Group: Palestinian women often abused (AP)

" RAMALLAH, West Bank - A new report presents an alarming picture of the abuse of women in the Palestinian territories, with police, courts and government agencies failing to treat violence such as rape and beatings as a crime. Human Rights Watch cited practices such as rape...

Voting Fraud Hotline

From one of our members' blogs: a phone number to report election fraud (and a protest): "Massive Sit In at the White House Nov. 4 - 9, Join those convening on the White House on election day and the day after - it is time we take back our First Amendment rights to peaceably...

Kings criticize civil rights museum site (AP)

" ATLANTA - Two of Martin Luther King Jr.'s children say a proposed civil rights museum should be near their father's grave instead of in the city's tourism hub. The 2.5-acre site that Coca-Cola Co. offered two weeks ago for the museum is near the Georgia Aquarium, the CNN...

EU calls off Cyprus talks ahead of rights report

Finland, which holds the presidency of the European Union, suffered a setback today in its attempts to negotiate a settlement of the Cypriot problem: both Ankara and its client regime in northern Cyprus set up new stumbling blocks to a resolution of the ports and human...

Iraqi women's rights champion murdered (AFP)

" KIRKUK, Iraq (AFP) - Gunmen broke into the house of an Iraqi women's rights campaigner and shot her dead in front of her three children, police have said. Human rights activists say the lives of women in Iraqi society have worsened dramatically since the US-led invasion of...

NJ justices rule in favor of gay couples - Detroit Free Press

" Legislators told to decide particulars within 6 months Email this Print this FREE PRESS NEWS SERVICES Saundra Toby-Heath, left, is a plaintiff in the gay rights case ruled on by the N.J. Supreme Court. She wants to marry the Rev. Alicia Heath-Toby, right, a pastor of...

CIA tried to silence European complaints about torture

From the "proud-to-be-an-American" files:"The CIA tried to persuade Germany to silence EU protests about the human rights record of one of America's key allies in its clandestine torture flights programme, the Guardian can reveal.According to a secret intelligence report, the...

The real goal of the ACLU

"The real goal of the ACLU is to diminish the constitutional rights of American citizens. The ACLU founder and executive director from 1920 to 1950, Roger Baldwin, described the Soviet Union as a "great laboratory of social experimentation of incalculable value to the...

NJ Court Backs Rights for Gay Unions - New York Times

" By LAURA MANSNERUS The State Supreme Court in New Jersey said today that same-sex couples are entitled to the same rights and benefits enjoyed by opposite-sex couples under the civil marriage statutes. But the court, in its 4-3 ruling, that whether that status would be...

Say Goodbye to Japanese Content on YouTube

"Remember all of those great clips of wacky Japanese TV shows? What about Japanese anime and movies? According to ArsTechnica, the Japan Society for Rights of Authors, Composers and Publishers (JASRAC), has ordered YouTube to remove around 30,000 unauthorized videos. This is...

Today in history - Oct. 20

"Today is Friday, Oct. 20, the 293rd day of 2006. There are 72 days left in the year. Today's Highlight in History: On Oct. 20, 1944, during World War II, Gen. Douglas MacArthur stepped ashore at Leyte in the Philippines, 2 1/2 years after he'd said, "I shall return." On this...

Detainees to get military trials - Detroit Free Press

" • ACROSS THE NATION • Blair targets veil of Muslims Today's top stories • Behind the scenes at Comerica Park • Civil rights proposal has voters conflicted • MICHAEL ROSENBERG: Good pitch, no hit • Guzzling Tiger Beer catches on in Detroit...