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Unicorn Riot

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Unicorn Riot is a decentralized non-profit media org reporting underrepresented stories and shedding light on alternative perspectives and systems.

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SPLC Misinformation Circles the Drain in Latest House Judiciary Committee HearingThe U.S. House Judiciary Committee convened on May 20 to hold a hearing titled “The Southern Poverty Law Center: Manufacturing Hate.”The hearing was a follow-up to the grand jury indictment of the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) on April 21, where the organization was charged with “11 counts of wire fraud, false statements to a federally insured bank, and conspiracy to commit concealment money laundering.”One month after the announcement, right-wing politicians and media figures have produced endless content using the indictment to bolster a conspiratorial worldview – its premise is that the left has been inventing and funding right-wing hate groups to victimize them.“They called them field sources, individuals the Southern Poverty Law Center paid to gin up hate,” Committee Chair U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan, an Ohio Republican said in his opening statement during the hearing. “The very hate they told their supporters they were fighting.”In a May 26 filing, the SPLC described this as a vindictive prosecution similar to that of immigrant Kilmar Abrego Garcia. They also cited whistleblower reports that the prosecution was rushed.Jordan claimed the SPLC paid “$270,000 to the guy who helped put together the [2017 Unite the Right rally] where a young lady was killed.”The quip implies the source was paid the money for that event alone when he was paid the total $270,000 over a nine year period – $30,000 annually – and leaves out the fact that the information the source fed to SPLC during the leadup to the rally was forwarded to the Federal Bureau of Investigation.Jordan used the other informants as examples for his claim, despite the fact that little is actually known about them or their role in their respective organizations.None of that matters, of course, because of an expansive right-wing effort from day one to fluff up the government’s dubious case with endless conspiracy theories and misinformation. In this conspiratorial cosmology, the deadly 2017 Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, VA, is central.Read the full article by @lcamanderson at UnicornRiot.Ninja by @unicorn.riot

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New: Philly Activists’ Hunger Strike Pushes Community Demands for Budget Surplus- Full story on UnicornRiot.ninja -On May 21, Erica Brown and Giavanna Troilo with the environmental justice organization Sunrise Movement Philly began a hunger strike under the banner of Make Philly Affordable, demanding that Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker use a record budget surplus to fund food access, affordable housing, education, recreation centers, libraries, public transportation, and renewable energy. On May 21, Erica Brown and Giavanna Troilo with the environmental justice organization Sunrise Movement Philly began a hunger strike under the banner of Make Philly Affordable, demanding that Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker reallocate a record budget surplus.They're seeking funding for food access, affordable housing, education, recreation centers, libraries, public transportation, and renewable energy. On day eight of the hunger strike, Brown was joined by Seth Anderson-Oberman of Reclaim Philadelphia and Brit Christopher of Swarthmore College’s Good Energy Collaborative.When Unicorn Riot spoke to Brown and Troilo outside Philadelphia City Hall on May 25, the hunger strike’s fifth day, both appeared visibly fatigued despite using wheelchairs to conserve energy.“Mayor Parker has a $1.1 billion budget surplus, a historically large amount, and she can use that right now,” Erica Brown told Unicorn Riot. “She can do it in a way that increases revenue. She can do it in a way that saves lives.” by @unicorn.riot

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Palestinians Protest Israel's New Law Mandating Prisoner ExecutionsIsrael’s Knesset passed a discriminatory law on March 30 that mandates Palestinians convicted of lethal attacks be killed by hanging within 90 days of military sentencing. As thousands of Palestinians remain in Israeli jails, Palestinians in Gaza held protests against the new law that would institutionalize a state mechanism for executing Palestinians.The bill was immediately appealed by human rights groups and is expected to be struck down by Israel’s Supreme Court. A joint statement by humanitarian organizations urged the EU to take measures against Israel for continuing to cross “established EU red lines,” and UN experts have called for a suspension of EU-Israel trade agreements.“This is an unjust law against our prisoners in the occupation’s prisons, which was passed yesterday by the so-called Zionist Knesset,” said Muawiya al-Sufi, the official in charge of prisoners’ affairs for the Ahrar Movement, to Unicorn Riot on March 31 in Gaza City. UR covered protests against the new law on March 31 and April 4, both in front of the headquarters of the International Committee of the Red Cross.The Death Penalty for Terrorists law was brought forth by the ultranationalist Otzma Yehudit party, headed by far-right extremist Itamar Ben-Gvir, Israel’s National Security Minister. Ben-Gvir and four others wore gold noose-shaped pins during the hearing on the bill.Israel’s prison system is notorious for human rights violations and has been called a ‘network of torture camps‘ by rights organizations. After the October 7 attack on Israel in 2023, Israel’s prisons became even worse as Israel mass detains, tortures, sexually abuses, neglects and murders Palestinian prisoners with no accountability.Among the 9,600 Palestinian prisoners held by Israel are 3,324 people being held on the internationally condemned and illegal practice of administrative detention, with no access to lawyers or court dates scheduled. Additionally 1,316 prisoners have been classified as “unlawful combatants.” Read the full story and get more from Palestine at UnicornRiot.Ninja by @unicorn.riot

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Brothers Delivering Water in Gaza for UNICEF Killed by IsraelMahmoud Abu Warda and his brother Eid Abu Warda, residents of Gaza City’s Jabalia al-Nazla, were killed by Israeli soldiers on April 17 while driving a water truck for the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). They were on their way to fill up their water tankers at the entrance to the Shuja’iyya neighborhood when they were shot by Israeli soldiers.UNICEF expressed outrage in a statement, called for accountability, and suspended its operations at the Mansoura water station. Unicorn Riot covered the funeral procession for the brothers and heard from a friend of the victims, Wissam Nasr. Watch the video at our website or in past IG post on May 27.“The martyrs were three brothers; one was injured and two were killed at the scene,” said Wissam Nasr, after the funeral for Mahmoud and Eid Abu Warda. “What happened was that the young martyrs were going to collect water for displaced people from a station near the Shuja’iyya neighborhood, a supposedly safe area. Unfortunately, the Israeli occupation, true to its treachery, opened fire on them and killed them. They were innocent civilians, bringing water to displaced people in the area.”“We are supposed to be observing a ceasefire according to the agreements, but the Israeli army is not abiding by them,” said Nasr.As of today, at least 932 Palestinians have been killed by Israel and at least 2,859 have been injured since the declaration of a ceasefire last October.In total, since Oct. 2023, Israel has killed at least 72,775 Palestinians in Gaza, with some estimates saying at least 75,000 were killed as of January 2025.The brothers killed for delivering water to displaced Palestinians join the long list of humanitarian workers in Gaza that have been systematically targeted by Israel. In the last three years, at least 560 humanitarians have been killed in Palestinian territories.In UNICEF’s statement on the killing of the water truck driving brothers, they note that “the protection of civilians and those delivering life-saving assistance is an obligation under international humanitarian law.”See the full report/video at UnicornRiot.Ninja by @unicorn.riot

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Our Common Language Is Resistance: Life Inside ProsfygikaIn Athens, Greece, in 2010, a group of residents at the Prosfygika squatted housing complex launched a collectivization process to autonomously respond to mounting social and economic pressure. Inspired by different revolutionary models ranging from Rojava to the Zapatistas, the community has spent the last 16 years developing 22 self-organized structures designed to meet the needs of both its residents and the surrounding area.With their squat, rectangular form, narrow balconies, and flaking ochre walls bearing political slogans and the faces of fallen revolutionaries, the buildings seem to have slipped in from a different time and place. They appear as a stubborn entity that consciously refuses to conform to its surroundings.Walking through the lanes and courtyards that thread between the blocks, you eventually come across five words painted in large block letters on a side wall: “Our common language is resistance.” The phrase runs along the top of the wall, positioned to be clearly visible from the imposing government buildings that loom on either side of Prosfygika: the Greek Court of Appeals and a police HQ.This site indeed has a long history of resistance. Built in the 1930s to house Greek refugees fleeing violence and mass expulsions in Asia Minor, Prosfygika became a stronghold for left-wing militias during the Greek Civil War in 1944. After decades of progressive neglect and predominantly individual squatting, in 2010 the complex became the foundation of a radical experiment in communal living — one that today faces its most serious threat yet.Between late 2025 and early 2026, reports began circulating about a regional “regeneration and development” plan targeting the complex. For Prosfygika’s residents, this means an eviction that would leave hundreds of people homeless.To understand what is at stake here, it helps to grasp what has been built. Beyond Prosfygika’s walls lies something far more ambitious than a mere housing project: a living demonstration that an alternative way of organizing daily life is not only possible but already underway.Read in full at UnicornRiot.Ninja. by @unicorn.riot

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Two US Citizens Among 19 Slain in Philippines ‘Massacre’On April 19, 2026, the 79th Infantry Battalion of the Armed Forces of the Philippines killed 19 individuals on Negros Island. Nine of the slain have been identified as civilians, including two Filipino Americans — Kai Dana-Rene Sorem of Seattle and Lyle Prijoles of Hayward, California. Also among the dead were Alyssa Alano, a 22-year-old student activist majoring in political science at the University of the Philippines, and RJ Nichole Ledesma, a journalist, poet, and editor of alternative media outlet Paghimutad. Additionally, three minors were killed in the military assault. The deaths occurred as the Armed Forces of the Philippines allegedly conducted “hours of low-flying indiscriminate strafing” against several civilian communities. The military was supposedly targeting the New People’s Army (NPA), the military wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines, which has conducted armed struggle against the Philippine state since 1969. But the New People’s Army claimed only ten out of the 19 deceased as members, including Commander Roger Fabillar, who was captured alive and summarily executed. Despite this, the government of the Philippines contends that all nineteen of the dead – among them youth, student activists, and two US human rights defenders – were NPA members who refused to surrender. The Philippine government, led by the son of late dictator Ferdinand Marcos, has gone so far as to refer to the killings as “justice served” and awarded medals to participating troops. At the same time, the Philippines’ Commission on Human Rights, an independent governmental office, has expressed serious concerns over “inconsistencies” following the killing. The attack has drawn international condemnation, with ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights Chairperson Mercy Chriesty Barends contending that “an operation that cannot distinguish between armed combatants and community workers is an indiscriminate attack that violates international humanitarian law. The [Armed Forces of the Philippines] must be held accountable.”Read the full report at UnicornRiot.Ninja by @unicorn.riot

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Authorities in Minnesota Kill 9 People, Shoot 14 in Last Six MonthsLaw enforcement officers in Minnesota have shot at least 14 people across the state in the past six months, killing 9 of them. With the exception of three shootings by federal officers in January, two of which were fatal, the other 11 shootings were conducted by police, sheriffs, and deputies.No less than 1,201 people were killed by police in the U.S. last year, after 2024 set a record high with American police killing at least 1,271 people. Officers were charged with a crime in 8 of the 1,201 killings in 2025, according to Mapping Police Violence.In the 14 cases since November, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent Christian Castro is the only one facing charges out of at least 25 officers who fired their weapons — Castro shot and injured a man when firing his service weapon into a home on Jan. 14 during an ICE operation and then lied about the crime.Castro was arrested on May 29 in Texas on a nationwide arrest warrant and has been charged with four felony second-degree assault charges and falsely reporting a crime.The most recent killing in Minnesota was in the northern part of the state and filmed by Virginia Police Lt. Henry Trunk’s body-worn camera. Responding to a call about a man with a ski mask and “waving what appeared to be a handgun,” Trunk opened fire on 31-year-old Ethan Basche from across the street within seconds of arriving at the scene. Basche was not armed. He had a torch lighter, schizophrenia and a history of mental illness. Two days before Basche was killed, Desaver Brian Hollis, 27, was fatally shot with a bevy of bullets in the southern Minneapolis suburb of Richfield after allegedly stealing from parked cars. According to body-worn camera video, Hollis had run from police and shot an officer in the hand before being killed.In another stark and needless violent death, Cleavon White, a 47-year-old father of five, was killed by Rochester Police officer Josiah Duit while experiencing a mental health crisis on March 11.Read the full report with a timeline of 14 police shootings in the last six months in Minnesota at UnicornRiot.Ninja. by @unicorn.riot

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Hunger Strikers Call to "Make Philly Affordable"Activists with the Sunrise Movement Philly chapter are on a hunger strike to further their demands for allocating some of the city budget surplus to local services. An interview at City Hall. More coverage to come. Interview recorded 5/25/2026 w @sunrisemvmtphilly by @unicorn.riot

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Line 5 Pipeline Reroute Endangers Maple Trees and Native LifewaysNorthern Wisconsin residents gathered to boil maple sap along the banks of the Bad River, on Canadian oil giant Enbridge’s pipeline easement for its 41-mile Line 5 reroute on March 29. Enbridge started construction activities in late February, despite numerous ongoing lawsuits challenging its operation of the pipeline.UR heard from Bad River Tribal Member Joe Bates and local resident Liam Delmain about the significance of the event and risks of Line 5. “We’re gathering here today to spend some time connecting with the water that we’re fighting to protect. It’s the same water that runs through the maple trees growing here on the river bottoms that bring us sugar this time of year,” said Delmain. Bates says that Enbridge is forcing the city of Ashland to sell them water, which they will use for drilling.Harvesting maple syrup is a Native tradition of many tribes, including the Anishinaabe, dating back even before settler colonization. Locals gathered at “Bad River Crossing,” where the Bad River meets the Tyler Forks River and flows into Copper Falls State Park, which draws over 200,000 visitors each year, and boiled down maple sap into sugar.Participants honored the rivers and old-growth maple floodplain forest, which Enbridge plans to cut down and drill through to lay its pipe. Residents spoke about risks to treaty-protected land, wild rice, and fish.Line 5 is a 73-year-old pipeline that carries up to 23 million gallons of oil each day through the Great Lakes region. In 2019, the Bad River Band sued Enbridge for six years of illegal trespass, citing concerns over the risk of a rupture near Lake Superior.A federal judge ruled in favor of the Bad River Band in 2023 and ordered the pipeline removed from the reservation by June 2026. In February, the same federal judge ruled that Enbridge can continue operating Line 5 on the reservation until the Seventh Circuit rules on the appeals.Read the full article and more on Line 5 oil pipeline at UnicornRiot.Ninja. Watch the video in past IG post on May 13. by @unicorn.riot

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History occurred six years ago tonight when the community overran the Minneapolis Police's 3rd Precinct and set it aflame, marking May 28 as a day of popular revolt against anti-Blackness and police terror. UR was frontline that night on the third day of the George Floyd Uprising, hearing from outraged community members in Minneapolis before, during and after the precinct fell. See our mini-doc from the night of May 28, 2020, in this video and watch the feature-length documentary on the uprising at our website: unicornriot.ninja/georgefloyd/ [This video features Reporter Reflection on George Floyd Uprising Episode 3 Part 1 and Part 2] by @unicorn.riot

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Kurdish Refugees Protest for Dignified Living Conditions at Greece’s Oinofyta CampOn February 17, Kurdish refugees at the Oinofyta Temporary Reception Center in Greece – commonly known as the Oinofyta Refugee Camp – staged a spontaneous protest at the facility, located around 60 km from Athens on a former industrial site. The residents demanded better living conditions and the immediate issuance of their final asylum and identification documents, which would allow them to leave the camp and live independently. Among them was a 21-year-old Kurdish resident who fled Kobanî, Syria, with her family as refugees. They have been living in Oinofyta for nearly a year. Speaking with her full consent, she shared her experiences about the conditions in the camp. She said, in the days leading up to the protest, her 70-year-old mother began a hunger strike in response to what she describes as neglectful and discriminatory treatment of residents at the camp.Residents described conditions in the camp as unbearable to live in. Many have been waiting for extended periods to receive official documents, with delays in the asylum process which ultimately blocks them from rebuilding their lives.Many of the refugees reported repeated incidents of targeted discrimination against Kurdish residents at the camp. They also said that once the protest began, police were called and participants experienced verbal threats.The Oinofyta camp has been the subject of repeated reports and testimonies about the living conditions and treatment of residents.Harsh anti-immigration practices in Greece are not new, even with the left-wing SYRIZA government facing allegations of migrant mistreatment. These allegations became more prevalent after 2019, following the election of the New Democracy government. Migration policy took a drastic and even more restrictive turn. Strict anti-immigration enforcement practices have become a central point of criticism under the New Democracy government, as part of its approach to managing refugees and migrants.To read the full article and for more from Greece visit, UnicornRiot.Ninja - link in bio. by @unicorn.riot

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Brothers Delivering Water in Gaza for UNICEF Killed by IsraelMahmoud Abu Warda and his brother Eid Abu Warda, residents of Gaza City’s Jabalia al-Nazla, were killed by Israeli soldiers on April 17 while driving a water truck for the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). They were on their way to fill up their water tankers at the entrance to the Shuja’iyya neighborhood when they were shot by Israeli soldiers.UNICEF expressed outrage in a statement, called for accountability, and suspended its operations at the Mansoura water station. Unicorn Riot covered the funeral procession for the brothers and heard from a friend of the victims, Wissam Nasr.“The martyrs were three brothers; one was injured and two were killed at the scene,” said Wissam Nasr, after the funeral for Mahmoud and Eid Abu Warda. “What happened was that the young martyrs were going to collect water for displaced people from a station near the Shuja’iyya neighborhood, a supposedly safe area. Unfortunately, the Israeli occupation, true to its treachery, opened fire on them and killed them. They were innocent civilians, bringing water to displaced people in the area.”“We are supposed to be observing a ceasefire according to the agreements, but the Israeli army is not abiding by them,” said Nasr.As of May 22, 2026, at least 883 Palestinians have been killed by Israel and at least 2,648 have been injured since the declaration of a ceasefire last October. A report published last week by Human Rights Watch noted that “the humanitarian infrastructure sustaining life in Gaza remains in peril” and that famine risk has returned to the Gaza Strip “as Board of Peace fails to deliver.”In total, since Oct. 2023, Israel has killed at least 72,775 Palestinians in Gaza, with some estimates saying at least 75,000 were killed as of January 2025.The brothers killed for delivering water to displaced Palestinians join the long list of humanitarian workers in Gaza that have been systematically targeted by Israel. In the last three years, at least 560 humanitarians have been killed in Palestinian territories.Read the full article and see more from Palestine at UnicornRiot.Ninja. by @unicorn.riot

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