Martin Michaels

Martin Michaels is a Mint Press staff writer specializing in immigration, international affairs and social justice issues. A native New Yorker, Michaels graduated with a degree in international relations and democratization in the Middle East. He has traveled to Jordan, Egypt and Israel, conducting research and studying human rights issues there. Michaels has also worked in various positions with J Street and Occupy Wall Street, promoting peace and social justice. Contact Martin at [email protected] or follow Martin on Twitter at @MMichaelsMPN.

Occupy Movement 1 Year On: The Past, The Present, The Future

Thousands of occupy demonstrators march through the streets of Chicago’™s North Side to the home of Mayor Rahm Emanuel to protest the cities closure of 7 mental heath clinics due to budget cuts, on Saturday May 19, 2012. The protest comes on the eve of the NATO summit also taking place in Chicago. (Photo Norbert […]

Martin Michaels
Par Martin Michaels
Thousands of occupy demonstrators march through the streets of Chicago'™s North Side to the home of Mayor Rahm Emanuel to protest the cities closure of 7 mental heath clinics due to budget cuts, on Saturday May 19, 2012. The protest comes on the eve of the NATO summit also taking place in Chicago. (Photo Norbert Schiller/Mint Press)

(MintPress) — One year ago, the Occupy Wall Street (OWS) movement captured the nation’s attention as a small group of protesters answered the call to confront economic injustice by physically occupying the financial center of the U.S. — Wall Street. The encampment quickly swelled, bringing together many Americans from the “99 percent” outraged by

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Attacks On Civil Liberties: Terrorist Watchlist, Stop-And-Frisk Policies, Voter ID Laws

A security official speaks to convention goers as they were asked to move outside a security zone, Wednesday, Sept. 5, 2012, in Charlotte, N.C., during the second day of the Democratic National Convention.The entrance was delayed because of safety concerns. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton) (MintPress) — James Ian Tyson, a North Carolina resident, was recently detained […]

Martin Michaels
Par Martin Michaels
A security official speaks to convention goers as they were asked to move outside a security zone, Wednesday, Sept. 5, 2012, in Charlotte, N.C., during the second day of the Democratic National Convention.The entrance was delayed because of safety concerns. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton)

(MintPress) — James Ian Tyson, a North Carolina resident, was recently detained for questioning after he attended a peaceful protest outside the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte. Tyson, was found to be on a “terrorist watchlist” despite only participating in peaceful protests during his work as an activist. Members of the Identity

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Despite National Crackdown On Whistleblowers, IRS Relying On Informers To Report Tax Fraud

In this Jan. 8, 2010 file photo, Bradley Birkenfeld, a whistleblower in the tax evasion case against Swiss bank UBS AG, pauses during a press conference outside the Schuylkill County Federal Correctional Institution in Minersville Pa, before reporting to the federal prison. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File ) (MintPress) — The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is increasingly […]

Martin Michaels
Par Martin Michaels
In this Jan. 8, 2010 file photo, Bradley Birkenfeld, a whistleblower in the tax evasion case against Swiss bank UBS AG, pauses during a press conference outside the Schuylkill County Federal Correctional Institution in Minersville Pa, before reporting to the federal prison. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File )

(MintPress) — The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is increasingly relying upon the whistleblower program to investigate cases of tax evasion and fraud. While estimates vary, wealthy U.S. citizens could be hiding up to $5 trillion in offshore accounts, according to a Senate report published in 2008. By providing rewards for successful indictments,

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Neo-Nazis Escalate Violence Along US-Mexico Border

In this photo taken June 8, 2012, former Neo-Nazi leader William A. White is taken into custody by police in the city of Playa del Carmen in Mexico’s Mayan Riviera. (AP Photo/Por Esto de Yucatan) (MintPress) — A recent report published by the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), indicates a sharp rise in the number of […]

Martin Michaels
Par Martin Michaels
In this photo taken June 8, 2012, former Neo-Nazi leader William A. White is taken into custody by police in the city of Playa del Carmen in Mexico's Mayan Riviera. (AP Photo/Por Esto de Yucatan)

(MintPress) — A recent report published by the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), indicates a sharp rise in the number of immigrants, both legal and illegal, killed along the U.S.-Mexico border. The report by the non-profit civil rights organization connects the escalation in violence to the rise of neo-Nazi vigilante groups and ultra-right wing

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Protests In Chile Show Dissatisfaction With Current Economic Times, Past US Intervention In Chilean Government

Demonstrators lite a barricade during a protest to mark the 39th anniversary of the military coup in Santiago, Chile, Sunday, Sept. 9, 2012. Protesters clashed with anti-riot police after a march to remember the victims of the dictatorship led by Gen. Augusto Pinochet who toppled leftist President Salvador Allende on Sept. 11, 1973. (AP Photo/Luis […]

Martin Michaels
Par Martin Michaels
chile

(MintPress) — Protests erupted across Santiago, Chile over the weekend in the leadup to the 39th anniversary of a U.S. backed coup removing President Salvador Allende from power. Protesters set up barricades and threw molotov cocktails in violent demonstrations conducted mostly by younger Chileans and political leftists. Following President

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Foreign Investors Plan Development Of Three Private Cities In Honduras

Riot police stand guard near the Brazilian embassy where ousted Honduran President Manuel Zelaya has been hold up for almost three weeks in Tegucigalpa, Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2009. (AP Photo/Arnulfo Franco) (MintPress) — A team of international investors will reportedly begin development on three completely privatized cities in Honduras as early as 2013. The initial $15 […]

Martin Michaels
Par Martin Michaels
Riot police stand guard near the Brazilian embassy where ousted Honduran President Manuel Zelaya has been hold up for almost three weeks in Tegucigalpa, Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2009. (AP Photo/Arnulfo Franco)

(MintPress) — A team of international investors will reportedly begin development on three completely privatized cities in Honduras as early as 2013. The initial $15 million investment from U.S. sources has been heralded as an important initiative, helping to expand infrastructure development in the small Central American country still recovering

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High Number Of Deportations Under Obama Sparks ‘No Papers No Fear’ To Appear At DNC

Members of a cross country group of undocumented immigrants arrive by motor coach to participate in a « No Papers No Fear » event at Fiesta Mall, a gathering spot for the city’s growing Hispanic community, Saturday Aug. 25, 2012, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/David Tulis) (MintPress) — Thirty-seven undocumented immigrants have risked arrest and deportation by taking […]

Martin Michaels
Par Martin Michaels
Members of a cross country group of undocumented immigrants arrive by motor coach to participate in a "No Papers No Fear" event at Fiesta Mall, a gathering spot for the city's growing Hispanic community, Saturday Aug. 25, 2012, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/David Tulis)

(MintPress) — Thirty-seven undocumented immigrants have risked arrest and deportation by taking their message of “No Papers, No Fear” tour across the U.S. With more than 1 million deportations during President Obama’s first four years in office, many within the Latino American community have grown disillusioned with the president’s

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