2021-02-16: News Headlines

Venezuela Analysis (2021-02-16). UN Special Rapporteur blasts 'devastating' and 'illegal' US and EU sanctions against Venezuela. peoplesdispatch.org The United Nations Special Rapporteur on the negative impact of unilateral coercive measures on the enjoyment of human rights has visited Venezuela and blasted Washington's sanctions regime. | Alena Douhan, who was in Venezuela from February 1-12, published her

John Bachtell (2021-02-16). Bill Davis—beloved labor and peace activist, Communist leader—lost to COVID. peoplesworld.org Bill Davis, a long-time trade union and peace activist and Communist Party USA leader, died Jan. 23 in New York while in hospice with COVID-19. He was 78 years old. Davis was a caseworker for the New York City Department of Welfare (later Social Services) and a fixture in the trade union movement. As an …

Nadda Osman (2021-02-16). Egypt: Student anger over in-person exams despite Covid-19. middleeasteye.net Egypt: Student anger over in-person exams despite Covid-19 | Calls for Minister of Higher Education Khaled Abdel Ghaffar to be dismissed over his comments | Tue, 02/16/2021 – 12: 41 | Many have used the minister's comments to highlight the crowded nature of university education and the threat it could pose to the health of students (Screengrab/Social media) | Egypt's Minister of Higher Education Khaled A…

RT (2021-02-16). After being cancelled, Gina Carano's 'Mandalorian' figure sells for big bucks as thousands demand she be rehired by Disney. rt.com Following her firing from Disney's 'The Mandalorian' over conservative social media posts, Gina Carano's support appears to only be growing as her character's action figure is going for hundreds now that it has been discontinued. | Hasbro has announced it will no longer produce figures for Carano's Cara Dune character from the popular Disney Plus series and even revealed this week plans for another production run were scrapped in the wake of her firing. | "Due to recent events, Hasbro was no longer approved to produce any more of this figure," a rep for retailer BigBadToyStore told The Hollywood Reporter. Hasb…

Len Yannielli (2021-02-16). Naugatuck, Conn. students keep Black Lives Matter fight going. peoplesworld.org NAUGATUCK, Conn.—What do the police killing of George Floyd and Naugatuck, Conn., have in common? Plenty. In June 2020, there was a March of 1,100 people in Naugatuck in solidarity with the many George Floyd protests and Black Lives Matter (BLM) marches across the country. It gave birth to the peace and solidarity group Naugatuck …

Binoy Kampmark (2021-02-16). Trouble in Vaccine Land: The Wiliness of South Africa's Coronavirus Variant. counterpunch.org It began as a shudder through the scientific and public health establishments. A new variant of the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 had been found, mutating in South African climes, potentially outwitting human responses to it. Vaccines such as Oxford-AstraZeneca's would have to be brushed up. Rollouts would have to be reconsidered. The South African variant has been

Mark Gruenberg (2021-02-16). Overcoming company hurdles, 6,000 Amazon workers start union recognition vote. peoplesworld.org BESSEMER, Ala. (PAI)—Overcoming one final company-crafted hurdle, almost 6,000 workers—most of them Black in a 70% Black city—at the Amazon warehouse in Bessemer, Ala., are now voting by mail on whether to unionize. Final results of the balloting, on whether the workers will join the Retail, Wholesale, and Department Store Union (RWDSU), a sector of …

Marc Norton (2021-02-16). Super Bowl for Sports Team Billionaires: SF Giants owner rakes in $815 million during the pandemic. dissidentvoice.org Oracle Park The assets of Charles Johnson, the controversial chief owner of the San Francisco Giants, increased by $815 million during the COVID-19 pandemic. In March 2020, his net worth was a mere $4.2 billion dollars. By January 2021 he commanded a fortune of $5.015 billion, an increase just short of 20%. Workers at Oracle …

Will Weissert, Alexandra Jaffe (2021-02-16). Workers press Biden to fight for $15 minimum wage. peoplesworld.org WASHINGTON (AP)—Union activist Terrence Wise recalls being laughed at when he began pushing for a national $15 per hour minimum wage almost a decade ago. Nearly a year into the pandemic, the idea isn't so funny. The coronavirus has renewed focus on challenges facing hourly employees who have continued working in grocery stores, gas stations, …

Eds. (2021-02-16). States have no inherent 'right to exist'—but it's a media fixation on Israel/Palestine. mronline.org No state has an intrinsic "right to exist." As international relations scholar Scott Burchill points out, there is no abstract "right to exist" in international law, or in "any serious theory of international relations."

MEE staff (2021-02-16). Israel court rules to expel six Palestinian families from East Jerusalem homes. middleeasteye.net Israel court rules to expel six Palestinian families from East Jerusalem homes | The eviction affects 27 people, in a decision NGO Peace Now says is aimed at dispossessing the Palestinian community of Sheikh Jarrah in favour of settlers | Tue, 02/16/2021 – 14: 04 | Protesters near the house of a Palestinian family, which an Israeli court had ordered to be evicted while declaring Israeli settlers to be the lega…

Walter Smolarek (2021-02-16). Impeachment fiasco: Trumpism gets new lease on life. liberationnews.org Because of the approach adopted by the Democratic Party in the wake of the Jan. 6 attack, Trump's acquittal was essentially a forgone conclusion.

Joe Piette (2021-02-16). Philadelphians demand COVID safety. workers.org Several dozen teachers, parents and community activists protested outside Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenny's home on Feb 12. They were demanding city officials not reopen schools for in-person teaching — until all teachers are vaccinated and all schools are properly ventilated. Educators continue to teach virtually until an arbitrator rules on . . . |

Alethea Redfern (2021-02-16). The Weekly Round-up: Phase 2 of the Grenfell Inquiry. ukhumanrightsblog.com In the News: Having been temporarily suspended in early January as a result of an increase in COVID-19 cases, the Grenfell Tower Inquiry hearings resumed on 8 February 2021. The fire killed 72 people. The hearings are being conducted remotely using a Zoom-based video platform, which the Inquiry describes as "a temporary measure to be …

Medea Benjamin, Nicolas J. S. Davies (2021-02-16). Is Biden Committing Diplomatic Suicide Over the Iran Nuclear Agreement? counterpunch.org As Congress still struggles to pass a COVID relief bill, the rest of the world is nervously reserving judgment on America's new president and his foreign policy, after successive U.S. administrations have delivered unexpected and damaging shocks to the world and the international system. Cautious international optimism toward Biden is very much based on his

RT (2021-02-16). Russian-made Sputnik V and EpiVacCorona vaccines are effective against UK variant of coronavirus — watchdog. rt.com Russia's Sputnik V and EpiVacCorona vaccines have been proven to be effective against the UK variant of the coronavirus, a government agency has said. | Serum obtained from people who took the Sputnik V and EpiVacCorona vaccines and had antibodies to the novel coronavirus, demonstrated a "protective effect" against the UK variant, Russia's consumer protection agency, Rospotrebnadzor, said in a statement to the media. | It added that the vaccines have shown to be just as good against the British strain as they are against the ordinary SARS-CoV-2 virus, which causes Covid-19. | The research was carried out by th…

MEE and agencies (2021-02-16). Protesters in Algeria defy Covid-19 ban to mark second anniversary of uprising. middleeasteye.net Protesters in Algeria defy Covid-19 ban to mark second anniversary of uprising | Demonstrators marched in the town of Kherrata, which activists view as the birthplace of the Hirak movement | Tue, 02/16/2021 – 13: 28 | Protestors chanted anti-government slogans and held Algerian and Berber flags as they marked the second anniversary of the Hirak movement (AFP) | Hundreds of Algerians defied…

Global Research News (2021-02-16). Selected Articles: The Reshaping of Global Agriculture. globalresearch.ca By Western countries, including Canada, are using experimental mRNA injections in nursing homes, on the most vulnerable of people. …

Staff (2021-02-16). Andrés Arauz: Ecuador's Presidential Front-Runner on COVID, Austerity & Ending U.S. Interference. democracynow.org Ecuador's presidential front-runner says the country is facing a "double crisis" of COVID-19 and austerity. "We need a renewal in our politics," Andrés Arauz tells Democracy Now! The left-wing economist secured nearly 33% of the vote in the first round of Ecuador's presidential election on February 7 but fell short of the 40% needed to win outright. He will face right-wing banker Guillermo Lasso or Indigenous candidate Yaku Pérez in a runoff election on April 11, depending on the results of a recount after both candidates secured just over 19% of the vote. Arauz has pledged to end austerity measures imposed by Ec…

Gary Leupp (2021-02-16). The Trump Cult and Its Future. counterpunch.org I am quite sure the majority of Trump supporters do not embrace the "theory" that the Democratic leaders are pedophile cannibal satanists whom Trump sought to destroy, to protect the children. An amazing minority do, constituting a robust and vital idiot stratum within the Trump coalition. (It is not clear however what QAnon will play

Staff (2021-02-16). The Case for Prosecuting Trump: Elie Mystal on Why Criminal Charges Are Still Possible — and Needed. democracynow.org Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi says she has authorized a 9/11-style commission to further investigate the January 6 insurrection and the actions that led up to it, as calls grow for the criminal prosecution of former President Donald Trump after his acquittal in his second Senate impeachment trial. The Nation's justice correspondent Elie Mystal says House impeachment managers presented "a fairly compelling case for criminal liability" for Donald Trump over the January 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. "I think there's a case for indictment. I think we should at least try," he says.

Bernard Nicolas (2021-02-16). We Need to Talk About Judas. counterpunch.org The new film, Judas and the Black Messiah, is worth seeing, talking about and analyzing with a variety of historical lenses. The historical lenses include the history of Black Cinema, revolutionary cinema, African American history and the history of political repression in the US in general. Every once in a while, an important political film

Moira Casados Cassidy (2021-02-16). Karen Lewis and the class-conscious union. liberationnews.org In a moment of crisis, Karen Lewis and the CORE caucus reinvigorated class consciousness in teachers' unions.

Phelan Acheson (2021-02-16). Catastrophe Capitalism in America. realprogressives.org What is the meaning of "catastrophic" anyways? The sheer amount of death, suffering and misery caused by the neoliberal world order serving the whims of transnational capital is unending. It's so normalized that most people don't even consider the depravity; most people can't, since it's too much to handle. But is It catastrophic? | We're told, "communism killed 100,000,000 in a century" whenever the conversation about making things remotely better or changing our system comes up. Even if that claim, which comes from thinkers and historians diametrically opposed to communism, were true, capitalism kills 20,000…

Peoples Dispatch (2021-02-16). Police arrest Spanish rapper Pablo Hasel. peoplesdispatch.org The Spanish national court served a notice to rapper Pablo Hasel in January asking him to surrender within ten days to face imprisonment. Hasel was convicted on charges of "glorifying terrorism, insulting the crown and state institutions" and faces a two-year prison term.

Olivia Rosane (2021-02-16). Child slavery lawsuit targets Hershey, Nestlé, Mars and other chocolate giants. peoplesworld.org Many people give chocolates as a symbol of love on Valentine's Day, but for some, the popular candy is more bitter than sweet. A human rights group filed a lawsuit Friday on behalf of eight Malian men who say they were trafficked across the border to the Cote D'Ivoire and forced to harvest cocoa for …

Eds. (2021-02-16). Biden's first directive to the war machine. mronline.org In his first presidential visit to the Pentagon yesterday, Joe Biden announced the creation of an anti-China task force.

Karl Grossman (2021-02-16). Nuclear Rockets to Mars? counterpunch.org A report advocating rocket propulsion by nuclear power for U.S. missions to Mars, written by a committee packed with individuals deeply involved in nuclear power, was issued last week by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine. | The 104-page report also lays out "synergies" in space nuclear activities between the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and the U.S. military, something not advanced explicitly since the founding of NASA as a civilian agency supposedly in 1958.

Jill Marlowe (2021-02-16). Gulf Coast faces high eviction rates, despite CDC moratorium. liberationnews.org Eviction rates in the Southeast region are exceeding national levels.

Otis Grotewohl (2021-02-16). Karen Lewis, 1953-2021: Lessons from a teacher, leader and courageous fighter. workers.org The global working-class, Black liberation and labor movements lost a courageous fighter when Karen Lewis — former president of the Chicago Teachers Union (CTU), who famously led a militant, seven-day strike in 2012 — passed away Feb. 7 after a long battle with cancer. Karen Lewis. Credit: John W. Iwanski . . . |

G. Dunkel (2021-02-16). Haiti: The masses are still in the streets. workers.org A twitter post showed hundreds of students taking to the streets of Delmas, near Port-au-Prince, on the morning of Feb. 13, some carrying pictures of former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide. They were demanding President Jovenel MoàØse, a U.S. puppet, leave office, especially since his term was over Feb. 7. A much . . . |

Eds. (2021-02-16). Immigration enforcement and the afterlife of the slave ship. mronline.org Coast Guard techniques for blocking Haitian asylum seekers have their roots in the slave trade. Understanding these connections can help us disentangle immigration policy from white nationalism.

Lyn Neeley (2021-02-16). Oregon care workers dare to strike. workers.org In Springfield, Ore., essential health workers at The Rawlin at Riverbend Memory Care facility have set a Feb. 16 strike deadline to demand union recognition in order to improve staffing, training and turnover — and save residents' lives. They are leading the way for workers throughout their community and the . . . |

Steve Sweeney (2021-02-16). Scientists on WHO mission to Wuhan accuse media of biased reportage. mronline.org The U.S. government and many media outlets have queried WHO findings that do not corroborate theories promoted by Washington, such as the virus escaping from a Chinese laboratory.

Mark Engler, Paul Engler (2021-02-16). It's a Myth that Presidents Welcome Movement Pressure — and Biden is No Different. counterpunch.org In early 2009, as Barack Obama prepared to move into the White House, a particular historical anecdote rapidly gained in popularity, repeated in dozens of talks and articles as a parable for how supporters should respond to the new president taking office. The story related a New Deal-era encounter between Franklin Delano Roosevelt and a group of activists, usually said to have been led by A. Philip Randolph of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters. In the meeting, the advocates laid out a vision of bold action for change that the president could advance with his bully pulpit and his executive power. FDR listen…

Ramzy Baroud (2021-02-16). Europe Will Redefine Itself Despite Political Shift in the US. dissidentvoice.org Despite the long-awaited political change in Washington as Democratic President, Joe Biden, has officially become the 46th President of the United States, Europe is unlikely to resume its previously unhindered reliance on its trans-Atlantic partner. The four years of Donald Trump were rife with tension and strife between the US and Europe — in fact, …

Jeremiah Smith (2021-02-16). Mississippi laws threaten protesters with jail. liberationnews.org In Mississippi, the first of these anti-protest laws was passed in June. The law threatens individuals who protest oil and gas pipelines or other "critical infrastructure" projects with up to 7 years in prison and a $10,000 fine.

Ariel Dorfman (2021-02-16). How Spanish Can Help Us Survive Viral Times. counterpunch.org "Una nación bajo Diós, indivisible, con libertad y justicia para todos." When Jennifer López shouted out that last line of the Pledge of Allegiance in Spanish during Joe Biden's inauguration ceremony, like so many Spanish-speaking Latinos in the United States I felt a sense of pride, a sense of arrival. It was a joy to hear my

Eric A. Gordon (2021-02-16). 'Agent Sonya,' a biography of intrepid antifa spy Ursula Kuczynski. peoplesworld.org Ben MacIntyre, a British writer for The London Times, is known to spy thriller fans as the author of meticulously researched biographies of famous 20th-century spies. The latest in his series is a comprehensive biography of Jewish German-born Ursula Kuczynski, later also known as Ursula Hamburger, Ursula Beurton, and Ruth Werner. Born in 1907, Ursula …

MEE staff (2021-02-16). Israeli cabinet holds urgent, unscheduled meeting on Syria: Reports. middleeasteye.net Israeli cabinet holds urgent, unscheduled meeting on Syria: Reports | Details of meeting were banned from publication at request of Israeli defence minister Benny Gantz | Tue, 02/16/2021 – 19: 02 | An Israeli flag is seen placed on Mount Bental in the occupied Golan Heights on 10 May 2018 (AFP/File photo) | Israel's cabinet convened for an unscheduled meeting on Tuesday for urgent discussions regarding a human…

MEE staff (2021-02-16). Gideon Saar suspends Lincoln Project advisors amid sexual harassment scandal. middleeasteye.net Gideon Saar suspends Lincoln Project advisors amid sexual harassment scandal | Netanyahu rival's polling has flagged since anti-Trump campaigners came on board | Tue, 02/16/2021 – 15: 42 | Israeli politician Gideon Saar talks to reporters during a visit to an outdoor shopping centre in city of Raanana near Tel Aviv, 8 February 2021 (AFP) | Gideon Saar, one of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's chief r…

Mohammad Ayesh (2021-02-16). Arabic press review: Bahrain formed anti-revolution lobby in Washington in 2011. middleeasteye.net Arabic press review: Bahrain formed anti-revolution lobby in Washington in 2011 | Meanwhile, UK holds talks with Yemen's Houthis, Sudan plans handing over Bashir to ICC and a cash-strapped Jordanian writer sells personal library | Tue, 02/16/2021 – 11: 52 | Bahrain registered its anti-revolution lobby on 15 March 2011, a day after the GCC agreed to deploy troops to counter mass protests (Reuters…

MEE staff (2021-02-16). UAE: Secret recordings emerge of 'hostage' Princess Latifa. middleeasteye.net UAE: Secret recordings emerge of 'hostage' Princess Latifa | The BBC has obtained new videos of the princess, who claims she is being held captive by her father, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum | Tue, 02/16/2021 – 16: 36 | Dubai's Princess Latifa al-Maktoum said in a video published in March 2018 that she had run away (Screengrab) | Footage made public by the BBC on Tuesday showed Dubai's Princess Latifa…

MEE staff (2021-02-16). Biden to communicate with Saudi Arabia via King Salman, bypassing MBS. middleeasteye.net Biden to communicate with Saudi Arabia via King Salman, bypassing MBS | White House press secretary says move represents return to 'counterpart to counterpart' diplomacy, regarding King Salman as rightful Saudi leader | Tue, 02/16/2021 – 20: 49 | Since taking office, the Biden administration has been pressuring Saudi Arabia to improve its human rights record (AFP/File photo) | President Joe Biden plans to shif…

MEE staff (2021-02-16). Egypt arrests relatives of US-based rights advocate Mohamed Soltan. middleeasteye.net Egypt arrests relatives of US-based rights advocate Mohamed Soltan | Egyptian authorities are arresting Soltan's relatives to 'intimidate him into silence', his lawyer says | Tue, 02/16/2021 – 16: 58 | This is not the first time Egyptian security forces have targeted Soltan's family members (MEE/File photo) | Egyptian security forces arrested several members of Egyptian-American activist Mohamed Soltan's famil…

MEE staff (2021-02-16). Israel threatens to forge own path on Iran if US revives nuclear deal. middleeasteye.net Israel threatens to forge own path on Iran if US revives nuclear deal | Ambassador Gilad Erdan says if US were to lift 'crippling' sanctions, Iran will have 'no real incentive to negotiate' | Tue, 02/16/2021 – 15: 23 | Israeli Ambassador Gilad Erdan (R) stressed that without sanctions and a 'credible military threat', Iran will have no motive to negotiate over its nuclear programme (AFP/File photo) | The Israe…

MEE staff (2021-02-16). Saudi Arabia issues ultimatum to foreign companies to move regional HQs to kingdom. middleeasteye.net Saudi Arabia issues ultimatum to foreign companies to move regional HQs to kingdom | The announcement, which comes amid an economic slump in the kingdom, could create friction with UAE | Tue, 02/16/2021 – 12: 56 | Cars drive past the King Abdullah Financial District in the Saudi capital Riyadh on 18 December 2018 (Reuters) | Saudi Arabia is to stop signing contracts with companies whose regional headquarters a…

Dana Taib Menmy (2021-02-16). Iraq: US forces hit in rocket attack that kills contractor. middleeasteye.net Iraq: US forces hit in rocket attack that kills contractor | US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said he was outraged by the deadly raid | Tue, 02/16/2021 – 08: 59 | A man lies in a hospital bed after being injured during Monday's rocket attack on US-led forces at Erbil international airport (Reuters) | A rocket attack in northern Iraq killed a contractor and wounded several others, includi…

MEE staff (2021-02-16). US urges Yemen's Houthis to join peace talks, stop assault on government stronghold. middleeasteye.net US urges Yemen's Houthis to join peace talks, stop assault on government stronghold | State Department strongly urges Houthi movement to stop its attacks on oil-rich Marib, where deadly offensive threatens lives of millions of civilians | Tue, 02/16/2021 – 16: 31 | Forces loyal to Yemen's Saudi-backed government get into position during clashes with Houthi rebel fighters, northwest of Marib in central Yemen on…

_____ (2021-02-16). US, OAS, Colombia Try To Steal Ecuador's election. popularresistance.org Guayaquil, Ecuador – A popular socialist candidate, Andrés Arauz, won the first round of Ecuador's historic presidential election by a landslide on February 7. The leftist's overwhelming victory prompted the US State Department, the right-wing government of neighboring Colombia, and the Organization of American States (OAS) to mobilize to prevent him from entering office. | Arauz won the first round of the election with 33 percent of the vote, a full 13 percent greater than the second-place candidate, conservative banker Guillermo Lasso. His opponents are now seeking to force a vote recount under the supervision…