Most nations in Americas have laws that can suppress journalism - report
Criminal defamation laws routinely used to silence dissent and keep information from citizens
Gas from thawing permafrost could add further to global warming, study says
Permafrost thaw is adding to emissions of carbon dioxide and methane into the atmosphere
Film looks at abortion as U.S. top court takes up controversial case
Director Dawn Porter calls restrictive TRAP laws "the most effective strategy for closing abortion clinics"
New York agency offers help to undocumented trafficking and crime victims
The U.S. government issues up to 15,000 visas designated for crime and trafficking victims each year
Calls to U.S. trafficking hotline on the rise, organizers say
Some 1,600 survivors contacted the hotline in 2015, a 24 percent jump from a year earlier, the Polaris Project says
A third of world population lives in nations without freedoms - rights group
Syria, Tibet and Somalia ranked worst in 2015 which marked decade of decline in global freedom, says Freedom House
Dozens of nations discriminate against women in citizenship laws - study
53 countries have discriminatory nationality laws - 20 of them in sub-Saharan Africa and 16 in Middle East and North Africa
Links between slavery, environmental damage are cause for hope, author argues
As slave labour is often used to cut down forests, ending it would help reduce CO2 emissions, says Kevin Bales
Royalty join forces with Shakira, Messi to promote UN global goals
Royalty, Shakira and Messi join a campaign to help make the UN global goals to tackle poverty, climate change and conflict famous and reach their targets by 2030.
U.S. girls, women at risk of genital mutilation triples: study
Study finds a threefold rise in the number of girls, women in the United States at risk of female genital mutilation due to more migration from countries following the illegal practice.