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Progressive Action Roundtable: A forum for progressive groups in the Greater New Haven Area where actions and ideas may be publicized so that others are aware of peace, health, justice, energy, environmental and other issues for the common good.

Archive for category Human Rights

New Haven/Leon Sister City Project to produce play in New Haven in October

Aug 31

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– Chris Schweitzer, NH/LSCP

The New Haven Leon Sister City Project, in conjunction with Bregamos Community Theater, is currently working on mounting a production of “A Peasant of El Salvador” during the first two weeks of October. The play will be performed in New Haven, but we are also hoping to take the play to schools and universities. The play focuses on the struggles of a peasant in El Salvador in 1980 at the time of Oscar Romero’s assassination. Although based in El Salvador, the play explores themes common to many Latin American countries. It exposes the drastic consequences of globalization and colonization, revealing the daily hardships of a poor farmer. For more information, contact Chris at nh@newhavenleon.org or (203) 562-1607.

Boat Watch Volunteers Needed

May 31

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—Stanley Heller, Middle East Crisis Committee

In late June, two CT activists will be on the U.S. boat to Gaza which will join up with a dozen or so other boats in an attempt to break the Gaza siege. Gale Khoury Toensing and Libor von Schonau will be aboard the U.S. flagged ship named the “Audacity of Hope.” Last year’s attempt called the Gaza Freedom Flotilla was met with brutal violence. Israeli commandos killed 9 aboard the Turkish ship the Mavi Marmara, took all the ships to Israel, and destroyed or seized millions of dollars of photographic and computer equipment.

This year with more publicity we hope for a better outcome. We are gathering together a group of “Boat Watch Volunteers” who will try to get the new effort well known before boats leave and to make an even greater effort once the boats depart.  The effort could be as little as calling Congress, writing a letter to the editor or street pickets, etc. Those interested should call (203) 934-2761 or write to mail@TheStruggle.org.

Some of the names of the people on the U.S. boat are well known. They include 86 year old Heddy Epstein whose parents were killed in the Holocaust, retired soldier and diplomat Ann Wright, Kathy Kelly of Voices for Creative Non-Violence and Medea Benjamin of Code Pink. There will also be a score of journalists/media persons.  For more information see www.ustogaza.org and www.TheStruggle.org.

Finally, because of concerns about the awful Supreme Court Holder vs. Humanitarian Law decision there will be no cargo on the boat. The only thing that will be brought to Gaza are letters expressing support, love and accounts of what people in the U.S. are doing to help out.  Look at www.ustogaza.org for more information on this.

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Job Opening – Civil Rights And Social Justice

May 4

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By Partnership For Civil Justice Fund

The Partnership for Civil Justice Fund is seeking a highly skilled, enthusiastic and motivated Online Outreach and Communications Manager to develop electronic communications in support of its mission to defend and advance civil rights and social justice. The OOCM will coordinate the PCJF’s online presence and constituent systems used for emails, fundraising, media outreach, action alerts, and events. To learn more about this position, the job description, qualifications and application procedures, go to www.justiceonline.org/ site/PageServer?pagename=JobListingOnlineOutreach

The PCJF is a non-profit legal and educational organization that engages in complex constitutional rights litigation, including landmark First Amendment and Section 1983 cases, civil rights and anti-discrimination cases, economic justice issues, exposure of government misconduct and Freedom of Information Act cases, and defense of targeted communities and political organizations and activists. The PCJF’s work has resulted in significant victories including, in the past year, some of the largest settlements in U.S. history for protest cases and the elimination of the D.C. police’s controversial military-style checkpoint operations.

Our litigation work is integrated with outreach, edu-cation and advocacy to affected groups, communities, activists and organizations; and is focused ultimately on creating meaningful social, political and legal impact. To learn more about the work of the PCJF, visit www.JusticeOnline.org.

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Dr. King’s Legacy Of Environmental And Social Justice 2011

Dec 29

Posted by Progressive Action Roundtable in Human Rights, Peace | No Comments

— Josue Irizarry, Events Coordinator, Peabody Museum

The Yale Peabody Museum will open its doors for a FREE, two-day festival in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and his efforts to ensure environmental and social justice among all people. The Yale Peabody Museum, 170 Whitney Avenue, will host its 15th annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Legacy of Environmental and Social Justice from noon to 4:30 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 16, and from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday, Jan. 17, 2011.

In his tireless efforts to work toward equality for, and harmony between, all people, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. strove to raise awareness about public health concerns and urban environmental issues that disproportionately affect minority and low-income communities. We now refer to this as environmental justice, a term coined long after Dr. King’s death. In recognition of the progress that has been achieved in these areas, and with optimism for the future, we will celebrate with music, dance, children’s storytelling, teen diversity workshops, a community open mic and our annual poetry slams.

From 12:30 to 5 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 16, teens from the Yale Peabody Museum’s EVOLUTIONS After School Program will host “Stop the Violence: Teens Standing Up For Change.” This interactive session, focused around a message of non-violence and intended for all high school students in the greater New Haven area, will include exciting performances, dynamic presentations, and teen-run workshops. All students who participate for the full event are invited to an after party from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m., where there will be free food, music and dancing. Come be a part of something great!

An important component of this celebration is our Zannette Lewis Environmental and Social Justice Community Open Mic and Poetry Slam on Monday,

Jan. 17, from 11:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The Community Open Mic is an exciting aspect of our festival that gives people a unique opportunity to honor the spoken word legacy of Dr. King by sharing original poetry and rap or speaking their mind about issues of environmental and social justice our society faces today. The Poetry Slam includes well-known poets from around the United States.

Every poet who registers for the Community Open Mic by Friday, Jan. 7, will have at least three minutes at the mic to speak his or her truth, will receive an MLK Day T-shirt, and will be entered into a drawing for a one-year Yale Peabody Museum membership. Space is limited! To register, contact peabody.events@yale.edu.

For more information on the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. festival visit www.peabody.yale.edu/events/mlkday.html.

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Mazin Qumsiyeh Detained 10 Hours ….. Released

Dec 29

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— from e-mails sent to PAR Planning Committee

Mazin Qumsiyeh, former New Haven activist and faculty member of Duke and Yale universities who is now teaching at Bethlehem University, was arrested with seven others on Dec. 22 for objecting to an expanding settlement in a Palestinian town. The arrest took place in the West Bank, in Al-Walaja, in Beit Sahour near Bethlehem.

Mazin heard that bulldozers were working in a new part of al-Walaja and rushed over to protest. He was recognized by an officer and arrested and held for 10 hours under difficult and humiliating conditions. Though he has been released, please send an email to the Embassy to say:

  1. The settlement is illegal, not the demonstration (in fact there wasn’t a demonstration, just people questioning soldiers);
  2. Drop all charges against Mazin and the others;
  3. Investigate the brutality and humiliations of the arrest; and
  4. Demand the Israelis get out of al-Walaja.

The Embassy e-mail address: JerusalemACS@state.gov

You can also call. The telephone of the U.S. office in Jerusalem for the Territories is 011-972-2-622-7221 or 011-972-2-622-7207. The best time to call is from 1 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. Eastern Standard Time

Link to the pictures of arrests http://tinyurl.com/3xjky9j

Updates about Mazin is at http://thestruggle.org/

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Police Brutality Incidents Prompt New Haven March

Dec 1

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By Deb Malatesta, CT ANSWER Coalition

Over 80 people marched in New Haven on Oct. 23 to protest police brutality in the community. The march started with a rally at City Hall and proceeded through downtown, ending at the Police Department.

Marchers demanded an immediate end to police brutality, the right to document police behavior without intimidation and a completely independent Citizens’ Review Board representative of the communities in New Haven and able to discipline officers who commit crimes.

The march was called by the October 22nd Coalition after a number of incidents were reported, including an Oct. 2 incident at Elevate, a downtown club, during which the NHPD, some in full SWAT gear, raided a party for Yale students. Students attempting to record the police on their phones were arrested. One student was thrown on the ground and tazed. In a video circulated on YouTube, an officer is seen standing over the student’s body yelling “Anybody else? Who’s next?”

The Elevate incident proved to be the match that lit the powder keg. Due to the privilege afforded Yale by the city, the raid gained front page media attention. Groups, including the Party for Socialism and Liberation, My Brother’s Keeper, Unidad Latina en Acción, Cop Watch New Haven, Citizens for Policing Reform and the Yale and New Haven NAACP, came together to use the spotlight on the police to publicize cases of police brutality, harassment and intimidation common in the most oppressed neighborhoods of the city.

As the march proceeded from City Hall, the chant “From the Hill to the Ville to City Hall, police brutality affects us all” (referring to neighborhoods of The Hill and Newhallville) could be heard throughout the downtown area. People waiting for the buses joined the chants and celebrated the march.

On the steps of the police department, rally chair Marco Castillo said, “Today is the beginning of the end for brutality. Today is the beginning of unity.” Victims of police harassment shared their stories during the rally, some for the first time.

Addressing the crowd on the City Hall steps, civil rights attorney Michael Jefferson said, “Get angry. Stay angry. Keep up the fight. Keep your eyes on the prize.”  The Party for Socialism and Liberation stands in solidarity with all victims of police brutality and those who are struggling against oppressive and brutal police force. In New Haven further actions are being planned.

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Voices For Jobs, Equality & Peace

Dec 1

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By Joelle Fishman, CT CPUSA

A concert for people’s needs, not corporate greed!  The People’s World Amistad Awards will be presented to John Olsen, president, CT AFL-CIO; Carmen Boudier, president, New England 1199; and Juan Figueroa, president, Universal Health Care Foundation, at “Voices for Jobs, Equality & Peace–A concert for people’s needs, not corporate greed,” on Sunday, Dec. 5 at 4 p.m. at James Hillhouse High School Auditorium, 80 Sherman Parkway, New Haven.

Jazz and Latin music, labor songs and spoken word will be performed by an array of artists including Bill Collins of the Rabble Rousers, Hermanos Son, Jeff Fuller, William Fluker and friends, Baub Bidon, DJ Bell and Ken Brown.

The post-election event is dedicated to expanding grass roots action to achieve good jobs, equal rights and a redirection of funds to meet the needs of local youth and communities. The People’s World is hosting this annual event on the occasion of the 91st anniversary of the Communist Party USA. To make reservations and order tickets at $10 each ($5 students/limited income), contact ct-pww@pobox.com or call 203-624-8664.

George Gould And Ron Taylor: ‘A Manifest Injustice’

Dec 1

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By Anne Higgins, People Against Injustice

Neither the cold winds of November nor sixteen long years unjustly incarcerated in CT prisons could keep Ron Taylor and George Gould from telling their story on Nov. 6 in the basement of the New Haven Main Library. The audience paid close attention as the two (released after 16 years last April by Judge Stanley T. Fuger after being wrongfully convicted of murdering a New Haven shopkeeper) told their story, sitting between their lawyer, Peter Tsimbidaros and the investigator, Gerry O’Donnell. Moderator Attorney Michael Jefferson stood nearby and did a masterful job of asking each one short, to-the-point questions. As they thoughtfully responded and shared the discussion of an answer with each other, it became clear that the four, also including Jefferson, had become a “team,” a group that really trusted each other.

What a relief! In these mean times it felt great to hear about this journey from early angry defeat in 1993 to glimmers of hope – a hope encouraged from outside by family, friends, and others in and out of the legal systems. As we moved to audience questions, I kept thinking, “this is a taste of humanity at it’s best,” a refusal to give in to the power of racism, untruth, and the too-often unjust decisions of police and courts.

Following are comments by three who had been there:

“I kept thinking, if someone doesn’t have friends or good lawyers and investigators, though they know they are not guilty, they are doomed!”

“Jefferson’s questions were phenomenal! But I kept wondering, why were these two picked out to land on? It seemed they had a grudge on one or the other, or both.”

“I have followed this case from the beginning, but the forum was still an ‘eye opener’ to me. George and Ron were so admirable, as were the dedication and professionalism of Peter the lawyer and Gerry the investigator, who uncovered the truth.”

Mark Twain: “A lie can get halfway around the world before the Truth gets its shoes on.” Kudos to all who helped get the shoes on, so the race could be won… and many thanks to all who helped with this PAI (People Against Injustice) event.

According to the Wrongfully Convicated Database Record: Both men were wrongly convicted in 1995 of the 1993 murder of a New Haven, Connecticut shopkeeper. Their convictions were based on their identification by a witness as leaving the store shortly after she heard the gunshot that killed the shopkeeper. Ronald Taylor and George Gould were both sentenced to 80 years in prison. Based on the witnesses recantation and DNA testing that conclusively eliminated Gould and Taylor as the source of DNA on a cord used to bind the shopkeeper’s hands, the men’s convictions were overturned on March 17, 2010. They were released on their own recognizance on April 1, 2010, after more than 16 years of wrongful conviction.

“The Great Debaters” screening taking place 6 p.m., Nov. 15

Oct 24

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By Mary Johnson, Coalition for People

On Monday, Nov. 15, at 6 p.m., the Coalition for People will screen “The Great Debaters” in the Performing Arts Center of the New Haven Free Public Library at 133 Elm St.

A true story, the film relates the tireless efforts of a small southern college debating team to overcome an enormous hurdle. Set in the early 20th Century, the students, all African-American, were inspired by their coach, played by Denzel Washington, to debate white students as well as black students at schools in many areas of the nation. Eventually, they took on the Harvard team and won, decades before federal law demanded desegregation.

Join us in viewing this wonderful reminder that persistent struggle can bring change. Call (203) 387-7858 for information or to tell us you plan to come on Nov. 15.

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PAI Hosting Wrongly Convicted Men – Gould & Taylor, Investigator & Lawyer

Oct 18

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By Sally Joughin

When People Against Injustice member Martha Gould told the other members that the murder victim had on several items of gold jewelry and $1800 cash still in his pocket, we were sure that her son George and Ron Taylor had been wrongly convicted of robbing and killing the owner of La Casa Green in Fair Haven on July 4, 1993. Members of PAI attended the 1997 appeal hearing with Martha. At issue was video-taped testimony from the hospitalized “star witness,” a heroin-addicted prostitute, which had been allowed unsupervised into the jury room. Precedent was set against this practice, but no relief for Gould and Taylor, the judges ruled, because of the “overwhelming evidence of their guilt”.

I began visiting George with Martha, and kept in touch with him and his case over the years, keeping the PAI connection. PAI sponsored a conference in 2003 on Wrongful Conviction. George worked on his paintings in the prison art program while waiting for his luck to turn.

Eleven years after the 1995 trial, habeas investigator Gerry O’Donnell learned, following 3 years of gathering new evidence, that the “star witness” had been coerced to lie by several New Haven police officers and hadn’t even been present to witness anything! He uncovered evidence of someone else with a motive, another coerced witness, and many individuals with information whom the police had never interviewed.

On April 1, 2010, after 16 years in prison for a crime they didn’t commit, Gould and Taylor were freed by a conscientious judge. With no evidence of guilt remaining, the prosecutors nevertheless plan to appeal the decision.

There’s a lot more to this story. You have an opportunity to hear it firsthand and to meet George and Ron, Investigator O’Donnell and Ron’s Habeas Attorney Peter Tsimbidaros.

Come to the PAI forum from 2 to 4 p.m., Saturday, Nov. 6, at the New Haven Public Library, 133 Elm St. For more information, call Mary at (203) 387-7858.

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New Haven/Leon Sister City Project

Oct 3

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By Chris Schweitzer, NHLSCP

This October (until the 25th)  the New Haven/Leon Sister City Project will again be bringing our Nicaraguan staff to Connecticut. They will be available for presentations and discussions on a range of topics related to our work,  including:

  • Rural community life and development issues, with a focus on the community of Goyena outside Leon.
  • The struggle between sugar cane workers and Nicaragua Sugar Estates, Ltd., over the epidemic of chronic renal insufficiency and the resulting death of 1500 workers (see http://www.newhavenleon.org/us_solidarity). 
  • Impact of climate change on rural communities  (Goyena was displaced by Hurricane Mitch in 1998) and other environmental issues impacting the rural communities.
  • Education in Nicaragua

Our presentations tend to tie together the realities faced by Nicaraguans and broader systemic political and economic forces. We also like to invite discussion and encourage participants to get further involved in efforts for social justice.  But we’re open to structuring the presentations to meet the needs of a group, and we can also present on other topics related to Latin America not mentioned above.

Also, if you’re interested in our One World House exhibit  – which invites students to learn about climate change and its impact on rural communities – please see www.newhavenleon.org/earthathon.

If you are interested in any of the above, please contact Chris at (203) 562-1607 (mornings are best) or nh@newhavenleon.org. To get a better sense of our work see www.newhavenleon.org.

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Sustainable Agriculture And Social Justice: Cultivating Peace, One Garden At A Time

Oct 3

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By Witness for Peace New England

“The long-term idea is to create many knots. You can’t have a net without many knots.”  ~ Kiado Cruz

Kiado Cruz, from Oaxaca City, Oaxaca, Mexico, is a community organizer for RASA (La Red Autónoma por la Soberanía Alimentaria: The Autonomous Network for Food Sovereignty), a spin-off of UniTierra, a school that concentrates on indigenous forms of education such as mentoring, horizontal networking and apprenticeship, community service and environmental sustainability. RASA is an ever-increasing citywide network of people who are learning, and then teaching, inner-city gardening, while rediscovering their cultural food roots. The people of RASA are reclaiming their complex agricultural and culinary heritage, “roof by roof, yard by yard.”

Señor Cruz will be speaking on sustainable agriculture as well as the community organizing that has been instrumental in the current autonomous movements in Oaxaca and Chiapas. He will also address questions about the effects of U.S. trade policies and increasing privatization that have been damaging to Mexico, and about related migration issues.  The talk will be on Thursday, Oct. 14, 7-9 p.m. at the Yale Office of International Students and Scholars, 421 Temple Street.

With this tour, the organizers, Witness for Peace, aim to enrich the cross-borders dialogue between those who are creating and supporting local food systems and local economies; engaging in education reform; advocating for immigration reform; and/or promoting fair and just international trade, both in Latin America and in the U.S.

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