Santa Rita Jail Solidarity During the Coronavirus Pandemic
IWOC Oakland | indybay.org | 2020-03-20
As businesses, schools, and institutions close to reduce the transmission of COVID-19, many people are wondering how to support people in jails, prisons, and immigration detention centers.
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/03/19/18831666.php
U.S. sanctions on Iran are making its coronavirus crisis worse
Michael Arria | zcomm.org | 2020-03-20
Ilhan Omar is calling for them to be suspended…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/u-s-sanctions-on-iran-are-making-its-coronavirus-crisis-worse/
Immigrants in US detention facilities plea for help as coronavirus pandemic spreads
wsws.org | 2020-03-20
The lack of medical care and the extremely close quarters in America's detention camps create excellent conditions for the coronavirus to spread rapidly if even a single person catches the disease.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/20/coro…
Immigrants in US detention facilities plead for help as coronavirus pandemic spreads
wsws.org | 2020-03-20
The lack of medical care and the extremely close quarters in America's detention camps create excellent conditions for the coronavirus to spread rapidly if even a single person catches the disease.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/20/coro…
Expert: US sanctions on Iran, Venezuela during pandemic could be genocidal
Aaron Maté | thegrayzone.com | 2020-03-20
Intensified US sanctions on Iran, Venezuela during the COVID-19 pandemic could amount to genocide, a former UN expert warns. Iran…
thegrayzone.com/2020/03/20/expert-us-sanctions-on-iran-venezuela-during-pandemic-could-be-genocidal/
It's Been Open Season on Voting Rights Since SCOTUS Gutted Voting Rights Act
Staff | truthout.org | 2020-03-20
Election protection is increasingly seen as a critical issue in the US. Since the gutting of the Voting Rights Act by the Supreme Court, there have been problems with voter purging, voter ID laws, what some call modern-day 'poll taxes', precinct closures, and difficulties with voting machines. Congress has noted serious attempts to hack into voting systems in the US based in partisan politics. Women Rising Radio joins two election protection activists to talk about threats to the U.S. electoral p…
truthout.org/audio/its-been-open-season-on-voting-rights-since-scotus-gutted-voting-rights-act/
Iran's IMF Request Shows Just How Desperate Tehran has Become
Andrew Korybko | globalresearch.ca | 2020-03-20
The combination of crippling American sanctions, the compliance with the aforesaid by the US' "comprehensive global strategic partner" India (formerly one of Tehran's top energy partners) out of fear of so-called "secondary sanctions", the uncontrollable outbreak of COVID-19 in the …
globalresearch.ca/iran-imf-request-shows-desperate/5706926
Stop Tightening the Thumb Screws against Iran. A Humanitarian Message
Kathy Kelly | globalresearch.ca | 2020-03-20
U.S. sanctions against Iran, cruelly strengthened in March of 2018, continue a collective punishment of extremely vulnerable people. Presently, the U.S. "maximum pressure" policy severely undermines Iranian efforts to cope with the ravages of COVID-19, causing hardship and tragedy while …
globalresearch.ca/stop-tightening-thumb-screws-humanitarian-message/5706832
Sanctions: Unilateral Coercive Measures for Regime Change in Venezuela
Nino Pagliccia | globalresearch.ca | 2020-03-20
In discussing the issue of "sanctions" there are two main points that need to be made. One is the use of the correct terminology when referring to the government actions that the US, Canada and the EU take in order …
globalresearch.ca/sanctions-unilateral-coercive-measures-regime-change-venezuela/5706847
The Sudanese Ousted a Dictator Last Year–Why Is Washington Still Imposing Sanctions?
Mitchell Plitnick | thenation.com | 2020-03-20
The Sudanese Ousted a Dictator Last Year–Why Is Washington Still Imposing Sanctions?
thenation.com/article/world/sudan-revolution-sanctions-trump/
US imperialism exploits coronavirus as a weapon of war
wsws.org | 2020-03-20
The maintenance and tightening of punishing economic sanctions against Iran as it confronts one of the world's worst outbreaks of the coronavirus constitutes a US war crime.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/20/pers…
Pakistan's PM Khan calls for lifting of Iran sanctions amid global virus crisis
rt.com | 2020-03-20
Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan called on Friday for the lifting of US-led sanctions on neighboring Iran, so Tehran can better deal with its novel coronavirus crisis. The comments came after Iranian President Hassan Rouhani wrote to Khan, asking for help in dealing with the novel coronavirus outbreak that has now killed at least 1,433 people in the Islamic republic, AFP reported. | "I would stress and insist to the international community to lift the sanctions on Iran," Khan told reporters. "It is very unjust they are dealing with such a large outbreak on one side, and on the other they are facing interna…
rt.com/newsline/483656-pakistan-khan-iran-sanctions/
'Utter contempt for human life': Iranian FM Zarif slams US for hitting Tehran with new sanctions amid Covid-19 crisis
rt.com | 2020-03-20
Iranian foreign minister Javad Zarif accused the US of taking its policy of "maximum pressure" on Tehran to a "new level of inhumanity" by imposing new sanctions on Iran as it struggles to cope with a huge surge of Covid-19 cases. | …
rt.com/news/483671-iran-zarif-us-sanctions/
Stanford Professor Michael McFaul dunks on Khamenei… by puzzling over why Iran doesn't use Gregorian calendar
rt.com | 2020-03-20
Ex-ambassador Michael McFaul has taken to Twitter to express astonishment over the start of the Iranian New Year, leading to speculation that he might not know that there are non-Gregorian calendars out there. | The former US envoy to Russia and current Stanford academic found it fitting to mock Iran's supreme leader for commenting on the start of the Iranian (or Persian) New Year, Nowruz. In his tweet, Ali Khamenei had congratulated his country for becoming more self-reliant in the face of US sanctions, but urged for further production boosts in 1399 to help the Islamic Republic recover from Washington's econ…
rt.com/news/483574-mcfaul-iran-new-year-calendar/
[Commentary] Women and girls' health agency: Operationalizing the "Can-Act-Resist" of the women's empowerment process
Anita Raj | thelancet.com | 2020-03-20
This year marks the 25th anniversary of Bejing Declaration and Platform for Action
[Comment] UN General Assembly tuberculosis targets: are we on track?
Suvanand Sahu, Lucica Ditiu, Lovett Lawson, Francine Ntoumi, Denise Arakaki, Alimuddin Zumla | thelancet.com | 2020-03-20
The 2018 UN General Assembly (UNGA) Political Declaration on Tuberculosis was a turning point in global efforts to end the tuberculosis epidemic.1,2 Ambitious targets were set for scale-up and roll-out of diagnostic, treatment, and prevention services, political commitments, principles of equity and human rights, and financing, implementation, and research. Targets included diagnosing and treating an additional 40 million people with tuberculosis by 2022 and generating US$13 billion per year for tuberculosis care and prevention and $2 billion per year for research and development.
thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(20)30565-1/fulltext?rss=yes
ACLU Demands the Release from Prisons and Jails of Communities Vulnerable to COVID-19
ACLU-NC | indybay.org | 2020-03-20
ACLU Also Calls for Release of People Currently in Pretrial Detention Because of Cash Bail to Prevent a Public Health Crisis…
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/03/19/18831668.php
Fighting COVID-19 in Cuba, China, and the United States
W. T. Whitney Jr. | peoplesworld.org | 2020-03-20
Governments, according to Thomas Jefferson, are supposed to guarantee people's rights to "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." COVID-19 has put people's lives and health in the spotlight now. What kinds of tools do governments have at their disposal to protect lives and health? Cuba has the advantages of forward-looking leadership, well-orchestrated state planning, …
peoplesworld.org/article/fighting-covid-19-in-cuba-china-and-the-united-states/
Grassroots effort sponsored by SPLC protects voting rights for hundreds across South Florida
splcenter.org | 2020-03-20
Clutching a clipboard full of voter registration forms under his arm, Marq Mitchell knocked on the front door of a small, beige, stucco house in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
splcenter.org/news/2020/03/20/grassroots-effort-sponsored-splc-protects-voting-rights-hundreds-across-south-florida
Fighting COVID 19 in Cuba, China and the United States
W. T. Whitney | counterpunch.org | 2020-03-20
Governments, according to Thomas Jefferson, are supposed to guarantee people's rights to "life liberty and the pursuit of happiness." COVID 19 has out people's lives and health in the spotlight now. What kind of tools do governments have at their disposal to protect lives and health? Cuba has the advantages of forward-looking leadership, well-orchestrated state…
counterpunch.org/2020/03/20/fighting-covid-19-in-cuba-china-and-the-united-states/
US sanctions impede Iran's fight against coronavirus
yenisafak.com | 2020-03-20
The eerie silence in the deserted streets of Tehran is in sharp contrast to the palpable buzz in hospitals these days with the novel coronavirus pandemic assuming alarming proportions and cases mounting.The total number of confirmed cases has reached 18,407 with the death toll climbing to 1,284. According to the Health Ministry, around 50 new cases and six deaths are reported every hour across the country.While new cases have seen an inconsistent increase, the fatalities are surging steadily and alarmingly. Thursday's death toll of 149 is the highest single-day coronavirus death toll in Iran.The epicenter of the…
yenisafak.com/en/world/us-sanctions-impede-irans-fight-against-coronavirus-3514477
Hundreds of EU Citizens Denied Right to Stay in UK Following Brexit
sputniknews.com | 2020-03-20
Home affairs spokesperson Christine Jardine said the British government's deadline for a settled status would leave thousands of EU nationals at risk of eviction, detention, and even deportation.
sputniknews.com/uk/202003201078641491-hundreds-of-eu-citizens-denied-right-to-stay-in-uk-following-brexit/
Trump's Deportation Machine Is Still Churning Despite Coronavirus Outbreak
Staff | truthout.org | 2020-03-19
This story has been updated. | Federal deportation proceedings for incarcerated migrants and immigration defendants continue nationwide despite pleas from defense attorneys, human rights groups and some judges who fear that in-person court hearings and conditions of confinement inside immigration jails could facilitate the rapid spread of the coronavirus that causes COVID-19. | The Trump administration's decision to continue pursuing deportation orders and immigration charges against jailed immi…
truthout.org/articles/trumps-deportation-machine-is-still-churning-despite-coronavirus-outbreak/
Video: Aleppo Man Imprisoned and Tortured by West's "Rebels" in Terrorist-Occupied Hospital Complex
Eva Bartlett | globalresearch.ca | 2020-03-19
Long, productive, rewarding, and also sad, day in Aleppo. The sad–tragic–part was meeting a man, Abdel Aziz, who was held in the terrorists' underground prison in the Eye/Children's Hospital complex, occupied by terrorist factions until liberation of eastern Aleppo areas …
globalresearch.ca/video-aleppo-man-imprisoned-tortured-west-rebels-terrorist-occupied-hospital-complex/5706743
UK Cruise Ship with 5 COVID-19 Cases Starts Evacuating in Cuba
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-19
The almost 700 passengers on board the British cruise ship MS Braemar, with at least five confirmed cases of COVID-19 on board, began disembarking on Wednesday at the Cuban port of Mariel, 45 kilometers west of Havana. | RELATED: | US Should Lift Sanctions to Avoid More Deaths From COVID-19 | During the disembarkation, dozens of passengers ass…
telesurenglish.net/news/UK-Cruise-Ship-with-5-COVID-19-Cases-Starts-Evacuating-in-Cuba-20200319-0015.html
Economists Demand Trump Immediately Lift Iran, Cuba, Venezuela Sanctions
Staff | truthout.org | 2020-03-19
A group of economists and policy experts on Wednesday called on President Donald Trump to immediately lift the United States' crippling sanctions against Iran, Venezuela, Cuba, and other countries, warning that the economic warfare
PCHR Demands Provision of Health and Humanitarian Standards at Gaza Strip COVID-19 Quarantine Centers
PCHR | imemc.org | 2020-03-19
The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) is closely monitoring the precautionary measures adopted by the Ministry of Health (MOH) in the Gaza Strip in the face of Coronavirus (COVID-19), including the medical exam procedures and quarantine policies for Palestinians returning from abroad via Rafah and Beit Hanoun "Erez" Crossings, …
imemc.org/article/pchr-demands-provision-of-health-and-humanitarian-standards-at-gaza-strip-covid-19-quarantine-centers/
We Know Prisons Need COVID-19 Plans, but our Arizona Prison Tour Suggests it's not Happening
Corene Kendrick | aclu.org | 2020-03-19
Earlier this month, the Prison Law Office and the ACLU National Prison Project filed an emergency motion in federal court in Phoenix. The motion asks the judge to order the Arizona Department of Corrections (ADC) to consult with a correctional health care expert to develop a plan to prevent, manage, and treat any COVID-19 outbreaks in the state's 10 prisons. You might think this is an obvious request, but we've spent the last decade observing the Arizona pri…
aclu.org/news/prisoners-rights/we-know-prisons-need-covid-19-plans-our-arizona-prison-tour-suggests-its-not-happening
We're in a Recession, and It's Likely to Get Worse
Staff | truthout.org | 2020-03-19
The coronavirus epidemic is creating an ongoing teachable moment that could be used to transform the U.S. economy. COVID-19 and the oil war are triggers leading to a recession that has its roots in record corporate and personal debt, longterm low wages and an artificially-inflated stockmarket. The shortcomings of U.S. economic policy, the healthcare system, and workers' rights are being magnified by the current crisis. | Epidemiologists are reporting the coronavirus epidemic will last months, maybe more than a year. A
truthout.org/articles/were-in-a-recession-and-its-likely-to-get-worse/
The Military Should not be Searching Cars or Checking Documents at the Border
Shaw Drake | aclu.org | 2020-03-18
There's an old saying that goes, "When all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail." This adage is especially applicable to the Trump administration's approach toward border policy, which is ever more militarized. On March 6th, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials announced that the Department of Defense would deploy 160 active-duty troops to ports of entry at the border
Stop Tightening the Thumb Screws: A Humanitarian Message
Kathy Kelly | dissidentvoice.org | 2020-03-18
Protester's sign decries sanctions, "a silent war" (Photo Credit: Campaign for Peace and Democracy, 2013) U.S. sanctions against Iran, cruelly strengthened in March of 2018, continue a collective punishment of extremely vulnerable people. Presently, the U.S. "maximum pressure" policy severely undermines Iranian efforts to cope with the ravages of COVID-19, causing hardship and tragedy while …
dissidentvoice.org/2020/03/stop-tightening-the-thumb-screws-a-humanitarian-message/
China's Damning US Human Rights Report May Be Propaganda, but It's Not Wrong
Alan Macleod | mintpressnews.com | 2020-03-18
China just released a 13,000-word report on the state of human rights in the United States. While the report clearly has an agenda, it's not inaccurate.
mintpressnews.com/chinas-us-human-rights-report-propoganda-but-not-wrong/265854/
Delay or Hold Primaries: Can the 2020 Election Be Safeguarded Amid the Coronavirus Pandemic?
Staff | democracynow.org | 2020-03-18
Tuesday night's primary election for the Democratic presidential nomination was marred by chaos, confusion and fears over the spread of coronavirus at polling places as former Vice President Joe Biden consolidated his lead as he won Florida and Illinois by a wide margin and scored a victory in Arizona. We are joined by Vanita Gupta, former head of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division in the Obama administration, now president of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, the nation's oldest and largest civil rights coalition. They issued a call with 100 voting rights groups for states to proce…
www.democracynow.org/2020/3/18/democrati…
How Victims of the US' "Maximum Pressure" Campaign Are Coping with Coronavirus
Vanessa Beeley | mintpressnews.com | 2020-03-18
Despite crippling sanctions, years of war, military intervention and a "maximum pressure "campaign that has only increased since the coronavirus began, victims of America's heavy-handed foreign policy are rising to the challenge.
mintpressnews.com/victims-us-maximum-pressure-sanctions-coping-with-coronavirus/265834/
Spain Takes Sweeping Measures as COVID-19 Escalates
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-18
Spain's center-left government took an unprecedented measure when it announced Monday that private hospitals and health care providers would be temporarily nationalized in a bid to combat the rapid spread of the coronavirus. | RELATED: | US Should Lift Economic Sanctions to Avoid More Deaths From Pandemic | As the COVID-19 disease continues to grip the country making it the fourth most affected worldwide with 14,769 confirmed cases as of Wednesday and 638 deaths, Prim…
telesurenglish.net/news/Spain-Takes-Sweeping-Measures-as-COVID-19-Escalates-20200318-0027.html
Is murder still a crime, though? Philly introduces catch-and-release for looters & drug dealers until coronavirus crisis ends
rt.com | 2020-03-18
Cops in Philadelphia have stopped making arrests for an array of crimes
US Imposes New Iran Sanctions, Complicating Coronavirus
Jason Ditz | iranian.com | 2020-03-18
Last week, Iranian officials emphasized that US sanctions are making their reaction to the coronavirus outbreak much more difficult, leading to both Iran and China to urge the US to put those sanctions on hold for humanitarian reason. Not going after Iran for humanitarian reasons, needless to say, isn't a policy that the administration considers, …
iranian.com/2020/03/17/us-imposes-new-iran-sanctions-complicating-coronavirus/
US ramps up sanctions devastating Venezuela's health sector as coronavirus spreads
Leonardo Flores | thegrayzone.com | 2020-03-17
Promising to "smash" Venezuela's government during a "maximum pressure March," Trump has imposed crushing sanctions that force Venezuela to spend…
thegrayzone.com/2020/03/17/us-sanctions-venezuelas-health-sector-coronavirus/
475 lawyers demand Israel Bar Association rescind effort to intervene in Int'l Criminal Court deliberations on 'Situation in Palestine'
Staff | imemc.org | 2020-03-17
By The Legal Center For Arab Minority Rights In Israel
Israeli Troops Detain Palestinian Residents in the West Bank
Rami Almeghari | imemc.org | 2020-03-17
Israeli army troops reportedly detained earlier on Tuesday, seven Palestinian residents from different areas in the West Bank. According to the Palestinian Detainees Club Forum in Ramallah city, Israeli occupation troops stormed both Awarta and Beita villages of Nablus city, arresting two Palestinian young men, Mojahed Awwad and Sameh Barakat. …
imemc.org/article/israeli-troops-detain-palestinian-residents-in-the-west-bank/
Spain Locks Down & Nationalizes Private Healthcare as Coronavirus Deaths Double & Cases Skyrocket
Staff | democracynow.org | 2020-03-17
Europe is the epicenter of coronavirus, and Spain now has the second most cases in Europe, with more than 2,000 new cases in 24 hours and the number of deaths doubled. We'll go to Madrid for an update, where more than half of the country's cases have been reported. This comes as the Spanish government announced it is nationalizing hospitals and private healthcare companies to better manage the pandemic. We are joined by María Carrión, a freelance journalist and former Democracy Now! producer who is also executive director of FiSahara and co-founder of Nomads HRC, which focus on human rights in Western Sahara.
www.democracynow.org/2020/3/17/spain_cor…
Iran calls on Europe to defy US sanctions amid COVID-19 outbreak
Press TV | iranian.com | 2020-03-17
Iran's foreign minister has called on London and the European Union to defy Washington's anti-Iran sanctions amid the outbreak of the novel coronavirus. In a Monday phone conversation with his British counterpart Dominic Raab, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif denounced the US' illegal and unilateral sanctions against Iran as an obstacle to the battle …
iranian.com/2020/03/17/iran-calls-on-europe-to-defy-us-sanctions-amid-covid-19-outbreak/
As Coronvirus Grips the US, Americans Get a Taste of Life Under Sanctions
Alan Macleod | mintpressnews.com | 2020-03-16
Crippling shortages, travel restrictions and overwhelmed medical services will give Americans a taste of what it is like for the millions of people living under US sanctions worldwide.
mintpressnews.com/coronvirus-americans-taste-life-under-sanctions/265757/
China Calls US Sanctions against Iran 'Immoral' amid Virus Epidemic
Tasnim News | iranian.com | 2020-03-16
China on Monday called on the US to remove its sanctions against Iran, saying that the embargoes will hamper the country's response to the coronavirus outbreak. The unilateral US sanctions will further hamper Iran's efforts in combating the virus while it's already struggling to cope with the crisis, Geng Shuang, spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry …
iranian.com/2020/03/16/china-calls-us-sanctions-against-iran-immoral-amid-virus-epidemic/
SPLC offices, Civil Rights Memorial Center close
splcenter.org | 2020-03-14
Our work continues with fervor and is needed more now than ever.
splcenter.org/news/2020/03/20/splc-offices-civil-rights-memorial-center-close
SPLC offices, Civil Rights Memorial Center close
splcenter.org | 2020-03-14
Our work continues with fervor and is needed more now than ever.
splcenter.org/news/2020/03/19/splc-offices-civil-rights-memorial-center-close
No, Venezuela does not have a six child per family policy
Joe Emersberger | zcomm.org | 2020-03-13
I respect UK journalist Andrew Buncombe. As I noted for FAIR last year, he was one of the few corporate journalists who reported on a study linking Trump's financial sanctions on Venezuela to thousands of deaths by the end of 2018. Since 2018, Trump has repeatedly intensified the sanctions and threatened Venezuela with military action, Read…
zcomm.org/zblogs/no-venezuela-does-not-have-a-six-child-per-family-policy/
Anti-LGBTQ Hate Group Presents "Make the Family Great Again" Petition to U.S. State Department Commission
Hatewatch Staff | splcenter.org | 2020-03-13
Anti-LGBTQ hate group Ruth Institute presented a "Make the Family Great Again" petition to the State Department at its Commission on Unalienable Rights meeting Feb. 21.
splcenter.org/hatewatch/2020/03/16/anti-lgbtq-hate-group-presents-make-family-great-again-petition-us-state-department
US House rams through Nicaragua regime-change bill with zero opposition
Ben Norton | thegrayzone.com | 2020-03-12
Not one member of the House of Representatives spoke up against a bipartisan bill sponsored by hardliners that ramps up…
thegrayzone.com/2020/03/12/us-house-sanctions-nicaragua/
This Law Makes Voting Nearly Impossible for Native Americans in Montana
Alora Thomas-Lundborg | aclu.org | 2020-03-12
Voting has never been easy for Native Americans living on rural reservations in Montana, which are often geographically isolated, with limited access to postal service and transportation. The passage of the Montana Ballot Interference Prevention Act (BIPA) has made these obstacles even greater, severely inhibiting Native Americans' access to the ballot. That's why we're suing. | In a state where the majority of individuals vote | by mail, rural tribal communities often work with get-out-the-vote organizer…
aclu.org/news/voting-rights/this-law-makes-voting-nearly-impossible-for-native-americans-in-montana