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Category Archives: Civil Liberties

DOJ Launches Updated Voting Rights and Elections Website

“The Justice Department announced today that it has updated www.justice.gov/voting, a one-stop resource providing voting and elections information for voters as well as state and local elections officials. As part of the update, the Civil Rights Division published two new informational guides on voting rights and updated five other guides. The Department’s longstanding practice is to update resources and provide information in election years on the efforts of the Civil Rights Division, Criminal Division, National Security Division, and U.S. Attorneys’ Offices throughout the country, to ensure that all qualified voters have the opportunity to cast their ballots and have their votes counted free of discrimination, intimidation, or criminal activity in the election process, and to ensure that our elections are secure and free from foreign malign influence and interference. Over the coming months additional resources will be published.”

See also: “Today, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) released Securing Election Infrastructure Against the Tactics of Foreign Malign Influence Operations, a guidance document that details the latest tactics employed in foreign malign influence operations to shape U.S. policies, decisions, and discourse and could be used to target America’s election infrastructure. The product discusses popular tactics used in foreign malign influence operations, provides recent examples, and recommends potential mitigations for election infrastructure stakeholders. While many of these tactics are not new, recent advances in generative artificial intelligence (AI) technology have made it much easier and cheaper to generate and spread convincing foreign malign influence content.”

The Flooding Will Come “No Matter What”

ProPublica – The complex, contradictory and heartbreaking process of American climate migration is underway –  “This article is an excerpt from the book “On The Move: The Overheating Earth and the Uprooting of America,” about climate migration in the U.S. For more, see abrahm.com. “Another great American migration is now underway, this time forced by… Continue Reading

Red states threaten librarians with prison as blue states work to protect them

Washington Post [read free]: “…library-friendly measures are being outpaced by bills in mostly red states that aim to restrict which books libraries can offer and threaten librarians with prison or thousands in fines for handing out “obscene” or “harmful” titles. At least 27 states are considering 100 such bills this year, three of which have… Continue Reading

Police Shootings of Residents Across the United States, 2015–20: A Comparison of States

Rockefeller Institute: “Broader public, media, and scholarly interest in police shootings of residents in the United States has been a constant since 2014. This interest followed a number of high-profile deadly force incidents, including those leading to the deaths of Michael Brown in Ferguson, MO, and Tamir Rice in Cleveland, OH. In the decade since,… Continue Reading

Colleges are Failing to Fight Antisemitism on Their Campuses

Campus Antisemitism Report Card™ – ADL’s Campus Antisemitism Report Card is a tool for students, parents, alumni, college faculty, guidance counselors, admissions consultants and other stakeholders. Our goal is to serve students and their families looking for information about the current state of antisemitism on campus and how particular universities and colleges are responding. ADL… Continue Reading

Librarians fear new penalties, even prison, as activists challenge books

AP: “…Across the country, book challenges and bans have soared to the highest levels in decades. Public and school-based libraries have been inundated with complaints from community members and conservative organizations such as as Moms for Liberty. Increasingly, lawmakers are considering new punishments — crippling lawsuits, hefty fines, and even imprisonment — for distributing books… Continue Reading

Louisiana Bill Would Criminalize Librarians, Libraries Who Join American Library Association

Bookriot: “Despite the fact that librarians are among the most trusted professionals, per data acquired in several studies of parents on the perceptions of the profession, lawmakers across the country continue to infantilize and criminalize library workers. The 2024 legislative session has been particularly eager to capitalize on the rhetoric from the far right on… Continue Reading

LLRX March 2024 Issue

Articles and Columns for March 2024 – https://www.llrx.com 2024 Link Guide to Generative AI Resources – Marcus P. Zillman Deepfakes are still new, but 2024 could be the year they have an impact on elections – Professor Eileen Culloty AI in Banking and Finance, March 31, 2024 – This semi-monthly column by Sabrina I. Pacifici… Continue Reading

Freedom of Speech: An Overview

CRS Report – Freedom of Speech: An Overview March 29, 2024 – “The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution protects “the freedom of speech,” but that protection is not absolute. The Free Speech Clause principally constrains government regulation of private speech. Speech restrictions imposed by private entities, and government limits on its own speech, usually… Continue Reading

The changing face of protest

Rest of World: “…Over the past decade, there has been a steep rise globally in law enforcement using facial recognition technology. Data gathered by Steven Feldstein, a researcher with the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, found that government agencies in 78 countries now use public facial recognition systems. The public is often supportive of the… Continue Reading

Florida braces for lawsuits over law banning kids from social media

Ars Technica: “On Monday, Florida became the first state to ban kids under 14 from social media without parental permission. It appears likely that the law—considered one of the most restrictive in the US—will face significant legal challenges, however, before taking effect on January 1. Under HB 3, apps like Instagram, Snapchat, or TikTok would… Continue Reading