Silicon Valley sells itself as an engine for human progress, in which technology can make the world a better place. But an increasingly vocal minority of tech workers who are concerned about their own complicity in war crimes are risking their jobs to organize against their companies’ war production. Labor journalist Maximillian Alvarez, noted that “Tech workers at the heart of companies like Microsoft are waging one of the most significant and under-covered labor battles in the U.S. right now.”
(“AI’s Rise is Being Fueled by the Sprawling U.S. Military State,” In These Times, July 8, 2026)
According to a report released in June by Front Line Defenders, a Dublin-based group that provides support for global human rights activists, at least 358 human rights defenders were killed last year around the world. Inside Climate News observed that Environmental and indigenous rights defenders remained among the world’s most targeted human rights advocates last year, despite landmark rulings by international courts affirming governments’ obligations to protect both the environment and those who defend it. Nearly a quarter of the 84 killed were targeted because of their often unpaid work protecting land and the environment. Those killings were documented in Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, France, Honduras, Guatemala, Mexico, India, Indonesia, Peru, the Philippines, Turkey, Somalia and Palestine.
(“Environmental Defenders Remain Among the World’s Most Targeted Activists,” Inside Climate News, June 22, 2026)
For a nearly decade through the 1980s, Jim Hightower was Texas agriculture commissioner, setting new standards for organic foods and as an outspoken advocate for small rural farm communities. Now, 35-year-old populist Clayton Tucker, a candidate for Texas agriculture commissioner, is reviving Hightower’s politics of standing up for small farmers. Tucker, a former Texas organizer with Bernie Sanders’ political organization, “Our Revolution,” is looking to build a groundswell for progressive reform.
(“Young Populist Heats Up Texas Agriculture Commissioner Race,” Barn Raiser, July 22, 2026)
