Sunday, May 31, 2020
US Border Patrol Denounced as 'Rogue Agency' for Using Predator Drone to Spy on Minneapolis Protests
"This is what happens when leaders sign blank check after blank check to militarize police, CBP, etc while letting violence go unchecked."
by
Eoin Higgins, staff writer
https://www.commondreams.org/news/2020/05/29/us-border-patrol-denounced-rogue-agency-using-predator-drone-spy-minneapolis
Civil liberties advocates sounded the alarm Friday after reporting indicated Customs and Border Protection has been flying an unmanned Predator drone over Minneapolis as the city continues to roil with protest over the police killing of George Floyd earlier this week
Motherboard on Friday afternoon credited ADS-B Exchange, which tracks open source flight data of aircraft worldwide, for images showing what the monitoring group identified as a government drone circling the city."This is what happens when leaders sign blank check after blank check to militarize police, CBP, etc while letting violence go unchecked," tweeted Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.). "We need answers. And we need to defund."
"The drone took off from the Air Force Base before making several hexagonal-shaped flyovers around Minneapolis, according to the data," Motherboard reported.
"No government agency should be facilitating the over-policing of the Black community, period," the ACLU's senior legislative counsel Neema Singh Guliani said in a statement. "And CBP has no role in what's happening in Minneapolis at all."
Investigative reporter Jason Paladino was apparently the first to notice the flight path of CBP-104, described by Motherboard as "a drone with a history":
In a 2007 Popular Mechanics article, author Jeff Wise names that aircraft as a Predator. "CBP-104 has no pilot on board. The plane is a Predator B, a sophisticated unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)," the article says, describing a surveillance action on the U.S.-Mexico border.
CBP-104 is also named in daily drone flight logs from CBP from 2012, published by the Electronic Frontier Foundation. The drone's activities at the time included collecting synthetic-aperture radar imagery and full-motion video to aid in actions such as surveilling the border, as well as surveilling and busting cannabis grow ops and methamphetamine labs. In one instance, the logs note that the drone continued to circle and feed video to officers until every suspect in a lab raid was arrested. According to the logs, this ongoing surveillance "played an invaluable role" in the arrests.
While CBP flying the drone over the city raised eyebrows, the city falls in the agency's purview, as Gizmodo 's Tom McKay and Dhruv Mehrotra explained.
"Minneapolis technically falls within the 100 air mile border zone where CBP has jurisdiction," wrote McKay and Mehrotra, "an area that encompasses just shy of two-thirds of the nation's population."
Critics pointed to the usage of the aircraft as indicative of a surveillance culture that has grown out of control in recent years.
"I can't tell you how many times, when I was working on police drone policy, law enforcement reps would get upset over the use of the word 'drone,'" tweeted Freedom of the Press advocacy director Parker Higgins. "Like, very specifically saying, it's not going to be Predator drones over protests."
The ACLU's Guliani pointed to CBP's record on civil liberties as a warning against allowing the agency to monitor the demonstrations.
"This rogue agency's use of military technology to surveil protesters inside U.S. borders is deeply disturbing, especially given CBP's lack of clear and strong policies to protect privacy and constitutional rights," she said. "This agency's use of drones over the city should be halted immediately."
The drone appeared to leave the area around 1:10pm EST.
Motherboard senior editor Janus Rose noted on Twitter a sinister aspect of the story suggesting CBP wanted the drone to be seen.
"Quick note about the predator drone from an ex-military intel source: these aircraft typically leave their ADS-B transponders off when flying missions, so they won't appear to civilian air traffic monitors," said Rose. "CBP wanted us to know it was there."
Amid Global Pandemic—With Nearly 363,000 Dead—Trump Terminates US Ties With the World Health Organization
"When every single country in the world is able to work with the WHO, except for one whose president advocates treating coronavirus with bleach and UV light, who do you think is at fault?"
by
Jon Queally, staff writer
https://www.commondreams.org/news/2020/05/29/amid-global-pandemic-nearly-363000-dead-trump-terminates-us-ties-world-health
President Donald Trump at a White House press conference on Friday announced he was "terminating" ties to the World Health Organization, even as the global death toll from the coronavirus pandemic nears 363,000—including the more than 100,000 dead from the virus in the United States, many attributed to his own mismanagement of the crisis.
While bashing China for "having total control" over the international organization that is based in Geneva, Trump said that because of its refusal to submit to reforms demanded by the White House, "we will be today terminating our relationship with the World Health Organization and redirecting those funds to other worldwide and deserving urgent global public health needs."
Watch:
Not surrounded by his Covid-19 Task Force that includes trusted public health officials like Dr. Anthony Fauci, Trump made the announcement surrounded by top cabinet members, including Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, and U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer.
According to the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center's database, the global death toll from the pandemic sat at 362,554 on Friday afternoon just as Trump was speaking, with 102,201 of those in the United States—the country with the highest number of deaths, by far.
Trump has repeatedly deflected blame onto the WHO to mask his own failures, according to critics, many of whom pointed to Friday's development as the logical conclusion of what the U.S. president has been doing since the pandemic began nearly three months ago:
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"There is one rogue state in the world, and humanity would be better off if it terminated its relationship with existence," said journalist Ajit Singh in terse response to Trump's announcement.
"When every single country in the world is able to work with the WHO, except for one whose president advocates treating coronavirus with bleach and UV light," Singh added, "who do you think is at fault?"
'Never Seen Anything Like This': Watch Police Arrest CNN Journalist and Camera Crew During Live TV Coverage of George Floyd Protests
"They arrested a CNN reporter and camera crew for reporting the news but not Derek Chauvin, the police officer who killed George Floyd on camera."
by
Jake Johnson, staff writer
https://www.commondreams.org/news/2020/05/29/watch-minnesota-police-arrest-cnn-journalist-and-camera-crew-during-live-tv-coverage
A CNN journalist and his entire camera crew were arrested by Minnesota state police Friday morning during their live television coverage of the aftermath of Minneapolis protests over the killing of George Floyd.
While standing in the middle of a street in front of police officers in riot gear, CNN correspondent Omar Jimenez cooperatively asked the officers where they would like him to stand before two officers approached him from behind, placed him in handcuffs, and led him away. The officers did not respond as Jimenez asked repeatedly why he was being arrested.
Moments later, members of Jimenez's camera crew were also arrested.
"Why are they being arrested after clearly identifying themselves and complying?" asked Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.). "This is outrageous and not helpful."
As Jimenez and others were led away, CNN anchor John Berman—back in the studio watching the arrests happen live—said, "I've never seen anything like this."
Watch:
"They arrested a CNN reporter and camera crew for reporting the news but not Derek Chauvin, the police officer who killed George Floyd on camera," tweeted attorney Midwin Charles. "The irony astounds me."
About an hour after their arrest, Jimenez and his crew were released from police custody.
Jimenez appeared on air following his release and gave his account of the incident:
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz apologized for the arrest of the CNN crew Friday morning, calling it "totally unacceptable."
"They clearly had the right to be there," said Walz. "It is never acceptable for this to happen."
In a statement condemning the actions of the Minnesota police, the ACLU said "journalists should never be arrested in this country for doing their job."
"People are in the streets of Minneapolis demanding racial justice, and the public has a right to see it," the group said. "Public transparency is absolutely necessary for police accountability."
At Least 9 Million US Households With Children Are 'Not At All Confident' They'll Be Able to Afford Food Next Month, Census Survey Finds
"Even if they *do* end up getting food, you have to understand the mental and physical toll of living with that kind of fear, and how that affects relationships, work, health, and everything else."
by
Julia Conley, staff writer
https://www.commondreams.org/news/2020/05/29/least-9-million-us-households-children-are-not-all-confident-theyll-be-able-afford
A poll released by the U.S. Census Bureau this week revealed that at least nine million American households that include children are unsure whether they'll be able to access enough food in the next four weeks and millions more are experiencing housing insecurity during the coronavirus pandemic.
The bureau's weekly Household Pulse Survey, taken between May 14 and 19, asked respondents about their loss of employment, food security, overall health, and other issues they are facing during the pandemic.
According to the data, more than nine million households are "not at all confident" that they will be able to afford food in the next month, and more than 18 million are only "somewhat confident" about their food security.
The Census also asked respondents whether they had experienced food insecurity prior to March 13, when President Donald Trump declared the pandemic a national emergency and schools across the country shut down.
Just over two million people had "often" not had enough to eat before the pandemic forced state and local economies to shut down, which was followed by little economic relief for families from the federal government.
Since the coronavirus outbreak began spreading across the country in March, food banks have reported skyrocketing numbers of Americans relying on their services, including many who had never before needed assistance accessing food. With 74% of U.S. families living paycheck-to-paycheck—including one in four households that earn at least $150,000 per year—the pandemic and the federal government's reluctance to offer more than a one-time direct payment of $1,200 to most Americans plunged millions into desperate situations overnight.
As Common Dreams reported Wednesday, the same Household Pulse Survey revealed that a quarter of respondents weren't able to pay their rent or mortgage in May or were concerned they wouldn't be able to pay in June.
Intercept journalist Rachel Cohen pointed out on social media that the widespread economic uncertainty that's grown out of the pandemic is having reverberating effects on Americans' overall wellbeing.
more than ten million people told the Census they have "no confidence" they'll be able to make next month's rent https://t.co/7TwDZXLODL pic.twitter.com/NaYqSBpnZ9
— Rachel Cohen (@rmc031) May 29, 2020
even if they *do* end up getting food, you have to understand the mental and physical toll of living with that kind of fear, and how that affects relationships, work, health and everything else
— Rachel Cohen (@rmc031) May 29, 2020
A Census survey taken earlier this month found that a third of Americans are showing signs of clinical anxiety or depression since the pandemic began.
The data released by the Census Bureau in its weekly surveys has intensified calls for government intervention to ensure people are not evicted from their homes if they can't pay their rent due to job loss, to provide Americans with more robust direct payments for the duration of the crisis, and to prioritize making sure people have access to the medical and mental healthcare they need.
"Now that the government knows how widely people are suffering, the question is what are they going to do about it," psychiatrist Maria A. Oquendo told the Washington Post on Wednesday.
Pressley, Omar, Bass, and Lee Introduce Resolution to Condemn Police Brutality and Demand Nationwide Reforms
"For too long, black and brown bodies have been profiled, surveilled, policed, lynched, choked, brutalized, and murdered at the hands of police officers."
by
Jessica Corbett, staff writer
https://www.commondreams.org/news/2020/05/29/pressley-omar-bass-and-lee-introduce-resolution-condemn-police-brutality-and-demand
After a night of intense protests around the country over the police killing of George Floyd Monday in Minneapolis, four congressional Democrats—all women of color—came together Friday to introduce a House resolution "condemning all acts of police brutality, racial profiling, and the use of excessive and militarized force throughout the country."
"For too long, Black and brown bodies have been profiled, surveilled, policed, lynched, choked, brutalized, and murdered at the hands of police officers," Pressley said in a statement. "We cannot allow these fatal injustices to go unchecked any longer."'The resolution (pdf) was spearheaded by Reps. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.), Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), Karen Bass (D-Calif.), and Barbara Lee (D-Calif.). The measure comes after the recent police killing of not only Floyd—which resulted in the arrest of police officer Derek Chauvin on Friday—but also Breonna Taylor in Louisville, Kentucky on March 13.
"There can be no justice for George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, or any of the human beings who have been killed by law enforcement. For in a just world, they would still be alive," she added. "There must, however, be accountability."
"Over the last few months, we have witnessed heightened violent acts of white supremacy, police brutality, and targeted harassment because we were simply living while black," said Bass, chair of the Congressional Black Caucus.
"And over and over again, offenders go unpunished, allowing this viscous cycle to continue with impunity," she said. "We can not move forward as a nation until what has broken is fixed."
Omar represents Minnesota's 5th Congressional District, which includes Minneapolis and some surrounding suburbs. Throughout the week she has spoken out about police killing Floyd and law enforcement's response to the resulting protests. The congresswoman has also called for creating an independent federal agency to investigate officer-involved shootings and excessive uses of force.
"From slavery to lynching to Jim Crow, clack people in this country have been brutalized and dehumanized for centuries," Omar said Friday. "The war on drugs, mass criminalization, and increasingly militarized police forces have led to the targeting, torture, and murder of countless Americans, disproportionately black and brown.
"The murder of George Floyd in my district is not a one-off event," she continued. "We cannot fully right these wrongs until we admit we have a problem. As the People's House, the House of Representatives must acknowledge these historical injustices and call for a comprehensive solution. There are many steps on the path to justice, but we must begin to take them."
The resolution details the long history of "systemic targeting of and use of deadly and brutal force against people of color" by U.S. law enforcement and declares that "the conduct of police officers who engage in racial profiling and excessive force, which can include shootings, brutal beatings, fatal chokings, and any other excessive treatment is a violation of the Constitution."
In addition to acknowledging how "expanded and excessively militarized policing" has impacted people of color, people with disabilities, and "other historically marginalized communities, including LGBTQ+ individuals, immigrants, and those experiencing homelessness," the resolution demands reforms on a national scale.
The measure calls for establishing independent all-civilian review boards to investigate police misconduct and urges the U.S. Department of Justice to:
reinstitute its role in investigating individual instances of police brutality, violence, and racial profiling, and police departments that violate civil rights; and
take on a role in filing briefs urging courts to reconsider decisions that permit unreasonable and excessive police practices and establish meaningful oversight of consent decrees.
The co-sponsors are Reps. Joaquin Castro (D-Texas), Judy Chu (D-Calif.), Katherine Clark (D-Mass.), James McGovern (D-Mass.), Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), Joseph Kennedy (D-Mass.), and Lori Trahan (D-Mass.).
The resolution is also endorsed by several advocacy groups including the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Color of Change, the Center for Popular Democracy, Moms Rising, Drug Policy Alliance, and the ACLU—as well as the group's branches in Massachusetts and Minnesota.
"We signed on to this resolution because police brutality, racial profiling, and excessive use of force has come at a disproportionately high cost to communities of color," the ACLU tweeted Friday. "The police violence and murder in the black community in America must stop immediately."
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