(2019-11-22). Unprecedented 'Architecture of Surveillance' Created by Facebook and Google Poses Grave Human Rights Threat: Report. commondreams.org "Their insidious control of our digital lives undermines the very essence of privacy and is one of the defining human rights challenges of our era." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2019-11-22). They're Killing Us Like Dogs: A Massacre in Bolivia and a Plea for Help. mintpressnews.com 
I am writing from Bolivia just days after witnessing the November 19 military massacre at the Senkata gas plant in the indigenous city of El Alto, and the tear-gassing of a peaceful funeral procession on November 21 to commemorate the dead. These are examples, unfortunately, of the modus operandi of the de facto government that seized control in a coup that forced Evo Morales out of power. | The coup has spawned massive protests, with blockades set up around the country as part of a national strike calling for the resignation of this new government. One well-organized blockade is in El Alto, where residents set u…
(2019-11-22). New Report On FBI Spying Shows Need For Congressional Investigation. dissidentvoice.org 
Church Committee hearing. The Frank Church Papers, Special Collections and Archives, Boise State University. Clearing the FOG (forces of greed) hosts Kevin Zeese and Margaret Flowers interviewed Chip Gibbons, an expert on Constitutional Law and the legal and policy counsel for Defending Rights and Dissent about a recent right to protest victory in Washington, DC …
(2019-11-22). Biden Under Fire for Telling Protester to 'Vote for Trump'. truthdig.com 
During a campaign event in Greenwood, South Carolina Thursday night, former Vice President Joe Biden told a protestor who confronted him over the Obama administration's mass deportation policies to "vote for Trump," prompting outrage from immigrant rights groups and activists. | "You should vote for Trump," Biden repeated as Carlos Rojas, an organizer with Movimiento Cosecha, urged the former Vice President to depart from the destructive record of the Obama White House and support a moratorium on deportations. | Biden, a 2020 Democratic presidential candidate, refused to agree to the demand, insisting that he wil…
(2019-11-22). The Stain on America's Soul That Will Not Wash Away. truthdig.com 
Although the extent of our lawless detention program in Guantanamo Bay is something most of us know little about, it defines us all.
(2019-11-22). Meet the Tucson 12: Under Trump, Protesters Are Being Hit With Felony Riot Charges. theintercept.com 
Illustration: Hanna Barczyk for The Intercept | On the night of August 14, a small group of around 20 Tucson, Arizona-based activists and community members stood outside the Pima County Adult Detention Complex, making noise. They sang, they chanted, they banged drums and pans loud enough to reach the ears of those caged behind the facility's beige concrete walls. Standing on a sidewalk, some lit small, handheld fireworks; others held up a large banner bearing the famed prison abolitionist refrain, "Fire to the prisons." The message to those inside, as with most every noise demonstration held outside a prison:…
(2019-11-22). Latin America at the Toronto International Film Festival. peoplesworld.org 
TORONTO—Cuba, plagued by endless U.S. boycotts and sanctions, has little money left to sustain and develop their cultural exports. Films coming from Cuba dubbed or subtitled in English are becoming a rarity at film festivals in the U.S., even though there is still world interest in what's going on in Cuba. Instead, other countries are …
(2019-11-22). New Report on FBI Spying Shows Need for Congressional Investigation. globalresearch.ca Clearing the FOG (forces of greed) hosts Kevin Zeese and Margaret Flowers interviewed Chip Gibbons, an expert on Constitutional Law and the legal and policy counsel for Defending Rights and Dissent about a recent right to protest victory in Washington, …
(2019-11-22). Racist Stephen Miller Must Go, Activists and Lawmakers Say. truthout.org President Trump may be consumed by impeachment, but White House Adviser Stephen Miller remains laser-focused on executing his racist anti-immigrant agenda. Despite calls for Miller's removal by lawmakers and civil rights organizations, his oppressive policies and appointments continue to be rolled out at a frantic pace. | Last week, Hatewatch exposed hundreds of emails Miller sent to th…
(2019-11-22). Biden Under Fire for Telling Immigrant Rights Activist to "Vote for Trump" truthout.org During a campaign event in Greenwood, South Carolina Thursday night, former Vice President Joe Biden told a protestor who confronted him over the Obama administration's mass deportation policies to "vote for Trump," prompting outrage from immigrant rights groups and activists. | "You should vote for Trump," Biden repeated as Carlos Rojas, an organizer with Movimiento Cosecha, urged the former Vice President to depart from the destructive record of the Obama White House and support a moratorium on…
(2019-11-22). Congress Quietly Unites To Extend "Temporary" Patriot Act Under Cover Of The Impeachment Distraction. thelastamericanvagabond.com The only time Republicans and Democrats can agree is when they are discussing the expansion of the permanent war and surveillance state. The Last American Vagabond takes a closer look at the many layers of deception about how legislation gets pushed through which contains buried provisions that further erode the U.S. Constitution and liberty. This is …
(2019-11-22). Independent rights experts sound alarm at Iran protest crackdown, internet blackout. news.un.org Reports of killed and maimed demonstrators, and a continuing nationwide internet shutdown in Iran's now week-long protests are of "grave concern", and the Government and authorities must ensure rights of expression and opinion are protected, a UN group of independent experts said on Friday.
(2019-11-22). A BDS Campaign Tackles the Sports Industry in Portland — and Wins. truthout.org Boycotting for Palestinian rights works. A reporter broke the news in late September that the Portland Trail Blazers basketball team ended their partnership with Leupold & Stevens, which makes rifle scopes for Israel's brutal occupying army, following a year-long protest campaign led by our Portland, Oregon, chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) and many allies. | For nearly 10 years, Leupold & Stevens sponsored a "Hometo…
(2019-11-22). David Harris, Presente! counterpunch.org David Harris is a hero, and he is one of my heroes. While this may sound maudlin to some, it was David Harris who was there at the beginning of the antiwar movement during the Vietnam War and who preceded that era with his work in the civil rights movement in the US South. David Harris More
(2019-11-22). Louisiana cop sentenced to prison after beating unarmed man on video. nationofchange.org "Officers who deprive individuals of their civil rights will not be tolerated."
(2019-11-22). Newsom plans to sue over Trump water plan, but DWR releases plan that would increase water exports. indybay.org "We hope when making decisions on water that the governor will take into account all of the people that rely on California's clean water and fish for their income, drinking water, and way of life," said Regina Chichizola, co-director of Save California Salmon. "We need him to take on big water users like Westlands Water District, and demand flows that will restore our salmon and drinking water quality, while respecting the rights of California's native people."
(2019-11-22). U.S. Congresswoman: "Israeli System of Military Detention of Palestinian Children is Immoral" imemc.org Ali Harb — Middle East Eye The Israeli army's mistreatment of Palestinian children is "completely preventable", a United States congresswoman said, as she urged other lawmakers to support a bill that would prevent American military aid to Israel from being used to abuse Palestinian minors. "The Israeli system of military …
(2019-11-22). Sanctions Are Like Bombs. indybay.org Venezuela is one of 41 states that depend on external food assistance to avoid a humanitarian crisis. The US government is copying its blockade policy against Cuba since the beginning of the 1960s. There is hardly any criticism of the US sanctions. Six million households, more than 60% of the population, are sustained by the food program.
(2019-11-22). U.N. Rapporteur: Julian Assange Has Faced Psychological Torture; He Should Not Be Extradited to U.S. democracynow.org 
This week Swedish prosecutors dropped an investigation into sexual assault allegations against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, stemming from 2010. Assange, who has always denied the allegations, took refuge inside the Ecuadorian embassy in London for over seven years to avoid extradition to Sweden on the charges. British authorities dragged him out of the Ecuadorian embassy in April and he has since been jailed in London's Belmarsh prison on charges related to skipping of bail in 2012, when he first entered the embassy to avoid extradition to Sweden over the now-dropped sexual assault charges. The United States…
(2019-11-22). How Human Rights Watch Whitewashed a Right-Wing Massacre in Bolivia. globalresearch.ca Bolivia is currently in turmoil after President Evo Morales was deposed in a U.S.-supported coup d'état on November 10. The new coup government forced Morales into exile, began arresting politicians and journalists while pre-exonerating security services of all crimes …
(2019-11-22). Biden Under Fire for Telling Immigrant Rights Activist Demanding End to Deportations to 'Vote for Trump'. commondreams.org The former vice president also told climate activists that they "listen to Bernie too much" after they demanded he reject corporate cash. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2019-11-22). Still no justice for Patrick Fisher. greenleft.org.au 
Indigenous rights Jonathan LockhartIssue 1246 Australia Black deaths in custody SydneyNovember 22, 2019Waka Waka man Patrick Fisher fell to his death while fleeing police trying to gain e…
(2019-11-22). Unions campaign for a jobs-rich energy transition. greenleft.org.au 
Climate workers' rights Pip HinmanIssue 1246 AustraliaNovember 22, 2019Together with the Australian Manufacturing Workers Union (AMWU), the Electrical Trades Union (ETU), the Gippsland Trades and Labour Council and the Victorian Trades Hall Council, the Maritime Union…
(2019-11-22). Coronial inquest finds no one to blame for David Dungay Jnr's death in custody. greenleft.org.au 
Indigenous rights Jonathan Lockhart Rachel EvansIssue 1246 Australia Black deaths in custody SydneyNovember 22,…
(2019-11-22). Hunter Workers: improving lives for more than 150 years. greenleft.org.au 
workers' rights Steve O'BrienIssue 1246 Australia NewcastleNovember 22, 2019One hundred and fifty years ago, about 80 bricklayers, plasterers, stonemasons, carpenters and labourers met to set up the Newcastle Eight Hours Committee, the forerunner to Hunter W…
(2019-11-22). Demanding a women's toilet at work should not be a crime. greenleft.org.au 
workers' rights Sue BullIssue 1246 AustraliaNovember 22, 2019When organisers from the Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union (CFMMEU) arrived at a Brighton construction site in April 2015, they found the lunch shed had no running water or electricity and no women's toilet. Workers decided to protest these substandar…
(2019-11-21). Elizabeth Warren endorses Trump's economic war on Venezuela, then soft-pedals far-right Bolivia coup. mronline.org In a nauseating interview on Pod Save America, Elizabeth Warren endorsed suffocating US sanctions on Venezuela, backing Trump's strategy to stop its "ability to have an economy" while parroting neocon regime-change myths. She then whitewashed the far-right military coup in Bolivia. | Source
(2019-11-21). Chile: Most Vulnerable Victims of State Violence are Minors. telesurenglish.net From October 18 to November 15, Chile's military police (Carabineros) violated the human rights of at least 327 children and adolescents. They physically hit 118 children, wounded 48 with pellets and shot at 11 with bullets, as Ombudsman for Children Patricia Muñoz reported on Wednesday. | RELATED: | Chile: Thousands Take to Streets to Mark One Month of Protests | As a reaction to this situation, she decided not to celebrate Universal Children's Day on November 20, a holiday tha…
(2019-11-21). Thousands of Colombians Demonstrate Amid Duque's Militarization. telesurenglish.net As a response to the nationwide strike that thousands of Colombians are carrying out on Thursday, President Ivan Duque increased the number of troops patrolling in urban areas, which generated concern at the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). | RELATED: | Colombia Scandal: Diplomats Evidence Plot Against Venezuela | "The…
(2019-11-21). Thursday's Daily Brief: Deadly Syria violence, risks of working at sea, poor health in jail, concern over ISIL suspect, and her child. news.un.org A recap of Thursday's stories in brief: Syria's violence continues to strike children; governments must do more for human rights in business; poor health in Europe's prisons; rights experts' concern over Irish ISIL bride and her child in Turkey; Fishing workers face huge risks at sea.
(2019-11-21). U.S. Relations with China Were Just Destroyed, and Nothing Will Ever Be the Same Again. globalresearch.ca Our relationship with China just went from bad to worse, and most Americans don't even realize that we just witnessed one of the most critical foreign policy decisions of this century. The U.S. Senate just unanimously passed the "Hong Kong …
(2019-11-21). Congress Just Temporarily Extended the Government's Spying Powers. aclu.org Congress today temporarily extended the NSA's spying powers that time and again have been used to violate our rights. Disturbingly, this three-month extension was snuck into a broader funding bill, forcing members of Congress to choose between extending this program and causing a government shutdown. The extension is an unnecessary lifeline to spying programs that are plagued with compliance violations, have no proven intelligence value, and violate our rights. | Under Section 215 of the Patriot Act, one of the spying | powers extended, the government believes it has the right to collect our | personal inform…
(2019-11-21). Student Loan Borrowers Need More Protection—and California Is Leading the Way. thenation.com Student Loan Borrowers Need More Protection—and California Is Leading the Way…
(2019-11-21). Inside Australia's refugee prison camp in PNG. greenleft.org.au 
refugee rights Chris SleeIssue 1246 Australia MelbourneNovember 21, 2019The Refugee Action Collective (RAC) Victoria held a forum on November 18 to discuss the situation facing asylum seekers in Bomana Immigration Centre, a detention centre attached to Bomana prison in…
(2019-11-20). Elizabeth Warren endorses Trump's economic war on Venezuela, then soft-pedals far-right Bolivia coup. thegrayzone.com In a nauseating interview on Pod Save America, Elizabeth Warren endorsed suffocating US sanctions on Venezuela, backing Trump's strategy to…
(2019-11-20). Young activists do the talking as UN marks World Children's Day. news.un.org Children were both seen and heard in the UN General Assembly on Wednesday, World Children's Day, during a celebration to commemorate 30 years since the adoption of a milestone treaty that protects their rights.
(2019-11-20). Wednesday's Daily Brief: Israeli settlements, World Children's Day, fossil fuel overuse. news.un.org A recap of Wednesday's stories: UN envoy reiterates position on illegality of Israeli settlements, World Children's Day marked with calls for rights of children to be upheld, new report highlights major gap between use of fossil fuels and commitments to limit global warming.
(2019-11-20). Transgender Day of Remembrance: "Celebrate the Living" While Honoring Loved Ones Lost to Hate. democracynow.org 
November 20 is Transgender Day of Remembrance, a day that honors the thousands of transgender and gender nonconforming people who have been killed around the world. The Day of Remembrance is also a celebration of the community's resistance and a call to action to fight for policies and a shift in culture that protects trans lives. At least 22 transgender and gender nonconforming people have been killed in the United States this year, and over 3,000 transgender and gender nonconforming lives have been taken since 2008 around the world. We speak with LaLa B Zannell, longtime transgender rights advocate and the co-p…
(2019-11-20). Headlines for November 20, 2019. democracynow.org 4 Key Witnesses Testify in Impeachment Hearings, Amnesty Says Iranian Security Forces Killed Over 100 Protesters, Bolivian Military Carries Out Second Massacre Against Morales Supporters, Senate Approves Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act, U.N. Affirms It Still Considers Israeli Settlements Violation of International Law, Pentagon Says ISIS Is Rebuilding in Northern Syria, NYT: Navy SEALs Expected to Oust Gallagher, Despite Trump Restoring His Rank, Report: Mike Pompeo Planning to Resign as Secretary of State, Trump Administration Can Now Send Asylum Seekers to Guatemala, Sweden Drops Sexual Assault Investi…
(2019-11-20). Human Rights Watch supports US-backed far-right coup in Bolivia, whitewashes massacre of indigenous protesters. thegrayzone.com Human Rights Watch refused to called the US-backed military overthrow of Bolviva's President Evo Morales a coup, and director Ken…
(2019-11-20). How Human Rights Watch Whitewashed a Right-Wing Massacre in Bolivia. mintpressnews.com Bolivia is currently in turmoil after President Evo Morales was deposed in a U.S.-supported coup d'état on November 10. The new coup government forced Morales into exile, began arresting politicians and journalists while pre-exonerating security services of all crimes committed during the "re-establishment of order," effectively giving them a license to kill all resistance to their rule. Dozens have died…
(2019-11-20). Charter School Advocates Repulsed by Empowered Teachers. dissidentvoice.org 
Workers produce all the wealth of society. Unions have been around for generations and exist to protect the rights of workers. Currently, 90%—93% of privately operated non-profit and for-profit charter schools across the country have no teacher unions, whereas about 90% of public school teachers are unionized. One of the claims to fame of deregulated …
(2019-11-20). The U.S. Government Tracked, Detained, and Interrogated Journalists. We're Suing on Their Behalf. aclu.org 
As part of a coordinated effort that undermined the freedom of the press, the U.S. government tracked, detained, and interrogated journalists who were reporting on conditions at the U.S.-Mexico border. Now, we're suing on their behalf to defend their First Amendment rights. | Together with the New York Civil Liberties Union and the ACLU of San Diego & Imperial Counties, we're representing five photojournalists who traveled to Mexico in late 2018 and early 2019 to document the experiences of people traveli…
(2019-11-19). Saving Julian Assange is Saving Ourselves. dissidentvoice.org 
The United Nations Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner issued a statement based on special-rapporteur-on-torture Nils Melzer's fact-finding mission into the incarceration of WikiLeaks founder and publisher Julian Assange. The facts were a scathing indictment of those nations behind the targeting of Assange. 'The evidence is overwhelming and clear,' the expert said. 'Mr. Assange …
(2019-11-19). US pardons for accused war criminals, contrary to international law: UN rights office. news.un.org A presidential pardon for two United States soldiers accused of war crimes, and a sentence reduction for a third, "run against the letter and the spirit of international law which requires accountability for such violations", the United Nations human rights wing said on Tuesday.
(2019-11-19). Headlines for November 19, 2019. democracynow.org U.S. Claims Israeli Settlements Are Not Illegal Under International Law, Four Witnesses Slated to Testify in Public Impeachment Hearings, U.N. Condemns U.S. for World's Highest Rate of Children in Detention, Political Crisis in Bolivia Continues After Military Pressure Ousts Evo Morales, American Professor Freed in Prisoner Swap in Afghanistan, 1,000 Students Arrested in Police Siege of Hong Kong University, Coal Mine Blast in China Kills 15; Pipeline Explosion in Bangladesh Kills 7, Deforestation of Brazilian Amazon Skyrocketed Since Bolsonaro's Election, Syracuse Suspends All Fraternity Activities After String…
(2019-11-18). Media Silent as Bolivia's New Right-Wing Gov't Massacres Indigenous Protesters. mintpressnews.com 
Both the corporate media and human rights groups have been silent as journalists and indigenous protesters have been targeted as Bolivia's self-declared right-wing government uses violence to secure its tenuous hold on power.
(2019-11-17). CTU members vote to accept tentative agreement. fightbacknews.org Chicago, IL – Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) members voted November 15 to accept the tentative agreement they won in the wake of their historic eleven-day strike. | With 80% of schools reporting, members have voted 81% yes to ratify the new contract with Chicago Public Schools. | The union won powerful gains for students and their school communities. | Those gains include mandatory class size caps and enforcement, language forcing CPS to comply with special education laws and regulations, sanctuary school protections for immigrant and refugee students, and supports for thousands of homeless students. While today mo…
(2019-11-13). Neo-Nazi Group NSM Faces New Upheaval After James Hart Stern's Death. splcenter.org The leadership of the neo-Nazi National Socialist Movement (NSM) has been thrown into chaos again following the death of self-described civil rights activist James Hart Stern.
(2019-11-12). Can Google's Soul Be Saved? progressive.org Rank-and-file Silicon Valley tech workers are using their leverage to push companies toward more ethical business models, or at least away from destroying the environment and undermining human rights.