Daily Archives: June 5, 2020

2020-06-05: News Headlines

Rania Khalek (2020-06-05). Shahid Buttar vs. Pelosi + Leslie Lee + Rania Khalek + Eugene Puryear. thealtworld.com Chat about protests and presidents and everything in between with Shahid Buttar: immigrant, constitutional lawyer, DJ, MC & poet running to replace Nancy Pelosi in CA-12; journalist, activist, author, former D.C. Statehood Green Party candidate, and former PSL candidate Eugene Puryear, fresh from reporting in Minneapolis; journalist, video producer, writer and host Rania Khalek; and writer, broadcast journalist and Struggle Session co-host Leslie Lee.

Eve Ottenberg (2020-06-05). Killing Workers (and Customers) — With No Liability. counterpunch.org Republicans want to help businesses kill workers. They want to force employees to return to Covid-19 hotspots, like slaughterhouses, by depriving them of unemployment checks if they don't clock in. In addition, Senate Majority leader Mitch McConnell wants to give these businesses and others, like nursing homes, legal immunity for deliberately exposing workers to a

Nicky Reid (2020-06-05). Because Imperialists Rape: Anarcha-Feminism In the Ashes of the MeToo Era. counterpunch.org The MeToo Movement died last month. It bled out slowly as it limped to the barn. It's hard to say who the triggerman was behind the coup de grace, but it wasn't Joe Biden. That derelict beast is anything but a feminist and this wound was clearly self-inflicted. My guess is the artery was severed

Shant Shahrigian (2020-06-05). De Blasio Staffers Demand `Radical Change from Mayor' in Open Letter. zcomm.org Two-hundred thirty-six current and former staffers for Mayor de Blasio signed an open letter calling on him to live up to the promises of reform that initially drew them to work for him. One demand is to cut the $6 billion police budget by 1/6…

Bryan N. Massingale (2020-06-05). The Assumptions of White Privilege and What We Can Do About It. zcomm.org Amy Cooper knew exactly what she was doing. We all do. And that's the problem…

Andre Vltchek (2020-06-04). "The World Cannot Breathe!" Squashed by the U.S., a Country Built on Genocide and Slavery. dissidentvoice.org More than two centuries of lies are now getting exposed. Bizarre tales about freedom and democracy are collapsing like houses of cards. One man's death triggers an avalanche of rage in those who for years, decades and centuries, have been humiliated, ruined, and exterminated. It always happens just like this throughout the history of humankind …

Paul Antonopoulos (2020-06-04). Democrats Casually "Blame Russia" for the Riots. globalresearch.ca The riots engulfing the U.S. were provoked by Moscow, according to National Security Advisor to President Barack Obama from 2013 to 2017 and U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations from 2009 to 2013, Susan Rice. She even took it …

Staff (2020-06-04). Creeping Authoritarianism Threatens Free Speech And The Free Press. therealnews.com Trump's rhetoric and actions aren't the only threat to democracy‚Å —state legislatures are also pushing for limits on the right to protest.

Eds. (2020-06-04). The treason of the ruling class. mronline.org They have destroyed our capitalist democracy and replaced it with a mafia state.

Staff (2020-06-04). 'It's About Time' America Reckons With Its Racist Founding. therealnews.com The George Floyd uprisings revealed the inadequacies of both Biden and Trump, argues professor Gerald Horne.

Massoud Nayeri (2020-06-04). Stop Trump's Police State and Dictatorship! globalresearch.ca Democrats are divided between cowards and silent disguised Trump supporters. | Both Democratic and Republican parties are fearful of the potential power …

_____ (2020-06-04). 'Taking back control' — democracy to be savaged behind closed doors. truepublica.org.uk TruePublica Editor: Just two months it was reported by RSF (Reporters Without Borders) that Britain had once again fallen down the rankings of world press freedom. Leaving aside the Tories legislative programme of slowly taking away our right to protest, of free speech and to have a free press — this decline was exacerbated by …

WSWS (2020-06-04). Canadian establishment shrugs off Trump's authoritarian power grab, voices "horror" over mass protests. wsws.org The Canadian elite, like the US Democratic Party, fears a mass upsurge of the working class against Trump far more than it does his bid to establish a presidential dictatorship.

WSWS (2020-06-04). White supremacist congressman Steve King defeated in Republican primary. wsws.org Steve King fell out of favor with his party by saying too blatantly what Trump and his cronies really think.

Ryan Grim (2020-06-04). "I've Been Involved in Three Shootings Myself, and Not a One of Them Has Bothered Me" zcomm.org In an interview in April, Lt. Bob Kroll, head of Minneapolis's police union, said that he and a majority of the Minneapolis Police Officers' Federation's board have been involved in police shootings…

Julia Conley, staff writer (2020-06-04). Ocasio-Cortez Endorses Jamaal Bowman's Progressive Primary Challenge Against Longtime Rep. Eliot Engel. commondreams.org "This moment requires renewed and revitalized leadership across the country AND at the ballot box." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/tz6_0634_1.jpg

Eoin Higgins, staff writer (2020-06-04). Ilhan Omar Criminal Justice Reform Bills Offer 'Systemic Solutions to Systemic Problems'. commondreams.org "If we are to change this pattern of violent racism, we need to fundamentally restructure our criminal justice system." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/ilhan.jpg

Staff (2020-06-04). The Protests Made a Huge Difference: All Four Minneapolis Cops Charged in Killing of George Floyd. democracynow.org After more than a week of nationwide protests, all four Minneapolis police officers involved in the killing of George Floyd have been charged with murder or aiding and abetting murder in a case that triggered historic protests across the country. "If you look at the video … the pressure from all three officers on Mr. Floyd's body contributed to his death," says activist and civil rights attorney Nekima Levy Armstrong, former president of the Minneapolis chapter of the NAACP. "They heard the man pleading, saying 'I can't breathe,' and they had a callous disregard for his life."

Staff (2020-06-04). Tamika Mallory: Nationwide Uprising Against State Violence Shows People Have Reached Breaking Point. democracynow.org As Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison files charges against all four Minneapolis police officers involved in the killing of George Floyd, a mass uprising against police brutality continues. "At this point, we're looking at a nation and a world that has decided that what we saw happen on camera … is no longer acceptable, and we cannot continue to meet and ask and cry and beg for change. People have taken to the streets to demand change," says Tamika Mallory, former national co-chair of the 2017 Women's March.

Staff (2020-06-04). Say Her Name: Breonna Taylor Was Killed by Police in March. Why Haven't the Officers Faced Charges? democracynow.org We go to Louisville, where protesters are calling for charges against the officers involved in the death of Breonna Taylor, the 26-year-old African American woman who was an emergency room technician treating COVID patients and was shot to death by police inside her own apartment in March. This comes as the National Guard fired shots at a crowd of protesters on Monday, killing David McAtee, a local barbecue restaurant owner who regularly gave police officers free meals. We speak with Sadiqa Reynolds, president and CEO of Louisville Urban League.

Staff (2020-06-04). Headlines for June 4, 2020. democracynow.org Three Other Officers Involved in George Floyd's Killing Charged and Arrested, Protests Near White House Met by Unmarked, Heavily Armed Riot Officers, Pentagon Chief Reverses Decision to Withdraw Troops from D.C. Amid Protests, "Your Lives Matter": President Obama Backs Protests over George Floyd's Killing, 200+ New York Mayoral Staffers Demand "Radical Change," Police Budget Cuts, L.A. Protesters Demand Police Prosecutions as City Councilors Propose LAPD Budget Cuts, Sports Stars Join Protests over George Floyd's Killing, Monuments to America's Racist History Toppled Amid Mass Protests, Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul Bl…

Andrey Areshev (2020-06-04). We Are Watching the Story of America Crash Headlong Into the Reality of America. strategic-culture.org Caitlin JOHNSTONE | Once upon a time a brave nation liberated itself from the tyranny of the British empire and birthed freedom and democracy into the world. With the help of heroes like the abolitionists, Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King Jr and Malcolm X it overcame systemic racial inequality, and now it is a shining exemplar of human rights, the respected friend of free democracies around the world and the hated foe of all tyrannical regimes. It is not without its faults and its past mistakes, but it is the best leader and protector of the liberal world order that we could possibly hope to have. | I also hav…

Ryan Saavedra (2020-06-04). War Criminal Jim Mattis Opposes the Government Murder of People of Color. anti-empire.com President Donald Trump slammed former Secretary of Defense James Mattis late on Wednesday after Mattis released a controversial statement about the president's handling of the violent riots across the country. | "Probably the only thing Barack Obama & I have in common is that we both had the honor of firing Jim Mattis, the world's most overrated General," Trump wrote. "I asked for his letter of resignation, & felt great about it. His nickname was 'Chaos,' which I didn't like, & changed to 'Mad Dog.'" | "His primary strength was not military, but rather personal public relations," Trump continued. "I gave him a ne…

Khubaka, Michael Harris (2020-06-05). Monterey, California 250th Anniversary. indybay.org Monterey 250 helps open the conversation of 2020 Alta California Juneteenth, Dia De Los Americanos.

The Canary (2020-06-05). More Republicans finding the 'courage' to speak out against Trump. thecanary.co Donald Trump's inability to unify the US at a time of grave unrest is testing his uneasy alliance with members of his own Republican party.Some have spoken out against the president, having been emboldened by general James Mattis's plea for a leader who lives up to American ideals of a more perfect union.Alaska senator Lisa Murkowski on Thursday called the rebuke by Trump's first Pentagon chief "necessary and overdue"."Perhaps we're getting to the point where we can be more honest with the concerns that we might hold internally, and have the courage of our own convictions to speak up," Murkowski said.Senator Lisa…

RT (2020-06-04). Disband the police? Minneapolis City Council actually considering celebrity advice. rt.com Minneapolis City Council is now considering getting rid of its police department entirely, after four officers were charged in the killing of George Floyd, an African-American man they were trying to arrest. | Though the officers involved were fired immediately and charged with murder within days — with the state attorney general upgrading the charges this week — protests that broke out in Minnesota over Floyd's death last Monday escalated into riots and looting, then spread across the US and even worldwide. | Now the 13 Minneapolis councilors — twelve Democrats and one Green — are starting…

RT (2020-06-04). Dems cheer Mattis after he compares Trump to Hitler, conveniently forgetting he quit in protest over US' Syria withdrawal. rt.com US President Donald Trump's first defense secretary, General Jim Mattis, is the new hero of the Democrats, after he denounced Trump as a threat to the Constitution and compared him to the Nazis. | The US military instructed troops landing in Normandy that the Nazis sought to destroy America with the slogan "Divide and Conquer," which was to be met with "In Union there is Strength," Mattis wrote in a

yenisafak (2020-06-04). WHO 'very concerned' by new Ebola outbreak in DR Congo. yenisafak.com The World Health Organization (WHO) on Thursday said it is "very concerned" about a new Ebola outbreak that has recently claimed four lives in the western Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)."We are very concerned about this new outbreak in Mbandaka, where we have worked very closely with the government in 2018 to contain the last outbreak," WHO Regional Director for Africa Dr. Matshidiso Moeti said at a joint media briefing of the WHO and the World Economic Forum.The DRC government confirmed on Monday that a new outbreak of Ebola virus disease is occurring in Mbandaka in the western Equateur province.The Health M…

yenisafak (2020-06-04). Turkey, Azerbaijan mark 102 years of diplomatic ties. yenisafak.com Shortly after the foundation of the Azerbaijani Democratic Republic (ADR) on May 28, 1918, it inked the Treaty of Batumi with the then-Ottoman Empire on June 4, 1918, thus marking the friendly relations in political, legal, commercial and military fields.With the treaty, the Ottoman Empire recognized the independence of Azerbaijan, which could in turn apply to the Empire for military help in the case of any threat.The agreement was signed by Halil Bey Mentese, the head of the Ottomans' Chamber of Deputies. and the Commander of the Caucasian Front of the Ottoman Army, Mehmet Vehip Pasa, and the President of the Az…

_____ (2020-06-04). Millions Of Tenants Are Ready For A Rent Strike Revolution. popularresistance.org Calls to "cancel rent" are catching fire. First came a couple of tweets on Twitter. Then progressive firebrands like Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez endorsed the #CancelRent movement. Now, millions are on a rent strike. Even presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden has declared his support for rent and mortgage forgiveness. As millions of tenants mobilize to cancel rent, they are not asking nicely or relying on lip service from politicians. Rather, millions of tenants are taking action by using a powerful time-tested strategy: rent strikes. | As the desperation builds and another month of bill…

_____ (2020-06-04). Trump Sends Unambiguous Message To Police And Vigilantes. popularresistance.org It is time to embrace the parallels, to be unafraid to speak a clear truth: Whether by design or lack of it, Donald Trump and the Republican Party operate an American state that they have increasingly organized on fascist principles. It is also time to consider what else the fascists may yet do, during an unprecedented pandemic, amid unprecedented unemployment, faced with unprecedented resistance ahead of an unprecedented election. The Republican Party wants to make "antifascist" a category of terrorist; whether or not it actually uses active-duty soldiers to round up this new class of undesirables in the "nation…

Mark Gruenberg (2020-06-03). Biden offers a sharp contrast to Trump in remarks on the uprising. peoplesworld.org When it comes to the uprising against racism that is sweeping the country and how national leadership should react to it Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden offered a sharp contrast yesterday to President Trump. Trump has continued spewing out racist dog whistles and code words — as he did long before reaching the White House …

John Wojcik (2020-06-03). Voters dump a white supremacist and make a Black woman mayor. peoplesworld.org In the midst of the worst multi-layered crisis in U.S. history, the nation has cause to celebrate today after voters in two states delivered a powerful double victory to the forces of progress. In Iowa, as Republican primary voters were dumping Rep. Steve King, one of the country's most notorious white supremacists, people in Ferguson, …

Staff (2020-06-03). Remembering "Big Floyd": Houston Friends of George Floyd Describe Him as a "Man of Peace" democracynow.org As historic protests against police brutality continue nationwide, we go to Houston, Texas, the longtime home of George Floyd, who was killed by Minneapolis police last week. More than 60,000 people took to the streets Tuesday to honor his memory. We hear Floyd in his own words and speak to two of his friends about his work mentoring young men in one of the city's historically Black communities, the Third Ward. He was "already preaching peace, love, God, unity, advocating against gun violence," says Corey Paul, Houston hip-hop artist and entrepreneur, who ministered with Floyd alongside Patrick "P.T." Ngwolo, pas…

Staff (2020-06-03). Killed at Home: Legal Battle Reopened over 2011 Police Shooting of Elderly Black Ex-Marine in NY. democracynow.org We look at a major development in the case of Kenneth Chamberlain Sr., a Black man killed in his own apartment in White Plains, New York, during a police confrontation in 2011, after he accidentally triggered his medical alert pendant. On Monday, the 2nd Circuit of Appeals ruled a federal judge was wrong to dismiss parts of a lawsuit against the police for excessive use of force. "My family and I are extremely overjoyed that the original ruling was vacated," says Kenneth Chamberlain Jr. "I think that people are now coming together, and they're saying that extrajudicial killings and summary executions of unarmed B…

RT (2020-06-03). 'It's a dynamic situation': Esper does about-face on plan to return some 200 troops to home bases from DC after WH visit. rt.com No active-duty troops that were recently deployed to the DC area to manage heated protests will be leaving just yet, the Pentagon said — an apparent reversal of an earlier plan to send some 200 home. | US Secretary of Defense Mark Esper's u-turn followed a White House meeting and "internal Pentagon discussions" on Wednesday, the Associated Press reported, citing Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy, who said the decision is meant to ensure law enforcement in the capital have support in case of renewed unrest. It is not clear if the defense secretary spoke with US President Donald Trump. | It is our intent at thi…

Staff (2020-06-03). Headlines for June 3, 2020. democracynow.org Minnesota Opens Human Rights Probe of Minneapolis Police Department, Minnesota AFL-CIO Calls on Police Union President to Resign over George Floyd's Killing, George Floyd's Family Members Join Protest March of 60,000 in Houston, Arrest Warrants Issued for Six Atlanta Cops Who Tased Black Students, Army's 82nd Airborne, Armed with Fixed Bayonets, Deploys to Washington, D.C., AG William Barr Personally Ordered Assault on Peaceful Protesters Outside White House, Australian Ambassador to Investigate Police Assault on Journalists Near White House, Mayor Warns Against Military Deployment in Streets of New York, Thousan…

Alan Macleod (2020-06-03). Democrats Recently Voted to Give Trump Even MORE Police Power. mintpressnews.com Even as the president has overseen a

Dean Baker (2020-06-03). Why Should Anyone Care About Paying Big Bucks for Vaccine Government Funded? cepr.net The New York Times ran a piece on the second round of government funding for the development of a coronavirus vaccine. The piece only mentions in passing the issue raised by some Democrats in Congress about the price of any vaccine that gets developed through this funding. This is probably too simple for the NYT …

news.un (2020-06-03). WHO chief updates journalists on Ebola outbreak, COVID-19 treatment study. news.un.org Nearly 50 staff from the World Health Organization (WHO) and its partners arrived in Mbandaka in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) on Wednesday, location of the country's latest Ebola outbreak.

Jennifer Loewenstein (2020-06-03). From Mississippi to Minneapolis: Leaving the 'Abyss of Despair'. counterpunch.org In the early morning hours of August 28th, 1955, two white men burst into the Mississippi home of Moses Wright where 14-year-old Emmett Till slept. Till had come down from Chicago to visit his cousins and was accused of having flirted with a white woman, Carolyn Bryant, while at a local country store with some

Andre Vltchek (2020-06-02). "The World Cannot Breathe!" Squashed by the U.S. — A Country Built on Genocide and Slavery. globalresearch.ca More than two centuries of lies are now getting exposed. Bizarre tales about freedom and democracy are collapsing like houses of cards. | One man's death triggers an avalanche of rage in those who for years, decades and centuries, have been …

ACLU (2020-06-02). Know Your Rights While Protesting Police Brutality. aclu.org The right to protest is fundamental to our democracy and enshrined in the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. In response to the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police, people across the country have taken to the streets to demand racial justice and an end to police brutality and systematic racism against Black people. , , Especially in the time of COVID-19, it's important to know your rights and stay safe while protesting. In this video taken over the weekend at a protest in Brooklyn, New York, Emerson Sykes, staff attorney for the ACLU's Speech, Privacy, & Technology Project, sh…

Staff (2020-06-02). Autopsy Reports Showing George Floyd's Death Was a Homicide Underscore Corruption & Police Impunity. democracynow.org Two autopsies have agreed George Floyd's death at the hands of Minneapolis police was a homicide. "I don't think that most of us are surprised that the county medical examiner tried to find a reason related to why George Floyd died that distanced it from law enforcement's role," says Nekima Levy Armstrong, civil rights attorney, activist, founder of the Racial Justice Network and former president of the Minneapolis chapter of the NAACP. She also discusses the local history of police accountability: "What this does is illustrates the corruption that exists within Hennepin County, where you have law enforcement wor…

Staff (2020-06-02). Black Lives Matter Co-Founder: Protests Are the Result of "Police Terror with No Accountability" democracynow.org As thousands in Los Angeles continue to protest against police brutality and face mass arrests, Mayor Eric Garcetti is facing criticism for increasing the budget for the Los Angeles Police Department. Organizers have called on the City Council to enact a People's Budget that slashes money for police and invests in services for the community instead. "We have created a system that overrelies on law enforcement and prioritizes their money, their budget, their needs over everything else," says Patrisse Cullors, co-founder of Black Lives Matter, and Reform L.A. Jails. "Now is the time that we redirect resources back…

Staff (2020-06-02). "A Declaration of War Against Americans": Trump Threatens to Deploy Military to Quell Protests. democracynow.org As a historic week-long uprising against police violence continues and curfews are in place across the United States, President Trump has declared himself "the president of law and order" and threatened to send thousands of heavily armed soldiers into the streets. "President Trump's speech almost amounted to a declaration of war against Americans," says Kristen Clarke, president of the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. We also speak with William Arkin, longtime reporter on the military, who notes Trump is getting "no pushback" from Defense Department officials.

Eds. (2020-06-02). Is the Republican Party Fascist? mronline.org Donald Trump is the culmination of how the Republican Party has been developing for years. Together they threaten to establish an authoritarian state in the service of big capital. They endanger the lives, health, and living standards of the working class and the rest of the population. But supporting the Democratic Party is not the …

Staff (2020-06-02). Headlines for June 2, 2020. democracynow.org Trump Threatens to Send Military into Streets to Crack Down on Nationwide Uprising, Protests Spread Around the U.S. and the Globe as Autopsies Confirm George Floyd Died of Homicide, Louisville Police Chief Fired After African American Man Shot and Killed Monday, 15,000 People Attend Youth Rally in Oakland, CA; Police Continue Attacks on Protesters, Outrage After White Bar Owner Who Shot and Killed 22-Year-Old James Scurlock Dodges Criminal Charge, Facebook Workers Stage Virtual "Walkout," Call Out Inaction on Trump's Posts Inciting Violence, Iranian Scientist Who Contracted COVID-19 in ICE Jail Is Deported, First…

Marlee Kokotovic (2020-06-02). Democratic senator offers amendment ending transfer of military equipment to police forces. nationofchange.org "The cycle of police brutality sparking unrest, and that unrest being met by the militarized police is increasingly familiar in modern American society."

Stephen Sefton (2020-06-02). Nicaragua — False Witness, False Memory. COVID-19 and Nicaragua's Community Approach to Health Care. globalresearch.ca On Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela. The standard Western canonical sources of record, namely international institutions, non-governmental organizations and media outlets, practically universally contend that all three countries are authoritarian or even tyrannical regimes, denying their peoples' basic democratic rights. The …

Gordon Duff (2020-06-02). Alfred Hitchcock Presents: Donald Trump and the Strange and Ugly Death of the Republican Party. thealtworld.com Gepostet von

Ryan Cristián (2020-06-02). Final Technocratic "Lock Step" Plan Is Here As Martial Law Rolls Out Across The Nation. thelastamericanvagabond.com Welcome to The Daily Wrap Up, a concise show dedicated to bringing you the most relevant independent news, as we see it, from the last 24 hours (6/1/20). As always, take the information discussed in the video below and research it for yourself, and come to your own conclusions. Anyone telling you what the truth …

en.mehrnews (2020-06-02). 'Resisting, standing up against enemies', key success of Imam Khomeini: Interior min. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Jun. 03 (MNA) — Iranian Interior Minister Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli, in a message on the occasion of the demise anniversary of the founding father of the Islamic Revolution Imam Khomeini [RA], said on Tue. that resisting and standing up against enemies, persisting on beliefs and also relying upon the religious democracy were of the key success factors of the late Imam Khomeini.

sputniknews (2020-06-02). US Senate Majority Leader Blocks Resolution to Condemn Trump Use of Tear Gas on Protesters. sputniknews.com WASHINGTON (Sputnik) – US Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has blocked Senator Chuck Schumer's resolution to condemn President Donald Trump for deploying federal officers who used tear gas and rubber bullets against protesters in the nation's capital.

sputniknews (2020-06-02). Trump Faces New Lawsuit Over Executive Order Targeting Twitter – Advocacy Group. sputniknews.com WASHINGTON (Sputnik) – US President Donald Trump faces a new lawsuit accusing him of breaking the First Amendment to the US Constitution by issuing an executive order targeting Twitter and other social media platforms as they seek to counter misinformation, the Center for Democracy and Technology (CDT) said in a news release.