Palestinian Omar Barghouti, a co-founder of the Boycott, Divestment & Sanctions (BDS) movement, has been denied entry into the US. He attended college & lived here for ten years. He was coming for speaking engagements at Harvard & NYU & to attend the wedding of his daughter who lives here. He was only refused entry because the US government is attempting to outlaw BDS & force us to pledge allegiance to Israel. More evidence that the Palestinian struggle against colonialism, apartheid, & genocide is directly linked to the US Bill of Rights.

Contrary to some posts, the arrest of Assange is not the end of civilization as we know it. He’s nobody’s idea of a hero & has pretty rotten politics. Our defense of him is based on principles of freedom of the press & his exposure of US war crimes in Iraq. There’s no value in going over the top about what his arrest means. Because of his high profile, he’ll get a trial in a kangaroo court & be sentenced to a long stretch in jail. He will also have a defense campaign. Compare that to the disappearance, torture, & murder of hundreds of journalists all over the world who have almost no active, ongoing defense. Compare it to what Palestinians, Kashmiris, Rohingya, Uyghur, Syrians, Iraqis, Yemenis, Somalis, Libyans, & so many others endure. Assange is in a hell of a spot. But it’s not the same as being tortured to death in a gulag. We should not lose perspective on that.