(2020-08-05). Saturday 8/8: Our Freedom, Our Fight: NARAL Activists' Summit for Reproductive Rights (Day 1). indybay.org Online via Hopin…
(2020-08-05). Sunday 8/9: Our Freedom, Our Fight: NARAL Activists' Summit for Reproductive Rights (Day 2). indybay.org Online via Hopin…
(2020-08-05). Turkey stresses import of European watchdog reports. yenisafak.com Turkey values the Council of Europe's independent monitoring mechanisms and its cooperation with them, the Turkish Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday.The assertion was part of a statement announcing the release of reports by the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT) on its 2017 and 2019 visits to Turkey.The ministry stressed that the reports, available on the CPT website, were released with Ankara's authorization and include the Turkish government's responses."Turkey attaches importance to the independent monitoring mechanisms of the Council of Eur…
(2020-08-04). U.S. Cold War China Policy will isolate the U.S. not China. dissidentvoice.org 
CODEPINK (Credit) Tensions between the United States and China are rising as the U.S. election nears, with tit-for-tat consulate closures, new U.S. sanctions and no less than three U.S. aircraft carrier strike groups prowling the seas around China. But it is the United States that has initiated each new escalation in U.S.-China relations. China's responses …
(2020-08-04). Militarized BORTAC Border Patrol Raids & Ransacks Medical Camp on U.S. Border, Arrests 30 Migrants. democracynow.org 
In Arizona, heavily armed Border Patrol officers raided the medical camp of humanitarian group No More Deaths and detained 30 migrants whose whereabouts are now unknown. It was the second raid in just two days on the camp, which provides water, food and medical attention to refugees crossing into the United States through the scorching Sonoran Desert. "Immediately after they entered the camp, the first thing they did was round up all of the No More Deaths aid workers and zip-tie them, remove their phones," says Montana Thames, a humanitarian aid worker with No More Deaths. "It was very clear they didn't want any…
(2020-08-04). "It's Basically a Death Sentence": Hunger Strikers Demand Release as Virus Surges in ICE Jails. democracynow.org 
People being held in Immigration and Customs Enforcement jails are holding work strikes and hunger strikes over the lack of access to personal protective equipment or quality medical care, and to demand their release. We speak with Joe Mejia, an asylum seeker who was among a group of prisoners at Yuba County Jail in California who led a hunger strike while he was held there for nearly 11 months. "That place is dangerous," Mejia says. "It is a death sentence to detainees, especially right now with the coronavirus."
(2020-08-04). "Release Them All": Calls Grow to Stop Jailing Immigrants as Transfers & Deportations Spread COVID. democracynow.org 
The U.S. government continues to hold tens of thousands of asylum seekers and immigrants in detention centers and jails, ignoring the advice of medical experts as the coronavirus continues to spread. ICE has also continued to transfer and deport people — including those who are infected — making it a global superspreader. We speak with Luis Angel Reyes Savalza, an immigration attorney and co-director of Pangea Legal Services in San Francisco, who himself is undocumented and recently got arrested at a protest outside the mansion of California Governor Gavin Newsom demanding the release of people in sta…
(2020-08-04). Elliot Abrams Confirms to Senate Hearing That US Still 'Working Hard' to Overthrow Maduro in Venezuela. commondreams.org Admission was latest sign that high pressure campaign on Venezuela's leftist government—including crushing economic sanctions—remains. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2020-08-04). Undocumented Youth Won on DACA, but Trump's a Sore Loser. So What's Next? aclu.org After a rebuke from the Supreme Court, President Trump is again trying to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program — a program that protects over 700,000 people from deportation and allows them to work and attend school in the United States, their home. The White House is replacing the full DACA program with a skeleton program that will accept no new applicants and renew protection for only one year, instead of two. , , I served in the Obama administration at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, the government agency responsible for creating and launching DACA. It was the resul…
(2020-08-04). Two more NLRB rulings curb worker rights. peoplesworld.org 
WASHINGTON—The U.S. Constitution's Bill of Rights includes these words opening the Fourth Amendment: "The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated." Somebody tell the three-white-man, all-Trump-named right-wing Republicans who are now the entire National Labor Relations Board. Recently, the …
(2020-08-04). Cornel West and Tricia Rose Talk AOC, Racial Justice, and More. therealnews.com 
The two say they want to address the urgency of the civil rights movement happening right now.
(2020-08-04). HRW chief jumps to blame Hezbollah for devastating Beirut blasts — and backpedals immediately. rt.com 
Human Rights Watch head Kenneth Roth was quick to join a social media chorus blaming Hezbollah for deadly explosions in Beirut on Tuesday. Perhaps realizing the claim lacked a shred of evidence, he soon deleted it. | Roth rushed to blame Hezbollah for the huge explosions near the port of Beirut, blasts which killed at least 50 people and are believed to have wounded over 3,000 more. "Is this Hezbollah's way of saying don't mess with us for allegedly killing former Lebanese PM Hariri?" he asked in a tweet posted almost immediately after news of the explosions hit social media on Tuesday. | Billionaire-funded re…
(2020-08-04). Colombian court orders detention of ex-president àÅlvaro Uribe Velez. peoplesdispatch.org Social movements and human rights organizations across Colombia hailed the decision of the Supreme Court. àÅlvaro Uribe Vélez is being investigated in a case related to witness manipulation and fraud…
(2020-08-04). Colombia: Supreme Court Orders House Arrest for Alvaro Uribe. telesurenglish.net Colombia's Supreme Court ordered the arrest of former President Alvaro Uribe (2002-2010) as part of the judicial process in which his participation in the manipulation of witnesses is being investigated. | RELATED: | The five magistrates investigating the far-right Senator decided to guarantee his presence in the country through preventive detention at home. The news was confirmed by Uribe himself. | "The deprivation of my freedom cau…
(2020-08-04). Argentina: Mothers Of Plaza De Mayo Founder Celina Zeigner Dies. telesurenglish.net The Human Rights organization Mothers of Plaza de Mayo member Celina Zeigner Monday passed at the age of 96 in Santa Fe, Argentina. | RELATED: | Argentina's Human Rights Secretariat praised Zeigner's labor and stated that "her commitment will make her an eternal emblem of Memory, Truth and Justice's struggle." | Zeigner, who dedicated her life to teaching, was affectionately known as Queca. | Her 23-years-old son Jorge Osc…
(2020-08-04). Chile: United Nations "Alarmed" at Racism Against Mapuches. telesurenglish.net The regional office for South America of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights urged on Tuesday for a dialogue over the ongoing violence and acts of racism towards the Mapuche people following the fierce confrontations in the Araucanía region during last weekend. | RELATED: | "Participatory dialogue and in good faith is the only way to face the ongoing…
(2020-08-04). B'Tselem: "If You Build It, They Will Come" imemc.org B'Tselem — The Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories: While the news is full of the plans to annex the West Bank and legalize construction in settlements — Israel is busy creating facts on the ground, as usual. Annexation or not, Israel has been demolishing homes in …
(2020-08-04). Teachers protest Jordan government's closure of union and harsh crackdown. wsws.org As poverty and social unrest rise, the government has used the draconian emergency laws introduced in March to curtail democratic rights.
(2020-08-04). US Police Violated Rights of Protesters, Journos 125 Times in Wake of George Floyd's Death – Report. sputniknews.com Amnesty International's latest report details that it has logged at least 125 separate cases of police violence against US residents within two weeks of the Memorial Day killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
(2020-08-04). Trump Dismisses John Lewis's Legacy Saying, "He Didn't Come to My Inauguration" truthout.org During an interview with Axios's Jonathan Swan that aired on HBO Monday evening, President Donald Trump was asked to give his opinion on Rep. John Lewis, who passed away last month at age 80. | "How do you think history will remember John Lewis?" The president appeared unwilling to give the late congressman and Civil Rights icon any praise. "I don't know, I really don't know. I don't know John Lewis,…
(2020-08-04). 'The World Is Watching': Amnesty Report Details Human Rights Violations by US Police During Racial Justice Protests. commondreams.org In a report titled, "The World is Watching," Amnesty International USA revealed on Tuesday that U.S. police violated the human rights of protesters, medics, journalists, and other people at least 125 times in the first weeks of the current racial justice uprising. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2020-08-03). Headlines for August 3, 2020. democracynow.org White House's Dr. Birx Warns U.S. Has Entered New Phase in Pandemic as Death Toll Tops 155,000, Lawmakers at Standstill over Coronavirus Bill as Democratic Rep. Grijalva Goes After GOP Response, Worldwide Cases Top 18 Million as Countries Across the Globe Hit Grim New Milestones, Border Patrol Raid Arizona Humanitarian Camp for 2nd Time in 2 Days, Detain 30 Asylum Seekers, SCOTUS Rules Trump Can Move Forward with Border Wall Construction, Trump Admin to Start Charging Fees for Asylum Applications, Islamic State Claims Attack on Afghanistan Jail Which Killed At Least 29 People, Award-Winning Author Tsitsi Dangarem…
(2020-08-03). "They Have No Evidence": Moroccan Journalist Omar Radi Jailed, Surveilled After Criticizing Gov't. democracynow.org 
Award-winning journalist and human rights activist Omar Radi spoke to us from Casablanca on July 16. Two weeks later, on July 29, last Wednesday, Moroccan authorities arrested him on what press freedom advocates call "retaliatory charges." Now a court has charged Radi with undermining state security by receiving foreign funding and collaborating with foreign intelligence, and also charged him with rape. He is reportedly being held in a prison that is a COVID hot spot, and has not been allowed to have visits from his lawyer or his parents. We feature our interview with Radi, which focuses in part on an Amnesty Int…
(2020-08-03). Voting Rights Activist LaTosha Brown: Trump Is Hellbent on Undermining Democracy to Win Reelection. democracynow.org 
With President Trump trailing in most polls, he tweeted recently that he was floating the idea of delaying the November election — something he cannot legally do — and continued his attacks on mail-in voting. "We have a president who is probably the most fascist president that we've ever had in this country," responds LaTosha Brown, co-founder of the Black Voters Matter Fund and the BVM Capacity Building Institute. "He is hellbent on pushing the boundaries, whatever he needs to do, to undermine and undercut democracy."
(2020-08-03). Disability movement is 'part of the global working class'. workers.org 
by Kristen Turgeon The following slightly edited remarks were made by Kristen Turgeon from the Boston branch of Workers World Party on a July 30 webinar sponsored by WWP's Disability Rights Caucus and titled "Smash Ableism, Racism, All Bigotry & Oppression!" Kristen Turgeon. WW PHOTO: Stevan Kirschbaum It has been . . . |
(2020-08-03). Human Rights Defenders: Palestinian Eyewitness Testimony of the Execution of Abdul Fattah al-Sharif by Israeli Soldier, Elor Azaria. counterpunch.org As illegal Jewish settlers increase their attacks on Palestinian civilians in the occupied city of Al Khalil (Hebron), the people of the Palestinian city continue to mount a campaign of popular resistance. One of the channels of resistance is Human Rights Defenders, "a grass-roots, non-partisan Palestinian organization, working to support nonviolent popular resistance through popular
(2020-08-03). Vote for SEP candidates in the Sri Lankan national elections! Fight for a workers' and peasants' government and socialist internationalism! wsws.org The SEP is the only party in the elections advancing an international socialist program to fight the crisis created by COVID-19, defend democratic rights and oppose imperialist war.
(2020-08-03). Blacklisted Iranian Consortium Defies US to Open Caracas Superstore. venezuelanalysis.com Venezuelan and Iranian officials claim the commercial deal is part of a "win-win" relationship between the sanctioned countries.
(2020-08-03). BDS activist's detention extended for 15 days by military court in Israel. peoplesdispatch.org An Israeli military court approved a request by Israeli domestic intelligence agency Shin Bet to hold Mahmoud Nawajaa for 15 days. Nawajaa was illegally abducted from his home on July 30…
(2020-08-03). Hong Kong delays legislative elections amid crackdown on democratic rights. wsws.org Beijing is driven above all by fears that renewed protests in Hong Kong could spread to the mainland.
(2020-08-03). 'Exodus' to participate at Intl. Human Rights FilmFest. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Aug. 03 (MNA) — Bahman Kiarostami's documentary 'Exodus' will be screened at the fourth edition of the Taiwan International Human Rights Film Festival in September 2020.
(2020-08-03). 'US unilateral anti-Iranian sanctions unfair'. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Aug. 03 (MNA) — Naming the unilateral US sanctions against Iran 'unfair', the Austrian Ambassador to Iran Stefan Schulz voiced readiness of 250 Austrian firms for establishing economic relations with Iran.
(2020-08-03). Oil industry activities on track despite sanctions: Zanganeh. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Aug. 03 (MNA) — Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh says Iran's oil industry activities have been going on strongly in the past two years since the US pulled out of the nuclear deal and reimposed sanctions.
(2020-08-03). As Mass Evictions Loom, Practical Advice For Housing Takeovers. popularresistance.org Federal protection against housing evictions has expired and local and state governments are not stepping up to fill in the gap leaving tens of millions of families vulnerable to homelessness during this growing pandemic and deep recession. In Philadelphia and across the country families, out of desperation, are taking over empty publicly-owned housing. It is estimated that there are up to ten vacant homes for every homeless person. We speak with Cheri Honkala of the Poor People's Economic and Human Rights campaign about the practicalities of housing takeovers from identifying empty houses to how to turn on the u…
(2020-08-03). 15 Lessons From 15 Years Of BDS. popularresistance.org July marked the 15th anniversary of the launch of the boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) movement. | Much has happened over those years. Here are 15 lessons I've learned on the journey to dismantle Israeli apartheid. It is incredible how many cities and cultural spaces have declared themselves "apartheid free zones," how many companies have divested from Israeli apartheid, how many artists have decided not to play in Israel and how many academics have ended relationships with Israeli institutions as a result of BDS campaigns. | Yet it is often difficult to keep our hopes up while knowing that Israeli aparthe…
(2020-08-03). Rights Group Demands ICE End 'Beyond Inhumane' Detention and Deportations as Covid-19 Pandemic Intensifies. commondreams.org Blaming the Trump administration's "irresponsible actions" for the ongoing spread of Covid-19 in immigration detention centers, the International Rescue Committee demanded that people be released from detention immediately to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2020-08-03). Thousands at Risk of COVID-19 Escalating in ICE "Superspreader" Detention Centers as US States Hit Highest Daily Records—and ICE Deportation Flights Into Central and South America Continue. commondreams.org ______________________________…
(2020-08-02). UK's Stunning Hypocrisy over Hong Kong. globalresearch.ca Further evidence the UK hides behind "human rights" rather than stands for them was demonstrated when London laced sanctions on Hong Kong after the passing of a security law aimed at combating overt foreign interference in the special administrative region …
(2020-08-02). Army Abducts A Mother, Her Son And Daughter, In Hebron, After Colonists Attempted to Kidnap A Child. imemc.org Israeli soldiers abducted, on Saturday evening, a Palestinian mother along with her son and daughter after they helped free a child after she was assaulted by illegal colonialist settlers who tried to kidnap her. According to human rights activist and a volunteer with the Israeli Information Center for Human Rights …
(2020-08-02). Iran Imposes Sanctions Against Former Aid to John Bolton for 'Economic Terrorism'. sputniknews.com Relations between the United States and the Islamic Republic of Iran have become increasingly strained in recent years, following the 2018 withdrawal by the Trump administration from the 2015 joint agreement pledging a peaceful development of nuclear power.
(2020-08-02). Woe to You Who Legislate Evil and Rob the Poor of Their Rights. commondreams.org A recipient carries a box of food as others wait in line at a Food Bank distribution for those in need as the coronavirus pandemic continues on April 9, 2020 in Van Nuys, California. (Photo: Mario Tama/Getty Images) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2020-08-01). 2009 H1N1 Vaccine Caused Brain Damage in Children. Dr. Anthony Fauci on "Vaccine Safety" Issues. globalresearch.ca A lawsuit against the Trudeau Government for its handling of the COVID-19 Crisis has been launched. What is at stake is the violation of fundamental rights of Canadians. | "The mass and indiscriminate containment of citizens, the restriction of access to …
(2020-08-01). Lawsuit exposes massive COVID-19 outbreak at privately-run immigrant detention center in Virginia. wsws.org The Farmville Detention Center has the largest COVID-19 outbreak of all immigrant detainment facilities in the United States.
(2020-08-01). Wife arrested on suspicion of murder after Ukrainian rapper Cartwright's corpse found chopped into pieces in fridge. rt.com 
The wife of Ukrainian rapper Andy Cartwright, who dismembered her deceased husband and placed his body parts in their apartment fridge, has been detained on suspicion of murder. | She had Russia's Investigative Committee charged Marina Kokhal with murder and believes she killed her husband during a quarrel, although how is unknown. She then cut up the body "in order to hide the traces of the crime," investigators said. Kokhal maintains that she did not kill the artist, whose…
(2020-08-01). Russian Foreign Intelligence Chief Hopes Incident in Belarus Resolved for Friendly Ties. sputniknews.com MOSCOW (Sputnik) – Russia's Foreign Intelligence Chief Sergey Naryshkin said on Saturday he hoped the incident of Minsk's detention of 33 Russian nationals will be resolved in the interest of fraternal relations between the two countries.
(2020-08-01). EU's Cybersanctions Against Russian Citizens Politically Motivated, Foreign Ministry Says. sputniknews.com MOSCOW (Sputnik) – The political connotations of the European Union's decision to impose sanctions against Russian, Chinese, and North Korean citizens and entities for alleged cyberattacks are obvious, the Russian Foreign Ministry said on Saturday.
(2020-08-01). Black Teen Jailed for Not Doing Her Online Schoolwork Is Released. truthout.org A Michigan teenager who has been detained since mid-May after not doing her online schoolwork was set free on Friday, after the Michigan Court of Appeals ordered her immediate release from a juvenile facility in suburban Detroit. | Grace, a high school sophomore, spent 78 days at the Children's Village after an Oakland County family court judge found she had violated her probation on earlier charges of assault and theft. Friday's decision comes a week after that judge denied her lawyer's request to set…
(2020-08-01). 'India's actions in Kashmir, part of majoritarian agenda'. yenisafak.com The annexation of the disputed territory of Jammu and Kashmir on Aug. 5 last year has evoked international anguish against India, said Pakistan's former top diplomat.In an interview with Anadolu Agency on the eve of the first anniversary of India's revoking the special status of Jammu and Kashmir, former Foreign Secretary Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry said this controversial move has violated international law embodied in the UN Security Council resolutions."There is a growing international reaction to Indian atrocities in the occupied Kashmir. The UN Human Rights Commissioner has published reports documenting the violat…
(2020-08-01). Thousands march in Berlin to protest coronavirus curbs. yenisafak.com Thousands of demonstrators rallied in Berlin on Saturday to protest against measures imposed in Germany to stem the coronavirus pandemic, saying they violated people's rights and freedoms.The loose gathering, estimated by police at 15,000, included libertarians, constitutional loyalists and sceptics of the science behind policies to fight the pandemic. There was also a small far-right presence with some marchers carrying Germany's imperial flag.Protesters danced and sang 'We are free people!' to the tune of rock band Queen's 'We Will Rock You'. Others marched with placards saying 'We are making a noise because yo…
(2020-07-31). Barack Obama: Honor John Lewis by Renewing Voting Rights Act & Ballot Access in the U.S. democracynow.org 
In his stirring eulogy at the funeral service for Congressmember John Lewis, President Barack Obama said expanded voting rights would be the greatest way to honor the civil rights icon's legacy. In a speech that condemned the status of American democracy without ever naming the sitting president, Obama called for election day to be declared a national holiday, full Congressional representation for Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico, and the end of the filibuster, which he called a "Jim Crow relic." "You want to honor John? Let's honor him by revitalizing the law he was willing to die for," Obama said in reference…