(2018-11-23). It's Getting Hot Up in Here. counterpunch.org 
When the overnight low (109F in Oman) would be a record high in most places on Earth, you know your planet is in trouble. The evidence of our warming climate is all around us. At times it feels as if our world is unraveling. Ice shelfs melting. Seas rising. Rivers flooding. Wildfires broiling. Hurricanes destroy- ing. Droughts devastating. It's not as if these events haven't been around since the dawn of time, but man-made global warming is undoubtedly making matters much, much worse. There's little hope that we can stem the rising tides and turn back the damage carbon has wrecked on our little blue planet. But t…
(2018-11-24). Climate Change Is Threatening Many Species, But One Is Getting a Boost. truthout.org A towering elm tree stands 30 meters tall, somewhere near the border between England and Scotland, defying the fate that so many of its cousins met when Dutch elm disease ravaged the species in the 1970s. One of relatively few elm trees left, it is a haven for wildlife. Look closely and you can see the erratic fluttering of a small brown butterfly, with a W-shaped white streak across its wing. | This butterfly is making history: It's crossed the border into Scotland, where it has settled happily in a native wych elm tree and been
(2018-11-23). Protect LGBTI activist Vitalina Koval. amnesty.org Vitalina Koval has been central to the LGBTI community in Ukraine. She helped set up a community centre – a safe space for LGBTI people within the growing hostility of the country. | During the International Women's Day March in Ukraine in 2017, Vitalina was attacked by a dozen young men, who charged at her and other protesters — tearing up their posters and shouting threats. Vitalina tried to file a police report. The police ignored her. | Vitalina wanted to attend the 2018 Women's March, this time going to the police in advance for protection. They said she'd be fine. But during the march, two men and fou…
(2018-11-23). Sweden: A cold welcome: Human rights of Roma and other 'vulnerable EU citizens' at risk. amnesty.org Eastern Europeans, most of whom identify as Roma, are currently living in desperate and dangerous situations in Swedish cities and towns. In this report, Amnesty International explores barriers — structural, legal, and social — faced by EU citizens living in marginalization in Sweden. The report finds that the Swedish state fails to recognize the rights of this group. As a result, destitute EU migrants live in a social and legal limbo for years, without even a minimum of protection or support, while anti-Roma sentiments and anti-begging rhetoric permeate the public debate. Sweden has human rights obli…
(2018-11-23). Protect Pavitri Manjhi . amnesty.org Pavitri is an indigenous rights defender who is standing up to big corporations who are trying to take away her community's land — but she faces threats and intimidation. Demand her protection now. | Right now, businesses in Chhattisgarh, central India, are trying to take over land that belongs to an Adivasi Indigenous community so that they can make way for two power plants. Members of the community report that they were tricked into selling their land, and those that refused to sell faced threats and intimidation by agents acting on behalf of two private companies. | Pavitri is on the front line protecti…
(2018-11-23). Demand protection for land defender Nonhle Mbuthuma. amnesty.org Nonhle Mbuthuma is facing danger for trying to stop mining company from taking her land. So why is the government not protecting her?: | Nonhle is a farmer whose ancestral land means everything to her: "If you take my land you take my identity". But Nonhle and her community on the Eastern Cape of South Africa are at risk of losing everything because a mining company want to kick them off their land. | "This land was my grandmother's, who inherited it from her grandparents. What am I going to leave for my children? Mining is not an option." — Nonhle | Nonhle and other members of her community have le…
(2018-11-23). Stop forcibly evicting the Sengwer people. amnesty.org The Sengwer people are being forced off their land. They are losing their homes, their livelihoods and their cultural identity — now someone has been killed. Help stop this now. : | The Sengwer Indigenous people have lived in the Embobut Forest in North Rift Valley of Kenya for centuries. It's their ancestral land and they have a deep spiritual bond with the beautiful and vast forest. But the Kenyan government is brutally and illegally driving them off it, threatening their livelihoods and way of life. | The government claims they are acting in the name of conservation, and that the Sengwer people a…
(2018-11-23). White House Plans to Dump Major Climate Report on Black Friday. truthout.org Environmental groups, journalists, and climate scientists are reacting to the Trump administration's decision to release a major climate report the day after Thanksgiving — a move some are describing as an effort to bury an assessment packed with an " astonishing amount of science," and they are hoping to see that effort backfire " …
(2018-11-23). Fiddling While California Burns. truthout.org Donald Trump is fanning the flames of climate denial.
(2018-11-22). Noam Chomsky: The Future of Organized Human Life Is At Risk Thanks to GOP's Climate Change Denial. democracynow.org 
As the death toll from the climate change-fueled Camp Fire in California continues to rise and hundreds remain missing, we rebroadcast our conversation about climate change with world-renowned political dissident, linguist and author Noam Chomsky from October. He says Republican Party leaders are dedicated to "enriching themselves and their friends" at the cost of the planet, and warns: "We have to make decisions now which will literally determine whether organized human life can survive in any decent form."
(2018-11-22). Student fight for noncompliance with attacks on immigrants, confront USF administration. fightbacknews.org Tampa, FL – On November 20, students held a rally at the University of South Florida (USF) calling for increased protections for immigrant students. The event was hosted by Tampa Bay Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) as a part of their campaign, "Immigrants are Here to Stay," to win noncompliance with federal agencies such as the Department of Homeland Security and its Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Customs and Border Protection, that are charged with implementing attacks on the undocumented. | The rally included speeches about the context of immigration…
(2018-11-19). Meet the Prisoners Being Paid $1 an Hour to Battle the Deadly Climate-Fueled Fires of California. democracynow.org 
As the death toll from the Camp Fire rises to 77, California is combating its deadliest fire in state history using prison labor. Some 1,500 of the 9,400 firefighters currently battling fires in California are incarcerated. They make just a dollar an hour but are rarely eligible to get jobs as firefighters after their release. According to some estimates, California saves up to $100 million a year by using prison labor to fight its biggest environmental problem. In September, the Democracy Now! team traveled to the Delta Conservation Camp in Northern California, a low-security prison where more than 100 men are i…
(2018-11-16). National Exclusive: Former Sen. Barbara Boxer's Son and California Powerbroker Found Bilking Indian Tribe. consortiumnews.com Darius Anderson and his business partner, Douglas Boxer, preyed upon Native American clients who were too intimidated by their political connections to seek recourse, writes investigative reporter Peter Byrne. Judges Find Breach of Contract and Trust By Peter Byrne Darius… Read more →
(2018-11-16). As Camp Fire Death Toll Rises, Meet the Prisoners Making $1 an Hour to Fight California's Wildfires. democracynow.org 
The death toll from the Camp Fire in California has risen to at least 63, with 631 people reported missing. As California continues to battle the deadliest fire in the state's history, we turn to the hidden heroes on the front lines the raging climate-fueled wildfires: prisoner firefighters. At least 1,500 of the 9,400 firefighters currently battling fires in California are incarcerated. They make just a dollar an hour battling on the front lines but are rarely eligible to get jobs as firefighters after their release. In September, the Democracy Now! team traveled to the Delta Conservation Camp about an hour nort…