Second Council House of Virgo

Inmates to strike in Alabama, declare prison is “running a slave empire”

Melvin Ray

Breaking: Reached in his cell, Free Alabama Movement leader tells Salon inmates will refuse work to end free labor

From Salon

There hasn’t been terribly much in the mainstream press recently about Greece.  The dominant narrative is that the country has been through severe austerity and punishing financial adjustment, but is emerging from the crisis, stamping out the fascist threat and slowly making its way back to…

I know you are not going to do that, as this type of rhetoric is just posturing to get over some internalized guilt you have over being male. 

In short, some of my documentation reflects my birth sex. My driver’s license says ‘F’ on it, but my Social Security was not changed until 15 years after my surgery. It was really more of an afterthought for me to get that marker updated since I had to replace a card.

One of the assumptions is we need government IDs changed. Of course I’ve had some of mine changed, but never thought about why beyond “I live as a woman.”

Sexuality and social justice in the shadow of colonialism | Daily Xtra

'Homophobia is a western import, homosexuality is not.'

A recent report indicates that among the thefts from the MoD this year, was £6,000 of Viagra, the anti-impotence treatment which, the MoD held, it claimed, because it was useful for air sickness.  Most of the response has been of the “nudge, nudge, wink wink, perks of the job” v…

Cops Strap African American Woman To Chair, Pepper Spray Her and Cut Off Her Hair

It’s the kind of story that you wouldn’t believe unless you saw it with your own eyes. Thankfully, this story was caught on surveillance video, so we can do just that.

Charda Gregory, a 22 year-old hairdresser, had allegedly trashed a hotel room. She was taken into custody by Michigan police, then pepper sprayed in jail, slammed against a wall and strapped down to a chair.

It was then that officer Bernadette Najor took out a pair of scissors and started hacking away at Gregory’s hair.

According to Charda’s lawyer, her hair hair was torn with such force that she suffered some permanent hair loss.

The officer tried to justify her actions in the police report, saying that the hair was a “suicide risk.” Thankfully, this resulted in charges against Gregory being dropped, and Najor being fired. But had this not been caught on video, who knows what would have happened.

Other officers involved are now under investigation.

This article was originally written for Glasgow University Guardian over a year ago, however was never published. In April last year, Britain’s own prince charming, Prince William, Wills (or Big Willy as he is known to those closest to him) was finally wedded to the equally charming Kate M…

Wikileaks, established in 2007 has made quite a name for itself, and many column inches have been dedicated not only to the leaks themselves but to the new public figures who have exposed the secrets of government.   Wikileaks is considered a triumph of hacker culture, a culture which is heavily …

The image of the blue-eyed blonde little girl removed from a Roma family and put into the care of an NGO has traveled the world with lightening speed as the Greek government seek to trace her biological parents.  Comparisons have been made to Madaline McCann, another white child reported to have …

Update on Bahrain: Friday saw the largest antigovernment protest in a while in Bahrain, where tens of thousands marched and demonstrated solidarity with imprisoned politician Khalil al-Marzooq. President Obama’s UN speech mentioning Bahrain’s ongoing tensions is said to have been a factor in the reinvigorated marches — the February 14th movement’s anti-government activism and the resulting crackdown has received little policy and media attention in comparison with other uprisings and unrest elsewhere across the region. 

Today, 50 were sentenced to prison terms that ranged from five years to fifteen, the result of a mass trial targeting members of the anti-government movement for alleged links to militancy. 20 of the convicted were tried in absentia. The ruling is expected to trigger further protest and clashes. 

Photo: Al-Maqsha, Bahrain. A protester blocks the road during clashes with the riot police. Mohammed Al-Shaikh/AFP.

If a week is a long time in politics, the last two weeks must have seemed like an eternity to the Golden Dawn, a more spectacular reversal of political fortunes could rarely be found.  Earlier this month, the mainstream press were heavily promoting them as a potential ally and collaborator with …