U.S.: FBI Chastised for Spying on Activists

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) improperly spied on U.S. activists involved in First Amendment-protected activities and mischaracterised nonviolent civil disobedience as terrorism, which placed innocent activists on terror watch lists, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) charged Tuesday in response to a new report by the Justice Department's Inspector General.

U.S.: Prisoners of Abuse

Sharon White remembers the breaking point vividly. She was 21 years old and had been married to Andre for a little over a year. Looking back, she describes their life together as "a nightmare. Every day was a fight."

U.S.: Money for Prisons, Not for Social Services

Many of those who have lost their jobs and homes in the United States due to the lingering economic recession are ending up in jail, according to a new study released by an independent think tank Thursday.

One in Seven U.S. Citizens Sinks into Poverty

Poverty rates in the United States have climbed to their highest level since 1994, according to a report released Thursday by the U.S. Census Bureau.

U.S.: Forget ‘Ground Zero Mosque’, It’s the Great Sharia Conspiracy

A new report denouncing the threat to the U.S. from sharia, or Islamic law, marks the latest development in a summer filled with intensifying attacks on Islam in the United States.

BP Report on Oil Spill Disaster Met with Scepticism

The report released Wednesday by energy giant BP of its internal investigation into the catastrophic explosion in April of the Deepwater Horizon oil rig and the subsequent spill from the Macondo oil well has been met with criticism by watchdog groups who question the company's motives.

Rendition Suit Heads for U.S. High Court

In a move legal experts are calling unusual, the one-vote court majority that tossed out the lawsuit brought by five men who claim they were tortured under the "extraordinary rendition" programme of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency departed from customary practice in suggesting several other ways the victims might obtain justice.

Environmentalists Push For Coal-ash Regulation

In what promises to be a contentious, high-profile series of debates, the forces of environmental protection will be lining up against those of the electric power industry over the future status of coal-ash.

Secret ‘Kill Lists’ Fly in the Face of US and Int’l Law

Two of the nation’s most influential human rights organisations have filed a lawsuit challenging the government’s authority to carry out "targeted killings" of U.S. citizens located far from any armed conflict zone.

US: New Banking Overhaul More Like An Under-Haul

On July 21, 2010, U.S. President Barack Obama signed into law the most sweeping financial industry regulatory reform since the Great Depression of the 1930s. But, experts point out that the bill does not address some of the real problems behind the structural instabilities of the U.S. economic system.

US: Salmonella Outbreak Tied to Factory Farming

As regulators traced the U.S. salmonella outbreak spread by infected eggs back to the hen feed used at two Iowa farms Thursday, many groups are pointing the blame at the factory farm system from which the eggs – and bacteria – came.

ENERGY: Is Fracking Even Worse Than Drilling?

With cleanup of the Gulf of Mexico barely underway, energy companies are already assuming a crouching stance in anticipation of a no-holds-barred attack by environmentalists on what the industry says is the next major breakthrough in natural resource extraction.

Fish Kills Worry Gulf Scientists, Fishers, Environmentalists

Another massive fish kill, this time in Louisiana, has alarmed scientists, fishers and environmentalists who believe they are caused by oil and dispersants.

US: Govt Claims Slammed as “Final Kill” Looms for Gulf Oil Leak

Between April and August this year, 4.9 million barrels of oil were spilled into the Gulf of Mexico. How much remains today is not yet clear and is a hot topic of debate among academic and government scientists.

Mississippi Shrimpers Refuse to Trawl, Fearing Oil, Dispersants

The U.S. state of Mississippi recently reopened all of its fishing areas. The problem is that commercial shrimpers refuse to trawl because they fear the toxicity of the waters and marine life due to the BP oil disaster.

US: Deported for Running a Red Light

A government programme designed to prosecute serious criminals is instead deporting people who received traffic tickets and committed other minor offences, according to immigration rights advocacy groups.

US: Standing Up for Homeless Vets at Stand Downs

More than 400 homeless veterans from across northern California relaxed in comfort at the Alameda County Fairgrounds in Pleasanton.

US: Gulf Health Problems Blamed on Dispersed Oil

BP says it is no longer using toxic dispersants to break up the Gulf of Mexico oil spill. Gulf Coast residents claim otherwise, and say they have the sicknesses to prove it.

US: Immigration System a Broken Behemoth, Groups Say

One year after the administration of U.S. President Barack Obama announced that it intended to overhaul the country's heavily criticised immigration detention practices and create a "truly civil detention system", a new academic paper bolsters claims by human rights groups that real reform is still a long way off.

The Novelist at Sixteen

At first glance, Sara Samarasinghe's website could be any teenager's: cheerful pink text scrawled against a black background, blog entries about summer clothing sales, and lists of favourites: music (Kelly Clarkson), movies (10 Things I Hate About You), and quotes (Jennifer Aniston, J. K. Rowling).

ARTS: Walking in the Shoes of a Muslim in New York

A woman waits on a subway platform, head bowed, pretending to ignore the insults. Perched on bar stools, a group of friends listen to racist jokes, suppressing giggles. Kneeling, a young war veteran tells his fiancée of his decision to return to combat. Two men wait expectantly at a job interview. An old man and a young graffiti artist sit together on a bench, discussing the power of language.