The conviction of 23 Brazilian police officers for killing inmates in a prison massacre two decades ago is a “vital” step towards justice, Amnesty International has said.

The officers were sentenced yesterday to 156 years each in jail for their role in the deaths of 13 inmates during bloody riots at São Paulo’s Carandiru prison in 1992, in which more than 100 inmates died.

“The victims, their families and survivors of this brutal, shocking crime have waited …

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On Tuesday afternoon dozens of activists gathered in front of the New York Times building urging the newspaper to stop using the word “illegal” to describe undocumented immigrants. Demonstrators were joined by Cesar Chavez’s son, Fernando Chavez, and Jose Antonio Vargas, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and co-founder of Define American, who delivered 70,000 signatures urging the Times to drop the i-word.

Earlier this month, the Associated Press announced they no longer recommend journalists use the term “illegal …

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France became the 14th country in the world to allow same-sex couples to wed Tuesday, when its parliament approved a law that has sparked often violent street protests and a rise in homophobic attacks.

Lawmakers in the lower house National Assembly, where President Francois Hollande’s Socialists have an absolute majority, passed the bill by 331 votes for and 225 against.

The law also allows same-sex couples to adopt children.

“I hope people across the country will celebrate this …

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On May 2, 2011, the night President Obama informed the world that Osama bin Laden had been killed by a team of Navy SEALs in Pakistan, thousands of Americans poured into the streets in front of the White House and in New York’s Times Square, chanting, “USA, USA, USA!”

The families of people killed on 9/11 spoke of bin Laden’s death bringing closure. But the Al Qaeda leader’s demise breathed new life into Washington’s global “war …

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Close to death after more than eight months on hunger strike a Palestinian man held by Israel will end his self-imposed fast following an agreement that will see him released to his home in Jerusalem.

Samir al-Assawi, who has gone more than 200 days without food, was protesting the Israeli practice of “administrative detention” which allows for the holding of prisoners for extended periods without trial.

Media reports suggests Israel became highly motivated to reach a settlement …

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Taking a deeper look at current and past films and how they relate to the world today.

Jonathan Kim is an independent film critic who writes and produces film reviews for Uprising and other outlets. He is a former co-producer at Brave New Films.

Read his reviews online at ReThinkReviews.net. Watch his videos at www.youtube.com/user/jsjkim, …

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Meaghan Champion intends to reform the monetary system.

Not an easy ambition, she admits, as she thumbs through a pile of Tetlas, the currency she is using for a barter system.

But, First Nations have a history of bartering and it is time for new ideas to help people cope financially and raise money for worthy projects, said Champion, a member of Cowichan Tribes living in Esquimalt.

“Money is just a tool,” said Champion, comparing the Tetlas …

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Clothing retailer Ralph Lauren will pay $1.6 million to avoid prosecution on civil and criminal accusations that the company bribed Argentinian customs officials to gain access into the country.

Reuters reported on Monday that the company agreed to pay a $882,000 penalty to the Department of Justice and forfeit more than $730,000 in illegal payments and interest to the Securities and Exchange Commission after an investigation revealed that Ralph Lauren’s Argentinian subsidiary paid local officials to …

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(Reuters) – At least 109 people have been documented as killed and up to 400 more are likely to have died in an almost week-long offensive by forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on a rebellious Damascus suburb, opposition activists said.

If the accounts are confirmed, the killings in the mainly Sunni Muslim suburb of Jdeidet al-Fadel would amount to one of bloodiest episodes of the two-year-old uprising against Assad. Many of the dead were …

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NEW ORLEANS (AP) — BP’s cement contractor on the drilling rig that exploded in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010 announced Monday that it is trying to negotiate a settlement over its role in the disaster, a focus of trial testimony that ended last week.

Halliburton Chief Financial Officer Mark McCollum said during a conference call that talks were at an “advanced stage.” The Houston-based company says it hopes court-facilitated negotiations will resolve a substantial portion …

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