AlterNet.org: Rights and Liberties

Corporate Legal Rights Grow As Courts Block Pro-Consumer Class Action Suits

Negah Mouzoon, Public Citizen — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 08:00:01 PDT

Consumer activists find a 2011 Supreme Court ruling has blocked dozens of class action suits, instead forcing consumers into arbitration.

Woman in Jail for Shooting at Abusive Husband: Why Didn't Stand Your Ground Laws Apply to Her?

Maurice Garland, The Loop 21 — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 14:00:01 PDT

There are major inconsistencies in applications of "Stand Your Ground" laws.

Tracked, Detained at Gunpoint? 3 Americans Assaulted By Our Surveillance State

Amy Goodman, AlterNet — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 11:00:01 PDT

A career government intelligence official, a filmmaker and a hacker have all been targeted by the state, despite not having been charged with a crime.

Supreme Court Asks Hard Questions at Oral Arguments Over Arizona's Extreme Immigration Law

Ben Winograd, Immigration Impact — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 09:00:01 PDT

The justices signalled that this may not be the end of the fight over SB 1070.

Facebook and Google Turned Into Government Spies? The Dangerous New Law Before Congress (CISPA)

Steven Rosenfeld, AlterNet — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 15:00:01 PDT

A private company doing the governmentâ€™s work does not face the same privacy restrictions.

The NYPD Has Become Dangerous--So Why Is A Local Paper Boosting its Leader?

Robert Gangi, AlterNet — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 07:00:01 PDT

Why is a major city paper ignoring the NYPD's dangerous policies?

Voting Rights Uprising: Activists in Three States Help GOP's Targets Get Voter ID

George Bauer, AlterNet — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 17:00:01 PDT

Grassroots groups in Wisconsin, Tennessee and Colorado help GOP targets obtain credentials to vote in 2012.

Wells Fargo, Terrified to Face Victims of Its Foreclosure Fraud and Predatory Lending, Locks Shareholders Out of Annual Meeting

Joshua Holland, AlterNet — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 16:00:01 PDT

The move to lock out shareholders was unprecedented, according to organizers.

Bradley Manning: A Totalitarian Show Trial of State Secrecy

Michael Ratner, Comment Is Free — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 11:00:01 PDT

The US government's suppression of all accountability and transparency in prosecuting the WikiLeaks suspect is totalitarian.

How Christian Groups Push Right-Wing Religion With the Help of Your Tax Dollars

Sofia Resnick, American Independent News Network — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 07:00:01 PDT

Taxpayer-funded crisis pregnancy centers are using religion to oppose abortion, and many of them only hire Christians.

The Fetish of National Security: How America's Worst Crimes Are Perpetrated and Excused

Corey Robin, Oxford University Press — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 00:00:01 PDT

The creed of national security lets governments justify all sorts of crimes against humanity.

Occupy AIDS: ACT UP Celebrates 25 Years by Marching On Wall Street

Michael Bouldin, AlterNet — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 00:00:01 PDT

ACT UP developed a model of direct action that is in many ways a template for Occupy--so it's not surprising that they're joining OWS for a march on Wall Street.

Armchair Warriors: Why Are Conservatives the Biggest Warmongers?

Corey Robin, Oxford University Press — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 08:00:01 PDT

Conservatives in government have fetishized violence. Why?

Made In Our America: Letter to Trayvon Martin

Kevin Powell, AlterNet — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 00:00:01 PDT

Reflections on a boy lost too young, and a culture that allowed it to happen.

Making Our Arrests Count: How We Can Keep Civil Disobedience Meaningful

Yotam Marom, Waging Nonviolence — Sun, 22 Apr 2012 11:00:01 PDT

The question is not if we should practice civil disobedience, but how we can do it in ways that push the struggle forward in effective and healthy ways.

Whistleblower: The NSA is Lying -- The U.S. Government Has Copies of Most of Your Emails

Amy Goodman, Juan Gonzalez, Democracy Now! — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 12:00:01 PDT

NSA whistleblower William Binney believes domestic surveillance has become more expansive under President Obama than President George W. Bush.

Arizona Will Ignore Federal Courtâ€™s Ruling on Restrictive Voter Law

Steven Rosenfeld, AlterNet — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 12:00:01 PDT

State election officials say the Courtâ€™s order only affects federal voter registration formsâ€”not the state version.

Getting Paid 93 Cents a Day in America? Corporations Bring Back the 19th Century

Steve Fraser, Joshua B. Freeman, TomDispatch.com — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 09:00:01 PDT

Nearly a million prisoners are working in call centers, working in slaughterhouses, or manufacturing textiles while getting paid somewhere between 93 cents and $4.73.

Long Time Coming: Trayvon's Law

Jefferson Morley, Salon — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 20:00:01 PDT

For the first time in a decade, Congress holds a hearing on anti-profiling legislation.

How Obama Became a Civil Libertarian's Nightmare

Steven Rosenfeld, AlterNet — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 20:00:01 PDT

Obama has expanded and fortified many of the Bush administration's worst policies.