UPDATE: You may watch a recording of the Belmarsh Tribunal here. When war crimes are exposed, the government puts the truth teller in jail. The Belmarsh Tribunal, named for the notorious British prison where Julian Assange is being held, puts
There have been and will be lots of op-eds this month on major historical figures from America’s Black community–civil rights icons like Dr. King, Ella Baker, former Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall, and many others. They challenged a society-wide system
Thirty Wisconsin organizations sent a letter to Gov. Tony Evers today, asking that he veto Senate Bill 296, a bill that passed in the Senate on January 25 and aims to deter people from participating in the constitutionally protected right
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
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
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
Weapons of mass destruction. Bombing a Sudanese pharmaceutical plant. The Gulf of Tonkin incident. There’s plenty of good reasons for journalists to question US military claims. Most importantly, because that’s their job. In the span of a few hours one day
Police and federal agents, including FBI and Customs and Border Patrol officers, are increasingly subjecting activists, protesters, and journalists to improper and sometimes illegal surveillance. With an array of clandestine tactics and powerful technology available to law enforcement to monitor
Every month, NYC Books Through Bars offers supporters a way to send books to incarcerated readers in prisons across the country. It’s always an intriguing collection. Last month, the group collected 450 books during their January campaign that included books
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
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
Last week, Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) offered an amendment to the Protecting Our Democracy Act containing vital protections for national security whistleblowers. If passed Rep. Tlaib’s amendment would have made crucial reforms to the Espionage Act including Forcing prosecutors to
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
Fifty-two years ago today, the Chicago Police murdered Illinois Black Panther Chair Fred Hampton and Mark Clark. In a raid orchestrated by the FBI, Chicago Police stormed the Black Panther officer at 4:00 AM. Not only did they fire first,
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