Democracy Now!

As climate Sahrawi activists in occupied Western Sahara accuse Morocco of greenwashing, the Spanish Film Academy, the Spanish equivalent to the Oscars, has just given its social justice award to the Western Sahara International Film Festival and its film school. We feature our interview at the U.N. climate summit with Mahfud Bechri, who explains how Morocco sells the natural resources and wealth of Western Sahara without the consent of the Sahrawi people as part of an effort to greenwash its military occupation of Western Sahara, and his larger campaign to demand companies end complicity with the occupation. The new social justice award from the Spanish Film Academy recognizes how Spanish support for the Moroccan occupation has led to “a complete media blockade” of the conflict, says María Carrión, executive director of FiSahara, the Western Sahara International Film Festival.

Pressure is growing for Missouri to stop the execution of Kevin Johnson set for Tuesday. At a hearing Monday before Missouri’s Supreme Court, a special prosecutor will request a stay in order to fully investigate how the case was tainted by racism. Meanwhile, Johnson’s 19-year-old daughter has been barred from witnessing his lethal injection because she is under 21. “We understand that the death penalty does not solve anything,” says Michelle Smith, co-director of Missourians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty, who says Johnson is being “punished more severely” because of his race. Lawmakers are also urging Missouri’s governor to grant Johnson clemency.

Unprecedented protests have erupted in multiple Chinese cities over President Xi Jinping’s strict zero-COVID policies, which have resulted in extended strict lockdowns across the country. The protests were triggered by a deadly fire Thursday at an apartment building in Urumqi, the capital of Xinjiang, where local COVID restrictions reportedly prevented firefighters from reaching the trapped residents. This comes as hundreds of workers at the world’s largest iPhone factory, Foxconn, clashed last week with police over restrictions that have forced many workers to live at the factory. “China now for three years has seen a level of lockdown that is simply inconceivable,” says Cornell labor scholar Eli Friedman, who calls the cross-class, cross-ethnic protests a “movement against surveillance.” Friedman says although China enforces the country’s COVID restrictions, top U.S. corporations like Apple and Tesla are implicated in upholding the closed-loop management system at Foxconn and other Chinese manufacturers.

COVID Protests Spread Across China as Lockdown Anger Boils Over, Zelensky Warns of Further Russian Attacks on Energy Infrastructure as Ukrainians Face Harsh Winter, Ayatollah’s Niece Voices Support for Mass Protests as Iran Cracks Down on Public Figures, Extremist Itamar Ben-Gvir to Head Nat’l Security in Incoming Israeli Gov’t, Anwar Ibrahim Confirmed as Malaysia’s New Prime Minister, Hong Kong Convicts 6 Pro-Democracy Activists over Protest Fund, São Tomé and Príncipe PM Says Gov’t Thwarted Coup, Fragile Ceasefire Takes Effect in DRC as Local Groups Tell Foreign Forces to Leave Country, Rescue Teams Search for Missing People After Ischia Landslide Kills at Least 7, Greta Thunberg and 600+ Swedish Youth Activists Sue Gov’t over Climate Inaction, New Regulations for Preservation of Sharks and Other Species Announced at Int’l Conservation Summit, Georgians Start Voting in Dec. 6 Senate Runoff; GA Supreme Court Reinstates Abortion Ban, Twitter Says It Will Reinstate Suspended Accounts as Advertisers Have Withdrawn en Masse, E. Jean Carroll Sues Trump for Sexual Assault Using New York’s Adult Survivors Act, 70,000+ U.K. University Staff Walk Out; British Nurses Prepare for Historic Strike, Amazon Workers Walk Out on Black Friday over Poor Working Conditions and Low Wages

In a special broadcast, we remember the legendary historian, author, professor, playwright and activist Howard Zinn, who was born 100 years ago this August. Zinn was a regular guest on Democracy Now!, from the start of the program in 1996 up until his death in 2010 at age 87. After witnessing the horrors of World War II as a bombardier, Zinn became a peace and justice activist who picketed with his students at Spelman College during the civil rights movement and joined in actions such as opposing the Vietnam War. He later spoke out against the U.S. wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. “I believe neutrality is impossible, because the world is already moving in certain directions. Wars are going on. Children are starving,” Zinn said in a 2005 interview. “To be neutral … is to collaborate with whatever is going on, to allow it to happen.”

This year marks 100 years since the birth of the historian Howard Zinn. In 1980, Zinn published his classic work, “A People’s History of the United States.” The book would go on to sell over a million copies and change the way many look at history in America. We begin today’s special with highlights from a production of Howard Zinn’s “Voices of a People’s History of the United States,” where Zinn introduced dramatic readings from history. We hear Alfre Woodard read the words of labor activist Mother Jones and Howard’ son Jeff Zinn read the words of an IWW poet and organizer Arturo Giovannitti.

In an extended interview, acclaimed physician and author Dr. Gabor Maté discusses his new book, “The Myth of Normal: Trauma, Illness, and Healing in a Toxic Culture.” “The very values of a society are traumatizing for a lot of people,” says Maté, who argues in his book that “psychological trauma, woundedness, underlies much of what we call disease.” He says healing requires a reconnection between the mind and the body, which can be achieved through cultivating a sense of community, meaning, belonging and purpose. Maté also discusses how the healthcare system has harmfully promoted the “mechanization of birth,” how the lack of social services for parents has led to “a massive abandonment of infants,” and how capitalism has fueled addiction and the rise of youth suicide rates.

Lakota historian Nick Estes talks about Thanksgiving and his book “Our History Is the Future,” and the historic fight against the Dakota Access pipeline at Standing Rock. “This history … is a continuing history of genocide, of settler colonialism and, basically, the founding myths of this country,” says Estes, who is a co-founder of the Indigenous resistance group The Red Nation and a citizen of the Lower Brule Sioux Tribe.

This week U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris visited the Philippines, where she said the U.S. would defend the Philippines “in the face of intimidation and coercion” from China and vowed to expand the U.S. military presence in the country even after former bases leaked toxic waste into the environment. We recently spoke about the environment and more with Filipino activist Yeb Saño at the U.N. climate summit in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt. He was previously the chief climate negotiator for the Philippines and is now executive director of Greenpeace Southeast Asia. Saño describes the “loss and damage” fund negotiated between the Global North and Global South as an “expression of human solidarity.” He also discusses Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s commitments to climate action, as well as the threats faced by Filipino environmental activists.

Noam Chomsky remembers the life and legacy of longtime peace and civil rights activist, lawyer and author Staughton Lynd, who has died at the age of 92. Lynd faced professional blowback after he was a conscientious objector during the Korean War and an outspoken critic of the Vietnam War, and later supported U.S. soldiers who refused to fight in Iraq. We feature an extended interview excerpt from when he appeared on Democracy Now! in 2006 to discuss the U.S. invasion and occupation of Iraq, his conscientious objector status and the 1993 Ohio prison uprising in Lucasville.

The situation in Iran is “critical” as authorities tighten their crackdown on the continuing anti-government protests after the September death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in the custody of the so-called morality police. United Nations human rights officials report Iranian security forces in Kurdish cities killed dozens of protesters this week alone, with each funeral turning into a mass rally against the central government. “The defiance has been astounding,” says Middle East studies professor Nahid Siamdoust, who reported for years from Iran, including during the 2009 Green Movement, and calls the protests a “nationwide revolution.”

Six People Shot Dead at Walmart in Chesapeake, Virginia, Supreme Court OKs Release of Trump’s Tax Returns to Congress, Zelensky Accuses Russia of Turning Cold Winter into “Weapon of Mass Destruction”, Ukrainian Forces Raid 1,000-Year-Old Orthodox Monastery in Kyiv, On Trip to Moscow, Cuban President Denounces U.S. Sanctions on Russia & NATO Expansion, Turkey Threatens Ground Invasion of Northern Syria in Assault on Kurds, Brazil: Bolsonaro Contests Lula’s Victory, Alleging Voter Machine Problems, Colombia Resumes Peace Talks with ELN Guerrillas, Fatal Bomb Blasts Hit Jerusalem a Day After Deadly Israeli Raid in West Bank, China: Hundreds of Workers Walk Off Job at World’s Largest iPhone Factory, Biden Administration to Extend Pause of Student Loan Payments, Atlanta to Pay $1 Million to Family of Rayshard Brooks, Over 400 Groups Urge Biden to Expand TPS Protection for Haitians, Teachers Union Head Denounces Pompeo for Calling Her “The Most Dangerous Person in the World”, Starbucks Closes First Store to Unionize in Seattle, Elon Musk Has Lost $100 Billion in 2022 But Remains World’s Richest Person

In a wide-ranging interview recorded in Cairo, we speak with Laila Soueif and Sanaa Seif, the mother and sister of British-Egyptian political prisoner Alaa Abd El-Fattah, about his health, his case, his family and his hopes for freedom. After visiting him in prison, they describe how El-Fattah started a water strike on the first day of the U.N. climate conference in Sharm el-Sheikh to draw international attention to the country’s human rights violations and protest his seemingly indefinite imprisonment. He paused after collapsing and suffering a “near-death experience” when prison officials appeared reluctant to record his full water and hunger strike. Seif says they set a date to restart his hunger strike, once he regains physical and mental strength. Laila Soueif discusses how El-Fattah helped her raise his two younger sisters when her now-deceased husband was in jail for his own activism. They also describe his relationship with his son, Khaled, who is nonverbal and diagnosed with autism, calling El-Fattah a “patient, kind father.” Recalling his most recent trial, they lay out how he was sentenced to five years in prison last December, and explain how El-Fattah’s lawyers never had access to the case trial or were allowed to argue his case. “There is clearly a vendetta” against El-Fattah, notes Seif, who adds “it’s pointless to talk about the legal procedures [since] each step of it is a sham.” Seif also speaks about the mass imprisonment of other political prisoners and the major influence and responsibility the U.S. has in freeing El-Fattah and others. “This whole operation [in Egypt] is a U.S. operation,” says Soueif, who says she wants El-Fattah freed and deported to the U.K. to keep him safe.

Suspect in Colorado LGBTQ Nightclub Massacre Charged with Murder, Hate Crimes, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott Warns of Immigrant “Invasion,” Mirroring Language Used by El Paso Shooter, As Russian Attacks Leave Ukraine Without Power, WHO Warns “This Winter Will Be About Survival”, Kamala Harris Pledges “Unwavering Commitment” to Defend Philippines, Death Toll from Java Earthquake Rises to 268, 38 Workers Die as Fire Sweeps Through Factory in Central China, U.S. Rail Workers Reject Tentative Union Contract, Set Stage for Dec. 9 Strike, Alabama Governor Halts Executions After Third Botched Lethal Injection, Missouri Teen Asks to Attend Her Father’s Execution, Oregon Governor Pardons 45,000 People for Cannabis Convictions, Rights Groups Denounce FIFA for Banning Displays of LGBTQ+ Pride at World Cup

As the World Cup begins, we look at the host country of Qatar’s labor and human rights record. “This is the deadliest major sporting event, possibly ever, in history,” says Minky Worden of Human Rights Watch, who describes how millions of migrant workers from the world’s poorest countries have faced deadly and forced labor conditions working on the $2 billion infrastructure. By one count, 6,500 migrant workers have died in Qatar since 2010, when it was awarded the right to host the games. “These are unprecedented labor rights abuses,” says Worden, who claims “there’s no ability if you’re a migrant worker in Qatar to strike for your basic human rights.”

A gunman wearing body armor and armed with an AR-15-style rifle attacked an LGBTQ nightclub in Colorado Springs late Saturday night, killing five people and injuring at least 25. Two Club Q patrons managed to disarm the shooter, a 22-year-old suspect with ties to an extremist family, before he was taken into police custody. The attack came on the the eve of Transgender Day of Remembrance, and police are investigating the attack as a potential hate crime. “This was an intentional act to push LGBTQ people back into the shadows,” says Denver mayoral candidate Leslie Herod, who is the first LGBTQ+ African American to hold office in the Colorado General Assembly and considers Colorado Springs her hometown. Herod describes a “clear connection” between hateful anti-gay rhetoric and violence toward the LGBTQ community.

Rich countries agreed to establish a “loss and damage” fund at the close of the two-week-long U.N. climate summit in Egypt to help the Global South deal with the worst effects of the climate catastrophe. The fund is a major breakthrough for Global South countries, which have been demanding a similar mechanism for the past 30 years but faced opposition from the United States and other large polluting nations. Climate justice activist Asad Rehman says the fund is a “glimmer of hope” despite the summit ending with a massive expansion of carbon markets and delegates making “no progress” to phase out fossil fuels.

COP27 Delegates Agree on Historic “Loss and Damage” Deal But Make No Progress on Climate Catastrophe, Gunman Kills 5 in Attack on Colorado Springs LGTBQ Nightclub, U.N. Nuclear Body Warns Fighting Near Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Plant Is “Playing with Fire”, Earthquake Kills at Least 56 People in Indonesia, Beijing Reports First COVID Deaths in 6 Months Amid Public Unrest, World Cup Kicks Off Under Cloud of Rights Abuses; Iran Soccer Captain Backs Protests Back Home, Iranian Actresses Arrested After Supporting Protests and Appearing Publicly Without Hijabs, 11 Civilians Killed as Turkish Airstrikes Target Kurdish-Held Parts of Syria and Iraq, Twitter CEO Elon Musk Restores Donald Trump’s Banned Twitter Account, Ex-Justice Department Prosecutor Jack Smith Named Special Counsel in Trump Criminal Probes, Elizabeth Holmes Sentenced to 11 Years in Prison for Defrauding Theranos Investors, Calls Mount for Cryptocurrency Oversight After FTX Exchange Collapses, Biden Asks Supreme Court to Allow Student Debt Relief Program to Take Effect, Justice Alito Denies Whistleblower Claim He Leaked Landmark 2014 Decision Ahead of Ruling, New York Schools Banned from Using Native Mascots Without Consent, Hebe de Bonafini, Who Sought Justice for Victims of Argentina’s Dictatorship, Dies at 93

We continue our coverage from the U.N. climate conference in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, with prominent Russian environmentalist Vladimir Slivyak, co-chair of the Russian environmental organization Ecodefense and winner of the 2021 Right Livelihood Award for defending the environment and mobilizing grassroots opposition to the coal and nuclear industries in Russia. Slivyak says the Russian war in Ukraine, especially the Russian occupation of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, should serve as a warning to immediately transition to renewable energy sources, not nuclear energy, and to stop relying on fossil fuels. “As long as the United States and European Union continue to pay Vladimir Putin for uranium or fossil fuel, that means that this money will be used for the war in Ukraine. That means more people will die in Ukraine,” he adds.

We speak with prominent Ukrainian climate scientist Svitlana Krakovska at the U.N. climate conference in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, about how the Russian war in Ukraine has intensified calls to transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy. Krakovska is the head of the delegation of Ukraine to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, or IPCC. “Fossil fuels: it’s a root, it’s an enabler of the Russian war on Ukraine,” says Krakovska, adding that she feels hopeful that the conference will bring politicians and scientists together to instill positive change.

Ukrainian climate activist Svitlana Romanko joins us after she was suspended from the U.N. climate conference in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, when she accused Russian officials of war crimes and genocide at an event on Wednesday. Romanko is the founder and director of Razom We Stand, an organization demanding a total permanent embargo on Russian oil and gas. “It has been very clear that fossil fuels fund dictatorships all over the world,” says Romanko, who has since left Egypt for her own safety. “We wanted to use our freedom of speaking and freedom of attending public gathering to confront people who came from the country which is in open war and … destroying our people.”

The family of imprisoned British Egyptian human rights activist Alaa Abd El-Fattah visited him on Thursday for the first time since he ended his full hunger and water strike, which they say occurred after he collapsed inside his prison shower last week. El-Fattah had intensified his strike on the first day of the U.N. climate conference in Sharm el-Sheikh to draw international attention to the country’s human rights violations and protest his seemingly indefinite imprisonment. We go to Cairo to speak with his aunt, Ahdaf Soueif, who was among the visitors and says El-Fattah may resume his hunger strike if the British government does not more aggressively demand his release. “It really breaks my heart to think of him going back on hunger strike when he is so thin and so weak,” but the campaign so far “has left no one in any doubt that Alaa should be free,” she says.

Negotiations over “Loss and Damage” Dominate Final Hours of COP27 Climate Summit, Nancy Pelosi, First Woman House Speaker, Steps Down from Democratic Leadership After 2 Decades, Democratic Rep. Katie Porter, Famous for Her “Whiteboard of Justice,” Wins Reelection, Reelection Bid of Far-Right Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert Headed for Recount, Kremlin Hints at Prisoner Swap Involving Brittney Griner and Viktor Bout, State Department Says Saudi Crown Prince Has Immunity from Lawsuit over Khashoggi Killing, Blaze Kills 21 People at Jabaliya Refugee Camp in Gaza, World Cup Kicks Off in Shadow of Qatar’s Human Rights, Labor Abuses, Adjunct Professors at NYC’s New School Launch Indefinite Strike, Starbucks Workers Walk Out Nationwide to Protest Chain’s Anti-Union Efforts , Hundreds of Twitter Workers Resign After Declining to Go “Hard Core” for Musk , Alabama Execution Called Off over Botched Attempt at Lethal Injection, Staughton Lynd, Civil Rights Activist and War Critic, Dies at Age 92

We continue our coverage of the U.N. climate conference in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, by asking what Indigenous leaders at the frontlines of the climate crisis are calling for from world leaders. We speak to Andrea Ixchíu, a land defender from Guatemala, and Rosa Marina Flores Cruz, an Afro-Indigenous activist from Mexico, who are both part of the Futuros Indígenas collective. They discuss how their countries’ megaprojects and big business are devastating Indigenous communities. “Green capitalism is affecting our communities. It’s displacing people. It’s creating violence,” says Ixchíu. Amid the murder and persecution of climate activists across Latin America, “defend[ing] the land is one of the most difficult and dangerous activities that we can do,” says Cruz.

Brazilian President-elect Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva addressed world leaders at the U.N. climate conference in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, on Wednesday, vowing to end deforestation of the Amazon rainforest and create a ministry to represent Indigenous peoples in his government. Brazil’s new approach to climate change aims to reverse outgoing far-right President Jair Bolsonaro’s policies that have devastated Indigenous lands. “With Lula’s support, we can fight against deforestation and support Indigenous peoples in protecting and confronting the threats they face, including assassinations and human rights violations,” says Gregório Mirabal, an Indigenous leader from the Venezuelan Amazon. His colleague Atossa Soltani, board president of Amazon Watch, translated for him.

Democracy Now! is broadcasting live from COP27, the U.N. climate conference in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, where hundreds of activists protested outside the plenary hall Thursday to demand climate justice. We speak to two Indigenous activists and land defenders at the summit, Eriel Tchekwie Deranger and Tom Goldtooth. “It is frontline communities, land defenders and Indigenous peoples that have experienced the loss of our territories at the hands of oil and gas and extractivism,” says Deranger, executive director of Indigenous Climate Action and member of the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation. “Colonialism has to be addressed in these hallways, and there’s been lack of political will around that,” says Goldtooth, executive director of the Indigenous Environmental Network and member of the Diné and Dakota nations.

GOP Wins Narrow House Majority; McConnell Reelected Senate Minority Leader, Senate Advances Bill to Codify Marriage Equality into Federal Law, Iran Steps Up Violence Against Protesters, Sentences Five Activists to Death, Russian Missiles Fall Across Ukraine as Grain Export Deal Extended for 120 Days, Poland Blames Russia for Deadly Blast Near Border with Ukraine, Family of Alaa Abd El-Fattah Still Has Not Seen Imprisoned British Egyptian Activist, U.S. Judge Gives Biden Administration 5Week Extension to End Title 42, Sen. Ossoff Grills ICE Official About Invasive Procedures Performed on Prisoners, Immigrant Rights Activists Welcome Migrants Bused to Philadelphia from Texas, Rep. Karen Bass Becomes First Woman, Second Black Person Elected as L.A. Mayor, NLRB Asks Court to Stop Starbucks from Firing More Workers as Retaliation for Unionizing, Joye Braun, Cheyenne River Sioux Water Protector and Policy Advocate, Dies at 53

COP27 in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, has been called the African COP, but many African climate activists cannot afford to attend. Broadcasting from the summit, we speak to Omar Elmawi, campaign coordinator for Stop the East African Crude Oil Pipeline, about the push to stop the construction of a major pipeline that would stretch 900 miles from Uganda to Tanzania. Key financial backers of the East African Crude Oil Pipeline include the French company Total and the China National Offshore Oil Company. “It’s a project that is strongly being opposed by people in Uganda and the whole world, because it’s going to be displacing over 100,000 people in East Africa, and it’s also going to be causing a lot of impacts to nature,” says Elmawi. He adds that the region should transition instead to renewable energy such as solar.

As the U.N. climate conference in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, is underway, we look at how military spending accelerates the climate crisis. Wealthy nations’ investments in armed forces not only exacerbates pollution but also often surpasses their climate financing by as much as 30 times, according to a new report by the Transnational Institute. It shows the money is available, “but it’s been dedicated to military spending,” says co-author Nick Buxton. Governments that import arms, like Egypt, are motivated by the desire for legitimacy and the “power to crack down on the civil society,” adds Muhammad al-Kashef, human rights lawyer and migration activist.

We are broadcasting from COP27, the U.N. climate conference in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, where poorer countries in the Global South that are weathering the worst effects of the climate crisis are calling for wealthy nations to pay reparations in the form of climate financing. “We need a global plan to phase out fossil fuels in a just and equitable manner,” says Harjeet Singh, head of global political strategy with Climate Action Network and global engagement director of the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty. He adds that the United States is the main impediment to “loss and damage” climate financing. “Money is available, but [the] U.S. has always blocked money going to poor people who are suffering from climate impacts,” he says.

Poland Says Ukraine Likely Launched Missiles That Killed 2, Not a Deliberate Attack, Russian Missiles Rain Down on Ukraine as Zelensky Calls for G20 to Support Peace Plan, Judge Overturns Georgia Abortion Ban, Trump Announces 2024 Run Amid Ongoing Legal Troubles, Kevin McCarthy Wins GOP Nomination for House Speaker; Sen. Warnock Sues GA over Early Voting Rules, U.S. Judge Blocks Title 42, Which Has Expelled 2 Million Migrants Since 2020, Philadelphia Rights Activists Preparing for New Immigrant Bus from Texas, Intel Report Details How the UAE Spent Hundreds of Millions to Influence U.S. Foreign Policy, Lula Declares “Brazil Is Back” at COP27, Calls for Next Meeting to Take Place in Amazon, 11-Year-Old Licypriya Kangujam Confronts U.K. Minister over Criminalization of Climate Protests, Jennifer Siebel Newsom Testifies Harvey Weinstein Raped Her in 2005, Tesla Construction Workers Describe Exploitative, Dangerous Conditions at Texas Site, Sanitation Co. Accused of Using Child Labor in JBS Slaughterhouses, Walmart Agrees to $3.1 Billion Settlement over Opioids Crisis

At the U.N. climate conference in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, we speak with prominent Ugandan climate activist Vanessa Nakate about the impact of the climate crisis on the continent of Africa. Earlier today she spoke at a COP27 event and blasted world leaders for not doing more. She describes the need for wealthy nations gathered at the U.N. climate conference, particularly the U.S., to finance loss and damage for poorer nations in the Global South. “For the current and historic emitters, they need to take responsibility for the climate crisis, and they need to pay for this crisis,” says Nakate.

Broadcasting from COP27, the U.N. climate conference in Sharm el-Sheikh, we speak to leading Egyptian human rights advocate and journalist Hossam Bahgat about how authorities have launched a widespread crackdown on political dissent. Hundreds have been arrested, including lawyers and journalists, and police have been stopping people randomly on the streets of Cairo and other cities to search the contents of their phones. Meanwhile, imprisoned British Egyptian activist Alaa Abd El-Fattah has sent a letter notifying his family that he has stopped his hunger strike and asked for them to visit on Thursday. Bahgat disagrees with calls to boycott COP27, and gained entry through asking a foreign environmental group to include him. “Sustained engagement with the Egyptian government in public and private about its catastrophic human rights record can actually lead to some change,” says Bahgat, executive director of the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights.

U.N. General Assembly Calls on Russia to Pay Reparations for Ukraine Invasion, After Meeting Xi Jinping, Biden Says U.S. Won’t Provoke New Cold War with China, Egyptian Political Prisoner Alaa Abd El-Fattah Ends Hunger Strike, Israel Says It Won’t Cooperate with FBI Probe into Killing of Shireen Abu Akleh, Thousands Flee Fighting Between Congolese Army and M23 Rebels in Eastern DRC, Katie Hobbs Defeats GOP Election Denier Kari Lake to Win Arizona Governor Race, Arizona Voters Approve In-State College Tuition for Undocumented Immigrants, Second Federal Court Blocks Biden’s Student Debt Relief Program, Nearly 50,000 Student Workers Strike at All 10 University of California Campuses, UVA Lifts Shelter-in-Place Order After Police Arrest Alleged Gunman, Supreme Court Will Allow House Jan. 6 Committee to Subpoena Arizona GOP Leader, Pence Says He Was “Angered” by Trump’s “Reckless” Actions on January 6, 2021, Amazon Plans to Lay Off 10,000 Workers, Digital Currency Prices Plummet as Regulators Probe Collapse of FTX, Google to Pay $392 Million to Settle Probe into Unwanted Tracking of Users’ Locations, Climate Scientists Join Nonviolent Protests at Private U.S. Airports

As the U.N. climate conference takes place in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, we look at the effects of the climate crisis for the host country, such as rising temperatures and sea levels in the Nile Delta. Ahmed El Droubi, Greenpeace regional campaign manager for the Middle East and North Africa, says “the most significantly impacted sector in Egypt is definitely the agricultural sector.” Egyptians are calling for wealthy nations to be held accountable for causing the bulk of the climate crisis, only to be met with “temporary solutions that do not address the core of the climate crisis,” he adds.

For the first time since taking office, President Biden met in person with Chinese President Xi Jinping Monday in Bali, Indonesia. We discuss how the meeting might affect rising tensions over Taiwan, where Nancy Pelosi visited earlier this year, and concerns over China’s human rights violations. The goals of the meeting should be “for the two leaders to find a way to cool those tensions down and to find ways to reduce the risk of a military clash arising in the Pacific,” says Michael Klare, defense correspondent at The Nation. As Chinese military drills near Taiwan threaten instability in the region, “the question is what’s the best way to deter China from doing anything,” says Orville Schell, director of the Center on U.S.-China Relations at the Asia Society.

Democracy Now! is in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, where the COP27 U.N. climate conference has entered its second week amid protests against the host government’s repression and world leaders’ inaction on the climate crisis. We speak with Asad Rehman, executive director of War on Want and lead spokesperson for the Climate Justice Coalition, who risked arrest to participate in a climate justice protest along with hundreds of others in Egypt on Saturday. “You can’t have the very people burning the planet sitting here and pretending to be drafting the solutions to it, and that’s exactly what’s happening in these climate negotiations,” says Rehman. He says imprisoned Egyptian British activist Alaa Abd El-Fattah is “part and parcel of our struggle,” as calls to free El-Fattah continue after he sent proof of life in a letter for the first time since beginning a full hunger and water strike last week. We also speak with Nigerian environmentalist Nnimmo Bassey, who says the perception that this is an African COP is “a big misnomer,” as the African delegates feel largely excluded.

Democrats Retain Control of Senate After Narrow Victories in Arizona and Nevada, House of Representatives Remains Up for Grabs, But Democrats’ Path to Majority Narrows, GOP Election Deniers Lose Races for Key Offices in Battleground States, Ukraine Recaptures Kherson After Eight-Month Russian Occupation, At COP27, Biden Apologizes over Trump’s Actions on Climate, Doesn’t Mention Loss & Damage, Climate Activists Rally at COP27 for Climate Justice, Family of Egyptian Political Prisoner Alaa Abd El-Fattah Receives “Proof of Life” Letter, Biden Holds First Face-to-Face Meeting of Presidency with China’s Xi Jinping, Turkey Blames Kurdish Separatists for Istanbul Bomb Blast That Killed 6, Iranian Court Issues First Death Sentence over Protests That Erupted in September, U.N. Envoy Calls on U.S. and Allies to Lift Sanctions on Syria, Citing Harm to Civilians, Israeli Troops Kill 19-Year-Old Palestinian Woman During Raid in Occupied West Bank, Ethiopia Agrees to Allow Humanitarian Access to War-Torn Tigray, A Shooter Is at Large After Killing 3 People on University of Virginia Campus, Biden Admin Extends TPS for Hundreds of Thousands, Twitter Lays Off More Workers, Forced to Halt “Checkmark” Subscription as Fake Accounts Flood Site

A new Oxfam analysis finds the investments of the world’s richest people are emitting 3 million tons a year — more than a million times the average person’s output. The report, titled “Carbon Billionaires,” suggests a wealth tax could help fund urgent climate action in developing countries. The analysis shows “how much power and control a few people have over our economic system and, beyond that, our way of life, our survival as humanity,” says Ashfaq Khalfan, climate justice director at Oxfam America. Khalfan also responds to U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry’s new carbon offset proposal, which he calls a “distraction” that will delay action on public financing of climate action.

Voters in Nevada and a handful of cities across the United States appear poised to expand the use of ranked-choice voting in the aftermath of Tuesday’s midterm elections. The election method allows voters to select multiple candidates in descending order of preference. It is used in many other countries, and supporters say it can reduce polarization and give more voice to independent voters. “The forces for ranked-choice voting are people who really care about our democracy,” says George Cheung, director of More Equitable Democracy, who says ranked-choice voting “allows for truer representation of who we are as a community.”

We speak with Congressmember-elect Delia Ramirez, who won her election for Illinois’s newly redrawn 3rd Congressional District Tuesday, making her the first Latina elected to Congress from Illinois. Ramirez is a progressive Democratic state representative who is the daughter of Guatemalan immigrants and the wife of a DACA recipient. She campaigned on expanding healthcare and housing access for working people, as well as passing the DREAM Act. “I represent an electorate that is growing — an electorate that expects us to deliver to all people and put the politics to the side and make working families a priority,” says Ramirez. “We understand the importance of multicultural coalition building for all working people.”

Control of Senate Hangs in Balance as Vote Counting Continues in Arizona and Nevada, Arizona Officials Condemn Death Threats Against Election Workers, Republicans Edge Closer to Claiming House Majority , Democrats Tina Kotek and Maura Healey Become First Openly Lesbian Elected Governors , Ukraine Says It Liberated Dozens of Towns and Villages in Russian-Occupied Kherson, WSJ: South Korea to Sell Artillery for Ukraine in Confidential Arms Deal with U.S. , Ukraine’s Zelensky Says Russia’s Invasion Has Worsened Climate Crisis, Egypt Cracks Down on Dissent as Family of Hunger-Striking Political Prisoner Appeals to Biden , Biden to Meet with Xi Jinping Next Week on Sidelines of G20 Summit, China Sticks with “Zero COVID” Policy as Daily Cases Pass 10,000 , Israeli Forces Kill Two Palestinians in West Bank; Palestinian Rights Groups Testify to U.N. Panel, U.S. State Department Blasts Israeli Politician Ben-Gvir for “Celebrating Terrorism”, Crew Finds Noose at Construction Site of Obama Presidential Library, Black Liberation Elder Mutulu Shakur to be Released from Prison with Just Months Left to Live, D.C. Sues NFL, Washington Commanders over Toxic Workplace Cover-Up, U.S. Judge Blocks Biden Student Relief Plan, 48,000 University of California Graduate Workers Poised to Strike Statewide, HarperCollins Workers Go on Strike to Demand Fair Pay and Benefits

The Supreme Court heard oral arguments Tuesday in Haaland v. Brackeen, a case challenging the Indian Child Welfare Act and ultimately threatening the legal foundations of federal Indian law. ICWA was created in 1978 to address the systemic crisis of family separation in Native communities waged by the U.S. and requires the government to ensure foster children are adopted by members of their Indigenous tribes, as well as blood relatives, before being adopted by non-Indigenous parents. Now right-wing groups are supporting white foster parents to challenge the law as discriminatory. “Not only are our children on the line, but the legal foundation, the legal structure that defends the rights of Indigenous nations in the United States is literally at stake,” says journalist Rebecca Nagle, who has been reporting on the case for years and says it’s likely the Supreme Court will strike ICWA down. Nagle also comments on the oral arguments, saying the Supreme Court’s majority has “many racist stereotypes in their minds about Native people.”

We look at the wave of progressive prosecutors elected in Tuesday’s midterms and what the results mean for the movement to reform the criminal justice system. Voters have an “understanding that we can’t incarcerate our way to safety,” says law professor Lara Bazelon, who explains how progressive prosecutors won several key races in blue, purple and red states despite Republican candidates across the country campaigning with a focus on crime and public safety. “The progressive narrative, far from being dead, is very much alive.”

The balance of power in Congress is still up in the air two days after Tuesday’s midterm elections, and control of the Senate now rests on three states: Nevada, Arizona and Georgia. Meanwhile, Republicans have not yet won enough House seats to regain the majority, though there are still over 30 House races not yet decided. Many analysts say if Democrats lose control of the House, it may largely be because of New York state, where Republicans have flipped four congressional seats. Sochie Nnaemeka, director of the New York Working Families Party, says the “low-participation, low-energy election” was the result of the Democrats’ “failed strategies at the state level.” And Zohran Mamdani, New York state assemblymember for District 36, explains how GOP-favored redistricting, which he pins on Democratic leadership, “may be part of the reason why we do not hold the House.” Both Nnaemeka and Mamdani are part of a growing coalition calling for the resignation of Jay Jacobs, chair of the state’s Democratic Committee, who they say laid the ground for major Democratic losses to the GOP in Tuesday’s midterm elections.

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Pittsburgh community organizer Summer Lee was elected the first Black woman to represent Pennsylvania in Congress after winning the state’s 12th Congressional District in Tuesday’s midterm elections. Lee, currently a state representative, faced off against Republican Mike Doyle — who happened to share the same name as the outgoing Democratic incumbent. We speak with Aimee Allison, president and founder of She the People, who explains how Lee successfully fended off a massive negative ad campaign funded by the pro-Israel lobbying group AIPAC. Allison also speaks about the mayoral race in Los Angeles, where progressive Karen Bass is in a tight race with billionaire Rick Caruso, as well as other races where strong progressive candidates fell short. “The heartbreaking loss of some of the nation’s best candidates demonstrates that the Democrats need to invest early and very, very strongly in these excellent candidates in order to protect and build up their capacity to turn out the votes,” says Allison.

Former U.S. Labor Secretary Robert Reich says President Biden must “push back as hard as he can” if Republicans take control of even one chamber in Congress following Tuesday’s midterm elections. He says the administration needs to be clear there is no compromise on the debt ceiling, which he expects a Republican-controlled Congress would challenge, potentially triggering a repeat of the political crisis in 2011 under former President Obama.

Voters supported the right to abortion in at least four of the five states where reproductive rights were on the ballot in Tuesday’s midterm elections. “Abortion rights are deeply popular, and when you put the question before voters, they say yes,” said The Nation’s Amy Littlefield. She also discusses Vermont becoming the first state to enshrine abortion rights in its constitution, as well as the “historic win” in Kentucky, where voters defeated an anti-abortion ballot initiative.

Georgia Democratic Senator Raphael Warnock and his opponent Republican Herschel Walker will likely head to a runoff if neither candidate wins 50% of the vote needed to win the election outright. Warnock was able to capture more white and rural votes than Stacey Abrams, who lost to Georgia’s incumbent Republican Governor Brian Kemp, explains ​​LaTosha Brown, co-founder of Black Voters Matter Fund. “Voter suppression has had an impact in this election,” says Brown, who joins us from Atlanta and notes how mail-in ballots in Georgia went down since 2018. We also continue our conversation with John Nichols, who describes the impact of gerrymandering in the tight House races and the Ohio Senate race, which he says was a “big loss for Democrats.”