(2020-06-26). US street-based projects are talking about more than just police reforms. They want outright liberation. thecanary.co On the west coast of America, authorities have threatened to send in police to retake Seattle's Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone (CHAZ). While on the east coast, the Black Lives Matter chair for Greater New York has called for armed "peace officers" to monitor police activity. | Meanwhile, all across the US, legislation is being introduced to
(2020-06-26). Infiltrating Black Lives Matter: Cops, Feds, and White Supremacists. counterpunch.org 
Black Lives Matter (BLM) is a major step forward in the ongoing struggle for Civil Rights in the United States and around the world. BLM was founded in 2013, following the acquittal over what organizers describe as 17-year-old Trayvon Martin's murderer, the gated community watchman, George Zimmerman. The organization came to international attention in July
(2020-06-26). Class & Otherness: A Peculiar Dialectic. counterpunch.org Nothing captures the contradictions of American social life more than then the recent announcement by Jeff Bezos in support for the Black Lives Matter movement. The founder of Amazon, the owner of the Washington Post and the richest person in the world issued a tweet calling for an end to "the inequitable and brutal treatment of
(2020-06-26). Racism and the Neoliberal Consensus. counterpunch.org 
In the midst of protests and the reinvigorated Black Lives Matter movement, race is once again being put forward as the social axis most in need of rectification. From the perspective of 'racial capital,' the ills of capitalism can't be meaningfully addressed until white supremacy has been defeated. From a left perspective grounded in Marx and history, race is a product of capitalism, not its cause. The economic relationships of indentured servitude and slavery both preceded the concept of race. And the iterative view begins with economic relationships to claim that at some point race became a causal factor in it…
(2020-06-26). LA City Attorney Cory Brente defends killer cops. fightbacknews.org Los Angeles, CA – After the murder of George Floyd, the Los Angeles Times published an article that looks at the connection between the Los Angeles Police Department and the Force Science Institute, a police training academy from Minnesota that creates fear among police toward civilians. The article spotlights the relationship between FSI and Cory Brente, the LA city attorney in charge of defending LAPD killer cops. The head of the Police Litigation Unit, Brente enjoys justifying LAPD killings of Chicano and Black victims. | Brente's most recent work was defending two-time killer cop Eden Medina. LAPD cop Medina…
(2020-06-26). Truth is Our Weapon and Shield — An Interview with Black Panther Party Veteran Billy X Jennings. counterpunch.org 
Truth and reconciliation commissions attempt to heal divided nations after the injustice has ceased. They rely on a process of education in which a reckoning with hard truths of systemic oppression lead to national accountability, reparations for victims, healing and potential unity. However, truth and reconciliation commissions, such as the one in South Africa, are
(2020-06-26). The US Military Has A Boogaloo Problem. popularresistance.org The U.S. military appears to have a brewing boogaloo problem. Active-duty military are flocking to online networks frequented by the anti-government movement, known for its meme culture and Hawaiian shirt-clad adherents, who are often called Boogaloo Bois. | "Boogaloo" is code for civil war, which is the ultimate goal of the movement, and some of its followers trade in memes glorifying violence against federal agents and crack jokes about the impending "Boog." Recently they've become regular fixtures at anti-lockdown and Black Lives Matter protests in states that allow open-carry of military-style firearms. | An…
(2020-06-26). Chicago's Neighborhoods Will Remain "Occupied" Until The City Defunds CPD. popularresistance.org The book Occupied Territory: Policing Black Chicago from Red Summer to Black Power, published last year, details the history of the Chicago Police Department's quasi-military occupation of the city's Black communities from the race riots of 1919 through the present day. Author Simon Balto, an assistant professor of African American history at the University of Iowa, demonstrates that "there is not a time in Chicago's history where the city was home to large percentages of black people, and in which they had a smoothly functioning relationship with the CPD." While most histories of mass incarceration start around…
(2020-06-26). Moment of Truth? How BLM Leader's Words at Once Exposed True Aims & Utter Hypocrisy of the Movement. sputniknews.com On 24 June, leader of the Greater New York Black Lives Matter Hawk Newsome stated that if the movement sparked by the killing of George Floyd does not bring about tangible results the protesters will change the system forcibly. According to US observers, Newsome's remark is unsurprising and speaks volumes about BLM's true goals.
(2020-06-26). Saturday 7/4: 4th of July SF Car Caravan: "Defund Police, Defund Pentagon, Fund Life!" indybay.org Meet up 2pm at SF City Hall, Polk St. between Grove & McAllister; Caravan to Stop 1: Defund Police, Black Lives Matter street painting, Fulton & Webster; Caravan to Stop 2: Defund Pentagon, Nancy Pelosi's House, Broadway @ Divisadero; Caravan to Stop 3: Fund Life!, Bayview Hunters Point.
(2020-06-26). Tuesday 6/30: BAHBL Join Us! Solidarity Rally and March for Black Lives. indybay.org William McKinley statue (277 Baker St.) to Alamo Square Park…
(2020-06-26). Wednesday 7/1: Black Lives Matter Capitola Village March & Speak Out. indybay.org Monterey Park, Capitola…
(2020-06-26). Saturday 6/27: Peaceful Protest for Black Lives Matter. indybay.org Santa Cruz Clock Tower | Pacific Ave. and Water St., Santa Cruz…
(2020-06-26). Tenderloin Rises Up Against UC Hastings Lawsuit. indybay.org Speakers from organizations supporting the unhoused, law students, and community members protested UC Hastings move to clear black and brown residents from tent encampments in the middle of the pandemic. They started in front of the law school's Kane Hall and marched to the police station in the Tenderloin where they faced off with cops armed for battle.
(2020-06-26). One Bad Algorithm? Advocates Say Facial Recognition Reveals Systemic Racism in AI Technology. democracynow.org 
The controversy over police use of facial recognition technology has accelerated after a Black man in Michigan revealed he was wrongfully arrested because of the technology. Detroit police handcuffed Robert Williams in front of his wife and daughters after facial recognition software falsely identified him as a suspect in a robbery. Researchers say facial recognition software is up to 100 times more likely to misidentify people of color than white people. This week, Boston voted to end its use in the city, and Democratic lawmakers introduced a similar measure for federal law enforcement. "This is not an example o…
(2020-06-26). Pandemic Pride: LGBTQ struggle continues, learns from Black Lives Matter. peoplesworld.org 
This weekend marks a half-century since the first Pride march took place on June 28, 1970. That initial event in New York City, called "Christopher Street Liberation Day," recalled the Stonewall Rebellion of a year earlier—the night a band of fed-up queers stood up, fought back, and launched a liberation struggle that transformed the world. …
(2020-06-26). Police Are Arresting Protesters Over Facebook Posts—And It's Just The Beginning. therealnews.com 
The FBI investigated and arrested Michael Avery for posting on Facebook about a Black Lives Matter protest. We talk with a tech industry whistleblower about "snitch apps" and how law enforcement uses technology to "protect" you.
(2020-06-26). U.N. Human Rights Council condemns racist violence. workers.org 
In the wake of international uprisings due to the lynching of George Floyd, the U.N. Human Rights Council held an emergency hearing on June 19. The council unanimously passed a resolution condemning systemic racism and racist police brutality against people of African descent in all countries, but particularly in the . . . |
(2020-06-26). How Atlanta community organized after police murdered Rayshard Brooks. liberationnews.org 
By Monica Johnson The following is based upon a talk given by Monica Johnson, a Party for Socialism and Liberation activist in Atlanta, on a PSL national webinar June 18. She addressed community response to the police murder of Rayshard Brooks. This 27-year-old African-American man was shot twice in the back and killed by police …
(2020-06-25). The Two-Headed Hydra of Racism and Imperialism. counterpunch.org Black Lives Matter (BLM) has raised mass consciousness against the institution of police violence and the brutality it inflicts on Black communities around the country. The movement has placed the question of police brutality at the top of the political and juridical reform agenda. The naked display of the oppressive state apparatus has now forced everyone, from the fascist residents of the White House to the liberal democrats of the House, politicians speak of the need to reform policing—more training, more screening, more record-keepings, judicial vigilance, and other haphazard sutures for the centuries o…
(2020-06-25). Black Lives Matter (BLM) and the Neoliberal Color Revolution in America. globalresearch.ca "The protests, riots, violent and non-violent actions sweeping across the United States since May 25, including an assault on the gates of the White House, begin to make sense when we understand the CIA's Color Revolution playbook," writes economic researcher, …
(2020-06-25). Black Lives Matter Protests Are Everywhere, Even in the Unlikeliest Places. thenation.com Black Lives Matter Protests Are Everywhere, Even in the Unlikeliest Places…
(2020-06-25). Selective Tolerance: AIPAC and its Pro-Apartheid Ilk Come to Bat for Black Lives Matter. mintpressnews.com 
Pro-Israel groups in America are sending mixed signals: yes, we want equality for Black Americans; no, we do not want the same for Palestinians.
(2020-06-25). Spike Lee's 'Da 5 Bloods': Black Lives Matter meets 'Rambo' [spoilers]. peoplesworld.org 
Spike Lee's new film for Netflix, Da 5 Bloods, about the aftereffects on African-American soldiers of the Vietnam War, opens spectacularly. A documentary sequence begins with Muhammad Ali detailing why he chooses not to fight: "My conscience won't let me go shoot my brother or some darker people…for big powerful America..for what?..They never lynched me, …
(2020-06-25). Protests Propel Charles Booker in Close Kentucky Senate Race. zcomm.org "It wasn't just Black people, look around this crowd," Booker said Tuesday night. "We're in this together. You hurt one of us, you hurt all of us."
(2020-06-25). The people will not be ignored, the time is now for CPAC! fightbacknews.org Chicago, IL – When it comes to police reform, the powers that be in Chicago have been negligent in their response to the demands of the people of this city and this nation. People across the country are calling for systemic police reforms now. The resounding voice of the people in the streets is, "We will not accept this anymore!" In Chicago, we're not new to this plaintive cry, unfortunately. We have the longest standing movement for community control of the police in the country, stretching back to the 1969 police murder of Fred Hampton of the Black Panther Party. Yet our city is lagging behind every other majo…
(2020-06-25). 'We Can't Be Duped by Petty Reforms': A Q&A With a Black Panther. thenation.com 'We Can't Be Duped by Petty Reforms': A Q&A With a Black Panther…
(2020-06-25). CHOP And The Juneteenth Longshore Strike. popularresistance.org On June 19, the International Longshore and Warehouse Workers Union (ILWU), a militant union of 42,000 members, shut down 29 ports along the West Coast of the United States and Canada, as workers withheld their labor for 8 hours. The strike was organized to demonstrate the labor movement's solidarity with black lives after the murder of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police, and held on the Juneteenth anniversary of the emancipation of the last chattel slaves in the US in 1865. | As part of the action, a mass demonstration marched through Oakland's port and downtown, with several thousand in attendance.
(2020-06-25). Massive Uprisings Confront White Supremacy. popularresistance.org On May 25, a Minneapolis police officer tortured George Floyd to death in what his brother, Philonise Floyd, called "a modern-day lynching in broad daylight." Hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets in all 50 states and Washington D.C.; the anti-racist uprisings continue. | Why do a majority of people in this country now support the Movement for Black Lives? Why have calls to defund and abolish the police entered the mainstream discourse? Why are people risking the deadly coronavirus to join the protests? And why are we seeing what may be the broadest popular movement in the history of the United Stat…
(2020-06-25). Calls to List Antifa as Terrorist Organisation in Sweden in the Wake of Black Lives Matter Riots. sputniknews.com US President Donald Trump has argued the violent Black Lives Matter rallies that blossomed across the country following the death of African American George Floyd in police custody and which include looting and pillaging, are being led by Antifa, and pledged to designate it as a terrorist organisation, making it illegal on American soil.
(2020-06-25). Fighting words: Trump tweets that police are 'furious' over plan to paint BLACK LIVES MATTER in front of Trump Tower in NYC. rt.com 
Bringing up a report that New York City wants to paint the words "Black Lives Matter" on Fifth Avenue, right outside his flagship property, US President Donald Trump said the city's police were mad about it. | Tweeting from a trip to Wisconsin on Thursday, Trump said he heard Mayor Bill de Blasio wanted to paint the city yellow with the name of the movement — and noted that some of its slogans are calling for the murder of police. | Told that
(2020-06-25). 'Black people don't give a damn about statues': BET founder mocks woke whites toppling monuments to assuage racial guilt. rt.com 
Painfully woke white people yanking TV shows off the air and tearing down statues aren't helping the racial justice cause, according to the founder of Black Entertainment Television. He says black people "laugh at" these displays. | Removing Confederate statues does nothing for black people, billionaire TV magnate Robert Johnson told Fox News on Wednesday. "It's not going to give a kid whose parents can't afford college, money to go to college. It's not going to close the labor gap…and it's not going to take people off welfare or food stamps." | It's tantamount to rearranging deck chairs on a racial Titanic.
(2020-06-25). Dixie Chicks embrace social justice and DROP 'DIXIE' from their name. rt.com 
Pop-country superstars The Dixie Chicks are the latest entertainers to heed the calls of the social justice movement. Dropping the "Dixie" due to its links with the slave-owning south, the group now simply goes by "The Chicks." | The Texas trio changed their name on Thursday with little fanfare, placing a short message on their website reading "We want to meet this moment." Further cementing their progressive position, they released a new song and music video entitled "March March," which lists the names of dozens of black people killed by police in the US. | "If your voice held no power, they wouldn't try to…
(2020-06-25). Ferry Building to City Hall and Beyond: March for Freedom and Justice in San Francisco. indybay.org Black Lives Matter supporters marched from the Ferry Building to City Hall to 555 Franklin, headquarters of the San Francisco Unified School District, with rallies at each stop on June 19.
(2020-06-25). Sunday 6/28: Sit. Walk. Listen. Because Black Lives Matter. indybay.org Henry J. Kaiser Memorial Park (19th st. and Telegraph ave), Oakland, CA | Dear siblings, these times are a great call for change. | As mindfulness practitioners, we can breathe for others who cannot. Let's bring the practice of peaceful compassionate nonviolence to the streets; to listen, to follow, and support black people. | As Thich Nhat Hanh once said: "Nonviolent action, born of the awareness of suffering and nurtured by love, is the most effective way to confront adversity." | Together we can walk in peace, love, compassion and awareness.
(2020-06-25). Now is the time for First Nations justice and systemic change. greenleft.org.au 
(2020-06-25). Occupy meets BLM: Protesters camp outside New York's City Hall, demanding $1bn cut from NYPD budget. rt.com 
Hundreds of protesters have been camped out in front of New York's City Hall for the past two nights, vowing to "occupy" it until Mayor Bill de Blasio agrees to cut $1 billion from the police budget and give it to social services.
(2020-06-25). Sit, Bike, Skate, March on Washington. progressive.org A photo essay from the ongoing protests against police brutality in the nation's capital.
(2020-06-25). Pre-emptive Strike Against Cancel Culture? Country Group Dixie Chicks Changes Name Amid US Protests. sputniknews.com The protests, which began as a movement in opposition to police brutality and indifference towards the lives of African Americans, later morphed into rampant vandalism, with protesters eventually targeting monuments related to racism or slavery in any form and demanding the removal of statues of even some of the most famous historical figures.
(2020-06-25). Two Terrorists Killed, 5 Members of Pakistan-Based Terror Group Lashkar-e-Taiba Arrested in Kashmir. sputniknews.com New Delhi (Sputnik): Indian security forces have been engaged in major counter-terror operations in the Kashmir Valley since April of this year. Security forces have eliminated more than 110 terrorists so far, with intelligence services claiming that infiltration attempts from the Pakistani border may witness a sharp increase this summer.
(2020-06-25). Defying unions, parents, and students, Chicago board keeps cops in schools. peoplesworld.org 
CHICAGO—Defying its unions, parents and city students, the Chicago Board of Education listened to its CEO and city Mayor Lori Lightfoot, and voted 4-3 on June 24 to keep cops in the city schools. Renewal of the $33 million yearly contract with the city police department came after a wide-ranging coalition of Chicago Public Schools …
(2020-06-25). The Struggle against Racism in the United States. globalresearch.ca "We beseech independent African states to help us bring our problem before the United Nations, on the grounds that the United States Government is morally incapable of protecting the lives and the property of 22 million African-Americans. And on the …
(2020-06-25). Police Use Anonymity to Abuse Their Power. progressive.org In cities across the country, citizens are pushing back against badge-covering cops.
(2020-06-25). Poll Shows Overwhelming US Support for Police Reform. zcomm.org Among other major changes, large majorities of the American public want clear standards for police misconduct and prosecution of officers guilty of excessive force…
(2020-06-25). How Visual Culture Is Implicated in Mass Incarceration. thenation.com How Visual Culture Is Implicated in Mass Incarceration…
(2020-06-25). Daesh/ISIS suspect going on trial in Paris. yenisafak.com A man accused of being a so-called "emir" of the terror group Daesh/ISIS is due for his day in court in Paris on Thursday, facing trial for his alleged offenses in Syria.Tyler Vilus, a.k.a., Abou Hafs, is accused of leading a terrorist group and committing murders in an organized gang in Syria in 2013-2015, among other offenses.Vilus was arrested on July 2, 2015, nearly five years ago to the day, while boarding a plane to Prague at Ataturk Airport in Istanbul, and was later extradited to face trial.Turkey has long championed the repatriation of European nationals found to belong to terrorist groups.Vilus' phone,…
(2020-06-25). "The Cops Are With the Fascists": How Police Terror and Trumpism Converge. truthout.org Kelly Hayes talks with grassroots strategist Ejeris Dixon about fascism, police violence and how we can fight back. | Note: This is a rush transcript and has been lightly edited for clarity. Copy may not be in its final form. | TRANSCRIPT : | Kelly Hayes: Welcome to "Movement Memos," a Truthout podcast about things you should know, if you want to change the world. I'm your host Kelly Hayes. In our last episode, Ejeris Dixon and I talked about what a left display book for solidarity might look…
(2020-06-25). L.A. City Councilman arrested in federal corruption probe. nationofchange.org "Councilman Huizar violated the public trust to a staggering degree, allegedly soliciting and accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes from multiple sources over many years."
(2020-06-25). Egyptian authorities arrest journalist Nora Younis. peoplesdispatch.org Founder and editor-in-chief of al-Manassa news agency, Nora Younis, has been a critic of the Egyptian government's track record on human rights. She is the third woman journalist to be arrested by the Egyptian authorities in recent weeks…
(2020-06-24). Unions Are Taking a Stand for Black Lives. thenation.com Unions Are Taking a Stand for Black Lives…
(2020-06-24). 'Act with necessary force': Greta Thunberg says BLM protests & 'corona crisis' give blueprint for climate change fight. mronline.org 
The Black Lives Matter protests across the world show the 'necessary force' people need to use when fighting global warming, teen activist turned climate change icon Greta Thunberg believes.
(2020-06-24). America liberated! Trump found in bunker! mronline.org 
An ad-hoc alliance of radical armies demanding justice for Black lives broke through federal barricades today to storm Capitol Hill.
(2020-06-24). Rural New York Is in the Streets, Marching for Black Lives. thenation.com Rural New York Is in the Streets, Marching for Black Lives…
(2020-06-24). The Anti-American Universities Are a Much Greater Threat to Us than Putin and China. thealtworld.com This is an introduction to a letter written by a black American professor at the University of California, Berkeley. He says that the University no longer serves scholarship and has become a servant to the Democratic Party and Black Lives Matter. He says that the university is akin to a suppressive regime that crushes real diversity and exiles free debate. At the end of his letter, he damns the University of California regents and the Berkely history department for eulogizing George Floyd, a depraved, drug-ridden thug "who hurt women. A man who hurt black women. With the full collaboration of the UCB history depa…
(2020-06-24). Juneteenth/ Racist cops, statues under siege. workers.org 
On Juneteenth — June 19, 1865 — also known as Freedom Day, enslaved Black people in Galveston, Texas, were told they were finally freed. Abraham Lincoln's signing of the Emancipation Proclamation on Sept. 22, 1862, declaring that all enslaved people in the Confederate states would be forever free, took over . . . |
(2020-06-24). Say Her Name: On Average, Police Kill One Black Woman A Month. therealnews.com 
Historically, Black women like Fannie Lou Hamer, Atatiana Jefferson, Breonna Taylor, Korryn Gaines, and Eleanor Bumpers, who were killed or brutalized by police officers, receive less community outrage and media coverage than their male counterparts.
(2020-06-24). Trump Sanctions the International Criminal Court. counterpunch.org On June 11, President Donald Trump issued an executive order declaring a national emergency. Is the emergency the coronavirus pandemic, which has killed 450,000 people worldwide, including 110,000 in the US? Is it racist cops killing Black Americans? Is it the nation's sky-high unemployment and the threat of a second Great Depression? No, no, and no. It's the International Criminal Court's investigation into war crimes in Afghanistan.
(2020-06-24). Reparations And The Palestinian Right Of Return. popularresistance.org The calls "Black Lives Matter" and "Free, Free Palestine," serve to remind us that Palestine is not free and that if the lives of Black people mattered, there would be no need for the call. In both cases, people are in the grips of a cruel, racist system that refuses to let go. In both cases, people are being hunted down, caged, strangled, and shot to death, and the root cause of their suffering is rarely addressed. | In Palestine, the return of refugees is the issue that has the capacity to completely alter the conversation and ultimately bring justice to Palestinians. However few are willing to bring it up, muc…
(2020-06-24). Mapping Police Violence Across The USA. popularresistance.org Police forces across the United States have committed widespread and egregious human rights violations in response to largely peaceful assemblies protesting systemic racism and police violence, including the killing of Black people. | Amnesty International has documented 125 separate incidents of police violence against protesters in 40 states and the District of Columbia between 26 May and 5 June 2020. These acts of excessive force were committed by members of state and local police departments, as well as by National Guard troops and security force personnel from several federal agencies. Among the abuses docum…
(2020-06-24). There's No Predicting When Movements Will Erupt. popularresistance.org When Claudette Colvin, a Black teenager from Montgomery, Alabama, was arrested for refusing to give up her seat on a city bus, few people paid attention. A few months later, when Rosa Parks was arrested for the same act, it touched off a yearlong bus boycott and ignited a movement. | When Seymour Hersh revealed the details of the My Lai Massacre in 1969, it touched off Congressional investigations but not mass action. When President Nixon announced that U.S. troops had invaded Cambodia the following spring, college campuses, including Kent State, erupted in protest. | The partial meltdown of the Enrico Fermi nucl…
(2020-06-24). Why Black Lives Matter Global Network's Fundraising Bonanza Rings the Scam Alarm. sputniknews.com Though the Black Lives Matter Global Network positions itself as a charity, its funding and spending are not transparent, while its activities appear partisan and less than peaceful, say Wall Street analyst Charles Ortel and Robert Bishop, retired corporate CPA, suspecting the entity may be involved in potential fraud and money laundering schemes.
(2020-06-24). WATCH: DC Police unleash on 'Black House autonomous zone' protesters, fulfilling Trump's vow to use 'serious force'. rt.com 
Police bombarded protesters with pepper bullets, tear gas and flashbangs during yet another night of violent clashes in downtown Washington DC, fulfilling President Trump's vow to use 'serious force.' | Multiple eyewitness videos from the scene show the ensuing chaos as Black Lives Matter protesters were cleared from the streets by police using multiple forms of non-lethal munitions, indiscriminately hosing the crowds with pepper spray and bullets, before launching barrages of flashbangs. | BREAKING: DC Police just unleashed on Black Lives Matter demonstrators. They're shooting flashbangs and pepper spraying i…
(2020-06-24). Liberal white woman on crusade to 'fix racism' goes viral for berating black cops (VIDEOS). rt.com 
A liberal white woman is being roasted on social media for attempting to explain away her harassment of black police officers as part of her crusade to "fix racism." | The incident took place on Black Lives Matter Plaza in Washington DC on Tuesday, when the woman was among a group of protesters haranguing police officers, who were monitoring the demonstrations taking place in the shadow of the White House. | The woman could be heard asking a black police officer "when you take off your uniform are you afraid of police?" only to be met with stoic silence from the cop, who was one of several black cops who were…
(2020-06-24). Detroit cops made first known wrongful arrest based on faulty facial recognition software, ACLU complaint claims. rt.com 
A case involving a black man who was wrongfully detained due to an incorrect facial recognition match could be the first of its kind, the ACLU has said. The civil liberties group has filed a complaint with Detroit police. | The American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan filed a formal letter of protest on Wednesday over the arrest and treatment of Robert Williams, who was cuffed on his front lawn by Detroit officers after being suspected of stealing watches from a boutique. The arrest, which was made in January, came about after Williams was flagged by a facial recognition system used by the Detroit Police Dep…
(2020-06-24). Black Lives Matter Protests Are Shifting Racial Justice Dialogues in Pro Sports. truthout.org The Black Lives Matter protests are dramatically shifting dialogues about racial justice in sports, says former NBA player, author and activist Etan Thomas. He describes how athletes are forcing a reckoning about systemic racism in professional sports, including in NASCAR, which has rallied around the sole Black driver competing in the Cup Series, Bubba Wallace, who led a push to ban Confederate flags from races. "It's amazing what's happening in NASCAR," Thomas says. "They did more in 48 hou…
(2020-06-24). How Black Lives Matter Protests Are Shifting Racial Justice Dialogues in Professional Sports. democracynow.org 
The Black Lives Matter protests are dramatically shifting dialogues about racial justice in sports, says former NBA player, author and activist Etan Thomas. He describes how athletes are forcing a reckoning about systemic racism in professional sports, including in NASCAR, which has rallied around the sole Black driver competing in the Cup Series, Bubba Wallace, who led a push to ban Confederate flags from races. "It's amazing what's happening in NASCAR," Thomas says. "They did more in 48 hours than the NFL did for Colin Kaepernick for four or five years."
(2020-06-24). Coast to coast, marchers declare: 'Black trans lives matter!'. workers.org 
"Say his name! Tony McDade!" These words rang out on June 20 as hundreds of Clevelanders, members of the LGBTQ2S+ community and allies, marched to the theme, "All Black Lives Matter." They took to the streets to raise the name of Tony McDade, a Black trans man killed by police . . . |
(2020-06-24). ACLU Demands Lawmakers Act After Michigan Man Wrongfully Arrested 'Because Face Recognition Can't Tell Black People Apart'. commondreams.org The ACLU on Wednesday urged policymakers to end law enforcement use of facial recognition technology and filed an administrative complaint with Detroit police on behalf of Robert Williams, a Black man who was wrongfully arrested in January after software owned by Michigan State Police misidentified him as a shoplifting suspect. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2020-06-24). Wrongfully Arrested Because Face Recognition Can't Tell Black People Apart. aclu.org 
Early this year, Detroit police arrested Robert Williams — a Black man living in a Detroit suburb — on his front lawn in front of his wife and two little daughters (ages 2 and 5). Robert was hauled off and locked up for nearly 30 hours. His crime? Face recognition software owned by Michigan State Police told the cops that Robert Williams was the watch thief they were on the hunt for., , There was just one problem: Face recognition technology can't tell Black people apart. That includes Robert Williams, whose only thing in common with the suspect caught by the watch shop's surveillance feed is that…
(2020-06-24). Republican Police Reform Bill Fails to Pass US Senate Vote. sputniknews.com The GOP initiative was announced last week by President Donald Trump in response to the protests over the death of George Floyd that have been ongoing for weeks and demands to "defund the police". Trump refused to cut the funds, suggesting instead an array of measures aimed at preventing new cases of police brutality.
(2020-06-24). US killer cops mastered 'fascist Israel's technique proudly used on Palestinians' — Roger Waters to RT. rt.com 
Pink Floyd co-founder Roger Waters sees eerie similarities in Israel's treatment of Palestinians and US police departments' approach to their own citizens. The legendary singer told RT it's "about time" the world called out both. | "Thank goodness there's an uprising," Waters told RT's 'Going Underground' on Tuesday, referring to the wave of protests and riots sweeping the US since the killing of George Floyd by a police officer in Minneapolis last month. "It's about time." | The kneeling chokehold that killed Floyd was described by Waters as "an Israeli technique, proudly developed by the IDF in the occupied…
(2020-06-24). What Elinor Ostrom's Work Tells Us About Defunding The Police. popularresistance.org In the past weeks, I've watched the news about the explosion of protests against police brutality and racism in the United States and around the world, and the resulting conversations on police defunding, reform or abolition. As I scrolled through social media and obsessively scanned and rescanned the headlines, a small thought tugged at me. | It was the story of how one of my heroes, Elinor Ostrom, who won the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences in 2009, had arrived at the research that made her famous. Ostrom has become celebrated as the person who introduced the world to "the commons" — that is, ho…
(2020-06-24). The Untold Number of People Implicated in Crimes They Didn't Commit Because of Face Recognition. aclu.org In January, Michigan resident Robert Williams was arrested for shoplifting from a watch store in downtown Detroit a year ago—a
(2020-06-24). Arrest Of Activist Leads To Protests; At Least Four Vehicles Strike Protesters. popularresistance.org Hundreds of people are protesting in downtown Madison after the arrest of activist Yeshua Musa. | Videos of the arrest posted to social media show as many as five police officers wrestling Musa, also known as Devonere Johnson, to the ground and carrying him to the back seat of a police cruiser, while he asks what he's being arrested for. After officers get him into the car, he can be seen jumping out of the opposite car door before being tackled again and taken into custody. In one of the videos, witnesses can be heard asking why Musa is being arrested and saying he had only been speaking in a megaphone, exercisi…
(2020-06-24). Popularity of Bail Funds Continue Protests' Momentum. therealnews.com 
ATLANTA—On June 1, police officers had 20-year-old William Lefforge, and about 50 other protesters, boxed in on the sidewalk near Atlanta City Hall. The officers warned the protesters they had three minutes to leave, but according to Lefforge, the group could not get by the police. The police arrested them and transported Lefforge and his group to the Atlanta Detention Center. Lefforge estimated his arrest happened around 4 p.m., well before the 9 p.m. curfew that Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms has since lifted. | Lefforge called his mother, Jen, who in turn reached out to the Atlanta Solidarity Fund. Thanks to…
(2020-06-24). Republican police reform bill fails in Senate due to Democrat opposition. rt.com 
A police reform bill proposed by Senator Tim Scott (R-South Carolina) failed on a procedural vote due to opposition from Democrats, who said it does not go far enough. | Wednesday's vote on the cloture motion was 55 in favor and 45 against, with 60 votes needed to move the bill forward. | Scott, who is African-American, pleaded with his colleagues to not think of this as a Republican or Democrat issue, but something that would start addressing the issues that have plagued the country for decades. | Democrats countered that Scott's proposal didn't ban chokeholds or no-knock warrants and failed to hold police ac…
(2020-06-24). Experts See Ulterior Motives Behind US Decision to Finally Deport Haitian Death Squad Leader. mintpressnews.com Emmanuel "Toto" Constant was immediately arrested after touching down in Port-au-Prince, 26 years after he fled to the US following the Raboteau massacre.
(2020-06-24). Trump's incitement of police violence. nationofchange.org Arrogance by police often mirrors the stance of individuals above the cops.
(2020-06-24). Here's why you might not be seeing the systems of oppression that surround us. thecanary.co Sometimes it's hard to see the systems of oppression we're living in. This is especially true when you're not directly subjected to that oppression yourself. I say this as a caution, not as an excuse. Here's why. | I was born in South Africa in 1974. That year John Vorster, a staunch proponent of apartheid, was re-elected president in a ballot in which only white people could vote. Nelson Mandela was in prison and the
(2020-06-24). Turkey remands Iraqi national over links to Daesh/ISIS. yenisafak.com A Turkish court on Wednesday remanded an Iraqi national into custody over links to the Daesh/ISIS terror group, according to a security source.The suspect was arrested from a cell house in the western Denizli province where he was hiding after participating in terrorist activities in Syria, said the source on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on speaking to the media.The operation was launched as part of the investigation against Daesh by the Chief Public Prosecutor's Office in Denizli, the source added.Many digital materials were also seized from the address raided.Turkey was one of the first countries…
(2020-06-24). Alabama League of the South Member Ryan King Arrested on Domestic Violence Charges. splcenter.org Ryan Matthew King, 42, of Montgomery, Alabama, was arrested June 20 on two charges of 3rd degree domestic violence, according to the Autauga County, Alabama, Sheriff's Office website.
(2020-06-23). 'Black Lives Matter' is About More than the Police. aclu.org Every time another Black person is murdered by the police, it's easy to point to a single officer as the culprit. George Floyd was killed under the knee of officer Derek Chauvin — we saw it ourselves. But Chauvin is just one officer in a culture of police violence, and policing is just one of the systems responsible for taking Black lives. COVID-19 exposed a number of the others. , , It's no coincidence that Black people, who are more likely to be killed by the police, are also dying at disproportionate rates of COVID-19. While some say it's due to the prevalence of underlying health issues like diabetes…
(2020-06-23). The US Military Also Has a Racism Problem. thenation.com The US Military Also Has a Racism Problem…
(2020-06-23). WATCH: White BLM activists incur wrath of black protesters for dramatic history-flipping 'whipped slaves' demonstration. rt.com 
There were furious scenes at a Black Lives Matter protest in Charleston, South Carolina, when a group of liberal white activists enraged their black counterparts with a demonstration that featured white slaves and a black owner. | The ill-judged display took place in Charleston's Marion Square where a group of monument defenders gathered to show their support for a statue of John C. Calhoun, a pro-slavery American vice president. | Unsurprisingly, that gathering attracted a counter-protest in which dozens of Black Lives Matter activists chanted slogans including "George Floyd" and "take it down." | But things…
(2020-06-23). Democrat Rep. calls for police after being attacked in short-lived 'autonomous zone' near White House. rt.com 
A Democrat lawmaker and an MSNBC reporter have been left wondering where the police were, after they were apparently attacked in a fledgling 'autonomous zone' near the White House. | Perhaps spurred on by activists in Seattle's 'Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone', a group of protesters in Washington, DC occupied a street near the White House this weekend, declaring it the 'Black House Autonomous Zone'. Though police cleared the street of tents and trash on Tuesday, a large crowd remained, and Democrat Rep. Eleanor Holmes Norton was on the street to talk to MSNBC's Andrea Mitchell. | The interview was cut short when…
(2020-06-23). WATCH: Heroes: A Conversation with Albert Woodfox and Robert King (of the Angola 3). indybay.org Heroes: A Conversation with Albert Woodfox and Robert King (of the Angola 3) is a short video being released at this time to highlight another dimension of the protests taking place around the world supporting Black Lives Matter and to draw attention to racism in criminal justice systems around the world.
(2020-06-23). BLM Demonstrators Calling for Racial Justice March on Facebook HQ. indybay.org On June 12, hundreds of Black Lives Matter protesters demanded Facebook stop funding local police by marching on the social media giant's headquarters in Menlo Park.
(2020-06-23). Sit. Walk. Listen. Because Black Lives Matter. indybay.org Dear siblings, these times are a great call for change. | As mindfulness practitioners, we can breathe for others who cannot. Let's bring the practice of peaceful compassionate nonviolence to the streets; to listen, to follow, and support black people. | As Thich Nhat Hanh once said: "Nonviolent action, born of the awareness of suffering and nurtured by love, is the most effective way to confront adversity." | Together we can walk in peace, love, compassion and awareness.
(2020-06-23). Meet Brandon Saenz: Dallas Protester Who Lost Eye After Police Shot Him with "Less Lethal" Projectile. democracynow.org 
As a new Amnesty International report documents at least 125 instances of police violence against Black Lives Matters protesters in 40 states from May 26 to June 5, we speak with Brandon Saenz, a 26-year-old Black man shot in the face by Dallas police with so-called less-lethal ammunition that shattered his left eye and fractured his face. We also speak with his lawyer, Daryl Washington, about how he has since helped to win a 90-day preliminary injunction against the police use of chemical agents and rubber bullets in Dallas.
(2020-06-23). Savagery in the Great Basin. counterpunch.org 
The Bureau of Land Management has spent the pandemic churning out rapacious public land projects at breakneck speed. This includes egregious grazing decisions drastically increasing livestock numbers for powerful ranchers. After complaints, Idaho BLM Director John Ruhs responded that ranching was an essential service. At the same time, an avalanche of BLM deforestation projects hit.
(2020-06-23). Why the Assault on a Diplomat in Israel should Come as No Surprise. dissidentvoice.org An Israeli diplomat filed a complaint last week with police after he was pulled to the ground in Jerusalem by four security guards, who knelt on his neck for five minutes as he cried out: "I can't breathe." There are obvious echoes of the treatment of George Floyd, an African-American killed by police in Minneapolis …
(2020-06-23). George Floyd's Killing and Its International Repercussions. dissidentvoice.org 
Part One — Part 2 here. The gruesome killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on 25 May 2020 has given rise to an unprecedented campaign against police brutality in the United States, and in turn has acted as a fuse for a worldwide uprising against racism and inequality. Floyd's killing triggered massive demonstrations in …
(2020-06-23). Minneapolis police reform coalition keeps pressure on mayor and state lawmakers. peoplesworld.org 
MINNEAPOLIS—Disgust and indignation sum up Minneapolis community leaders' reaction to Mayor Jacob Frey's latest move to address police crime and brutality in the wake of the murder of George Floyd. At a press conference on the morning of Monday, June 22, they alleged the mayor's action was designed to keep their voices out of the …
(2020-06-23). #JusticeforSteve: List of victims of police brutality worldwide gets longer but endless number of hashtags falls on deaf ears. rt.com 
As the world grapples with questions concerning police brutality, racism, and discrimination, it's worth taking a look back at a case that sparked outrage and calls for police reform in France a year ago. | The case of Steve Maia Caniço put a long record of excessive use of force by police under the microscope. | But, one year later, what has changed, if anything? Not a whole lot. Anti-police protests in the US have sparked renewed anger at the French police system. Steve represents just one of many cases of police brutality which resulted in the death of an innocent person. Time has passed but #Justice…
(2020-06-23). The NBA Should Join the Struggle Against Institutionalized Racism. counterpunch.org A police officer once head-butted my dad in the face after he was arrested protesting against Israel's oppression of the Palestinians. My mother, during a different protest, was grabbed by the hair by an officer on a horse and brutally dragged on the ground. These stories shocked me when I first heard them, but now
(2020-06-23). "I Can't Breathe": Chokehold on Diplomat Exposes Israel's Special Type of Apartheid. commondreams.org Israeli diplomat Ishmael Khaldi pictured at the nation's U.S. consulate in Miami. (Photo: Courtesy of Israeli Consulate) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2020-06-23). Fake noose: FBI says NASCAR 'hate crime' was just pull rope on Bubba Wallace's garage door. rt.com 
The "noose" in the garage assigned to African-American NASCAR driver Bubba Wallace in Talladega turned out to be a pull rope for the door that was there before, and not a hate crime, the FBI has confirmed. | "After a thorough review of the facts and evidence surrounding this event, we have concluded that no federal crime was committed," FBI Special Agent Johnnie Sharp Jr. and US attorney Jay E. Town said in a statement on Tuesday. | Fifteen FBI agents were involved in the investigation, and established that the "noose" had been there since at least October 2019, when the stall was assigned to another team …
(2020-06-23). 'No exceptions!' Trump orders the arrest of anyone vandalizing monuments, warns they face up to 10 years in prison. rt.com 
Donald Trump has authorized law enforcement to arrest anyone who vandalizes statues or other landmarks on federal property and sentence them to as much as a decade in prison. He said the measures can also be imposed retroactively. | The US president wrote on Twitter that he would no longer tolerate the destruction of federal property. | "I have authorized the Federal Government to arrest anyone who vandalizes or destroys any monument, statue or other such Federal property in the U.S. with up to 10 years in prison, per the Veteran's Memorial Preservation Act, or such other laws that may be pertinent," he said,…
(2020-06-23). Trump threatens vandals with '10yrs in prison' for defacing Andrew Jackson statue, St. John's Church amid clashes near White House. rt.com 
US President Donald Trump has warned of harsh consequences for anyone defacing statues or monuments in Washington, DC, saying the vandals could spend up to a decade in prison. | "Numerous people arrested in DC for the disgraceful vandalism, in Lafayette Park, of the magnificent Statue of Andrew Jackson, in addition to the exterior defacing of St. John's Church across the…
