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Why immigration reform is our fight

Thu, 05/23/2013 - 11:35 — Dave Culver

  • We now have an opportunity to take action locally and nationally to pass comprehensive immigration reform.
  • 5 Things to Watch for in Immigration Debate

Harriet Heywood, MoveOn.org

May 22, 2013 | Last night we reached a milestone for immigration reform when a key Senate committee voted 13-5 to send the immigration bill to a vote on the Senate floor.

I'm a MoveOn member from Florida and have been organizing actions with MoveOn for the last three years. I recently joined the MoveOn Immigration Reform Ambassador team because I firmly believe that immigration reform is a human rights issue.   

We now have an opportunity to take action locally and nationally to pass comprehensive immigration reform. There are no guarantees, so to do that, we need to inspire more people to join us.

Earlier today I got a chance to take a sneak peek at a brand new video featuring MoveOn members talking personally about LGBTQ families, border security, and human dignity—and about why immigration reform is everyone's fight.

Our friends at Cuéntame did a great job creating this video. I don't want to give away too much about the video. But the first word that came to my mouth was Fantastic! 

Can you watch this three-minute video right now, share the video with family, friends, and social networks, and then call your senators? Click here to watch the video.

The video features two fellow MoveOn Ambassadors: Yuny Parada and Amos Lim. Yuny is an immigrant from El Salvador, and Amos is an immigrant from Singapore, and both are fighting for immigration reform. Amos has been organizing with other MoveOn members to make sure LGBTQ families are treated equally in our immigration system.

After you've watched the video, call 202-224-3121 (this number is also provided in the video) and ask to be connected to your senators (in Minnesota, Amy Klobuchar and Al Franken). Let them know you want them to support immigration reform.

Then, please report your call by clicking here.

Thanks for all you do.

Related:

5 Things to Watch for in Immigration Debate, Devin Burghart, IREHR

Before the intensity ratchets up and the heat of the moment is upon us, it’s important to remember that at the core, this fight is not about specific bits of immigration policy reform, it’s about the values that define who and what we are as a nation.

Section(s): 
Activism & Organizing
Human Rights & Civil Liberties

24 hours to close Guantanamo

Thu, 05/23/2013 - 10:19 — Dave Culver

  • Sign now to demand Obama announce a plan to close Guantanamo, and then let’s up the pressure by flooding the White House with calls in these final hours -- it’s time we end this shame! 
  • Enough is enough. Let’s get Obama to act and close this painful scar on humanity. 

Avaaz.org 

Submitted by Evergreene Digest Contributing Editor Jim Fuller

This article is made possible with the generous contributions of all reader supported Evergreene Digest readers like you. Thank you!

22 May 2013 |In 24 hours, President Obama could finally move to close Guantanamo -- the most notorious prison camp on earth. 

With inmates on a 100-day hunger strike and massive calls for Obama to act, our president has been pushed to respond with a major speech about the prison. If enough of us demand a plan -- he could free the prisoners already cleared for release, and appoint a White House official with one mission: close Guantanamo down! 

We're at a tipping point. Sign up to demand Obama close this shameful gulag down, and share the shocking facts below so others join this urgent call: 

The facts speak for themselves:

  • Detainees in Guantanamo now: 166
  • Detainees facing active charges: 6
  • Detainees cleared for immediate release, but stuck in the camp: 86
  • Guantanamo inmates on hunger strike: 103
  • Hunger strikers strapped down and force fed: 30
  • Prisoners who have died in custody: 9
  • Children the US has held at Guantanamo: 21
  • Detainees tried in civilian court: 1
  • "Unreleasable" detainees who can't be tried for lack of evidence or torture: 50
  • Prisoners released by the Bush administration: 500+
  • Prisoners released by the Obama administration: 72
  • Current annual cost to US taxpayers: $150 million
  • Days since Obama first pledged to close Gitmo: 1579
  • Days since first prisoners arrived at Guantanamo: 11 years, 4 months, 11 days

For years, Obama has blamed the US Congress for the failure to close Guantanamo. But since Congress granted the Defense Department waiver authority that allows prisoners who have been cleared to be transferred out, Obama himself can free these 86 men. And while he will need Congressional cooperation to close the prison completely, if he truly wants to shut it down, he can task someone at the White House right now to show it is a priority and make it happen. 

Sign now to demand Obama announce a plan to close Guantanamo, and then let’s up the pressure by flooding the White House with calls in these final hours -- it’s time we end this shame! 

When he first campaigned to become US president, Obama promised to close Guantanamo down. This illegal and repulsive prison has led to far too much suffering and fueled great divisions and hate in our world. Enough is enough. Let’s get Obama to act and close this painful scar on humanity. 

With hope and determination, 

Dalia, Joseph, Allison, Bissan, Nick, Alice, Ricken and the whole Avaaz team

PS - Many Avaaz campaigns are started by members of our community! Start yours now and win on any issue - local, national or global: 

More Information 

Obama to address Guantánamo and drones in major defence speech (The Guardian)

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/may/19/obama-guantanamo-drones-defence-speech 

Guantanamo by the numbers (ACLU)

http://www.aclu.org/national-security/guantanamo-numbers 

Gitmo is killing me (New York Times)

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/15/opinion/hunger-striking-at-guantanamo-bay.html 

How Gitmo imprisoned Obama (Newsweek)

http://www.thedailybeast.com/newsweek/2013/05/15/how-gitmo-imprisoned-obama.html 

Stop force-feeding inmates and close Gitmo (CNN. Op-Ed)

http://www.cnn.com/2013/05/09/opinion/warren-gitmo-hunger-strike/index.html 

Guantanamo hunger strike enters 100th day (Aljazeera English)

http://www.aljazeera.com/video/americas/2013/05/201351719348602566.html 

Three Guantanamo Bay prisoners who’ve been on hunger strike for 100 days (VICE)

http://www.vice.com/read/prisoners-in-guantanamo-bay-are-on-hunger-strike 

Yemen wants it’s detainees out of Guantanamo (UPI)

http://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2013/05/17/Yemen-wants-its-detainees-out-of-Guantanamo/UPI-58651368823800 

Section(s): 
Activism & Organizing
Human Rights & Civil Liberties

How the US Turned Three Pacifists into Violent Terrorists

Tue, 05/21/2013 - 18:46 — Dave Culver

Their story should chill every person concerned about dissent in the US. 

Fran Quigley, Common Dreams

If you like reading this article, consider contributing a cafe latte to all-reader supported Evergreene Digest--using the donation button in the above right-hand corner—so we can bring you more just like it.

From left, Greg Boertje-Obed, Sister Megan Rice, and Michael Walli. (Photo: Saul Young/News Sentinel)

Wednesday, May 15, 2013 | In just ten months, the United States managed to transform an 82 year-old Catholic nun and two pacifists from non-violent anti-nuclear peace protestors accused of misdemeanor trespassing into federal felons convicted of violent crimes of terrorism.  Now in jail awaiting sentencing for their acts at an Oak Ridge, TN nuclear weapons production facility, their story should chill every person concerned about dissent in the US. 

Here is how it happened. 

In the early morning hours of Saturday, July 28, 2012, long-time peace activists Sr. Megan Rice, 82, Greg Boertje-Obed, 57, and Michael Walli, 63, cut through the chain link fence surrounding the Oak Ridge Y-12 nuclear weapons production facility and trespassed onto the property.  Y-12, called the Fort Knox of the nuclear weapons industry, stores hundreds of metric tons of highly enriched uranium and works on every single one of the thousands of nuclear weapons maintained by the U.S.

Full story…

Section(s): 
Activism & Organizing
Peace & Nonviolence

Steve Greenberg | Standard Poor / media.cagle.com

Tue, 05/21/2013 - 12:58 — Dave Culver

Section(s): 
Activism & Organizing

Foreclosed Homeowners 'Move In' to the Dept. of Justice

Tue, 05/21/2013 - 12:49 — Dave Culver
  • 'Banks stole our homes so we're moving in to the #DeptofJustice.'
  • Holder Says Leak Required "Very Aggressive Action"... Bank Crimes, Not So Much
  • Fearlessness Grows From the Grass Roots

Lauren McCauley, Common Dreams

If you like reading this article, consider contributing a cafe latte to all reader-supported Evergreene Digest--using the donation button above—so we can bring you more just like it.

Protesters erected a 'foreclosed home' barricade in front of the Department of Justice Monday afternoon. (Photo: @OccupyDenver)

May 20, 2013 | Underwater homeowners and hundreds of allies barricaded the front door of the Department of Justice building Monday afternoon to protest the "too big to jail banks" who have shirked punishment despite having destroyed "homes, savings and livelihoods."

Organized by Occupy our Homes, Home Defenders League, Campaign for a Fair Settlement, along with a number of community and faith leaders, the group held a sit-in outside the government building.

Full story…

Related:

Holder Says Leak Required "Very Aggressive Action"... Bank Crimes, Not So Much, Richard (RJ) Eskow, Huffington Post

  • Apparently leaks which keep the public informed require "very aggressive action" -- but crimes which shatter the economy, leaving millions without homes and millions more without jobs aren't worth lifting a finger to investigate.
  • An Itty Bitty Pity Party for the Associated Press

Fearlessness Grows From the Grass Roots, Kevin Zeese and Margaret Flowers, Clearing the Fog Radio

A popular resistance is developing throughout the nation; and the more the government fails to listen, the more the media fails to report it, the bigger the explosion of resistance will be.

 

 
Section(s): 
Activism & Organizing
Law & Justice

All Out May 18-20 in Support of Chicago Teachers Union!

Sat, 05/18/2013 - 14:33 — Dave Culver

We urge all labor and community activists to do one or more of the following:

  • Go to Chicago for one of the May 18-20 days of action;
  • Contact your local union affiliate and encourage them to participate;
  • Pass resolutions of support of Chicago in your unions; and
  • Organize solidarity call-ins to Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel's office (312-744-5000, or 312-744-3334) during one of the march days -- flood his office!

Labor Fightback Network

Thanks to Evergreene Digest reader Tom Dooley for this contribution. 

This article is made possible with the generous contributions of all reader supported Evergreene Digest readers like you. Thank you! 

Dear Sisters and Brothers:

Photo Credit: Shutterstock.com

May 17, 2013 | The September 2012 strike of 26,000-plus Chicago teachers -- organized by the Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) -- was undeniably one of the most significant labor struggles in decades.

What was at stake was not only the working conditions of Chicago teachers but also their job security and preservation of their union. Moreover, the teachers were fighting for the survival of public education in the face of the campaign waged by Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel and the Chicago School Board to charterize and privatize the nation's school system -- a plan laid out by Education Secretary Arne Duncan, formerly the head of the Chicago public school system.

Full story…

Section(s): 
Activism & Organizing
Youth & Education

Fearlessness Grows From the Grass Roots

Tue, 05/14/2013 - 14:27 — Dave Culver

A popular resistance is developing throughout the nation; and the more the government fails to listen, the more the media fails to report it, the bigger the explosion of resistance will be.

Kevin Zeese and Margaret Flowers, Clearing the Fog Radio

If you like reading this article, consider contributing a cafe latte to all reader-supported Evergreene Digest--using the donation button above—so we can bring you more just like it.

A sign from the Forward On Climate Rally in Washington DC, February 17, 2013. Stephen D. Melkisethian (CC BY-ND 2.0)

 

May 10, 2013 | As more people see that the government represents Wall Street and concentrated wealth, instead of them; that the government continues to give the banksters who crashed the economy a break while cutting access to basic necessities, that the government continues to put big energy profits ahead of protecting the planet – more people are becoming fearless.

Last week, front-line environmental groups including climate justice activists, opponents of tar sands, mountaintop renewal and many others who oppose the extraction economy that poisons our land, water and air while risking climate change, announced “Fearless Summer.”  They announced a week of actions from June 24 to 29 to begin “an epic summer of actions.” The rising tide of courage in the environmental justice movement is one we also see growing in many communities on many issues.

Full story…

 

Section(s): 
Home Page
Activism & Organizing

Dan Wasserman | Hands-on Approach to Rising Military Sexual Assaults / www.usnews.com

Mon, 05/13/2013 - 19:54 — Dave Culver

 

Section(s): 
Activism & Organizing

Transit for a Stronger Economy, Healthier Environment

Mon, 05/13/2013 - 19:47 — Dave Culver

Let's invest in a 21st-century transit system for Minnesota.  Please pass a balanced, comprehensive transportation funding package.

Sierra Club, MN Northstar Chapter

If you like reading this article, consider contributing a cafe latte to all reader-supported Evergreene Digest--using the donation button above—so we can bring you more just like it.

This is a critical time at the MN legislature, and your voice is needed on the debate over funding for transit. A balanced, comprehensive transportation funding package will make possible the 21st century transit system we need -- to build a strong economy, reduce pollution and help decrease our dependence on dirty foreign oil.

Take action today, and ask state leaders to support a sustainable transportation future!

Full story…

Section(s): 
Activism & Organizing
Health & Environment

The end of American science

Sat, 05/11/2013 - 08:29 — Dave Culver

Join us immediately in calling on the House to oppose Rep. Smith's egregious bill defunding of research, the suppression of facts, and the injection of party politics into scientific research. 

Melanie Jones, watchdog.net

Rep. Lamar Smith has drafted a bill that would replace peer review at the National Science Foundation (NSF) with a set of funding criteria chosen and overseen by Congress... and he wants to use it as a model for every federal science agency we have.

Rep. Smith's bill would force the NSF to prove the "worth" of their grants men and women who are politicians, not scientists. And take a look at two of the main points those looking for a grant need to meet: securing national defense and answering questions he feels are important to society at large.

If we sit back and let the House pass this bill, we will be handing over our scientific research to men and women whose jobs are about political bias, not objective reasoning. 

There's a reason no one before Rep. Smith has tried to pull this off -- because it opens the door to the defunding of research, the suppression of facts, and the injection of party politics into scientific research. Don't let him open that Pandora's box: join us in calling on the House to oppose Rep. Smith's egregious bill immediately.

Petition to my representatives:  Don't let Lamar Smith undo all the NSF has done for scientific progress. Oppose his bill to turn objective research into political fodder today.

Full story (with petition)…

Section(s): 
Activism & Organizing
Health & Environment

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