Daily Archives: July 4, 2020

2020-07-04: News Headlines

Jeff Cohen (2020-07-04). Politicians of Color Should Not Be Immune From Criticism. zcomm.org As progressives in a country with a long, grim history of racism continuing to the present day, it's our responsibility to fight racism everywhere we see it…

Liberation Staff, Denver (2020-07-04). Thousands march for Elijah McClain, massive community blockade of police station ensues in Aurora, CO. liberationnews.org Elijah McClain's case has recently garnered national and international attention, ten months after his death, as the movement against police murder and racism grows around the country and the world.

RT (2020-07-04). 'The very definition of totalitarianism:' Trump unloads on 'cancel culture,' 'left-wing fascism' at Mt. Rushmore event. rt.com US President Donald Trump has launched a scathing attack on "cancel culture" — an in-vogue concept that has seen Americans ostracized for voicing views at odds with the mainstream — branding it the hallmark of totalitarianism. | Speaking at the 'Salute America' event to mark Independence Day at South Dakota's Mount Rushmore National Memorial on Friday, Trump pulled no punches tearing into the notorious phenomenon which has come to be known as "cancel culture." The idea has led to the "cancelling" of public figures and regular Americans alike, typically hounded out of polite society for their views…

RT (2020-07-04). Wacky Hollywood: Tim Robbins blasts ICE as 'SS' in charge of 'ethnic cleansing'. rt.com 'Shawshank Redemption' star Tim Robbins has compared US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to Nazis, and claimed the agency's goal is to target people of color and give America an "ethnic cleansing." | "ICE are massively funded, militarized police whose function is to deport people of color. Ethnic cleansing in America," tweeted the actor in reaction to a story about President Donald Trump designating ICE a "security agency" in an effort to protect the identities of its employees. | "Now they are a massively funded, militarized SECRET police (SS) that don't have to identify themselves or answer to anyon…

Eliza Egret (2020-07-04). As Black Lives Matter protests continue on US Independence Day, Seattle police are accused of 'emboldening white supremacists'. thecanary.co Two women are in serious condition in a Seattle hospital after a man drove into them at high speed during a Black Lives Matter (BLM) protest. The women were part of a crowd which had blocked and closed a Seattle freeway in the early hours of 4 July. The devastating #seattleprotest this morning. I'm surprised anyone lived. | Victims: | 32 yr woman in serious/stable condition | 24 yr woman in critical condition | Suspect: | 27 yr male from Seattle

Eds. (2020-07-04). Confederates in the Capital. mronline.org The National Statuary Collection announced the unification of the former slave economy's emotional heartland with the heart of national government.

RT (2020-07-04). WATCH Antifa members brawl and erect barricades in downtown Portland on Independence Day. rt.com Activists were filmed fist-fighting and erecting barricades across the streets in central Portland, Oregon. They'd attacked the city's courthouse and clashed with US marshals the previous night. | Journalist Andy Ngo shared clips of protesters, whom he identified as local Antifa members, picking up fence sections and roadblocks and using them to erect barricades. | pic.twitter.com/UFEmfJkW9c— Andy Ngॠ(@MrAndyNgo) Antifa in downtown Portland are making their wall taller.

RT (2020-07-04). Bone-chilling video shows speeding car hit 2 BLM protesters on freeway in Seattle. rt.com A speeding car, which drove around vehicles blocking a road in Seattle in an area where a Black Lives Matter protest was taking place, has hit and seriously injured two women. The terrifying moment was caught on camera. | The two victims of the hit-and-run were taken to the Harborview medical center, one of them with life-threatening injuries, Washington State Patrol spokesperson Trooper Rick Johnson The graphic video shows a white car maneuvering around a couple of vehicles blocking the road…

RT (2020-07-04). LA mayor warns citizens to cancel Fourth of July plans to 'save lives,' but supports Black Lives Matter protests. rt.com Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti is warning citizens to avoid Fourth of July celebrations during the Covid-19 pandemic, yet is fully in support of Black Lives Matter (BLM) protests and was even pictured at one not wearing a mask. | "We're going to have to celebrate differently this year. Everyone should cancel plans with others for the 4th of July. You shouldn't gather with anyone who doesn't live in your household," Garcetti He followed up on the actual holiday with multiple tweets doubling dow…

John Bellamy Foster (2020-07-04). George Washington and genocide. mronline.org 'The immediate objects are the total destruction and devastation of [Iroquois Confederacy] settlements and the capture of as many prisoners of every age and sex as possible…. the country may not be merely overrun but destroyed.' —Commands from George Washington to General Sullivan on May 31, 1779…

Christopher J L Murray (2020-07-04). [Correspondence] Methodology in the GBD study of China — Author's reply. thelancet.com The Global Burden of Disease Study (GBD) 2017 provides comprehensive assessment of population health for 195 countries and territories and subnational units for selected countries, including all province-level administrative units in China. It is important to point out that, as the GBD uses a hierarchical analytical framework, data input from all GBD 2017 analytical units, national or subnational, are integrated into a single modelling process to provide a set of estimates for all locations that are internally consistent and comparable across locations and over time.

Ping-I Lin, Stephen J Glatt, Ming T Tsuang (2020-07-04). [Correspondence] Methodology in the GBD study of China. thelancet.com We found the Article by Maigeng Zhou and colleagues1 intriguing. However, we have some concerns. Our major concern arises from mixing data from mainland China and Taiwan. These two regions have distinct health-care and social welfare systems; they also have different time trends of how socioeconomic conditions evolved during the past half century. Therefore, mixing the data from these two regions might lead to biased estimates, especially for the health outcomes shaped by health policies (eg, vaccination programmes as a prevention strategy).

Tony Norman (2020-07-04). The Day They Tore Old Dixie Down. commondreams.org A crown of onlookers watch as the Stonewall Jackson Monument in Richmond Virginia is being removed by a crane on July 1, 2020 in Richmond, Virginia. Mayor Levar Stoney ordered the removal of all Confederate statues from city land. (Photo by Eze Amos/Getty Images) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files…

WSWS (2020-07-04). Trump gives fascistic rant at Mount Rushmore event held in defiance of health experts. wsws.org Trump sought to use recent attacks on monuments to leaders of the American Revolution and Civil War to brand protesters against police killings as "far-left fascists," while hailing the police and right-wing militia groups and pledging to crack down on opponents of his authoritarian and pro-corporate policies.

Ali Salam (2020-07-04). Fifteen Palestinians Shot, Injured at Kufur Qaddoum Weekly Protest. imemc.org Fifteen Palestinians were shot and injured by Israeli soldiers, Friday, at the weekly protest in the northern West Bank village of Kufur Qaddoum, the Palestinian WAFA News Agency reported. Locals in Kufur Qaddoum village, in the Qalqilia governorate, have been organizing protests every Friday for several years, to express their …

Fight Back (2020-07-04). National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression to join "We Can't Breathe" protest at RNC. fightbacknews.org Chicago, IL -The National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (NAARPR) will be joining the massive demonstration that is set for August 27 at the Republican National Convention (RNC), in Jacksonville, Florida. The "We Can't Breathe" protest, organized by the Coalition to March on the RNC, will focus on stopping police crimes and advancing the demand for community control of the police. | Speaking about the need to march on the RNC, Frank Chapman, Executive Director of the National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression states, "The Trump administration has been green-lighting police crimes…

_____ (2020-07-04). Prisoners Mobilize For Black Lives And Against Brutality Behind Bars. popularresistance.org Prisoners say that abuse reminiscent of the "modern-day lynching" of George Floyd is common practice behind bars. Swift Justice, who is also incarcerated at Kilby Correctional Facility and prefers a pseudonym, tells Truthout: "What happens in here is just like the rhetoric police on the street used to justify killings." Outside of prison, the officers say, "'He had a gun or appeared to have a gun,'" Swift explains. In prison, they often say, "'he had a knife, or failed to comply with the direct order.' And in here it's hard to prove different and, we don't have cell phones to capture it. These guys in here know i…

_____ (2020-07-04). Seattle Activists Share Their Vision For Black Trans Pride. popularresistance.org In recent years, trans issues have broken into the mainstream. It didn't happen overnight; it's been a long time coming. Trans activists have been at the center of the fight for LGBTQ rights since before Stonewall, decrying discrimination and violence against their peers for decades. | Now, between Pride Month and protests centering on Black lives, these issues are in the spotlight again. Black trans activists have taken to social media and the streets, bringing attention in particular to the growing number of murdered Black trans women within their community. | For many who've criticized the commodification of P…

_____ (2020-07-04). Native American Protesters Blocked The Road Leading To Mount Rushmore. popularresistance.org A group of mainly Native American protesters blocked the road leading up to Mount Rushmore for three hours before President Donald Trump gave a speech at the national monument Friday night. | When they refused to disband, the protesters faced off with the South Dakota National Guard, which shot close-range shells at their feet and sprayed some protesters with pepper spray, according to the Sioux Falls Argus Leader. | By 7 p.m., 15 protesters who refused to leave the road had been arrested. | Trump went on to give a divisive speech at Mount Rushmore, saying the country was under siege by "far-left" fascists waging…

_____ (2020-07-04). Danny Sjursen: Fourth Of July Musings. popularresistance.org Once again, this Fourth of July, Americans will celebrate — to the unwitting militarist racist tune that is the "Star Spangled Banner" — more than just the nation's Independence Day. Though most folks will, if at a reasonable social distance, focus more on the backyard beer and brats, U.S. jingoism and exceptionalism will invariably be on the menu. | That last sentiment, particularly amidst the COVID- and mass protest-exposing era of forever war at home and abroad, deserves a closer and critical look. For exceptionalism is truly a national disease that ravages American bodies and democratic institutio…

yenisafak (2020-07-04). Antifa, YPG/PKK ties threaten national peace in West. yenisafak.com Many Western countries support the idea of backing the YPG/PKK in Syria but Turkish officials reject aiding a terror group to beat another, ISIS/Daesh. A recent report released by the Turkish National Police Academy warned that countries of origin might face serious security challenges once foreign fighters in Syria return home.The YPG is the Syrian offshoot of the PKK terror group that has the blood of tens of thousands of Turkish citizens on its hands. But warnings by Ankara have fallen on deaf ears and the YPG continues to recruit more and more foreign fighters. The report written by academics Murat Tinas and…

yenisafak (2020-07-04). Europe unites against Israel's West Bank annex plan. yenisafak.com Encouraged by US President Donald Trump's so-called "Deal of the Century," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last month announced his government would formally annex the Jordan Valley and all settlement blocs in the West Bank. | The annexation was scheduled to be declared by Netanyahu on Wednesday.But uncertainty surrounds Netanyahu's position in light of widespread international criticism of the plan along with differences with the US on its application. | Annexation "will certainly happen in July," but it has to be done in partnership with the US, Ofir Akunis, Israel's regional cooperation minister, to…

en.mehrnews (2020-07-04). Saudi media's insult to Ayat. Sistani, 'a vicious act'. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Jul. 04 (MNA) — Head of Supreme Council of Ahl-ul-Bayt World Assembly on Sat. condemned Saudi Arabian media's insult to leading Iraq Shia cleric Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani and called it a 'vicious act'.

en.mehrnews (2020-07-04). Martyrdom of Lt.Gen. Soleimani biggest US gift to terrorism. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Jul. 04 (MNA) — Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) Rear Admiral Ali Shamkhani said that the assassination of Lt. Gen. Soleimani was the biggest US gift to terrorism.

Toby Blomé (2020-07-04). Friday 7/3: "BLACK LIVES MATTER" / Anti-War Light Brigade. indybay.org I-80 Pedestrian pedestrian bridge, south of University Ave. | Gather at 8: 50 pm in open parking area, southwest corner of University Ave. Short walk to get up to the bridge. | Accessed by west side frontage road.

Labor Video Project (2020-07-04). Remember "Bloody Thursday" & Stop Racist Graffiti At SSA! Press Conf At Port Of Oakland. indybay.org ILWU Local 34, ILWU Local 34 and ILWU IBU Bay Area members held a press conference on July 3, 2020 to protest Ku Klux Klan racist graffiti put up at the SSA terminal following the Juneteenth | Action. They also announced plans for commemoration of July 5, 2020 "Bloody Thursday" at the SSA Terminal…

Peadar O'Cearnaigh (2020-07-03). Trump's decision to celebrate 4 July at Mt Rushmore is a big 'f**k you' to Indigenous people and anti-racism campaigners. thecanary.co The police

Eugene Puryear (2020-07-03). From rebellion to revolution. peoplesdispatch.org A profound rebellion against racism has been sweeping the country for a month. Millions have taken to the streets in every part of the country, shaking public opinion. Elite institutions, individuals and corporate brands are scrambling to offer symbolic sacrifices at the altar of racial justice in the hopes they will be spared from the righteous wrath in the streets. | At the same time the police are wantonly attacking protestors and continuing to murder Black people, making a mockery of all the "official" declarations of "anti-racism." | Hidden in just this fact is the most important lesson: The capitalist syste…

Staff (2020-07-03). Angela Davis on Abolition, Calls to Defund Police, Toppled Racist Statues & Voting in 2020 Election. democracynow.org Amid a worldwide uprising against police brutality and racism, we discuss the historic moment with legendary scholar and activist Angela Davis. She also responds to the destruction and removal of racist monuments in cities across the United States, and the 2020 election.

Staff (2020-07-03). "America's Moment of Reckoning": Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor & Cornel West on Uprising Against Racism. democracynow.org Scholars Cornel West and Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor respond to the global uprising against racism and police violence following the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. "We're seeing the convergence of a class rebellion with racism and racial terrorism at the center of it," said Princeton professor Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor. "And in many ways, we are in uncharted territory in the United States."

Eva Bartlett (2020-07-03). Robert Inlakesh On His Documentary, "Steal of the Century: Trump's Palestine-Israel Catastrophe" thealtworld.com Robert Inlakesh is a Documentary Filmmaker, Journalist, Middle-East Analyst | I recently spoke with him on his visits to Occupied Palestine and in particular his two-part documentary, "Steal Of The Century': Trump's Palestine-Israel Catastrophe" , the first part of which he released on June 5. | Watch part 1: |

Ramzy Baroud and Romana Rubeo (2020-07-03). Will the ICC Investigation Bring Justice for Palestine? dissidentvoice.org In the past, there have been many attempts at holding accused Israeli war criminals accountable. Particularly memorable is the case of the late Israeli Prime Minister, Ariel Sharon, (known, among other nicknames, as the 'Butcher of Sabra and Shatila') whose victims attempted to try him in a Belgian Court in 2002. Like all other efforts, …

Fight Back (2020-07-03). More than 1000 at Day of Rage against Israeli annexation in NYC. fightbacknews.org Bay Ridge, NY – On Wednesday, July 1, over 1000 people gathered in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn to rally and march against the planned Zionist annexation of the West Bank. The international Day of Rage was locally organized by Within Our Lifetime and the NY4Palestine coalition. | The rally began at 4 p.m., but the crowd had already started growing before the start time. As the crowd swelled, Palestine flags waving by the dozens, a motley handful of counter-protesters gathered across the street. They had a few Israeli flags and none of them were wearing masks. While they attempted to chant, the pro-Palestine crowd easily…

_____ (2020-07-03). 100 Jewish Lawyers And Judges Call On Israel To Halt Annexation Plans. popularresistance.org Palestine Legal joins widespread international condemnation of Israel's annexation attempts in the West Bank and highlights legal resources for protesters participating in Wednesday's Day of Rage against annexation in the U.S. | We recognize that this is the latest move in 70+ years of Israel's efforts to annex — or fully colonize — Palestinian land. We also recognize that the failure of international law to protect Palestinians or hold Israel accountable further highlights the importance of grassroots efforts to resist Israel's colonization and ethnic cleansing plans, including mass protests. | We sh…

RT (2020-07-03). Moscow welcomes Fatah & Hamas unity pledge amid Israel's West Bank annexation plans. rt.com Russia welcomed on Friday a pledge of unity between Palestinian factions Fatah and Hamas against Israel's West Bank annexation plans. "One of the key issues that need to be resolved for our common efforts to succeed is to restore the Palestinian unity," Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said. | "We are satisfied with yesterday's press conference of Fatah and Hamas representatives, as they announced the decision to jointly defend interests of the Palestinian state based on the Palestine Liberation Organization platform," he noted. | Russia hopes that all Arab representatives will actively back this trend,…

Global Research News (2020-07-03). Selected Articles: Annexation of Palestine. Crime against Humanity. globalresearch.ca We hope that by publishing diverse view points, submitted by journalists and experts dotted all over the world, the website can serve as a reminder that no matter what narrative we are presented with, things are rarely as cut and …

Mnar Muhawesh (2020-07-03). Podcast Panel: Israeli Annexation Could Turn the West Bank Into a Gaza-Style Open Air Prison. mintpressnews.com Palestinian academic Ramzy Baroud, Israeli activist Miko Peled and documentary filmmaker Robert Inkalesh join MintPress to discuss the implication of Israel's coming annexation of the Palestinian West Bank.

Paul Street (2020-07-03). The Racist Counter-Revolution of 1776. counterpunch.org This essay originally appeared six years ago on Telesur English as a review of Gerald Horne's important book The Counter-Revolution of 1776: Slave Resistance and the Origins of the United States of America (New York, 2014). I offer it for re-publication and hopefully wider readership in the wake of the great 2020 George Floyd uprising, which

Andrea Germanos, staff writer (2020-07-03). 'An Attack on Indigenous People': Mount Rushmore Trump Event Denounced as Racist, Dangerous, and Disrespectful. commondreams.org "We won't be social distancing," said the South Dakota governor. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files…

Louis Proyect (2020-07-03). Smearing Black Lives Matter…From the Left. counterpunch.org Over the past fifty-three years as a socialist, I have seen repeated calls for purifying the left of capitalist influences, both governmental and corporate. The latest flare-up was a Jacobin article titled "Don't Let Blackwashing Save the Investor Class" by Cedric Johnson, a black African American studies professor. Just as Deep Throat advised Bob Woodward

a guest author (2020-07-03). On the Road to Justice with im/migrant TPS holders. workers.org By G. Lechat Inspired by the great Civil Rights Movement and in solidarity with Black Lives Matter, immigrant Temporary Protected Status recipients organizing with Alianza TPS Nacional are forging a "Road to Justice." This is the name they gave their 200+ car caravan that converged on Washington, D.C., June 23-24 . . . |

John Davis (2020-07-03). A Requiem for George Floyd. counterpunch.org However complicit we may be in sustaining the historical-racial schema in this country, we can all now agree that, 'Black Lives Matter', but the tag's emblazonment across the country, and internationally, remains a hollow gesture unless there is meaningful collective action to create a social environment in which all black lives can indeed flourish – and matter.

A Guest Author (2020-07-03). Leeds, England: Black Lives Matter. workers.org By Kadesh Anderson Kadesh Anderson is a Black Lives Matter activist and journalist in Leeds, England. Leeds, England — On June 21 in Hyde Park, over 5,000 people came out in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter protest. With social distancing measures in place, people came together with their banners . . . |

Liberation staff (2020-07-03). 'Day of Rage' protests annexation of Palestinian land. liberationnews.org In the U.S.,Palestinians and their supports found ways in the midst of a pandemic to make clear that the Palestinian struggle for liberation will continue, and support for it will grow.

RT (2020-07-03). Vandals spray-paint and BURN Portland's 'Promised Land' statue (VIDEOS). rt.com Rioters in Oregon used fireworks to torch the 'Promised Land' statue depicting a pioneer family at the end of the Oregon Trail. The vandals also laid siege to the city's Justice Center in what police deemed a "riot." | The city of Portland is known nationwide as a hotbed of left-wing activism, and protesters there have embraced the 'Black Lives Matter' cause with gusto. After

RT (2020-07-03). Piers Morgan slammed for hypocrisy after blasting pubs opening but supporting son's BLM protest. rt.com Broadcaster Piers Morgan is being branded a hypocrite for blasting the reopening of pubs as "insane," after praising his own son for attending a Black Lives Matter protest, where many flouted social distancing guidelines. | Morgan has won a lot of grudging admirers for repeatedly highlighting the failures of the UK government during the coronavirus pandemic. But the Good Morning Britain host has now found himself at the receiving end of criticism for his, seemingly contradictory, positions on people gathering in public. | "WHAT? This is insane," the outspoken commentator wrote on Twitter in response to news of…

RT (2020-07-03). 'Racist' elk statue targeted by mob to be removed, after inferno causes 'severe' damage to Portland landmark (PHOTOS). rt.com A sculpture of an elk that has graced downtown Portland, Oregon, for 120 years is to be taken down by city authorities, after protesters set the statue on fire. Police have asked the public to help identify the vandals. | On Wednesday night, demonstrators defaced the seemingly benign statue and lit a series of fires around its base, quickly engulfing the horned effigy in flames. | Portland Police said in a statement that the city's Regional Arts Council had determined that the damage to the base was "so severe" that the landmark would have to be removed for public safety reasons. Officials fear the statue coul…

RT (2020-07-03). 'RACIST FISH': Little Mermaid statue in Denmark vandalized again. rt.com Copenhagen's 'Little Mermaid' statue has yet again been vandalized, now with the words "racist fish" sprayed on its base. The fairy tale character's cancellation comes in spite of Disney casting a black actress for the movie role. | Denmark's capital saw the dubious description written on the landmark on Friday. So far, no one has claimed responsibility for defacing the statue of the Hans Christian Andersen character. | "We consider it vandalism and have started an investigation," a Copenhagen police spokesperson said. | For dozens of years, local protesters have been taking out their political issues on the…

Westenley Alcenat (2020-07-03). Black Lives and the Fourth of July. thenation.com Black Lives and the Fourth of July…

Jeffery Robinson (2020-07-03). This Fourth of July, Time To Tell the Truth About the Confederacy and Its Symbols. commondreams.org A staff member raises the state flag for the flag retirement ceremony at the Mississippi State Capitol building in Jackson, Mississippi on July 1, 2020. – Mississippi's flag, the last US state banner to feature a Confederate emblem, was permanently retired Wednesday when it was lowered from the state's capitol and removed from the grounds. The move comes one day after Governor Tate Reeves signed a bill ordering the rebel-themed flag's removal, which comes in the wake of coast-to-coast protests over the police killing of African American George Floyd in May. (Photo: Rory Doyle / AFP / Getty Image…