(2019-09-07). Trump lauds prisoner exchange between Russia & Ukraine as 'giant step to peace'. rt.com 
US President Donald Trump has praised the prisoner swap between Moscow and Ukraine, congratulating the two countries for making such a move and naming it a "giant step to peace." | Earlier in the day, Russia surrendered 35 individuals to Ukraine that had been held in its prisons and detainment centers, receiving an equal amount of people in return. | Weighing in, Trump wrote that it was indeed a step forward. | Very good news, perhaps a first giant step to peace. Congratulations to both countries!
(2019-09-07). Texas protest says "No kids in cages" fightbacknews.org Arlington, TX – 60 people showed up at a protest organized by the Progressive Student Union (PSU) at the University of Texas at Arlington, September 4, against the Trump administration's change to of policy on the detention of undocumented children. | Mark Napieralski, an organizer from the Progressive Student Union, spoke about how the Flores Agreement banned holding children indefinitely – and how the Trump administration is moving to keep children in indefinite detention in concentration camps along the southern border. | Speakers at the rally included Minister Katie Hays from the Galileo Church and Harold Ch…
(2019-09-07). How Pop Culture Tries to Justify Torture. truthout.org | | If you've ever had a conversation about torture, chances are that you know about the ticking bomb scenario, which many people became familiar with after 9/11 through the TV series "24," starring Kiefer Sutherland as the ruggedly uncompromising heroic torturer, Jack Bauer. | The scenario poses the following question: If there was a bomb hidden somewhere in a major city, and you had the person responsible for it in your custody, would you torture them to get the information needed to stop the bomb exploding, preventing a d…
(2019-09-07). Russia, Ukraine Swap Prisoners In First Step To Settle Conflict. telesurenglish.net Russia and Ukraine swapped 35 prisoners on each side Saturday in a lengthy and carefully-negotiated rapprochement that is considered a "first step" to mend the relations between Kiev and Moscow, although full normalization is still a long way ahead. | RELATED: | Ukraine's President Zelenskiy Leads Exit Poll on Snap Elections | Russian Human Rights Commissioner Tatyana Moskalkova hailed the prisoner exchange as "a historical mass-scale humanitarian action," confirming the sw…
(2019-09-07). Another police-state raid in Australia to protect spy agencies. wsws.org The Morrison government is stepping-up an offensive on democratic rights at the Trump administration's behest.
(2019-09-07). US Restricts Sending of Remittances to Cuba, Bans Donations. telesurenglish.net The United States Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control amended the Cuban Assets Control Regulations Friday to cap the amount of money family members can send to Cuba, ban donations and money transfers to or from the island through U.S. banks. | RELATED: | Cuban Economy Will Not Enter Recession Despite Blockade: Report | The new economic sanctions, which go into effect on Oct. 9, will restrict the remittances to US$ 1,000 per quarter, no longer allow transfers…
(2019-09-07). Iran Seizes Tugboat Carrying Suspected Smuggled Oil. telesurenglish.net The Iranian coast guard detained a foreign tugboat that was carrying smuggled oil through the Persian Gulf waters on Saturday. | RELATED: | 'US Treasury Is A Jail Warden' Iranian Foreign Minister Says | According to Iranian state television, their coast guard seized the tugboat after it was suspected to be carrying smuggled fuel. The Iranian authorities said the ship was seized and all 12 of its Filipino crew members were arrested. | It said the tugboat was carrying nearly 284,000…
(2019-09-06). North Carolina Did What SCOTUS Wouldn't — Ended GOP Gerrymandering. therealnews.com 
A North Carolina state court panel stopped the GOP's gerrymandering plan by ruling that the maps drawn for GOP-dominated voting districts were in violating of the state's constitution, and of the rights of North Carolina voters…
(2019-09-06). New U.N. Report Highlights US, UK, France War Crimes in Yemen Since 2014. globalresearch.ca The second largest sovereign state in the Arabian Peninsula, Yemen, has been ravaged by war, deliberate starvation, and cholera for over four years. A 274 page U.N. report released on Tuesday, highlights the human rights situation including violations and abuses …
(2019-09-06). Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law Condemns Trump Administration's Proposal to Reform Housing Policy. commondreams.org ______________________________…
(2019-09-06). Washington escalates "maximum pressure" campaign against Iran. wsws.org More than a year after re-imposing a punishing sanctions regime, and no closer to achieving regime change, the US is adopting increasingly reckless measures.
(2019-09-06). End religious discrimination. greenleft.org.au 
civil rightsIssue 1236 Australia religious discrimination bill LGBTI MelbourneSeptember 6, 2019A rally against the proposed religious exemptions bill was held in Melbourne on August 31. | The bill wo…
(2019-09-06). NSW to mobilise for free, safe abortion. greenleft.org.au 
abortion decriminalisation Pip HinmanIssue 1236 Australia Reproductive Health Care Reform Bill 2019 reproductive rightsSeptember 6, 2019Supporters of the r…
(2019-09-06). Headlines for September 6, 2019. democracynow.org Hurricane Dorian Death Toll in Bahamas Rises to 30, Likely Far Higher, Trump Personally Altered Map to Promote False Hurricane Threat to Alabama, Brazilian Archbishops Denounce Amazon Fires, Brazil's President Taunts U.N. Human Rights Chief over Her Family's Torture by Pinochet, Taliban Suicide Blast Kills 12 in Afghan Capital, Including Two NATO Soldiers, Robert Mugabe, Zimbabwean Liberation Fighter Turned Dictator, Dies at 95, Mike Pence Stayed in Trump Golf Resort 180+ Miles from Talks with Irish Leaders, Brother of British PM Boris Johnson Quits Parliament over Brexit, Federal Judge Rules Federal Terrorism Wa…
(2019-09-06). 'Total victory'? US terrorist watchlist ruled 'unconstitutional' with no remedy in sight. rt.com 
The US government's list of "known or suspected terrorists" violates the constitutional due process rights of the million-plus people on it, a judge has ruled, but the government insists the case doesn't belong in court at all. | The watchlist, with no "ascertainable standard for inclusion and exclusion" — one need not have been convicted or even suspected of a crime in order to end up on it, and being acquitted of a crime does not necessarily result in removal — is too vague to risk depriving Americans of their "travel-related and reputational liberty interests," Eastern District of Virginia Judge A…
(2019-09-05). Sanders wants to fund abortions in 'poor countries' to fight climate change. rt.com 
US presidential candidate Bernie Sanders said he would support using taxpayer money to fund abortions in foreign countries as a means of population control in the face of climate change. | Sanders merged the hot-button issues of climate change and abortion rights, at the same time singling out developing nations as the culprits overpopulating Earth, during a six-and-a-half-hour CNN townhall on climate change on Wednesday. While his supporters appeared galvanized, the proposal invoked the wrath of his detractors online. | Bernie Sanders wants to take taxpayer money and use it to fund abortions in "poor countrie…
(2019-09-05). Russia and Turkey's ongoing cooperation provokes tension with Europe and the US. uwidata.com 
Turkey's purchase of the Russian S-400 systems (in spite of US sanctions and threats), along with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's recent visit to Russia and joint inspection of the latest Su-35 and Su-57 fighters with Russian President Vladimir Putin, are both clear indications of the ongoing split in the American-European axis. The US quickly …
(2019-09-05). Was the imprisonment of Iranian-American journalist Marzieh Hashemi spun into expanded US sanctions? thegrayzone.com The relationship between former Air Force analyst-turned-Iranian spy Monica Witt and Hashemi — who was jailed by US authorities this…
(2019-09-04). UN Report on Yemen: US, UK Accomplices to Atrocities, While Inaction Continues. therealnews.com 
Prof. Asad Abukhalil argues that the UN Human Rights Council's report on Yemen acknowledges US and UK complicity in the war crimes being committed, but it still soft-pedals them because the US dominates the body…
(2019-09-04). Civil rights conference featuring renowned activist Angela Davis to gather in Chicago this November. fightbacknews.org Chicago, IL – Founded in 1973 as an organization that grew out of the movement to free the wrongfully imprisoned Angela Davis and other political prisoners, the National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression is set to relaunch this November. This refounding, led by the Chicago Alliance against Racist and Political Repression (CAARPR) and other organizations, will be taking place in Chicago, Illinois on November 22-24 at the Chicago Teachers' Union Hall. | The organizers' main objectives for this conference are to continue to build the struggle for police accountability as well as stand in solidari…
(2019-09-04). Human rights are everyone's business, amid relentless crises around world: UN's Bachelet. un.org The relentless outbreak of crises around the world — from the fires in the Amazon to "carnage" in Syria and demonstrations in Hong Kong, Russia, Indonesian Papua and elsewhere – risk pushing the world "further and further away from global solutions to global problems", the UN's top rights official said on Wednesday.
(2019-09-04). Wednesday's Daily Brief: Fear rampant in Burundi, WHO on nutrition, Hurricane Dorian latest, Cyberbullying poll, Bachelet, one year on. un.org A recap of Wednesday's main stories: UN rights experts warn 'climate of fear' rampant in Burundi; New health report on proper nutrition; One in three young people say they've been bullied online; and UN's top rights official on world's crises…
(2019-09-04). Nigerian Journalist & Activist Omoyele Sowore Remains Jailed for Calling for Peaceful Protests. democracynow.org 
Journalist and pro-democracy activist Omoyele Sowore is entering his second month in jail for calling for peaceful nationwide protests against the government. Sowore called his movement "Revolution Now" and mobilized activists to take to the streets August 5. But just two days before the protests were set to begin, Sowore was arrested by the state and accused of attempting to take over the government. He's been imprisoned for more than a month now as human rights groups continue to call for his immediate release. We speak with his wife Opeyemi Sowore and Nani Jansen Reventlow, one of the attorneys representing Om…
(2019-09-04). U.S. Journalist & Activist Brandon Lee Shot in Philippines After Being Called "Enemy of the State" democracynow.org 
American journalist and indigenous and environmental rights activist Brandon Lee remains in critical condition in the Philippines more than four weeks after being shot multiple times outside his home in the northern region of the country in early August. Lee was shot at least four times in the back and face on August 6 in what his family and advocates say was an attempt by the Philippines government to kill him. Brandon Lee is a Chinese American born and raised in San Francisco, but he has spent the last decade in the Philippines, where he has a wife and young daughter. He is a correspondent for the weekly newspa…
(2019-09-04). New Human Rights Watch report highlights dangers in industry SPLC seeks to reform. splcenter.org A new report released by Human Rights Watch today highlights the increasingly dangerous conditions facing meatpacking workers across the United States — underscoring dangers the SPLC uncovered within an industry it has long sought to reform.
(2019-09-03). Meet the militantly pro-Israel Trump official directing the economic war on Iran. thegrayzone.com From her influential post at the Treasury Department, Sigal Mandelker has vowed to defend "our great partner, Israel" by sanctioning…
(2019-09-03). Max Blumenthal: Nicaragua beat US regime change, but sanctions and sabotage continue. thegrayzone.com The Grayzone's Max Blumenthal explains how Nicaragua celebrated the 40th anniversary of the Sandinista Revolution just one year after defeating…
(2019-09-03). Insecurity and violence turn Nigeria into a 'pressure cooker' that must be addressed, says UN rights expert. un.org Nigeria is a pressure cooker of internal conflicts and generalized violence that must be addressed urgently, an independent United Nations expert said on Tuesday, following a fact-finding visit to the country.
(2019-09-03). Nowhere is safe to hide in war-torn Yemen, say UN-appointed rights experts. un.org The people of Yemen have been subject to "numerous" possible war crimes in recent years including forced recruitment of children and sexual abuse in detention, UN-appointed senior rights experts said on Tuesday, in an appeal to the international community to do more to end the conflict.
(2019-09-03). Workers Need More Rights and Economic Democracy. dissidentvoice.org As someone who has been a union member since I was a Marine with the American Servicemen's Union until I retired last year as a Teamster as well as a member of the Industrial Workers of the World, I have lived the reality of mistreatment of workers in the United States. It is good to …
(2019-09-03). A New York Jail Forced a Trans Woman Into a Men's Facility. aclu.org Trans women routinely face harassment and discrimination in jails and prisons. | Jena Faith's experience in the Steuben County Jail was a living nightmare. | The military veteran spent four weeks in the jail awaiting trial last spring. She was initially housed in the jail's women's facility without incident, but things changed when officials suddenly transferred her to the men's facility, despite the fact that she is a woman. | During the weeks that Jena spent as a woman in a men's jail, she was routinely targeted with physical and verbal harassment from other incarcerated people and guards. On her first day in t…
(2019-08-30). Trump Hits Lebanon Bank with His Favorite Econo-Political Battering Ram. mintpressnews.com 
The fact that the U.S. sanctions countries whenever its president pleases could in itself be considered a hostile act. Even in wartime, these sorts of collective punishments are illegal under the Geneva Conventions.
(2019-08-30). Draconian Rules at Guantánamo Bay Would Have Violated Media's First Amendment Rights, News Outlets Say. theintercept.com Update: September 6, 2019 | After protests from multiple media organizations, public relations officers at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay have dropped their request for reporters to sign a new set of rules as a precondition for attending military commission proceedings. Reporters must still sign Defense Department ground rules that have been in place since 2010. | Military officials at Guantánamo Bay have drafted restrictive new rules for journalists visiting the naval base that require journalists to agree to have all their interviews vetted and supervised by public affairs officers. | The policy was handed out t…
(2019-08-30). "All-Out Attack": Trump's Anti-Immigrant Policies Target Children, Cancer Patients & Servicemembers. democracynow.org 
On Tuesday, the Trump administration reportedly ended its "medical deferred action" program, which allows immigrants with serious health problems to stay in the U.S. for up to two years beyond the terms of their visas to receive critical treatment. Just one day later, it announced that some children born to U.S. servicemembers and government employees stationed overseas will no longer automatically receive citizenship. The policy changes come days after the Justice Department asked the Supreme Court to allow the Trump administration to implement its rule banning almost all migrants from seeking asylum in the Unit…
(2019-08-30). Headlines for August 30, 2019. democracynow.org Florida Declares State of Emergency Ahead of Hurricane Dorian, Justice Department: Comey Violated FBI Rules But Will Not Face Charges, Former FARC Rebels to Take Up Arms Again in Colombia, Report: Indian Forces Are Beating and Torturing Kashmiris in Detention, UAE Accused of Bombing Saudi-Backed Forces in Yemen, Prominent Pro-Democracy Activists Arrested Ahead of Saturday's Protest, Scottish Judge Refused to Block Boris Johnson's Plan to Suspend Parliament, Ebola Death Toll Tops 2,000 in Democratic Republic of the Congo, Environmental Groups Threaten to Sue Trump over Methane Rules, NAACP Calls for Alabama Gov. t…
(2019-08-29). How Solitary Confinement Kills: Torture and Stunning Neglect End in Suicide at Privately Run ICE Prison. theintercept.com 
Guards at an ICE jail put Efraín Romero de la Rosa in solitary confinement despite a diagnosis of schizophrenia. He killed himself after 21 days.
(2019-08-29). Taxpayers Have Been Ordered to Pay Over $2 Million For Discriminating Against LGBTQ People. aclu.org Government officials should know that discrimination comes with a cost to taxpayers. | Last week, a federal appeals court ruled that the Commonwealth of Kentucky was liable for $224,000 for the actions of Kim Davis, who refused to do her job and issue marriage licenses (to same-sex or different-sex couples) as county clerk. | While Davis' story made national headlines, her case isn't the only one in the past year where a court case filed by the ACLU has led to a bill for discriminatio…
(2019-08-27). Stripped of Their Rights. aclu.org In 2011, guards at an Illinois prison violated the constitution when they carried out a mass strip-search of incarcerated women. | In March 2011, a tactical team of guards at a state prison in Lincoln, Illinois gathered 200 women and ushered them into a gymnasium, where they were brought in small groups into a separate room nearby. Inside that room, they were told to strip naked in plain view of other guards, cadets, and civilians, without any explanation. Women on their periods were ordered to remove their tampons and sanitary pads. One-by-one, each woman was ordered to lift her breasts, cough and squat, and dis…
(2019-08-22). 'Anti-alien Hysteria:' Journalist Elizabeth Glendower Evans and the Trial of Sacco and Vanzetti. progressive.org In a case perhaps more relevant now than ever, the trial of the two immigrants became a rallying point for 1920s progressives, labor activists, and human rights advocates around the globe.
(2019-08-22). A Louisiana Parish Jailed a U.S. Citizen for Being Latinx. We're Suing. aclu.org Officers in a Louisiana jail held a U.S. citizen for four days on an immigration hold simply because of his skin color and name. | Ramon Torres had been a U.S. citizen for nearly ten years when he was detained for four days on an immigration hold — despite having a U.S. passport, a Louisiana driver's license, and a Social Security card, and despite that fact that a court ordered his release. | Torres' ordeal began in August 2018, when he was pulled over and arrested on suspicion of driving while intoxicated. Torres, a naturalized U.S. citizen since 2009, was carrying multiple forms of identification, inclu…
(2019-08-21). An Arizona Law Requires Surveillance of People Who Are Presumed Innocent. aclu.org The government cannot take shortcuts around constitutional rights. | A pillar of our democracy is the presumption of innocence: before a person has been convicted of a crime, they are considered completely innocent under the law. Yet across the country, people who have not been convicted are punished—both explicitly and implicitly—based on the mistaken assumption that they are dangerous, purely on the basis of an accusation. We do not live in a society where you can be incarcerated or monitored simply because you have been accused of a crime. Doing so violates constitutional rights, fuels mass incarce…
(2019-08-19). Trump is Taking More Money for Raids and Detention. Congress Should Stop Him. aclu.org Without congressional checks, ICE and CBP will continue to overspend and overstep. | 08/27/19 Update: Congress made public today a document outlining the Department of Homeland Security's plan to take nearly $280 million in funds meant for FEMA, the U.S. Coast Guard, and the TSA, among other critical priorities. Over $115 million of these funds will go towards President Trump's growing detention and deportations of immigrants, with the rest being used for sham border courts to…
(2019-08-19). SPLC, allies sue ICE for ignoring medical, mental health and disability needs of detained immigrants. splcenter.org Faour Abdallah Fraihat, who ran a successful construction business for years in California, is currently in the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
(2019-08-16). Ernest Coverson on Guns & Human Rights, Carey Gillam Under Attack From Monsanto. fair.org 
Media…
(2019-08-15). The Challenges of Breastfeeding as a Black Person. aclu.org How our workplaces and healthcare system create barriers to breastfeeding. | The fight to protect individual choices about reproductive care, including breastfeeding, is an ongoing battle. The central lesson of the reproductive justice movement is that choice means little without access. That lesson applies equally to breastfeeding. | Though laws, in the workplace and other contexts, are in place to protect the right to breastfeed, many low-income women and w…
(2019-08-13). SPLC joins brief opposing Kansas law targeting immigrants. splcenter.org The SPLC and 29 worker and immigrant rights organizations filed an amicus brief today urging the U.S. Supreme Court to uphold a court decision stating that a Kansas identity theft law cannot be used to turn local law enforcement into immigration agents.
(2019-08-12). Venezuela Secures New Chinese Oil Investment. venezuelanalysis.com The move defies the US embargo's secondary sanction provisions targeting foreign firms trading with Venezuela.
(2019-08-06). Washington Escalates Venezuela Sanctions into Full-Fledged Embargo. venezuelanalysis.com The latest measures amount to a total trade embargo impacting both US and foreign entities.
(2019-07-25). Venezuela: US Sanctions Target Subsidized Food Program as Foro de Sao Paulo Kicks Off. venezuelanalysis.com Washington has targeted companies and individuals it alleges are profiteering from the CLAP food initiative.
(2019-07-23). Non-Aligned Movement Condemns US Sanctions Against Venezuela. venezuelanalysis.com The 120-member movement held a ministerial meeting in Caracas as a US spy jet reportedly violated Venezuelan airspace.