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Articles Featured on indymedia.us for January 2008
February 2008 >> << December 2007
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Jan 01 2008
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Listening to the Homeless |
From New Orleans IMC -- Three interviews with homeless men beneath the Claiborne Avenue Bridge. Full Report: Homeless Men Talk About the Housing Crisis, Public Housing, and Post-Katrina New Orleans | Related: New Year’s Resolution For Nola: Homeless Unite With Public Housing ResidentsFrom Colorado IMC: On December 16th, the Grand Valley Coalition for the Homeless held its annual ceremony for those who died on the streets during the last year. It was bitter-cold despite the bright sun shine, and three inches of snow blanketed the ground. Dozens of men and women gathered early to get into the soup line, The Red Pill was able to sit down with Wild Man a Grand Junction native who has been on the streets for that last year and half. Full Report: Death on the Streets: Homelessness in the Grand Valley
More coverage of Homeless Memorial Day, 2007: DC | Baltimore | Worcester: 1 | 2 (audio) | Reports from www.nationalhomeless.org | 2006 Roundup | | Related: Santa Cruz Sleeping Ban Struggle Persists as Ryan Coonerty Becomes Mayor | On Being Hawaiian and Homeless
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Jan 02 2008
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January 19th Roe v. Wade Anniversary March in San Francisco |
On January 19th, the United States will observe the 35th Anniversary of the Roe v. Wade court decision in favor of a woman's right to choose whether or not to have an abortion. For the first time in many years, pro-choice marchers have been granted a permit for a rally in San Francisco's Justin Herman Plaza (at Market and Embarcadero) at 11am on Saturday, January 19th, 2008. The "Walk for Life - West Coast" would normally bus some 10,000 anti-choice marchers in for its annual march through Fisherman's Wharf. It is unclear where the Walk for Life (2008 WFLWC flyer) will take place this year, as it is usually held in Justin Herman Plaza... read more>>
Related: 1/10: Radical Women Meeting About January 19th | Analysis | Indybay's Past coverage of Roe v. Wade anniversary marches | Bay Area Coalition for Our Reproductive Rights
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Jan 03 2008
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Anti-War Activists Occupy fron of Hillary Clinton's HQ on eve of Iowa Caucus |
In conjunction with the actions organized by Voices for Creative Nonviolence, a group of local peace activists visited Hillary's national headquarters in Arlington... The nonviolent protest, featuring a mock coffin and the reading of Iraqi and American names killed in the more than five years of war and military occupation in Iraq.While our protest was going on, we learned that several of our brothers and sisters with Season of Discontent: A Presidential Occupation Project, were arrested in the Des Moines, Iowa offices of Republican candidate Mitt Romney and Democratic candidate Barack Obama. Read More>>
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Jan 04 2008
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Re-Declaration of Independence by the Lakota Nation and a Red Pill interview with Duane Martin Sr. (Canupa Gluha Mani) |
Many people are familiar with the indigenous struggles of The Six Nations in Canada and the Zapatistas of Chiapas, but now that indigenous people’s struggle for the freedom of self-determination has fired a shot into the capital of imperialism, Washington D.C. On December 19th, a delegation from the Lakota Nation went to the State Department and formally withdrew from all the treaties that had been signed with the U.S. Government over the last 150 years, essentially seceding from the Union. The Red Pill was honored to speak with Duane Martin Sr. read more
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Jan 05 2008
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Musings From Within the Triple Fun Zone |
Rico writes, "This year, the third year of the Last Night DIY celebration, did you notice the trend of the city starting to claim the party as it's own? It's awesome to feel accepted of course, but it's a double-edged sword. After the first couple years of getting nothing but grief from the cautious city administrators, conservative local media, and uniformed fascists, this year the Senile and the Good Times claimed that the celebration was "quickly becoming a Santa Cruz tradition," and "was a uniquely Santa Cruz event." Hahaha. That cracks me up. This year, Ed Porter himself "acknowledged the positive contribution Last Night DIY has made on the community." Two years ago, he characterized us in City Council and in the press as common lawbreakers. Oh well. So goes politicians. You watch, within a few years, you'll hear Ryan Coonerty and Mike Rotkin telling the media how they support the celebration and always have. If you don't budge, the system eventually redraws it's circle of acceptability around you. So if you live under empire and you have dreams of living free, you have to keep stepping outside of that circle." Read More | Photos: Parade | Street Party
Previous Years: 2006 Announcement | SCPD Violated Civil Rights Of Parade Organizers | Police Infiltrate Peaceful Parade Organizers | 2005 Celebration
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Jan 06 2008
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2007 Year In Review |
2007 was a year of hard work and hard-won victory. In the courts, the streets (1, 2), the congressional offices, and the schools (1, 2), anti-war activists have put their bodies in the way of the US war machine. Farmworkers won a historic contract and taxi workers pulled off an unprecedented two-city strike. Political prisoner Mumia Abu-Jamal got a day in court, and protests around the globe secured clemency for Kenneth Foster Jr. Students successfully fought military recruitment in Santa Cruz, and in Boston forced labor negotiations with a hunger strike. Animal rights activists prevailed against Schumacher Furs in Oregon, and in Colorado Columbus Day was challenged by a united front. And we came together in historic gatherings -- the first ever US Social Forum, the No Borders Camp, and the Zapatistas' Intercontinental Indigenous Summit.2007 also saw victories for the rights of independent journalists. Reporter Josh Wolf was freed, and video activist Patrick Thompson won a new trial. IMCista Brad Will's memory was carried on in word and in action.
Meanwhile, we came together to respond to tragedies -- both the ongoing and sudden varieties:
» May Day 2007: Police Attack MacArthur Park Demonstration; Bratton’s “Agitators” Story Untrue
» ICE Raids: Reports from Painesville, OH, Boston, Santa Barbara
» Sanctuary Violated: Elvira Arellano Arrested by ICE; Deported to Tijuana
» Jena: Judge denies request to free teen on bail in the wake of largest civil rights protest in years
» Globalization: Protests greet IMF Delegates
» Post-Katrina New Orleans: Police Attack Housing Rights Protesters With Mace, Tazers to Keep Them Out of City Hall
And, our communities have already begun preparing for the 2008 election season, through regional anti-convention organizing and media activism.
Through all this, Indymedia collectives across the country have worked to document and amplify these efforts. Contribute your coverage | Get your coverage syndicated to IMC-US
Local IMC "Year in Review" Roundups: Chicago | Houston | Los Angeles | Pittsburgh
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Jan 07 2008
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Conspiracy Charge Dropped Against Five of the SF8 |
On Friday, January 4th, prosecutors in the San Francisco 8 case announced that they are, in effect, dropping the conspiracy count against 5 of the men because the statute of limitations on conspiracy charges has expired. Ray Boudreaux, Richard Brown, Hank Jones and Harold Taylor now only face one count, the alleged murder of a San Francisco Police Officer in 1971. The case against Richard O'Neal must now be dismissed since he was originally charged only in the conspiracy count. On January 10th, their lawyers will ask that the conspiracy count be dropped against the other 3 men.
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Jan 08 2008
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Neighbors Unite Against the BLM’s “WOPR” |
Cave Junction, Oregon - Friends and neighbors with homes and businesses near Bureau of Land Management (BLM) property will rally at BLM headquarters, 3040 Biddle Road in Medford, on Tuesday January 8th at 11:00AM, come rain, snow or shine! The peaceful rally will address numerous issues and concerns that directly affect the economy, environmental health and quality of residents’ lives through-out the region. A bus load of residents from the Illinois Valley will arrive just before 11:00 am. Opposition to the BLM’s Western Oregon Planning Revision (WOPR) process for 2.5 million acres of public forestland statewide has galvanized a huge and diverse alliance. Rally organizer and Illinois Valley resident Dorothea Hover-Kramer said, “At countless meetings, when we ask how many people live adjacent to or near BLM lands, all the hands in the room go up!” Hover-Kramer adds, “There are many new faces: vineyard owners, farmers, river and back-country outfitters, horse enthusiasts, restaurant owners, teachers, scientists and retirees, to name a few.”
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Jan 09 2008
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Sherman Heights Resists Border Patrol Violence |
On Saturday, over forty community members in Sherman Heights met in the cold rain and wind to protest the reckless, violent apprehension and beating of a young man by the border patrol the previous day.According to a witness, two border patrol agents, one in a car and one on foot, were chasing three young men in the vicinity of 28th and L Street Friday morning.... "[The border patrol agent] was just racing... He didnt even care if would run over a kid... He just ran into the sidewalk, that's how reckless he was driving. Somebody could have been crossing the street, he was just driving so reckless. That is what made me angry."
At the demonstration, speakers talked about the toll that border patrol and police violence takes on communities and families, the relationship of this violence to the border and regional and global issues, and the need to organize the community for resistance. Read More>> | Video 35 mbytes 9 min 53 sec | Related: Indigenous Communities Call on DHS to Stop Border Land Grab, Respect Property and Human Rights
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Jan 10 2008
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Patrick Thompson returns to court January 14 |
URBANA - Nearly 3 and a half years after felony criminal charges were filed against Patrick Thompson, the founder of Visionaries Educating Youth and Adults (VEYA), the case is scheduled for yet another pre-trial hearing Monday, January 14 in front of Judge Harry Clem in Courtroom A at 2:00 p.m. Read Full Report by Seth Jackson
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Jan 11 2008
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Behind the corporate media facade: Indymedia coverage of the New Hampshire Primaries |
Pictured: A Barrington New Hampshire voter, disgusted with the corrupted system, destroys his ballot at the polls in the NH Primary election. Photo by Linda Edelstein. Read Full Report>>Related Coverage: One Company Controls New Hampshire Election Programming | On the Eve of the NH Primary, in three parts | Oprah and Obama-mania in Manchester | Kucinich's wheels off the track: Backs Corporado Obama | National media interested in local rag's endorsement for McCain | Top Candidates Wrong on Iran | Man with 'bomb' takes hostages in Hillary Clinton's Rochester office | Obama in Dover: Impressions not Substance | John Edwards takes on CORPORATE CONTROL | Vermin Supreme Wins the New Hampshire Primary!
Coverage from the Indypendent: The Game is Rigged! (Jan12, 2008 issue)
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Jan 12 2008
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SUDANESE JOURNALIST tortured in prison while hundreds arrested requesting Guantanamo Prison shut-down |
As thousands from around the world were about to take to the streets to call for the shut-down of Guantanamo, for the reinstatement of Habeas Corpus, the U.S. constitution and international covenants for the treatment of prisoners of war, I spoke with and interpreted Mr. A'asim El-Haj, the brother of Sami El-Haj (the Al-Jazeera camera-man held in Gitmo), who describes here what happened to his brother… Read Full Report by Ryme Katkhouda of DC Radio CoopPictured: Protesters block Market Street in San Francisco
More Coverage: Protesting Torture in Front of the CIA from DC-IMC | Candlelight March to Shut Down Guantanamo from Indybay | CodePINK Says Close Gitmo! from LA IMC | Banners Mark Six Years of Guantanamo Prison Camp from Colorado IMC | Trampled Beneath Bush’s Policy of 'Endless War' from Philly IMC | Activists Disrupt Supreme Court Demanding Trials for Guantanamo Detainees from Richmond IMC | “We Will Not Stand Idly By:” Vigil Marks Guantanamo Day of Awareness and Action from New Orleans IMC
Related: From Chile to Guantanamo: A Survivor of Torture Speaks Up from Boston IMC
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Jan 13 2008
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Jim Goodnow's "Yellow Rose" Bus Destroyed by Suspicious Fire |
Owner hopes good will come of this experienceJim Goodnow and his bus, the Yellow Rose, both have suffered a terrible tragedy. In recent months, Jim has been providing transportation to Iraq Veterans Against the War for their various tours and other activities. Last night, Jim escaped a fire of suspicious origins that destroyed the bus. Luckily Jim is all right... Read More | Photo from Yellow Rose blog
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Jan 14 2008
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Indymedia Newsreal January 2008 Edition to Air on 1/17 |
The Indymedia Newsreal Project's January 2008 edition is now available for online download download here, and will air on Free Speech TV on Thursday January 17 at 9:30pm and 11:30pm EST. This month's edition contains stories from Pato Productions, Houston Indymedia, The Mishaped, and Scar Media Collective and reports on cross-border activism, a grassroots food distribution program, and organizing against the death penalty.Pictured: still from "End Executions" by Houston Indymedia
The Newsreal, which has aired on Free Speech TV and across the country on local cable access channels since 2000, is gathering energy again after a low-point last year. Read on for details.
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Jan 15 2008
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Motion for New Trial for Eric McDavid to Be Heard on January 24th |
Eric McDavid's case continues to progress. The hearing on the motion for a new trial has been changed to January 24th, and sentencing has been moved to February 21st. Each time a hearing date is changed, Eric will have to spend more time in Sacramento County Main Jail, where he faces many difficulties that will not present themselves in a federal facility. In addition, the appeals process cannot start until Eric has been sentenced. Eric is now receiving two veggie burgers a night, and has also been getting breakfast items he can eat (such as oatmeal), along with peanut butter sandwiches for lunch. While this is obviously nowhere near a "balanced" vegan diet, supporters say it is a huge improvement over his previous nutritional situation. Read More | Eric McDavid - Two Years and Counting | Indybay's Past Coverage of Eric McDavid's case | Support Eric websiteRelated: Will The Real Eco-Terrorists Please Stand Up? 2nd Prison Dispatch from Jonathan Paul
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Jan 16 2008
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Grand Opening: School of the Americas Watch West |
"Word began to spread as we researched the school and discovered what we had here was indeed a school of assassins, a school for dictators. These soldiers came here to learn counter insurgency. Who were the insurgency? They were the poor, the religious leaders, labor leaders, and many others. And then when the torture manuals were discovered in the curriculum, that got a lot of front-page coverage. Word began to spread, and our numbers in the movement grew." -- Father Roy Bourgeois, founder, School of the Americas WatchThe story of the School of the Americas, or School of the Assassins is a disturbing tale of such organized and planned terrorism; one would never believe it was real. Every year in Fort Benning, Georgia the people protest. This year we brought it to LA. Read Reports: by LadyMadonna | by Ross Plesset and Anna Kunkin | more pics by Anna & Ross
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Jan 17 2008
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Hoopa Valley Tribe Rejects Klamath River Deal |
Hoopa, Calif. - The Hoopa Valley Tribe of northern California will not endorse the latest draft of the Klamath River Basin Restoration Agreement (KRBRA) released on January 15th because the agreement lacks adequate water assurances for fish. Despite being in the minority among the negotiators, Tribal Chairman Clifford Lyle Marshall said Hoopa would never waive its fishery-based water rights, as demanded by federal and other negotiators, in a deal providing no assurances for fisheries restoration. Read More | Klamath Settlement Group Releases Proposed Restoration Agreement | Klamath Tribes Work with Neighbors to Solve Water Crisis | California Trout & Trout Unlimited: Klamath Agreement Sets Stage for Dam Removal
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Jan 18 2008
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Obama, race and the African American community |
Harlem Tenants Council organized a forum on Senator Obama, race and politicsAround 75 people gathered at the Ambrose Church on West 130th Street in Harlem for a discussion organized by the Harlem Tenants Council on race, the African American community and Barack Obama. Activists from a variety of causes including police brutality, housing and political prisoners talked about what the candidacy of Obama meant to the black community. Read Full Report by Alex Kane | | | Related: Clintons, Your Black Pass is Hereby Revoked from the Black Commentator | Watch the videos by Brave New Films: "FOX Attacks Obama" and "FOX Attacks Black America"
More Election Coverage: Green Party Presidential Candidates Debate in SF | "Hacking Democracy" - Electronic Voting Documentary | More...
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Jan 19 2008
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Baltimore Algebra Project Organizer Zachariah Hallback shot and killed on Jan 9th |
We mourn the loss of Zachariah Hallback, a wonderful young man who had participated in many Algebra Project events, and who was helping to organize for the action below. Zach was shot Wednesday, Jan. 9 during a robbery while he waited with other Algebra Project youth for a bus across the street from City College High School. He was pronounced dead on Friday, Jan. 11. The students have decided to continue with this action in his memory.
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Jan 20 2008
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No Retreat: MoveOn and the Liberal War Party |
"Antiwar groups retreat on funding fight" read the headlines. The story underneath describes a retreat by MoveOn and other liberal elements of the antiwar movement who, after failing to get a withdrawal deadline passed in the US Congress in 2007, are now merely trying to prevent the US and Baghdad governments from signing an agreement that would keep US forces in Iraq until 2018...Read MoreRelated: Photo from Jan18 Protest at a Military Recruitment Center in DC
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Jan 21 2008
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National Conference on Immigrant and Refugee Rights brings hundreds to Houston |
The National Conference for Immigrant & Refugee Rights had more than 600 registrations and hundreds of activists from across the country and representing communities across the globe descending on the Hyatt hotel in downtown Houston from January 18th to the 20th. The Conference, which was organized by the National Network for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, had the theme of "Claiming our Rights, Envisioning our Future: Communities Organizing for Justice", which was reflected in the plenary sessions and dozens of workshops offered throughout the weekend. The conference blended theory, strategy and action for people organizing for immigrant rights. Read More>>Related: State-Sponsored Oppression Along the Southern Border from Arkansas IMC | City Council Votes YES To Accept Immigrant and Refugee Task Force Recommendations! from Portland IMC
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Jan 22 2008
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Assassinating the Image and Legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr. |
January of every year we are encouraged to celebrate the legacy of Dr. King even as such celebration occurs over the assassinated image of an assassinated man. As Vincent Harding noted, quoting a poem by Carl Wendell Himes, Jr., "Dead men make such convenient heroes: They cannot rise to challenge the images we would fashion from their lives." Harding's extension of this to his own work on King, An Inconvenient Hero, summarizes perfectly the position King must hold today. His popularity must be used to testify against his living legacy, his life's struggle, and both the reasoning and people behind his assassination. While his name is evoked each year, and at times of heightened political activity even more so, this reference comes specifically to recast a revolutionary into one comfortable with current and false notions of "progress" or "change." Barak Obama borrows his oratorical flare (attempts at least) with none of his politics and Hillary Clinton misuses his legacy to give undo credit to the executive branch for a movement's struggle for equality while simultaneously suggesting that King himself saw president Johnson's signing of Civil Rights legislation as completion of victory and liberation. He most certainly did not. All this, of course, occurs while electoral political efforts to carry out King's plan (his dream had long since been considered by King himself to be a "nightmare") are summarily ignored by mass media popular and "progressive" alike. Read Full Report from VoxUnion Media | More MLK Day CoveragePhoto from Jan07 MLK Day March in St. Louis, MO
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Jan 23 2008
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Forrest Activists Target NW Natural over the LNG, by Barracading the Front Door with Dead Trees |
Today two activists were arrested at a rally protesting NW Natural's investment in new Liquefied Natural Gas(LNG) related pipelines. Activists converged on the NWNasty office with banners and dozens of trees to demand an end to clear-cuts for over 600 miles of proposed pipelines for new fossil fuel development. ... Piling dozens of trees on NW Natural's downtown office entryway, activists with Stumptown Earth First! and Cascadia Rising Tide, aim to send a message to the LNG-invested gas company: "There's nothing Green about Clear-cuts, No new pipelines." Read More | Related: February 6 Rally in Salem: NO LNG in Oregon!
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Jan 24 2008
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TCD defenders receive mixed verdict |
A verdict was reached on January 22 in the consolidated TCD trial. It was a mixed result. Glenn Morris was found guilty of one charge of disrupting a lawful assembly, and not guilty of obstructing a passage and interference. Koreena Montoya was found guilty of obstructing and resistance, not guilty of disruption and interference. Julie Todd was found guilty of obstructing, not guilty of disrupting and interference.read more | TCD blog Past Coverage: Jan19: Defense rests in TCD trial; closing statements Tuesday | Jan18: TCD Trial: Day 2 | Jan3: Support TCD Defenders | Oct7: Ending the Legacy of Columbus in Denver | More Past Coverage
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Jan 25 2008
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ICC Photo Recon: Spreading Wounds, Homes Under Siege |
On Jan 23 an Earth First operative carried out this photo reconnaissance mission to gather imagery on the spreading wounds the Inter-County Connector highway project has imposed upon the land. watch slideshow video w/ music and commentaryRelated: From Boston IMC: Blockade to Stop Sub-Prime Loan Home Eviction (audio) | From Philly IMC: Stand for Housing not War at City Hall | From NYC-IMC: Harlem Community Forum Blasts Bloomberg's Gentrification Plan Eviction practices questioned in January 23 hearing | From Miami IMC: : Reclaim + Rename land in Overtown
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Jan 26 2008
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Final nail in Schumacher's coffin |
A federal judge has ordered Schumacher's furriers to pay nearly $97,000 in legal fees to the animal-rights protesters he has accused of destroying his family business. U.S. District Judge Michael Mosman ordered Gregg Schumacher and Schumacher Furs & Outerwear to cover $43,186 in legal fees to People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals; $34,735 to In Defense of Animals; and $18,950 to protester Kevin Mieras, court records show.
Schumacher and his wife Linda sued animal-rights protesters for a relentless campaign of Saturday protests that the couple maintains stepped over the bounds of free speech into crimes and violations of city ordinances.
But Mosman threw out such claims in a series of rulings last year. This week, he signed an order compelling the Schumachers to pay the protesters' legal fees in the case. In his order, Mosman called the facts of the case "extraordinary" but said the Schumachers had abused the legal process."Although the (Schumachers) may have had meritorious claims against people whose names they did not know, or even against the City of Portland," Mosman wrote, "they sued people against whom they had no evidence for $6.6 million, sought to restrict their First Amendment rights, and disparaged their reputations with accusations of criminal conduct, terrorist affiliations and responsibility for 'shutting down' a business whose financial solvency was questionable before the protesting activities began." Read More
Past Coverage: Oct07 | June07 | May07 | March07 | Feb07 | Jan07 | Dec15_06 | Dec2_06 | Nov28_06 | Nov14_06 | Oct06 | Mar06 | Jan06
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Jan 27 2008
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Student Activist Leaders Challenged by Administration at Leadership High School |
In the week leading up to the January 11th national day of action against torture, student organizers with World Can't Wait and the Bay Area Revolution Club spoke in classes and distributed orange armbands at several Bay Area high schools. Larry Everest was invited by students at Leadership High to give a presentation about the abuses that are taking place at Guantanamo Bay. After the presentation, the Administration sent a letter home to all parents of students who attended the event-- stating the school's intention to teach the "other side" of torture, which one of the teachers described as the "Bush Administration's point of view." In addition, school administrators threatened to take students' orange bandannas. Read More
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Jan 28 2008
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Protests across the US call for an end to Gaza siege |
Over the weekend, protests were held in a number of US cities and towns calling on Israel to end the imprisonment of 1.5 million Palestinians inside Gaza without access to food, safe water, electricity or medical care. Some of the cities participating in the protest actions included Boston; Philadelphia; San Francisco; Seattle; St. Petersburg, Florida; Washington, DC; Los Angeles; Portland, Oregon; Eugene, Oregon; Houston, Texas and a number of other cities. [Update: Hundreds Brave Chicago Blizzard To Protest For Palestine on Jan 29]Protesters called for an end to Israel's six-month long siege on Gaza, during which the Israeli forces controlling Gaza's borders have severely curtailed imports and exports of both people and goods – and over the last two weeks have completely sealed the Gaza Strip. The protests took place at several different venues, including in front of the White House in Washington, DC, the Israeli consulates in New York, Los Angeles and Houston, and in a public square in Portland, Oregon and along a road in Eugene, Oregon. Among those who participated in the various rallies were Palestinian-Americans, human rights activists, Jewish supporters of Palestinian rights and many others.
Among the groups represented at the rallies were Americans United for Palestinian Human Rights, Jews for Justice, Jews for Peace, Women in Black, US Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation, ANSWER Coalition, United for Peace and Justice and others.
Gaza's Last Gasp | Joint Israeli/Palestinian protest on both sides of Gaza Wall | As Egypt seals the borders, Palestinians open it again to get supplies
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Jan 29 2008
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Attention: Please Urge Your Representative to Attend January 29th ADA Restoration Hearing |
This coming Tuesday, January 29th at 9:30am, the full House Education and Labor Committee will hold a hearing on the Americans with Disabilities (ADA) Restoration Act (H.R. 3195). "S. 1881 and H.R. 3195 would reestablish Congress’ original intent in passing the ADA and restore the Act to its place as one of our country’s great civil rights laws." Read the testimonies of Cheryl Sensenbrenner and Chai R. Feldblum Before the Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties of the Committee on the Judiciary United States House of Representatives Washington, D.C. October 4, 2007 and the statement by the Washington Legislative Office of the ACLU Read More>>
Related: Disabled with Only 30 Minutes to Spare from Santa Cruz IMC
Related: Disabled with Only 30 Minutes to Spare from Santa Cruz IMC
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Jan 30 2008
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Coordinated Day of Protests Calls for Support of US Soldiers in Canada |
Friday, January 25th was a national day of support for US G.I. Resisters. Events were held at Canadian Consulates, people were encouraged to sign "Dear Canada" letters, to plan house partiesto screen the film "Breaking Ranks," and show their solidarity in other ways. Vigils and delegations took place in Washington, DC; New York City; Dallas; Los Angeles; Minneapolis; Seattle; and San Francisco (see list of events). The action underscored that many Americans hope that the Canadian Parliament votes (possibly within a few weeks) in favor of a provision to allow US war resisters to remain in Canada. With most legal appeals exhausted, a political solution would now be necessary in order to avoid deportation of the resisters.Reportbacks: Let Them Stay from Seattle IMC (photos) | January 25th National Day of Support for US War Resisters from Indybay (photos & video) | Activists at Canadian Embassy demand NO deportation of GI resisters from DC-IMC (audio) | More Anti-War Coverage
Additional Resources:: Canadian War Resisters Support Campaign | Courage to Resist | GI Rights Hotline | How to Go AWOL in Canada Iraq Vetrans Against War | Soldier Say No
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Jan 31 2008
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Salmon Crisis: "Unprecedented Collapse" |
Yesterday, an internal memo leaked out of the offices of the Pacific Fishery Management Council and into the hands of the press. The story outlined in that memo is horrific: The Chinook salmon of California's central valley, and indeed the salmon populations all up and down the west coast, are crashing. They are in "precipitous decline." Since the salmon crisis on our own Columbia river is being blamed upon sea lions at Bonneville dam, sea lions who are being threatened with assassination this spring due to the dwindling salmon, it is important that we look at the real scope, depth, and breadth of this problem... Read More>>
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Feb 01 2008
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Bank Pressured to Call Off House Eviction: Negotiations Planned |
In response to the new eviction order against Melonie Griffiths-Evans and her 3 children, City Life and the Bank Tenant Association again began to organize an “eviction blockade”, where the crowd would surround the building to stop the eviction. Last week a crowd of about 75 protesters caused the bank to back off from the planned eviction. Activists had hoped for negotiations and were disappointed when Melonie received another notice from the constable that a new eviction attempt would be made tomorrow, Friday, February 1. As the new blockade organizing went on and press advisories were issued, city councilors Chuck Turner and Sam Yoon were also reaching out to Ocwen Financial Corporation, urging a solution. These combined efforts bore fruit when Ocwen decided to call off the eviction. Ocwen further agreed to set up some discussions with Melonie Griffiths-Evans involving a non-profit mortgage counseling group known as ESAC, based in Jamaica Plain. Read More>> | Past Coverage: Blockade to Stop Sub-Prime Loan Home Eviction