Human Rights & Civil Liberties

• In the last year we’ve seen the growth of the so-called “alt-right,” a rise in neo-Nazi groups and, in response, a spike in black nationalist groups.

The common thread?

White supremacy.

This weekend we're bringing you an editorial by our Intelligence Project Director Heidi Beirich from our latest Intelligence Report, reminding us that if we want to reverse a trend that saw hate groups rise for the third year in a row, we must dismantle the white supremacy that's embedded so deeply in American society.

• Related: Hate Groups Attack Southern Poverty Law Center, and Some Journalists Pile On

Heidi Beirich, Southern Poverty Leadership Conference (SPLC)

If you like reading this article, consider joining the crew of all reader-supported Evergreene Digest by contributing the equivalent of a cafe latte a month--using the donation button above—so we can bring you more just like it.

February 24, 2018 | There were two dynamics that determined the fate of America's radical right in 2017: the election of President Trump and the fallout from the Charlottesville, Virginia, deadly white nationalist rally.

Extremists rode a wave of euphoria from Trump's January inauguration until August 11, finally having found an uncucked politician who reflected the world they wanted to see: a world where racism was sanctioned by the highest office, immigrants given the boot and Muslims banned. Riding high, a wide range of extremists who usually don't get along — from heavily armed militias, to polo-attired white nationalists, to Klansmen, to neo-Nazis — all joined forces in mid-August in Charlottesville.

Heidi Beirich leads the SPLC’s Intelligence Project, which publishes the award-winning Intelligence Report and the Hatewatch blog. She is an expert on various forms of extremism, including the white supremacist, nativist and neo-Confederate movements as well as racism in academia.

Full story …

Related:

Hate Groups Attack Southern Poverty Law Center, and Some Journalists Pile On, Sharona Coutts, Rewire 

“Last week I did a monologue on the Southern Poverty Law Center and they took issue, yes 'issue,' with me, with some of the statements made on the show, including a joke, a joke, that they do virtually no law,” Fox News' Greg Gutfeld said in a heavily sarcastic tone. Fox News / YouTube

• Far-right groups attacking the SPLC claim that the group has lost its credibility because it has targeted groups such as the Family Research Council and others on the far right.
• Related: The New York Time’s Assault on Press Freedom

No Justice!  No Peace!  Please share this post.

• Part 1: House votes to gut the Americans with Disabilities Act
  • A House bill would make it harder for people with disabilities to hold businesses accountable for inaccessibility.
• Part 2: Justice Department Scraps ADA Guidance
  • Attorney General Sessions is rescinding several guidance documents clarifying the implications of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Compiled by David Culver, Ed., Evergreene Digest 

Part 1: House votes to gut the Americans with Disabilities Act

People participate in the first annual Disability Pride Parade on July 12, 2015 in New York City. Credit: Stephanie Keith/Getty Images

A House bill would make it harder for people with disabilities to hold businesses accountable for inaccessibility.

Casey Quinlan, Think Progress

Feb 15, 2018 | On Thursday, the House of Representatives voted 225 to 192 in favor of a bill that would significantly weaken the landmark Americans with Disabilities Act and let businesses off the hook for failing to provide accommodations for accessibility.

The ADA Education and Reform Act was introduced by Rep. Ted Poe (R-TX), and was recently adopted in the House Judiciary Committee. It addresses the 1990 civil rights law that protects people with disabilities when it comes to employment; access to public entities, such as transportation; and accommodations to fully enjoy businesses, such as being able to go to a hotel without barriers to getting inside. The law allows people with disabilities to file lawsuits against businesses that don’t provide reasonable accommodations, but supporters of the ADA Education and Reform Act argue that it fuels “drive-by lawsuits.”

Casey Quinlan is a policy reporter at ThinkProgress covering economic policy and civil rights issues.

Full story … 

Part 2: Justice Department Scraps ADA Guidance

Attorney General Jeff Sessions revoked numerous guidance documents including over a half dozen pertaining to the Americans with Disabilities Act and said more withdrawals may be forthcoming.(Ting Shen/Xinhua/Sipa USA/TNS)

Michelle Diament, Disability Scoop
January 4, 2018 | Attorney General Jeff Sessions said he’s rescinding more than two dozen guidance documents including several clarifying the implications of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Among the 25 revoked documents are a number of ADA-related items dating as far back as 1995 offering guidance on everything from service animals to accessible building practices as well as a 2016 letter on employment of people with disabilities.

Michelle Diament is a seasoned journalist whose work has appeared in People, AARP, The Washington Post Magazine, The Chronicle of Higher Education and Gannett News Service. As the sibling of an adult with autism, Diament is no stranger to the world of disability issues.

Full story …