(2019-06-27). Protecting encryption is about protecting democracy. greenleft.org.au 
Lawyer, writer and digital rights activist Lizzie O'Shea has been named a 2018 Human Rights Hero by Access Now for her leading role in highlighting, analysing and protesting expansive surveillance laws in Australia. Below is an edited version of her acceptance speech on June 11. | *** | Thanks so much to Access Now for this wonderful award. It's such a great initiative to support activists in the field doing important work. Awards usually go to famous people at the top of their fields, and the challenging activist work of mobilising people and community building is rarely acknowledged. I feel honoured, especially…
(2019-06-27). Time for a Global Minimum Wage. counterpunch.org The International Labour Organization (ILO) is celebrating its 100th anniversary this June. In the wake of a devastating world war, its mission was transformational: to realize social justice and the rights of workers everywhere. But now, 100 years later, exploitative working conditions remain the norm, more people than ever live in poverty, and the richest More
(2019-06-27). Boston: Hundreds protest Wayfair's profiting from sales to immigrant detention centers. wsws.org Employees learned last week that a $200,000 order of bedroom furniture from Wayfair was placed by a private contractor for a detention facility.
(2019-06-27). American Concentration Camps. commondreams.org A bus transporting immigrants leaves a temporary facility at a US Border Patrol Station in Clint, Texas, on June 21, 2019. – Lawyers who were able to tour the facility under the Flores Settlement, which governs detention conditions for migrant children, said they witnessed inhumane conditions of overcrowding, and about 250 children being held over the limit of 72 hours, some saying they were there for weeks in overcrowded cells. (Photo: Paul Ratje / AFP) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files……
(2019-06-27). Argentina Dismantles International Arms Trafficking Gang. plenglish.com 27 de junio de 2019, 08: 56Buenos Aires, Jun 27 (Prensa Latina) At least 23 people were detained in a major operation by the Argentine public force, which managed to find the whereabouts of an international gang dedicated to arms trafficking.
(2019-06-27). Most of Those Involved in Attempted Coup in Venezuela Detained. plenglish.com 27 de junio de 2019, 09: 00Caracas, Jun 27 (Prensa Latina) Most of those involved in the new attempted coup against the Venezuelan government were detained by the country"s authorities, the president of the National Constituent Assembly, Diosdado Cabello, said.
(2019-06-26). It's 2019: Why Do LGBTQ Americans Still Lack Basic Civil-Rights Protections? thenation.com It's 2019: Why Do LGBTQ Americans Still Lack Basic Civil-Rights Protections?
(2019-06-26). White Nationalist Threats Against Transgender People Are Escalating. splcenter.org Transphobic rhetoric, some of it violent, appears to be increasing among white nationalists and neo-Nazis as the fight for transgender rights gains visibility and public support.
(2019-06-26). I've Lived on the Border My Entire Life. The Courts Must Shut Down Trump's Border Wall. aclu.org Communities, public lands and property are threatened by the president's abuse of emergency powers. | The ecological destruction of Arizona, New Mexico, and California hangs in the balance as courts decide whether to block President Trump's abuse of emergency powers to secure funds for a border wall Congress denied. | On Feb. 15, 2019, President Trump declared a national emergency so that he could raid the military budget for billions of dollars for border wall construction. The declaration came after the president put the country through the longest government shutdown in U.S. history over Congress's refusal to…
(2019-06-26). Wednesday's Daily Brief: migration tragedy in the Rio Grande, drugs report, Torture Victims Day. un.org Top news, this Thursday are: the migration debate spurred by the tragic image of a drowned man and his daughter in the Rio Grande; the Khashoggi killing discussed at the Human Rights Council; key findings from the latest UN report on drugs; updates from South Sudan and Mali; International Day in Support of Victims of Torture; and an event on tolerance in at UN headquarters in New York.
(2019-06-26). Violent Voyeurism: Surveillance, Spyware and Human Rights. counterpunch.org Surveillance is merely a variant of violent voyeurism, the human behind the camera or visual apparatus observing behaviour in a setting, often private. Its premise is privacy's violation; its working assumption is privacy's irrelevance; officially tolerated such a concept is unofficially repudiated. Studies on surveillance do as much to reveal its problems as accommodate them: More
(2019-06-26). With New 'Imposed Contract,' Trump's EPA Tries to Neuter Worker Rights. commondreams.org Agency announces new collective bargaining agreement—which was not agreed upon | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files……
(2019-06-26). NRA Breaks With Its PR firm, Lobbyist and TV Station. truthdig.com 
Infighting at the organization erupts at a time when its ability to influence the 2020 election could decide the fate of gun rights.
(2019-06-26). 'Summon the spirit of San Francisco', says General Assembly President on UN Charter anniversary. un.org Reaffirming faith in human rights, promoting social justice and saving the world from the "scourge of war": just some of the founding principles of the United Nations, which appear in the Organization's bedrock Charter, signed exactly 74 years ago in San Francisco.
(2019-06-26). New Racial Discrimination Lawsuit Filed Against Macy's Over Criminal History Screening Policy. blackstarnews.com 
The NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF), the law firm of Outten & Golden LLP (O&G), and Youth Represent (YR) filed a lawsuit today in the Southern District of New York against Macy's, Inc. (Macy's), challenging its use of an unnecessarily punitive criminal history screening policy. | According to the lawsuit, the policy disproportionately disqualifies Black and Latinx applicants and employees from job opportunities in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII) and the New York City Human Rights Law. | Plaintiffs, The Fortune Society, Inc. (Fortune) and Ms. Jenetta Rolfer,…
(2019-06-26). Scotland's Environmental Rights at Risk if Brexit Passes. telesurenglish.net Scotland is set to lose anti-pollution and environmental protection laws if Brexit is approved, activists say. | RELATED: | Johnson To Support Hard Brexit Without Another Option | Despite numerous requests and meetings with Scottish ministers, World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Scotland says new legislation to provide the same rights enjoyed in the country provided within the European Union has not been created. | Consequently, conservation groups like the WWF will have a difficult time maintai…
(2019-06-26). Raising our Voices for Equality at Stonewall and the Supreme Court. aclu.org 50 years after the riots at Stonewall, we are telling the Supreme Court not to roll back protections for LGBTQ people. | It's been half a century since the Stonewall uprising began on June 28, 1969, the reason we celebrate Pride each June. But there's another fitting date to commemorate this month, and it falls just two days before the 50th anniversary of Stonewall. | June 26 marks the anniversary of the Supreme Court's landmark decision in 2003 striking down state laws that criminalized same-sex intimacy. T…
(2019-06-26). The Problem With Child Detention Isn't That It's Private. It's That It Exists. truthout.org The House passed a bill on Tuesday that would allocate $4.5 billion to cover the burgeoning costs of Trump's internment of migrant children, teens and adults along the border. While the legislation was characterized as an "aid package," Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ihan Omar, Ayanna Pressley and Rashida Tlaib voted against the bill. In a statement explaining her position, Omar stated, "Throwing more money at the very organizations committing human rights abuses — and the very Administration directing these human rights abuses — is not a solution." This congressional drama occurred on the same da…
(2019-06-26). Arms Dealers and Lobbyists Get Rich as Yemen Burns. globalresearch.ca Chronic human rights violator Saudi Arabia is using American-made weapons against civilians in the fifth-poorest nation in the world, Yemen. And make no mistake: U.S. defense contractors and their lobbyists and supporters in government are getting rich in the process….
(2019-06-26). AFT's Weingarten On Public Service Freedom To Negotiate Act And Protecting Employee Rights. blackstarnews.com 
AFT members, including AFT President Randi Weingarten, at townhall with 2020 presidential candidate California Senator Kamala Harris… | WASHINGTON—American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten issued the following statement in support of the Public Service Freedom to Negotiate Act, reintroduced today in the House of Representatives, which will guarantee collective bargaining rights for public sector employees across the country: | "Public workers educate our students, treat our patients and keep our communities strong and safe. But in many states, they have been denied their basic freedom to…
(2019-06-26). Pro-worker Dems mistrust Trump, want worker rights written into 'new NAFTA'. peoplesworld.org 
WASHINGTON—A coalition of pro-worker House Democrats, led by veteran Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., opened talks on June 25 with President Donald Trump's trade negotiator about writing strong and specific worker rights straight into Trump's "new NAFTA," rather than just into U.S. legislation to implement the controversial "free trade" pact. "We have made it clear from …
(2019-06-26). Women Accuse Gambia's Former President of Rape, Assault. telesurenglish.net Former Gambian President Yahya Jammeh is being accused by various women of forcing them into having sex with him, using moral, financial and physical pressure. | RELATED: | Mauritania: Ruling Party Claims Victory, Opposition Contests | The facts go back to the time when the former dictator was running the country from 1996 until 2016, according to a Human Rights Watch (HRW) report released Wednesday. | After an 18 month investigation, the organization published a statement alleg…
(2019-06-26). Mobile World Congress at China Displays 5G Tech Advances. telesurenglish.net The leading tech companies are gathered at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Shanghai, the most important Asian telephony fair where the 5G tech is being displayed as a reality. | RELATED: | US: Trump Sanctions More Chinese Tech Companies for 'Security' | The main telecommunications companies have focused their efforts on exhibiting their advances in this technology which will transform societies in areas ranging from medicine to transportation. | The 5G tech goes far beyond mob…
(2019-06-26). Trump Imposes New Sanctions Amid Continuing War Threat Against Iran. globalresearch.ca President Donald Trump and his treasury secretary, Steven Mnuchin, unveiled Monday what the US administration had touted as new "harsh" and "hard-hitting" economic sanctions against Iran in the wake of last week's Iranian shoot-down of a sophisticated US drone …
(2019-06-26). An Honorable Course in Iran: End Sanctions, Resume Dialogue. dissidentvoice.org 
Last week, Elham Pourtaher, an Iranian graduate student at the State University of New York in Albany, wrote about how U.S. policies cause suffering and trauma far beyond U.S. borders. Her diabetic father, for example, is in danger of losing access to medicines because sanctions against Iranian banks make it nearly impossible to pay for …
(2019-06-26). U.S. threatens Sudan with sanctions if violence continues. cgtn.com 
A top U.S. State Department official who deals with Sudan said on Tuesday that Washington was possible sanctions if there was more violence. | Sudanese protesters close Street 60 with burning tyres and pavers on June 3, 2019 (ASHRAF SHAZLY/AFP/Getty Images) | "We're looking at all options, including sanctions down the line should there be any kind of repeat of violence," Makila James, deputy assistant secretary for East Africa and the Sudans, told a U.S. House of Representatives hearing. | She said they could include visa sanctions or economic sanctions. "We want to use the right tool and we want to target the ri…
(2019-06-26). Trump's prisons for migrant children are "torture chambers" — shut them down. peoplesworld.org 
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(2019-06-26). Vile act of torture prohibited 'under all circumstances', UN chief affirms on International Day to support victims. un.org While the prohibition of torture is "absolute, under all circumstances", UN Secretary-General António Guterres bemoaned the fact that "this core principle is undermined every day" – in detention centres, prisons, police stations, psychiatric institutions and other places where captor can prey on captive.
(2019-06-26). 'It is a Stain on Our Country': Warren Joins Protest Outside Child Detention Facility in Florida. commondreams.org "There are a lot of different ways that we get in the fight. And one of them is that you show up." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files……
(2019-06-26). Juan González: There Are Refugees in Desperate Need of Help in Airports Across the United States. democracynow.org 
Co-host Juan González was at the Dallas/Fort Worth airport this past Sunday, where he encountered Central American refugee families recently released from detention centers. The families, who were from Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras, had been left there by Immigration and Customs Enforcement without guidance or a translator to help them navigate their flight information. The families were likely traveling to cities where they could reunite with loved ones already in living in the U.S. In the case of the Guatemalan families, most of them didn't speak Spanish, but indigenous languages. None of them spoke Engli…
(2019-06-26). Horrific detention center conditions expose Trump's true immigration policy: unmitigated, unrelenting cruelty. splcenter.org A year ago, America awoke to the shocking images of children being held in cages — children who had been stolen from their asylum-seeking parents at the border by an administration that had no plan to reunite them.
(2019-06-26). Refugees in Desperate Need of Help in Airports Across the United States. truthout.org Co-host Juan González was at the Dallas/Fort Worth airport this past Sunday, where he encountered Central American refugee families recently released from detention centers. The families, who were from Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras, had been left there by Immigration and Customs Enforcement without guidance or a translator to help them navigate their flight information. The families were likely traveling to cities where they could reunite with loved ones already in living in the U.S. In the case of the Guatemalan families, most of them didn't speak Spanish, but indigenous languages. None of them s…
(2019-06-26). At #WayfairWalkout Actions, Workers Denounce Company Profiting From Child Detention. commondreams.org "The safety and well-being of immigrant children is always worth fighting for." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files……
(2019-06-26). Democrats Confront the Horror at the Border. thenation.com Democrats Confront the Horror at the Border…
(2019-06-26). Survivor of WWII Internment Camp Speaks Out: Japanese Americans Know the Trauma of Child Detention. democracynow.org 
Amid reports of inhumane and degrading conditions at child immigration jails along the southern border, we speak with Satsuki Ina, a Japanese-American psychotherapist who was born in the Tule Lake Segregation Center, a maximum-security internment camp for Japanese Americans during WWII. "After decades of living our lives as compliant and quiet, and demonstrating and proving ourselves as good citizens, many of us have felt that it's time for us to speak out, to protest, to resist, and to speak out in ways that we haven't in the past, because we know what these children are experiencing," Ina said. "We know what it…
(2019-06-26). Headlines for June 26, 2019. democracynow.org DHS Moves 100 Children Back to Texas Border Patrol Station Deemed Unsafe and "Inhumane", House Passes Contentious $4.5 Billion Emergency Border Bill, "Defund Hate Campaign" Activists Call for Action on Migrant Deaths and Detention, Trump Threatens to "Obliterate" Iran as Bipartisan Reps Seek to Avoid Unauthorized Strikes, Robert Mueller to Testify Before House in July, Tiffany Cabán Leading Queens DA Race, U.S. and N. Korea in Talks for Third Summit, Pompeo Says U.S. Hoping for a Peace Deal and Ready to Pull Out Troops in Afghanistan, Spanish Supreme Court Ups Conviction of Men Who Raped and Filmed Teenager in 20…
(2019-06-26). US border official resigns amid uproar over children in detention. thecanary.co 
The acting head of US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has resigned amid an uproar over the discovery of children being held in pitiful conditions at one of the agency's stations in Texas.John Sanders's departure deepened the sense of crisis and added to the rapid turnover inside the agencies responsible for enforcing President Donald Trump's immigration priorities as the US deals with record numbers of families coming across the southern border.In a message to employees, Mr Sanders said he would step down on July 5. He did not give a reason for leaving. | "Although I will leave it to you to determine whether…
(2019-06-26). DHS Whistleblower Who Spoke Out Against Obama-Era Immigration Jails Condemns Conditions on Border. democracynow.org 
Immigration jails along the southern border are facing heightened scrutiny following horrific reports of dirty and unhygienic conditions at a detention center in Clint, Texas, and other facilities. We speak with government whistleblower Dr. Scott Allen, who was hired in 2014 to inspect facilities where immigrant families are incarcerated, who says degrading conditions for jailed migrants date back to Obama's presidency. He is calling for more government transparency about conditions in immigration facilities, saying, "I think most Americans, if they were confronted with the humanity of what we are doing here, wou…
(2019-06-26). Democrats Confront a Dilemma at the Border. thenation.com Democrats Confront a Dilemma at the Border…
(2019-06-26). Hundreds protest ICE in Philly. workers.org 
Just a few days after President Trump announced and then postponed his pledge to deport millions of immigrants, about 200 people protested at Philadelphia's Immigration and Customs Enforcement center on June 24. "Show Up: When Trump Cracks Down, Community Fights Back!" was called by the New Sanctuary Movement/Nuevo Movimiento Santuario, . . . | Continue reading Hundreds protest ICE in Philly at Workers.org
(2019-06-26). Nicaragua Arrests Four Suspected of Being IS Group Members. telesurenglish.net Nicaragua's national police have detained four individuals who they suspect to have links to the Islamic State group. Inspector General of the Police Jaime Vanegas, announced at a press conference Tuesday adding that the individuals were arrested crossing the border from Costa Rica. | RELATED: | ISIS Chief Vows Revenge in First Video in Five Years | "On June 25, at 10: 00 in the morning, members of the Nicaraguan Army carrying out border security tasks captured 4 suspects, allegedly link…
(2019-06-26). Marin Residents Meet To Plan More Anti ICE Pressure. indybay.org Unlike San Francisco, Marin County Sheriff Delivers Detainees to ICE…
(2019-06-26). So Who Is Reporting That Trump Sanctions Have Killed Thousands of Venezuelans? fair.org 
FAIR.org ( 6/14/19) | I wrote on June 14 about Reuters burying (for over a month) a study (CEPR, 4/25/19) by prominent economists Jeffrey Sachs and Mark Weisbrot that links economic sanctions President Donald Trump imposed on Venezuel…
(2019-06-26). Women Strike" el 14 de junio en Zurich, Suiza. workers.org 
Salario. Tiempo. Respeto. Ese fue el lema de la "Huelga de las Mujeres" de 24 horas por la igualdad salarial de género, la igualdad de derechos, el respeto y el fin de la violencia de género, que barrió Suiza el 14 de junio. "Women Strike" on June 14 in Zurich, . . . | Continue reading Women Strike" el 14 de junio en Zurich, Suiza at Workers.org
(2019-06-25). Ombudsman's Office of Colombia Concerned about Political Violence. plenglish.com 25 de junio de 2019, 14: 29Bogota, Jun 25 (Prensa Latina) The Colombian Ombudsman"s Office has expressed deep concern about the ongoing murders of social leaders and human rights defenders in the country.
(2019-06-25). The LGBTQ Struggle Has Always Been Intertwined With the Fight for Voting Rights. thenation.com The LGBTQ Struggle Has Always Been Intertwined With the Fight for Voting Rights…
(2019-06-25). Mexico Deploys Nearly 15,000 Troops to US Border. telesurenglish.net The Mexican military has deployed nearly 15,000 soldiers and National Guardsmen to their northern border with the United States, the head of the army said on Monday. | RELATED: | NGO Dubs Mexico-El Salvador Migrant Plan 'Superficial', Not Up to Human Rights Standards | According to the head of the army, the Mexican military is deploying these soldiers to the U.S. border to curb the surge of migrants entering the U.S. | Mexico has not traditionally used s…
(2019-06-25). Malawi electoral chief says court to decide on her resignation. cgtn.com 
Chairperson of the Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) Jane Ansah said Monday that she would resign only if the country's constitutional court orders that the electoral process had irregularities. | In an interview with a local TV and radio, Ansah responded to calls from the country's Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) led by Human Rights Defenders Coalition (HRDC), and opposition leaders who were demanding her resignation on claims that the May 21 presidential elections were fraudulently managed. | The HRDC on Thursday organized mass protests in the country's four cities of Mzuzu, Lilongwe, Blantyre and Zomba w…
(2019-06-25). UN chief praises impact of Palestine refugee agency as 'our common success', at key pledging conference. un.org The work of the UN body responsible for assisting Palestine refugees, UNRWA, which has allowed millions of children to receive an education that promotes UN values of human rights and tolerance, as well as democracy and conflict resolution, should be viewed "not only as our common responsibility, but as our common success", said Secretary-General António Guterres on Tuesday.
(2019-06-25). U.S. Rejectionist Policy Toward Palestinian Participation, Rights. globalresearch.ca Upon hearing the news that Palestinian diplomat Dr. Hanan Ashrawi had been denied entry to the United States on a speaking engagement, my husband wrote an e-mail to Indiana Senator Mike Braun titled, 'Tell State Dept & Trump to give …