"Fighting Sex Trafficking or Punishing Women? A New Law Shows That Police and Prisons are not a Solution to Sex Trafficking"
by Jordan Flaherty, December 2014
'It appears police did not have enough evidence to even support a prostitution charge—according to police reports, the woman would not "guarantee sexual contact" in person. She was charged with "promoting prostitution" a misdemeanor. Because of the new law, she was initially charged with sex trafficking, apparently because she was accused of advertising sexual services online, even if she didn't offer them in person.'
Gender Violence: Police profiling, harassment, and violence against transgender and gender nonconforming people
by Jordan Flaherty, May 2014
"The modern gay rights movement was born on June 28, 1969, at the Stonewall Inn, on Christopher Street in New York City's West Village. Resistance broke out in response to a violent police raid against the gay community, and riots continued for several days. Many of the key leaders were transgender women, such as Sylvia Rivera, who had started her activism during the 1950s civil rights movement and continued until her death in 2002."
"Mad Dogs and Englishmen"
by Rich Wink, September 2013
"Hooliganism was at its worst when the country was up shit creek under a conservative government. It's unsurprising to see such a revival occur in the last couple of years under another Tory government. The EDL mostly appeals to working class males who have nothing better to do with their time. They are alienated and want to be part of something. They desire to be valued."
"LAPD Traps Anti-war Marchers, Two Arrested"
by Dan Bluemel, September 2013
'"There was a line of police officers who told us to turn around and go back onto the street, so we listened," said Jeremy Kauffman, a demonstrator who led much of the march. "As soon as we go back in the parking lot, they slammed the gates and locked us in."'
"An Open Letter to National Audubon: President Obama's Climate Plan is Worthless"
by Nicholas C. Arguimbau, August 2013
"President Obama is very clever at creating illusions that he is finally on the road to "change." But a baking earth is not an illusion. He and apparently Audubon are leading us down another primrose path. His plan is very unlikely to result in significantly reduced CO2 emissions beyond what would have occurred regardless."
"The Evolution of the Peaceful Streets Project"
by Julie Wilson, June 2013
"Antonio Buehler... witnessed two Austin police officers Patrick Oborski and Robert Snider acting with excessive force towards two females that appeared to be stopped on suspicion of DWI. Buehler stepped in and starting taking photographs documenting the incident. Without warning officer Oborski made his way towards Buehler and aggressively backed him into his truck and forced him to the ground while another officer threatened to shock him with a taser device."
"Green Housing: In Buffalo, It's Not Just for Rich People Anymore"
by Mark Andrew Boyer, April 2013
"PUSH invited hundreds of residents to a neighborhood planning congress to draft a development plan for the largely blighted 25-block area on the West Side that would later become the Green Development Zone (GDZ). The plan went far beyond energy-efficient affordable housing to include the creation of employment pathways and promoting economic stability within the zone."
"World Social Forum Highlights Both Unity and Dissent Within Global Movements"
by Jordan Flaherty, April 2013
"An estimated 50,000 people from 5,000 organizations in 127 countries spanning five continents participated in the World Social Forum in Tunisia over the past week. By choosing to come together in Tunis, this year's Forum evoked the sprit of a 2011 revolt that inspired uprisings around the world. But the annual convergence also raised questions about the trajectory of these movements, as well as the continued relevance of the World Social Forum process."
"U.S. Cooption of the Human Rights Movement Continues"
by John V. Walsh and Coleen Rowley, April 2013
"Nossel's career path, the masters she has served, the stances she has taken and the activities she has sponsored demonstrate profound differences with PEN. PEN cannot remain true to the ideals articulated by Arthur Miller with Nossel at the helm. She is an embodiment of the ongoing, and all too successful, cooption of the Human Rights movement by the U.S. government."
"Keep Fighting / Keep Evolving"
by Mickey Z., February 2013
"*We're not victims (remember: victims are helpless) but we are volunteers. Due to our compliance and/or silence and/or inaction, we've played a role in bringing our culture to the brink of social, economic, and environmental collapse."
"Why I Returned My Queen Elizabeth Medal of Honor"
by Maude Barlow, February 2013
"Dear Governor General Johnston,
"It is with sadness and regret that I return my Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Medal. I was honored to have received it and my husband and I hung it in our home with pride. I know many deserving Canadians have also been proud recipients of this honor and I was pleased to be in their company."
Full Length Video of TSA Encounter for Wearing Offensive Shirt
by Sargent Angel, February 2013
"You may not agree with my method or the content of the shirt, that's fine. The only reason I wore it was to make myself feel a little less uncomfortable about having my fourth amendment rights walked over every time I go through security, and I certainly succeeded in that goal."
"The Problem with Polynormativity"
by Andrea Zanin, February 2013
"The mainstream is really interested in orgies, and who sleeps with who, and how often, and wow threesomes! And did I mention young, cute and white?"
"My Prices Are Not Too High: A Farmer Fires Back"
by Shannon Hayes, January 2013
"Food in the grocery store is not cheap. We pay for it in advance with our tax dollars, which support farm subsidies that go to support an ecologically problematic industrialized food system. We pay for it with the lives of our soldiers and with the unfathomable military expenditures that support our national reliance on fossil fuels, upon which the industrial farming model is completely dependent."
"An Update on the Rolling Jubilee"
by Strike Debt!, January 2013
"At the cost of $5,000 dollars, we have now successfully eliminated $100,000 of debt owed to creditors who profit from people's sickness and suffering. Letters to 44 debtors will be delivered in specially wrapped holiday packages, designed to catch the eye and pique the curiosity of recipients."
"Indybay Refuses to Bow to Demand to Remove Vallejo Copwatch Post"
by the IndyBay.org Volunteers, January 2013
'Attorney David E. Mastagni of the Sacramento law firm Mastagni, Holstedt, Amick, Miller & Johnsen has demanded that the San Francisco Bay Area Independent Media Center (Indybay) remove a post by Vallejo Copwatch. It is unclear on whose behalf the overly broad demand was made as it requests that Indybay "remove any and all information pertaining to public safety officers employed by the City of Vallejo."'
"Gun Violence, Massacres, and 'Other Developed Countries'"
by David Rovics, January 2013
"A madman with a gun killed Eric. He didn't use an assault rifle, just a shotgun, and it didn't even make the news. The police investigation seemed to last a few hours at most, with no one identified, arrested, tried, or any of that. And although it was a somewhat unusual case in that Eric was white, he was otherwise just another one of many thousands of mostly young men killed that year, and every year since..."
"Water Hungry Coal: Burning South Africa's water to produce coal"
by Ebenaezer Appies, December 2012
"May I just remind everyone that Greenpeace is an independent global campaigning organization that acts to change attitudes and behaviour, to protect and conserve the environment and to promote peace. Greenpeace has been working in Africa to end environmental destruction and fighting for the right of Africans to a healthy environment since the early 1990s."
"Dispatches from Hurricaned NY: Mutual Aid is a Social Relationship"
by Cindy Milstein, December 2012
"Each person proudly relished their own innovations and self-organization along with the doing-it-together ourselves aspect. They wanted to bring dignity to their work and dignity to those who came in for needed supplies for homes without light, heat, or water. They wanted to treat each other as equals, as all doing a good job, as all needing to be thanked and all wanting to thank each other."
School students mobilise across Italy
by the Struggles in Italy blog team, the Interdependency Issue
"Police had given strict orders about the allowed route of the demonstration and followed the protesters closely. However, at one point, the protesters turned quickly and were able to deviate from their allotted route. The result of this was a vicious police charge (see videos below) which left many of the school students badly injured and 15 arrested."
Renewable vs. Nuclear energy for Africa
by Ebenaezer Appies, the Interdependency Issue
"The nuclear industry often claims that nuclear energy is needed to combat climate change because it generates less greenhouse gases emissions as compared to coal power. However, nuclear power is expensive and dangerous and the above claim from the nuclear industry is distracting people from real solutions to climate change."
Gaza Youth Breaks Out: Two Years Later
by Abu Yazan, the Interdependency Issue
"We had built up Gaza again with our bare hands, even though cement was blockaded; we had buried our loved ones and tried to cover the holes in our hearts which they left. A year later, we regained the strength to shout out our unbearable situation to the world, and to unite for a fight against the hell we were — and are — living in."
"Treatment of Japan's Internatioanl Residents: Problems and Solutions for a 21st Century Japan"
by Arudou Debito, the Interdependency Issue
" From 1993, bathhouses in Otaru, Hokkaido, claiming that ill-mannered Russian sailors were driving away regular Japanese customers, put up "JAPANESE ONLY" signs—excluding not all Russians, but all foreigners! "Banning all Russians only would be discriminatory," they claimed, so treating all foreigners equally differently than Japanese was their solution."
Nos Echan la Culpa ¿Y los Bancos Qué? No Papers, No Fear in March on Wall Street South, Charlotte, North Carolina
by the National Day Laborer Organizing Network, October 2012
No Papers, No Fear organized a 150-person contingent to march on Wall Street South, Charlotte, North Carolina, before the 2012 Democratic National Convention.
Day One of the 2012 RNC: March for Our Lives
by Dave Id, October 2012
"The fact that law enforcement chose to come out with such a massive show of force, in full riot gear, contradicted what they had promised beforehand, that their presence would be non-intrusive and that no riot gear would be seen unless there was a serious disruption caused by demonstrators. There was no disruption, or even attempt at disruption."
A Year of Revolt, A Day in Jail
by John Dennehy, October 2012
"When I walked in I saw about one hundred people pressed together between bars and reinforced glass, sitting on wooden benches, lying on the concrete floor and standing in the spaces in-between. All of them were clapping. As each new prisoner was added to our cell, we clapped. We clapped when each female was lead past us to the women's cells. There was a non-stop flow of cheer."
Post-strike. Post-modern. Post-mortem.
by Ben Beard, October 2012
"The day we went back to school [Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel] began running ads saying that, because of the new contract, 100 to 150 neighborhood schools would have to close to pay for it. This is a cynical and disingenuous claim. One of the major reasons we went on strike in the first place was to protest the closing of neighborhood schools."
The South African Miners Massacre: Videos of Solidarity Marches and Protests
assembled by Joseph Rose, September 2012
On Friday, August 17st, at the Lonmin platinum mine in Marikana, South Africa, police shot and killed thirty-six striking miners, wounding another 76. Workers' rights groups around the world have worked to call attention to this injustice.
Second Night
by Yoni Miller, September 2012
"I am currently completing my second night here at my promptu call-out indefinite Occupation of British Consulate in NYC, in solidarity with Julian Assange. Within minutes of tweeting it out on @OccupyWallStNYC, Russia Today mentioned it, and it started getting many "guests". Later, Michael Moore and the Guardian mentioned it as well."
Mass arrests outside London's Olympic opening ceremony: an eye-witness account
by Kerry-Anne Mendoza, September 2012
"I was taken to a room where I was to be photographed with my arresting officer. This meant we were stood next to each other, her holding a piece of paper with my name and custody record number on it. After the first picture was taken, I was told to turn around so they could take the same photo but with me facing back to camera. I still have no idea what this was all about."
Share Our Future: The CLASSE Manifesto
from the Coalition large de l'Association pour une solidarité
"Our view is that truly democratic decisions arise from a shared space, where men and women are valued. As equals, in these spaces, women and men can work together to build a society that is dedicated to the public good...We now know that equal access to public services is vital to the common good. And access can only be equal if it is free."
The California Hunger Strike: One Year Later
by the Prisoner Hunger Strike Solidarity coalition, August 2012
"While...methods of solitary confinement have been the topic of multiple international human rights abuse cases and scrutiny for years, this hunger strike reminded the world torturous conditions are central part of maintaining the prison industrial complex. The hunger strike also exposed the leading reason Department of Corrections use to justify torture-gang validation, a process that further criminalizes and dehumanizes poor/working class and prisoners of color and their families, and leads to more resources poured into everyday policing."
19-year-old shot five times for suspected underage drinking
by George Sand, August 2012
"Apparently wary that the nurse might say too much, a detective approached the nursing station, and said he was going to ask Aaron questions. Aaron had been in the hospital for 5-6 hours, and had not gone into surgery for his wounds. From what Ms. Rosas observed, it seemed he was actually removed from the Emergency Department, and transported to the 5th floor so that he could be investigated by the police."
Anaheim, California and the Law of the Land
by Naui Ocelotl Huitzilopochtli and Joseph Rose, August 2012
"As protests in Anaheim rage on, we are left to wonder which city will be next. Every day we hear new stories about young men of color being targeted by police. But society is reaching a breaking point. People are tiring of constant surveillance, extra-judicial executions, and a government that exclusively serves the wealthy. Social movements and unrest are spreading across the country, and its time for us to pick a side."
Free Ademo!
Adam Mueller, who founded CopBlock.org under the name Ademo Freeman, faces as much as 21 years in prison because he stood up for a 17-year-old student who was assaulted by school liaison officer Darren Murphy at West High School in Manchester, New Hampshire. His "illegal wiretapping" trial will be held August 13th, 2012.
"David Cobb from Move To Amend: Righteous Anger and Non-Violent Revolution"
filmed by Belinda Subraman, July 2012
In 2002 David ran for Attorney General of Texas, pledging to use the office to revoke the charters of corporations that repeatedly violate health, safety and environmental laws. He did not win the office, but the Green Party of Texas grew dramatically during his campaign from four local chapters to twenty-six. In 2004, he ran for President of the United States on the Green Party ticket and successfully campaigned for the Ohio recount.
No Happy Meals
by Andy Bichlbaum, July 2012
"A press release described the arrangement as "a bold new program that rewards New Yorkers for their patience with the NYPD's 'Stop and Frisk' policy." Several YouTube videos showed McDonald's customers, official "Three Strikes" vouchers in hand, requesting and receiving their free "Meals."
Reflections of a Spoiled Child on the Student Strike
an open letter by Dominique Desjardins, July 2012
"I study at University of Montreal's School of Library and Information Sciences. My program trains future librarians, archivists and other information professionals—in short, those who will connect citizens with information. Those who seek to preserve a free and democratic access to information and knowledge. Since February 23rd, my student association has been on strike and involved in the student movement."
"A Solidarity of Strangers"
by Jay Driskell, July 2012
"In the weeks following the introduction of Walker's bill stripping public workers of the right to organize, several unions affiliated with the South Central Federation of Labor voted to endorse a general strike should the state legislature pass Walker's bill. Most folks I know in Wisconsin, however (none of them "labor bosses"), counseled against it. Why?"
"American war veterans return their medals to NATO"
by Gael Maximiliano, June 2012
This video documents the American veteran protest at the NATO summit in Chicago, May 2012.
