Trial Begins for Occupy Wall Street’s Cecily McMillan: Activist Faces 7yrs in Prison After Beating by NYPD Left Her Unconscious
[NEW YORK, NY] Trial began in Manhattan Criminal Court Monday for Occupy Wall Street activist, Cecily McMillan, who faces 2nd degree assault charges stemming from a 2012 encounter with the NYPD that left her beaten and unconscious. Trial has been postponed until March 3rd due to the introduction of illuminating new evidence. McMillan was brutally arrested […]
Celebrities Demand President Make Japan’s Dolphin Slaughter “a Key Factor” in Next Round of TPP Negotiations
LOS ANGELES, CA — Dozens of celebrities and activists have joined hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons in calling upon Ambassador Caroline Kennedy to pressure President Barack Obama to refuse signing the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) until Japan abandons its practice of drive hunt slaughter and capture of dolphins and porpoises. The letter does not assert a position […]
First Circuit Court of Appeals Hears Oral Arguments in Lawsuit Challenging the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act
[BOSTON, MA] Yesterday members of the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) and their supporters packed a Boston, MA courtroom, as Senior Staff Attorney Rachel Meeropol demanded the First Circuit Court of Appeals strike down the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act (AETA) as a violation of the First Amendment. The AETA is a federal criminal statute ushered […]
As Controversy Couples Debo Adegbile’s Appointment to Head DOJ’s Civil Rights Division, Activists Usher in New Campaign to Bring Mumia Abu-Jamal Home
WASHINGTON, DC — Since the President’s nomination of Debo Adegbile to head the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice, some media outlets have zealously revisited the case of celebrated political prisoner and radio journalist, Mumia Abu-Jamal. Specifically, controversy has arisen over Abegbile because his name appears in post-sentencing legal briefs that successfully challenged […]
MIT PhD Candidate Sues CIA for the Records Surrounding the 1962 Arrest of Nelson Mandela
[WASHINGTON, DC] Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) PhD candidate Ryan Shapiro filed a lawsuit this morning against the Central Intelligence Agency over the spy agency’s failure to comply with his Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request for records on recently deceased anti-apartheid activist and South African President, Nelson Mandela. Shapiro wants to know why the […]
This Is What Solidarity Looks Like: How Long Island Food Not Bombs’ Hunger Relief Efforts are Eclipsing That of NGO’s With Multi-Million Dollar Annual Budgets
[HEMPSTEAD, NY] The hunger relief efforts of a small group of dedicated and caring Long Islanders operating on a near-zero budget is eclipsing that of the relief efforts of many well-funded 501-c3 organizations, both in number of people served and in the volume of food distributed. The group, a Long Island chapter of the decentralized, […]
As Anniversary of Sandy Hook Shooting Approaches, Cerberus Capital Management Makes Tepid Offer Allowing Investors to Unload Toxic Firearm Investments
NEW YORK, NY — A late-Sunday news report has indicated the Cerberus Capital Management LP will allow individual investors the option of divesting from Cerberus’ stake in Freedom Group, the manufacturer of the military-style assault rifle used in the Sandy Hook shooting. Cerberus Capital Management owns a 94% stake in Freedom Group and has had difficulty structuring a deal to […]
Projection Artists Light up Walls of Brooklyn Detention Center with Visually Arresting Messages of Solidarity for Imprisoned Activist, Jeremy Hammond
[NEW YORK, NY] A collective of projection artists and activists lit up the bleak walls of The Brooklyn Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC Brooklyn) last night with visually arresting images and messages proclaiming solidarity with jailed political activist Jeremy Hammond. The artists’ stunning action, which captured the attention of prisoners and administrators alike, comes two weeks […]
The FBI Claims MIT PhD Candidate, Ryan Shapiro’s FOIA Research will “Irreparably Damage National Security”
[CAMBRIDGE, MA] The Federal Bureau of Investigation is claiming the dissertation research of Ryan Shapiro, a PhD candidate at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, will “irreparably damage national security.” Radical and unprecedented in nature, the FBI’s efforts in this case stand to change the landscape of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) as we know it. […]
Strike Debt’s Rolling Jubilee Has Abolished $13.5 Million in Medical Debt, Owned by 2,693 People, in 45 States & Puerto Rico
[NEW YORK, NY] Strike Debt, an offshoot of Occupy Wall Street, announced this morning that since the launch of the group’s Rolling Jubilee effort one year ago, it has abolished $13.5 million worth of medical debt owed by 2,693 people across 45 states and in Puerto Rico. This is the third announcement by Strike Debt […]
Legal Team for Defendants in Chevron’s RICO Suit File Motion to Strike Testimony of Aberto Guerra, Company’s Star Witness
[NEW YORK, NY] Today, the legal team for Steven Donziger and the Ecuadorian Defendants in Chevron’s RICO suit filed a motion to strike the testimony of the company’s star witness, Alberto Guerra, on grounds that Chevron’s compensation for his testimony is tantamount to a bribe, not unlike the dozens Guerra admitted on the stand to making […]
‘Will I be Next?’ Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Publish Report on US Drone Strikes in Pakistan
[WASHINGTON, DC] New evidence indicates that the USA has carried out unlawful killings in Pakistan through drone attacks, some of which could even amount to war crimes, Amnesty International said in a major new report released today. The report, “’Will I be next?’ US drone strikes in Pakistan”, is one of the most comprehensive studies […]
Chevron Withdraws Key Element in RICO Lawsuit Against Ecuadorian Pollution Victims & Their US Advocates
[NEW YORK, NY] With the first week of trial in Chevron’s RICO case over, it is becoming clear that the oil giant is facing significant hurdles as it attempts to salvage a verdict that will allow it to block international efforts to enforce the $19 billion Ecuador judgment. After the first four witnesses, several issues […]
6 CUNY Students Violently Arrested Protesting Ex-General David Petraeus, Group Releases Statement
[NEW YORK, NY] Six students were arrested Tuesday evening in an unprovoked police attack against a peaceful protest lead by City University of New York (CUNY) students and faculty decrying the University’s appointment of former CIA chief and ex-General, David Petraeus as an adjunct professor to the Honors College. Students were punched, pushed against parked […]
The Sentencing of Chelsea Manning: Alexa O’Brien’s Exclusive Interview with Attorney David Coombs
Fort Meade, MD — On August 21, 2013 The Sparrow Project partnered with Jeff Wirth of Burning Hearts Media to produce Alexa O’Brien’s exclusive interview with David Coombs, lead civilian counsel for Private First Class Manning. An excerpt of this interview aired that afternoon on Huffpost Live and was cross-published on The Huffington Post. The next morning, […]
Statement from the Family of Pfc. Manning Regarding Col. Denise Lind’s Verdict
[Fort Meade, MD] The family of Pfc. Manning has issued a statement regarding today’s verdict issued by Judge Denise Lind. Manning was convicted on all counts with the exception of two; Aiding the Enemy (which carried harshest penalties) & 793(e)(for alleged release of the encrypted Garani massacre recording). If sentenced consecutively to the counts to […]
Standing on Shaky Ground: Activists Pressure Hedge Funds to Purge Gun Stocks
New York, NY — On March 18th, 2013 The Sparrow Project published a detailed and scathing report naming and shaming two hedge funds, Owl Creek Asset Management and Impala Asset Management, for purchasing large volumes of gun stocks immediately following the December 14, 2012 massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School. Murmurations on Wall Street and Owl […]
Jeremy Hammond Pleads Guilty to Stratfor Leak, Faces Harsh Sentence for Online Protest: Press Release & Jeremy’s Statement
[New York, NY] In federal court this morning, Internet activist Jeremy Hammond pleaded guilty to publicizing internal emails from the private intelligence firm Stratfor through Wikileaks. Icelandic Parliamentarian Birgitta Jonsdottir reads a message of solidarity to Jeremy Hammond outside of the Metropolitan Correctional Center in New York City Hammond pleaded guilty as part of a non-cooperating […]
Meet the Hedge Fund Managers Turning a Profit on the Sandy Hook Massacre
New York, NY — It has been argued that capitalism, if given the opportunity, would devour its own legs and collapse upon itself. Putting all hyperbole aside, what would you do if you learned that a US company was actively monitoring national tragedies like the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School, only to develop reflexive investment […]
Jeremy Hammond on Aaron Swartz & the Criminalization of Digital Dissent
[New York, NY] The following is a statement released today, February 20th, 2013, by Jeremy Hammond’s lawyers. Supporters and lawyers have announced that they will be holding a press conference and rally at the Federal Courthouse at 9:30am February 21st, 2013 details are available HERE. The following is Jeremy Hammond in his own words, written […]
Anonymous Issues Communique Announcing Plans to Disrupt State of the Union Address in Protest of #CISPA
[WASHINGTON, DC] At approximately 10:22am EST an email address assigned to a Sparrow Project volunteer received a communique by a party identifying itself as the decentralized hacker collective, Anonymous. The communique details a planned effort by the groups’s affiliates online to disrupt the online streaming and syndication of the President’s State of the Union Address, scheduled for […]
The Enemization of Everything or an American Story of Empathy & Healing?
As president Barack Obama was sworn in for a second term and announces his cabinet selections The Indypendent has published a special issue titled “The Shadow Term” in which they have selected their own creative roster for cabinet appointments. Sparrow’s cofounder Andy Stepanian joined the Indypendent’s all-star team of would-be cabinet appointees, Bill McKibben (Dept. of Energy), Michael Ratner […]
We Must Resist ‘This Gross Inversion of Democracy’ Recap of the 11/29 Press Conference in Support of Jeremy Hammond
[New York, NY] On November 29th, 2012, activists, journalists and attorneys gathered for a press conference outside of New York’s Federal Courthouse in support of jailed activist Jeremy Hammond. In a November 20th, 2012 hearing U.S. District Judge Loretta Preska denied bail to the 27-year-old Chicago activist accused of hacking into the private intelligence firm […]
Supreme Court Denies Imprisoned Holy Land Foundation Members Appeal
[Washington, DC] After 11 years of raids, seized assets, arrests, a hung jury, a retrial, and the eventual conviction of the Holy Land Foundation and it’s leaders under the material support to terrorists statute, the case ended today with a 9-word notice from the Supreme Court notifying counsel that the appellants case would not be […]