2021-03-29: News Headlines

Phyllis Richardson (2021-03-29). The Worst Attack on Voting Rights Since Jim Crow. counterpunch.org Last November, despite a global pandemic, voter intimidation, and an unprecedented disinformation campaign, a record number of Americans cast a ballot in the 2020 election. Expanded voting by mail, no-excuse absentee voting, curbside voting, and early voting made the ballot box more accessible. But now, Republican lawmakers in 43 states are introducing hundreds of restrictive

Eds. (2021-03-29). Britain and China: Trading sanctions and the new cold war. mronline.org IAIN DUNCAN SMITH sees the Chinese sanctions applied to him and other politicians yesterday as a "badge of honour." | March 29, 2021 | Newswire…

WSWS (2021-03-29). Oppose deportations and all anti-immigrant measures in Australia and New Zealand! wsws.org The Australian and New Zealand governments have joined in the international assault on the rights of immigrants, as they seek to divert anger over mass job cuts and austerity measures in the most nationalist and xenophobic direction.

Reynard Loki (2021-03-29). Colorado's 'MeatOut Day' Has Started a Meat War. counterpunch.org Colorado Governor Jared Polis's declaration of March 20 as "MeatOut Day" to promote plant-based diets—which are beneficial to human health, the environment, and the prevention of cruelty to animals—sparked controversy between animal rights activists and the meat industry that went beyond state lines. Polis is not the first major politician to promote this message to

_____ (2021-03-29). Nicaragua: Building The Good Life (Buen Vivir) Through Popular Revolution. popularresistance.org As I traveled in Nicaragua on the recent Sanctions Kill delegation, one thing was clear, social transformation (revolution) requires both political power and participation by the people. Without political power, revolutionary programs will not have the material resources they require. Without the participation of the people, revolutionary programs, even with resources, cannot be put into practice and defended. | Right now, Nicaraguans have both and they are making great progress in building a new society or as it is often referred to in Latin America, 'Buen Vivir,' (the good life). They are demonstrating what we…

Hugo Murphy (2021-03-29). The Weekly Round-up: Asylum System Overhaul. ukhumanrightsblog.com In the news: Home Secretary Priti Patel pledged a 'fair but firm' overhaul of the UK's asylum system in the Commons on Thursday. The proposed measures aim to crack down on the criminal smuggling operations which helped 8,000 people cross the Channel by boat last year. Under the Home Secretary's proposals, asylum seekers would have their claims …

Brett Wilkins, staff writer (2021-03-29). 'Just Look at the Torture Video,' Says George Floyd's Family Lawyer as Chauvin Trial Begins. commondreams.org "America, the whole world is watching. Do we really have equality and justice for all?" | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files…

teleSUR (2021-03-29). Venezuela Seeks To Swap Oil for COVID-19 Vaccines. telesurenglish.net Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro approved the "Oil for Vaccines" payment scheme as a strategy to advance the national vaccination campaign and face the freezing of Venezuelan assets by the U.S. and other countries. | RELATED: | Venezuelan frozen funds abroad amount to almost US$7 billion, which cannot be used to fight the pandemic due to U.S. arbitrary sanctions. | The Bolivarian nation advocates for these f…

Pavan Kulkarni (2021-03-29). Lack of political will and IPR rules stand in the way of mass vaccination for COVID-19. peoplesdispatch.org A proposal made by India and South Africa in October last year to waive certain Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) of COVID vaccines has gained massive support across the world. Despite its potential to prevent millions of avoidable deaths, the US and its allies continue to block the proposal at the WTO.