18 Sep 2015

Chelsea Manning To Sue Military For Prohibiting Her From Growing Hair

Chelsea Manning announced the United States Army has once again denied her ongoing request to grow her hair out. She indicated she will file a lawsuit against the prohibition.

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18 Sep 2015

U.S. Government Fights Ruling Requiring Warrant For Cell-Site Location Data

A federal appeals court ruled in August the government needs a warrant to seek and inspect cell-site location information or else the government is violating the Fourth Amendment. Now, the government has requested the appeals court reconsider its decision. In a filing [PDF], the government chastises the Fourth Circuit Court

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17 Sep 2015

Lawyer For Guantanamo Inmates Describes Prisoners’ Dreams Of Family, Fresh Air

Omar Shakir, an attorney for the Center for Constitutional Rights who has worked on Guantanamo Bay prisoners’ cases, made his first trip to the military prison this month. He shared what struck him most about going to Guantanamo to meet with two prisoners, Ghaleb al-Bihani and Zaher Hamdoun. Shakir described how the men’s faces lit up as they talked about things most humans take for granted, like fresh air, travel, family, and friends.

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17 Sep 2015

Ahmed Mohamed Inspires Other Muslim Students to Stand Up to Fear, Be Themselves

Ahmed Mohamed’s case is a perfect case to understand the bigotry and hysteria in the United States, which has persisted since the September 11th attacks and festered as isolated instances of violent extremism have occurred. The outpouring of support presents an opportunity to reflect on other cases where students have been targeted for their skin color and religion.

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16 Sep 2015

In Rare Act, Police Review Agency Recommends Chicago Police Fire Cop

Chicago’s Independent Police Review Authority, setup to investigate complaints against police, has recommended the cop who killed 22-year-old Rekia Boyd be fired. In the history of the agency, it has only recommended two other officers have their job terminated. Both recommendations came this year.

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16 Sep 2015

U.S. Wrongly Argues Verizon Wireless’ Participation In NSA Program Is Classified

In a challenge to the constitutionality of the National Security Agency’s phone records surveillance program, President Barack Obama’s administration claims whether Verizon Wireless participated in the program is a state secret. This is remarkable given there is irrefutable evidence from government documents of Verizon Wireless’ involvement in a similar challenge to this program.

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14 Sep 2015

Attorneys: U.S. Claims ‘Unchecked Power’ to Keep Gravely Sick Prisoner at Guantanamo

Attorneys for a gravely sick Guantanamo Bay prisoner, who has been on hunger strike for eight and a half years, argue the United States government has “attacked” a federal court’s “Constitutional authority” by claiming “unchecked power” to continue detention and force-feeding. Tariq Ba Odah, a Yemeni prisoner and resident of

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14 Sep 2015

Protest Song of the Week: ‘The Smaller Deaths’

Carnage unfolds on a daily basis in Iraq, Syria, Gaza, Ukraine, and other countries of the world. Atrocities that happen a distance away from the United States make it possible to go about life without having too care or worry about what is happening. Through song, an artistic collaborative called the Newmanov

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13 Sep 2015

Podcast: The Unprecedented Collaboration Between CIA & ‘Zero Dark Thirty’ Filmmakers

New documents containing details on the inspector general investigation into collaboration between the CIA and “Zero Dark Thirty” filmmakers show ethics violations and potential federal crimes by former CIA director Leon Panetta and other CIA officers were uncovered. These were referred to the Justice Department for prosecution, but the department

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10 Sep 2015

Spy Chief James Clapper Compares U.S. ‘Intelligence Community’ to Spider-Man

The spy chief of the United States compared the American “intelligence community” to the Marvel superhero Spider-Man in a speech he gave at an intelligence summit on September 9. In a description for Director of the National Intelligence James Clapper, the organizers of the AFCEA/INSA National Security and Intelligence Summit wrote, “U.S. intelligence

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