Innocence Project

UPDATE
Breaking News: Execution Stayed in Mississippi

Please click HERE to sign and send letter

Background | Source Innocence Project

Willie Manning is on death row in Mississippi, awaiting execution for the abduction and murder of two college students in 1992. He was convicted on circumstantial evidence, including the testimony of a jailhouse informant who had previously given a statement implicating another person. No physical evidence has ever linked Willie to the crime, and he has always maintained his innocence. He has been seeking DNA testing of crime scene evidence for years.

Incredibly, the Mississippi Supreme Court ruled in a 5-4 decision that there is “overwhelming evidence of guilt,” so no DNA testing is needed. His execution has been set for May 7th. Eighteen men have been exonerated by DNA testing after being sentenced to death, including Kennedy Brewer of Mississippi. We are asking the Governor to stay the execution and order the DNA testing that will definitively prove Willie Manning’s guilt or innocence. Join us in calling on Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant to stay Willie’s execution and order DNA testing!

execution is forever,
DNA testing cannot
wait.
state of mississippi,
do you want innocent
blood spilled
on your plate????

Karen Lyons Kalmenson

Avaaz

Please click HERE to sign petition

Background | Source Avaaz, This ‘N’ That

It’s hard to believe, but a 15-year-old rape survivor has been sentenced to be whipped 100 times in public! Let’s put an end to this lunacy by hitting the Maldives government where it hurts: the tourism industry.

The girl’s stepfather is accused of raping her for years and murdering the baby she bore. Now the court says she must be flogged for “sex outside marriage” with a man who has not even been named! President Waheed of the Maldives is already feeling global pressure on this, and we can force him to save this girl and change the law to spare other victims this cruel fate. This is how we can end the War on Women – by standing up every time an outrage like this happens.

Tourism is the big earner for the Maldives elite, including government ministers. Let’s build a million-strong petition to President Waheed this week, then threaten the islands’ reputation through hard-hitting ads in travel magazines and online until he steps in to save her and abolish this outrageous law. Sign now and share this with everyone to get us to a million!

this is century 21
why is this sh*t
still being done.
the stone age came
and went long ago.
and it is time for
such barbarity
to G O go!!!!

Karen Lyons Kalmenson

Wikimedia Commons

Click HERE to sign petition

Background | Source SignOn

Breaking news: The Senate just voted to renew the Violence Against Women Act!

Momentum’s on our side, but House Speaker John Boehner and other representatives continue to block the bill from coming up for a vote. That’s why I created a petition on SignOn.org urging the U.S. House of Representatives to renew the Violence Against Women Act.

Click here to add your name to this petition, and then pass it along to your friends.

In 1983, I was a victim of rape at gunpoint. At the time, I was a single mother of a five-year old daughter and attending a local community college.

The Violence Against Women Act initially strengthened federal penalties for repeat sex offenders, mandated that women didn’t have to pay for their own rape exams, and helped communities develop law enforcement units dedicated to violence against women. This Act has been allowed to expire since it was passed, and House Republicans continue to block it—this is unacceptable.

Click here to add your name to this petition demanding an immediate extension of the Violence Against Women Act, and then pass it along to your friends.

Thanks!

–Sheila M. Thomas

we do not want to be pulled
by our hair and dragged into
the GOP cave,
so ALL rights for women,
have to be saved!!!

Karen Lyons Kalmenson

Care2 PetitionSite

Please click and sign HERE

Background | Source Care2 PetitionSite

Target: Omar al-Bashir, President of Sudan
Sponsored by: Judy Molland

There is not an
Ounce of civility,
In a society
Willing to commit
Such an
Atrocity

Karen Lyons Kalmenson

Avaaz

Please click and sign HERE

Background | Source Avaaz

“My son’s throat was cut,” she said. “He was 12.”

“Perhaps we cannot prevent this world from being a world in which children are tortured. But we can reduce the number of tortured children.” — Albert Camus

Syrian army and security officers with the help of Iranian mercenaries have been torturing children with impunity during the past year. There have also been cases documented of children who were shot while in their homes or on the street. Syrian Human Rights Activists told us that they have seen the government use schools as detention centers, military bases or barracks and children have been arrested from their schools!

Witnesses from the towns of Baba Amr, al-Janoudyah, Kafr Nabl, Kafr Rouma, and Ayn Larouz in the Idlib governorate in northern Syria told us that they saw the army and pro-government armed men, referred to locally as shabeeha, force people especially children to march in front of the advancing army during the March 2012 offensive to retake control of areas that had fallen into the hands of the opposition. From the circumstances of these incidents, it was clear to the witnesses that the purpose of this was to protect the army from attack.

Slaughtering and torturing children is now considered as a profession for Al-Assad thugs, that’s why you gotta (sign, share and let the whole world know about these soulless creatures). I hope you can sign this petition, or at least spread it, and once enough people have signed, we will get decision makers’ attention directly!
I believe that this horrible human rights violations done by Al-Assad thugs must be stopped as soon as possible.

We need a real/responsible action, guys.

–Mouaaz Al-Ajami

there are no words
that can convey
how much we
want these
horrors to
go away

Karen Lyons Kalmenson

Rüdiger Wölk

Please click and sign HERE

Source: Force Change

Target: U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Goal: Support the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s proposal to change its policies and eradicate discrimination against same-sex couples at the U.S. border.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced a proposal to adjust its current policy on the way families are processed through customs at the U.S. border. The way the policy stands now, heterosexual couples and same-sex couples are processed in different ways. Same-sex partners and spouses are not recognized as members of a family.

Currently, heterosexual couples are processed together, and can enjoy a “dual customs screening.” However, same-sex couples have not been subject to the same treatment, and are processed separately regardless of relationship or marital status. Recognizing this as an inequity, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) would like to revise the current regulations and expand the definition of the term “members of a family residing in one household” in order to more effectively and accurately “reflect relationships between members of the public who are traveling together as a family.” As an added benefit, Customs and Border Protection says that the change will streamline bureaucracy and “reduce the amount of paperwork.”

This small change is one that will count in the eyes of gay and lesbian couples, who have not been treated fairly—like second-class citizens.

The CBP is currently looking for public feedback regarding this proposed policy change, making it important to garner support for the cause. Sign above and show your support for this movement towards equality.

Sexual preference is,
And it is nobody’s biz

Karen Lyons Kalmenson

UN News Centre

Source: UN News Centre

The United Nations is hosting a series of events, beginning today, to pay tribute to the men and women who bravely fought against the transatlantic slave trade and those who continue to stand up against modern forms of slavery.

“The transatlantic slave trade was a tragedy because of slavery’s fundamental barbarism and immense scope, and because of its organized, systematic nature,” Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said in his message to mark the Day, which falls on Sunday.

The General Assembly in 2007 designated 25 March as the International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade to honour the 28 million estimated Africans who were violently removed and cast into slavery, mainly in colonies in North America, South America and the West Indies.

“One set of human beings – the traders, owners and others who participated in and profited from this evil enterprise – elevated themselves above another, assaulting their victims’ very essence,” Mr. Ban said in his remarks.

He noted that this year’s theme – “Honouring the Heroes, Resisters and Survivors” – recognizes those who stood up against slavery when the trade was at its height, and those who stand up now to protect against its manifestations today.

The Day also serves as an opportunity to teach about the causes and consequences of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance.

“New laws, institutions and mindsets have given us better tools for the struggle against these ills,” noted Mr. Ban. “Yet we must also recognize that bias has increased in many parts of the world.

“We see discriminatory practices gaining political, moral and even legal recognition, including through the platforms of some political parties and organizations and the dissemination through modern communication technologies of ideas based on the notion of racial superiority.” He stressed that the UN remains firmly committed to countering such hateful acts and trends.

This year’s commemoration features several events in New York. These include a special meeting of the General Assembly on 26 March; an exhibition that includes images of heroes and activists, original documents, historical illustrated newspapers and artifacts; an evening of cultural and culinary specialties of Africa; and a global student video conference.

In addition, plans are under way to erect a permanent memorial at UN Headquarters to remind the world that millions of Africans were violently removed from their homelands, abused and robbed of their dignity over the course of four centuries during the transatlantic slave trade.

to those who know right from wrong
to those who stand up
not just go along
to those who risk their entire being
to fight against the horrors that
they are seeing
to those people we raise
a glass
to honor such valor
and much needed
class♥☺☻♥

Karen Lyons Kalmenson

Change

Please click on and sign Prosecute the killer of our son, 17-year-old Trayvon Martin

Background | Source: Change

On February 26, our son Trayvon Martin was shot and killed as he walked to a family member’s home from a convenience store where he had just bought some candy. He was only 17 years-old.

Trayvon’s killer, George Zimmerman, admitted to police that he shot Trayvon in the chest. Zimmerman, the community’s self appointed “neighborhood watch leader,” called the police to report a suspicious person when he saw Travyon, a young black man, walking from the store. But Zimmerman still hasn’t been charged for murdering our son.

Trayvon was our hero. At the age 9, Trayvon pulled his father from a burning kitchen, saving his life. He loved sports and horseback riding. At only 17 he had a bright future ahead of him with dreams of attending college and becoming an aviation mechanic. Now that’s all gone.

When Zimmerman reported Trayvon to the police, they told him not to confront him. But he did anyway. All we know about what happened next is that our 17 year-old son, who was completely unarmed, was shot and killed.

It’s been nearly two weeks and the Sanford Police have refused to arrest George Zimmerman. In their public statements, they even go so far as to stand up for the killer – saying he’s “a college grad” who took a class in criminal justice.

Please join us in calling on Norman Wolfinger, Florida’s 18th District State’s Attorney, to investigate my son’s murder and prosecute George Zimmerman for the shooting and killing of Trayvon Martin.

justice should be served,
not swerved!!!

Karen Lyons Kalmenson

George Clooney arrested at Sudan rally on March 16th | Amnesty International

Global attention on LRA leader Joseph Kony has also shone a light on the 11 other suspects wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide — including Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir.

On Friday, Amnesty joined actor George Clooney, members of Congress, and other NGOs in a demonstration against ongoing human rights violations in Sudan, a war-ravaged country where nearly half a million people are on the brink of starvation.

Fugitives like al-Bashir and Joseph Kony are shielded by powerful supporters and states. The failure to bring them to justice means that they are free to commit more crimes, placing civilians in the areas in which they operate at great risk.

Write to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon urging the UN to provide all the necessary resources to protect civilians and to support the arrest and surrender of all those wanted by the ICC.

Message Text

I welcome the United Nations’ efforts to end abuses being committed, including against children, in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Central African Republic (CAR), South Sudan, Sudan and Libya. I support the UN’s vital role in bringing about the arrest of individuals accused of genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes under the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court.

However, I am deeply concerned that civilians continue to be at serious risk.

The UN has a critical role to play in providing protection, monitoring and reporting on the human rights situation in affected areas. Despite its strong protection mandate, the United Nations peacekeeping mission in the DRC (MONUSCO) is still under-resourced for the provision of effective civilian protection. For example, MONUSCO has been instructed by the Security Council to give priority to protection of civilians, but in your own recent report, you admitted that limited resources are hampering the mission’s efforts. The United Nations peacekeeping mission in South Sudan should take a proactive approach to implement its mandate to protect civilians under imminent threat of violence, including against abuses committed by the LRA. In the CAR, there are no UN peacekeepers. The UN should, through your representatives, work with regional and governmental authorities to protect civilians from armed actors committing crimes under international law.

I urge you to take urgent measures to define and secure the additional resources required by all relevant UN missions and agencies in affected states to protect civilians and give all necessary political, diplomatic, and logistical support to states to effect arrests of ICC fugitives.

vicious people like these
an abomination
and a disgrace
sadly, when they are gone
many others take
their place:(

Karen Lyons Kalmenson

Amnesty International

Please click on and sign End the Use of Child Soldiers
Source: Amnesty International

From South Sudan down to the DRC, the Lord’s Resistance Army, other armed groups, and all too often the national armies of the countries in which they operate, forcibly recruit children into armed conflict.

While the United States is supporting efforts to apprehend LRA leader Joseph Kony, it must also ensure that other armed groups and governments in the region cease recruiting child soldiers and help rehabilitate the children who are already soldiers.

Message Text

I am writing to urge you to take a strong stand against the use of child soldiers by fully complying with the Child Soldier Prevention Act.  With so much of the world’s attention on Joseph Kony, I was shocked to learn that Kony’s case represents just the tip of the iceberg in a region, and that children are being forcibly recruited and used in armed conflict by other armed groups as well as governments.

I believe that effective pressure should be brought to bear on any and all armed groups and governments throughout the Great Lakes region of Africa who continue to recruit or abduct children. I also strongly support programs to help child soldiers demobilize, begin their rehabilitation and regain a semblance of normal life.

I commend the U.S. Government for assisting efforts to apprehend Joseph Kony.  I urge you to also send a strong message other armed groups and governments in the region so that they understand that the recruitment and use of children in armed conflict will not be tolerated. To that end, I ask that you please comply with the Child Soldier Prevention Act by prohibiting military assistance to the DRC until the government meets specific benchmarks.  These benchmarks should include: 1) demonstrating that it no longer recruits child soldiers; 2) showing concrete progress in demobilizing or releasing children from existing forces; and 3)engaging in credible efforts to render persons suspected of recruiting child soldiers to justice.

childhood,
supposed to be
a time of fun
and play.
but for child
soldiers,
that part of their
life is torn away.
forced to maim and kill
rape and victimize.
there is nor “normal life”
after this,
we sadly surmise

Karen Lyons Kalmenson

Amnesty International

Please click on and sign Free activist Liu Xiaobo

Background | Source: Amnesty International

2010 Nobel Peace Prize recipient Liu Xiaobo was charged with “inciting subversion of state power” and given an 11-year prison sentence on December 25, 2009 simply for co-authoring a proposal for political and legal reform in China. Chinese citizens are living in a straitjacket as the authorities imprison and ‘forcibly disappear’ those who speak out for political reform, democracy and human rights, critique corrupt officials or believe in the ‘wrong’ religion.’. Urge Chinese authorities to release Liu Xiaobo others imprisoned for dissent.

Download the printable versions: PDF | RTF

Message Text

I write out of concern for Liu Xiaobo, 2010 Nobel Peace Prize recipient, who was charged with “inciting subversion of state power” and given an 11-year prison sentence on December 25, 2009 for co-authoring a proposal for political and legal reform in China.

Liu Xiaobo co-authored “Charter 08,” a proposal for political and legal reform in China. The police took Liu Xiaobo from his home in Beijing on December 8, 2008, two days before the planned launch of Charter 08. Numerous signatories of the charter have been questioned and harassed by Chinese authorities since its launch but only Liu Xiaobo has been charged or tried.

I urge you to release Liu Xiaobo and others imprisoned for dissent immediately and unconditionally and ensure that he is not tortured or otherwise ill-treated while he remains in custody.  Freedom of expression must be protected by the state in China, in line with Chinese constitutional guarantees and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which China has signed.

I thank you for your attention to these concerns and look forward to your reply.

imprisoned for independent thought
all china’s financial gains….
for naught

Karen Lyons Kalmenson

Wikimedia

• Enter your name
• Click next
• Enter your email address

Source: Force Change

Target: Dole Food Company

Goal: To protest Dole’s unsafe and unfair labor practices on its banana plantations

How much do you know about where your produce comes from? The majority of bananas are produced in Latin and South America, and Dole Food Company controls the majority of the market. But are you aware of the amount of suffering that goes into producing a bunch of bananas?

Dole is notorious for a string of human rights violations. The average worker at a Dole plant earns a wage which just barely keeps them at the poverty line in most countries. Many of these workers are exposed to dangerous pesticides as well. Workers in Nicaragua have been exposed to chemicals which were banned in the United States. Many of these workers are now sterile due to these chemicals. These workers were also cheated out of their two billion dollar compensation, after a case that appears to be littered with bribery and fraud. If these pesticides are so dangerous to the workers, why do we want to be eating these fruits ourselves or serving them to our children?

Dole has also been linked to cases where workers were intimidated and harassed by military organizations. Any type of union activity is also banned, and the education that children receive forbids any mention of unions. In some cases, union activists have been murdered. Is widespread violence really necessary just to produce a bunch of bananas?

The banana plantations have also employed child laborers, some as young as age eight. Like their adult counterparts, these children are exposed to dangerous pesticides and not compensated for their overtime.

Dole claims that they have worked to change some of the working conditions on the plantations. But evidence points to the contrary. In 2009, a filmmaker exposed what goes on behind the scenes at many banana plantations. However, Dole did everything they could to prevent this film from showing including suing the filmmaker for defamation.  Eventually, Bananas! was allowed to be shown, but it is still known as “The movie that Dole doesn’t want you to see”.

Clearly, the Dole Food Company needs to be called out on its dangerous practices. Let Dole know that you don’t support child labor, dangerous pesticide use or unfair working conditions by contacting the head of the Board of Directors, David Murdock.



See More: Human Rights

dole, trying doling out the treatment you would like to receive.
be a company in who we can believe!!!!

Karen Lyons Kalmenson

Please click and sign HERE

Source: Force Change

Target: Mali President Amadou Toumani Toure, Mali Prime Minister Cisse Mariam Kaidama Sidibe.

Goal: To end child slavery in Mali’s gold mines.

Children are recruited to work in Mali’s artisanal gold mines when they are as young as six years old. They are exposed to Mercury which is a very dangerous toxin produced in making gold that can cause neurological impairment. Although child labor is illegal in Mali, nothing is being done to eradicate this issue. It is estimated that 20,000-40,000 children work in Mali’s mines; they endure exposure to toxins, accidents in unstable pits and physical abuse.

Children interviewed complained of respiratory problems or recurring pain in their muscles and joints. Often these children work to help support their poor families, both their education and childhood is stolen from them. Even if they escape the abusive situation they are likely to endure long term problems from the toxins they are exposed to. Mali must take action by removing these children from the mines and ensuring that they are not working in such horrific conditions. We can also pressure Mali to forbid such working conditions for children and make sure the gold we buy does not come from these mines. Beneath the glamor of gold is an industry tainted by the sweat and blood of innocent children.

Petition Text

Dear Mali President Amadou Toumani Toure, Mali Prime Minister Cisse Mariam Kaidama Sidibe,

Children should not be used in the gold mining industry, it is cruel and exposes them to Mercury. These children should be protected by the government, they should have the right to their childhood and education. Surely if forced to work in these conditions a child will never be physically or mentally the same again.

Please take the necessary measures to remove these children from the gold mines and ensure that no more are recruited to work in such horrific conditions. It is your responsibility to ensure that these innocent children are protected.

Sincerely,

NAME

all that glitters is not gold.
when freedom and a childhood.
are robbed then sold:(

Karen Lyons Kalmenson

Please click on and sign the following three petitions:

1.Free Dutch Sea Shepherd Activist Erwin Vermeulen

2.Free Cove Guardian Erwin Vermeulen

3.Please release Dutch citizen Erwin Vermeulen from Japanese prison


Background | From Care2

Target: Japanese Ministry of Justice / Embassy of Japan, the Netherlands
Sponsored by: Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, The Cove Guardians, Taji Dolphin Action Group

Dutch Sea Shepherd activist Erwin Vermeulen was arrested on Friday 16th of December in Taji, Japan while attempting to make photographs of the transport of dolphins. The animals who were captured in the wild were being transported towards holding basins at the Dolphin Resort Hotel.

Erwin traveled to Japan on his own initiative to investigate the slaughter of dolphins in Taji. His intention was to observe the transport in a peaceful manner and collect footage to reveal to the world what is happening. Annually the Japanese government provides 23.000 licenses to various coastal towns to slaughter dolphins of various species for consumption purposes.

Police claim Erwin shoved a hotel employee even though Erwin strongly denies ever using violence. The arrest seems pre-planned since no witnesses saw him shove the employee and Erwin was not even questioned as police simply approached him and took him away.

According to Sea Shepherd the Japanese authorities use any possibility to remove activists out of Taji.
Out of compassion for the dolphins being slaughtered in Taji, Erwin Vermeulen ventured to Japan at his own expense to devote his time and energy.

His family has not been allowed direct contact with Erwin, not even during Christmas time.
Recently Erwin has been given a date to appear in court on the 26th of january where, if found guilty, he faces 2 years of imprisonment.

Don’t forget to email your personal messages of support to Erwin on freeerwinvermeulen@gmail.com

All messages will be personally handed over to Erwin once he is released from prison.

And don’t forget to LIKE this page too:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Free-dutch-Sea-Shepherd-activist-Erwin-Vermeulen/337079989635943

See More:

Human Rights

what is the nature
of a crime
what is criminal
who should serve time
taking pictures of dolphins
being abused
is an act of heroism
why does he
stand accused

Karen Lyons Kalmenson

Please click on and sign No More Children Locked Up For Life: Clemency for Christi Cheramie

From Amnesty International

Locked up for life at 16. No possibility of parole. Christi Cheramie is living a nightmare.

When Christi was 16 years old, back in 1994, she couldn’t vote, drink alcohol, serve on a jury, or buy lottery tickets. She was considered a minor — a child. But that didn’t stop the state of Louisiana from giving this 16-year-old a sentence of life without parole.

Ask Louisiana’s governor and the state Board of Pardons to grant clemency to Christi Cheramie.

Only in the U.S. — where children as young as 11 have faced life in prison — are such harsh sentences against juveniles allowed. The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child prohibits life without parole for offenses committed under the age of 18. This is not about excusing or minimizing the consequences of crimes committed by children, but about recognizing that children are not yet fully responsible for their actions and have special potential for rehabilitation and change.

Christi, now 33 years old, has spent more than half of her young life in prison. She’s earned her high school equivalency diploma and an associate’s degree in Agriculture Studies, and teaches classes to her fellow inmates. A prison warden who oversaw Christi considers her a “model inmate” who has grown into a “remarkable young woman” deserving of “a second chance in society.”

But if we don’t act, a mandatory sentence of life without parole means that Christi will die in prison. A victim of sexual abuse and depression, and caught in the web of an aggressive and controlling older fiancé, Christi found herself at the grisly murder scene of her fiancé’s great aunt. She was charged with murder just for being there — even though it was her fiancé who wielded the knife.

The victim’s closest family members are sympathetic to Christi’s case. But Christi’s fate is now in the hands of Louisiana’s governor and Board of Pardons.

Our 2011 Write for Rights campaign highlighted Christi’s case, and thousands of letters have already poured into Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal’s office. Next week, the Board of Pardons will meet to decide whether or not to move forward with Christi’s clemency application — a decision that the governor can influence. We must keep the momentum going from Write for Rights — and the time to act is now!

Christi has already changed people’s lives through her work at the Louisiana Correctional Institute for Women, but she will never be able to realize her full potential — and society won’t benefit from her potential contributions — if she spends the rest of her life behind bars.

It’s time for the U.S. to join the rest of the world and end the cruel and unusual punishment of juvenile life without parole. People convicted of crimes while still children — like Christi Cheramie — should be given a chance at rehabilitation. They shouldn’t be left to grow old in a jail cell.

You can make a difference in Christi’s case. Sign our petition now calling for clemency for Christi Cheramie.

See More:

Human Rights

until our system of justice
gets some just
it is nothing more
than a bust

Karen Lyons Kalmenson

BACKGROUND

Shoot To Kill Commanders Named

Courtesy of  Human Rights Watch

Related Materials:

WHOM TO CONTACT

Postal Address

Information and Evidence Unit
Office of the Prosecutor
Post Office Box 19519
2500 CM The Hague
The Netherlands

Email Address

otp.informationdesk@icc-cpi.int

Telephone Number

31 (0)70 515 8515

Fax Number

31 70 515 8555

• Click HERE for access to faxing from your computer. No fax machine or registering required.
• Be sure to click the fax confirmation link in your email so your fax delivery will succeed.

Click HERE for Chinese Embassy contacts

Click HERE for Russian Embassy contacts


SAMPLE LETTER

Information and Evidence Unit
Office of the Prosecutor
Post Office Box 19519
2500 CM The Hague
The Netherlands

Dear Prosecutor,

Pursuant to Article 9 Section 2. (c) of UN General Assembly, Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (last amended January 2002), 17 July 1998, A/CONF. 183/9, please begin an investigation of the 70 individuals named in Appendix 1 – Structure and Command of Armed forces and Intelligence Agencies in the report “By All Means Necessary!” published by the nonprofit organization Human Rights Watch in December of 2011 for crimes within the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court. The Human Rights Watch report gives details of crimes defined in Articles 7 – Crimes against humanity, Article 8 – War crimes, and Article 8 bis – Crime of aggression of individual and command responsibility of Syrian military commanders and intelligence officials for these crimes. It is based on interviews with 63 defectors both from the army and from the intelligence agencies, generally known as the mukhabarat.

These violations continue as of the writing of this letter, or of the gravest nature, and necessary due to ineffective remedy by all other international bodies with the authority to stop them. Time is of the essence.

Please see the pdf report written by Human Rights Watch By All Means Necessary: Individual and Command Responsibility for Crimes Against Humanity in Syria

NAME

See More:

Syria, Shoot to Kill Orders

By All Means Necessary: Individual and Command Responsibility for Crimes Against Humanity it Syria

syria a nation
in distress
its brave protestors
getting the worst
of this mess
dictatorship
living in fear
knowing they
they are not
wanted here

Karen Lyons Kalmenson

PETITION

Support the demand of REZA PAHLAVI to prosecute KHAMENEI for Crimes against Iranian People and Humanity

BACKGROUND

By Reza Pahlavi

The exiled son of the toppled shah of Iran said Thursday he plans to ask the United Nations to bring Iran’s supreme leader before the International Criminal Court on charges of crimes against humanity.

Reza Pahlavi is among exiles working for regime change in Iran. He said at a Paris news conference that Ayatollah Ali Khamenei must be held responsible for the executions, jailing and torture of political dissidents.

Pahlavi said he will submit a complaint about Khamenei to the five permanent U.N. Security Council members along with a report of the cleric’s alleged crimes that will be constantly updated.

Pahlavi’s father, the late Mohammed Reza Pahlavi, was ousted in the 1979 Islamic Revolution that installed a clerical hierarchy. The ultimate leader of the government running the country now is Khamenei.

Iran has not ratified the Rome statute that established the International Criminal Court, the world’s permanent war crimes tribunal, known as the ICC. It is therefore not subject to the court’s jurisdiction — unless the Security Council decides to step in and refer Iran to the court as it did in the case of Libya.

ICC prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo, asked about Pahlavi’s announcement, said “citizens around the world are learning to request the court’s intervention.”

“In this sense, I think it’s great to show people who are looking for justice. Now they know how to do it. We are providing a new institution to the world, to make the world better,” Ocampo told a news conference in New York.

WHOM TO CONTACT

Mr Luis Moreno–Ocampo
The Prosecutor
International Criminal Court
Information and Evidence Unit
Office of the Prosecutor
Post Office Box 19519
2500 CM The Hague
The Netherlands

Email: otp.informationdesk@icc-cpi.int


SAMPLE LETTER | OR COMPOSE YOUR OWN BRIEF ONE

I support the statements as written and signed by Secretary General Hamid Taqvaee:

Dear Mr Luis Moreno–Ocampo

I am writing on behalf of the people of Iran to call on the International Criminal Court to prosecute the Islamic Republic of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, for crimes against humanity.

There is ample documentation of such crimes since the establishment of the Islamic Republic, however, the repression meted out on the recent June protesters, is sufficient evidence for such a prosecution.

On Friday June 19, during his speech at Friday prayers, Khamenei called for an end to street protests and threatened protesters saying that he would not be held responsible for any “bloodshed and chaos” that followed. The next day, the government’s security forces, including the Baseejis, Pasdaran, police forces and plain-clothed agents, poured onto the streets and indiscriminately attacked protesters. Though precise information is unavailable, we have gathered 56 names of those killed; clearly the numbers are higher. Thousands have also been arrested – we have heard reports of as many as 3,000 in Tehran alone. We have put together a list of several hundred names so far. Many more have been wounded.

Protestors Killed

The day after Khamenei threatened protesters, 27 year old Neda Agha-Soltan was shot dead by security forces on 20 June. Eyewitnesses said they clearly targeted her and she was shot in the chest. There is even a warrant out for the doctor who was on the scene, tried to help her, and first informed the world of what had happened. Others dead include Chemistry student Kianoosh Asa who was taken from his university dormitory and found dead in a morgue 10 days later, bearing signs of torture, 25 year old Hossein Tahmasbi who was beaten to death by the regime’s forces and Ashkan Sohrabi who was shot thrice in the chest and died on the way to the hospital. They are included in the list of 56 dead that is attached to my letter.

There are also reports of many who have disappeared and feared dead. Reports have quoted a prison guard saying that bodies are being taken out of Evin prison and buried in unidentified graves from no go areas in the prison that are only accessible to the Baseej and Pasdaran intelligence.

There are also reports of the families of the dead being asked to pay up to an equivalent of $3,000 to secure the bodies of their loved ones. One example highlighted in the media is that of Neda Agha-Soltan’s family who had a difficult time persuading the Iranian authorities to release her body. According to her fiancé in an interview with BBC Farsi, “She was taken to a morgue outside Tehran. The officials from the morgue asked if they could use parts of her corpse for body transplants for medical patients.” “They didn’t specify what exactly they intended to do. Her family agreed because they wanted to bury her as soon as possible. “We buried her in the Behesht-e-Zahra cemetery in southern Tehran. They asked us to bury her in this section where it seemed the authorities had set aside spaces for graves for those killed during the clashes.” This section has been labelled the section of the ‘hypocrites’ by the regime. The government has also banned her family and the families of the dead from holding public funerals.

Treatment of the wounded

We have received many reports of people wounded, including in horrific ways. Doctors and nurses at two hospitals have taken to the streets in protest to the treatment of the wounded. Many have been denied access to their families. Some have been dragged out of hospital beds and taken to prison.

Torture and mistreatment and situation of detainees

Reports of torture and rape are rampant. We have received reports saying that prisoners are being brutally tortured with the aim of killing them. According to an eye witness at a recent gathering of family members in front of Evin prison, one of the imprisoned who was released whilst people were gathered said that he had been arrested around Afsariyeh in Tehran and taken to an undisclosed location. He was denied food for 48 hours. There were 500 people detained on the floor where he was and they had no access to showers or sanitation. After 48 hours, they were given bread, potato and cheese. When they complained, they were told ‘you are anti-revolutionaries; be grateful you have not been killed.’ The released prisoner said everyone was brutally beaten. A 48 year old man who was given electric shocks died whilst he was there. Many of the prisoners in his cell were badly wounded with broken arms and legs. He said he was then taken to Evin prison, where he was told: ‘you protested against the Islamic regime; we will do something to you so that you won’t be able to find your house when you are released.’ He said, in Evin, the lives of many were at risk.

We have also heard from a woman whose daughter had been beaten indiscriminately for four days and then thrown out of prison on to the streets late at night. A passerby picked her up in their car and drove her home. Since her release, she has attempted to commit suicide several times. Her mother fears she has been raped.

Several of those detained have confessed to having been influenced by outside powers on Iranian state television – clearly under duress.

I attach a list of some of those who have been arrested. Families of those arrested have been gathering at Evin Prison or the courthouse in Tehran calling for the release of their children and asking about their situation. The families have been threatened. Mothers of the missing or dead have also been gathering at several parks and have been attacked by security forces.

The Worker-communist Party of Iran has begun collecting people’s grievances against Ali Khamenei via New Channel television station broadcast in Iran and would be willing to hand over the necessary evidence to help with the prosecution of Ali Khamenei.

I look forward to your response and prompt action.

Sincerely,

Hamid Taqvaee
Secretary-General



See More: Human Rights

We live in a world with modern tools
primeval torture,twisted rules
Cruel excesses, bloodshed, spent
Every part of this, by evil meant
Do we sit, heads turned and quiet
Or do we rise, with goodness
And defy it

Karen Lyons Kalmenson

Please click on sign:

1. URGENT: Stop the senseless killing of deer at Binghamton University (NY)!

2. Talisman, Leave the Achuar in Peace!

3. Petland USA: Stop Selling Pets – Fire Puppy Mills – Petland Canada Has!

4. Please End Deadly Pig Labs at University of Michigan

5. NC Couple Skins and Guts Puppy, Then Feeds to Their Dogs – Demand Maximum Sentence!


1. Background | From Change

Over Christmas break, December 21, 2011, Binghamton University in Upstate New York is planning to slaughter 90% of the deer in their Nature Preserve, at a cost of $20,000.00 dollars +. As we understand, this is NY taxpayers’ dollars.

Julian Shepherd Ph.D., who heads up The Committee of the University Environment, and Dylan Horvath, steward of nature areas at the university, are blaming the deer for eating flowers and for forest regeneration problems. However, their claims are not supported by any scientific evidence. B.U. didn’t even do a deer survey or an environmental impact study.

Many forest experts disagree with the general premise of their claims. “Acid rain is more responsible than white-tailed deer for forests not regenerating … They can kill all the deer, but it will take a lot more than that to fix the forests.”, claims Bill Sharpe, a Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences forest hydrologist, “Penn State Expert Blames Forest Problem on Acid Rain, Not Deer”, Penn State Live, 5/17/02. In a recent landmark study, “Regional-Scale Assessment of Deer Impacts on Vegetation Within Western Connecticut, USA”, Angela C. Rutherford, et al., School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, Yale University, (Journal of Wildlife Management 74(6):1257-1263. 2010) concluded that deer density is not a leading factor determining variation in vegetation impacts. And a recent study at Ohio State University, “Indirect Effects of a Keystone Herbivore Elevate Local Animal Diversity”, Katherine Greenwald, et al., Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal Biology (Journal of Wildlife Management 72(6):1318-1321; 2008) found that the presence of deer is actually helpful to other animal species, and that programs to reduce their populations may be detrimental to a region’s biodiversity. “Culling deer may cascade into affecting plants, salamanders and other creatures in ways we can’t even imagine,” said OSU researcher Katherine Greenwald. “Officials need to know more about the forest ecosystem before making decisions about wildlife management.” Another study showed that some forest understory-dwelling birds benefit from deer-grazing, and that the presence of deer decreased populations of rodents that preyed on ground birds’ nests.

This deer slaughter will not achieve B.U.’s objectives, and trying to keep deer at unrealistic low levels poses an insurmountable challenge. Culling or hunting deer will trigger compensatory reproduction. The deer population will rebound quickly, and deer from adjacent areas will quickly fill the void, leading to an endless cycle of killing.

The forest ecology in B.U.’s Nature Preserve is no different than the rest of the forest areas in New York State. That said, a nature preserve should remain untouched and allowed to evolve naturally without human intervention. In reviewing the history and mandate of B.U.’s Nature Preserve, it said that, ” In order to preserve its natural beauty and intrinsic value it was suggested that hunting, littering, use of motorized or wheeled vehicles, picking of plant life, and harassment of animal life be prohibited throughout the entire area.”

If B.U. wants to create a protected environment to grow wildflowers that can’t be affected by wildlife, then B.U. should explore creative fencing alternatives, or build an arboretum. If B.U. insists on interfering with the natural processes within the Nature Preserve, then a deer contraception program should be considered. Contrary to what Mr. Horvath believes, there are a number of scientific peer-reviewed studies that document deer contraception effectiveness, reducing deer populations by approximately 40-60%.

The DEC spends millions of dollars annually to artificially propagate the deer population for maximum sustained yield for their 3% hunter constituents. Deer populations stabilize on their own in relation to the available food supply. Culling or hunting will only reduce the deer population temporarily and trigger compensatory rebound, which will increase the deer population the following year. Please refer to the article, “The Paradox of Killing Wildlife to Control Populations” (http://politicswildlife.blogspot.com/2010/10/paradox-of-killing-wildlife-to-control.html). And just an update for Mr. Horvath, there are 20-30,000 coyotes (predators) in New York State, i.e. he said that coyotes were hunted out a century ago.

Please send Binghamton University a strong message to stop the deer slaughter, and not to turn their Nature Preserve into a private hunting and killing preserve.


2. Background | From Amazon Watch

The Achuar of the northern Peruvian Amazon are fighting to keep Canadian oil company Talisman Energy out of their ancestral territory, but the company continues to ignore the Achuar’s demands and expand operations. Recent testimony from Salesian Priest Father Diego Clavijo highlights the heightened tensions and risk of conflict caused by Talisman’s “divide and conquer” strategy.

Petition Text

Dear Mr. Alan Murray,

I stand with the Achuar and support their struggle to defend their Amazon homeland from oil drilling and destructive development.

I am deeply concerned about the escalating situation on the ground around your operations in Block 64. Recent testimony from two Catholic priests in the region describe a situation where Talisman Energy is responsible for heightening divisions between indigenous communities which could lead – in their words – to “genocide.”

I understand that the majority of Achuar people of the Pastaza and Morona river basins, represented by the National Achuar Federation (FENAP), have repeatedly called on Talisman Energy to withdraw from their ancestral homeland. I am concerned that attempts to seek “community agreement” are causing division and the risk of conflict.

I write now to demand that Talisman immediately cease divisive tactics on the ground and respect the Achuar people’s demand and cease operations in their ancestral territory.

Yours sincerely,


3. Background | From Change

4. Background | From PETA

Following a year-long PETA campaign, the University of Michigan’s (U-M) Survival Flight program has replaced the use of cats in cruel intubation training exercises with modern human-patient simulators. Unfortunately, the program continues to have trainees cut holes into pigs’ limbs, throats, and chests and stab needles into their bones and hearts for trauma training exercises. This still happens even though the school already uses state-of-the-art human-patient simulators to teach the same skills in other courses for nurses and physicians.

Studies by leading medical experts have repeatedly found that in addition to saving animals, the use of simulators is superior to the use of animal labs for preparing trainees to perform the lifesaving skills taught in U-M’s Survival Flight course. The Air & Surface Transport Nurses Association, which is the professional organization representing flight nurses, endorses the use of simulators to teach these skills as well.

Please take a minute of your time to contact university officials and respectfully ask them to continue to modernize the Survival Flight curriculum and immediately replace the use of pigs with human-patient simulators that are already available at U-M.


5. Background | From Change

Deputies and animal control officers were called out to the home of Marie Alfano and Kevin John Diers after an anonymous complaint. There they discovered a gruesome case of animal abuse: an eight week-old puppy had been skinned and gutted, then fed to their other dogs. One dog was found eating the leg of the puppy. The other dogs were fed the puppy’s internal organs and meat. Yet another dog was found dead in a cage.

It is unknown if the puppy was intentionally killed for this purpose or died from other causes. The puppy’s remains have been collected for analysis.

WARNING – GRAPHIC PHOTO: http://onslowcrime.encblogs.com/?p=4159

Alfano and Diers were charged with cruelty to animals and failing to dispose of a deceased domesticated animal. Under North Carolina law, animal cruelty (§ 14-360) is a Class H felony.

The next court date for Alfano and Diers will be on January 6, 2012. Please sign to show your support that animal abusers cannot get away with such horrendous acts.

This petition respectfully requests that Marie Alfano and Kevin John Diers be given the maximum sentence allowable under law and that they never be allowed to own animals again.

For more information on this story: http://www.jdnews.com/articles/puppy-98233-animal-couple.html

Image courtesy of www.carolinacoastonline.com

Carteret County Sheriff’s Office image courtesy of: JDNews.com

This petition will be updated as more information becomes available; however, the intent will remain the same.

four three two one
we will never give up
until cruelty
is none♥

Karen Lyons Kalmenson

Please sign petition HERE
From Amnesty International

The latest National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) is nothing short of a disaster for human rights. Unfortunately, despite an outcry from activists like you, Congress has already more or less guaranteed that this bill — with its disturbing detention provisions — will soon reach President Obama’s desk.

We can’t take the risk that this legislation will ever become law.

Tell President Obama that he must follow through with his threat to veto the NDAA.

It’s not an exaggeration to say that the rule of law and human rights in the United States as we know them are at stake. On its face, this bill is scary enough — it would keep Guantanamo open indefinitely, hinder federal trials of terrorism suspects, and would further entrench detention without charge in U.S. law.

Those provisions alone are a deep affront to human rights. But the broader implications are just as terrifying.

If the U.S. government has the foggiest belief that you might be associated with Al Qaeda or its allies, even a U.S. citizen within U.S. borders could be targeted. How would we know if that “belief” is justified, you may ask? Well, we don’t — there is no innocent until proven guilty on the battlefield. And this bill would bring the battlefield to U.S. soil.

Sweeping new powers for the U.S. president and military — based on “beliefs” alone — at the expense of individual liberty. This is not the America we believe in.

President Obama already has threatened to veto the NDAA if these odious provisions come across his desk. But he’s also promised to close Guantanamo, and we all know that hasn’t happened — we’re not even close. We must keep the pressure on.

Urge President Obama to keep his pledge to veto the NDAA — and to honor his promise to close Guantanamo and uphold human rights.



See More:

The Human Rights widget contains news and actions from multiple sources including Amnesty International, ACLU, Center For Missing and Exploited Children, New York Times, The Innocence Project, Human Rights Watch, and Polaris Human Trafficking; please use the scroll bar on the right to view more; use the dropdown button on the top right to view the individual feeds. These are automatically, continuously updated.

Human rights for all involved
As we watch that concept
Slowly devolve
The right to protection
From those who hate
The right to due process
For those who wait
The need to absorb
The notion of shades
Of grey
Reason and moderation
The only way

Karen Lyons Kalmenson

Please sign petition HERE

Background | From CHANGE

In November, two gay men in Cameroon were sentenced to five years in prison simply for being gay, the harshest penalty allowed under Cameroonian law. During the trial, according to the AFP, the judge issued some particularly homophobic comments, leading one lawyer to call the trial “a bad ruling,” and leading Amnesty International to label these men as “prisoners of conscience.”

The sentence comes on the heels of increased homophobia in Cameroon, and debates over legislation that would further criminalize homosexuality in the country. Human rights attorney Alice Nkom told AllOut.org that “Violence against gay people in Cameroon has skyrocketed to unprecedented levels: the situation is quickly becoming a crisis. The president of Cameroon can put a stop to this, and if he feels enough pressure he will do so.”

Help send a message to Cameroon that the world is watching, and won’t stand silent while people are sentenced to jail solely because of their sexual orientation. Demand the release of these gay men from prison.

See More: Human Rights

to be sent
to prison
for being gay?
this is obscene
and must stop
TODAY!!!

Karen Lyons Kalmenson

1. Lane Bryant: Stop Using 5% Rabbit Fur in your Sweaters

2. Ask Skechers officials not to air dog track ad

3. Petland USA: Stop Selling Pets – Fire Puppy Mills – Petland Canada Has!

4. Help Michigan Students Stop the “License to Bully” Bill


1. Background | From Change

Angora Rabbit fur is factory farmed. Angora rabbits usually live to be about 10-13 years old, but factory rabbits are killed after 6-9 months. The rabbits live out their short lifespans in cramped cages, inside dimly lit warehouses, in cages that have wire bottoms and hurt their little rabbit feet.

There is no good reason to include 5% rabbit fur in a Lane Bryant sweater; the fur is not necessary for a good quality garment. Lane Bryant has had a long-standing history of quality clothing and has the ability to create a high-quality sweater with no rabbits in it. Additionally, we would like to be able to trust that the clothes we buy from our favorite clothing store do not have torture in them.

For the love of rabbits, the 5% should go!

2. Background | From Change

It has come to our attention that Skechers wants to use Tucson Greyhound Park as the backdrop for a new TV commercial.  Please sign this petition to ask them not to support the cruelty of dog racing.

At TGP, greyhounds are kept confined in small cages which are barely large enough for them to stand up or turn around. They are fed raw 4-D meat, the meat of downed, diseased, disabled or dead livestock. This was documented in a recent video investigation and in news reports available on our web site at: http://grey2kusa.org/action/states/az.html

While racing, greyhounds face the risk of serious injury. According to the Arizona Department of Racing, nearly 1,000 greyhound injuries occurred between January 2007 and November 2009, the last year such records were made available to the public. To read more about injuries and Arizona greyhound racing in general, please see our 128-page report at http://grey2kusa.org/pdf/AZ2011.pdf


3. Background | From Change

More than 95% of animals for sale at Petland USA stores are from commercial puppy mills. According to transport and shipping records from the Department of Agiculture involving more than 5 States,17,000 puppies delivered to Petland were sourced from puppy mills. USDA inspection records were cross-checked and source facilities were visited to confirm this fact. HSUS led this investigation.

Petland Canada has announced they will stop selling pets, why not Petland USA? Successful Petland franchisee conversions to adoption models are operating in PA with help from local shelters.

We know the Master Franchisor (Petland USA, Ohio) cannot by fiat dictate that everyone follow a new policy.  They can announce their intention and new policy, and current franchisees are free to run their businesses as they see fit.  Yet a sea-change in policy from the top would be a giant leap in saving lives and changing Petland’s reputation and market share. It would not take long for laggards to follow as we push for legislation against selling pets and picket with ‘adopt don’t shop’ signs.

Turn your ship around, Petland USA – change your policy! Stop selling pets, fire puppy mills, choose instead the benefits of community support. Your voicemail message says you care about animals. Prove it – step up, be a policy leader and save lives!


4. Background | From Change

It’s tough being a student when bullies are allowed to physically and verbally hurt you at school. Unfortunately, because of a dangerous new bill passed by the Michigan State Senate, it’s only going to get worse.

On November 2, minutes before voting to pass a new bullying bill, the Michigan State Senate added special language that provides a blueprint for bullies. According to this language, as long as the bullying is done because of “a sincerely held religious belief or moral conviction,” then it’s ok.

As students, we deserve better. 

I was in 7th grade putting my books in my locker when a few guys game up behind me. They called me a faggot and a dyke and asked me why I even bothered to show my face at school because no one liked me. I ignored them because I was scared of what else they might say and who else they might tell if I stood up to them. I went to shut my locker when an 8th grader pushed me against the wall. I didn’t know what to do so I stood there, alone and afraid. One of his friends slammed my locker shut on my hand breaking my fourth finger. I held back tears while I watched them run away laughing. When I got home I lied to my parents about what happened to my finger because I didn’t want them to tell the school. I was afraid the school would do nothing accept call me out in front of everyone.

My name is Katy Butler, I am now a junior at Greenhills School in Ann Arbor Michigan and I am lesbian. For me, 7th grade was four years ago and writing about that event, even thinking about it, I still tear up. Stopping the “License to Bully” bill and passing real anti-bullying legislation is so important to me because I don’t want anyone else to have to have such strong, painful memories. Being bullied because of something I couldn’t change hurt, but it hurt even more that my school did not do anything about something that they could change.

My story is not unique. Students all across Michigan have stories just like mine. Students like my friend Carson Borbely, who is currently in eighth grade:

A few weeks ago in class, I brushed a friend’s hair away from her face. A loud voice sharply interrupted, ‘Don’t touch her. Trannies carry diseases.’ The teacher didn’t do anything. That was the fourth incident in her class that I had been harassed by the same boy. Nothing was done. The only reprimand he got was a sharp calling of his name. The teacher asked him passively to stop. He continued.

Carson and I are speaking out for all those students who suffer every day at school. We’re speaking out because we deserve a bill that will actually protect us at school, not make it more dangerous, or give bullies a free pass. People keep telling us youth “It Gets Better”. Well it can’t get better if you don’t make it better. I’m doing my part to help, please do yours.

Please stand with students across the state and sign our petition demanding that the Michigan State Legislature pass a real anti-bullying bill. One that doesn’t have special exceptions, but does list the reasons students are bullied most often, and does add reporting requirements. A bill that actually protects students.

Sincerely,

Katy Butler, Michigan high school student
Carson Borbely, Michigan junior high school student



See More:

• Fur | Skin
• Human Rights
• Cruelty-Free
  

a click or two
can travel many miles
just take a few
moments
and create
one million smiles

Karen Lyons Kalmenson

Please click on and sign the following:

1. Tell Kohl’s to Ditch Fur!

2. Animals at Thailand Shelter Urgently Need Your Help!

3. Tell Ohio school district to protect LGBT students

4. In Memory of Basie, the Sr Dog Euthanized Within Hours of Being Lost: Change VA Law

5. Don’t Let Chevron Get Away with Environmental Crimes in Brazil!


1. Background | From PETA

Despite knowing about the suffering that goes into every fur-trimmed coat, hat, and bag, Kohl’s has made the cruel decision to continue selling the skins of dead animals in its stores.

Animals on fur farms spend their entire lives confined to cramped, filthy wire cages, and fur farmers use the cheapest and cruelest killing methods available. Foxes, minks, coyotes, and rabbits—and even dogs and cats—are bludgeoned, genitally electrocuted, and often skinned alive for their fur.

One of the best ways that you can help animals who are beaten and tortured for their fur is to tell Kohl’s executives that you’ll boycott the clothing retailer until it stops selling fur. Many of Kohl’s competitors and other top retailers—including Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein, Tommy Hilfiger, Gap Inc., Perry Ellis, Express, Cole Haan, bebe, Wet Seal, Forever 21, and Limited Brands—have stopped selling fur.

Speak out against the killing of animals for their skins. Write to Kohl’s executives now and urge them to dump fur for good.


2. Background | From PETA

Tony’s Shelter in Pattaya, Thailand, confines hundreds of dogs to severely crowded pens. The dogs are not separated by age, gender, or health, leading to problems such as food competition and injuries from fighting. During routine visits to the shelter, PETA Asia inspectors documented that sick and injured animals were not given veterinary care.

Investigations revealed that many dogs at the facility suffered from severe mange and that others were extremely emaciated. Several dogs had large open wounds, and one dog suffered from what appeared to be a prolapsed uterus. Investigators also witnessed dogs being castrated with elastic bands. Even though Tony’s Shelter claims to be in desperate need of supplies, medicine that PETA took to the shelter to help alleviate the suffering of animals who were infected with mange was never used.

Confining animals to an environment that can’t meet their physical and psychological needs and providing them with limited exercise and care can lead to kennel stress, a condition in which the physical and mental frustrations of confinement lead to abnormal, neurotic, and even self-destructive behavior. Kennel stress is common among animals in shelters, and the condition is an even bigger issue at Tony’s Shelter because of the sheer number of animals who are kept there.

Wealthy businessperson Surapol “Tony” Sanguancharti-Sorakrai—who owns Tony’s Shelter as well as Tony’s Disco, Tony’s Gym, Tony’s Entertainment Complex, and other businesses—has been unresponsive to PETA Asia’s requests for changes and offers of help. Please use the form below to ask the shelter to immediately improve conditions for the animals who live at the facility. Tony’s Buddhist beliefs are no excuse for allowing animals to continue to suffer and for not providing adequate care to animals.


3. Background | From Change

Zach Huston, a 15-year-old student who was attacked for being gay, said he experienced taunts for more than a year while the school did nothing to help him. Now the ACLU has joined 80,000 people to ask the school district to pass a non-discrimination policy that includes sexual orientation.


4. Background | From Change

Occoquan, VA: Anyone who owns a dog knows there may be a time when the dog sees a squirrel or just has a case of wanderlust and may escape the yard. But no one expects their dog to be euthanized within a few short hours of setting out on her own. Especially when missing pet flyers are posted and people are diligently searching for the lost dog.

But that is what happened to Basie, a 17-year old Corgi/Border Collie mix that got out of her yard. The beloved pet would be dead at the hands of the Crosspointe Animal Hospital within 3 hours of leaving her owner’s home.

On November 1st at 12:06, Basies owners took a picture of her while she was outside. Fifteen minutes later, since they often checked on her, the owners discovered she was missing.

Their search turned up nothing until the next day, when all that was left of Basie was her cremated remains. She had been euthanized by the veterinarian at the Crosspointe Animal Hospital in Fairfax Station. An unknown person had found Basie, and apparently thinking she was a stray, took her to the Crosspointe Animal Hospital. She was dropped off at 12:20 p.m., shortly after her owners discovered she was missing. According to newspaper reports, the veterinarian at Crosspointe Animal Hospital did not attempt to locate her owners, or wait for them to claim her, but euthanized her shortly after she was brought in.

Basie was not wearing a collar. Her owners removed it, saying it irritated her neck.

According to Virginia Code § 3.2-6507, a licensed veterinarian may euthanize a dog without the owner’s permission if the dog is injured or sick. WUSA-9 reports: “Crosspoint’s examination report of Basie found several health problems, including respiratory disease and neurologic abnormalities. But it also says she was “alert” and “responsive.” Her owners admit that Basie had some age-related health issues which they were monitoring, however, she was well taken care of and she was not ready to die. She was clean, her nails were clipped, and she recently had a tooth extracted, which should have alerted the veterinarian that she was someone’s pet.

This petition respectfully requests that an investigation be conducted into the procedures used in this case, as well as prior instances by the Crosspointe Animal Hospital veterinarian, and that Virginia code § 3.2-6507 be reviewed and modified so that immediate euthanization of animals by veterinarians without owners consent can only occur if the animal has life-threatening injuries or illnesses. Not because the animal shows signs of old age.

For more information on this story:

http://fairfaxstation.patch.com/articles/owners-of-euthanized-dog-may-file-lawsuit

http://wusa9.com/news/article/174297/373/Dog-Euthanized-Without-Owners-Permission

A page has also been set up on Facebook, called In Memory of Basie


5. Background | From Amazon Watch

We’re going to show [Chevron] that they can’t come here and create whatever environmental mess they want.

Those were the words of Carlos Minc, Rio de Janeiro state’s environment secretary, in response to Chevron’s oil spill off the coast of Brazil. Anyone familiar with the ongoing battle to bring Chevron to justice in Ecuador knows that the company will do everything it can to protect its profits even at the expense of the planet and human health. Write to Brazilian officials now and urge them to hold Chevron accountable for every drop of oil it spilled into the Atlantic Ocean.

Anyone familiar with the ongoing battle to bring Chevron to justice in Ecuador knows that the company will do everything it can to protect its profits even at the expense of the planet and human health. Brazilian officials are determined to make Chevron pay for the impacts of its reckless business operations. Send key environmental officials in Brazil a message now to let them know you’ve got their back.

It isn’t just Chevron’s response to the spill that has been criticized. Before and after the spill occurred, Chevron showed shockingly little concern about the risks involved. The company reportedly drilled deeper than it was licensed to, and had to borrow sonar equipment to even locate where the leak was occurring. Chevron was completely unprepared for an oil spill – or perhaps I should say, completely unconcerned. Production and profits are all that really matter to Chevron.

No wonder Carlos Minc has also been quoted saying: “We believe the accident could’ve been avoided. There was an environmental crime. [Chevron] hid information and their emergency team took almost 10 days to start acting.”

Brazil’s National Petroleum Agency says more than 110,000 gallons of oil have spilled into the Atlantic Ocean. Write to Carlos Minc and other key Brazilian environmental officials now and urge them to hold Chevron accountable for every last drop.

For a cleaner future.


See More:

• Fur | Skin

• Human Rights

• Compassionate Eating

US: Save the Internet

From Avaaz

Right now, Congress is debating a law that would give them the power to censor the world’s Internet — creating a blacklist that could target YouTube, WikiLeaks and even groups like Avaaz!

Under the new law, our government could force Internet providers to block any website on suspicion of violating copyright or trademark legislation, or even failing to sufficiently police their users’ activities. And, because so much of the Internet’s hosts and hardware are located here in the US, their blacklist would clamp down on the free web for all of us in America and millions across the world.

We only have days before the vote but we can help stop this — champions in Congress want to preserve free speech and tell us that a global outcry would strengthen their hand. Let’s urgently raise our voices from every corner of America and join Avaaz members across the world to build a massive call urging our decision makers to reject the bill and stop Internet censorship. Sign now and then forward as widely as possible — our message will be delivered directly to key members of Congress ahead of the crucial vote.


Message Text

To All Members of Congress,

As concerned US citizens, we call on you to stand for a free and open Internet and vote both against the Protect IP Act and the Stop Online Piracy Act. The Internet is a crucial tool for people in the US and around the world to exchange ideas and work collectively to build the world we all want. We urge you to show true global leadership and do all you can to protect this basic pillar of our democracy.



See More: Human Rights

our place to meet
to share
to care
our place to make
changes,
if we so dare
so censorship
not welcome here
this is a free forum
that we hold dear!!!!

Karen Lyons Kalmenson

No Penn State Repeat: Not Reporting Child Abuse Should Be a Crime

Background | From Petition Site

• Target: Your State Governor
• Sponsored by: Care2 Protect Children’s Rights

At Penn State, Joe Paterno, a respected and beloved football coach, failed to report instances of sexual abuse performed by one of his coaches, Jerry Sandusky, to the police. Essentially, he knowingly worked with a child molester for years and left him in charge of innocent children. Fortunately, Pennsylvania is now considering bills that would hold people accountable for this type of abuse, but what about the rest of the children in the US?

Sex abusers lurk in places where children thrive. Adults should have a moral obligation to make sure that children are kept safe from these kinds of dangers. However, states must implement legal action as well.

It is time for the law to pick up where humanity has left off. Urge your governor to pass stronger laws about reporting child sex abuse today. Save countless numbers of children from suffering at the hands of sex abusers.


Petition Language

Dear (Your State Governor),

Children are helpless and innocent to the evils of the world and trust adults to keep them safe. Unfortunately, some adults choose to betray that trust in the worst possible way: sexual abuse.

It is completely unacceptable for someone to have knowledge of sexual abuse and not report it to the police. People need to be kept accountable for knowing this type of vital information.

(Your Comments Here)

If someone has knowledge of child abuse, they need to report it as soon as possible. I urge you to pass stronger laws regarding the reporting of child sex abuse.

See More: Human Rights

to do nothing
when a child is
abused
to turn your back
is the wrong path
to choose

Karen Lyons Kalmenson

Protect Sexual Abuse Victims by Supporting the Child Victim’s Act

• After entering your information, click on ‘Next’
• Click on ‘Sign Petition’

From Force Change

Target: United States Senate

Goal: Protect sexual abuse victims by extending the age of limitation to 28, allowing victims of sexual abuse 5 more years to address their trauma and face their predators

Even though one in five of all children will be sexually abused before their eighteenth birthday, the prosecution of this horrendous crime remains too lax in the United States. Right now in many states, the prosecution of child sexual abuse is capped at 23 years old, which is common in much of the country. After surviving such trauma, many victims are not comfortable coming forth with their claims until they are well into adulthood, at which time the current limitation has often expired. As a result, sexual predators have a greater opportunity to “run out the clock” while the victim and their family may suffer in silence for years. It is estimated that only 10% of child sexual abuses are reported to the authorities.

The Child Victim’s Act is a proposed bill that aims to extend the age of limitation to 28, allowing victims of sexual abuse 5 more years to address their trauma and allowing more time to gain the strength and courage to face their predators. Additionally, the act creates a one-year, one time suspension of the current statute of limitations, a period during which the adult survivors of child sexual abuse may sue their abuser as well as anyone who protected their abuser. This would be allowed even if the statute of limitations has already expired.

Oftentimes, sexual predators do not commit just one crime against a single child – on average, a sexual predator commits over 300 acts on over 100 children in a lifetime. Given that the rate of reported sexual abuse is so low, we can only imagine the number of sexual predators that remain free and the number of children continually in danger. Because childhood sexual abuse is so often kept a secret, generally it is only when victims are well into adulthood that they have the strength and the wherewithal to break their silence. The Child Victims Act aims to offer justice to those denied their time in court due to the current short statute of limitations as well as give hope and relief to those unable to go to court in previous years. California and Delaware have enacted similar laws and it is time for the rest of the United States to join as well – sign the petition below and urge your state senators to put sexual predators behind bars and protect the children of America.

See More:

• Force Change
• Human Rights

sexual abuse does not go away
no matter what statutes
and laws might say
what was done to the child
walks with them wherever
they go
without a break
as the child grows
the scars on the psyche
sometimes so deep
that the brain puts the
trauma and the memories
to sleep
and when they resurface
what is the now adult to do
say to him/herself
it is over and through?
this course is never run
and it is never, done

Karen Lyons Kalmenson

North Carolina Eugenics Program—When Will Victims Be Compensated?

• After entering your information, click on ‘Next’
• Click on ‘Sign Petition’

BACKGROUND | FROM FORCE CHANGE

Target: North Carolina Governor Beverly Perdue

Goal: Give back to the victims of the North Carolina eugenics program who have had so much taken from them.  Make it a priority of the state to see to it that these people get the proper financial compensation, medical care, and counseling.

A North Carolinian women, Elaine Riddick, is speaking out about a dark period in her life, her state, and the country’s history. When Elaine was 13-years-old, she was taking the long road home when she was raped by a neighbor and subsequently got pregnant.

Nine months later, she checked in to the hospital to give birth to her son, and when she awoke she found her stomach wrapped in bandages. Still a child she was unsure of what had transpired, but later she would find out that she was involuntarily sterilized by a state-wide government run eugenics problem. This child would be her last.

In an attempt to weed out bad habits in the population, the eugenics program emerged in the states in the 1920s and targeted those who were thought of as (among other things) “mentally retarded” or “promiscuous”—as was the case with Riddick.

“I was raped by a perpetrator [who was never charged] and then I was raped by the state of North Carolina,” Riddick explains. “They took something from me both times…The state of North Carolina, they took something so dearly from me, something that was God given.”

Riddick was just one of many victims of the North Carolina eugenics program that lasted between 1929 and 1974, officially being repealed in 2003.  It was during this time period that over 7,600 were sterilized in this state alone. In 2002, the state issued an apology for all those affected by the brutal practice, but these same victims have not received financial compensation, medical care, or counseling from the state.

Governor Beverly Perdue has already started a task force working to get the proper compensation for these victims. Yet, even while there is movement in a positive direction in this case, some fear that there is procrastination on the side of the state.


PETITION LETTER:

Dear Governor Perdue,

It is hard to hear that a system, like that of the eugenics program that took place for the better half of last century, ever existed in a country that we view as being progressive. It is even harder to hear that those who suffered at the hands of a government wishing to essentially wipe them out are still being met my bureaucratic red tape.

Ms. Perdue, you have stated that, in regards to this controversy, the state needs to move forward and help those who were and continue to be the victims of the sterilization process. Your work in righting this wrong is commendable; however, many fear that there is procrastination in getting the proper compensation for these individuals.

I urge you to continue the work in getting the financial compensation, medical care, and counseling for these victims in the timeliest manner.  This history is dark and will not just go away if ignored. The victims of this state’s eugenics programs have suffered long and hard and have carried this with them long enough.

Victims, like Elaine Riddick, deserve to finally be a priority.

Sincerely,


VIDEO TESTIMONY

See More:

• Force Change
• Human Rights

How do you compensate
After such a terrible
Action
And too long a wait

Karen Lyons Kalmenson

From The New Civil Rights Movement
By David Badash

Michigan Senate Republicans have passed a bullying bill — not an anti-​bullying bill — that actually gives license to bully. In an Orwellian twist, the bill, which passed 26 – 11, with zero Democratic votes, allows kids to be bullied by anyone: teachers, fellow students, school employees, volunteers and parents, if they can provide a so-​called religious or moral reason for their actions, giving the phrase, “the devil made me do it” sufficient validity.

The bill itself amounts to a white collar hate crime against all victims of anti-​gay bullying motivated suicide, as it’s named for a Michigan teen who died by suicide as a result of anti-​gay bullying. As one lawmaker, Michigan State Senator Gretchen Whitmer said in an impassioned speech (video below), “the saddest and sickest irony of this whole thing is that it’s called ‘Matt’s Safe School Law’. And after the way that you’ve gutted it, it wouldn’t have done a damn thing to save Matt!”

The bill is named for Matt Epling (photo.)

The Michigan Messenger reports:

In a floor speech Minority Leader in the Senate Gretchen Whitmer (D-​East Lansing) slammed the Republicans over the amended language.

“Here today you claim to be protecting kids and you’re actually putting them in more danger,” Whitmer said. “But bullying is not OK. We should be protecting public policy that protects kids — all kids, from bullies — all bullies. But instead you have set us back further by creating a blueprint for bullying.”

“Shockingly, Senate Bill 137 will do more harm than good. Senate Republicans left our students behind in favor of partisan politics and passed a bill that actually allows more bullying. Students and parents expect lawmakers to lead the charge against bullying, but instead Republicans made ideology more important than school safety,” said Emily Dievendorf, policy director of Equality Michigan. “Research clearly shows that only states with enumerated bills see a reduction in bullying. We need a bill that mentions the most affected populations and requires statewide reporting of bullying and harassment. SB 137 simply does nothing to reduce bullying in our schools.”

“To the families of the ten reported suicides that were directly linked to bullying and the countless others that have gone unreported, this bill adds insult to injury,” said Senator Glenn Anderson (D-​Westland). “I have been working for years to pass legislation to provide a safe school environment for all of our students. This bill goes in the exact opposite direction and in fact provides a license to bully.”

The legislation passed 26 – 11. It now moves to the Republican-​controlled House.

“I am ashamed that this could be Michigan’s bill on anti-​bullying, when in fact it is a ‘bullying is OK in MI’ law,” said Kevin Epling, an East Lansing parent whose son committed suicide as a result of bullying. His comment was posted on his Facebook page.

In an interview he had more to say.

“For years the line has been ‘no protected classes,’ and the first thing they throw in — very secretly — was a very protected class, and limited them from repercussions of their own actions. This line has no purpose within this piece of legislation except to incite ‘religious bigotry’ within our schools. Schools are trying to build more tolerant students and future leaders, not automatons blindly following misguided adult leaders who seek a return to a 1950′s America,” Epling said. “This will only cause unrest in schools and give schools one more thing to deal with rather than trying to solve a problem. Also it is not a very well thought out ploy, as in some areas of the state the tables might be turned on the ‘anointed ones’ they seek to keep from being punished. This is just very wrong and the way it was done was wrong as well. It was bullying at its best.”

The Detroit Free Press notes:

Kevin Epling, whose son Matt Epling killed himself in 2002 after being bullied, said that the added language will allow anyone to bully a student and cite their religious beliefs. He has worked with lawmakers for years to develop anti-​bullying legislation.

“This is just unconscionable. This is government-​sanctioned bigotry,” said Epling of East Lansing, who said he is “ashamed” that lawmakers added the language at the last minute.

The DFP also notes that the bill addresses cyber-​bullying but only when school district owned devices are the tools of the bullying.

See More:

• 25 Facts for Bullying Prevention Month
• The New Civil Rights Movement

license to bully
that is what hitler said
and 12 plus million
non soldiers, ended up
dead
license to bully, in
cambodia, too
and everywhere else
death had his due
license to bully,
revoked and suspended
so noone elses life
is wrung out and
upended!!!

BACKGROUND | FROM FACEBOOK & DENIS HENRY HENNELLY

The Free Speech 8 are eight activists in Los Angeles who are being prosecuted for legal protest activity. They need a few minutes of your time.

This video will give you basic info about the case  (see video below) -

http://vimeo.com/28777156

Invite others to this event and spread the word!

And then write emails and call to support The Free Speech 8 as they battle government repression and animal exploitation. Their trial begins December 5th in Los Angeles.

There is suggested email text below, but feel free to write something in your own words!! Just be sure to reference the case number and The Free Speech 8.

As always, be polite and respectful when emailing and speaking with officials.

VIDEO

WHOM TO CONTACT

TO:

ctrutanich@lacity.org
mayor@lacity.org
councilmember.garcetti@lacity.org

CC:
zev@bos.lacounty.gov
molina@bos.lacounty.gov
seconddistrict@bos.lacounty.gov
rvelasquez@lacbos.org
fifthdistrict@lacbos.org

TELEPHONE:

Carmen Trutanich – Los Angeles City Attorney – 213-978-8100
Antonia Villaraigosa – Los Angeles Mayor – 213-978-0600 or 213-978-0721
Eric Garcetti – Los Angeles City Council President – 323-957-4500

You can voice your concerns regarding the city pursuing criminal charges against the Free Speech 8, a group of activists who were legally protesting against UCLA vivisection, always within the rules of Los Angeles city ordinances and in front of LAPD, who judged their activity to be legal. Please view the video to familiarize yourself with the basics of the case before calling.


SAMPLE LETTER

Subject: Drop charges against The Free Speech 8! (case # 0CA01276)

To Whom It Concerns,

At a time when budget cuts are creating a “threat to public safety” in the city of Los Angeles (http://articles.latimes.com/2011/jan/20/local/la-me-0120-city-attorney-20110120), I’m disturbed to discover that the City Attorney’s office is prosecuting “The Free Speech 8” — citizens who did nothing more than engage in First Amendment protected protest activity, fully in compliance with federal and state law, as well as all relevant Los Angeles city ordinances. In fact, UCLA and LAPD police officers monitoring the protests affirmatively told protestors on multiple occasions that their conduct was lawful, which they, of course, relied on. Only later were charges brought for the very activities officers had for years sanctioned on the scene. Please take a look at this video – http://vimeo.com/28777156.

It seems that Deputy City Attorney Spencer Hart is pursuing this case to protect the interests of vivisectors at UCLA over the firmly established constitutional rights of other Los Angeles city residents. Considering the budget problems Los Angeles is having, do you really want to be spending tens of thousands on this prosecution? The City’s scarce resources would be better used protecting the public from actual threats to their safety, not prosecuting citizens who engaged in peaceful protest activity protected by the First Amendment.

Regardless of whether you agree with the interests advocated by The Free Speech 8, you certainly can agree that they have a right to lawful free speech, including a right to lawfully protest, which is exactly what they were doing.

The citizens of Los Angeles and the citizens of the United States are watching this case. We’re worried about the waste of resources and the clear attack on First Amendment rights.

You have the power to help right this situation. The trial is set to begin on December 5, 2011. It’s Case # 0CA01276.

Sincerely,

See More:

• Vegan Guides
• Human Rights
• Animal Wrongs
  

We are allowed to
Disagree
That is the essence
Of a free society
So we must be
Sure our right
To free speech
Does not become
A thing of the past,
Too far to reach

Karen Lyons Kalmenson

Please click on and sign:

Tell Village Voice Media to Stop Child Sex Trafficking on Backpage.com

Background | From Change

By the time Norman Barnes was picked up by Massachusetts state troopers, he had made $19,000 forcing a 15-year-old girl to have sex with up to 8 men a day for 10 days.

He couldn’t have done it without Backpage.com, a classified website owned by Village Voice Media.

Backpage.com is reported to be the nation’s #1 online platform for advertising sex with minors. A recent letter from 51 Attorneys General to Village Voice Media’s lawyers cites over 50 cases (in 22 states) of trafficking or attempted trafficking of minors for sex using the site. Although such use violates Backpage.com’s terms of service, the site continually fails to identify and remove ads selling sex with children.

Driven by the universal moral imperative to end child sex trafficking, a new multifaith action network called Groundswell has started a petition on Change.org.

Sign Groundswell’s petition now to shut down the adult services section of Backpage.com — the only effective way to end child sex trafficking on the site.

Village Voice Media executives are fully aware that their site is used as a platform for child sex trafficking, but have done close to nothing to stop it.

Instead, after executives were confronted by the Attorneys General, the Village Voice ran a shocking cover story ‘expose’ that smeared hard-working advocacy groups by presenting sensationally low (and poorly researched) statistics on child sex trafficking.

What the story didn’t mention is that Village Voice Media earns $22.7 million a year from its adult services ads on Backpage.com, which it may have to shut down completely (like Craigslist did last year after hearing from 10,000 Change.org members) to effectively prevent the site from being used as a platform for selling sex with children.

All Village Voice Media has done so far is throw up a smokescreen to try and hide how they’re providing a platform child sex trafficking on Backpage.com. Let Village Voice Media executives know that they can’t hide their complicity. Sign Groundswell’s petition to end child sex trafficking on Backpage.com now:

http://www.change.org/petitions/tell-village-voice-media-to-stop-child-sex-trafficking-on-backpagecom

Thanks for being a change-maker,

Amanda and the Change.org team

The widget contains news and actions from multiple sources including Amnesty International, ACLU, Center For Missing and Exploited Children, New York Times, The Innocence Project, Human Rights Watch, and Polaris Human Trafficking; please use the scroll bar on the right to view more; use the dropdown button on the top right to view the individual feeds. These are automatically, continuously updated.

For other resources on human trafficking and additional ways you can help, please visit the following:

• Polaris Project: Resources
• Polaris Project Action Center
• Hope For Justice: What You Can Do
• Polaris Project: Download Information on Human Trafficking in the US
• The A21 Campaign: 21 Ways To Help
• The A21 Campaign Resources
• UN.Gift : Global Initiative to Fight Human Trafficking
• NY Times Human Trafficking Section
• Free the Slaves: How You Can Help
• National Human Trafficking Resource Center

child sex trafficking
there is nothing worse
a dead end life
that ends up in an
early hearse
and village voice media
shame on you
look at the ads
that you put through
adult services does
not mean adults
being serviced
by the young
stop promoting
this tragedy
by advertising
this dung!!!

Karen Lyons Kalmenson

UPDATE, 10/28: After hearing a huge outcry and receiving a slew of negative press, Urban Outfitters has removed the Navajo name from its offensive line of “tribal” clothing and accessories.

The “Navajo Collection” included dresses, feathered dreamcatchers — even panties and a fabric-wrapped flask — that Native American and Change.org petition creator Tiffanie Wilson described as “cheap, vulgar knock-offs” of Native American culture.

16,000 people signed Tiffanie’s petition to get Urban Outfitters to pull their “Navajo” line. And now, Urban Outfitters has done just so.

You can start your own petition to stop discrimination or injustice where you see it happening. Start a petition — and find step-by-step instructions on how to build a winning campaign.

Thanks for being a change-maker,

- Weldon and the Change.org team


Please click on and sign:
Urban Outfitters: Remove the “Navajo” Collection from Stores!


Background | From Change

Please read the following message from Sasha Houston Brown, the inspiration for this petition:

Urban Outfitters “Navajo Collection” clothing and accessories is not only culturally offensive but also illegal.  As a young Native American women from Minnesota, I find these items to be culturally offensive. Not just to the Navajo people, but to all people of color who find themselves starting at cheap, vulgar, knockoffs of ideas, dress, and culture that are a way of life.  Despite the offensiveness of their line of products, Urban Outfitters has refused to remove these items from their stores or websites!

Not only is their line disrespectful and disgusting, it is also illegal! The Federal Trade Commission Act and Federal Indian Arts and Crafts Act of 1990, “prohibits misrepresentation in marketing of Indian arts and crafts produced within the United States” and states the following:

It is illegal to offer or display for sale, or sell any art or craft product in a manner that falsely suggests it is Indian produced, an Indian product, or the product of a particular Indian or Indian Tribe or Indian arts and crafts organization, resident within the United States.

None of the items on their website or in their stores are made by Native peoples. Nor do any proceeds go to the betterment of the Navajo Nation. No Navajo people were apparently consulted about this line of offensive material either.

Unfortunately, this is not the first time that Urban Outfitters has sold offensive products.  In January 2004, Urban Outfitters offends Jewish people for selling a T-shirt that says “Everyone Loves a Jewish Girl” surrounded by dollar signs, perpetuating a negative stereotype of Jews. The company discontinued the shirt after a complaint from the Anti-Defamation League. In January 2007, Urban Outfitters pulls kaffiyehs from stores after a blogger criticized the retailer’s decision to label the garment an “anti-war woven scarf.” According to the New York Times, the blogger posted photos of terrorists wearing the tasseled scarves, and the company pulled them from stores with the explanation, “Due to the sensitive nature of this item, we will no longer offer it for sale. We apologize if we offended anyone, this was by no means our intention.”

As a Native American woman, I am deeply distressed by your company’s mass marketed collection of distasteful and racially demeaning apparel and décor. I take personal offense to the blatant racism and perverted cultural appropriation your store features this season as “fashion.”  I find the actions of Urban Outfitters and indeed society’s desire for Native cultural genocide despicable.

So tell Urban Outfitters that it is NOT okay to blatantly disrespect Native cultures and perpetuate bias, stereotypes, and discrimination in this country and call for them to dismantle this line immediately!

Sincerely,
Sasha Houston Brown, Dakota
Santee Sioux Nation

See More:

For more information on Sasha Houston Brown and her open letter to Urban Outfitters please go to:

• http://www.racialicious.com/2011/10/10/an-open-letter-to-urban-outfitters-on-columbus-day/

To see the products for yourself go to:

• http://tinyurl.com/69ggfzv

urban outfitters
you think this
“navaho collection”
is clever and quaint
well think again,
because it ain;t!!!!

Karen Lyons Kalmenson

Image | Belfast Telegraph

BACKGROUND | FROM CARE2

The Syrian government has continued to claim that foreign conspirators are at the root of the unrest and that it is fighting against “armed thugs” who have killed more than 700 police officers and security forces. Speaking at the United Nations on Monday, Syria’s foreign minister, Walid Mouallem, accused the West of trying to foment “total chaos” in Syria and undermine the balance between the country’s many religious groups: “How can we otherwise explain media provocations, financing and arming religious extremism?” Mouallem said. The United Nations Security Council has condemned the violent crackdown of civilian protesters by Assad’s regime. But the council’s membership is divided between China, Russia and other emerging nations and the US and European nations who seek further action beyond the sanctions already in place.


VIDEO FOOTAGE

WHOM TO CONTACT

Public Inquiries
Visitors Services Department of Public Information
United Nations Headquarters Room GA-1B-57
New York, NY 10017
Tel: 212-963-4475
Fax: 212-963-0071

Emails: inquiries@un.org , dpi_dis_unit@un.org

CNN Webform HERE

BBC Webform HERE

***You must modify and shorten the letter for the webforms, which limit the characters allowed.

SAMPLE LETTER | COURTESY VICTOR S. POPALICIU

Dear Peacekeepers,

All free people from the world and the Syrian Nation demand the United Nations to stop the massacre of thousands of innocent Syrians who ask for freedom, justice, and peace!

Since 1945, the creation date of the UN as a peace-keeping entity that encompasses the world, this international organisation is the shield for nations against, war, injustice, and tyranny. Today the heart of the Syrian people is bleeding, thousands of innocent people – children, women, and men – are murdered in the streets and in their homes by the criminals sent by the Bashar al-Assad terror regime.  The UN must take appropriate action to monitor and quell the human rights abuses that occur daily.

Millions of Syrians, indeed the whole Syrian nation, demand freedom, peace, justice, and a chance for their children to grow happily and freely in Syria, children who now need the shield of the UN peacekeepers. Their parents fight in the streets of Syria armed only with idealism and dreams against bullets and tanks. They fight and sacrifice their lives to protect their children and to protect Syrian aspirations of freedom! The Syrian Nation and all free people from around the world demand the UN to take action and protect Syrian people now.

In June 1945, the UN announced to the world that “future generations must be protected against the calamity of war and the fundamental human rights must be respected all over the world.” The Syrian nation is part of this future generation, it has the right to be free! The Syrian Nation, like all Nations, has the right to live in peace and justice!

History’s wind of freedom, the wind of change – the heart – beats in millions of people who have sacrificed their lives for centuries to be free and can be heard today in Syria. Millions of Syrian heroes fight today with empty hands against bullets and tanks, against the terror regime of Bashar al-Assad.

The Syrian Nation needs the UN shield NOW!

Thank you for reading this vital request.

NAME

SEE MORE: Human Rights

Image | Facebook, Adam Weismann

Please click on and sign Stop the Pending FTAs

From Citizens’ Trade Campaign

Congress is poised to vote on three NAFTA-style trade deals — the Korea, Panama and Colombia Free Trade Agreements. It’s not too late to stop these harmful pacts, but your elected officials need to hear from you soon.

Message Text

The pending Free Trade Agreements with South Korea, Colombia and Panama represent a continuation of a failed trade model that is harmful to working people in the United States and abroad.

These NAFTA-style pacts threaten to destroy jobs at a time when our country can least afford it.  They also include excessive foreign investor privileges; outrageous restrictions on financial service regulations; unnecessary limits on procurement policies that keep tax dollars circulating in local economies; and agricultural provisions that will force farmers off their land, worsening the ongoing human rights catastrophe in Colombia in particular.

Please stand up for your constituents against the offshorers, tax evaders and human rights violators by opposing each of these three trade deals.  I look forward to hearing your final position on each of them.

Call-in Day vs. the Panama, Colombia, and S. Korea Free Trade Agreements

From Facebook

October 4: Call in Day To Stop the Panama, Colombia, and South Korea Free Trade Agreements!

On Tuesday, Oct. 4, join the national call-in day to tell your U.S. Representative, Senators, and President Obama to STOP unfair NAFTA-Style free trade deals with Panama, Colombia, and South Korea! Turn up the pressure and make sure Congress knows you won’t stand for more anti-environment, anti-worker, anti-consumer NAFTA clones! With more than 25 million Americans desperately searching for full-time jobs, the last thing our leaders should focus on is trade deals that are unlikely to create jobs or help working families. The Obama administration can submit the trade agreements to Congress to be voted on at any moment. You can help stop Congress from ratifying these agreements by taking action!

TELL CONGRESS: STOP THESE TRADE DEALS! CREATE JOBS FOR THE UNITED STATES!

EMAIL your members of Congress the message that if they don’t stop the job-killing Korea trade deal, we’ll hold them responsible for the next unfair trade deals as well. Use this easy to use, pre-written letter: http://tradejustice.net/sendletters. Let us know if you get a reply by calling Adam at (718) 218-4523 or emailing adam@tradejustice.net

CALL your Congressional Reps! Find your Representative and Senators’ names and contact info by entering your address at http://contactingthecongress.org/. Call your Rep, both of your Senators, and the White House (if you only have time for one, your Representative is the top priority). Urge them to speak out against these trade agreements publicly, to encourage President Obama to not send them to Congress to be voted on, and to pledge to vote against them if the President does send them to be voted on. Tell your representatives in Congress to get to work for working families — don’t reward job exporters, governments that fail to protect workers, and tax dodgers. Cite some of the facts listed below. Let us know what they tell you when you call or if you get a reply in writing by calling Adam at (718) 218-4523 or emailing adam@tradejustice.net

Also call the White House Comment Line at (202) 456-1111 and urge President Obama not to send these job killing trade agreements to Congress to be voted on. If he doesn’t send them, Congress can’t vote on them and they can’t be ratified!

When you call mention some of these points:

The Korea FTA is the biggest trade deal since NAFTA. It would displace an estimated 159,000 net U.S. jobs, mostly in manufacturing.

How can we reward Colombia, the most dangerous place in the world for trade unionists, with a free trade agreement? In 2010, 51 trade unionists were assassinated in Colombia — more than in the rest of the world combined. So far in 2011, another 22 have been killed, despite Colombia’s heralded “Labor Action Plan.”

Panama, with a history of failing to protect the environment and the rights of workers and indigenous peoples, is known as a tax haven for money launderers and tax dodgers.

Other ways you can help:

LEARN more about the Korea, Panama, and South Korea Free Trade Agreements. Visit http://tradejustice.net/ftas.

VOLUNTEER your time to help deliver thousands of signed cards to Congress! Over the last three years, activists have collected thousands of signed cards to Congress from New Yorkers opposed to these trade agreements — now we need to sort, copy, data-enter, and deliver these to Senators and Congressmembers. We also need the call the people who signed postcards to encourage them to call their Congressmembers. If you’d like to help, call Adam (718) 218-4523 or email adam@tradejustice.net.

DONATE funds to help cover the costs of copying and delivering these cards. Donate online at http://tradejustice.net/cardfund or call Adam to find out how you can donate by mail.

DISTRIBUTE fliers and get petitions signed at farmers markets, rallies, lectures by progressive speakers, activist conferences, film screenings, concerts, and other events. Contact Adam to be supplied with fliers and clipboards or copy any of the fliers or download and print fliers from here: http://tradejustice.net/publications

SUBMIT a letter to the editor of local newspapers using this convenient letter-generating tool: http://tradejustice.net/editor.

STAY CONNECTED by joining the TradeJustice emails lists (http://tradejustice.net/elists) and joining our Facebook group (http://tradejustice.net/facebook)!

LOBBY your Representative in Congress against the trade agreements. Call Cesar Torras at elchimango1@yahoo.com or by phone at (347) 951-0501 if you live in Brooklyn and would like to attend a meeting with your Congressmember. Brooklyn for Peace and TradeJustice NY Metro are working to arrange meetings with Representatives Nadler, Velázquez, Turner, and Grimm. If you live outside of Brooklyn and would like to meet with your Congressmember, call Adam at (718) 218-4523 or email adam@tradejustice.net.

Image | Collaborative Journeys

Stop police crack-down! Respect indigenous rights!


From Amazon Watch

A protest march by Bolivian indigenous peoples turned violent on September 25th as 500 Bolivian police tear-gassed, fired upon with rubber bullets, and beat a group of hundreds of protesters. Take action now, urging the Bolivian government to de-escalate tensions by immediately stopping the violent repression and by entering into good-faith dialogue with the marchers.

Text Message

Dear Minister David Choquehuanca -

I am horrified to read about the violent confrontation between Bolivian police and indigenous marchers from TIPNIS this past Sunday. Whereas members of the Morales Administration claimed police forces were there to defend against violence, they became the instigators of such violence. This entire episode is extremely discouraging, coming from an indigenous President who, until now, has been viewed as a defender of indigenous rights and the environment. Please communicate to the President that recent events have damaged, perhaps irrevocably, the international image of Bolivia amongst social movements and people of conscience. To repair this image, radical actions should be carried out to take full responsibility for what happened and to immediately change course.

I join many others in urging you to wield your influence within the Bolivian Government to ensure that the violence stops immediately. Additionally, a full investigation should be carried out, and the people who gave the order for Sunday’s violence should be held accountable. Field reports indicate that construction of the road continues, even though President Morales called for a suspension. This construction must stop immediately.

Ultimately, a free, prior, and informed consultation as stipulated in the Bolivian constitution should be carried out amongst all the indigenous peoples of TIPNIS. This should not be substituted by the Beni-Cochabamba referendum that President Morales has been proposed. Related to this, the government should carry out the appropriate engineer and environmental studies of the project, including the study of alternate routes outside the protected area of the TIPNIS.

Sincerely,

See More: Human Rights

foreign invaders,
behavior, the worst
but did you forget
that you were not there
first!!!!

Karen Lyons Kalmenson

Image | NAACP

Tell District Attorney Larry Chisolm to petition the judge to withdraw the death warrant against Troy Davis

See More: Human Rights

the system of just
no more than
a pile of dust:(

there is nothing that i can say
to make the shock and horror
go away

Karen Lyons Kalmenson

Please click on and sign the following petitions:

1. Oppose the Death Penalty for Troy Davis

2. Grant clemency to my brother, Troy Davis

1. Background | From Amnesty International

Troy Davis has faced execution three times for a crime he may not have committed. In an unprecedented evidentiary hearing held in a federal district court in Savannah, Georgia in June, 2010, he was able to present evidence supporting his innocence claim. However, the standard for proving his innocence was “extraordinarily high”, especially given the lack of physical and scientific evidence in his case. The federal judge ruled that he did not meet the high standard, despite the fact that doubts about his guilt remain unresolved. It is more important than ever that we continue to let Georgia authorities know that we oppose any effort to execute Troy Davis. Sign the petition today!

NOTE: Due to high volume of supporters, please keep trying to sign this petition if your initial attempt does not succeed

Learn more about Troy Davis
Download and gather names for this petition (pdf)

2. Background | From Change, Kim Davis

My brother, Troy Davis, has been on Georgia’s death row for 20 years despite strong evidence of his innocence. His execution date is now scheduled for Wed, Sept 21. He has a hearing in front of the GA Board of Pardons & Parole two days beforehand.We need to tell the Board strongly and clearly: There’s too much doubt to execute Troy Davis!

The case against my brother Troy consisted entirely of witness testimony which contained inconsistencies even at the time of the trial. Since then, all but two of the state’s non-police witnesses from the trial have recanted or contradicted their testimony.

Many of these witnesses have stated in sworn affidavits that they were pressured or coerced by police into testifying or signing statements against Troy Davis. Here is what one had to say:

“I got tired of them harassing me, and they made it clear that the only way they would leave me alone is if I told them what they wanted to hear. I told them that Troy told me he did it, but it wasn’t true.”

We need to tell the Board strongly and clearly: There’s too much doubt to execute Troy Davis!

See More:

Human Rights

as long as our justice system
is devoid of just
it is not jurisprudence
it is a bust:(

Karen Lyons Kalmenson

Scores of young Sri Lankan women guest workers have been sexually abused and repeatedly raped, over the course of years, while sewing clothing for Wal-Mart, Hanes, Target, Macy’s, Lands’ End and other labels at the Classic Factory in Jordan.

Please tell Wal-Mart, Hanes, Target, Macy’s, Lands’ End, Kohl’s and Jones Group to immediately end the sexual abuse, rape, torture, and beatings of young women guest workers at the Classic factory in Jordan.

We demand that the companies:

•  Immediately remove all serial rapists, especially Anil Santha and Priyantha, from the Classic factory;
•  Pay significant compensation to the rape victims for the damages done them;
• Ensure that independent and highly respected non-governmental women’s rights organizations from Sri Lanka and Bangladesh have complete access to monitor factory conditions;
• Guarantee that there will be no retaliation against any worker for speaking the truth about factory conditions;
• Ensure that the false charges against the internationally respected human rights advocate, Mr. Rafiq Alam, must be immediately dropped;
• If Classic refuses to strictly enforce the worker’s rights laws in the U.S.-Jordan Free Trade Agreement, their sweatshop garments should be prohibited from entering the U.S.

Classic/Jordan—Sweatshop Abuse, Sexual Predators – Institute for Global Labour & Human Rights

Key press, from Institute for Human Labour and Global Rights:

Wall Street Journal. Sex Abuse Alleged at Apparel Maker. 20 June 2011.

RT, Thom Hartmann. Sexual Predators and Serial Rapists Run Wild in Free Trade. 13 June 2011. [Video and Transcripts]

Huffington Post. Major American Brands Silent on Alleged Rights Abuses at Overseas Factories.

Related: Human Rights

attention walmart
your shoppers care
and will not tolerate
rape anywhere!!!!

Karen Lyons Kalmenson

Image | Communities Against Rape and Abuse (CARA)

1. Tell the FBI: Rape is Rape!

2. Free Climate Hero Tim DeChristopher

3. Subaru: Stop Selling Cars Where Women Can’t Drive

1. Background | From Change

Each year, the FBI fails to count hundreds of thousands of rapes in its Uniform Crime Report (UCR)—even missing many rapes that are reported to police. That’s because for over 80 years, the FBI has been using the same fundamentally flawed definition of “forcible” rape: “The carnal knowledge of a female forcibly and against her will” to track rape statistics in the UCR.

This excludes rapes involving forced anal sex and/or oral sex, vaginal or anal fisting, rape with an object (even if serious injuries result), rapes of men and transgender people and other injurious and degrading sexual assaults. Also, because the definition includes the word “forcibly,” police departments often interpret the rule (against UCR guidelines) as leaving out rapes of women with physical or mental disabilities and those who were unconscious or under the influence of drugs and alcohol.

A recent Ms. investigation revealed that the archaic definition plays a key role in the vast underreporting of rape in the U.S.:

• The FBI’s 2007 Uniform Crime Report listed 91,874 “forcible rapes”, but some estimates suggest the actual number may be 24 times higher.
• Police departments go to great lengths to look good on the UCR, the FBI’s comprehensive national crime report by which all U.S. police departments are judged, and federal funding is determined. Often this means interpreting “forcible rape” even more narrowly than the FBI does when classifying sexual crimes.
• Police departments across the country, notably Baltimore and Philadelphia, have been found to be juking the stats—coding legitimate rape cases as “unfounded” in order to make it appear that rape numbers have declined.

Related | Corrective Rape

Without an accurate definition, we won’t have accurate statistics about rape, and without accurate statistics, we will never have adequate funding for law enforcement to solve these crimes. A change in the definition of rape would lead to better law enforcement response and could thus reduce dramatically the incidence of rape.

It’s high time for a change. For rape survivors, a modern definition of rape at the federal level would acknowledge, once and for all, that rape is rape—and that the stories and experiences of all rape survivors count.

Make sure that all rapes are counted. Sign this petition to tell FBI Director Robert Mueller and Attorney General Eric Holder to update the overly narrow, outdated “forcible rape” definition.


2. Background | From Change

In a peaceful act of protest against oil and gas leases, 29 year old Tim Dechristopher was sentenced to 2 years in jail yesterday.

“My intent both at the time of the auction and now was to expose, embarrass and hold accountable the oil and gas industry, to the point that it cut into their $100 billion profits,” DeChristopher told the court.

Dechristopher told the judge, “You have authority over my life, but not my principles. Those are mine,” DeChristopher said. “I’ll continue to confront the system that threatens our future.”

We must all stand up and take action to tell DeChristopher that he is not alone and his actions were not in vain.

Jail is a lonely and solitary place and we must ensure that Tim’s resolve stays strong and we can send him a huge message of support for his courage to protect our planet.


3. Background | From Change

Dear Subaru,

We are leading Saudi Women’s rights activists and we write this open letter to you as a company that has made a name for itself among women drivers and which has built up a progressive brand image.

Subaru sponsors women’s surf festivals, the U.S. Women’s Triathlon Series, “Subaru Women’s Week” packages for skiers and even the Outstanding Woman in Science Award for the Geological Society of America.

But while Subaru is marketed heavily at women, your company is simultaneously making millions selling cars in the only country on earth where women aren’t allowed to drive – much less ride a bike or go surf, run a triathlon, or ski on their own.

Subaru takes corporate citizenship seriously. On your web site, Subaru Chairman Yoshio Hasunuma writes, “We are dedicated to support and improve the communities in which we live and work.”

But Saudi Arabia is the only country in the world that bans women — both Saudi and foreign — from driving. As Saudi women our lack of freedom of movement places an extreme burden on our lives. We lack a public transportation system and the most basic errands and medical appointments are missed due to the difficulty and expenses of arranging transportation, notwithstanding educational and work opportunities. Our lack of this basic right to drive our own cars creates many safety risks for women on the roads, and relying on strangers as drivers has jeopardized the safety of women and children in many documents cases.

We write to you with a simple request: that Subaru publicly pledge to pull out of Saudi Arabia until such time as women are allowed to drive.

It is our hope that this will put huge pressure on the Saudi royal family and shine a bright light on the “gender apartheid” in our country. It’s a chance for your company to live up to your brand, and make a huge difference for nearly 13 million of us Saudi women.

See More:

• Human Rights

we cannot sink into the night
rape is rape and ALL
women deserve rights
we cannot pander, nor sell to
nor support any nation or regime
who so badly comports

Karen Lyons Kalmenson

Image | The Inquisitr

Boxing Helped New Yorker Survive 26 Years He Was Incarcerated for a Crime He Didn’t Commit

(New York, NY – July 12, 2011)  Poughkeepsie native Dewey Bozella will be presented with the 2011 Arthur Ashe Courage Award during the ESPY Awards live on ESPN on Wednesday, July 13.  With the help of the Innocence Project and represented by lawyers at WilmerHale, Bozella was exonerated in 2009 after serving 26 years in prison for a murder he didn’t commit.  While in prison, Bozella took up boxing and now trains young people in the sport.

“We are extremely proud that Dewey is being recognized for the incredible courage he displayed during and after the horrible injustice he suffered,” said Peter Neufeld, Co-director of the Innocence Project, which is affiliated with Cardozo School of Law.  “Being wrongfully convicted is one of the most difficult challenges that one can face, yet Dewey not only survived this heartbreaking ordeal, but came out of it with humanity and generosity of spirit that is hard to match.”

Bozella was initially arrested for the 1977 burglary and murder of a 92-year-old woman shortly after her attack, but the charges were dropped because there was no evidence linking him to the crime.  He was rearrested for the crime 6 years later after 2 inmates, who were released from prison for their cooperation, told prosecutors that Bozella committed the murder.  Even though a fingerprint was found at the crime scene that matched another individual who committed a nearly identical crime around the same time, the state went forward with the prosecution.  Based solely on the strength of the informants’ testimony, Bozella was convicted.  Bozella was given a new trial in 1990, but he was convicted again.

2011 Arthur Ashe Courage Award | Dewey Bozella

Bozella eventually sought the help of the Innocence Project, which uses DNA testing to exonerate people who have been wrongfully convicted of crimes.  Unfortunately, the physical evidence in the case had been destroyed, so DNA testing wouldn’t be possible.  Convinced of his Innocence, the Innocence Project persuaded lawyers at WilmerHale to take up his case, and they were able to prove that Dewey was innocent of the crime by uncovering additional evidence that was never turned over to Bozella.

“Even though the system repeatedly failed him, Dewey never lost faith and bravely fought for 26 years to clear his name,” said Olga Akselrod, a staff attorney at the Innocence Project who worked on Bozella’s case.  “Since his release, he has worked selflessly to inspire young people by sharing his love of boxing.   There isn’t a more deserving person for this award.”

Bozella took up boxing while he was incarcerated at Sing Sing.  The sport helped him to channel his anger over being wrongfully convicted.  He eventually became the light heavyweight champ of the prison and even got the opportunity to fight Golden Gloves champ Lou Del Valle.
While in prison, Bozella also met his wife Trena and earned a bachelor’s degree from Mercy College and a master’s from New York Theological Seminary.  He was a model prisoner but was denied parole several times because he wouldn’t admit that he was guilty of the murder.

After his release, Bozella found a job in Newburgh helping people who are released from prison get back on their feet.  Until it was recently forced to close, he was also volunteering at a nearby gym, training young people how to box.

The Innocence Project, which is affiliated with Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law at Yeshiva University, is a national litigation and public policy organization dedicated to exonerating wrongfully convicted people through DNA testing and reforming the criminal justice system to prevent future injustice. To date, 272 people nationwide have been exonerated through DNA testing and dozens of states have implemented critical reforms to prevent wrongful convictions.

See More:

• Human Rights

until justice learns
the meaning of just
our legal system
will be a bust:(

Karen Lyons Kalmenson

Please click on and sign Stop LGBT discrimination in Turkey!

Background | From Amnesty International

Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people in Turkey suffer discrimination in employment, housing and access to public services.

The newly elected government in Turkey has pledged to introduce a new constitution containing greater human rights protections. An anti-discrimination law is also scheduled to come before the Turkish parliament. However without concerted pressure, there is a danger that these legal changes will again ignore LGBT people’s demands for equality.


Related | Standing Up For Freedom

Message Text

I am deeply concerned about the discrimination that many lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people are facing in Turkey.

In this discriminatory climate, violence and harassment against LGBT individuals by police officers and in the military remains unchecked. Furthermore, LGBT people suffer discrimination in employment, housing and access to public services.

Effective measures are also lacking to prevent and investigate suspected hate crimes targeting people on the basis of their sexual orientation or gender identity.

In light of the new Turkish government’s promise to introduce important constitutional changes, I believe that now is the time to adopt comprehensive anti-discrimination legislation.
I am calling on you to play a key role in:

• Introducing comprehensive non-discrimination legislation that guarantees the right to non-discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation and gender identity

• Extending constitutional protections of the right to non-discrimination to include sexual orientation and gender identity.

With your help, we can create a constitution that fully respects and protects human rights.

See More:

• Human Rights

normal is gay
and gay is here to stay
nothing about being cruel
will make this go away
it is time to recognize
that LGBT, and straight
lifestyles have validity
and should be treated
with compassion
and civility

Karen Lyons Kalmenson

1. Oppose the Death Penalty for Troy Davis
2. Stop Wyndham Hotel staff from supporting child sex trafficking in Wyndham Hotels

1. Background | From Amnesty International – USA

Troy Davis has faced execution three times for a crime he may not have committed. In an unprecedented evidentiary hearing held in a federal district court in Savannah, Georgia in June, 2010, he was able to present evidence supporting his innocence claim. However, the standard for proving his innocence was “extraordinarily high”, especially given the lack of physical and scientific evidence in his case. The federal judge ruled that he did not meet the high standard, despite the fact that doubts about his guilt remain unresolved. It is more important than ever that we continue to let Georgia authorities know that we oppose any effort to execute Troy Davis. Sign the petition today!

Learn more about Troy Davis

Message Text

We, the UNDERSIGNED, call on Georgia authorities to take all steps necessary to ensure that Troy Anthony Davis does not face execution. Seven of the nine witnesses have changed their story and no physical evidence links Davis to the crime. No one should be executed, especially when there are so many doubts about guilt.

This case has generated widespread attention because so many people in Georgia and throughout the world are disturbed by the thought of a man being executed when so much doubt about his guilt remains unresolved. Nothing can undermine public faith in a criminal justice system faster than an execution when there are still serious doubts about guilt. Georgia cannot afford to make such a mistake, and we urge Georgia officials to do everything in their power to prevent such an injustice from taking place.

2. Background | From Change

From 2006 to 2011, members of the Crips gang in San Diego ran a child sex trafficking ring of at least 16 girls out of various area hotels. Two of the properties on which many instances of child sex trafficking took place were a Howard Johnson in Escondido, California, and a Travelodge in San Diego, California, both of which are owned by the Wyndham group.

At the Howard Johnson, hotel staff neglected to take any action to protect the long parade of children who were being ushered in to be raped, but the Travelodge staff actually assisted the pimps. Two members of the Travelodge staff allowed the gang members to use the hotel computer to post online ads advertising sex with minors. They also knowingly rented rooms for use in prostitution, charged higher room rates for rooms to be used for child sex trafficking and pocketed the difference, and warned the pimps if police were nearby.

That Wyndham hotel employees are actively participating in a child sex trafficking ring shows a desperate an immediate need for better child protection policies at Wyndham Hotels.

Wyndham does have a child protection policy, which specifically takes a stand against commercial sexual exploitation and requires staff training, which which obviously failed at these two properties. That’s likely because such a policy is unenforceable when no outside organization is involved. Wyndham needs a real child protection policy in place, and they need it now.

That’s why the Wyndham Hotel Group needs to sign the Code of Conduct for the Protection of Children from Sexual Exploitation in Travel and Tourism. Ask them to sign today.


 

Related | PSA: Stop Sex Trafficking

See More:

The widget contains news and actions from multiple sources including Amnesty International, ACLU, Center For Missing and Exploited Children, New York Times, The Innocence Project, Human Rights Watch, and Polaris Human Trafficking.  Please use the scroll bar on the right to view more; use the dropdown button on the top right to view the individual feeds. These are automatically, continuously updated.

Human Trafficking Facts:

• Human Rights
• Polaris Project Action Center
• Conviction

the fireworks over
patriotic music is gone
now back to all that there
is to ponder on
the meaning of rights
…the joys of freedom
and all those who
deserving and so
very much, need them

Karen Lyons Kalmenson