June, 14 2012, 03:30pm EDT

Groups Urge Supreme Court to Uphold Human Rights Statute
Failure to Preserve 1789 Law Would Strip Victims of a Powerful Tool Against Human Rights Violations, Legal Groups Say
WASHINGTON
Today, the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR), filed an amicus brief on behalf of human rights organizations in the United States Supreme Court in the case Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum Co. (Shell), arguing that U.S. courts are appropriate forums for hearing claims over serious human rights abuses committed abroad.
The outcome of Kiobel could lead to a severe narrowing of the 1789 Alien Tort Statute (ATS), which allows non-U.S. citizens to sue in U.S. courts for violations of international law when perpetrators are present in the U.S. The case was originally argued in February 2012, on the limited question of whether corporations could be sued under the ATS. On its own initiative, the Supreme Court broadened the question to whether and under what circumstances the ATS allows violations of international law committed outside the United States to be heard in U.S. federal courts.
"For decades, the ATS has been an unmatched tool for victims of human rights abuses against both government officials and non-state actors," said Center for Constitutional Rights Vice President Peter Weiss. "If U.S. courts cannot hear cases about human rights abuses committed abroad, the Court will have granted impunity for complicity in forced labor, torture, extra-judicial killings and other crimes against humanity. Many victims and their families will be left with no recourse or accountability."
The Center for Constitutional Rights successfully litigated the first modern human rights case under the ATS in 1979, on behalf of the family of a 17-year-old boy tortured to death by a functionary of a ruthless dictatorship. Peter Weiss argued the landmark case, Filartiga v. Pena-Irala.
On the amicus brief with CCR were eight leading human rights organizations: Canadian Centre for International Justice, International Association of Democratic Lawyers, International Commission for Labor Rights, International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), RAID, REDRESS and World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT). The organizations argue that, because the ATS allows federal courts to hear international law claims, and international law imposes a duty on national courts to redress serious human rights violations, U.S. courts are an appropriate forum for litigating such claims.
"A U.S. lawsuit concerning human rights abuses abroad will apply universal definitions of torture, crimes against humanity, persecution and other serious violations," said CCR senior staff attorney Katherine Gallagher. "We are not seeking to criminalize or punish acts in another country under U.S. law, nor to have U.S. courts administer the laws of another country, but only to allow U.S. courts to continue to apply what are internationally accepted as fundamental human rights standards."
Already, in the 2004 case Sosa v. Alvarez-Machain, the Supreme Court held that human rights abuses can be heard under the ATS. The Court's decision in Kiobel has the potential to close the door to some victims of the worst human rights violations.
Kiobel was filed on behalf of Nigerian activists and their families from the Ogoni region of the Niger Delta who, in the 1990s, opposed Shell's degradation of their land. In 1994, nine activists were detained, tortured and tried by a special military tribunal, convicted of murder and executed ten days later. Human rights groups and political leaders around the world condemned what they say were spurious charges, and procedures that violated international fair trial standards. The Kiobel plaintiffs allege that Shell bribed witnesses to give false testimony and otherwise cooperated with the special tribunal.
The case will be reargued during the Court's next term, which begins in October.
The Center for Constitutional Rights is dedicated to advancing and protecting the rights guaranteed by the United States Constitution and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. CCR is committed to the creative use of law as a positive force for social change.
(212) 614-6464LATEST NEWS
Trump Attacks Public Service Workers With 'Blatantly Illegal' Loan Forgiveness Order
"Threatening to punish hardworking Americans for their employers' perceived political views is about as flagrant a violation of the First Amendment as you can imagine," said one critic.
Mar 10, 2025
Criticism of U.S. President Donald Trump's executive order intended to limit a program that forgives the federal student loans of borrowers who take public service jobs has grown since he signed it on Friday.
Opponents frame the order as yet another attempt by Trump to quash dissent. The Republican president directed Education Secretary Linda McMahon to propose revisions to the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Program, in coordination with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, to exclude "organizations that engage in activities that have a substantial illegal purpose."
The order targets employers "aiding or abetting" violations of federal immigration law and the administration's definition of illegal discrimination, engaging in a pattern of violating state law such as disorderly conduct and obstruction of highways, "supporting terrorism," and "child abuse, including the chemical and surgical castration or mutilation of children or the trafficking of children to so-called transgender sanctuary states for purposes of emancipation from their lawful parents."
Student Defense president Aaron Ament said in a statement that "when PSLF was created by a bipartisan act of Congress and signed into law by [President] George W. Bush, it was a promise from the United States government to its citizens—if you give back to America, America will give back to you."
"In the nearly two decades since, across administrations of both parties, Americans have worked hard and made life decisions under the assumption that the U.S. keeps its word," Ament continued. "Threatening to punish hardworking Americans for their employers' perceived political views is about as flagrant a violation of the First Amendment as you can imagine."
Nadine Chabrier, senior policy counsel at the Center for Responsible Lending, similarly highlighted "serious" First Amendment concerns, saying that "by penalizing individuals seeking loan forgiveness for their associations and the expressive conduct of their employers, new rulemakings could infringe on fundamental rights to speech and association."
"The executive order also undermines the very purpose of PSLF, which Congress established to encourage careers in public service across a broad range of fields," she said. "Stripping PSLF eligibility from nonprofit employees based on the nature of their work will deter skilled professionals from pursuing careers that benefit the public good, weaken critical services for underserved populations and hamper efforts to strengthen vulnerable communities."
American Federation of Teachers (AFT) president Randi Weingarten explained that "PSLF is based on the idea that borrowers who make 10 years of repayments, and who often forgo higher wages in the private sector, can avoid a lifelong debt sentence."
The teachers union sued the Trump's first-term education secretary, Betsy DeVos, "and rogue loan servicers for their failure to administer the program—and we won," Weingarten noted. "This latest assault on borrowers' livelihoods is a cruel attempt to finish the demolition job that DeVos started. The goal is to sow chaos and confusion—separately, the PSLF application form has already been taken offline, making it effectively inaccessible."
The Economic Policy Institute pointed out Monday that "since the creation of the PSLF program, more than 1 million borrowers have received student loan forgiveness, largely due to fixes made under the Biden administration."
"More than 2 million individuals currently qualify for the PSLF program, according to the Department of Education," the think tank added. "The executive order could potentially narrow which organizations qualify for the program."
Student Borrower Protection Center executive director Mike Pierce blasted the order as "blatantly illegal and an all-out weaponization of debt intended to silence speech that does not align with President Trump's MAGA agenda."
"It is an attack on working families everywhere and will have a chilling effect on our public service workforce doing the work every day to support our local communities," Pierce warned. "Teachers, nurses, service members, and other public service workers deserve better than to be used as pawns in Donald Trump's radical right-wing political project to destroy civil society. This will raise costs for working people while doing nothing to make America safer or healthier."
In addition to scathing critiques, some groups threatened to challenge the order. Weingarten vowed that "the AFT won't stop fighting, in court and in Congress, until every single public service worker gets the help the law affords them."
Ament declared that "if the Trump administration follows through on this threat, they can plan to see us in court."
Keep ReadingShow Less
'Free Mahmoud Khalil': Progressives Demand Release of 'Disappeared' Columbia Grad
"If the feds can snatch up an American green card holder for speech they don't like and get away with it, they won't stop here. They'll be able to erase the right to speech they don't agree with and kidnap anyone who dares resist."
Mar 10, 2025
Condemning the Trump administration and immigration officials for detaining and imprisoning Mahmoud Khalil over his involvement in pro-Palestinian demonstrations at Columbia University last year, U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez issued a warning for those who believe the arrest is an isolated incident rather than an indication of the president's approach to dissenters.
"If the federal government can disappear a legal U.S. permanent resident without reason or warrant, then they can disappear U.S. citizens too," said the New York Democrat. "Anyone—left, right, or center—who has highlighted the importance of constitutional rights and free speech should be sounding the alarm now."
Khalil, a graduate of Columbia who was a student at the school until December, was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on Saturday evening as he was returning home to his university-owned apartment with his wife, who is eight months pregnant. He is reportedly being held in Central Louisiana ICE Processing Center, over a thousand miles away from home, while the Trump administration works to revoke his green card under the State Department's "catch and revoke" initiative launched last week with the goal of deporting students who are deemed to be "pro-Hamas."
Khalil, who is an Algerian citizen of Palestinian descent, was an organizer of the solidarity encampment that was erected on Columbia's New York City campus last spring to demand the school divest from companies that have supported Israel's bombardment of Gaza.
Jewish-led rights groups including Jewish Voice for Peace and IfNotNow were among those demanding his release on Monday, and a group of Columbia faculty members were preparing to give a press conference alongside Jewish leaders and immigrant rights defenders to speak out against "the unprecedented and unconstitutional arrest of a permanent resident and Columbia graduate student in retaliation for his political activity."
IfNotNow said that ICE had "abducted and disappeared" Khalil and that the attack on his constitutional rights "enables [President Donald] Trump's authoritarian consolidation of power against his political opponents.
The group condemned the Trump administration for "carrying out this authoritarian lurch under the guise of fighting for Jewish safety."
In New York, hundreds of people gathered Monday afternoon in front of the city's ICE office to demand Khalil's release.
Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), the only Palestinian-American member of Congress, said the arrest and efforts to deport Khalil are "an assault on our First Amendment and freedom of speech."
The Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee also spoke out against Khalil's arrest, noting that after he was taken away, his pregnant wife had "no idea where" he was. She attempted to visit him at a facility in Elizabeth, New Jersey, where she was told he was being held, but he was not there.
"This should terrify everyone," said the Democratic lawmakers. "So pro-'freedom of speech' that Republicans will DETAIN you if you disagree with them."
While Columbia University officials released statements in recent days about "reports of ICE around campus" and said the Ivy League school "has and will continue to follow the law," administrators have not spoken out about Khalil's detention or demanded his release.
Columbia administrators faced condemnation last year for their crackdown on student protests against the United States' support for Israel's assault on Gaza, which had killed tens of thousands of Palestinians when the demonstrations started, with ample evidence that Israel was targeting civilian infrastructure and not just Hamas targets.
Zeteoreported that Khalil reached out to the administration the day before his arrest, asking officials to "provide the necessary protections" and expressing fear over the Trump administration's threats.
Khalil told officials he had been "subjected to a vicious, coordinated, and dehumanizing doxxing campaign led by Columbia affiliates Shai Davidai and David Lederer who, among others, have labeled me a security threat and called for my deportation."
"I haven't been able to sleep, fearing that ICE or a dangerous individual might come to my home. I urgently need legal support, and I urge you to intervene and provide the necessary protections to prevent further harm," Khalil wrote.
New York City Council member Chi Ossé said that "every Democratic politician and American with a conscience" should speak out against Khalil's detention.
"They're not doing this despite his rights," said Ossé. "They're doing this because of his rights—they're violating the Constitution on purpose, testing the fragile system to see what they can get away with... If the feds can snatch up an American green card holder for speech they don't like and get away with it, they won't stop here. They'll be able to erase the right to speech they don't agree with and kidnap anyone who dares resist."
Ossé called on all those who support civil and constitutional rights to "flood the phones" of members of Congress and demand they push for Khalil's release.
Keep ReadingShow Less
Energy Secretary Makes Clear Trump 'Ready to Sacrifice' Communities and Climate
"As Wright speaks to industry insiders, members of impacted communities, faith leaders, youth, and others are assembling for a 'March for Future Generations,'" one campaigner said of the action at CERAWeek.
Mar 10, 2025
As environmental justice advocates were arrested outside a major energy conference in Houston on Monday, U.S. President Donald Trump's energy secretary faced criticism for his remarks to the government officials and oil and gas executives attending the event.
"Chris Wright, a former fracking CEO who essentially purchased his Cabinet position through $450,000 in Trump campaign contributions, personifies the deadly alliance between the Trump administration and the fossil fuel industry," said Oil Change International U.S. campaign manager Allie Rosenbluth, citing a figure that includes his wife's donations.
Wright's speech at CERAWeek, hosted by S&P Global, Rosenbluth continued, "made clear that he and the rest of the Trump administration are ready to sacrifice our communities and climate for the profits of the fossil fuel industry—which spent $445 million in total to influence Trump and Congress last election cycle."
"We have a human right to breathe clean air, drink clean water, and spread our roots in our homes. We cannot do that as long as these poisonous companies... continue to encroach on our communities."
CNBCreported that at the event, Wright vowed to support natural gas production and said that "the Trump administration will end the Biden administration's irrational, quasi-religious policies on climate change that imposed endless sacrifices on our citizens."
Despite his past comments about the fossil fuel-driven climate emergency, Wright rejected claims that he is a climate change denier and said that "the Trump administration will treat climate change for what it is—a global physical phenomenon that is a side effect of building the modern world."
"There is simply no physical way wind, solar and batteries could replace the myriad uses of natural gas," Wright claimed. He also singled out wind, saying that "it's incredibly high prices, incredibly huge investment, and a large footprint on the local communities, so it's been very unpopular for people that live near offshore wind turbines."
While in Texas, Wright announced a permit extension for Delfin LNG, an offshore liquefied natural gas export terminal proposal near the Louisiana coast—which Kelsey Crane, senior policy advocate at Earthworks, called "just a continuation of Chris Wright acting in the interest of Big Oil and Gas."
"Without hesitation he is advancing a project that has a different design, funding, contracts, and operational plans since it was first reviewed over six years ago," she said. "It is clear his only job is to make fossil fuel corporations rich by advancing oil and projects, which will leave families and small businesses to struggle with higher energy bills."
According to the Houston Chronicle, "It's the third Gulf Coast LNG project to receive support since Trump took office."
Rosenbluth similarly slammed the decision, saying that "his performative extension of Delfin LNG's export authorization during his speech represents just how deeply intertwined the Trump administration is with the fossil fuel CEOs at CERAWeek."
"As Wright speaks to industry insiders, members of impacted communities, faith leaders, youth, and others are assembling for a 'March for Future Generations,' where they're demanding an end to new fossil fuel projects and government subsidies for the fossil fuel industry," she noted. "The movement for a just transition away from fossil fuels, and towards a clean energy economy that works for all of us, is continuing to fight—regardless of how many fracking CEOs Trump puts in his Cabinet."
The Chroniclereported that "police arrested eight climate protesters Monday after they linked arms to briefly block a street next to CERAWeek by S&P Global... The activists were among hundreds who marched from nearby Root Memorial Square Park to the conference, which is hosted annually at the Hilton Americas-Houston and the George R. Brown Convention Center."
Climate advocates held a banner at CERAWeek by S&P Global in Houston, Texas on March 10, 2025. (Photo: Luigi W. Morris)
During a press conference at the park, Bekah Hinojosa, co-Founder of South Texas Environmental Justice Network in the Rio Grande Valley, said that "our community has been resisting LNG projects for over 10 years. Those projects are the Rio Grande LNG, Texas LNG, and the Rio Bravo pipeline. Last year, our community proved in court that these LNG facilities would be environmental racism. We are a low-income, brown, Native community, and LNG would be a cancer factory."
Jake Hernandez of Texas Campaign for the Environment declared that "we have a human right to breathe clean air, drink clean water, and spread our roots in our homes. We cannot do that as long as these poisonous companies, like Cheniere, continue to encroach on our communities. I've seen a lot of harms and consequences that LNG buildout can cause to our communities. This is just an earnest plea to help us put an end to LNG!"
Keep ReadingShow Less
Most Popular