(2020-01-01). First Lady of the World: Eleanor Roosevelt's Impact on New Deal to U.N. Declaration of Human Rights. democracynow.org 
2020 marks the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment, which guaranteed women the right to vote, and we begin the new decade with a New Year's Day special about one of the most influential women in U.S. politics: first lady Eleanor Roosevelt. She served as the first lady of the United States from 1933, when her husband Franklin D. Roosevelt took office, until his death during his fourth term in office in 1945. She went on to serve as United States delegate to the United Nations General Assembly and spearheaded the United Nations Declaration on Human Rights. President Harry Truman later called her the "First Lady…
(2020-01-01). In 2020, Let's Recognize Immigration as a Reproductive Justice Issue. truthout.org Nearly one year ago, in February 2019, a 24-year-old Honduran woman in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody went into premature labor while 27 weeks pregnant. The federal immigration agency failed to transport the woman to a hospital in a timely manner, and she gave birth to a stillborn at the Port Isabel Detention Center in Texas. Days after the news of this tragic story broke, I spoke to Nancy Cárdenas Peña…
(2020-01-01). UN Expert Describes Detention of Chelsea Manning as "Amounting to Torture" truthout.org United Nations Special Rapporteur on Torture Nils Melzer shared on social media Tuesday a letter he sent to the United States government last month expressing concerns that the continued detention of whistleblower Chelsea Manning amounts to torture. | The Geneva-based expert tweeted in the early hours of Tuesday: | #USGovt of 1 Nov 2019 explaining why continued detention of (2020-01-01). Palestinian administrative detainee Ahmad Zahran has been on hunger strike for 100 days. peoplesdispatch.org Israeli authorities had earlier committed to not renewing his period of administrative detention once it expired in October but failed to honor their promise. This led Ahmad Zahran to once again launch a hunger strike…
(2020-01-01). U.S. Sanctions: The Weaponization of the Global Financial System. indybay.org Mountain View Community Center | 201 South Rengstorff Avenue | Mountain View CA 94040…
(2020-01-01). Papa Francisco condena violencia contra las mujeres. wp.telesurtv.net Este 1 ∞ de enero el Papa Francisco denunció el abuso contra la mujer en las sociedades modernas, como parte de su primer mensaje del año, y pidió el fin de la explotación femenina por su cuerpo, coincidiendo con la celebración del día de la Solemnidad de María Santísima Madre de Dios. | LEA TAMBIÉN: | Papa Francisco celebra su 83 ∞ cumpleaños | "Toda violencia infligida a la mujer es una profanación de Dios", dijo el pontífice en su primer sermón del año. | "Cuántas veces el cuerpo de la mu…
(2020-01-01). Egyptian human rights lawyer assaulted by suspected cops. peoplesdispatch.org Gamal Eid was physically assaulted by a group of armed men, whom he believes were police officers, on December 29, Sunday. The men, numbering around 10-12, were armed with pistols and proceeded to pour paint all over Eid…
(2020-01-01). 'Iranian children have death risk under US sanctions'. yenisafak.com Hundreds of Iranian children face death as a result of lack of medications due to U.S. sanctions, said Iran's health minister on Wednesday.In a letter to World Health Organization head Tedros Adhanom, Saeed Namaki said the unilateral U.S. sanctions block shipments of medication and medical equipment.Contrary to U.S. claims that sanctions do not hinder medication and food trade, he said global firms don't sell medication or medical equipment to Iran as a result of the the unilateral sanctions."As you know, Iran became a victim of economic war carried out by the U.S. Washington's sanctions made it impossible to sup…
(2020-01-01). New Year's fire at German zoo kills ALL animals inside monkey sanctuary (VIDEO). rt.com 
A fire reportedly caused by New Year's Eve fireworks burnt down the monkey house at a zoo in Germany, killing all of the chimpanzees, orangutans and gorillas inside. More than 30 animals died in the horrific blaze. | Krefeld Zoo announced that it had suffered an "unfathomable tragedy" on New Year's Eve, after its monkey sanctuary "burned down to the foundation." Fruit bats and birds were also killed in the accident, according to media reports. | The zoo confirmed that there were no survivors in the ape house, but said the nearby exhibit — which houses a gorilla and his family — escaped unscathed.
(2019-12-31). North Korea won't stop nuclear expansion in face of US threat — but American attitude adjustment can work wonders, Kim says. rt.com 
North Korea will continue building up its nuclear deterrent to counter US aggression, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has said — but the degree to which it expands its weapons program will depend on the US' attitude. | Accusing Washington of insincerity regarding discussions about the partial lifting of sanctions, Kim held up America's "gangster-like demands" as the reason no agreement had yet been reached between the two countries. | The more the US stalls for time, Kim said, the more it will find itself "helpless in the face of North Korean power." Pyongyang has a "new strategic weapon" up its sleeve,…
(2019-12-31). 'US is torturing Chelsea Manning': Top UN official says her treatment is 'cruel and degrading'. rt.com 
Chelsea Manning is being subjected to cruel, inhumane and degrading treatment, constituting torture by the US government over her refusal to testify against whistleblower website WikiLeaks, a top United Nations official has said. | UN special rapporteur on torture Nils Melzer accused the government of torturing Manning in a November letter, which was just released on Tuesday. In the letter, Melzer wrote that Manning is suffering "an open-ended, progressively severe measure of coercion…
(2019-12-31). France's Undocumented Migrants Are Fighting for Their Rights. thenation.com France's Undocumented Migrants Are Fighting for Their Rights…
(2019-12-31). Latin America: A Decade in Review. telesurenglish.net The period between 2010 and 2019 seems to be "the bittersweet decade" for the Latin American peoples. In its first part, the winds of economic development with social justice and equity were fueled by progressive governments that arose all over the continent as a result of the tenacity of workers, farmers, students, human rights defenders, gender activists, and environmental activists. | RELATED: | Venezuela's Maduro Gives Message of Peace in Address To Nation | In the middle of…
(2019-12-31). Headlines for December 31, 2019. democracynow.org Protests Rage Outside U.S. Embassy in Iraq After U.S. Airstrikes Kill 24, Hate Crime Charges Filed Against Suspect in Hanukkah Stabbing in NY, Texas Church Shooter Had Long Criminal History, NYT: Top Officials Failed to Convince Trump to Release Withheld Ukraine Aid, Death Toll from Crackdown on Protests in India Rises to 27, Five Kashmiri Political Leaders Released from Detention, Sudanese Court Sentences 29 to Death for Killing Teacher in Anti-Protest Crackdown, Thousands Flee to the Ocean to Escape Australia Wildfires, Former Nissan Head Flees Japan to Lebanon to Escape Trial on Financial Crimes, New York Sett…
(2019-12-31). US Middle East Forever Wars. globalresearch.ca Iraqis suffered from direct and indirect US aggression since Jimmy Carter's orchestrated Iran/Iraq war in the 1980s. | Eight years of bloody fighting produced stalemate. Then came GHW Bush's 1991 Gulf War on Iraq, followed by years of genocidal sanctions, Bush …
(2019-12-31). The US sanctions on the Nord Stream 2 pipeline and the danger of World War III. wsws.org The decision by the US Congress to impose sanctions on companies involved in the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline underscores the danger of world war.
(2019-12-31). Israel/Palestine war crimes probe 'momentous step forward', says UN rights expert. news.un.org An independent UN human rights expert hailed on Tuesday, the International Criminal Court's (ICC) decision to consider a formal criminal investigation into allegations of war crimes in Palestine as a "momentous step forward in the quest for accountability" in the five-decade-long Israeli occupation.
(2019-12-31). IACHR Identified 68 Thousand Twitter Accounts Created in Support of Bolivia's de Facto Government. globalresearch.ca The Commission (an appendage of OAS) explained that since the (forced) resignation of Evo Morales, the accounts have supported hashtags such as #BoliviaLibreyDemocratica and #NoHayGolpeEnBolivia. | *** | The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) detected, as part of the campaign to …
(2019-12-31). 2019: The UN News year in photos. news.un.org From sustainable development to economic development, and human rights to humanitarian aid, UN News provides daily coverage across all of the Organization's key issues — health, migration, climate change and so much more.
(2019-12-31). In 2020, Ukrainians Gain Whistleblower Rights Trump Has Forsaken Here. commondreams.org Former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch is surrounded by lawyers, aides, and journalists as she arrives at the U.S. Capitol October 11, 2019 in Washington, D.C. (Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2019-12-31). UN Expert Calls Detention of Chelsea Manning 'Open-Ended, Progressively Severe, Coercive Measure Amounting to Torture'. commondreams.org United Nations Special Rapporteur on Torture Nils Melzer shared on social media Tuesday a letter he sent to the United States government last month expressing concerns that the continued detention of whistleblower Chelsea Manning amounts to torture. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2019-12-31). UN Researcher Hails ICC's Pursuit of War Crimes Probe in Palestine as 'Momentous Step' for Accountability. commondreams.org A United Nations human rights researcher on Tuesday hailed the International Criminal Court's recent decision to pursue a formal investigation of alleged war crimes in Palestinian territories occupied by Israel as a "momentous step forward in the quest for accountability." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2019-12-30). Israel Detained 5,500 Palestinians in 2019, Including 889 Children. imemc.org Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) arrested more than 5,500 Palestinians from the occupied Palestinian territory during 2019; among them were 889 children and at least 128 women, the Palestine News Network reported. The Palestinian Prisoners and Human Rights Institutions issued a fact sheet, on Monday, stating that the number of Palestinian …
(2019-12-28). Rally defends special education in Puerto Rico and U.S. workers.org 
Austerity imposed on Puerto Rico's educational system by the unelected colonialist fiscal board was the target of a street rally in New York City on Dec. 14. The rally was called by the New York chapter of the Timón Committee, which works to raise awareness of special education rights — . . . | Continue reading Rally defends special education in Puerto Rico and U.S. at Workers.org
(2019-12-28). Your technology is mine! Doctor sues Apple over Apple Watch heart rate monitoring method. rt.com 
The technology that an Apple Watch uses to detect heartbeat irregularities violates a patent held by a New York University cardiologist, he has alleged in a lawsuit filed against the tech giant. | Dr. Joseph Wiesel asked a federal court in Brooklyn to order Apple to pay damages, claiming the company is violating his rights "with knowledge and understanding". | According to court papers, Dr. Wiesel invented a method and device for detecting atrial fibrillation, using photoplethysmography to "assess w…
(2019-12-28). Top 20 Fight Back! articles of 2019: the struggle grows and spreads. fightbacknews.org There was a high tide of struggle on many fronts in 2019 – both in the U.S. and around the world. Within the U.S. there were large strikes of General Motors workers, Chicago teachers and others. There was a successful movement to defend public education from mega-charters in Los Angeles. There were mass protests nation-wide for immigrant rights and against the concentration camps at the U.S.-México border. And there were growing movements against police crimes and for community control of the police that came together to refound the National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression in Chicago in November.
(2019-12-27). Pro-Coup Venezuelan Soldiers Who Fled to the US Now Locked Up in ICE Detention Center. mintpressnews.com 
In an ironic twist worthy of an Alanis Morissette song, participants in U.S.-backed coup are now in an ICE detention camp.
(2019-12-27). William Barr's Police-Fueled War on Civil Rights. thenation.com 
The attorney general's obsession with protecting the police is a throwback to the crackdown on protesters in the 1960s.
(2019-12-27). Wikileaks Still Holding Powerful to Account as Founder Julian Assange "Slowly Dies" in Prison. mintpressnews.com Julian Assange is dying inside Belmarsh Prison in London. Those are his own words, relayed through English journalist Vaughan Smith, who revealed that the Wikileaks founder called him on Christmas Eve to share his greetings. Smith also divulged that Assange told him he is kept in solitary confinement 23 hours per day and is often sedated. | His treatment has elicited protests around the world, from journalists, news organizations, human rights groups and celebrities. Last week a group of Australian doctors asked Foreign Minister Marise Pay…
(2019-12-27). Pakistan blasphemy death sentence 'travesty of justice', say UN experts. news.un.org Independent UN human rights experts condemned on Friday the death sentence of a university lecturer charged with blasphemy in Pakistan, calling the ruling "a travesty of justice".
(2019-12-24). Headlines for December 24, 2019. democracynow.org House Could Bring Additional Articles of Impeachment Against Trump, Boeing Fires CEO Dennis Muilenburg over 737 MAX Jet Controversy, NYT: Pentagon May Withdraw U.S. Troops from West Africa, Syria: Up to 100,000 Civilians Forced to Flee Intensification of Fighting in Idlib, Asian Leaders Urge U.S. & North Korea to Move Toward Peace, Report: Canadian Police Were Prepared to Use Lethal Force Against Indigenous Land Defenders, Trump Met with Accused War Criminal Eddie Gallagher, Nigerian Man Dies in ICE Custody in Maryland, Colorado Governor Pardons Woman Who Took Sanctuary to Fight Her Deportation, Former Black Pant…
(2019-12-21). China detaining millions of Uyghurs? Serious problems with claims by US-backed NGO and far-right researcher 'led by God' against Beijing. thegrayzone.com Claims that China has detained millions of Uyghur Muslims are based largely on two studies. A closer look at these…
(2019-12-20). Activists Demand a Migrant Justice Platform as Democratic Candidates Discuss Immigration in Debate. democracynow.org 
Protesters for immigrant rights demonstrated outside the Democratic debate Thursday in Los Angeles, displaying a banner that read "Migrant Justice on Day One" and demanding a moratorium on deportations and immigrant worker protections. We look at how the candidates responded, with Erika Andiola, chief advocacy officer for RAICES, the Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services. "I'm really happy that immigration came up this time around," she notes. "In the past few debates, the issue didn't even come up."
(2019-12-20). BDS movement defiant after Tories announce anti-boycott measures and threaten international solidarity. thecanary.co Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) campaigners have responded defiantly to Tory plans to pass an anti-BDS law. | The law is a threat to any international solidarity campaign which seeks to boycott companies or products because of the state policies of another country. As such, it presents a threat to international solidarity efforts as a whole. | Boycotting Israeli apartheid: | BDS is an international movement calling for a boycott of Israeli goods. It also calls for grassroots groups to initiate boycott campaigns against companies complicit in Israel…
(2019-12-20). One appalling detail in the Queen's Speech shows voting Tory was a vote to ruin your children's future. thecanary.co The Queen's Speech on 19 December unveiled Boris Johnson's plans for Britain. | It confirmed that the pledge he made during the election campaign for a £10.50 living wage was, frankly, nonsense — as was the promise not to further weaken workers' rights. And i…
(2019-12-20). Four Lawyers. Four Projects. One Non-Stop Year. aclu.org 
It isn't news that the Trump administration has kept ACLU attorneys working at breakneck speed for the past three years. In 2019 alone, we saw historic moments and victories—from defeating the citizenship question on the 2020 census and bringing the first trans civil rights case to the Supreme Court, to blocking a wave of abortion bans and many of the administration's attempts to dismantle the asylum system. To name a few. | Here are some of our attorneys' takes on 2019 and the year ahead—what's changed for the better and for the worse, and how the outcome of the 2020 presidential election will a…
(2019-12-19). 10 LGBTQ Moments that Defined 2019. aclu.org 
1. Aimee Stephens goes to the Supreme Court: | In October, the Supreme Court heard its first trans civil rights case ever. The case was brought by our client Aimee Stephens, who was fired from her job at a funeral home solely for being transgender. That's sex discrimination and it violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. | We have yet to see whether the Supreme Court will uphold the civil rights of trans people. But no matter what, history has already been made. | "I'll never forget the feeling of coming out of the Supreme Court and seeing a crowd of trans people and allies chanting to Aim…
(2019-12-18). A Secret CBP Team is Targeting and Detaining Innocent Travelers. We're Suing. aclu.org U.S. Customs and Border Protection is deploying secret teams that target, detain, and interrogate innocent travelers. We're suing to expose their activities. | In November 2018, three CBP officers detained Andreas | Gal, a former chief | technology officer at Mozilla Corporation and current Apple employee, at San | Francisco International Airport after he landed from a business trip to Sweden. | Andr…
(2019-12-18). A Tennessee City Banned Surgical Abortion Within the City Limits. We're Taking Them to Court. aclu.org For 30 years, I have | worked in reproductive health care. In my current role as Chief Operating | Officer of carafem, a nonprofit with a national network of health centers, I | know the difference compassionate and comprehensive reproductive health care | makes in the lives of our clients. I have witnessed the personal impact when | people who have the legal right to have a child or to have an abortion are denied | those rights due to outrageous societal barriers. Abortion providers are used | to opposition, but we've never experienced the kind of explicit targeting we | received from politicians in the city…
(2019-12-17). For Many of the World's Children, Education Proves Elusive. progressive.org Especially in countries with widespread human rights abuses, kids—especially girls—don't get the chance to go to school.
(2019-12-13). UN Counters US Claims Of "Proof" Iran Attacked Saudi Arabia, Netanyahu Impunity & Turkey Sanctions. thelastamericanvagabond.com Welcome to The Daily Wrap Up, a concise show dedicated to bringing you the most relevant independent news, as we see it, from the last 24 hours (12/12/19). As always, take the information discussed in the video below and research it for yourself, and come to your own conclusions. Anyone telling you what the truth …
(2019-12-12). Perth Pride: LGBTI community challenges corporatisation. greenleft.org.au 
LGBTIQ rights Petrina HarleyIssue 1248 Australia Rainbow Rebellion PerthDecember 12, 2019Perth Pride assembled its biggest parade to date on November 30, with 115 floats. But many in the LGBTIQ comm…
(2019-12-11). The Fight Inside the NLRB for Union Rights. progressive.org The NLRB unions argue that a recent set of executive orders from the board prevent them from undertaking basic union functions.
(2019-12-10). Aboriginal leader Sam Watson's farewell draws big numbers. greenleft.org.au 
Aboriginal rights Jim McIlroyIssue 1248 Australia BrisbaneDecember 11, 2019More than 1000 people attended the funeral for Wangerriburra and Birri Gubba leader Sam Watson in Musgrave Park on December 6. | Watson passed away on November 26, just two weeks after his 67t…
(2019-12-07). US Claims "Fresh Intelligence" Of Iran Attacks Yet Provides Zero Evidence — MSM Blindly Regurgitates. thelastamericanvagabond.com Here we go again with "fresh intelligence" to justify the continued sanctions and destabilization of Iran. It's a plan that has been well documented even by their own writings (See Which Path to Persia? — 2009). Of course, complicating U.S. foreign policy is the involvement of Israel. The Last American Vagabond covers the latest political posturing, distortion, and general …
(2019-12-06). Anti-Imperialism As An Intellectual Trap. zcomm.org The US-led economic sanctions have caused a great deal of death and destruction in Iranian society, and the IMF policies in Iran, similar to other developing countries, have resulted in a widening of the class gap, poverty, severe marginalization of the peripheries, and a lowering of living standards. Yet, the US sanctions together with IMF Read more…
(2019-12-05). Rights for workers means no going soft on Hansonism. greenleft.org.au 
union rights Sam WainwrightIssue 1248 Australia Ensuring Integrity Bill ACTUDecember 5, 2019Supporters of workers' rights breathed a big sigh of relief when the Coalition's union-busting Fair Work (…
(2019-12-04). TIAR Countries Blacklist Top Venezuelan Officials as US Slaps New Sanctions. venezuelanalysis.com US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo accused Venezuela of "hijacking" mass anti-neoliberal protests in "our own backyard."
(2019-12-02). Prison By Any Other Name: A Report on South Florida Detention Facilities. splcenter.org …
(2019-12-02). Venezuela's PDVSA Secures Temporary Lease Extension for Curacao Refinery. venezuelanalysis.com Despite the extension, refinery owners are looking to end the 34-year cooperation under pressure from US sanctions.