Category «Civil Liberties»

‘I’m Haunted by What I Did’ as a Lawyer in the Trump Justice Department

The New York Times Opinion by Erica Newland, counsel at Protect Democracy – she worked in the Office of Legal Counsel at the Justice Department from 2016-18. “I was an attorney at the Justice Department when Donald Trump was elected president. I worked in the Office of Legal Counsel, which is where presidents turn for …

Subjects: Civil Liberties, Courts, Government Documents, Legal Research

As Trump Leaves the White House, His Imprint on the Judiciary Deepens

The New York Times – “As Democrats look to the incoming Biden administration to reverse much of President Trump’s work, the conservative imprint he has left on the federal courts is only deepening. Much attention in recent months has focused on the Supreme Court and its newly appointed justice, Amy Coney Barrett. But an analysis …

Subjects: Civil Liberties, Courts, Economy, Financial System, Government Documents, Knowledge Management, Legal Research

A journalist’s guide to using RCFP’s legal hotline

Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press: “As reporters across the country covered the COVID-19 pandemic and the Black Lives Matter protests this past summer, the free legal hotline for journalists operated by the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press saw a huge spike in usage, reflecting journalists’ demand for legal guidance during one …

Subjects: Civil Liberties, Free Speech, Freedom of Information, Government Documents, Health Care, Legal Research

What Writing a Pandemic Newsletter Showed Me About America

Wired – Patrice Peck: “In April, I started Coronavirus News for Black Folks. It gave me a kind of second sight. I could see where the country is headed—and how blind it’s been….I shut myself in my Brooklyn apartment, binge-reading about virology and venturing out only for groceries and a brisk walk now and then. …

Subjects: Civil Liberties, Health Care, Internet, Knowledge Management, Social Media

U.S. Schools Are Buying Phone-Hacking Tech That the FBI Uses to Investigate Terrorists

Gizmodo: “In May 2016, a student enrolled in a high-school in Shelbyville, Texas, consented to having his phone searched by one of the district’s school resource officers. Looking for evidence of a romantic relationship between the student and a teacher, the officer plugged the phone into a Cellebrite UFED to recover deleted messages from the …

Subjects: Civil Liberties, E-Mail, E-Records, Education, Legal Research, Privacy

A Political Obituary for Donald Trump

The Atlantic –  The effects of his reign will linger. But democracy survived. “To assess the legacy of Donald Trump’s presidency, start by quantifying it. Since last February, more than a quarter of a million Americans have died from COVID-19—a fifth of the world’s deaths from the disease, the highest number of any country. In …

Subjects: Civil Liberties, Climate Change, Congress, Courts, Economy, Education, Environmental Law, Financial System, Food and Nutrition, Freedom of Information, Government Documents, Health Care, Legal Research

EEOC Explore Tool 2/2

EEOC Explore Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)  – “What is EEOC Explore? – EEOC Explore is an interactive data query and mappingtoolthatgives users access to the mostcurrent, granular, and privacy protected aggregate EEO-1 data publiclyavailable.EEOC Exploreallows users to analyzeaggregatedata associated with more than 56 million employees and73,000 employers nationwide. The user-friendly tool enables stakeholders to explore …

Subjects: Civil Liberties, Government Documents, Legal Research

Face Recognition Software Shows Improvement in Recognizing Masked Faces

Technology.org: “The findings, produced by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), are detailed in a new report called Ongoing Face Recognition Vendor Test (FRVT) Part 6B: Face Recognition Accuracy with Face Masks Using Post-COVID-19 Algorithms (NISTIR 8331). It is the agency’s first study that measures the performance of face recognition algorithms developed following …

Subjects: AI, Civil Liberties, Knowledge Management, Legal Research, Privacy

Doctors Release Their ‘Most Worrying Outlook’ on How Climate Change Is Ruining Our Health

Gizmodo – “The doctors are here to give the Earth its annual checkup, and they say it’s running a fever which is making people sick. They issued their findings showing all the ways climate change is affecting our health in the annual Lancet Countdown, published on Wednesday. “The indicators included in the 2020 global report …

Subjects: Civil Liberties, Environmental Law, Health Care

Police Will Pilot a Program to Live-Stream Amazon Ring Cameras

EFF: “This is not a drill. Red alert: The police surveillance center in Jackson, Mississippi, will be conducting a 45-day pilot program to live stream the security cameras, including Amazon Ring cameras, of participating residents.  Since Ring first made a splash in the private security camera market, we’ve been warning of its potential to undermine the …

Subjects: Civil Liberties, Legal Research, Privacy

The algorithms are watching us, but who is watching the algorithms?

ZDNet – “A two-year investigation into the private and public use of AI systems shows that more oversight is needed, particularly in government services like policing. Empowering algorithms to make potentially life-changing decisions about citizens still comes with significant risk of unfair discrimination, according to a new report published by the UK’s Center for Data …

Subjects: Civil Liberties, Internet, Knowledge Management, Legal Research, Privacy