2 h. ago EEOC chief shift focus to investigating DEI but her methods provoke outcries

The acting chief of the top federal agency for protecting worker rights has signaled a pivot toward prioritizing President Donald Trump’s campaign to stamp out diversity, equity and inclusion programs in the private and public sectors

Events

6 h. ago Jamaican rapist avoids deportation on human rights grounds as criminal record in UK means he is not eligible for witness protection in Caribbean

A convicted sex attacker cannot be deported to Jamaica because his crimes in the UK mean he might not be eligible for the witness protection scheme in his homeland, an immigration judge ruled.

Events

46 h. ago Musk’s Doge to fire all local workers and US diplomats from USAID, sources say

Unofficial Trump adviser’s cost-cutting team to finalize shuttering the foreign aid agency on which millions dependUS politics live – latest updatesElon Musk’s cost-cutting team is finalizing the dismantlement of the US Agency for International Development, ordering the firings of thousands of local workers and US diplomats and civil servants assigned to the agency overseas, two former top USAID officials and a source with knowledge of the situation said on Tuesday.On Friday, Congress was notified that almost all of USAID’s own employees were being fired by September, all of its overseas offices shut, and some functions absorbed into the state department. Continue reading...

Politics

66 h. ago Trump administration says it deported 17 more ‘violent criminals’ to El Salvador

The Trump administration says it has deported 17 more “violent criminals” from the Tren de Aragua and MS-13 gangs to El Salvador, as it doubles down on a policy of removing people from the U.S. to third countries despite criticism over lack of transparency and human rights protections

Politics

1 week ago ‘Imagine if it died on my watch?’ The fight to save one ‘ancient’ Adelaide tree

Cities lose thousands of mature trees a year. On Overbury Drive, neighbours were determined to protect a solitary giant dying red gum – stuck right in the middle of their roadSign up for a weekly email featuring our best readsIt’s a striking image; in a suburban landscape where nature has been largely pushed aside to make way for roads, houses and driveways, the thick craggy trunk of a towering river red gum tree stands defiantly in place, forcing the bitumen to squeeze and buckle around it. Bang in the middle of the street.Barely a day goes by without the residents of Overbury Drive noticing a carload of tourists or curious locals pulling up in their quiet cul-de-sac, cameras at the ready. Continue reading...

Events

1 week ago DHS closes office that advocated for migrants calling it a ‘roadblock’ to immigration reform

The Department of Homeland Security is making cuts to three key offices that oversee civil rights protections

Events

1 week ago A tale of two conferences: women against women as ‘poison of patriarchy’ returns and abortion fight intensifies

Last week, anti-choice campaigners emboldened by current US politics met in New York at the same time as UN delegates gathered to address the widespread inequalities women face. The battle to protect rights has never felt more urgentIn a meeting room on the 27th floor of a swish Manhattan hotel, Denise Mountenay is telling the audience that the right to abortion is “Nazi thinking.” Mountenay regrets her own abortions, and says she has been called by God to spread the word that she and other women “were lied to, deceived, pressured into making the most horrible choice: to choose death instead of life”.She goes on to list reasons why abortion is “not a safe procedure. [That’s what] they want woman to think – that is a lie.” Continue reading...

Politics

1 week ago Homeland Security makes cuts to offices overseeing civil rights protections

The Department of Homeland Security is making cuts to three key offices that oversee civil rights protections across its broad mission, suggesting that they were impeding immigration enforcement efforts

Society

2 w. ago I am a Palestinian political prisoner in Louisiana. I am being targeted for my activism | Mahmoud Khalil

The Columbia graduate and green-card holder, held in Louisiana by immigration agents, dictated this letter to family and friendsMy name is Mahmoud Khalil and I am a political prisoner. I am writing to you from a detention facility in Louisiana where I wake to cold mornings and spend long days bearing witness to the quiet injustices under way against a great many people precluded from the protections of the law.Who has the right to have rights? It is certainly not the humans crowded into the cells here. It isn’t the Senegalese man I met who has been deprived of his liberty for a year, his legal situation in limbo and his family an ocean away. It isn’t the 21-year-old detainee I met who stepped foot in this country at age nine, only to be deported without so much as a hearing. Continue reading...

Events

2 w. ago Justice department removes disability guidelines for US businesses

Multiple pages scrubbed from the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) website due to a Trump orderNever miss global breaking news. Download our free app to keep up with key stories in real time.The Department of Justice removed 11 guidelines for US businesses on compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), including some that deal with Covid-19 and masking and accessibility.The ADA was signed into law in 1990 and is the key civil rights law that protects Americans with disabilities from discrimination. Continue reading...

Politics

2 w. ago Court approves hold on release of records relating to death of Gene Hackman

The temporary restraining order was granted to protect the actor’s family’s right to privacy in grief under the 14th amendment of the US constitution.

Events

2 w. ago White House asked for update after ‘retaliatory’ arrest of Columbia grad Mahmoud Khalil, his lawyers say

Attorneys argue Trump administration violated Khalil’s First Amendment rights by retaliating against constitutionally protected speech

Events

2 w. ago Gene Hackman estate goes to court to prevent release of autopsy pictures

Fearing release of distressing material, lawyers have petitioned a Santa Fe court to seal records to protect the family’s right to privacyA representative for the estate of actor Gene Hackman is seeking to block the public release of autopsy and investigative reports, especially photographs and police body-camera video, related to the recent deaths of Hackman and his wife Betsy Arakawa, after their partially mummified bodies were discovered at their New Mexico home in February.Authorities last week announced Hackman died at age 95 of heart disease with complications from Alzheimer’s disease as much as a week after Arakawa, 65, died from a rare rodent-borne disease, hantavirus pulmonary syndrome. Hackman’s pacemaker last showed signs of activity on 18 February, indicating an abnormal heart rhythm on the day he probably died. The couple’s bodies weren’t discovered until 26 February. Continue reading...

Events

3 w. ago Gregor Poynton MP welcomes historic upgrade to workers’ rights in Scotland

Gregor Poynton, MP for the Livingston constituency, has hailed the UK Labour Government's Employment Rights Bill as a landmark step forward for workers’ rights in Scotland, delivering key protections for employees while supporting businesses to grow.

Politics

3 w. ago Taliban insist Afghan women’s rights are protected despite ban on education

Since the Taliban took control of Afghanistan in 2021, they have banned education for women and girls beyond sixth grade and most employment

Politics

3 w. ago Taliban insist Afghan women’s rights are protected despite ongoing ban on education

Since the Taliban took control of Afghanistan in 2021, they have barred education for women and girls beyond sixth grade, most employment, and many public spaces

Politics

3 w. ago US DoJ to investigate University of California over alleged antisemitism

Justice department to determine whether UC violated Civil Rights Act of 1964 amid pro-Palestinian campus protestsThe US Department of Justice is investigating the University of California system for possible antisemitic discrimination after demonstrations against Israel’s war in Gaza took place on campuses last year.“This Department of Justice will always defend Jewish Americans, protect civil rights, and leverage our resources to eradicate institutional Antisemitism in our nation’s universities,” read a statement by Pamela Bondi, the attorney general, released Wednesday. Continue reading...

Events