Monthly Archives: December 2019

2019-12-31: News Headlines

Laura Carlsen (2019-12-31). As Honduras Collapses, Its People are Forced to Flee. counterpunch.org Honduras is collapsing. The thousands of migrants who flee every day are direct testimony to a political, economic and social crisis that the world ignores and the U. S. government seems bent on perpetuating. Instead of examining the crisis behind the exodus, the Trump administration has set an intercontinental human trapline that captures thousands of the world's poorest and most persecuted men, women and children, and then converts their suffering into campaign fodder. More

Harrison Stetler (2019-12-31). France's Undocumented Migrants Are Fighting for Their Rights. thenation.com France's Undocumented Migrants Are Fighting for Their Rights…

teleSUR (2019-12-31). Syd Mead, Conceptual Artist Behind 'Blade Runner,' Dies at 86. telesurenglish.net Syd Mead, the influential conceptual artist who created images of the future for films such as "Blade Runner" (1982) and "Aliens" (1986), died on Monday morning in Pasadena, California, at the age of 86. | RELATED: | 'US Running Concentration Camps at the Border': Expert | Mead died after three years battling lymphoma cancer, his husband Roger Servick told specialist publication The Hollywood Reporter. | Born in Saint Paul, Minnesota, in 1933, the visionary illustrator and conceptual art…

Families Belong Together, Sanctuary SC (2019-12-31). Protest Against ICE in Santa Cruz. indybay.org The Clock Tower, intersection of Pacific Ave. & Water St., Santa Cruz, California 95060…

KPFA Radio 94.1 FM (2019-12-31). Blair Imani: Making Our Way Home: The Great Migration & Black Dream. indybay.org St. Paul's Episcopal Church | 114 Montecito Avenue | Oakland, CA 94610…

news.un (2019-12-31). 2019: The UN News year in photos. news.un.org From sustainable development to economic development, and human rights to humanitarian aid, UN News provides daily coverage across all of the Organization's key issues — health, migration, climate change and so much more.

Staff (2019-12-31). In 2019, We Saw Pushback Against Face Surveillance in the Skies. truthout.org While cities and municipalities made clear strides to limit the use of face surveillance technology throughout 2019, airlines and government agencies tasked with identifying travelers have spent much of the year trying to expand its use. But while the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Customs and Border Patrol (CBP), along with several different airlines, did launch or conclude pilot programs that tested the waters of face recognition technology on travelers this year, they also saw significant pus…

yenisafak (2019-12-31). Afghan refugee living in Turkey, pursuing dream of becoming doctor. yenisafak.com An Afghan boy taken under state protection by Turkey dreams of becoming a doctor someday."Becoming a doctor is my lifelong dream. Turkey has become my second home by giving this chance to me," Ayed Mohamed Mousa said.Two years ago, the 17-year-old was detained by Turkish security forces as he attempted to cross the Turkish border to Europe.He was taken under state protection as he was a minor.Moussa recalled being born in a poor family that migrated to Iran from Afghanistan in the pursuit of a better life.Next, they wanted to cross to Turkey and onward to Europe.But things did not go as planned. Only Moussa was a…

Futher Column, By Abby Zimet, Staff Writer (2019-12-30). At the Heart of the Darkness That Is Trumpian Fascism. commondreams.org www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/further/kids_drawnigs_cages_border_cbs.jpg

teleSUR (2019-12-29). Brazil to Grant Refuge to Attackers of Venezuelan Military Base. telesurenglish.net Brazil's far-right government announced Saturday that it "took in" the five alleged fugitive perpetrators behind the Dec. 22 attack to a Venezuelan military border garrison and will initiate the procedures to grant them refuge under Jair Bolsonaro's administration. | RELATED: | Venezuela Urges Brazil to Arrest Attackers of Military Base | According to the…

Fight Back (2019-12-28). Top 20 Fight Back! articles of 2019: the struggle grows and spreads. fightbacknews.org There was a high tide of struggle on many fronts in 2019 – both in the U.S. and around the world. Within the U.S. there were large strikes of General Motors workers, Chicago teachers and others. There was a successful movement to defend public education from mega-charters in Los Angeles. There were mass protests nation-wide for immigrant rights and against the concentration camps at the U.S.-México border. And there were growing movements against police crimes and for community control of the police that came together to refound the National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression in Chicago in November.

Staff (2019-12-27). Headlines for December 27, 2019. democracynow.org In Confidential Videos, Navy SEALs Say Gallagher Was "Toxic" & "Freaking Evil", Hospitals & Health Clinics Shuttered by Heavy Bombing in Idlib, Syria, Japan to Deploy Destroyer to Middle East Amid Rising Tensions in Gulf of Oman, Nigerian-American Journalist Omoyele Sowore Released from Prison, In India, Protests Rage Against "Anti-Muslim" Citizenship Law, Netanyahu Staves Off Party Leadership Challenge Ahead of General Election, Mexico to Bring Complaint Against Bolivia's Interim Government to ICJ, Congolese Asylum Seeker Died in Border Patrol Custody on Christmas Day, Los Angeles Prosecutors Consider Filing Cri…

Noah Flora (2019-12-27). One Family's Story and the Meaning of Migration in 21st Century America. thenation.com One Family's Story and the Meaning of Migration in 21st Century America…

Ahmed Abdulkareem (2019-12-25). The Valley of Death: the Saudi Coalition is Creating a Living Nightmare for African Migrants in Yemen. mintpressnews.com Ahmed AbdulKareem recounts the story of Heramala and thousands of African migrants like him who make the harrowing journey across wartorn Yemen in hopes of a better life in Saudi Arabia.

Staff (2019-12-24). Headlines for December 24, 2019. democracynow.org House Could Bring Additional Articles of Impeachment Against Trump, Boeing Fires CEO Dennis Muilenburg over 737 MAX Jet Controversy, NYT: Pentagon May Withdraw U.S. Troops from West Africa, Syria: Up to 100,000 Civilians Forced to Flee Intensification of Fighting in Idlib, Asian Leaders Urge U.S. & North Korea to Move Toward Peace, Report: Canadian Police Were Prepared to Use Lethal Force Against Indigenous Land Defenders, Trump Met with Accused War Criminal Eddie Gallagher, Nigerian Man Dies in ICE Custody in Maryland, Colorado Governor Pardons Woman Who Took Sanctuary to Fight Her Deportation, Former Black Pant…

Jeff Abbott (2019-12-23). The Other Americans: Asylum Seekers Routed to Guatemala. progressive.org A proposed amendment to immigration policy endangers asylum seekers, advocates warn.

Staff (2019-12-23). Headlines for December 23, 2019. democracynow.org White House Halted Ukraine Aid 91 Minutes After Trump & Zelensky Phone Call, U.S. Considering Plan to Deport Mexican Asylum Seekers to Guatemala, WaPo: White House Pushes to Use Migrant Children to Ensnare Parents, Saudi Arabia Sentences 5 People to Death for Khashoggi's Murder, ICC Takes Step to Investigating Israel for War Crimes, India: Protests Continue as Modi Defends "Anti-Muslim" Citizenship Law, Iraq: Thousands Demand Appointment of Independent Prime Minister, Reuters: Up to 1,500 Dead in Iran's Bloody Crackdown Against Nov. Protests, Pentagon: U.S. Soldier Killed in Afghanistan, French Unions Continue St…

Joe Rodriguez (2019-12-22). Quad-Cities community members condemn hate after anti-immigrant event. liberationnews.org Outraged protesters displayed signs condemning racism and the capitalist system which allows bigotry to flourish.

Staff (2019-12-20). Activists Demand a Migrant Justice Platform as Democratic Candidates Discuss Immigration in Debate. democracynow.org Protesters for immigrant rights demonstrated outside the Democratic debate Thursday in Los Angeles, displaying a banner that read "Migrant Justice on Day One" and demanding a moratorium on deportations and immigrant worker protections. We look at how the candidates responded, with Erika Andiola, chief advocacy officer for RAICES, the Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services. "I'm really happy that immigration came up this time around," she notes. "In the past few debates, the issue didn't even come up."

Staff (2019-12-20). The Tohono O'Odham Nation's Fight for Sacred Lands. therealnews.com The U.S. government wants to put a border wall through land that belongs to the Tohono O'Odham Nation. Oscar Leon reports.

The Canary (2019-12-19). Queen's Speech takes 'wrecking ball' to Scotland's foundations, SNP claims. thecanary.co The SNP has accused Boris Johnson and the UK Government of "taking a wrecking ball" to Scotland with its plans in the Queen's Speech. | SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford spoke out after a speech that did not mention Scotland by name — although the queen said the "integrity and prosperity" of the United Kingdom was of "the utmost importance" to the UK Government. | Blackford argued the Withdrawal Agreement Bill that ministers will bring forward will hurt Scotland's economy and cost thousands of jobs north of the border. | He was also critical of plans on immigration and said the UK Government was failing…

Tarek Ismail (2019-12-18). A Secret CBP Team is Targeting and Detaining Innocent Travelers. We're Suing. aclu.org U.S. Customs and Border Protection is deploying secret teams that target, detain, and interrogate innocent travelers. We're suing to expose their activities. | In November 2018, three CBP officers detained Andreas | Gal, a former chief | technology officer at Mozilla Corporation and current Apple employee, at San | Francisco International Airport after he landed from a business trip to Sweden. | Andr…

Robert Penner (2019-12-11). Milwaukee delays vote to protect immigrants after cops caught collaborating with ICE. liberationnews.org End ICE terror and MPD collaboration.

splcenter (2019-11-21). Emails Confirm Miller's Twin Obsessions: Immigrants and Crime. splcenter.org Stephen Miller linked immigration to violence in emails to Breitbart News — writing of crimes committed by nonwhites that "each one [is] more disturbing than the next."

2019-12-30: News Headlines

Alan MacLeod (2019-12-30). Pro-Coup Venezuelan Soldiers Who Fled to the US Now Locked Up in ICE Immigration Detention Center. globalresearch.ca The Venezuelan soldiers who participated in the U.S.-backed coup attempt in April of this year and subsequently fled to the U.S. have been incarcerated in ICE detention camps ever since. Telemundo, a subsidiary of NBCUniversal, secured an interview …

Families Belong Together, Sanctuary SC (2019-12-30). Protest Against ICE in Santa Cruz. indybay.org The Clock Tower, intersection of Pacific Ave. & Water St., Santa Cruz, California 95060…

Stephen Lendman (2019-12-30). Al Qaeda's Idlib Stronghold: The Battle to Liberate Syria's Idlib Province from US Supported Terrorists. globalresearch.ca Syria's Idlib province in the country's northwest borders Turkey. | Infested with US-supported jihadists, the Erdogan regime lets them move back and forth cross-border between both countries while pretending to oppose them — supplying them with heavy and other weapons, along …

Staff (2019-12-30). Women Farmworkers Fight to Secure Their Rights and End Sexual Harassment. truthout.org Editor's Note: For this article, New Labor Forum's Working-Class Voices columnist Kressent Pottenger interviewed three women who are members of Alianza Nacional de Campesinas ("Alianza de Campesinas"), the first national women's farmworker organization in the United States created by current and former women farmworkers, along with women who hail from farmworker families. Dolores Bustamante is both a farmworker and a board member of the organization, Elvira Carvajal is co-founder and board presid…

KPFA Radio 94.1 FM (2019-12-30). Blair Imani: Making Our Way Home: The Great Migration & Black Dream. indybay.org St. Paul's Episcopal Church | 114 Montecito Avenue | Oakland, CA 94610…

yenisafak (2019-12-30). New India law aims to disenfranchise Muslims. yenisafak.com A few months ago, when India completed its seven-year effort to find illegal immigrants in the northeastern state of Assam, the results were hard to digest for the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).The Hindu nationalist-backed party has made the rooting out and deportation of foreigners, through the implementation of the National Register of Citizens (NRC), one of its central pillars since its inception in 1980.Party leaders claimed millions of Bangladeshi nationals had infiltrated the region, making Hindus a minority in various districts. But the exercise conducted under the supervision of the Supreme Court de…

teleSUR (2019-12-29). Brazil to Grant Refuge to Attackers of Venezuelan Military Base. telesurenglish.net Brazil's far-right government announced Saturday that it "took in" the five alleged fugitive perpetrators behind the Dec. 22 attack to a Venezuelan military border garrison and will initiate the procedures to grant them refuge under Jair Bolsonaro's administration. | RELATED: | Venezuela Urges Brazil to Arrest Attackers of Military Base | According to the…

RT (2019-12-29). US strikes Kataib Hezbollah HQ in Iraq, Syria. rt.com US airstrikes have pounded three Kataib Hezbollah military facilities near the town of Qaim, Iraq, as well as two targets in Syria, in response to the group's alleged bombing of an Iraqi military base on Friday. | The US carried out "defensive strikes" against the supposed Kataib Hezbollah facilities on Sunday, US officials told Reuters. The targets included weapons storage locations and command and control stations, and F-15 fighter jets were used in the attack. Three locations near Qaim, on the Iraq/Syria border, and two locations in Syria were hit. | Chief Pentagon spokesman Jonathan Hoffman said in a stat…

teleSUR (2019-12-28). India: Hundreds of Women Camp Against the Citizenship Law. telesurenglish.net Hundreds of women Friday night remained protesting in a camp built in the Shaheen Bagh neighborhood in New Delhi where Muslim immigrants have been gathering for 13 consecutive days to protest against a legal amendment that denies them citizenship. | RELATED: | India Approves Funds for Population Survey Amid Protests Over Citizenship Law | "This is the first time in my life that I participate in a protest," said 48-year-old woman Romanian Khan, who remains in the…

Fight Back (2019-12-28). Top 20 Fight Back! articles of 2019: the struggle grows and spreads. fightbacknews.org There was a high tide of struggle on many fronts in 2019 – both in the U.S. and around the world. Within the U.S. there were large strikes of General Motors workers, Chicago teachers and others. There was a successful movement to defend public education from mega-charters in Los Angeles. There were mass protests nation-wide for immigrant rights and against the concentration camps at the U.S.-México border. And there were growing movements against police crimes and for community control of the police that came together to refound the National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression in Chicago in November.

Staff (2019-12-27). Headlines for December 27, 2019. democracynow.org In Confidential Videos, Navy SEALs Say Gallagher Was "Toxic" & "Freaking Evil", Hospitals & Health Clinics Shuttered by Heavy Bombing in Idlib, Syria, Japan to Deploy Destroyer to Middle East Amid Rising Tensions in Gulf of Oman, Nigerian-American Journalist Omoyele Sowore Released from Prison, In India, Protests Rage Against "Anti-Muslim" Citizenship Law, Netanyahu Staves Off Party Leadership Challenge Ahead of General Election, Mexico to Bring Complaint Against Bolivia's Interim Government to ICJ, Congolese Asylum Seeker Died in Border Patrol Custody on Christmas Day, Los Angeles Prosecutors Consider Filing Cri…

Ariel Gold (2019-12-27). The Fascinating History and Political Lives of Jews in Iran. counterpunch.org On December 14, 2019, a white male entered the Nessah Synagogue in Beverly Hills, vandalizing the sanctuary. He unrolled Torah scrolls, strewed them across the floor, and tore prayer books. Four days later, police arrested 24-year-old Anton Nathaniel Redding of Millersville, Pennsylvania, and charged him with vandalism of religious property, commercial burglary, and committing a More

Noah Flora (2019-12-27). One Family's Story and the Meaning of Migration in 21st Century America. thenation.com One Family's Story and the Meaning of Migration in 21st Century America…

Ahmed Abdulkareem (2019-12-25). The Valley of Death: the Saudi Coalition is Creating a Living Nightmare for African Migrants in Yemen. mintpressnews.com Ahmed AbdulKareem recounts the story of Heramala and thousands of African migrants like him who make the harrowing journey across wartorn Yemen in hopes of a better life in Saudi Arabia.

Staff (2019-12-24). Headlines for December 24, 2019. democracynow.org House Could Bring Additional Articles of Impeachment Against Trump, Boeing Fires CEO Dennis Muilenburg over 737 MAX Jet Controversy, NYT: Pentagon May Withdraw U.S. Troops from West Africa, Syria: Up to 100,000 Civilians Forced to Flee Intensification of Fighting in Idlib, Asian Leaders Urge U.S. & North Korea to Move Toward Peace, Report: Canadian Police Were Prepared to Use Lethal Force Against Indigenous Land Defenders, Trump Met with Accused War Criminal Eddie Gallagher, Nigerian Man Dies in ICE Custody in Maryland, Colorado Governor Pardons Woman Who Took Sanctuary to Fight Her Deportation, Former Black Pant…

Jeff Abbott (2019-12-23). The Other Americans: Asylum Seekers Routed to Guatemala. progressive.org A proposed amendment to immigration policy endangers asylum seekers, advocates warn.

Staff (2019-12-23). Headlines for December 23, 2019. democracynow.org White House Halted Ukraine Aid 91 Minutes After Trump & Zelensky Phone Call, U.S. Considering Plan to Deport Mexican Asylum Seekers to Guatemala, WaPo: White House Pushes to Use Migrant Children to Ensnare Parents, Saudi Arabia Sentences 5 People to Death for Khashoggi's Murder, ICC Takes Step to Investigating Israel for War Crimes, India: Protests Continue as Modi Defends "Anti-Muslim" Citizenship Law, Iraq: Thousands Demand Appointment of Independent Prime Minister, Reuters: Up to 1,500 Dead in Iran's Bloody Crackdown Against Nov. Protests, Pentagon: U.S. Soldier Killed in Afghanistan, French Unions Continue St…

Joe Rodriguez (2019-12-22). Quad-Cities community members condemn hate after anti-immigrant event. liberationnews.org Outraged protesters displayed signs condemning racism and the capitalist system which allows bigotry to flourish.

Fight Back (2019-12-22). India and the anti-Muslim Citizenship Amendment bill. fightbacknews.org On December 9, Asauddin Owaisi, President of the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen, tore up a copy of the malicious Citizenship Amendment bill, which is exclusionary and seeks to stop Muslims from becoming citizens of India. | An amendment to the bill, which is not yet in force, gives a path to Indian citizenship to migrants who are Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan and who entered India on or before December 31, 2014. It completely excludes the largest religious minority, Muslims. | After the partition of India, and specifically the partition o…

Dan Corjescu (2019-12-21). Fearing Kantian Globalization, Democracy, and Migration. dissidentvoice.org Globalization, Democracy, and Migration are themes which continually ignite both scholarly and non-scholarly debate. Not so surprisingly, none of this is new. In his own inimitable way, the German Enlightenment philosopher, Immanuel Kant, touched upon all these current hot topics and more. Kant's political writings have only relatively recently been appreciated by the likes of …

Staff (2019-12-20). The Tohono O'Odham Nation's Fight for Sacred Lands. therealnews.com The U.S. government wants to put a border wall through land that belongs to the Tohono O'Odham Nation. Oscar Leon reports.

Staff (2019-12-20). Activists Demand a Migrant Justice Platform as Democratic Candidates Discuss Immigration in Debate. democracynow.org Protesters for immigrant rights demonstrated outside the Democratic debate Thursday in Los Angeles, displaying a banner that read "Migrant Justice on Day One" and demanding a moratorium on deportations and immigrant worker protections. We look at how the candidates responded, with Erika Andiola, chief advocacy officer for RAICES, the Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services. "I'm really happy that immigration came up this time around," she notes. "In the past few debates, the issue didn't even come up."

The Canary (2019-12-19). Queen's Speech takes 'wrecking ball' to Scotland's foundations, SNP claims. thecanary.co The SNP has accused Boris Johnson and the UK Government of "taking a wrecking ball" to Scotland with its plans in the Queen's Speech. | SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford spoke out after a speech that did not mention Scotland by name — although the queen said the "integrity and prosperity" of the United Kingdom was of "the utmost importance" to the UK Government. | Blackford argued the Withdrawal Agreement Bill that ministers will bring forward will hurt Scotland's economy and cost thousands of jobs north of the border. | He was also critical of plans on immigration and said the UK Government was failing…

Staff (2019-12-18). Activists Cheer Approval of Driver's Licenses for Undocumented Immigrants in New York, New Jersey. democracynow.org People in New York and New Jersey are celebrating two victories for immigrants' rights. In New York, thousands of undocumented people waited in line for hours at Departments of Motor Vehicles on Monday to apply for a driver's license, as the "Green Light Law" went into effect six months after New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed it. The law allows undocumented people to apply for a driver's license using alternative forms of identification instead of providing a Social Security Number. Meanwhile, in the neighboring state of New Jersey, state lawmakers also passed a bill Monday to allow undocumented people to app…

Tarek Ismail (2019-12-18). A Secret CBP Team is Targeting and Detaining Innocent Travelers. We're Suing. aclu.org U.S. Customs and Border Protection is deploying secret teams that target, detain, and interrogate innocent travelers. We're suing to expose their activities. | In November 2018, three CBP officers detained Andreas | Gal, a former chief | technology officer at Mozilla Corporation and current Apple employee, at San | Francisco International Airport after he landed from a business trip to Sweden. | Andr…

Robert Penner (2019-12-11). Milwaukee delays vote to protect immigrants after cops caught collaborating with ICE. liberationnews.org End ICE terror and MPD collaboration.

splcenter (2019-11-21). Emails Confirm Miller's Twin Obsessions: Immigrants and Crime. splcenter.org Stephen Miller linked immigration to violence in emails to Breitbart News — writing of crimes committed by nonwhites that "each one [is] more disturbing than the next."