Alabama’s expansive anti-immigrant law, HB56, has been so economically devastating that farmers are seeking legislation to force hard labor on prison inmates eligible for work release programs, to “help farms fill the gap and find sufficient labor.” One of the harshest instances of anti-immigrant legislation in the nation, HB 56 requires local police to verify [...]
On Sept. 8, 1971, an altercation ensued involving a few prisoners and guards. Inmates were furious at this perceived injustice that had happened to them. The next day a violent riot ensued. From Sept. 9 to 13, 1971, prisoners took about 40 people hostage and took control of the Attica Correctional Facility. After four days [...]
Since early 2010, the students at the University of Puerto Rico have been protesting against a proposed fee. The government decided to start charging a “Fiscal Stabilization Fee” to help offset the effects of the weak economy. Many of the University’s students are against this fee because they feel it is an attempt by the [...]
The budget crisis in our country has hit an extreme. States across the country are cutting education, social programs, funding for homeless shelters, and police stations. The property taxes and local taxes are being raised. Ironically, Speculators do not have to pay for financial purchases, including the high-risk derivatives and credit default swaps. Most of [...]
The American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California called on Sheriffs across California to end costly and harmful practices that target immigrant communities. The call accompanies a report highlighting personal stories, cost data and proposals to protect public safety while reducing the fiscal and human costs of local enforcement practices. The report is informed by [...]
In 2009, violence against the homeless was at an all time high, with reports of injuries, vandalism of property, and 43 deaths among homeless persons across the nation. The stressful experiences of becoming homeless and then being victimized create extremely high levels of trauma, leading to elevated rates of mental illness among homeless individuals. These [...]
Simon Glik, a lawyer, was walking down Tremont Street in Boston when he saw three police officers struggling to extract a plastic bag from a teenager’s mouth. Thinking their force seemed excessive for a drug arrest, Glik pulled out his cellphone and began recording. Within minutes, Glik said, he was in handcuffs. The charge was illegal electronic surveillance. Police charged Glik [...]
Undercover police in Great Britian are running a network of hundreds of informants inside protest organizations who secretly feed them intelligence in return for cash. The dramatic disclosures are revealed in almost three hours of secretly recorded discussions between covert officers claiming to be from Strathclydepolice, and an activist from the protest group Plane Stupid.Matilda Gifford, 24, [...]
For the past 8 months, the Kenyan government has carried out a brutal campaign of violence against indigenous Samburu People in north-central Kenya, using their own police and military forces as well as government-funded mercenaries from Somalia. The most infamous attack took place in April, when military forces sprayed a caustic chemical onto group of [...]
A black woman named Heather Ellis is looking at 15 years in prison for cutting in line at a Wal-Mart store. Ellis, who is a teacher and has been described as respectable, joined her cousin in a check-out line that was moving faster than the line she was previously in. After Ellis joined this line, [...]
