Below you'll find a list of all posts that have been tagged as “American Civil Liberties Union”
Larry—not his real name—is 38. He is serving a 30-year sentence for murder in a New Jersey prison. He will not be eligible for parole until 2032, when he will be 55. His impoverished and nightmarish childhood mirrors that of nearly all prisoners I have worked with who were convicted of violent crimes. And as governmental austerity and chronic poverty …
In an article published in the New York Times last week entitled “At C.D.C., a Debate Behind Recommendations on Cellphone Risk”, author Danny Hakim discusses the controversy surrounding the potential health risks of using cell phones. Hakim writes that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued guidelines recommending “caution in cellphone use”, due to the potentially harmful effects …
I watched a documentary about North Korea which explained how the government there assigns a score to each citizen, based on how large a threat to the regime s/he is perceived to be. When I lived in Taiwan under a military government years ago, such a number was encoded into every national ID card. Those citizens every interaction with the …
In Ferguson, Detroit and Baltimore, the Ongoing Battle for Justice
Leid Stories focuses on three developing stories with something in common: a quest for justice. The American Civil Liberties Union of Missouri today files a lawsuit against the Ferguson-Florissant School District’s at-large electoral system, saying it dilutes the voting strength of African Americans in the district and violates federal law. In Detroit, about 60 public schools are closed today, the result of a sickout by teachers over pay, working conditions and substandard support for the state’s largest school district.
Candidates Compete to Promise the Most Torture and Slaughter They’re back! From the look of the presidential campaign, war crimes are back on the American agenda. We really shouldn’t be surprised, because American officials got away with it last time — and in the case of the drone wars continue to get away with it today. Still, there’s nothing like …
Terror, intimidation and violence are the glue that holds empire together. Aerial bombardment, drone and missile attacks, artillery and mortar strikes, targeted assassinations, massacres, the detention of tens of thousands, death squad killings, torture, wholesale surveillance, extraordinary renditions, curfews, propaganda, a loss of civil liberties and pliant political puppets are the grist of our wars and proxy wars. Countries we …
As the media obsess over Donald Trump’s latest ploy to make the media obsess over him, here are some issues getting less attention: 22 percent of U.S [3]. kids live in poverty, including 39 percent of African-American children. One in 7 Americans [4] can’t afford to feed themselves without relying on food banks, which are struggling to meet their needs. A Pew poll released last week …
Minister Tony Muhammad is the Western Regional Representative of the Nation of Islam and a prominent figure behind the organizing of the Million Man marches. Recently has been spearheading efforts to counter California’s and federal efforts to remove vaccine exemptions and enforce mandatory vaccines on increasingly numbers of children and adults. Since the mid-1990s, Minister Tony has strived to introduce programs dealing with urban social problems in Los Angeles African and minority communities, including peace efforts to ease turf wars by rivaling gangs and put an end to street violence. He has been featured in the documentaries Crips and Bloods: Made in the USA, and The Nature of Existence which introduces the world’s philosophies and spiritual traditions. More recently Tony has been mobilizing the African American and minority communities to take a stance against repressive vaccine laws and to increase awareness about vaccine’s adverse effects to minority communities. The website is JusticeOrElse.com
Welcome, to the radio magazine that brings you news, commentary and analysis from a Black Left perspective.
– A bill is moving through the U.S. House and Senate that would retroactively shorten sentences for crack cocaine possession and, its backers claim, substantially roll back mandatory minimum sentences for other crimes. The Sentencing Act is supported by the NAACP and the American Civil Liberties Union. However, the National Urban League and Families Against Mandatory Minimums have refused to sign off on the legislation, which actually expands the list of crimes subject to mandatory minimum sentencing, including gun possession and crimes of domestic violence. Listen to Julie Stewart, who is President of Families Against Mandatory Minimums.
– Funds are being raised for a new documentary film on the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense, with a focus on the late Panther leader, Huey P. Newton, and other Party founders, in Oakland, California. The project is headed up by David Hilliard, a former Panther chief of staff. Emmy Award-winning filmmaker Dante James will direct the movie. Both James and Hilliard have been critical of the film “The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution,” directed by Stanley Nelson Jr. and distributed by PBS. Dante talked to us about the difference between the two films.
– Trial has begun for the first of six Baltimore police officers charged in the death of Freddie Gray, last April, a homicide that set off a rebellion in the majority Black city. Baltimore is also the headquarters for the Real News Network, which held a fascinating discussion of the legal ramifications of the trial. Real News host Stephen Janis interviewed former Baltimore homicide detective Stephen Tabeling, who has a history of investigating cases of police use of deadly force, and Maryland Delegate Jill Carter, the most radical member of the state legislature, who hails from a civil rights family, and is also a defense attorney. Carter told the Real News why she’s worried about getting justice for Freddie Gray.
Welcome, to the radio magazine that brings you news, commentary and analysis from a Black Left perspective.
– A bipartisan coalition of Republicans and Democrats is backing a bill that would shorten some mandatory minimum prison sentences. The Sentencing Project, a Washington-based prison reform organization, held a teleconference. Glen Ford attended the teleconference. He challenged the idea that President Obama has been an ally of prison reform. That was the voice of political consultant Bob Craemer answering.
– Sentencing Project executive director Marc Mauer said much more needs to be done to re-integrate former prison inmates back into society.
– Also in Washington, the Black Is Back Coalition for Social Justice, Peace and Reparations gathered at Howard University for a national conference under the theme “Black Power Matters.” Black Is Back Coalition chairman Omali Yeshitela said Russia did the right thing by helping Syria defend itself from U.S.-backed jihadists.
– Black Agenda Report senior columnist Margaret Kimberley also addressed the Black Is Back conference. Kimberley says Black people need to build a political movement with a global perspective.
– BAR executive editor Glen Ford is a founding member of the Black Is Back Coalition. He talked about the critical importance of making demands of Power – like Coalition’s demand for Black Community Control of the Police
– Herdosia Benton is straight-outa-Ferguson, Missouri, and a key organizer in the Uhuru Movement, part of the Black Is Back Coalition.
– Bruce Dixon, the Managing Editor of Black Agenda Report, is glad to see that there’s a whole new crop of Black activists out there. The problem is, many of them can’t seem to figure out how to formulate demands, of power.
