Drought continues, governor jerry brown orders residents and businesses, except farms, to cut water use by 25 in the first mandatory statewide reduction in california history. This comes after california witnessed the warmest winter on record. Then, we go to indiana. While the state, has been in the spotlight this week over its new antigay, socalled religious freedom law another controversy is brewing. On monday, purvi patel became the first person in us history sentenced to prison for fetiticide. She says she had a miscarriage the state accused her of ending her own pregnancy. She was sentenced to 20 years in prison. We said since going to be this is going to be news to arrest women. It will do more than they claim. They said that is just scare tactics. Amy and we will look at why the United Arab Emirates barred nyu professor andrew ross from entering the country where the school has a satellite campus after he published research about Migrant Workers and labor abuse in the gulf state. Now he has learned a private investigator was also hired to target him and a New York Times reporter. All that and more, coming up. Welcome to democracy now democracynow. Org, the war and peace report. Im amy goodman. Negotiations over an Iran Nuclear Deal continue in lausanne, switzerland, in the extended period of talks following tuesdays deadline. Iranian foreign minister Mohammad Javad has said significant progress, has been made, but urged his counterparts to find the political will to reach an agreement. Mr. Javad we hope that the political will on all parties exist in order to move forward. There are isaac, pratt obviously, problems, that have stopped us from reaching a solution, but i hope colleagues will recognize that way to take advantage of this opportunity. Amy if a general accord can be reached, the talks would continue for a final agreement by the end of june. Speaking in washington, White House Press secretary josh earnest said the u. S. Is prepared to walk away if the talks stumble. And, renewing longstanding u. S. Threats, earnest said military action remains an option against iran. Secretary earnest if, in the unfortunate event that diplomacy is not successful, we will continue to have a wide range of options on the table. Those options include coordinating with the International Community to put in place even tougher sanctions that would compel iran to come back to the negotiating table or to be more serious about the discussion. There is, of course, a military option that is sitting on the table, and this is, again, in the unfortunate circumstance that we could find ourselves in which is we are not reaching an agreement, the president would have to consider that option. Amy Houthi Rebels and rival forces are in a fierce battle for the southern yemeni city of aden. Houthi fighters backed by tanks have pushed deeper into aden in a bid to seize it from soldiers loyal to deposed and internationallybacked president Abdrabbu Mansour hadi. There are reports of massive civilian casualties and bodies lying in the street. The houthis advance comes despite a saudi arabialed military campaign seeking to restore hadis rule. On wednesday, thousands of houthis rallied in sanaa to protest the saudiled bombings. The death toll from an apparent saudi military strike on a Dairy Factory has risen to 33, all of them workers on the overnight shift. The bombing came just two days after the Saudiled Coalition killed around 40 people and wounded 200 at a displaced persons camp in northern yemen. In a statement, Human Rights Watch said, quote, the deaths of so many civilians in a camp with no apparent military target heightens concerns about lawsofwar violations. The group also issued a plea to washington, saying, quote,the United States, by providing intelligence to the saudiled air campaign, shares the obligation to minimize harm to civilians and civilian property in the fighting. In syria, Islamic State fighters have taken over most of a massive camp for Palestinian Refugees on the outskirts of damascus. Yarmouk is home to some 18,000 people and has repeatedly been stuck in the crossfire of syrias civil war. Some 800,000 people lived there before the syrian uprising began. In a statement, the u. N. Agency for Palestinian Refugees said it is extremely concerned about the residents safety. Islamic state fighters were seen in control of several streets, leaving them just a few miles from the center of the assad regimes damascus stronghold. International donors meanwhile have promised some 3. 8 billion dollars in humanitarian aid for syria, less than half of what the u. N. Had requested to deal requested for the countrys massive crisis. In syria, Islamic State fighters have taken over most of a massive camp for Palestinian Refugees on the outskirts of damascus. Spot despite the victory claims, small pockets of isis fighters remain. Palestinian officials have marked their newfound membership in the International Criminal court with a ceremony at the hague. Palestines icc status came into effect on wednesday following their formal ascension earlier this year. Palestinian officials made the move after the u. S. And israel blocked a u. N. Security Council Measure calling for an end to the Israeli Occupation and the establishment of a palestinian state by 2017. Speaking at the court, Palestinian Foreign minister riad almalki said no one will be able to block an icc investigation. Mr. Almalki i can mr. Almalki i can assure you that we do support enjoy the support of one, if not two countries with veto powers that would not allow such decisions to be taken by the Security Council to interfere in the work of the courts, or to prevent the court from expediting its work, and having an official investigation regarding the crimes committed by the occupying power, israel, against the palestinian people. Amy the Palestinian Authority says it will hold off on bringing specific cases against individual israeli officials while the court conducts a preliminary investigation. The court has been granted with jurisdiction for incidents beginning in june 2014, meaning its mandate includes the israeli assault on gaza that killed over 2,000. The Palestinian Authority says it will also cooperate should any Palestinian Militants or officials be charged for violence against israel. On wednesday, a gaza resident who says he lost 19 members of his family to israeli strikes expressed his hopes for justice. We hope it works out. All my family members are dead. My father, my mother my brother. My brothers and sisters, my wife and son, they are all dead. My brother and i are the only ones that survived from the whole family. Amy the militant Group Alshabab has carried out of a shooting rampage at a college in northeast kenya, killing at least 15 people, wounding at least 65, and taking dozens hostage. The gunmen say theyve divided the students between muslims and nonmuslims and let the muslims walk free. Kenyan police are on the scene in a standoff. Alshabab says it carried out the attack in response to kenyas military operations inside somalia, the groups home base. Republican Governor Asa Hutchinson of arkansas has rejected a socalled religious freedom law that could sanction antilgbt discrimination. Hutchinson had said he would sign the measure follow its passage in the state Legislature Last week. But a public outcry that included several protests, corporate leaders, and a backlash over a similar in indiana led hutchinson to back down. The governor said hes asked lawmakers to revise the measure. Governor hutchison i have asked that changes be made in the legislation, and i have asked the leaders of the General Assembly to recall the bill so that it can be amended to reflect the terms of the federal religious freedom and restoration act. This is both about substance getting this legislation right and it is also about communicating to the world, and to our neighboring states that we are a state that recognizes the diversity of the workforce the need for nondiscrimination and that we want to accomplish that. Amy arkansas governor hutchinson said his own son had signed a petition asking him to veto the law. He called it a generational does not divided. Also, walmart, the Largest Corporation in the world, based in arkansas, has come out against the law. In a rally, Chad Greenway said activist work is not finished. Chad our work is not finished, and we are not at the end of this road until all arkansans all citizens of this state, are treated equally under the law and are provided the protection that should be guaranteed, that lgbt folks are protected from discrimination in public accommodations and workplaces, and all of the other places that we should be protected as citizens of the state, and of the country. Amy arkansas governor hutchinsons reversal comes as indiana lawmakers have drafted new legislation to correct their own version of the antilgbt religious freedom law. According to the indianapolis star, the measure would make clear it cannot be used as a Legal Defense to discriminate against residents based on their sexual orientation. But it still would exempt churches and nonprofits and would also not include language making lgbt people a protected class. Dozens of mothers seeking asylum who are being held at the karnes family Detention Centre in southern texas have launched a hunger strike. The women are Asylum Seekers who say they have been denied bond despite expressing a credible fear of violence if they return to south america. Advocates for the groups including a legal assistant, who was recently interviewed by democracy now, say they have been darned barred from visiting karnes. To see the report you can go to democracynow. Org. Menendez has been charged. He is accused of 750,000 in donations. At a news conference, senator menendez denounced prosecutors and said he would be vindicated. Senator menendez four nearly three years, i have lived under a Justice Department cloud, and today i am outraged that this cloud is not been lifted. I am outraged that prosecutors at the Justice Department were tricked into starting this investigation three years ago with false allegations by those who have a political motive to silence me, but i will not be silenced. I am confident [applause] i am confident at the end of the day, i will be vindicated, and they will be exposed. Amy the fast food giant mcdonalds has announced it would raise hourly pay for u. S. Workers it directly employs, but employees and will pay at least 1 more than the minimum wage in each location. The raises and benefits wont apply to the 90 percent of mcdonalds that are franchises. It comes ahead of a rally for the fight for 15, a campaign for a 15 an hour rage wage. 11 former educators in atlanta georgia, have been convicted of racketeering and other charges for their roles in a massive cheating scandal at public schools. Prosecutors say teachers were forced to modify incorrect answers, and students were even allowed to fix their responses during exams. Judge jerry baxter ordered most of the educators immediately behind bars, with sentencing to 21 other defendants avoided sentencing to follow next week. Judge baxter they have made this decision, and they have not fared well. I do not like to send anybody to jail. It is not one of the things i get a kick out of, but they have made their bed, and they have to lie in it. It starts today. Amy 21 other defendants avoided trial with plea deals. Its said to be one of the Largest School cheating scandals in u. S. History. The case has fueled criticism of the Education Systems reliance on standardized testing. According to the New York Times, cheating has grown at School Districts around the country as standardized testing has become a primary means of evaluating teachers, principals and schools. activists have carried out a rare protest inside the Supreme Court chamber in a case the critics call the next citizens united. The courts conservative judges eliminated longstanding limits on how much donors can get in total to federal committees and Political Action committees in a twoyear election cycle. Without any limit, a donor can now give millions. On wednesday, the five activists with the group 99 rise stood up inside of the Supreme Court to justices to reverse call on justices to reverse their decisions. Justices, is it not your duty overturn citizens united. One person, one vote. Amy that sound from inside of the u. S. Supreme court. Al qaeda fighters in yemen have attacked in a coastal city freeing 300 prisoners. Onethird of the released have links to al qaeda figures. And those are some of the headlines. This is democracy now, democracynow. Org, the war and peace report. Im amy goodman. Nermeen i am nermeen shaikh. Welcome to our viewers around the country and our around the world. California governor jerry brown ordered residents and nonagricultural businesses to cut water use by 25 percent in the first mandatory statewide reduction in the states history. 98 percent of california is now suffering from drought. Governor brown issued the executive order at the mostly snowbare phillips station in the Sierra Nevada mountains. The nearby sierraattahoe ski resort closed for the season weeks ago due to lack of snow. Governor brown one thing we know is we are standing on dry grass, and we should be standing on five feet of snow. We are in an historic drought and that demands unprecedented action. For that reason, im issuing an executive order mandating substantial water reduction across our state. As californians, we have to pull together, and save water in every way we can. This executive order, which i signed today, it is long, it covers a number of different details in fact, i have never seen one quite like it before. It is going to save water by mandating really directions in a number of areas. It is going to affect golf courses, peoples lawns universities, campuses, all sorts of institutions, the meetings with vegetation in our roads and highways. It affects all of that. Nermeen one group not facing restrictions under the new rules is big agriculture which uses about 80 of californias water. The group food water watch california criticized brown for not capping water usage by corporate farms that grow waterintensive crops such as almonds and pistachios, most of which are exported out of state and overseas. Adam scow of food and water watch california said, quote in the midst of a severe drought, the governor continues to allow corporate farms and Oil Interests to deplete and pollute our precious groundwater resources. Studies show the current drought, which has intensified over the past four years, is the worst california has seen in at least 120 years. Some studies suggest it is the worst drought in the region in more than a thousand years. Amy while much of the eastern United States experienced record break cold temperatures, california, as well as utah, arizona, nevada, and washington each saw their hottest winter ever. In january and february temperatures were one degree fahrenheit hotter in california than last year, which ended as the hottest year on record by nearly two degrees. Deke arndt of the National Climatic data center said, quote, the 21st century for sure is being characterized by persistent, ubiquitous drought in the west. The projection is for that to continue, he says. We go now to San Francisco where we are joined by the environmental reporter mark hertsgaard. His latest story is how growers gamed californias drought. He is also the author of the book, hot living through the next 50 years on earth. welcome back to democracy now. Can you talk about what the governor has mandated, who is included, and who is not . Mark sure. Good to be here. The new executive order by Governor Brown issued yesterday really focused mainly on the urban sector, and as you mentioned in the clip you just showed us, it is going to affect golf courses median strips, and a number of other uses in the urban area where he demands a 25 mandatory immediate cut in consumption. That means the water agencies, the public agencies in control in those areas of water supply have to deliver 25 cuts. What was striking about the order is a did not require those same kind of cuts from the agriculture sector, which, in california, is the big player in water. Agriculture uses about 80 of all of the developed water here in the state. I should add, amy, that Governor Browns spokespersons, when i comment contacted them last night, said it was true that the executive order only required plans from the big agricultural districts, but they pointed out that the water districts have already been cut back earlier this year both the state to apply supplies and the federal Water Supplies have already been cut back by a larger amount. Nevertheless, the new executive order does focus mainly on the cities, not the countryside. Nermeen mark, could you explain why it is why is agriculture exempt from the orders the governor has given . Mark from the new orders, it is again, what the spokespersons for the governors say is, look, the agriculture has already taken a hit. It is a bigger hit them we are asking from urban users, and we plan to ask for more going down the road. The plans that are required under Governor Browns executive order from the agricultural water districts will be used the governors aids say, they will be used to be try to diminish the amount of ground water that is being consumed in the future, and that is a key thing for people to understand. Right now, when there is no rain, and we are going into the fourth year of this historic drought in california when there is no rain, and there is not enough supply coming from the reservoirs and so forth, what happens is the farmers basically drill deeper down under the earth to get the groundwater, the ancient groundwater that is down there. In a normal year in california, that groundWater Supplies around 40 of our water supply, but in the dry years, it is up to 60 . If you go down to the Central Valley, where most of the farming takes place, as i have on reporting trips we are in an and cultural arms race down there. Farmers, neighboring farmers everyone is trying to deal big deeper dig deeper wells to get that groundwater, and that favors large, corporate farmers over the smaller momandpop operations. The big danger of that, though and this is the real, potential doomsday scenario here in california, is the more you go down there and use that groundwater and suck it up like a straw, the greater the danger is that you collapse those aquifers underground that they compress, and you essentially have a situation where they are rendered barren in perpetuity and that would be a real problem. So, we cannot keep relying on this groundwater depletion forever. There has to be a smarter way to do this. Amy when california governor jerry brown announced his water restrictions wednesday, he was joined by frank, from the department of water resources, and he said state snowpack is at its lowest level on record. Frank you are at the phillips snow course for the april 1 2015 measurement and as you can clearly see, there is no snow at this location. This is the first year in its measurements going back to 1942 where this snow course has been bear no snow at all. Unfortunately, that is up we are finding more or less statewide where upwards of 60 to 70 of the 240 manual snow course measurements that are being made are showing their ground. This is bad news in terms of the states water picture. Amy mark hertsgaard, what is the connection between the drought we see in california now and Climate Change . Mark this is a preview of what we will see more and more as a 21st century unfolds. The absolute historic low in the snowpacks were seeing here is quite scary, but it is directly related to Climate Change. You mentioned, the cap the show, we have had the hottest winter in our modern history here. What that means is the precipitation that we do get coming from the storms, when they hit the ocean and the Sierra Nevada, that precipitation tends to fall as rain rather than snow. The other thing, of course, is as it is warmer, the droughts have increased, and there is less precipitation altogether. This is going to be continuing. The scientists are quite clear on that. Historically this region have seen has seen droughts of 10 years and longer, regularly, not frequently, but regularly, and scientists tell us we will see more severe, and more frequent droughts going forward. That is why some of the experts i interviewed for this story in the daily beast, is not to be demonizing agriculture or demonizing a particular plant like almonds or broccoli, but what we really need to do is reform the structure that governs the price of water and the way we use it in california. Right now, the experts, pretty much uniformly say water is still priced too cheaply especially out in the agricultural area, and it encourages waste, which Governor Brown, quite rightly, pointed out yesterday, we cannot afford. The gogovernors executive order quite precisely targets the urban areas and asks for smart things the kind of conservation measures he outlined are only sensible fixing leaks, leaky pipes, leaky faucets, and so forth. You can do a lot with that, but you cannot leave 80 of the problem off of the table by not touching the agricultural district. Nermeen in your story, how growers gained californias drought, you also mentioned Stewart Resnick. Can you explain paramount phones farms in the price of water . Mark it is a good point. There are a lot of californians suffering, especially farmers the poor farmers, that literally do not have water coming out of their household taps anymore. That is not the case for Stewart Resnick and a lot of bigger farmers. My story started with a conference mr. Resnick and his Pistachio Company paramount farms held last month, where they bragged, literally bragged and celebrated about the record profits they are making on pistachios, almonds, and not only the prophets, but the record production levels, which means as the state has gone into droughts, nevertheless agricultural interests are planning more and more acreage new almond trees we are growing alfalfa, a thursday crop that gets exported to china. There are all or steve crop thirsty crop that gets exported to china. They literally left the conference listening to Louis Armstrong its a wonderful world, and the mood was captured by one who said he had been smiling all the way to the bank, and they played a clip from the tom cruise movie where he yells out show me the money. They are making plenty of money and that is largely because they are still getting plenty of water, and the experts say this water is underpriced. If we did price it properly, which is a little higher, there are enormous strides california could be taking with water efficiency. We literally could, essentially, what about the effects of the drought in california white out the effects of the drought in california. A 22 decrease in the agricultural areas, which are the roughly the equivalent of the surface water the firm not have last year because of the drought. There is a lot that can be nontechnologically, but until you get the public pricing right, and the political economy that can be done technologically, but until you get the pricing right, amy what about Stewart Reznick and his connection to the governor of california . Mark not just the governor, but as you mentioned mr. Reznick is a billionaire, and he made his money by being a smart farmer and a great marketer. He hired Stephen Colbert to do a super bowl commercial for pistachios. He has seen, as many big Business People do, you have great advantages if you throw a lot of money around in politics, and he has been a Bipartisan Campaign contributor to republicans and democrats alike but much every governor senator dianne feinstein, all of them, have been recipients of mr. Reznicks campaign contributions. In a way, the example of what is happening now down in the Central Valley where if you drive down up interstate 5, the major highway connecting sentimental in San Francisco you will see signs on the road blaming congress, and specifically nancy pelosi, by the way, for the suppose it does no that is happening dustbowl that is happening there. There is a picture some of those signs are put up in front of newly planted almond trees. Almonds are an extremely thirsty crop. Even as the farmers try to shift the blame to the federal government, they are planting some of the thirsty just most thursday crops you can imagine thirsty crops you can imagine. Lets get the process right, and treat everyone fairly. We can have a prosperous Agricultural Sector in california, and we need to. California is an agricultural superpower it produces half of the fruits and vegetables and nuts consumed in the United States, but we cannot keep doing that at the extent of our longterm water future. Amy quickly, we have 30 seconds, what does a 25 production mean, practically, in your lives in california . Mark well, it depends on how it is done. There is a lot of waste that happens in the urban sector, too, so in the short term people are being told shorter showers water your lawn only twice a week. Restaurants are told only serve water if the customer explicitly asks for it, but we will have to do more, and the most important thing is to stop wasting, six the pipes, the faucets. Amy how is this enforced . Mark that is one of the problems. The San Jose Mercury news pointed out they are difficult to enforce because you essentially have to go into peoples homes and businesses, but that is the job of the water agency, and that is what Governor Brown was trying to do yesterday calling on the states to say we have to step up and do this. Everyone needs to pull together equally. Amy thank you. Mark hertsgaard is an environmental reporter. His latest story is how growers gamed californias drought. He is also the author of the book, hot living through the next 50 years on earth. to see all of our Climate Change coverage, you can go to our website, democracynow. Org. When we come back, a woman whose baby died in utero whose fetus died, is convicted and sentenced to 20 years in prison. Stay with us. [music break] amy whos gonna stand up . By and save the earth neil young. This is democracy now democracynow. Org, the war and peace report. Im amy goodman. Nermeen we turn now to indiana, which has been in the spotlight this week over its new antilgbt religious freedom law. But the historic application of another law in the state has received far less attention. On monday, purvi patel, an indianamerican woman, became the first person in u. S. History sentenced to prison for fetiticide, for ending her own pregnancy. In 2013, patel arrived at a hospital, bleeding. She told doctors she had had a miscarriage and disposed of her stillborn fetus in a trash receptacle. Under questioning by police, patel said she had believed she was about two months pregnant. After miscarrying in a bathroom, she said she tried unsuccessfully to resuscitate the fetus, which wasnt moving. She told police, quote, i assumed because the baby was dead there was nothing to do. Bleeding, in shock, and not wanting her conservative hindu parents to find out, she disposed of the fetus and went to the hospital. Amy prosecutors would later accuse patel of taking drugs to try to end her pregnancy, based on Text Messages to a friend where she discussed buying the drugs online. But no evidence of abortion drugs was found in her body, or body. Prosecutors also used a discredited float test to claim patels fetus, which they estimated was between 25 and 28 weeks, was born alive. So in addition to feticide patel was charged and convicted of neglect of a dependent. On monday, a judge sentenced patel to serve 20 years in prison, for what her supporters maintain was a miscarriage or stillbirth. In total, her sentences actually add up to 41 years, but will be served concurrently, with five years probation and 10 years suspended. The sentencing comes amid an ongoing crackdown on reproductive rights. According to rh reality check, lawmakers in states across the country have introduced at least 235 bills to restrict abortion in 2015 alone. To talk more about this were joined here in new york by lynn paltrow, founder and executive director of National Advocates for pregnant women. Lynn what happened to patel . Lynn she is an example that it is not just rights under attack, but the personhood this demonstrates we are not going back to some time warp, that womens pregnancies are now becoming the subject of policing prosecution, and severe sentencing in an age of incarceration. She goes to the hospital for help because she has a miscarriage, and ends up being sentenced to jail for 20 years. They charge her with feticide and people were confused, how can you be charged with feticide and neglect of a dependent because feticide is understood as causing the death of a fetus the prosecutors in indiana know that our law means any deliberate attempt by a woman to terminate her own pregnancy is a crime. It did not succeed so they then deliberately used in an valid scientific test to convince the jury the baby had been alive. Amy what is the float test . Lynn the float test and dr. Davis is the real expert you take the air out, and if they float, there is air, and that means a baby took a breath, but it has been known for a hundred years that air can get into lungs another way. It is an invalid test used in countries like el salvador to convict women of illegal abortions that have actually suffered miscarriages. The Indiana Court said if you are in woman who has a miscarriage and has done research to see if, perhaps, you could have had an abortion women that suffer miscarriage and stillbirth, and women that have precipitous home births can go to jail now as murderers. Nermeen what is it about indianas suis laws that allow prosecutors to convict on both of these counts, and is it similar in other states . Lynn i would say there is nothing unique about indianas feticide law. What is unique is the judge allowed it to go forward despite an amicus brief. 38 states have feticide laws. Most of them explicitly say how they were all past, which is they were all past or amended in the wake of violence against pregnant women, with the promise that it would protect pregnant women and unborn children from violence. In many states, as my research with jean clayton, has shown, it has been used to arrest woman who delayed having syrian surgery. A woman in iowa who fell down a flight of stairs while pregnant was arrested for feticide. Indianas law is somewhat different from other states, but it is not really about the language of the statute. It is about the commitment of the prosecutors and the states to use it as a mechanism for depriving pregnant women of their rights. Z amy during the sentencing the prosecutor insisted the charges were separate and distinct. He told reporters the feticide charge against patel requires only intent to unlawfully terminate a pregnancy and in this case the pregnancy was terminated with a live birth triggered by abortion pills. Roule went on to say, quote, what is the reason she chose to terminate her pregnancy in the manner with which she did so . Preference and convenience. After the sentencing, roule briefly spoke with wsbt reporter. Mr. Roule it was against the law. That is all we need to say about it. Kelli a lot of people in the public have asked why not murder . Mr. Roule the charges were made, and we will deal with the charges that we have. Amy your response. Lynn i think there is an application in this case, the woman that was targeted was indianamerican, and the suggestion of preference is an issue addressing that asian women, in particular, cannot be trusted around their reproductive decisionmaking and more importantly or, not more importantly, but more part of this question of human rights, the claim by those that support feticide laws, antiabortion leaders have said over and over again, when we put unborn protections into the law it will result in compassionate protection for pregnant women. It will not result in punishment. If there is any doubt among people that the result, and perhaps intent, of the antiabortion, antifairness efforts in this country will be women becoming part of this system of massive incarceration they should and those doubts. What this prosecutor is saying is they can use feticide laws to recriminalizing abortion and punish women who have miscarriages. Nermeen can you talk about the case of beebe in indiana . Lynn they are targeting first women of asian descent, more Vulnerable Women immigrants, so that they can apply them to others. In this case she was a pregnant woman who inactive aspiration attempted suicide. She agreed with her friends to go to the hospital to get help. She wanted her baby to survive. She did everything they asked her to do, including undergoing surgery, and the baby was born alive and did not survive. She was arrested. She was put in jail, held there without bail for more than a year, and then, after we helped to win theyll for her, they held her in house arrest under electronic monitor. Julie will very important things about that case two very important things about that case it is not a crime in any state of United States to attempt suicide, but they use the feticide law to argue there is a separate and unequal law for pregnant women who can go to jail for crimes because they become pregnant or have the capacity for pregnancy, and it also exposes something very disturbing about what the prosecutor said over and over again. At purvi patels trial, they said she violated one simple rule she should have gone to the doctor. Bebe went to the doctor, and did everything they asked her to do, and she got arrested. Purvi patel went to the hospital to seek help, and what happened . She got arrested. If you believe you can arrest a pregnant woman because she did not go to the doctor, that will be doctors to think, as they did in florida with samantha burton, that you can force them to go to the doctor. Samantha burton went to the hospital, they said you are miscarrying, you must stay here. She said i have two little girls at home, and if god wanted it this baby, god can take the baby. They held her at the hospital, force her into surgery, and she still lost the pregnancy. What people have to fight for his dignity and fairness for pregnant women with actually know role for police and prosecutors in overseeing prenatal care. Amy how do you link this to what is going on there, what everybody is hearing about, the socalled religious freedom law . Lynn these are issues of basic human rights, and what people often forget is that the laws have simply been described as antiabortion, and we tend to defend abortion, but what is at stake is the human rights of women, or the people that have the capacity for pregnancy so we have rights around lesbian, gay, transgendered people, and this is not just about depriving people of rights, but liberty the most basic freedom in the constitution which now indiana they say you can lose if you have a pregnancy and you cannot ensure a healthy birth outcome. Amy thank you. Lynn paltrow, founder and executive director of National Advocates for pregnant women. This is democracynow democracynow. Org, the war and peace report. When we come back, and why you professor joins us an n professoryu satellite campus, he learned not only was he being followed by a private investigator, but so was a New York Times reporter that reported on his study of the abuse of workers in the United Arab Emirates. Stay with us. [music break] amy war on the workers. Anne feeney. On democracy now. This is democracy now democracynow. Org, the war and peace report. Im amy goodman. Nermeen we end todays show with the case of a new york professor who has been barred from entering the United Arab Emirates after he criticized the monarchys exploitation of migrant laborers. New York University professor andrew ross said he learned of the ban after arriving at the airport in new york, where he was set to board a flight to continue his research in the uae, a close u. S. Ally. On friday, the New York Times reported that a new yorkbased private investigator has been making inquiries about ross as well as former times reporter ariel kaminer, who also exposed revealed revealed workers faced harsh conditions. Amy asked for comment, a spokesman said nyu spokesman john beckman sent a written statement saying, quote, we cannot know all the thinking that goes into any immigration authoritys decisions about who is or is not granted a visa, and weve had people who were coming to our campus in new york on academic matters who have been denied visas by the u. S. Authorities, including one in recent days. To talk more about the case, were joined now by andrew ross sociology professor at nyu and president of nyus chapter of the American Association of university professors. Author of several books, including most recently creditocracy and the case for debt refusal. Welcome to democracy now tell us what happened when you first tried to go to abu dhabi and then what you found out. Professor ross i was denied permission to board the flight, i asked for a reason, and they called the uae authority and i was told i was barred entry into the country for security reasons. There was no other reason given for that. Nermeen what do you suspect is the reason behind you been barred from the country . Professor ross there is no doubt in my mind i have been researching the abuses of migrant labor, and i was traveling to Gather Research on that very topic. When i was there before, i was followed by security agents in a car, and as you mentioned private investigators had been looking into my affairs. So, it was not entirely surprising to me. Amy explain how you learned that a private investigator is talking to people about you. Professor ross well, one of the people she called up, contacted me to let me know. I do not know if that was the only person. Amy was this a friend . Professor ross an acquaintance and economic acquittance. Amy from the university of virginia . Professor ross yes. Amy and a private investigative investigator started to question her about you and also ariel kaminer, who did a report on what was happening to work these workers in abu dhabi. Professor ross that was her independent research. It was an important article, and it was not printed. It was the first time the New York Times, was actually banned from circulation. When the investigator calls this contact, she presses the inquiry by saying that this is in connection with the pressure that was currently on nyus president regarding the allegations of labor abuse in abu dhabi. It was quite clear that this was a contact for the investigation. Amy this was a frontpage piece in the New York Times, the piece by ariel kaminer, based on independent reporting on what was happening with the workers that were building the nyu satellite campus. Professor ross that is correct. Amy explain what was happening to them. Professor ross well, the piece that you mentioned is one of a series of pieces written by independent journalists over the years, and Human Rights Watch reports, and also reports by the golf Labor Coalition which i work with. I am part of gulf labor, a group of artists that put pressure on the Guggenheim Museum because the guggenheim is also building in abu dhabi. Through our investigations we discovered a fairly consistent pattern of fair labor standards violations and human rights abuses among the migrant workforce in the uae and also neighboring qatar because it is the same migrantlabor sponsorship system, and it brings workers from south asia to these countries and it is a very harsh system. Nermeen in 2009, nyu issued a statement saying it would guarantee fair treatment of workers building its campus in abu dhabi. They have also said in a subsequent statement that they frequently use contractors and subcontractors for these workers so that they are not directly responsible for how those contractors treat those workers. Could you comment on that . Professor ross well, the fair labor statement, the statement of labor values, was established largely through pressure from the group of us at nyu, a group of faculty and students. It was not something the administration took on by itself, and having these standards on paper is all very well, but the enforcement is the more important thing, as we know. The u. S. Has perfectly good labor laws. It could be better, but they are perfectly good. It is not enforced. It is the enforcement of them were people fail down on the job. As far as the arguments about subcontracting this is pretty much the same argument nike and the gap used to make, the origins of the antisweatshop movement this is not our problem, we have no possibility for what happens further down the subcontracting chain. There is a very tight, rigid sense of responsibility in my mind, and most peoples minds and the barring of entry to researchers, especially nyu professors like myself has some serious applications for the operation of the caps overseas in abu dhabi. Amy in 2013, the guardian released a video called the dark side of abu dhabis cultural revolution. Reporter Glenn Carrick described the conditions of Migrant Workers in abu dhabi from bangladesh and pakistan. Glenn 40 men bunked together, 10 to each windowless room earning 245 a month, painting the new York University campus, working long hours, six days a weeks six days a week. All were too afraid to speak on camera. Many said they wanted to return home, but they were tracked by the thousands of dollars they owe to Recruitment Companies in bangladesh. Amy that is the guardian reporter Glenn Carrick described describing the conditions faced. There is this picture of many workers sleeping in mens and it says Migrant Workers earn as little as two at 72 a month while building a campus for new York University. This is not only about uae, but new York University as well, your employer. Professor ross well, it was very bad news, but it was not surprising to us, and us i mean the faculty and students that have been pushing for adequate enforcement of these labor values. The administration at nyu has hired an independent investigator to look into the allegations, and that report will be forthcoming very soon. It we very interesting to see what they come up with. It is very difficult to investigate these allegations unless you go to india bangladesh, or pakistan, where the workers where deported after they spoke up about their grievances. This is typically the case with strikes or work stoppages in the uae. Workers are detained, abuse, and then deported without a cent in the pocket. But to properly investigate these allegations, you would need to go and interview those workers, which some of us have done, but i very much doubt it in past independent investigators amy isnt it the universitys responsibility to do this . They are pouring millions of dollars into the building of the campus. Professor ross it is not the universitys money. Everything is being bankrolled by the uae. Amy and that is true for other campuses. Professor ross absolutely. An enormous amount of money, and it is not like purchasing property on Central Park South and when you by university and a topranked using them, there are a lot of speech protections and protections that have to come with it. That is part of the problem when you start muslim the voices of those that start making inquiries into conditions in the country. Nermeen do you think given these conditions that either nyu, the cultural conditions, the guggenheim, etc. , whether they should be established there given what workers are subjected to . Professor ross well, the train already left the station on that. The decision was made. They are building the building. I have a lot of responsibilities going in. The question is, have the directors, the voices of the directors of these institutions been bought and paid for as well as for so far the president of nyu has had nothing to say about the recent incident. Amy andrew ross, thank you for being with us. Sociology professor at nyu and president of nyus chapter of the American Association of university professors. He was recently barred from entering the United Arab Emirates after he criticized the monarchys exploitation of migrant laborers. And that does it for our show. Condolences to our producers brother. Shealy heelys behind his wife rachel. That does it for our show