surveillance program revealed by Snowden is reportedly being abandoned. Congress needs to make sure it stays dead. | We may be one step closer to putting the final nail in the coffin of the National Security Agency's massive phone records surveillance program, if a New York Times report bears out. Ending this program is a good first step, but as Congress debates expiring Patriot Act provisions this year, it needs to do much more to protect individual rights, including eliminating t…
aclu.org/blog/national-security/privacy-and-surveillance/ending-nsas-massive-phone-spying-program-would-be
NAACP Calls for Justice in Stephon Clark Case
Regan Farley | naacp.org | 2019-03-05
Joins Sacramento Branch in Condemning DA's Failure to Charge Police Officers in Murder of Stephon Clark BALTIMORE (March 5, 2019)–The nation's foremost civil rights organization joins its NAACP Sacramento Branch in condemning Sacramento District Attorney Marie Schubert's decision to not charge Sacramento Police officers Terrence Mercadel and Jared Robinet with murder for the killing of …
naacp.org/latest/naacp-calls-justice-stephon-clark-case/
No to the Invasion of Venezuela!
The Jamaica Peace Council | venezuelanalysis.com | 2019-03-04
The Jamaica Peace Council (JPC) denounces the US President Donald Trump's Administration's recent sanctions — freezing of assets, acts of provocation and military aggression — against the people of Venezuela. These actions are in alarming violation of international law and the fundamental principles of human rights and national sovereignty.
venezuelanalysis.com/analysis/14365
The Coup in Venezuela, Explained
Aaron Bastani | zcomm.org | 2019-03-04
Sanctions and oil prices are to blame for the country's economic plight, while it boasts a far greater tradition of democracy than critics often realize let alone dare to admit…
zcomm.org/zvideo/the-coup-in-venezuela-explained/
Congressional, civil rights leaders gather at Civil Rights Memorial to honor movement's martyrs
splcenter | splcenter.org | 2019-03-02
U.S. Rep. John Lewis led a gathering of congressional and civil rights leaders in a wreath-laying ceremony at the Civil Rights Memorial in Montgomery, Alabama, today, honoring those who lost their lives in the struggle for civil rights.
splcenter.org/news/2019/03/02/congressional-civil-rights-leaders-gather-civil-rights-memorial-honor-movement%25E2%2580%2599s-martyrs
Trump's Other 'National Emergency': Sanctions That Kill Venezuelans
Mark Weisbrot — The Nation | venezuelanalysis.com | 2019-03-01
The humanitarian crisis will get rapidly worse if the most recent sanctions continue, Mark Weisbrot argues.
venezuelanalysis.com/analysis/14360
US Sanctions Four Venezuelan Governors as Lima Group Nixes Military Action
Paul Dobson | venezuelanalysis.com | 2019-02-26
Despite Saturday's failure to force in "humanitarian aid," Pence warned that there is "no turning back."
venezuelanalysis.com/news/14351
Trump Hits Venezuela with More Sanctions as US Military Planes Bring 'Aid'
Paul Dobson | venezuelanalysis.com | 2019-02-18
Three USAF planes landed 8km from the Venezuelan border, allegedly carrying "humanitarian aid."
venezuelanalysis.com/news/14332
No EU cost for Israeli 'apartheid' in West Bank
patrick | bdsmovement.net | 2019-02-14
No EU cost for Israeli 'apartheid' in West Bank: In the NewsBy Andrew Rettman Sanctions and governmentsFebruary 14, 2019 | By: | | euobserver …
bdsmovement.net/news/no-eu-cost-israeli-apartheid-west-bank