http://www.derechoshumanosaz.net/
http://www.storycenter.org/index1.html
http://www.youtube.com/user/AFSCVideos
http://www.afsc.org/ImmigrantsRights/
INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS DAY SPARKS NATIONAL ACTION
Quaker Group, Activists Sound Call Across the U.S. for Humane Immigration Policy
PHILADELPHIA (December 9, 2009) - The American Friends Service Committee (AFSC),
the Quaker peace and social justice organization, is hosting nine days of action beginning on International Human Rights Day, December 10, and concluding on International Migrants Day, December 18. Through this effort, AFSC calls on
Congress to pass humane immigration reform.
Sixteen events in 12 cities will bring immigrant and refugee communities together to urge swift passage of legislation that protects the rights of immigrants and refugees. The AFSC is hosting or co-sponsoring hearings, vigils and more from Newark, New Jersey to Portland, Oregon.
Migrants have suffered abuses, detention and criminalization long enough, says Christian Ramirez, national coordinator for immigrants rights at AFSC. Let us honor the contribution and resilience of the millions of immigrants who work hard, pay taxes and contribute to our communities. The time for Congress to act on humane immigration reform is now.
AFSC has outlined concrete policy recommendations in A New Path: Towards Humane Immigration Policy released earlier this year. To download a copy of the document, please visit the website www.afsc.org/ImmigrantsRights.
The days of action begin December 10 in Newark, where organizers will walk six miles from the Newark Federal Building to the Elizabeth Immigrant Detention Center where hundreds of immigrants are detained.
The current policies have led to dramatic overcrowding in detention facilities that separate families and lead to unnecessary suffering, says Chia-Chia Wang, an AFSC organizer in New Jersey.
On December 13, religious leaders and members of faith communities will come together at the US-Mexico border wall that divides San Diego and Tijuana to hold the annual Posada Sin Fronteras. Traditionally posada participants sing Christmas carols and exchange gifts across the wall.
This year's Posada Sin Fronteras will be the first time in nearly 20 years in which residents from Tijuana and San Diego will not be able to touch each other across the fence. The increased border infrastructure has threatened a great, humane gesture, says Pedro Rios, director of the San Diego Office of AFSC.
At least 5,600 migrants have perished at the U.S.-Mexico border as a direct result of U.S. border enforcement policies since 1994 - more border deaths than during the entire history of the Berlin Wall.
For more information on AFSC's immigrants rights programs, please visit www.afsc.org, or follow us on Twitter or Facebook.
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The American Friends Service Committee is a Quaker organization that includes people of various faiths who are committed to social justice, peace and humanitarian service. Its work is based on the belief in the worth of every person and faith in the power of love to overcome violence and injustice
http://www.democracynow.org/2009/12/11/klein
Author & Journalist Naomi Klein: Fate of Planet Rests on Mass Movement for Climate Justice
Hundreds of activists from across the globe are gathering every day in downtown Copenhagen for the people’s climate summit, the Klimaforum. On Thursday night, Shock Doctrine author and journalist Naomi Klein addressed a packed hall at a panel on ecological debt and climate justice.
http://www.unfoundation.org/global-issues/
http://bravenewconversations.com/
The Yes Men. Thom Hartmann. Shepard Fairey. Amy Goodman Janeane Garofalo. Tom Morello... they've all joined the Conversation. You can too. Find out how at http://www.BraveNewFoundation.org
Myths and Realities of Olympic Games
Professor Chris Shaw, explains his views about the media hysteria and propaganda of Olympic games and the detrimental economic effects to the local population.
http://steetsblog.blogspot.com/2009/07/httpwwwienearthorg.html
http://www.nationalhomeless.org/
I am a stroke survivor and deal daily with a speech disorder called Aphasia. This disorder is a result of my stroke in 2005. I am thankful God has given me the ability to express myself through my images and films." For more information, visit these websites:
http://www.azimagery.com/stroke/
http://r2meshwork.ning.com/profiles/blogs/the-world-fair-trade
http://steetsblog.blogspot.com/
http://stroke-azimagery.blogspot.com/
http://my.opera.com/dcimagery/blog/
http://my.opera.com/azimagery/blog/
http://www.vimeo.com/user428906
http://www.youtube.com/user/azimagery
http://steetsblog.blogspot.com/2009/08/lo
Life is full of beauty. Notice it. Notice the bumble bee, the small child, and the smiling faces.
Smell the rain, and feel the wind. Live your life to the fullest potential, and fight for your dreams. Ashley Smith
http://www.flickr.com/photos/chasingfun/514508627/
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2009/12/do-ipods-cause-cyclist-deaths.php?campaign=daily_nl
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Photo via chasingfun
@ flickr.
Zombies are everywhere in
pop culture these days, even having infiltrated TreeHugger. There are not a lot of zombies, however, riding the roads completely fixated on their iPods and thus being inattentive to road conditions, and inadvertently killing themselves. There can't be, because zombies, as most of us know, are already dead. And since they feast on human flesh, why would they be riding cycles and listening to iPods? Still, this article seems to infer that it is iPod listening that is leading to a rise in cycling deaths in Britain.
Photo poka059 via flickr.
Certainly there are horrific stories of cyclists killed - and though no proof is given in reports like this one, it could be plausibly inferred that an iPod blocked out some life-saving sound indications of trouble.
Yet in fact, this is putting the blame solely on the cyclist, when the actual statistics tend to indicated that it is "clumsy or inattentive drivers" that are to blame in 90% of bike-car accidents. And 90% of cyclist deaths are in connection with an accident with a motor vehicle, according to Ken Kifer's Bike Pages.
But before we go ahead and ban iPod listening while cycling, shouldn't we take a more comprehensive look at cell phone use and texting while driving, a seemingly grave threat not only to cyclists health, but also to pedestrians' well-being? Way back in 2002, the Harvard Center for Risk Analysis calculated that 2,600 people die each year as a result of
cell phone use during driving. In the UK a study last year found texting was more dangerous than drinking while driving.
And in fact, a North Carolina a law went into effect yesterday putting a $100 fine on texting while driving. A similar NC statute prohibiting mobile phone use is only in effect for teenagers and school bus drivers. Chicago has a law against mobile use while driving going back to 2005, and recently increased the penalty. Elizabeth at Bike Commuters says the National Safety Council is planning to lobby for a nationwide
cell phone use ban.
It seems equally to be common sense to not text while driving as it is to not listen to an iPod while on a cycle needing to be attentive to traffic noises. One solution for cyclists would be to only keep one earplug in while on regular roads. Or how about the Slip - holds the ear buds away from the ears and keeps your ears warm at the same time.
However, recently it seems like the anti-cyclist rhetoric has lately cranked up a notch. Or is it simply that there are more people cycling and thus more chances for motorist-cyclist interactions? In Philadelphia, two pedestrian deaths caused by cyclists have turned the mood against cycling quite sour - bills have been proposed - one putting at $1,000 fine on riding a fixie bike. Another piece of legislation calls for increasing the fine for riding on the sidewalk from $10 to $300, while another puts the fine for riding while wearing headphones to $300. City Council is also proposing to register bikes. Is this the answer to cyclist-motorist-pedestrian tensions?
Read more about urban cycling at TreeHugger:
Man Gets 20 Days for Shooting Cyclist in the Head
Cyclists Cause Less Than 10% of Bike/Car Accidents
6 Ways to Defuse Anti-Cyclist Road Rage
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