Today's Liberal News

Contributing Writers

Colombian President Gustavo Petro Denounces U.S. Intervention in Americas, from Chilean Coup to Drug War

Colombian President Gustavo Petro says the U.S.-backed coup in Chile 50 years ago, when General Augusto Pinochet deposed socialist President Salvador Allende, left a lasting scar across Latin America. Many progressives took up arms against corrupt governments, often led by “Nazis,” Petro says, fueling decades of conflict that is only now beginning to fade.

Lift the Blockade on Venezuela & Cuba: Colombian President Petro Warns U.S. Sanctions Are Driving Migration

In Part 3 of our interview with leftist Colombian President Gustavo Petro, he describes how hard-line U.S. policies are preventing the Americas from addressing issues like migration, calling on the Biden administration to “open up a plural dialogue” to bring the region closer together. He notes many people moving through Latin America to seek asylum in the United States are from Venezuela, a country that has been devastated by U.S. sanctions.

World Must Decarbonize Before “Point of No Return” on Climate Crisis: Colombian President Gustavo Petro

In Part 2 of our interview with Colombian President Gustavo Petro, he says climate change is a “vital matter” the world must address collectively. But unlike world trade, which is governed by a set of common rules, there is no organizing rubric for decarbonizing the world economy in time to prevent catastrophe. “There’s no courts for this. There’s no justice. So everybody can just slip by,” Petro says.

Colombian President Gustavo Petro on Ukraine, Palestine & Why Latin America Rejects Western Hypocrisy

Colombian President Gustavo Petro joins Democracy Now! for an exclusive broadcast interview after his address to the United Nations General Assembly in New York, where he spoke of the need to end wars and stop the climate crisis. Petro is the first leftist to ever govern Colombia. He was elected in 2022 after campaigning to fight inequality and poverty, increase taxes on the wealthy, expand social programs, restore peace and end Colombia’s dependence on fossil fuels.

“I’m Not a Criminal… Enbridge Is”: Charges Tossed Against Winona LaDuke & Others for Pipeline Action

A Minnesota judge has dismissed criminal charges against three Indigenous water protectors who were arrested for protesting oil extraction on treaty-ceded Anishinaabe land. Winona LaDuke, Tania Aubid and Dawn Goodwin were arrested in January 2021 after police saw video shared on social media of the three women singing, dancing and praying near construction crews for Canadian energy company Enbridge’s Line 3 tar sands oil pipeline.

Colombian President Gustavo Petro: Charges Against Julian Assange Are “Mockery of Freedom of Press”

At the United Nations General Assembly this week, multiple world leaders voiced support for the imprisoned founder of WikiLeaks, Julian Assange, including Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Colombian President Gustavo Petro. We air an excerpt of Democracy Now!’s exclusive interview with Petro, who calls Assange’s continued incarceration “the greatest mockery of freedom of press … brought to bear by the country that built the concept.

Assassination of Sikh Leader in Canada Highlights Modi’s Embrace of Authoritarianism in India & Abroad

We speak to Arjun Sethi, a Sikh community activist, civil rights lawyer and professor at Georgetown Law, about Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s public accusations that the Indian government arranged the assassination of a prominent Sikh leader and Canadian citizen outside a Sikh temple in British Columbia in June. India has denied the allegations.

“Stop Financing Fossil Fuels”: 149 Climate Activists Arrested Blocking NY Federal Reserve, Hit Banks

As climate activists from around the world gather in New York for the annual Climate Week, which coincides with the new session of the United Nations General Assembly, an estimated 75,000 people marched on the U.N. headquarters Sunday with a demand for President Biden to “end fossil fuels.” They escalated their demands by targeting financing for fossil fuel projects, with a series of direct actions at major U.S. financial institutions and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

U.S. & Iran Complete Prisoner Swap; Iranian Protesters Mark One Year Since Death of Mahsa Amini

As the Biden administration and Tehran carry out a prisoner swap that also includes the unfreezing of $6 billion in Iranian oil revenue, we look at the state of U.S.-Iran relations with journalist Negar Mortazavi, host of The Iran Podcast. The deal represents a major diplomatic breakthrough between the two countries since the end of the Iran nuclear deal, from which the Trump administration unilaterally withdrew in 2018.