(2020-06-04). India must follow Supreme Court orders to protect 100 million migrant workers: UN rights experts. news.un.org The Indian Government must urgently comply with a Supreme Court order to ensure the wellbeing of more than 100 million migrant workers, after coronavirus measures left them jobless, forcing them to travel long distances home, UN independent human rights experts said on Thursday.
(2020-06-04). [Commentary] Governments and international institutions should urgently attend to the unjust disparities that COVID-19 is exposing and causing. thelancet.com During the COVID-19 pandemic, world leaders should pay more attention to those populations living in the poorest conditions, such as the homeless, those in prisons, poor ethnic & racial minorities, and millions of distressed migrants and refugees in unsanitary camps, settlements, shelters or detention centres. These vulnerable groups are most likely to suffer the consequences of inadequate and equitable access to testing, treatment and medical care [1]. Socio-economic circumstances determine the distribution of health conditions in populations and the severity of outcomes.
(2020-06-04). PCHR: Weekly Report on Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (28 May — 03 Jun 2020). imemc.org Summary of Israeli Violations of Human Rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (28 May — 03 June 2020) Israeli occupation forces continued to commit crimes against Palestinian civilians and their properties, including raids into Palestinian cities that are characterized with excessive use of force, assault, abuse and attacks on civilians. …
(2020-06-04). Organizing the Rich or the Poor? commondreams.org Those of us in the welfare rights movement always saw our work as the kindling for a wildfire of organizing by the poor and dispossessed. (Photo: Poor People's Campaign/Twitter) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2020-06-04). I Remember the Lynchings of the 60s. They're Still Happening. counterpunch.org I was naive until I wasn't. At just 18, the day after I graduated from high school, I drove from Boston to Atlanta to work with the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC). Two weeks later, on June 21, 1964, we got word that three young civil rights workers — James Chaney, Mickey Schwerner, and Andrew
(2020-06-03). Assassination of social activists continues in Colombia despite lockdown. peoplesdispatch.org According to the Institute of Development and Peace Studies (INDEPAZ), 115 environmentalists, human rights defenders, Indigenous, peasant and social leaders, and more than 20 former combatants of the FARC guerrilla group have been killed so far this year…
(2020-06-03). WAFA: UN High Commissioner "Israel Must Investigate" Killing of Eyad al-Hallaq. imemc.org The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), on Tuesday, stressed that Israel must swiftly develop to a full, independent, impartial, competent and transparent investigation into Israeli forces' killing of a Palestinian man with a mental disability in Jerusalem, stating that: "those responsible must be held …
(2020-06-03). US must address deep-seated grievances to move beyond history of racism and violence. news.un.org Voices calling for an end to "the endemic and structural racism that blights US society" must be heard and understood, for the country to move past its "tragic history of racism and violence", the UN Human Rights chief said on Wednesday.
(2020-06-03). Israeli Forces Arrest Eleven Palestinians Including Teens across West Bank. imemc.org The Palestinian Prisoners' Society (PPS) reported that Israeli forces detained 5 Palestinian youths from Ramallah and Al-Bireh District; | 1. Musa Ahmed Hamed, 22, from Silwad, | 2. Basil Mufeed Atta, | 3.
(2020-06-02). Illinois Gov. Pritzker, others warn of Trump's dangerous turn. peoplesworld.org 
CHICAGO — Gov. J.B. Pritzker, D-Ill., the progressive legal group Human Rights First and the pro-worker VoteVets veterans organization are all sounding alarms about GOP President Donald Trump's turn towards fascism, starting with his threats of a military takeover of U.S. cities. Pritzker was irate, saying afterwards that Trump "is strictly trying to make himself …
(2020-06-02). Know Your Rights While Protesting Police Brutality. aclu.org 
The right to protest is fundamental to our democracy and enshrined in the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. In response to the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police, people across the country have taken to the streets to demand racial justice and an end to police brutality and systematic racism against Black people. , , Especially in the time of COVID-19, it's important to know your rights and stay safe while protesting. In this video taken over the weekend at a protest in Brooklyn, New York, Emerson Sykes, staff attorney for the ACLU's Speech, Privacy, & Technology Project, sh…
(2020-06-02). Put human rights at the centre of coronavirus response urges Muhammad-Bande. news.un.org The nations of the world must put human rights at the heart of their ongoing response to COVID-19 and ensure that everyone can enjoy "justice and peace" wherever they may be, the President of the General Assembly said on Tuesday.
(2020-06-02). Address 'appalling impact' of COVID-19 on minorities, UN rights chief urges. news.un.org Urgent action is needed to address "the major disproportionate impact" of COVID-19 on racial and ethnic minorities, including people of African descent, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights said on Tuesday.
(2020-06-02). Nicaragua — False Witness, False Memory. COVID-19 and Nicaragua's Community Approach to Health Care. globalresearch.ca On Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela. The standard Western canonical sources of record, namely international institutions, non-governmental organizations and media outlets, practically universally contend that all three countries are authoritarian or even tyrannical regimes, denying their peoples' basic democratic rights. The …
(2020-06-02). Pride 2020 is About Resilience, and we are Resilient Together. aclu.org 
Pride has never been just about the parties. To the LGBTQ community, Pride is about staking our place in the world and speaking truth to power. It's about making clear that we're here, we belong, and we are resilient — resilient together., , As our Trans Justice Campaign Manager LaLa Zannell has said: "For many Black and Brown queer and trans people, gathering in person has always come with a health and safety risk — including from law enforcement, and others who feel they have the right to harm us for simply being who we are … For many of us, this is not the first pandemic that shows the injust…
(2020-06-04). 'FAKE WOKENESS': Video game firm Bethesda switches profile images to LGBT pride flag… but NOT on Middle East account. rt.com 
The Bethesda video game company has drawn the ire of netizens who noticed that it had changed its Twitter profile logos to a rainbow flag to celebrate LGBT Pride Month, but made an exception for its Middle East account. | The American firm has been flooded with comments accusing it of insincerity and meaningless virtue signaling in its quest to appear woke. Many angry gamers suggested that the only thing Bethesda cared about was money — and that if LGBT rights were truly high on its agenda, the Middle East account would also display the pride flag. | it's 100% real. | Been laughing for a good 3minutes st…
(2020-06-02). Speaking the 'language of the unheard' is our only option. greenleft.org.au 
Dr. Martin Luther King | "Yeah, you're right — we should protect our Second Amendment rights,
| Because in a second a dirty cop could kick our door in at night.<...
(2020-06-02). Refugee rights car cavalcade shows solidarity with Villawood detainees. greenleft.org.au 
(2020-06-04). The Protests Made a Huge Difference: All Four Minneapolis Cops Charged in Killing of George Floyd. democracynow.org 
After more than a week of nationwide protests, all four Minneapolis police officers involved in the killing of George Floyd have been charged with murder or aiding and abetting murder in a case that triggered historic protests across the country. "If you look at the video … the pressure from all three officers on Mr. Floyd's body contributed to his death," says activist and civil rights attorney Nekima Levy Armstrong, former president of the Minneapolis chapter of the NAACP. "They heard the man pleading, saying 'I can't breathe,' and they had a callous disregard for his life."
(2020-06-03). Headlines for June 3, 2020. democracynow.org Minnesota Opens Human Rights Probe of Minneapolis Police Department, Minnesota AFL-CIO Calls on Police Union President to Resign over George Floyd's Killing, George Floyd's Family Members Join Protest March of 60,000 in Houston, Arrest Warrants Issued for Six Atlanta Cops Who Tased Black Students, Army's 82nd Airborne, Armed with Fixed Bayonets, Deploys to Washington, D.C., AG William Barr Personally Ordered Assault on Peaceful Protesters Outside White House, Australian Ambassador to Investigate Police Assault on Journalists Near White House, Mayor Warns Against Military Deployment in Streets of New York, Thousan…
(2020-06-02). "A Declaration of War Against Americans": Trump Threatens to Deploy Military to Quell Protests. democracynow.org 
As a historic week-long uprising against police violence continues and curfews are in place across the United States, President Trump has declared himself "the president of law and order" and threatened to send thousands of heavily armed soldiers into the streets. "President Trump's speech almost amounted to a declaration of war against Americans," says Kristen Clarke, president of the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. We also speak with William Arkin, longtime reporter on the military, who notes Trump is getting "no pushback" from Defense Department officials.
(2020-06-02). Autopsy Reports Showing George Floyd's Death Was a Homicide Underscore Corruption & Police Impunity. democracynow.org 
Two autopsies have agreed George Floyd's death at the hands of Minneapolis police was a homicide. "I don't think that most of us are surprised that the county medical examiner tried to find a reason related to why George Floyd died that distanced it from law enforcement's role," says Nekima Levy Armstrong, civil rights attorney, activist, founder of the Racial Justice Network and former president of the Minneapolis chapter of the NAACP. She also discusses the local history of police accountability: "What this does is illustrates the corruption that exists within Hennepin County, where you have law enforcement wor…
(2020-06-04). We Are Watching the Story of America Crash Headlong Into the Reality of America. strategic-culture.org Caitlin JOHNSTONE | Once upon a time a brave nation liberated itself from the tyranny of the British empire and birthed freedom and democracy into the world. With the help of heroes like the abolitionists, Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King Jr and Malcolm X it overcame systemic racial inequality, and now it is a shining exemplar of human rights, the respected friend of free democracies around the world and the hated foe of all tyrannical regimes. It is not without its faults and its past mistakes, but it is the best leader and protector of the liberal world order that we could possibly hope to have. | I also hav…
(2020-06-03). Australia Is Destroying Aboriginal Heritage Sites for Mining Profit. strategic-culture.org When it comes to Aboriginal land rights in Australia, several contradictions emanate. In May, the Yindjibarndi Aboriginal Corporation which represents Aboriginal communities, In other news th…
(2020-06-04). Demand Change: Homeless Civil Rights & the Santa Cruz Police. indybay.org The attached flyers were distributed at the protest last night (June 3) and are suitable for future distribution unless and until things radically change. Comments and additions are welcome.
(2020-06-02). Demands for Trump's Removal Grow as Fascist Speech Condemned. truthout.org President Donald Trump's pledge Monday evening to deploy the full force of the U.S. military against demonstrators protesting the killing of George Floyd — and the president's authorization of police violence against peaceful protesters to clear the way for a photo-op — amounted in the eyes of lawmakers, rights groups, and commentators to "declaration of war" against the U.S. public that must result in Trump's removal from office. | Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) characterized Trump's remarks from the Ros…
(2020-06-04). New York Times CANCELED by liberals over Senator Cotton's 'Send in the troops' op-ed. rt.com 
Opinion editors at the New York Times are facing calls to resign over publishing an op-ed by Arkansas Senator Tom Cotton making a case for deploying the military to quell the riots that have broken out across the US. | Published on Wednesday and titled "Send in the troops," Cotton's op-ed argued that the police and even the National Guard couldn't quite provide an "overwhelming show of force to disperse, detain and ultimately deter lawbreakers" and that the US military should be used for the purpose. | Times subscribers — current and former — condemned the op-ed and swore to boycott the paper going f…
(2020-06-04). Measures Against Nord Stream 2 Show Neglect of Interest in EU Consumers, Company Says. sputniknews.com Earlier, US Senators introduced legislation expanding sanctions against Nord Stream 2 that apply to all companies that provide certification, insurance and port facilities for the project.
(2020-06-03). "Total Domination": Popular Rebellion in the Shadow of Trumpism-Fascism. counterpunch.org I joined a decent-sized civil and human rights march in Iowa City two nights ago. It started with mostly young and white people milling around, quietly chalking and talking at City Hall. When the numbers got big enough and two young Black sparkplug activists showed up, we took to (and took over) the downtown streets and had a rally at the Old Capital building on the University of Iowa's scenic, tree-filled Pentacrest. Then we headed over to the Johnson County Jail, the headquarters of racist mass incarceration in Johnson County (which is named after a former U.S. Vice President reputed to have killed the great Na…
(2020-06-02). UK Government Urged To Suspend Export Of Tear Gas, Rubber Bullets And Riot Shields To US. popularresistance.org The government is being urged to suspend the sales of British tear gas, rubber bullets and riot shields to the United States amid fears they are being used against civil rights protesters. | The US has been rocked by angry demonstrations for nearly a week following the death of George Floyd, a black man who died pleading for air while a Minneapolis police officer pressed a knee into his neck for eight minutes. | The police response, apparently endorsed by president Donald Trump, has seen security forces ramming crowds with cars, deploying gas and baton rounds against peaceful demonstrators, and arresting and shoo…
(2020-06-02). Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law urge officials to withdraw law enforcement, National Guard at elections. nationofchange.org "We are sounding an alarm regarding the potential deployment of the National Guard, state police and local law enforcement on Tuesday as voters prepare to cast ballots in primary elections."
(2020-06-02). Patient and Study Participant Rights to Privacy in Journal Publication. jamanetwork.com Personal health information is defined as identifiable data related to the past, present, or future health status of an individual. Personal health information has been considered protected health information, which is governed by ethical principles and laws to shield against intrusions into an individual's rights to privacy. However, rapid growth in the volume of electronic health records, access to other health information, and increasing use of personal health data by artificial intelligence, social media, technology, and other companies are threatening the traditional tenets of privacy protections for persona…
(2020-06-02). US Sanctions Shipping Companies, Torpedoes Venezuela Oil-for-Food Deal. venezuelanalysis.com Washington is cracking down on swap deals that provide Venezuela with food, fuel and other vital imports in exchange for crude oil.
(2020-06-02). Israeli forces arrest several Palestinians in occupied territories. peoplesdispatch.org Israeli forces arrested 23 Palestinians from different parts of the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem on June 1, Monday. According to the Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS), among those arrested are two former prisoners and two minors. | At least six Palestinians were arrested from Hebron and five from a Jordan Valley village. The reasons for the arrest were not made clear by the Israeli forces. An 18-year-old school boy and a 16-year-old minor have been arrested from Beit Umar town near Hebron city. | Though Israeli forces regularly detain Palestinians, the number of such arrests has increased in the last c…
(2020-06-02). US sanctions should not disrupt developing economic ties between Iran-Serbia. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Jun. 02 (MNA) — Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said that the US sanctions should not create any obstacle in development of economic relations between Islamic Republic of Iran and Serbia.
(2020-06-01). "America's Moment of Reckoning": Cornel West Says Nationwide Uprising Is Sign of "Empire Imploding" democracynow.org 
As thousands from coast to coast took to the streets this weekend to protest the state-sanctioned killing of Black people, and the nation faces its largest public health crisis in generations and the highest unemployment rate since the Great Depression, professor Cornel West calls the U.S. a "predatory capitalist civilization obsessed with money, money, money." He also makes the connections between U.S. violence abroad and at home. "There is a connection between the seeds that you sow of violence externally and internally."
(2020-06-01). Activists demand end to illegal confinement of Sahrawi human rights defender. peoplesdispatch.org Moroccan authorities have kept prominent Sahrawi activist Mahfouda Lekfir illegally confined in her father's house after she was released on May 15 following six months of political detention…
(2020-06-01). Amid lockdown, dissenting voices choked in Indian universities. peoplesdispatch.org Two student-activists of the Aligarh Muslim University were apprehended by the police in the State of Uttar Pradesh on May 28. With a growing number of such arrests, human rights defenders in India are raising concern about the ongoing COVID-19 crisis being used to target critics of the government and control dissent…
(2020-06-01). Lawyers of George Floyd Family to Open UN Human Rights Case, Seek Sanctions Against US. mintpressnews.com If there ever was a clear cut case for human rights abuse, it is the ongoing and pervasive disregard for communities of color by the police and concomitant prison-judicial complex in America.
(2020-05-31). Palestinian Prisoner in Israeli Jail on 21st Day of Hunger Strike. imemc.org Palestinian prisoner, Sami Janazreh, 47, has embarked on the third hunger strike over the past four years of incarceration. According to the Palestinian Prisoners' Society, prisoner Janazreh from the al-Fawwar refugee camp, has been on hunger strike for 21 days consecutively, in protest of his Administrative Detention inside Israeli prison. …
(2020-05-31). PCHR: "In Under 15 Hours: IOF Kills Two Palestinians, Including a Person with Disability, in Ramallah and East Jerusalem" imemc.org The Palestinian Center For Human Rights (CPHR): Within less than 15 hours, Israeli occupying forces killed two Palestinian civilians, including a person with disability, and injured another person with disability in new crimes of excessive use of lethal force in two separate incidents in Ramallah and East Jerusalem. According to …
(2020-05-31). Democracy — removing our representative rights. truepublica.org.uk By TruePublica: The letter sent to MPs from the Speaker Lindsay Hoyle last Friday spelt out a request by Tory Leader of the House of Commons, Jacob Rees-Mogg to reconvene parliament. The request really means only 50 MPs will be in the Commons Chamber from next Tuesday. The new hybrid online system that was working …
(2020-05-29). Anthony Romero on Leading in a Time of Crisis. aclu.org 
Anthony Romero started his job as executive director of the ACLU just seven days before September 11, 2001, and he's been with us ever since. The subsequent "war on terror" presented new and widespread threats to civil rights and civil liberties. Now, he faces a new challenge: leading the ACLU during the COVID-19 pandemic. He joined the podcast this week to discuss how the ACLU is navigating the current moment., , "In moments of crisis, in moments of fear, civil liberties are often imperiled," Romero told our host, Emerson Sykes. The organization has had to "adjust to our understanding of what liberty and free…
(2020-05-29). UN human rights office welcomes moves to curtail spread of hatred and violence online. news.un.org The UN human rights office (OHCHR) has welcomed steps taken by social media companies to prevent their platforms from being used to promote hatred, violence and misinformation, Spokesperson Rupert Colville said on Friday.
(2020-05-29). More 'can and must be done' to eradicate caste-based discrimination in Nepal. news.un.org Shocked over the killing last weekend of five men in Nepal, who had planned to escort home one of their girlfriends from a higher caste, the UN human rights chief on Friday stressed that ending caste-based discrimination is "fundamental" to the overall sustainable development vision of leaving no one behind.
(2020-05-29). An Impending Crisis: COVID-19 in Haiti, Ongoing Instability, and the Dangers of Continued U.S. Deportations. cepr.net Prepared remarks by Jake Johnston to Congresswoman Frederica S. Wilson's forum on COVID-19 and ICE's deportation of detainees to Haiti First, I want to thank Congresswoman Wilson for convening this forum and for her leadership on this issue. The introduction of legislation mandating a halt to these deportations is a concrete and necessary step. I'd …
(2020-05-28). We're Working to Safeguard Our Democracy and Our Health. aclu.org 
No one should have to choose between their health and their vote, but during the Wisconsin primary, an estimated
(2020-05-28). US must take 'serious action' to halt police killings of unarmed African Americans. news.un.org The UN human rights chief on Thursday condemned the killing of 46-year-old George Floyd while in police custody in the city of Minneapolis, calling it the latest in "a long line of killings of unarmed African Americans by US police officers and members of the public".
(2020-05-27). Far right Hungarian government launches new assault on trans rights. liberationnews.org 
Hungary's racist, homophobic, transphobic right-wing government has continued its efforts to divide the Hungarian working class by depriving trans and intersex people of their right to legally change their gender.
(2020-05-27). "Horrifying Neglect": COVID-19 Deaths in ICE Custody Spark New Calls for Mass Release of Prisoners. democracynow.org 
Calls are growing for Immigration and Customs Enforcement to release people from detention during the pandemic, as two people have died from COVID-19 while in custody. We speak with The Intercept's Ryan Devereaux, who reported on how Carlos Ernesto Escobar Mejia, held at the Otay Mesa Detention Center, suffered horrifying neglect before he passed away. We are also joined by Erika Andiola with RAICES Action. "None of those folks — especially people who migrated seeking asylum — they did not do anything to deserve a life sentence in a detention center," Andiola notes.