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Defending Rights & Dissent
February 15, 2022
Amid increased concerns over the FBI’s and Justice Department’s targeting of scientists based on their Chinese descent, Defending Rights & Dissent joined with over 70 Asian American organizations, civil rights groups, science associations, and academic groups to file an amicus
February 11, 2022
The Central Intelligence Agency, a foreign intelligence agency that should not operate within the domestic US, has been collecting in bulk US citizens’ data. This collection has taken place without a warrant and outside any statutory regime, such as the
February 9, 2022
Given the recent debacle over the use of face recognition technology at the IRS, now is the time to aggressively advocate for an absolute moratorium on the use of this invasive tech at all federal agencies. It’s time for Congress
January 18, 2022
On this Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Defending Rights & Dissent joined over 30 organizations and individuals to announce the formation of a wide coalition to offer critical support for HR-2998, the COINTELPRO Full Disclosure Act. The bill, introduced in
December 10, 2021
Today, on International Human Rights Day – and as the Biden Administration hosts a “Summit for Democracy” – the United Kingdom High Court has reversed an earlier judge’s decision from January 2021 and granted the United States’ extradition request for
December 8, 2021
Across the country, there have been organized political attacks on books in schools. These ongoing attempts to purge schools of books represent a partisan threat not only to our children’s education, but to our democracy overall. That’s why Defending Rights
November 24, 2021
Twenty years ago, George W. Bush signed the PATRIOT Act into law. And twenty years ago, the Bill of Rights Defense Committee was born. The law ripped the Fourth Amendment to shreds by expanding government surveillance powers, impaled the First
November 11, 2021
DRAD Joins National Letter Rebuking NY Plan to Transfer Women & Trans from Rikers to Upstate Prisons
On Wednesday, Defending Rights & Dissent joined with leading national LGBTQI and women’s advocacy organizations including the National Women’s Law Center, Transgender Law Center, the Center for Constitutional Rights, and the New York Transgender Advocacy Group urging New York Governor
October 29, 2021
The Julian Assange extradition appeal concluded in London on Thursday, October 29. Immediately following the proceedings, Defending Rights & Dissent brought together some of the best journalists covering the proceedings this week to offer their reactions and analysis, including DRAD
October 28, 2021
On October 27, 2021, human rights lawyer Steven Donzinger reported to prison to serve a six month prison term for contempt of court. “We’re outraged that Steven Donzinger is in jail, and disgusted by the US judiciary’s complicity in Chevron’s
October 18, 2021
DRAD joined a national coalition of civil liberties and human rights organizations this week calling on Attorney General Merrick Garland to drop the criminal prosecution of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange after the explosive revelations in recent reporting about how in
October 18, 2021
Defending Rights & Dissent condemns the US government’s decision to place Daniel Hale in a “Communications Management Unit” (CMU). Defending Rights & Dissent has both long opposed the use of CMUs, as well the imprisonment of Daniel Hale. CMUs are
October 14, 2021
Timuel Black died on October 13, just a couple months before his 103rd birthday. In addition to being a scholar, a historian, and a mentor to Presidents, Tim was a strategic organizer and activist. And, Tim was a decades-long board
September 27, 2021
Over the weekend, Yahoo News published a bombshell report, based on interviews with over 30 former US officials, about the CIA’s campaign against Australian journalist Julian Assange. While the CIA long had Assange in its sights, Yahoo reports that Trump-appointed
September 22, 2021
Two decades ago, the US embarked on a “Global War on Terror.” As Americans mark this grim anniversary, we are forced to confront the still unfolding legacy of the War on Terror. Much of these conversations have focused on a