ACTIVE NONVIOLENCE AND PEACEMAKING |
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Research Finds Black Lives Matter Protesters Were Overwhelmingly Peaceful
When the Department of Homeland Security released its Homeland Threat Assessment earlier this month, it emphasized that self-proclaimed white supremacist groups are the most dangerous threat to U.S. security. But the report misleadingly added that there had been “over 100 days of violence and destruction in our cities,” referring to the anti-racism uprisings of this past summer. In fact, the Black Lives Matter uprisings were remarkably nonviolent. MORE
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How US Cities Are Preparing for a Potentially Bloody Summer of Gun Violence
An unrelenting surge in gun violence and murder is gripping American cities even before the habitual summer spike in crime, leaving police brass from New York to New Orleans scrambling for solutions. With states lifting Covid-19 restrictions and more people out in warmer weather, US cities are preparing for a potentially bloody summer by bulking up patrols in high-crime neighborhoods, putting rookie officers on the streets, and increasing overtime spending. MORE
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Women in Russia and the US Show an Alternative to War
A historic meeting between Reagan and Gorbachev took place in Geneva in 1985, starting the process of nuclear disarmament. The women of both countries played an enormous role, which is often forgotten. Women met one another, creating joint projects and programs, some of which are still active today. The American and Russian women who remember the danger of the Cold War understand the stakes of this year’s summit. MORE
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Iran Says It Has Broad Agreement with the US on Lifting Sanctions
Iran said it has reached a broad agreement with the U.S. over the lifting of sanctions on its industrial sectors but warned there was “very little time left” for world powers to revive a nuclear deal. World powers are trying to revive the 2015 agreement that the U.S. abandoned three years ago which restricted Tehran’s atomic activities in return for sanctions relief. MORE
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Biden and Putin Expected to Make Headway on Nuclear Talks
Expectations are low that Joe Biden and Vladimir Putin can reach any significant accommodation during their first presidential summit this week in Geneva — with one possible exception: nuclear arms control. Washington and Moscow have publicly expressed a desire to use the summit to reestablish formal talks on an exigent issue they have traditionally sought to shield from their many disputes. MORE
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U.S. Aid to Central America Hasn’t Slowed Migration. Can Kamala Harris?
As the Biden administration promises to increase aid to Central America, it must reckon with the fact that U.S. aid programs designed to reduce poverty and stem migration have largely failed over the past decade. Experts say one of the reasons aid programs have failed is because funds are often handed to American contractors who sometimes invest up to 50% of aid money in overhead costs, including salaries for executives. MORE
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Border Apprehensions Remain at Historic Levels
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has released its operational statistics for the month of May and revealed that it was the third straight month in which apprehensions of people attempting to enter the country illegally continued at the highest level in over two decades. MORE
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Panic Attacks Highlight Stress at Shelters for Migrant Kids
Paramedics were regularly called to treat migrant children suffering from panic attacks at a U.S. emergency shelter at Fort Bliss Army Base in Texas. The conditions described by a federal volunteer show the desperation and stress suffered by thousands of migrant youths in an unlicensed facility as they await reunion with relatives. MORE
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TAKE ACTION: Support a Healthy Planet and Healthy People
At the UN Biodiversity Conference (COP15) in October, world leaders can set meaningful targets to protect creation. In November, at the 26th UN Climate Change Conference (COP26), countries will announce their plans to meet the goals of the Paris agreement. The Global Catholic Climate Movement invites us to tell world leaders to use these meetings to set goals to limit global warming, support those most affected, and protect human rights. TAKE ACTION
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Collapse of Infrastructure Talks Puts Climate Action at Risk
The collapse of negotiations between President Biden and Senate Republicans for an infrastructure bill has complicated the prospects for Biden’s climate agenda, the New York Times reports. Republican and Democratic lawmakers continue to argue over the billions of dollars in the plan intended to help the country pivot away from fossil fuels. MORE
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Developer Pulls the Plug on Keystone XL Oil Pipeline
The developer of the Keystone XL pipeline announced last week that it is pulling the plug on the controversial project after the Biden administration revoked its permit in January. TC Energy, the Canadian company behind the project, said it decided to terminate the project after a comprehensive review of its options and consultation with the government of Alberta, Canada. MORE
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TAKE ACTION: End Child Exploitation in Cocoa
Child slavery and child labor have plagued the cocoa industry in Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana —which produce 60% of the world’s cocoa—for decades. Despite promises from the world’s largest chocolate companies to eradicate the problem, evidence reveals that they have fallen far short. Freedom United urges us to call on the world’s top chocolate companies to take concrete steps to address child slavery and child labor. TAKE ACTION
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Women and Children with Disabilities Are Particularly Vulnerable to Abuse
Years ago, people believed that human trafficking was something that only occurred in other countries. We now know that trafficking can and does occur everywhere and anyone can be a victim. Even with this increased awareness, people generally remain largely unaware of a population affected by trafficking at an alarming rate: people with disabilities. MORE
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DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND SEXUAL ASSAULT |
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TAKE ACTION: Protect Immigrant Victims of Domestic Violence
Victims of domestic violence face barriers to finding safety when their immigration status is dependent on their abuser. Stronger protections are needed to ensure that victims of domestic violence are not forced to choose between staying in an abusive situation or leaving the country. The National Advocacy Center urges us to tell our Senators to protect immigrant victims of domestic violence in the next Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) Reauthorization. TAKE ACTION
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The Many Ways Domestic Violence Foreshadows Mass Shootings
Perpetrators of some of the country’s deadliest shootings have had domestic violence charges, incidents, or allegations in their backgrounds. A new study released late last month further solidifies the connection between domestic violence and a propensity for future, public acts of violence. Researchers found that in 68 percent of mass shootings, the perpetrator either killed an intimate partner or a family member, or had a history of domestic violence. MORE
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HUMAN RIGHTS AND INCOME INEQUALITY |
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How the Wealthiest Avoid Income Tax
Jeff Bezos, then a multibillionaire and now the world’s richest man, did not pay a penny in federal income taxes in 2007 or 2011. In 2018, Elon Musk, the second-richest person in the world, also paid no federal income taxes. Internal Revenue Service data on the tax returns of thousands of the nation’s wealthiest people show that the wealthiest can — perfectly legally — pay income taxes that are only a tiny fraction of their growing fortunes each year. MORE
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Why Do Some People See Inequality Where Others Don’t?
People with contrasting beliefs about social hierarchy can look at the same situation and see different things. Research shows that people who hold less socially egalitarian views are less aware of signs of inequality. Social egalitarians, by comparison, are much more alert to inequality—but only when it affects marginalized groups. However, when it affects dominant or majority group members, they are no more attuned than non-egalitarians. MORE
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Work Rules for SNAP Benefits Don’t Lead to More People Working, Study Finds
A new study finds that work requirements to qualify for SNAP don’t always lead to more people working — instead, they can have the opposite effect. The researchers found no evidence that people are any more likely to start working when they lose SNAP benefits. Almost a quarter of people who are on SNAP end up losing their SNAP benefits as a direct result of work requirement implementation - which leads to greater food insecurity. MORE
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Brad Sigmon is scheduled to be executed on June 18 by the state of South Carolina for the murders of David Larke and Gladys Larke. Please hold Brad, David, Gladys, their families, and the people of South Carolina in prayer. TAKE ACTION
Freddie Owens is scheduled to be executed on June 25 by the state of South Carolina for the murder of Irene Graves. Please hold Freddie, Irene, their families, and the people of South Carolina in prayer. TAKE ACTION
John Hummel is scheduled to be executed on June 30 by the state of Texas for the murders of Joy Hummel and Clyde Bedford. Please hold John, Joy, Clyde, their families and the people of Texas in prayer. TAKE ACTION
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