Why is New York State passing a blasphemy law reminiscent of Iranian theocracy?

The Turkish government struck another hard blow against civil society and human rights advocates in the country.

Now what is here symbolized has been the most fundamental idea in our American democracy. Ours is a government by discussion.

The courage of Václav Havel was grounded in a sense of responsibility for promoting ideals and values that transcend material goods, confront human decadence, and endure beyond our earthly existence.

Hong Kong’s well-known pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily was forced to run its final edition on June 24 after authorities used the new national security law to freeze the company’s assets without a court order. It is yet another sign that the light of the city’s freedom is flickering out.

Leila Khaled, a notorious terrorist leader, was again prevented from speaking virtually at a California public university-sponsored event.

A recent Zoom event at San Francisco State University (SFSU) sparked investigations because it hosted Leila Khaled, a current leader in the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PLFP), a US and EU-designated terrorist group.

Summer 2018 was a landmark season for the US and its participation in advancing international human rights. First, the US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley led the US withdrawal from the UN Human Rights Council, and then the US Department of State hosted the first ever international religious freedom ministerial to advance religious liberty around the world.

Since the 1980s, the MCIG has played a leading role in suppressing political and cultural speech that contradicts Tehran’s revolutionary creed. But while the Obama administration sanctioned the ministry in 2012 for engaging in censorship, its current leadership has escaped Washington’s attention. By sanctioning the ministry’s current head, Abbas Salehi, Washington can send the mullahs a message that their ideologically driven repression will carry a price.