2019-08-05: News Headlines

RT (2019-08-05). US President Trump proposes tighter gun control tied to immigration reform. rt.com US legislators should pass tougher gun control laws and possibly "marry" them to immigration reform, President Donald Trump tweeted. It comes ahead of an announcement on gun violence which he promised to deliver later on Monday.

Staff (2019-08-05). After Dayton Shooting, Gun Violence Reporter Says Misogyny "Clear Link" Between Many Mass Shootings. democracynow.org Over the span of 13 hours, the country was shaken by two mass shootings in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio, where a total of 29 people were killed. Shortly before the attack, the El Paso gunman posted an anti-immigrant manifesto on the far-right message board 8chan, while there is still no clear motive for the Dayton shooting. Senator Bernie Sanders and other Democratic leaders are calling on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to hold a special session of the Senate to vote on two gun safety bills recently passed in the House. This all comes as the National Rifle Association is imploding. We speak with Alex…

Adrienne Pine (2019-08-05). The End of a Cocaine-Fueled Presidency? Juan Orlando Hernandez Faces Regime Change in Honduras. mintpressnews.com Honduras has been the epicenter of the Central American exodus and northward migration since the U.S.-backed coup 10 years ago and the ultra-violent repression by President Juan Orlando Hernandez's regime, as well as its ultra-neoliberal policies.

Natasha Lennard (2019-08-05). The El Paso Shooter Embraced Eco-Fascism. We Can't Let the Far Right Co-Opt the Environmental Struggle. theintercept.com On Aug. 4, 2019, a man places an American flag on a makeshift memorial outside the Walmart store in El Paso, Texas, where a mass shooting occurred the previous day. | The four-page manifesto believed to be written by suspected El Paso mass shooter Patrick Crusius abounds with Trumpian racist nationalism. "This attack is a response to the Hispanic invasion of Texas," notes the text, published shortly before Saturday's massacre. The manifesto, which decries "race-mixing," states, "some people will blame the president or certain presidential candidates for the attack. This is not the case," noting that the autho…

John Dick (2019-08-05). Letter carrier's beat up boots kick it at MDA summer camp. peoplesworld.org "Hey man, nice boots!" I look over and see a young feller, maybe twelve years old. "Thanks, I've has these buggers for a long time," I cheerfully retort. I look down at the boots he was referring to. A pair of black Tony Lama cowboy boots bought in a little store in Bandera, Texas in …

commondreams (2019-08-05). Demonizing Immigrants and Mental Health Conditions Is Not A Solution to Gun Violence. commondreams.org ______________________________…

Staff (2019-08-05). El Paso Blood Is on the Hands of Everyone Who Has Scapegoated Migrants. truthout.org | | The far right in the United States changes its look every few years, cycling through hoods, shaved heads and boots, polo shirts, fashy haircuts and even three-piece suits. But one thing remains constant: Its bigotry and scapegoating drive its followers to kill. And they do so again and again. | The slaughter of 22 people in an El Paso, Texas, Wal-Mart on Saturday was a dramatic example of this trend. It was the largest massacre by a single, open white nationalist in recent history. It follow…

Staff (2019-08-05). Trump Vows Action After Shootings but Gives Few Details. truthdig.com The president has suggested a new bill could be paired with immigration reform without explaining how or why the two issues are related.

Max Blumenthal (2019-08-05). How Joe Biden's Privatization Plans Helped Doom Latin America and Fuel the Migration Crisis. globalresearch.ca On the campaign trail, Joe Biden has boasted of his role in transforming Colombia and Central America through ambitious economic and security programs. Colombians and Hondurans tell The Grayzone about the damage his plans did to their societies. | *** | While …

Howard Lisnoff (2019-08-05). Two Foxes and a Hen: Sexual Assault in the Military. counterpunch.org This is now a nation governed by thugs, a government in many ways reminiscent of right-wing authoritarian societies throughout history. It's a smiling version of authoritarianism unless a person happens to be an immigrant. There aren't death camps or gulags here, unless you're an immigrant, or in some cases a prisoner in a place like the federal More

Patrick Michels, Laura C. Morel, Cullen Browder, Tyler Dukes and Travis Fain (2019-08-05). N.C. shut down a group home last year. The US just gave it a contract to house migrant children. nationofchange.org This story is a collaboration with WRAL News. | The U.S. government plans to send immigrant children to shelters run by a group home recently shut down by North Carolina, a building contractor with no experience in residential care and a Texas children's shelter with a track record of state violations, a Reveal and WRAL News investigation has found. | New Horizon Group Home had its license revoked by North Carolina in July 2018, five months after the facility admitted its first resident. Yet in April, the Office of Refugee Resettlement, the federal…

The Canary (2019-08-05). Thousands of painted lady butterflies spotted in July as UK experiences 'influx'. thecanary.co Tens of thousands of painted lady butterflies were spotted over two days in July thanks to a migration "influx" in the UK, according to environmental charity Butterfly Conservation. | The butterfly is a common immigrant to the UK from the continent each summer, but around once every 10 years there is a bumper year, when millions arrive together. | As the species makes its migration to the UK, the charity said that over 30,000 painted lady butterflies were spotted in two days at the end of July. | Nature lovers in the UK have spotted the butterflies in their gardens and local parks, and have shared photos and vide…

Staff (2019-08-05). Mexico Plans Legal Action Against US After Six Citizens Killed in El Paso. truthout.org | | Update: The death toll has increased to a combined total of 31.After six Mexican nationals were killed in El Paso by a gunman authorities believe is the author of a racist and anti-immigrant manifesto, Mexico on Sunday said it is…

teleSUR (2019-08-05). Trump Says Fake News, Not His Hate Speech, Behind Shootings. telesurenglish.net U.S. President Donald Trump said Monday that his country must "condemn racism, bigotry and white supremacy" after a gunman killed 20 people in an attack in Texas that authorities said appeared to be a racially motivated hate crime. | Trump did not directly address accusations that his anti-immigrant and racially charged comments have contributed to a rise in hate crimes. | "These sinister ideologies must be defeated," he said in remarks at the White House. "Hate has no place in America. Hatred warps the mind, ravages the heart and devours the soul." | Trump said he was directing the Department of Justice to…

Binoy Kampmark (2019-08-05). The Retainer Solution: the European Union, Libya and Irregular Migration. counterpunch.org There is a venom in international refugee policy that refuses to go away: officials charged with their tasks, passing on their labours to those who might see the UN Refugee Convention as empty wording, rather than strict injunction carved upon stone. They have all become manifest in the policy of deferral: humanitarian problems are for More

Staff (2019-08-05). Misogyny Drives Many Mass Shootings. Dayton Was No Exception. truthout.org | | Update: The death toll has increased to a combined total of 31.Over the span of 13 hours, the country was shaken by two mass shootings in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio, where a total of 29 people were killed. Shortly before the attack, the El Paso gunman posted an anti-immigrant manifesto on the far-right message board 8chan, while there is still no clear motive for the Dayton shooting. Senator Bernie Sanders and other Democratic leaders…

Jessica Corbett, staff writer (2019-08-05). Jewish Protesters Arrested at LA Office of Private Prison Company That Runs ICE 'Concentration Camps'. commondreams.org Jewish activists were arrested Monday for protesting at the Los Angeles office of the GEO Group, a private prison company that runs federal migrant detention facilities decried by critics as "concentration camps." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/protesters_0.jpg

Staff (2019-08-05). El Paso Shooting Probed as Domestic Terrorism After Anti-Immigrant Gunman Kills 22 People. democracynow.org Over the span of 13 hours, the United States was shaken by two mass shootings. Saturday morning, a heavily armed gunman opened fire inside a crowded Walmart in El Paso, Texas, killing 22 people, including a number of Mexican nationals. Federal authorities are treating the El Paso attack as an act of domestic terrorism. The suspected gunman has been identified as a 21-year-old white man named Patrick Crusius, who lived 600 miles away in a suburb of Dallas. Shortly before the attack in El Paso, the gunman posted an anti-immigrant manifesto on the far-right message board 8chan. Some of the language in the manifesto…

Amnesty International (2019-08-05). Demonizing Immigrants and Mental Health Conditions is Not a Solution to Gun Violence. indybay.org Responding to President Donald Trump's speech following a spate of mass shootings over the weekend, Ernest Coverson, Amnesty International USA's End Gun Violence campaign manager said: "Gun violence reform cannot come at the expense of the human rights of any community. When President Trump links background checks for guns with immigration reform, he is once again demonizing immigrants and communities of color. The Trump administration will stop at nothing to shut down the border and limit safety to those who most need it. It is outrageous to denounce bigotry in one breath and terrorize the community that was tar…

Monterey Peace and Justice Center (2019-08-05). Challenging the Border. indybay.org Monterey Peace and Justice Center | 1364 Fremont Blvd. | Seaside, CA 93955…

Minnie Bruce Pratt (2019-08-04). Central New York 'stands against racism. workers.org Under the slogan "CNY Stands Against Racism," about 50 people gathered in downtown Syracuse to protest the virulent U.S. racism that enforces life-threatening im/migrant camps, the deadly prison-industrial complex and the unjust criminal "justice system." One speaker pointed out that all these structures break up families and attack the most . . . | Continue reading Central New York 'stands against racism at Workers.org

Dante Strobino (2019-08-04). North Carolina workers rally against anti-immigrant law. workers.org Immigrant groups and union workers rallied in front of North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper's mansion in downtown Raleigh on July 12, urging him to veto House Bill 370, the so-called "Show Me Your Papers" law. HB 370 is an anti-immigrant bill that circumvents the local authority of sheriffs by requiring . . . | Continue reading North Carolina workers rally against anti-immigrant law at Workers.org

teleSUR (2019-08-04). Peru: Army Deployed to Port Amid Protest Against Mining Project. telesurenglish.net Peruvian President Martin Vizcarra authorized Sunday for the army to join the national police forces to "protect" the key mining port of Matarani, a day before an expected new round of protests against Southern Copper's 'Tia Maria' open-pit mining project. | RELATED: | Peru: Labor Unions Join Campesino Strike Against Toxic Mining | teleSUR's correspondent in the area, Jaime Herrera, reported that Vizcarra's government has declared a state of emergency in the port town, ordering t…

Fight Back (2019-08-04). FRSO leader slams racist mass murder in El Paso. fightbacknews.org Washington DC – "The Freedom Road Socialist Organization strongly condemns the mass murder carried out in El Paso," said Masao Suzuki, chair of the FRSO Joint Nationalities Commission. Of the shooter he said, "With a Twitter account liking the hashtag BuildtheWall and a photo of guns spelling Trump, it is clear that the motivation for this white supremacist crime is shaped by Trump's racist attacks." | On August 3, a Trump-supporting gunman carried out a massacre of at least 20 people in El Paso, Texas, which he justified in racist, anti-immigrant statement. | Suzuki added, "Racist violence, from the massacres of…

Brett Barrouquere and Hatewatch Staff (2019-08-03). El Paso Shooting Suspect May Have Authored Manifesto Containing White Nationalist Talking Points. splcenter.org The suspect in a shooting that left 20 people dead at an El Paso Walmart may have posted and liked anti-immigrant leaning remarks on what appears to be his Twitter account.

Al Neal (2019-08-02). War on humanity: Inside the refugee camps of Ciudad Juárez. peoplesworld.org People's World correspondent Al Neal spent the summer of 2019 in the field reporting from sites all along the U.S.-Mexico border. In his dispatches, you get a view of the towns and people caught up in Trump's "border crisis." This is the first half of an article detailing his visit to a refugee camp in …

United Nations (2019-08-02). Friday's Daily Brief: Security Council Ebola response, UNICEF chief on 'devastating week' for children in Middle East and North Africa, climate and migration links. un.org Our main stories today: Security Council concern over DRC Ebola outbreak, head of UNICEF deplores 'devastating week' for children in MENA region, climate crisis to have 'extensive' effect on human settlement…

Binoy Kampmark (2019-08-02). The Retainer Solution: The European Union, Libya and Irregular Migration. dissidentvoice.org There is a venom in international refugee policy that refuses to go away: officials charged with their tasks, passing on their labours to those who might see the UN Refugee Convention as empty wording, rather than strict injunction carved upon stone. They have all become manifest in the policy of deferral: humanitarian problems are for …

susan_p (2019-08-02). Venezuela: Chavista militants killed as rural violence continues. greenleft.org.au Six activists from the grassroots Revolutionary Bolivar and Zamora Current ( CRBZ) were assassinated in Barinas State on July 27. | The victims, one of whom was pregnant, were part of the Hugo Chavez Popular Defence Brigades organised by the CRBZ in Barinas, Tachira, and other states regularly plagued by landowner violence against campesinos. | No information is yet known about the assailants, but the CRBZ claimed in their statement that they had "military…

Staff (2019-08-01). 2nd Dem Debate Pt 2: Presidential Candidates Attack Trump as a Racist (1/4). therealnews.com Trump was called out as a white nationalist in the second night of Democratic presidential debates; demonstrators demanded Eric Garner's killer be fired, and justice for immigrants. With Kimberly Moffitt, Dharna Noor, and Marc Steiner as host…

Staff (2019-08-01). Dolores Huerta & Cornel West Respond to Democratic Debate as Biden & Harris Face Harsh Scrutiny. democracynow.org Ten presidential hopefuls took the stage Wednesday evening for the second night of a Democratic debate in Detroit. During the night, former Vice President Joe Biden defended his record after facing numerous attacks on his record on criminal justice, the Iraq War, immigration and women's rights. Senator Kamala Harris also faced criticism over her record as California attorney general. We speak to the legendary labor leader Dolores Huerta, who is co-chair of Kamala Harris's campaign, and Harvard professor Cornel West, who has endorsed Bernie Sanders.

Staff (2019-08-01). Dolores Huerta Accuses Biden of "Speaking Just Like a Republican" on Immigration. democracynow.org Immigration rights activists abruptly interrupted Joe Biden during last night's debate, chanting "3 million deportations!"—referring to the Obama administration's deportation of at least 3 million undocumented people. During the debate, Julián Castro repeatedly challenged Biden's record on immigration. "It looks like one of us has learned the lessons of the past and one of us hasn't," Castro said. We speak to Dolores Huerta and Cornel West.

Lee Fang (2019-08-01). Hacked Emails Show GOP Demands on Border Security Were Crafted by Industry Lobbyists. theintercept.com Demands that CBP spend millions to upgrade cameras used to read license plates were orchestrated in part by a company that hoped to profit.

Alexandra Tempus (2019-08-01). Comment: This Land Is Whose Land? progressive.org Just as surely as migrants are inhumanely deterred at our borders, national identity is tyrannically policed inside them.

Fight Back (2019-08-01). 'Never Again is Now' protest shuts down ICE in Minneapolis. fightbacknews.org Minneapolis, MN – A few hundred protesters blocked off all roads outside of the Whipple Federal Building here at a 'Never Again is Now' protest July 30, shutting down business as usual to demand that the government close the concentration camps at the U.S.-México border. | Hundreds of cars were blocked from leaving the building where Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is housed for several hours at the end of the work day. At the end of the action around 30 people were cited and released by Hennepin County cops. | The protest was organized by Jewish community members opposed to the camps at the U…

Staff (2019-08-01). Headlines for August 1, 2019. democracynow.org Presidential Hopefuls Take Aim at Joe Biden During Second Night of Debates, Protesters Confront Joe Biden over Immigration Record, Protesters Confront NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio over Eric Garner's Death, NY Medical Examiner: Layleen Polanco Died of Epilepsy in Solitary Cell, U.N. Warns 21st Century's Worst Humanitarian Crisis Unfolding in Syria, Trump Administration Sanctions Iran's Foreign Minister, Sudan Schools Closed After Soldiers Massacre Students, Greenland Ice Melts at Rapid Pace as Temperatures Climb 30 Degrees Above Normal, Washington Gov. Jay Inslee Promotes Climate Justice Proposal, 66 Seek Medical Care…

Simon Davis-Cohen (2019-08-01). Sheriffs Collude with Anti-Immigrant Group. progressive.org How Florida has become a testing ground for law enforcement attacks on noncitizens.

Staff (2019-07-31). 2nd Democratic Debate, Pt 1: Battle Over Medicare for All and Fixing Immigration (2/3). therealnews.com The debate allowed candidates to show how support for Medicare for All and humanity at the U.S. border are key issues in 2020. With guests Kimberly Moffit and Jeet Heer, hosted by Marc Steiner…

Staff (2019-07-31). "We Don't Want Another President Obama": Activist Urges Democrats to Reframe Immigration Debate. democracynow.org Democratic candidates also sparred on immigration policy, from decriminalizing border crossing to providing healthcare to undocumented immigrants. We hear excerpts of Senators Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders, as well as Montana Governor Steve Bullock. Plus we speak to Erika Andiola, chief advocacy officer for RAICES, the Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services.

United Nations (2019-07-31). Wednesday's Daily Brief: World Breastfeeding Week kickoff, Second Ebola death on DR Congo's eastern border,‚ÄØUN chief lauds climate activist Thunberg, Afghan bus attack, and outgoing UN agriculture chief hands over reigns. un.org Our main stories today cover: ‚ÄØWorld Breastfeeding Week kickoff, Ebola on DR Congo side of Rwandan border, 15-year-old Greta Thunberg to said to UN climate summit, UN chief condemns deadly Afghan bus attack and UN agriculture agency chief marks last day.

United Nations (2019-07-31). Migration and the climate crisis: the UN's search for solutions. un.org Throughout human history, migration and climate have always been connected, but in the modern era, the impacts of the man-made climate crisis are likely to extensively change the patterns of human settlement.

United Nations (2019-07-31). UN working 'intensively' to stop Ebola in eastern DR Congo, following second case in major border town. un.org Senior UN officials tasked with controlling the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) have responded to Tuesday's confirmation of a second case of Ebola in Goma, a major trading town in the vast country's restive east, near the border with neighbouring Rwanda, which resulted in the death of the patient.

Joshua Cho (2019-07-30). Media Downplay Climate Disruption's Ever-Growing Role in Driving Migration. fair.org Washington Post ( 4/16/19) | Journalists routinely dehumanize human beings crossing the southern border by comparing them to natural disasters like a " flood" or " deluge." But while migration has always been a natural…

Staff (2019-07-30). Four Immigrants Have Died at Stewart ICE Jail in Georgia. Advocates Want It Shut Down. democracynow.org A 44-year-old immigrant from Mexico died last week at Stewart Detention Center, one of the largest immigration jails in the United States and one that has been plagued by allegations of neglect and abuse for years. Pedro Arriago-Santoya was the fourth person to die at Stewart in just two years and the seventh person to die while in the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement since October. An immigration judge had ordered Arriago-Santoya be deported in June. Instead, he was transferred to Stewart on July 10 as his removal proceedings continued. Two weeks later he was pronounced dead at a Georgia hospital.

Bryan Ellis (2019-07-29). Protesters in Bradenton defend the rights of immigrants and refugees. liberationnews.org On Sunday, seventeen people gathered at the Manatee County Courthouse in downtown Bradenton to demand an end to US concentration camps for refugees and mass deportations of immigrants.

ACLU (2019-07-29). Supreme Court Order No 'Big Victory' For Trump's Border Wall. The Fight Continues. aclu.org The Supreme Court has not yet decided the case, or given Trump's abuse of emergency powers the stamp of approval. | Late Friday evening, the Supreme Court gave the Trump administration a temporary green light to begin construction of the border wall using military funds Congress denied. The order, while temporary and limited to specific wall projects where fencing already exists, threatens to permanently damage border communities, the environment, and our Constitution's separation of powers. | But it's not the "big victory" President Trump q…

Max Blumenthal (2019-07-28). How Joe Biden's privatization plans helped doom Latin America and fuel the migration crisis. thegrayzone.com On the campaign trail, Joe Biden has boasted of his role in transforming Colombia and Central America through ambitious economic…

Aaron Maté (2019-07-25). Trump openly terrorizes Central American migrants, whereas Democrats did it quietly. thegrayzone.com Roberto Lovato argues that while Trump's racist anti-immigrant rhetoric is unprecedented, US cruelty towards Central American refugees is longstanding, and…

Swathi Shanmugasundaram (2019-07-18). John Tanton's Legacy. splcenter.org John Tanton, the racist architect of the modern anti-immigrant movement, has left behind a legacy that spawned more than a dozen nativist organizations, driven an anti-immigrant agenda for four decades, and found friends in the White House.

splcenter (2019-07-17). SPLC sues Trump administration over new rule that makes migrants who pass through other countries ineligible for asylum. splcenter.org The SPLC and its partners filed a lawsuit and an emergency motion this week seeking to block a new Trump administration rule that categorically bars asylum for migrants who cross the southern border without applying for and being denied asylum in any country that they pass through on their way to the U.S.