We just received a new letter from House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Rep. Jason Smith, which lists out the names of our reporters and editors, and then threatens to individually subpoena and depose each of them in Washington. The journalists being targeted include Rania Khalek, Zoe Alexandra, and Amanda Yee. Support us now at: breakthroughnews.org/congres… This is a blatant attempt to shut down BreakThrough News for editorial judgments and viewpoints the administration doesn’t like. Now they’re taking things to another level. In July, the House Committee issued subpoenas for our communications and financial records, smeared us in the press, and threatened our nonprofit status in an effort to intimidate and bankrupt us. Because we’ve held strong in defense of our First Amendment rights, they are now going after our journalists. BT is an independent news organization, which takes no editorial direction from any outside force. All major donations have come from US organizations, using US financial institutions, and complying with all US laws. We’re audited and file a complete tax return to the IRS every year, just like everyone else. We will not let Congress silence us — but we need your help to speak out against this attack on free speech and a free press. Sign our petition now, then donate to our outlet to help us protect our journalists.

“They don’t have a father anymore. She’s never going to know her dad.” Family and friends of Tawfiq Abdul Haqq are demanding justice for the 33-year-old Maryland father of two, who was shot and killed by Prince George’s County police officer Corbin Davis on August 21. Police have not said why they were following Haqq, and their dash and body cam footage released last month appears to dispute official claims that Haqq attempted to weaponize his car against Davis. It shows police following Haqq, who was driving a black Tesla, and another white Honda, down a dead-end street. Haqq makes a wide U-turn around Davis’s cruiser and drives through a front yard, where Davis exits the cruiser and approaches the car before opening fire. Haqq, who was born Bernard Gibson III, was father of a 13-year-old son and a one-year-old daughter. He was a hip-hop artist who family says worked as an entrepreneur and daytrader.

"I speak for all immigrants. I am going to fight for them, for those who have been deported, for those who have been locked in there for a long time." Martin Soto was detained by ICE back in February while picking up diapers for his 11-month-old. While at Delaney Hall, Soto led a hunger strike to protest the brutal conditions in detention. He was later transferred to Elizabeth Detention Center in May, where he spent four months in solitary confinement as retribution for his organizing. At a Friday press conference, after eight months in detention, he spoke to reporters about what went through his mind during that time. "I was begging and asking God not to abandon me," Soto said. He urged those who oppose Trump's anti-immigrant policies to come together, optimistic that "if we are all united together, we can put an end to this government."

Wednesday marks three years since Al-Aqsa Flood and the escalation of Israel's campaign to eliminate Gaza into a full-blown genocide. In those three years, US public consciousness around Palestine has fundamentally shifted, with Israel losing the hearts and minds of American voters. From Occupy Wall Street to the 2020 uprising for George Floyd, Layan Sima Fuleihan of @peoplesforumnyc traces the Palestine movement through more than a decade of the mass rebellions that empowered it.

Mayor of Saint-Denis Bally Bagayoko protects a line of French students from police as they attack the protesters. France is seeing its largest student protests in decades, with youth demanding government action on teacher shortages, dilapidated classrooms, and overcrowded conditions. Entering their third week, the demonstrations have broadened into wider public outrage over general government austerity and budget cuts.