Suspend venezuela while ignoring the recent ouster of Dilma Rousseff in brazil . The international right wing carried out a coup in brazil and the organization of american states went violent. Right now theyre threatening to intervene in our country. Amy we will get response from venezuelas ambassador to oas. And then, could the upcoming rio olympics help cement the coup in brazil . We will speak to sportswriters dave zirin and jules boycoff, both just back from brazil. All that and more, coming up. Welcome to democracy now , democracynow. Org, the war and peace report. Im amy goodman. Presumptive republican president ial nominee donald trump has attacked the news media for pushing him to explain what he did with millions of dollars he claimed to have raised for veterans. At a fundraiser in january, trump said he raised over 6 million for veterans groups. Last week, after the Washington Post said they could trace only about half of that, 3. 1 million going to vet groups, trump donated 1 million of his own funds and started cutting more checks. On tuesday, trump outlined 5. 6 million in donations to veterans groups so far. The Associated Press reports the biggest batch of checks appears to have gone out last week, amid the media scrutiny over the funds. At a News Conference tuesday, trump lambasted the media, calling Cnns Jim Acosta a real beauty and abc News Reporter tom llamas a sleaze. Im not looking for credit, but what i dont want is when i raise millions of dollars, have people say, like this sleazy guy right over here from abc, he is a sleaze in my book. You are a sleaze because you know the facts and you know the facts well. Amy when a reporter asked if this is how trump would conduct a white house News Conference, he said yes, it is. In new york city, veterans rallied outside trump tower to denounce trump for using them as campaign props. Perry obrien, who served as a medic in afghanistan, criticized trumps rhetoric against rhetoric. I served with women and muslims and served with latinos all groups that donald trump has maligned and even threatened. All of those folks actually donned the uniform and serve their country. As far as we can see as veterans and the military committed to, donald trump only seems interested in serving himself. Amy meanwhile, the Republicanled SenateArmed Services committee is seeking to slash housing benefits for members of the military. The plan, tucked into the annual military spending bill, could cost military members hundreds of dollars a month. The news over Donald Trumps veterans donations has overshadowed the release of hundreds of pages of documents from Trump University as part of an ongoing lawsuit arguing the defunct, forprofit school defrauded students. Judge Gonzalo Curiel ordered the release of the documents, which include playbooks outlining how Trump University staffers should play on peoples emotions and weaknesses and urge them to amass Credit Card Debt or rely on Retirement Funds to pay for classes. Trump has attacked judge curiel, saying he happens to be, we believe, mexican. Curiel is an american citizen, born in indiana. Up to 1000 refugees are feared to have drowned in recent days while trying to cross the Mediterranean Sea. The United Nations says this marks one of the highest weekly death tolls since the migrant crisis began in 2014. Unhcr spokesperson outlined the numbers. Thus far, 2016 is proving to be particularly deadly. Some 2510 lives have been lost so far compared to 1855 in the same period in 2015, and 57 in the first five months of 2014. On a mediterranean white bases, among the dead are currently one in 81. This is the importance of dust highlights the importance of real,se and the need for safer alternatives for people needing international protection. Amy this comes as Amnesty International warns the number of afghans internally displaced by the 15 year conflict has more than doubled since the beginning 100013, an average of people a day have been forced from their homes in afghanistan this year alone. In iraq, concerns are mounting over the fate of about 50,000 civilians trapped in the city of fallujah, as iraqi forces fight to reclaim the city from isis militants. The Norwegian Refugee Council has warned a human catastrophe is unfolding, with civilians caught in the crossfire amid fierce fighting. Isis seized fallujah in 2014. A decade earlier, fallujah was the site of one of the bloodiest chapters for u. S. Troops in the iraq war. The u. S. Push to recapture fallujah involved the extensive use of depleted uranium and white phosphorus, leaving a legacy of birth defects that continues today. The organization of american states has announced it will hold an emergency meeting to discuss whether to suspend venezuela for violating the oas charter. Oas secretarygeneral said tuesday venezuela had suffered grave alterations of democratic order but supporters of the venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro have criticized the oas for targeting venezuela, not brazil, or the democratically elected president Dilma Rousseff was recently removed from power in what many have described as a coup. President maduro has criticized oas for intervening in venezuelan politics and also criticize the u. S. Legal system and voiced support for democratic president ial candidate Bernie Sanders. Elections were free, they would not depend on an archaic system that is 200 years old and Bernie Sanders would be president of the United States. Amy we will be speaking to the venezuelan ambassador to the oas later in the broadcast. California governor jerry brown has endorsed democratic president ial candidate hillary onlyon, calling her the path for to win the presidency and stop the dangerous candidacy of donald trump. Brown has previously criticized clinton and ran for the democratic nomination in 1992 against bill clinton. This endorsement gives Hillary Clinton a key boost ahead of the june 7 california primary. When he ran for president , he never endorsed the man who beat him in the primary, bill clinton. The guardian reports the judge overseeing the military tribunal at guantanamo effectively conspired with prosecutors to destroy evidence related to the defense of Khalid Shiekh mohamed, the accused architect of the 9 11 attacks. A Court Document alleges the judge, army colonel james pohl, worked secretly in concert with prosecutors to approve the destruction of evidence and prevent mohameds defense team from learning about the move. Legal scholar Karen Greenberg told the guardian this may well be the straw that breaks the camels back in underscoring the unviability of the military commissions. In oklahoma, a former volunteer sheriffs deputy who fatally shot an unarmed africanamerican man while the man was restrained has been sentenced to four years in prison. Robert bates claimed he mistook his gun for a taser when he fatally shot eric harris last april. An internal report from 2009 revealed how bates, a wealthy donor to the sheriffs office, had been allowed to flout policies, patrolling in his own vehicle and conducting traffic stops on his own without adequate training. A leader of the Independence Movement in Western Sahara has died. Mohamed abdelaziz was the leader and cofounder of the polisario front, which has demanded independence ever since morocco took over most of Western Sahara in 1975. In march, morocco expelled United Nations staffers from Western Sahara after u. N. Secretarygeneral ban kimoon visited the region and used the term occupation to describe moroccos relationship to Western Sahara. In vermont, a transgender man has died of his injuries after being beaten at a homeless encampment in burlington. Police say they are investigating the death of amos beede and whether it was in any way connected to his transgender identity. At least 11 other transgender or gender nonconforming people have been murdered this year following a record of more than 20 in 2015. And the death rate in the United States rose last year for the first time in a decade. Researchers attributed the rare increase in part to a rise in deaths from alzheimers disease, suicide and drug overdoses. , and those are some of the headlines. This is democracy now , democracynow. Org, the war and peace report. Im amy goodman. Up to 1000 refugees are feared to have drowned in recent days while trying to cross the Mediterranean Sea. The United Nations say this marks one of the highest weekly death tolls since the migrant crisis began in 2014. Unicef says many of the victims were youth fleeing war and violence in their home countries. The majority of the refugees were from eritrea, nigeria, somalia, and south sudan. Under a European Union plan enacted in april, all refugees arriving in greece are deported back to turkey, forcing people to attempt the more dangerous route between libya and italy speaking tuesday, unhcr spokesperson william splinder talked about the sharp rise in migrant deaths. Thus far, 2016 is proving to be particularly deadly. Some 2510 lives have been lost so far compared to 1855 in the same period in 2015, and 57 in the first five months of 2014. On the mediterranean wide basis, there has been among the dead, currently one in 81. This highlights the importance of rescue operations as part of the response to the movement of refugees and migrants in the mediterranean and the need for real, safer alternatives for people needing international protection. Amy on monday, the photo of a german volunteer from the group seawatch holding the body of a drowned child became the latest symbol of the migration crisis. We go now to speak with Ruben Neugebauer, seawatch spokesperson and crew member. Seawatch, a german volunteer group that was formed to help migrants stranded at sea. Ruben, welcome to democracy now start out by explaining the scope of the crisis right now. Good morning. What we have faced in the last week in the Central Mediterranean sea is not only a period of good weather leading to a lot of both living libya boats leaving libya, it is also the wrestler foreign policy. Have a European Union forcing people on small and unseaworthy boats, because there is no other legal way to get into the European Union to seek asylum there. What were having here right now is the latest russell of european policy. It is a system of letting people die willingly because we refuse any other safeway to get into the European Union. Amy is that your sense that in the last few days, 1000 people have drowned crossing the Mediterranean Sea . Yes, it looks like 1000 people have died. It is hard to get exact numbers with those kinds of tragedies because what we have faced is different incidents where big wooden boats have capsized. In the beginning of such a tragedy come often you only often afew people, but lot of people are trapped below deck on the boats and only days after the tragedy, the real numbers will get known by the public and we have to fear that a lot of people died last week and also we have to fear that this kind of tragedies will occur again and again as long as people are forced onto those kinds of boats. Amy can you talk about the practice of water hosing, ruben . Yes. What we have been facing, not in the Central Mediterranean sea, dnc isthe route of the the European Union has aegean see, European Union has shut down the routes. It is not a safe route, but at least it is not as dangerous as it is crossing over the Central Mediterranean sea. Of course, it is not just telling refugees who are fleeing and itt to stay at home will work, therefore, the European Union has set up a lot. F fortification measures in the case of turkey, the thepean union is letting turks do the dirty work. What members of our crew have witnessed is the practice of water hosing migrant votes with the practice both with the practice of using by the Turkish Coast guard to avoid refugees from crossing. For us, this kind of water hosing is absolutely unacceptable. That is why we think this turkey deal also has to be stopped. Anyhow, we are quite sure that what we need is a real safe passage, which doesnt force people on any votes at all. Boats at all. Amy can you describe where the seawatchlunteer from found the drowned child that has become the latest symbol of the refugee crisis, the famous photo that has now gone out . Baby wasoto of the made right off the libyan coast in the Central Mediterranean sea on friday the 27th. When our crew came to the spot of the huge tragedy were a big wooden boat had capsized leaving more than 350 people in the water. When our crew was called to get there, we tried to get there immediately but on the way, we had to do another rescue operation because we found another boat in distress. The 126 peoplek on board and spent sent hours the boat ahead. It was recovering those who were still alive, but a lot of people had drowned when our speedboat arrived. Later on, we were asked by the italian navy, which was with another ship, as well as to help recovering those who havent made the journey and who drowned in that incident. Volunteerssked for and our crew to help recover the bodies and they went with the speedboat and found that boy or that baby floating right under the surface. Amy and the decision to publish that photo, ruben, which your group has described as a very difficult decision . Yes, it is always a difficult decision to publish that kind of photo. But in this specific case, we thought the greatness of the situation simply forces us kind of to publish the picture because the European Society has acknowledged that kind of picture because this picture is a result of the policy to shut down borders and force people onto that boat. Do European Union is using the fillingan the as it up with dead bodies to scare off those who might come after them. They let them die willingly will stop so the discussion should not be about whether we should publish that kind of picture, it should be about if we let those pictures happen. Amy what do you think needs to happen right now . What we need right now, first with a clearssion mission for searchandrescue, the ships that around there and doing a good job in rescue, often there often military ships that dont really have the searchandrescue ability. Dos is something we can right now starting from tomorrow. What we also need this is the only way to solve that kind of crisis is to have a safe and legal passage. If we would just allow those people to take a ferry as everybody else with european passport can do, we would have no smuggling business at all starting from the day that we would allow them to go on the not face suchld tragedies again. If we only have rescue efforts, which the European Union is already doing, we will face tragedies over and over again because also the rescue missions are quite dangerous, this is what we faced last week when those capsizings took place, even if rescue boats were around. Amy what do you think the United States should do . Huge crisis. Ing a we have war in a lot of places. We have poverty. Also, imausing quite sure the Climate Change will cause more refugees which have to leave countries because of this very soon. What the United States can do, actually, is to do their best to of escapes some people have the opportunity to stay in their home countries because nobody leaves voluntarily. Also on the migrant crisis, i mean, the u. S. Is a great country so, for sure, it is a problem that is not only to solve life you countries. Solve by a few countries. It is tough for the whole world, most probably. What canada did last year when a similar picture was published was to offer some syrians a safe way out to canada. This is something the u. S. Could do as well. Amy when we were covering the yuan Climate Summit in paris, we went to calais which have the largest refugee camp in paris. 6000 to 7000 people were there. An afghan refugee explained why he fled europe and his country. It is like me. If i have problem in my country, i have to go forward. I dont have to go back and stop if i go back, i die. For this i go. Are thinking like this. If i go back, i will die and have a very bad life. Was the man i spoke to in the refugee camp, that the refugees themselves called the jungle. The map of that one refugee camp red lights the bombing targets of the United States where the refugees came from afghanistan, iraq, somalia. Syria. Can you talk about that connection to war, ruben . I mean, what we