The radical story of the Native American liberation movement, 50 years on

United States (Conversation) – In the thick of 1968’s seismic social upheavals, Native Americans also reached for their rights, and activists renewed their campaign for recognition and status as fully sovereign nations. The late Martin Luther King’s Poor People’s Campaign featured several caravans that collected Indian activists before converging on Washington DC. In May and June 1968, Native American delegates lobbied US officials and castigated federal Indian policy in the press, explaining that American Indians did not want civil rights – they wanted their own collective rights of sovereignty: We…

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Kids in Exchange for Deportation: Detained Migrants Told They Could Get Kids Back on Way Out of U.S.

United States (TexasTribune) – Central American men separated from their children and held in a detention facility outside Houston are being told they can reunite with their kids at the airport if they agree to sign a voluntary deportation order now, according to one migrant at the facility and two immigration attorneys who have spoken to detainees there. A Honduran man who spoke to The Texas Tribune Saturday estimated that 20 to 25 men who have been separated from their children are being housed at the IAH Polk County Secure…

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What If U.S. Fuel Economy Standards Went Away?

United States (Ensia) – On March 15, 2017, U.S. president Donald Trump addressed carmakers at a newly constructed test track for self-driving cars and other mobility technology, the American Center for Mobility, in Willow Run, Michigan. “We’re going to work on the CAFE standards so you can make cars in America again,” he said. The U.S. Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards were created more than 40 years ago under President Gerald Ford to improve the energy efficiency of vehicles. Since then, the standards have become increasingly stringent, with an eye toward…

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Abortion Ban in Northern Ireland Likely to Worsen Mental Health Crisis

Northern Ireland (Conversation) – Northern Ireland is one of only two regions in Europe where abortion effectively remains illegal (Malta being the other). This is a confirmed breach of human rights – one that threatens to deepen the mental health crisis of women in Northern Ireland. Abortion is not allowed in Northern Ireland unless the life of the mother is in danger. There is no access to abortion in cases of rape or fatal foetal abnormality. Under the current law, woman have to declare suicidal intent in order for abortion…

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‘Bludgeon Won’t Work With China’: Beijing Warns US of ‘Irrational’ Tariff Policy

(Sputnik) – “The US side is used to using a bludgeon but this won’t work with China, such irrational behavior will not solve the problem,” the ministry’s spokesman Gao Feng told reporters. In a tit-for-tat approach, the official said China would be forced to retaliate against US taxes with “harsh response measures” after Beijing announced 25-percent duties on $50 billion worth of US imports after a similar move by Washington. Moreover, China’s Commerce Ministry spokesman has told Reuters that Beijing would take action to defend its interests and that “US unilateralism will ultimately damage the ineterests of its own workers and…

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Technology is Both a Weapon and a Shield For Those Experiencing Domestic Violence

Australia (Conversation) – With growing recognition that domestic violence can be perpetuated using technology, there has been an increase of news stories that focus on how abusers use it to coerce and control victims. For example, when a man stole his ex-partner’s laptop so he could monitor her private Facebook messages. Or when a husband installed a GPS tracking device in his daughter’s doll to monitor his wife’s whereabouts without her knowledge. But there’s also considerable potential for victims to use new technologies to hold abusers accountable. Technology as a…

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Why people choose to stay in areas vulnerable to natural disasters

(JR) – In the anticipation and aftermath of natural disasters, those in their path face difficult choices: To stay, or to leave? To relocate, or to rebuild in areas prone to the risk of property damage, which is predicted to become more acute as climate change progresses? Storms are particularly threatening weather events, according to a report issued in 2015 by the United Nations, which found that over the span of 20 years, they accounted for 40 percent of global weather-related deaths. Research indicates that massive floods, projected in the 1970s…

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On a bridge over the Rio Grande, immigrants seeking asylum wait for a chance to enter the U.S.

Rio Grande (TT) – On Sunday and Monday night, 22-year-old Marcos Samayoa slept on pieces of old cardboard on a concrete sidewalk. He was perched above the Rio Grande, surrounded by a small pack of strangers on the international bridge that connects this Mexican border city to Brownsville, with his dusty green backpack and an old pair of sneakers. A few yards away, on the Texas side of the line, three Customs and Border Protection agents watched. It had been a long journey from Samayoa’s hometown of Mazatenango in southwest Guatemala….

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Spate of anti-protest bills target social justice infrastructure

(Sunlight) – When Colorado public school teachers rallied in Denver this spring to demand better school funding and retirement benefits, two fed-up GOP legislators had a novel idea: Why not pass a bill to fire the teachers and send them to jail? The legislation introduced by state Senator Bob Gardner and Representative Paul Lundeen would also have nullified any union contract between a district and striking teachers. Gardner and Lundeen withdrew their bill in amid public outcry. But their bid to defang unions reflects the new face of the conservative…

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Playing This Board Game will Challenge Your Ideas About Refugees

(Conversation) – When immigrants come to Canada, they have to quickly adapt and they have much to learn. Many of them need to learn a new language and a new culture. The Canadian government defines integration as a two-way street. Newcomers strengthen the Canadian economy by bringing diverse perspectives which can lead to better workplace outcomes, innovation and strong community connections. As an educator working with newcomers for the past decade, I have seen a need not just for newcomer education (such as language classes, settlement services and community orientation)…

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