April 1, 2021
Published by Defending Rights & Dissent at April 1, 2021
Members of Congress, civil society groups, and historians and other scholars all called on Attorney General Merrick Garland to release the remaining files on the FBI’s role in the assassination of Fred Hampton. Hampton, the charismatic young leader of the
March 31, 2021
Published by Defending Rights & Dissent at March 31, 2021
Defending Rights & Dissent stands with Daniel Hale, a courageous and heroic whistleblower. Earlier this afternoon, Hale pled guilty to one count of “retention and transmission of national defense information” in violation of the Espionage Act. Hale was charged with
March 24, 2021
Published by Cody Bloomfield at March 24, 2021
By Cody Bloomfield In recent years, millions of people have turned out to protest police brutality, former President Trump, the Dakota Access Pipeline, and gun violence, among other issues. Legislators in 45 states have responded to this surge in civic
March 23, 2021
Published by Suraj K Sazawal at March 23, 2021
By Suraj K. Sazawal Two months after Donald Trump’s supporters ransacked the U.S. Capitol, the drawdown of the National Guard and the removal of razor-wire fencing surrounding the building has begun. “This is progress,” DC Rep. Eleanor Holmes Norton said
March 18, 2021
Published by Patrick G. Eddington at March 18, 2021
By Patrick G. Eddington The 55-year-old Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) was authored by the late John Moss (D-CA) as an essential tool for citizens to wield to uncover what Executive branch officials were doing in their name. National Sunshine
March 9, 2021
Published by Defending Rights & Dissent at March 9, 2021
On March 8, 1971, a group of anti-war activists calling themselves the Citizens Commission to Investigate the FBI broke into the FBI’s Media, Pennsylvania office. They sought to gather definitive proof that the FBI was undermining social movements and waging
March 9, 2021
Published by Sue Udry at March 9, 2021
The lawsuit alleges that the company’s surveillance technology violates privacy rights and facilitates government monitoring of protesters, immigrants, and communities of color. Clearview’s facial recognition tool—which allows instantaneous identification and tracking of people targeted by law enforcement—chills political speech and other protected activities, the suit argued.
March 9, 2021
Published by Sue Udry at March 9, 2021
Hamer’s brilliance as a public speaker, bravery in the face of white supremacy, and understanding of how to organize communities made her an effective civil rights advocate. Hamer saw with clear eyes the imperative of addressing both legal and extralegal barriers to political participation.
March 7, 2021
Published by Patrick Eddington at March 7, 2021
Sometimes, a citizen has to break an existing law in order to expose a prevailing injustice or the government’s own crimes.
February 24, 2021
Published by Defending Rights & Dissent at February 24, 2021
Dear Mayor de Blasio & Commissioner Shea: The revelation made during a City Council Education Committee hearing on February 18, 2021, that the NYPD is planning to hire 475 new school safety officers, at the expense of $20 million, is
February 18, 2021
Published by Patrick G. Eddington at February 18, 2021
In becoming the first Black American elected to Congress since Reconstruction—and the son of former slaves, no less—Illinois Representative Oscar De Priest faced challenges and threats on multiple fronts. First, it was his erstwhile House colleagues, specifically long-time racists like John Rankin (D-MS) and Thomas Jefferson Busby (D-MS).
February 17, 2021
Published by Defending Rights & Dissent at February 17, 2021
On February 12, 2021 the 8th Circuit of Appeals ruled that Arkansas’s anti-boycott law targeting supporters of Palestinian human rights violated the First Amendment. The challenge was brought by the Arkansas Times. The newspaper that takes no position on Boycotts,
February 9, 2021
Published by Defending Rights & Dissent at February 9, 2021
Defending Rights & Dissent joined with a wide range of press freedom, civil liberties, and international human rights advocacy organizations to call on acting Attorney General Monty Wilkinson to drop the indictment of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange. The Trump administration
February 4, 2021
Published by Chip Berlet at February 4, 2021
DHS has an unfortunate habit of asking the general public to help protect the homeland in ways that that predictably reinforce racist, anti-Semitic, Islamophobic and other profiling.
January 27, 2021
Published by Defending Rights & Dissent at January 27, 2021
Gutting Section 230 would make it more difficult for web platforms to combat the type of dangerous rhetoric that led to the attack on the Capitol.