BP hit with record $21 million fine
HOUSTON — BP Products North America Inc. has been fined a record $21 million for health and safety violations as a result of a March 23 explosion that killed 15 workers and injured more than 170 at its Texas City, Texas, plant, according to the Occupational Health and Safety Administration. The penalty was almost twice the previous record fine at the plant.
City urged to uphold rights of immigrants
NEW HAVEN, Conn. — “Every day it becomes more difficult to live,” testified Lupe, a mother and member of Unidad Latina en Accion, at a Sept. 15 public hearing on the status of immigrants. “Landlords exploit us. We don’t have adequate utilities. Our children test for high lead. We are asking the New Haven Board of Aldermen for help in changing the laws.”
AFL-CIO urges new direction for U.S. after Katrina
WASHINGTON (PAI) — Saying the havoc Hurricane Katrina wrought exposed to the public the gaping holes in U.S. society and the economy — and the ideologically driven failure to respond to them — the AFL-CIO will launch a mass campaign to promote a “new direction” for the U.S.
Growing unity vs. NYC Mayor Bloomberg
NEW YORK — The campaign to defeat Republican Mayor Michael Bloomberg, an ally of President Bush, has swung in the people’s favor following the Sept. 13 Democratic primary and a string of endorsements for the primary’s victor, Fernando Ferrer.
World Notes
Bangladesh: Garment workers urge minimum wage; Ghana: Mine safety promoted; Gulf States: Strikes highlight expatriate workers’ plight; Nicaragua: Sandinistas make oil deal with Venezuela; United Kingdom: TUC elects Black woman president
London marchers: How many more people must die?
LONDON — Antiwar protesters sent a stark message to Prime Minister Tony Blair over the weekend: “How many more must die before you listen?”
Report says Israeli wall helps land grab
The Israeli human rights group B’Tselem released a report Sept. 15 titled “Under the guise of security: Routing the separation barrier as to enable Israeli settlement expansion in the West Bank.”
Bush administration isolated at World Summit
UNITED NATIONS — President Bush’s policies drew heavy condemnation from leaders of dozens of countries at the World Summit here, Sept. 14-16. Despite strenuous efforts by his new UN representative John Bolton, the Bush administration was unable to either ram its agenda through the summit or completely derail it, as it was able to do at the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty review a few months earlier. This defeat was an indication of Bush’s weakened international reputation, some observers noted.
West Coast antiwar protests draw tens of thousands
Tens of thousands gathered in West Coast cities Sept. 24 to call for an end to the U.S. occupation of Iraq, immediate return of all U.S. troops, and use of resources to meet people’s needs at home. Speakers connected the war to the dismal response to Hurricane Katrina.
South, Southwest demonstrate for peace
In Phoenix, 2,000 marched on Republican Sen. Jon Kyl’s office. Kyl, a big war supporter, faces the voters in 2006. Over 600 turned out in Tucson, where Ruben Reyes spoke on behalf of Rep. Raul Grijalva. Another 150 rallied in Flagstaff, Ariz.
