In “John Lewis: A Life,” David Greenberg recounts how the late Democratic congressman reacted after Republicans scored a landslide victory in the 1994 election. A staffer hoped Lewis would buoy her spirits and tell her there was a silver lining. Lewis instead told her, “There is no silver lining.” Exchanges like this that reveal moments … Read more
In August, the Taliban published “vice and virtue” laws that banned women’s voices being heard in public. Weeks later, more than 130 women travelled to Tirana in Albania to attend the All Afghan Women summit to talk about the Taliban’s human rights abuses. The Guardian reporter Annie Kelly spoke to Afghan women at the conference … Read more
ATLANTA — A range of stars from the stage, screen and sport paid tribute Tuesday to former President Jimmy Carter ahead of his 100th birthday, the eclectic lineup meant to highlight the 39th president’s emphasis on human rights and his love of music as a universal language. “Everyone here is making history,” Jason Carter, the … Read more
Itamar Ben-Gvir, Israel’s far-right national security minister, has presided over a transformation of the country’s prison system. The human rights group B’Tselem has described the jails as “torture camps” where abuse is systemic. The Guardian’s Jerusalem correspondent, Bethan McKernan, has spoken to some former prisoners about their experience. “Almost every detainee described similar things,” Bethan … Read more
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — A federal judge has ruled that Florida’s transgender health care ban discriminates against state employees and violates their civil rights. Chief U.S. District Judge Mark Walker ruled Thursday that the state’s ban violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which protects employees and job applicants from employment discrimination based … Read more
NEW YORK — Black music traditions such as jazz are central to celebrations of Juneteenth, says civil rights lawyer and jazz pianist Bryan Stevenson. That’s why he and Pulitzer Prize-winning jazz artist Wynton Marsalis have debuted “Freedom, Justice and Hope,” a live performance album of historic jazz records created to protest racial injustice, in time … Read more
The maximum-security facility in Tecoluca, designed to hold 40,000 prisoners. The government of El Salvador has released a series of photographs offering a glimpse into the conditions within the country’s recently built mega-prison. Located in Tecoluca, the Centre for the Confinement of Terrorism (CECOT) is a maximum-security facility aimed at detaining the top-ranking and most … Read more
PARIS — The audience in Paris stood to applaud Tommie Smith, more than 50 years after he took a stand for civil rights. A second ovation was even longer, and the 80-year-old Olympic champion seemed overwhelmed with emotion. He lowered his head, clasped it in his hands and wept for several moments. He had just … Read more
WASHINGTON ― After nearly 50 years in prison, Native American rights activist Leonard Peltier is about to get what may be his last chance at freedom. Peltier, 79, is up for a parole hearing on Monday. His last parole hearing was in 2009. Given his poor health and the many years he’d likely have to … Read more
Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones is seeking court permission to convert his personal bankruptcy reorganization to a liquidation, which would lead to a sell-off of a large portion of his assets to help pay some of the $1.5 billion he owes relatives of victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. Jones and his media company, … Read more
