Daily Archives: August 17, 2019

2019-08-17: News Headlines

RT (2019-08-17). Antifa may be branded 'organization of terror,' Trump warns, ahead of Portland right-left showdown. rt.com Portland, Oregon, is bracing itself for a major right-wing rally — an event previously marred by clashes with anti-fascists. Warning any would-be violent counter-protesters, Donald Trump said events will be "watched very closely."

RT (2019-08-17). VIDEOS show Antifa attacking bus, cornering right-wing protesters as Portland rally turns violent. rt.com Footage has emerged of several violent attacks by Antifa on right-wing demonstrators in Portland, Oregon. The new clashes come as US President Trump threatened to designated the left-wing movement as an "organization of terror."

Gloria Rubac (2019-08-17). After 10 years, federal executions set to resume. workers.org Attorney General William Barr is moving the United States backward. He is taking hard-fought civil rights gains to the dumpster. Just like President Donald Trump, he has nothing but racist contempt for people caught up in the so-called criminal justice system. Barr suddenly announced in a Department of Justice press . . . | Continue reading After 10 years, federal executions set to resume at Workers.org

Amy Goodman (2019-08-17). The great land robbery: How federal policies dispossessed black Americans of millions of acres. nationofchange.org This mass land dispossession is part of the pattern of institutional racism and discrimination that has contributed to the racial wealth gap in the United States.

splcenter (2019-08-17). Weekend Read: Slavery shaped America's pathology on race and whiteness. splcenter.org Four hundred years ago this month, the White Lion, a warship commanded by English privateers, docked at Point Comfort in the colony of Virginia.

splcenter (2019-08-17). SPLC Responds to FRC and ADF's Attack Op-Ed. splcenter.org On August 17, 2019, a former Family Research Council (FRC) staff member, who currently works at the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) — two organizations designated as hate groups by the SPLC — attacked the SPLC in a USA Today OpEd for its hate group designations.

Staff (2019-08-17). Weapons Seized at Portland Right-Wing Rally, Counterprotest. truthdig.com PORTLAND, Ore.—Police seized weapons such as bear spray and shields as right-wing groups and counterprotesters gathered in downtown Portland, Oregon, on Saturday. | Authorities also set up concrete barriers and closed streets in an effort to contain the groups. | Flag-waving members of the Proud Boys and Three Percenters militia group began gathering late in the morning, some wearing body armor and helmets. Meanwhile, black-clad, helmet and face-mask wearing anti-fascist protesters were also among the several hundred people on the streets. | Polices said they had seized weapons such as metal and wooden pole…

Bob Price (2019-08-17). Trump: Racist and misogynist, but fascist? The danger of crying "wolf" indybay.org New Valencia Hall | 747 Polk Street, San Francisco…

Party for Socialism and Liberation (2019-08-17). Black August Forum: Down with the Racist Prison System! indybay.org 2969 Mission St. near 26th St.

Scott Zimmerman (2019-08-17). ALEC fails to denounce dangerous and racist views of its leaders and members. nationofchange.org It has been a banner week for extremist politicians linked to the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). | ALEC's Washington State Chair, Rep. Matt Shea, promoted and maintained close ties to an extremist group training children and young men for battle in a "Biblical warfare" while schooling them in the "biblical teachings" of racist preacher John Weaver, according to a new exposé published by The Guardian. The revelations come just weeks after the W…

Party for Socialism and Liberation (2019-08-17). Socialist Analysis "The Fight Against White Supremacy & Racist Violence" indybay.org 2969 Mission St., near 26th St.

Staff (2019-08-17). Trump DOJ Urges Supreme Court to Legalize Firing Workers for Being Transgender. truthout.org | | In an escalation of the Trump administration's attacks on the LGBTQ community, the Justice Department Friday night filed a brief urging the right-wing Supreme Court to legalize the firing of workers solely for being transgender. | Buzzfeed described the Justice Department's move, which was widely condemned by rights groups, as one of the Trump administration's "most aggressive steps yet to legalize an…

James Risen (2019-08-17). To Fight White Supremacist Violence, Let's Not Repeat the Mistakes of the War on Terror. theintercept.com National security experts are calling for a war on terror akin to the fight against Al Qaeda and ISIS. But that campaign has been a disaster.

Richard Kossaly (2019-08-17). Why racism breeds resistance. workers.org Based on a talk titled "White supremacy over the White House: Why racism breeds resistance" by Richard Kossally at a Workers World Party Aug. 1 forum in New York City. Donald Trump has been at it hard this past week or so. He has always been a horrible human being. . . . | Continue reading Why racism breeds resistance at Workers.org

Jake Johnson, staff writer (2019-08-17). 'Outrageous': Trump DOJ Urges Supreme Court to Legalize Firing Workers for Being Transgender. commondreams.org "The equality principle is so simple and obvious; it's a disgrace the government is affirmatively arguing for a narrow, pro-discrimination interpretation." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files…

Vijay Prashad (2019-08-16). History often proceeds by jumps and zig-zags. mronline.org The main conflict here — since the 1940s — has been between India and Pakistan. Disagreements are deeply rooted in the political culture of each country. The rise of the far right in India has only inflamed the conflict further. | Source

Paul Street (2019-08-16). Uncle Sam was Born Lethal. counterpunch.org One of the occupational and intellectual hazards of being a historian is that current events often seem far less new to oneself than they do to others. Recently a leftish liberal friend told me that the United States under the Donald Trump had "become a lethal society." My friend cited the neofascist Trump's: horrible family separations and concentration camps on the border; openly white-nationalist assaults on four progressive nonwhite and female Congresswomen; real and threatened roundups of undocumented immigrants; fascist-style and hate-filled "Make America Great Again" rallies; encouragement of white suprema…

John McDevitt (2019-08-16). Trump uses Medicaid as weapon against disabled immigrants. liberationnews.org The administration's contempt for disabled people is only matched by its virulent racism and anti-immigrant bigotry.

Nick Pemberton (2019-08-16). Is White Supremacism a Mental Illness? counterpunch.org "The most noxious element of neoliberalism is the reduction of all social issues to personal responsibility." —Henry A. Giroux "Violence is one of the most fun things to watch." — Quentin Tarantino Have you ever wondered why we [women] are not just in armed combat against you? It's not because there's a shortage of kitchen More

Staff (2019-08-16). How Federal Policies Dispossessed Black Americans of Millions of Acres. truthout.org | | Over the 20th century, black people in the U.S. were dispossessed of 12 million acres of land. Half of that loss — 6 million acres — occurred over just two decades, from 1950 to 1969, a period largely associated with the civil rights struggle. This mass land dispossession, which affected 98% of black agricultural land owners, is part of the pattern of institutional racism and discrimination that has contributed to the racial wealth gap in the United States. Many of the driving force…

Staff (2019-08-16). To Defeat Fascism, We Must Dismantle Capitalism. truthdig.com "The Terror of the Unforeseen" | A book by Henry A. Giroux | Henry A. Giroux's book "The Terror of the Unforeseen" analyzes the conditions that have enabled and led to Donald Trump's rule and the consequences of that rule, which have ushered in an authoritarian version of capitalism. Giroux provides a realistic analysis that holds out the hope that, through collective efforts, change is possible and democracy can be saved. | There is an intellectual debate on whether or not the power wielded by the likes of Trump, Nigel Farage, Marine Le Pen, Viktor Orbán, Matteo Salvini, Geert Wilders, Heinz-Christian Strache, o…

Hatewatch Staff (2019-08-16). Marjorie Taylor Greene: How an Outspoken MAGA Fan Built a Following in a World of Extremists. splcenter.org Originally a MAGA supporter but now an emerging MAGA star, Marjorie Taylor Greene has deftly leveraged social media and confrontations in public to increase her visibility. Now she's entering politics as a GOP candidate for Georgia's 6th Congressional District.

Susan Miller (2019-08-16). That Debacle at the Border is Genocide. counterpunch.org Prepared text for at talk at Cornbread and Beans, Norman, Oklahoma. (August 9, 2019.) I'm grateful for the invitation to speak to you. I'm a Democrat and the child of Democrats, and lately, I'd vote for the yellow dog. I believe that what I'm going to talk about today is central to our mission and values More

Scott Zimmerman (2019-08-16). ALEC Fails to Denounce Dangerous and Racist Views of Its Leaders and Members. commondreams.org www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files…

teleSUR (2019-08-16). Brazil: Supreme Court Judges Sergio Moro's Lack of Impartiality. telesurenglish.net Brazil's Supreme Court (STF) will judge the lack of impartiality of former judge Sergio Moro in conducting trials against former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who has remained a political prisoner since April 7, 2018. | RELATED: | Students Strike, Protest Across Brazil as Moro Orders Crackdown | From August 16 to August 22, the STF judges w…

susan_p (2019-08-16). White terrorism in the US — through the lens of Dayton, Ohio. greenleft.org.au mass shootings Jonathan LockhartIssue 1233 United States Ku Klux Klan White Supremacy gun violenceI was born and raised i…

Staff (2019-08-16). The Great Land Robbery: How Federal Policies Dispossessed Black Americans of Millions of Acres. democracynow.org Over the 20th century, black people in the U.S. were dispossessed of 12 million acres of land. Half of that loss — 6 million acres — occurred over just two decades, from 1950 to 1969, a period largely associated with the civil rights struggle. This mass land dispossession, which affected 98% of black agricultural land owners, is part of the pattern of institutional racism and discrimination that has contributed to the racial wealth gap in the United States. Many of the driving forces behind this land theft were legal and originated in federal policies, as documented by Vann Newkirk, staff writer at Th…

Jessica Corbett, staff writer (2019-08-16). As New Studies Shed Light on Struggles of Trans People in US, Expert Highlights Trump's Attacks. commondreams.org As a pair of studies published this week detailed some of the struggles faced by many transgender people in the United States, researchers reiterated the necessity of inclusive policies and highlighted the Trump administration's various attacks on LGBTQ rights. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files…

Julia Conley, staff writer (2019-08-16). In Face of Violence, Racist Rhetoric, and Mass ICE Raids, Latinx Community Leaders Publish Letter Declaring, 'We Will Not Be Silenced'. commondreams.org Banding together after a number of attacks on immigrants and Latinx people in the U.S., more than 200 Latinx entertainers, artists, and rights advocates published a letter in several major newspapers on Friday, pledging solidarity with people of Latin American descent across the United States. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files…

Ramzy Baroud (2019-08-16). Manifestos of Hate: What White Terrorists Have in Common. counterpunch.org Writing under the title of "If the El Paso shooter had been Muslim", Moustafa Bayoumi stated the obvious. "If the El Paso shooter had been a Muslim," Bayoumi wrote in the British Guardian newspaper on August 6, US President Donald Trump "would be lobbing accusations such as 'Islam hates us' in the direction of Muslims More

susan_p (2019-08-16). Bulgaria: Jock Palfreeman denied parole. greenleft.org.au Andy FlemingIssue 1233 Bulgaria Jock Palfreeman Bulgarian Prisoners Rehabilitation Association (BPRA)Anti-fascist activist Jock Palfreeman was denied parole on July 17 on his 20-year prison sentence for murder in Sofia, Bulgaria.

Al Neal (2019-08-15). Talks break down between Women's Soccer and Federation over pay equity. peoplesworld.org After three days, mediated talks between World Cup champion U.S. women's national soccer team and the U.S. Soccer Federation, aimed at settling their equal pay dispute, came to a crashing end. The USWNT's gender discrimination and equal pay lawsuit will now likely head to jury trial following the breakdown in New York. "We entered this …

splcenter (2019-08-15). SPLC publishes Opportunity Costs: Unequal Justice in Alabama's Community Corrections Programs. splcenter.org A new investigative report published today by the Southern Poverty Law Center reveals serious flaws in Alabama's community corrections programs, an otherwise promising system for diverting people from the state's prisons.

ACLU (2019-08-15). The Challenges of Breastfeeding as a Black Person. aclu.org How our workplaces and healthcare system create barriers to breastfeeding. | The fight to protect individual choices about reproductive care, including breastfeeding, is an ongoing battle. The central lesson of the reproductive justice movement is that choice means little without access. That lesson applies equally to breastfeeding. | Though laws, in the workplace and other contexts, are in place to protect the right to breastfeed, many low-income women and w…

Elie Mystal (2019-08-15). Steve King Is Racist, Misogynist—and Not that Different From Other Republicans. thenation.com Steve King Is Racist, Misogynist—and Not that Different From Other Republicans…

susan_p (2019-08-15). Letter from the US: White supremacist terror unleashed. greenleft.org.au Barry SheppardIssue 1233 United States US mass shootings gun control White Supremacy Donald Trump's racismThree…

Michael Edison Hayden (2019-08-14). Brother Says He Reported White Nationalist State Department Official to the FBI. splcenter.org The brother of white nationalist U.S. State Department Official Matthew Q. Gebert reported him to the FBI in July over concerns about his radicalization, he told Hatewatch.

Fight Back (2019-08-14). Philippines: On the proposal to revive the Anti-Subversion Law. fightbacknews.org Fight Back News Service is circulating the following August 14 statement by Jose Maria Sison, National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) Chief Political Consultant. | The proposal of General Ano, secretary of the Department of Interior and Local Government, is one more manifestation of the frenzied drive of the tyrannical Duterte regime to impose a thoroughgoing fascist dictatorship on the people in a vain attempt to end the armed revolutionary movement as well as the broad legal opposition through red-tagging, harassments, threats, abductions and murders. | In line with the Duterte tyranny, the most vi…

Timothy Malone (2019-08-14). Fetishisizing White Supremacy. dissidentvoice.org "White Supremacy" has captured the nation's attention. On August 3, a white supremacist mass shooter left 22 dead in El Paso. On Wednesday August 7, presidential candidates Joe Biden and Corey Booker made speeches referencing White Supremacy. That same day, Fox host Tucker Carlson announced he is 'going on vacation,' after claiming that White Supremacy …

Ricardo Vaz (2019-08-14). Venezuela's Maduro Reshuffles Cabinet as Supreme Court Strips Three Opposition Lawmakers of Immunity. venezuelanalysis.com The National Constituent Assembly will also evaluate bringing forward legislative elections.

Staff (2019-08-14). "River of Fire": In New Memoir, Sister Helen Prejean Reflects on Decades of Fighting Executions. democracynow.org The Trump administration is moving ahead with plans to resume the death penalty after a more than 15-year moratorium. This week Attorney General William Barr proposed fast-tracking executions in mass murder cases, and last month ordered the execution of five death row prisoners beginning in December. The federal government has executed just three people since 1963 — the last being in 2003. The death penalty is widely condemned by national governments, international bodies and human rights groups across the world. Experts say capital punishment does not help deter homicides and that errors and racism in the…

patrick (2019-08-14). BDS condemns antisemitic, fascist forces in Germany and worldwide. bdsmovement.net BDS condemns antisemitic, fascist forces in Germany and worldwide: BNC StatementOur nonviolent movement opposes all forms of racism and racial discrimination. | Right To BoycottAugust 14, 2019 | By: | | Palestinian BDS National Committee (BNC)

Gary Leupp (2019-08-13). MSNBC and the Next Election: Racism is the Issue. dissidentvoice.org After Donald Trump unexpectedly won the 2016 election, the Democrats and the mainstream media they shape sought to explain the disaster as a result of Russian meddling. Such meddling, which had been alleged for months, was documented in an (unconvincing) intelligence report prepared by the lame-duck Obama administration, made public Jan. 6, 2017; Congress followed …

splcenter (2019-08-13). SPLC joins brief opposing Kansas law targeting immigrants. splcenter.org The SPLC and 29 worker and immigrant rights organizations filed an amicus brief today urging the U.S. Supreme Court to uphold a court decision stating that a Kansas identity theft law cannot be used to turn local law enforcement into immigration agents.

Bill Blum (2019-08-13). Unequal Justice: John Roberts' Dark Legacy of Voter Suppression. progressive.org Plaintiffs are litigating voting rights cases in Alabama, Georgia, Texas, North Carolina, and several other states. Some will succeed, some will fail, but all will be more uncertain and expensive thanks to the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.

Staff (2019-08-13). "Today the Lynch Mob Only Needs an Assault Rifle": Ibram X. Kendi on White Supremacist Violence. democracynow.org This week marks two years since white supremacists descended on Charlottesville, Virginia, where a neo-Nazi drove his car into a crowd of antiracist protesters, killing 32-year-old activist Heather Heyer. Days later, President Trump claimed there were "very fine people on both sides." Since Charlottesville, white supremacists have committed at least 73 murders, according to the Anti-Defamation League. Just last week, a white supremacist in El Paso, Texas, opened fire in a crowded Walmart and killed 22 people. It's been described as the deadliest attack to target Latinos in modern American history. We speak with D…

Staff (2019-08-13). Ibram X. Kendi: IQ Tests, SAT Scores and Other "Intelligence" Tests Propagate Racism. democracynow.org Author and professor Ibram X. Kendi joins us to discuss his new book, "How to Be an Antiracist." He talks about the racist development of intelligence tests that blatantly discriminate against people of color under a veneer of scientific objectivity. "Even when we talk about antiracism, when most people think of who needs to be an antiracist, they think of Southerners. They think of people who voted for Trump," says Kendi. "They don't think of people who are advocating for the maintenance of these tests, which are denying access to some of the best schools in New York City to black and Latino kids."

Staff (2019-08-13). How to Be an Antiracist: Ibram X. Kendi on Why We Need to Fight Racism the Way We Fight Cancer. democracynow.org In his new book, "How to Be an Antiracist," professor Ibram X. Kendi urges readers to break out of the false framework of "racist" and "not racist," instead laying out what it means to be antiracist: viewing racial groups as equals and pushing for policies that create racial equity. Kendi says, "We can't just talk about racism as an original sin. We have to talk about racism as the original cancer, as this original disease that has been killing America."

Staff (2019-08-13). Headlines for August 13, 2019. democracynow.org Trump Announces New Rule to Limit and Penalize Low-Income Immigrants, Trump Slashes Endangered Species Act, Hong Kong Protesters Shut Down Airport for Second Day, Flooding, Landslides Kill Hundreds Across South and Southeast Asia, Ebola No Longer "Incurable" After Success of Experimental Treatments, Reports: Director of Mexican Migrant Shelter Kidnapped, Racist Border Patrol Agent Who Intentionally Ran Over Guatemalan Man Pleads Guilty, Friend of Dayton Shooter Says He Bought and Stored Gun Parts and Ammunition Used in Massacre, WaPo Editor Responds to Sanders Claim That Paper Writes Negative Stories Because of A…

Binoy Kampmark (2019-08-13). CPAC Down Under. dissidentvoice.org It was a time for Australian conservatives to be boring, and bore each other. CPAC, otherwise known as the Conservative Political Action Conference, had arrived in Sydney. The real entertainment bill was to be supplied by such figures as Brexiter supremo Nigel Farage and former editor-in-chief of Breitbart News London, Raheem Kassam. The rest was …

2019-08-17: Social Media Postees

The great land robbery: How federal policies dispossessed black Americans of millions of acres
Amy Goodman | nationofchange.org | 2019-08-17
This mass land dispossession is part of the pattern of institutional racism and discrimination that has contributed to the racial wealth gap in the United States.
nationofchange.org/2019/08/17/the-great-land-robbery-how-federal-policies-dispossessed-black-americans-of-millions-of-acres/

Why racism breeds resistance
Richard Kossaly | workers.org | 2019-08-17
Based on a talk titled "White supremacy over the White House: Why racism breeds resistance" by Richard Kossally at a Workers World Party Aug. 1 forum in New York City. Donald Trump has been at it hard this past week or so. He has always been a horrible human being. . . . | Continue reading Why racism breeds resistance at Workers.org…
workers.org/2019/08/17/why-racism-breeds-resistance/

Weekend Read: Slavery shaped America's pathology on race and whiteness
splcenter.org | 2019-08-17
Four hundred years ago this month, the White Lion, a warship commanded by English privateers, docked at Point Comfort in the colony of Virginia.
splcenter.org/news/2019/08/17/weekend-read-slavery-shaped-americas-pathology-race-and-whiteness

SPLC Responds to FRC and ADF's Attack Op-Ed
splcenter.org | 2019-08-17
On August 17, 2019, a former Family Research Council (FRC) staff member, who currently works at the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) — two organizations designated as hate groups by the SPLC — attacked the SPLC in a USA Today OpEd for its hate group designations.
splcenter.org/news/2019/08/17/splc-responds-frc-and-adfs-attack-op-ed

Antifa may be branded 'organization of terror,' Trump warns, ahead of Portland right-left showdown
rt.com | 2019-08-17
Portland, Oregon, is bracing itself for a major right-wing rally — an event previously marred by clashes with anti-fascists. Warning any would-be violent counter-protesters, Donald Trump said events will be "watched very closely." | …
rt.com/usa/466731-antifa-branded-terrorist-trump-portland/

VIDEOS show Antifa attacking bus, cornering right-wing protesters as Portland rally turns violent
rt.com | 2019-08-17
Footage has emerged of several violent attacks by Antifa on right-wing demonstrators in Portland, Oregon. The new clashes come as US President Trump threatened to designated the left-wing movement as an "organization of terror." | …
rt.com/usa/466737-portland-clashes-proud-boys-antifa/

Weapons Seized at Portland Right-Wing Rally, Counterprotest
Staff | truthdig.com | 2019-08-17
PORTLAND, Ore.–Police seized weapons such as bear spray and shields as right-wing groups and counterprotesters gathered in downtown Portland, Oregon, on Saturday. | Authorities also set up concrete barriers and closed streets in an effort to contain the groups. | Flag-waving members of the Proud Boys and Three Percenters militia group began gathering late in the morning, some wearing body armor and helmets. Meanwhile, black-clad, helmet and face-mask wearing anti-fascist protesters were also among the several hundred people on the streets. | Polices said they had seized weapons such as metal and wooden pole…
truthdig.com/articles/right-wing-groups-counterprotesters-face-off-in-portland/

Trump: Racist and misogynist, but fascist? The danger of crying "wolf"
Bob Price | indybay.org | 2019-08-17
New Valencia Hall | 747 Polk Street, San Francisco…
indybay.org/newsitems/2019/08/15/18825504.php

ALEC fails to denounce dangerous and racist views of its leaders and members
Scott Zimmerman | nationofchange.org | 2019-08-17
It has been a banner week for extremist politicians linked to the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). | ALEC's Washington State Chair, Rep. Matt Shea, promoted and maintained close ties to an extremist group training children and young men for battle in a "Biblical warfare" while schooling them in the "biblical teachings" of racist preacher John Weaver, according to a new exposé published by The Guardian. The revelations come just weeks after the W…
nationofchange.org/2019/08/17/alec-fails-to-denounce-dangerous-and-racist-views-of-its-leaders-and-members/

Socialist Analysis "The Fight Against White Supremacy & Racist Violence"
Party for Socialism and Liberation | indybay.org | 2019-08-17
2969 Mission St., near 26th St.
indybay.org/newsitems/2019/08/14/18825486.php

Black August Forum: Down with the Racist Prison System!
Party for Socialism and Liberation | indybay.org | 2019-08-17
2969 Mission St. near 26th St.
indybay.org/newsitems/2019/08/15/18825505.php

After 10 years, federal executions set to resume
Gloria Rubac | workers.org | 2019-08-17
Attorney General William Barr is moving the United States backward. He is taking hard-fought civil rights gains to the dumpster. Just like President Donald Trump, he has nothing but racist contempt for people caught up in the so-called criminal justice system. Barr suddenly announced in a Department of Justice press . . . | Continue reading After 10 years, federal executions set to resume at Workers.org…
workers.org/2019/08/17/after-10-years-federal-executions-set-to-resume/

Trump DOJ Urges Supreme Court to Legalize Firing Workers for Being Transgender
Staff | truthout.org | 2019-08-17
| In an escalation of the Trump administration's attacks on the LGBTQ community, the Justice Department Friday night filed a brief urging the right-wing Supreme Court to legalize the firing of workers solely for being transgender. | Buzzfeed described the Justice Department's move, which was widely condemned by rights groups, as one of the Trump administration's "most aggressive steps yet to legalize an…
truthout.org/articles/trump-doj-urges-supreme-court-to-legalize-firing-workers-for-being-transgender/

To Fight White Supremacist Violence, Let's Not Repeat the Mistakes of the War on Terror
James Risen | theintercept.com | 2019-08-17
National security experts are calling for a war on terror akin to the fight against Al Qaeda and ISIS. But that campaign has been a disaster.
theintercept.com/2019/08/17/domestic-terrorism-war-on-terror/

'Outrageous': Trump DOJ Urges Supreme Court to Legalize Firing Workers for Being Transgender
Jake Johnson, staff writer | commondreams.org | 2019-08-17
"The equality principle is so simple and obvious; it's a disgrace the government is affirmatively arguing for a narrow, pro-discrimination interpretation." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files…
commondreams.org/news/2019/08/17/outrageous-trump-doj-urges-supreme-court-legalize-firing-workers-being-transgender?cd-origin=rss

History often proceeds by jumps and zig-zags
Vijay Prashad | mronline.org | 2019-08-16
The main conflict here — since the 1940s — has been between India and Pakistan. Disagreements are deeply rooted in the political culture of each country. The rise of the far right in India has only inflamed the conflict further. | Source…
mronline.org/2019/08/16/history-often-proceeds-by-jumps-and-zig-zags/

Uncle Sam was Born Lethal
Paul Street | counterpunch.org | 2019-08-16
One of the occupational and intellectual hazards of being a historian is that current events often seem far less new to oneself than they do to others. Recently a leftish liberal friend told me that the United States under the Donald Trump had "become a lethal society." My friend cited the neofascist Trump's: horrible family separations and concentration camps on the border; openly white-nationalist assaults on four progressive nonwhite and female Congresswomen; real and threatened roundups of undocumented immigrants; fascist-style and hate-filled "Make America Great Again" rallies; encouragement of white suprema…
counterpunch.org/2019/08/16/uncle-sam-was-born-lethal/

Trump uses Medicaid as weapon against disabled immigrants
John McDevitt | liberationnews.org | 2019-08-16
The administration's contempt for disabled people is only matched by its virulent racism and anti-immigrant bigotry.
liberationnews.org/trump-uses-medicaid-as-weapon-against-disabled-immigrants/

How Federal Policies Dispossessed Black Americans of Millions of Acres
Staff | truthout.org | 2019-08-16
| Over the 20th century, black people in the U.S. were dispossessed of 12 million acres of land. Half of that loss — 6 million acres — occurred over just two decades, from 1950 to 1969, a period largely associated with the civil rights struggle. This mass land dispossession, which affected 98% of black agricultural land owners, is part of the pattern of institutional racism and discrimination that has contributed to the racial wealth gap in the United States. Many of the driving force…
truthout.org/video/how-federal-policies-dispossessed-black-americans-of-millions-of-acres/

To Defeat Fascism, We Must Dismantle Capitalism
Staff | truthdig.com | 2019-08-16
"The Terror of the Unforeseen" | A book by Henry A. Giroux | Henry A. Giroux's book "The Terror of the Unforeseen" analyzes the conditions that have enabled and led to Donald Trump's rule and the consequences of that rule, which have ushered in an authoritarian version of capitalism. Giroux provides a realistic analysis that holds out the hope that, through collective efforts, change is possible and democracy can be saved. | There is an intellectual debate on whether or not the power wielded by the likes of Trump, Nigel Farage, Marine Le Pen, Viktor Orbán, Matteo Salvini, Geert Wilders, Heinz-Christian Strache, o…
truthdig.com/articles/to-defeat-fascism-we-must-dismantle-capitalism/

Marjorie Taylor Greene: How an Outspoken MAGA Fan Built a Following in a World of Extremists
Hatewatch Staff | splcenter.org | 2019-08-16
Originally a MAGA supporter but now an emerging MAGA star, Marjorie Taylor Greene has deftly leveraged social media and confrontations in public to increase her visibility. Now she's entering politics as a GOP candidate for Georgia's 6th Congressional District.
splcenter.org/hatewatch/2019/08/16/marjorie-taylor-greene-how-outspoken-maga-fan-built-following-world-extremists

That Debacle at the Border is Genocide
Susan Miller | counterpunch.org | 2019-08-16
Prepared text for at talk at Cornbread and Beans, Norman, Oklahoma. (August 9, 2019.) I'm grateful for the invitation to speak to you. I'm a Democrat and the child of Democrats, and lately, I'd vote for the yellow dog. I believe that what I'm going to talk about today is central to our mission and values…
counterpunch.org/2019/08/16/that-debacle-at-the-border-is-genocide/

ALEC Fails to Denounce Dangerous and Racist Views of Its Leaders and Members
Scott Zimmerman | commondreams.org | 2019-08-16
commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/matt-shea-900×508.jpeg …

Brazil: Supreme Court Judges Sergio Moro's Lack of Impartiality
telesurenglish.net | 2019-08-16
Brazil's Supreme Court (STF) will judge the lack of impartiality of former judge Sergio Moro in conducting trials against former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who has remained a political prisoner since April 7, 2018. | RELATED: | Students Strike, Protest Across Brazil as Moro Orders Crackdown | From August 16 to August 22, the STF judges w…
telesurenglish.net/news/Brazil-Supreme-Court-Judges-Sergio-Moros-Lack-of-Impartiality-20190816-0002.html

Is White Supremacism a Mental Illness?
Nick Pemberton | counterpunch.org | 2019-08-16
"The most noxious element of neoliberalism is the reduction of all social issues to personal responsibility." –Henry A. Giroux "Violence is one of the most fun things to watch." — Quentin Tarantino Have you ever wondered why we [women] are not just in armed combat against you? It's not because there's a shortage of kitchen…
counterpunch.org/2019/08/16/is-white-supremacism-a-mental-illness/

Bulgaria: Jock Palfreeman denied parole
susan_p | greenleft.org.au | 2019-08-16
Andy FlemingIssue 1233 Bulgaria Jock Palfreeman Bulgarian Prisoners Rehabilitation Association (BPRA)Anti-fascist activist Jock Palfreeman was denied parole on July 17 on his 20-year prison sentence for murder in Sofia, Bulgaria.
greenleft.org.au/content/bulgaria-jock-palfreeman-denied-parole

White terrorism in the US — through the lens of Dayton, Ohio
susan_p | greenleft.org.au | 2019-08-16
mass shootings Jonathan LockhartIssue 1233 United States Ku Klux Klan White Supremacy gun violenceI was born and raised i…
greenleft.org.au/content/white-terrorism-us-through-lens-dayton-ohio

The Great Land Robbery: How Federal Policies Dispossessed Black Americans of Millions of Acres
Staff | democracynow.org | 2019-08-16
Over the 20th century, black people in the U.S. were dispossessed of 12 million acres of land. Half of that loss — 6 million acres — occurred over just two decades, from 1950 to 1969, a period largely associated with the civil rights struggle. This mass land dispossession, which affected 98% of black agricultural land owners, is part of the pattern of institutional racism and discrimination that has contributed to the racial wealth gap in the United States. Many of the driving forces behind this land theft were legal and originated in federal policies, as documented by Vann Newkirk, staff writer at Th…
www.democracynow.org/2019/8/16/vann_newk…

As New Studies Shed Light on Struggles of Trans People in US, Expert Highlights Trump's Attacks
Jessica Corbett, staff writer | commondreams.org | 2019-08-16
As a pair of studies published this week detailed some of the struggles faced by many transgender people in the United States, researchers reiterated the necessity of inclusive policies and highlighted the Trump administration's various attacks on LGBTQ rights. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files…
commondreams.org/news/2019/08/16/new-studies-shed-light-struggles-trans-people-us-expert-highlights-trumps-attacks?cd-origin=rss

In Face of Violence, Racist Rhetoric, and Mass ICE Raids, Latinx Community Leaders Publish Letter Declaring, 'We Will Not Be Silenced'
Julia Conley, staff writer | commondreams.org | 2019-08-16
Banding together after a number of attacks on immigrants and Latinx people in the U.S., more than 200 Latinx entertainers, artists, and rights advocates published a letter in several major newspapers on Friday, pledging solidarity with people of Latin American descent across the United States. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files…
commondreams.org/news/2019/08/16/face-violence-racist-rhetoric-and-mass-ice-raids-latinx-community-leaders-publish?cd-origin=rss

'Black Communities Are Already Living in a Tech Dystopia' – CounterSpin interview with Ruha Benjamin on racism and technology
Janine Jackson | fair.org | 2019-08-15
Janine Jackson interviewed Ruha Benjamin about racism and technology for the August 9, 2019, episode of CounterSpin. This is a lightly edited transcript. | Media…
fair.org/home/black-communities-are-already-living-in-a-tech-dystopia/

SPLC publishes Opportunity Costs: Unequal Justice in Alabama's Community Corrections Programs
splcenter.org | 2019-08-15
A new investigative report published today by the Southern Poverty Law Center reveals serious flaws in Alabama's community corrections programs, an otherwise promising system for diverting people from the state's prisons.
splcenter.org/news/2019/08/15/splc-publishes-opportunity-costs-unequal-justice-alabamas-community-corrections-programs

The Challenges of Breastfeeding as a Black Person
aclu.org | 2019-08-15
How our workplaces and healthcare system create barriers to breastfeeding. | The fight to protect individual choices about reproductive care, including breastfeeding, is an ongoing battle. The central lesson of the reproductive justice movement is that choice means little without access. That lesson applies equally to breastfeeding. | Though laws, in the workplace and other contexts, are in place to protect the right to breastfeed, many low-income women and w…
aclu.org/blog/womens-rights/pregnancy-and-parenting-discrimination/challenges-breastfeeding-black-person

Talks break down between Women's Soccer and Federation over pay equity
Al Neal | peoplesworld.org | 2019-08-15
After three days, mediated talks between World Cup champion U.S. women's national soccer team and the U.S. Soccer Federation, aimed at settling their equal pay dispute, came to a crashing end. The USWNT's gender discrimination and equal pay lawsuit will now likely head to jury trial following the breakdown in New York. "We entered this …
peoplesworld.org/article/talks-break-down-between-womens-soccer-and-federation-over-pay-equity/

Steve King Is Racist, Misogynist–and Not that Different From Other Republicans
Elie Mystal | thenation.com | 2019-08-15
Steve King Is Racist, Misogynist–and Not that Different From Other Republicans…
thenation.com/article/steve-king-republican-abortion/

Letter from the US: White supremacist terror unleashed
susan_p | greenleft.org.au | 2019-08-15
Barry SheppardIssue 1233 United States US mass shootings gun control White Supremacy Donald Trump's racismThree…
greenleft.org.au/content/letter-us-white-supremacist-terror-unleashed

BDS condemns antisemitic, fascist forces in Germany and worldwide
patrick | bdsmovement.net | 2019-08-14
BDS condemns antisemitic, fascist forces in Germany and worldwide: BNC StatementOur nonviolent movement opposes all forms of racism and racial discrimination. | Right To BoycottAugust 14, 2019 | By: | | Palestinian BDS National Committee (BNC) …
bdsmovement.net/news/bds-condemns-antisemitic-fascist-forces-germany-and-worldwide

Brother Says He Reported White Nationalist State Department Official to the FBI
Michael Edison Hayden | splcenter.org | 2019-08-14
The brother of white nationalist U.S. State Department Official Matthew Q. Gebert reported him to the FBI in July over concerns about his radicalization, he told Hatewatch.
splcenter.org/hatewatch/2019/08/14/brother-says-he-reported-white-nationalist-state-department-official-fbi

Philippines: On the proposal to revive the Anti-Subversion Law
Fight Back | fightbacknews.org | 2019-08-14
Fight Back News Service is circulating the following August 14 statement by Jose Maria Sison, National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) Chief Political Consultant. | The proposal of General Ano, secretary of the Department of Interior and Local Government, is one more manifestation of the frenzied drive of the tyrannical Duterte regime to impose a thoroughgoing fascist dictatorship on the people in a vain attempt to end the armed revolutionary movement as well as the broad legal opposition through red-tagging, harassments, threats, abductions and murders. | In line with the Duterte tyranny, the most vi…
www.fightbacknews.org/2019/8/14/philippi…

Fetishisizing White Supremacy
Timothy Malone | dissidentvoice.org | 2019-08-14
"White Supremacy" has captured the nation's attention. On August 3, a white supremacist mass shooter left 22 dead in El Paso. On Wednesday August 7, presidential candidates Joe Biden and Corey Booker made speeches referencing White Supremacy. That same day, Fox host Tucker Carlson announced he is 'going on vacation,' after claiming that White Supremacy …
dissidentvoice.org/2019/08/fetishisizing-white-supremacy/

Venezuela's Maduro Reshuffles Cabinet as Supreme Court Strips Three Opposition Lawmakers of Immunity
Ricardo Vaz | venezuelanalysis.com | 2019-08-14
The National Constituent Assembly will also evaluate bringing forward legislative elections.
venezuelanalysis.com/news/14628

"River of Fire": In New Memoir, Sister Helen Prejean Reflects on Decades of Fighting Executions
Staff | democracynow.org | 2019-08-14
The Trump administration is moving ahead with plans to resume the death penalty after a more than 15-year moratorium. This week Attorney General William Barr proposed fast-tracking executions in mass murder cases, and last month ordered the execution of five death row prisoners beginning in December. The federal government has executed just three people since 1963 — the last being in 2003. The death penalty is widely condemned by national governments, international bodies and human rights groups across the world. Experts say capital punishment does not help deter homicides and that errors and racism in the…
www.democracynow.org/2019/8/14/sister_he…

SPLC joins brief opposing Kansas law targeting immigrants
splcenter.org | 2019-08-13
The SPLC and 29 worker and immigrant rights organizations filed an amicus brief today urging the U.S. Supreme Court to uphold a court decision stating that a Kansas identity theft law cannot be used to turn local law enforcement into immigration agents.
splcenter.org/news/2019/08/13/splc-joins-brief-opposing-kansas-law-targeting-immigrants

MSNBC and the Next Election: Racism is the Issue
Gary Leupp | dissidentvoice.org | 2019-08-13
After Donald Trump unexpectedly won the 2016 election, the Democrats and the mainstream media they shape sought to explain the disaster as a result of Russian meddling. Such meddling, which had been alleged for months, was documented in an (unconvincing) intelligence report prepared by the lame-duck Obama administration, made public Jan. 6, 2017; Congress followed …
dissidentvoice.org/2019/08/msnbc-and-the-next-election-racism-is-the-issue/

Unequal Justice: John Roberts' Dark Legacy of Voter Suppression
Bill Blum | progressive.org | 2019-08-13
Plaintiffs are litigating voting rights cases in Alabama, Georgia, Texas, North Carolina, and several other states. Some will succeed, some will fail, but all will be more uncertain and expensive thanks to the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.
progressive.org/dispatches/unequal-justice-john-roberts-dark-legacy-of-voter-suppression-blum-190812/

BDS movement condemns U.S. Congress' anti-BDS resolution
patrick | bdsmovement.net | 2019-08-13
BDS movement condemns U.S. Congress' anti-BDS resolution: UpdateThe resolution is based on lies and aims to to demonize peaceful resistance to Israel's military occupation and apartheid. | Right To BoycottJuly 23, 2019 | By: | | Palestinian BDS National Committee (BNC) …
bdsmovement.net/news/bds-movement-condemns-us-congress-anti-bds-resolution

How to Be an Antiracist: Ibram X. Kendi on Why We Need to Fight Racism the Way We Fight Cancer
Staff | democracynow.org | 2019-08-13
In his new book, "How to Be an Antiracist," professor Ibram X. Kendi urges readers to break out of the false framework of "racist" and "not racist," instead laying out what it means to be antiracist: viewing racial groups as equals and pushing for policies that create racial equity. Kendi says, "We can't just talk about racism as an original sin. We have to talk about racism as the original cancer, as this original disease that has been killing America."
www.democracynow.org/2019/8/13/ibram_x_k…

Ibram X. Kendi: IQ Tests, SAT Scores and Other "Intelligence" Tests Propagate Racism
Staff | democracynow.org | 2019-08-13
Author and professor Ibram X. Kendi joins us to discuss his new book, "How to Be an Antiracist." He talks about the racist development of intelligence tests that blatantly discriminate against people of color under a veneer of scientific objectivity. "Even when we talk about antiracism, when most people think of who needs to be an antiracist, they think of Southerners. They think of people who voted for Trump," says Kendi. "They don't think of people who are advocating for the maintenance of these tests, which are denying access to some of the best schools in New York City to black and Latino kids."
www.democracynow.org/2019/8/13/ibram_x_k…

"Today the Lynch Mob Only Needs an Assault Rifle": Ibram X. Kendi on White Supremacist Violence
Staff | democracynow.org | 2019-08-13
This week marks two years since white supremacists descended on Charlottesville, Virginia, where a neo-Nazi drove his car into a crowd of antiracist protesters, killing 32-year-old activist Heather Heyer. Days later, President Trump claimed there were "very fine people on both sides." Since Charlottesville, white supremacists have committed at least 73 murders, according to the Anti-Defamation League. Just last week, a white supremacist in El Paso, Texas, opened fire in a crowded Walmart and killed 22 people. It's been described as the deadliest attack to target Latinos in modern American history. We speak with D…
www.democracynow.org/2019/8/13/ibram_x_k…

CPAC Down Under
Binoy Kampmark | dissidentvoice.org | 2019-08-13
It was a time for Australian conservatives to be boring, and bore each other. CPAC, otherwise known as the Conservative Political Action Conference, had arrived in Sydney. The real entertainment bill was to be supplied by such figures as Brexiter supremo Nigel Farage and former editor-in-chief of Breitbart News London, Raheem Kassam. The rest was …
dissidentvoice.org/2019/08/cpac-down-under/