united nations attacks pernicious human rights violation...

so you're an isolationist, bircher, or neocon who thinks that the u.n. is a useless bureaucracy huh???

well consider the terror generated by state sanctioned, forced "disappearances"... this tactic was once in widespread use (70's and 80's) moreso in latin america than other geopolitical battlegrounds...the recent death of former chilean dictator augusto pinochet stirs memories of the caravan of death that roamed the country after the 1973 coup kidnapping and executing political prisoners and burying them in unmarked graves...

but the irony of the new terror becomes evident when the u.n. general assembly adopted a major new human rights treaty on december 21st: the international convention for the protection of all persons from enforced disappearance..

enforced disappearances have recently emerged as an unlawful means in pursuing the so-called "war on terror"...the treaty is a response to all enforced disappearances, including those occurring in the form of renditions and holding people in secret places of detention...

which leads us to the movement to close down the torture camp that is guantanamo bay...according to amnesty international:

Despite a major international outcry and expert condemnation of US government policy, hundreds of people of around 35 different nationalities remain held in a legal black hole at the US Naval Base in Guantánamo Bay in Cuba, many without access to any court, legal counsel or family visits. Denied their rights under international law and held in conditions which may amount to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, the detainees face severe psychological distress. There have been numerous suicide attempts.

As more evidence surfaces that the abuse of Guantánamo detainees has been widespread, it is ever more urgent to end the plight of the detainees. US authorities must bring all detainees to trial, in full accordance with international law and standards, or else release them immediately and unconditionally.

no, of course the u.n. is no panacea for the world's disputes and ills but having a forum of dialogue where nations can come together and struggle in a place other than the battle field - traditional or otherwise - is vital to creating mechanisms for peaceful resolutions rather than, say, nuclear ones...

kudos to the u.n. general assembly for creating a much needed international human rights treaty...

peace out <3

diamond dealers need to connect dots...

no doubt you've read about the movie blood diamonds (watch the trailer here) starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Djimon Hounsou, and Jennifer Connelly...and it is a relevent issue as today many hundreds of thousands of diamonds are given as gifts on a day used to mark the birthdate of jesus of nazareth...

is the irony clear to you...if not consider that blood diamonds are more generally referred to as conflict diamonds...and what are they??? according to amnesty international:

Some diamonds have helped fund devastating civil wars in Africa, destroying the lives of millions. Conflict diamonds are those sold in order to fund armed conflict and civil war. Profits from the trade in conflict diamonds, worth billions of dollars, were used by warlords and rebels to buy arms during the devastating wars in Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Sierra Leone. Wars that have cost an estimated 3.7 million lives.

While the wars in Angola and Sierra Leone are now over, and fighting in the DRC has decreased, the problem of conflict diamonds hasn't gone away. Diamonds mined in rebel-held areas in Côte d'Ivoire, a West African country in the midst of a volatile conflict, are reaching the international diamond market. Conflict diamonds from Liberia are also being smuggled into neighboring countries and exported as part of the legitimate diamond trade.

in the end it is innocent civilians who suffer the worst consequences of the bloody wars financed through unscrupulously mined, processed, traded, and purchased (hello zales, jared, kay. et. al.) diamond rings, bracelets, necklaces, pendants etc...

a major milestone occurred in 2003, when a government-run initiative known as the kimberley process was introduced to stem the flow of conflict diamonds...but in the end the process was and remains a fox guarding the chicken coop scheme...

does this mean you shouldn't buy any diamonds??? well no, but you should know how to hold retailers accountable, first by reading the buyer's guideline, understand how jewelers keep consumers in the dark, better understand the history and context of the issue in human rights context by reading this article by greg campbell, and most importantly understand how little jewelers and their employees know about the source of and bloody consequences of profteering from blood diamionds...

so go see the movie and if you feel the need to own a diamond be a consumer with a human rights heart - especially think about that today, christmas day...

peace out <3

stop violence against women: creative cross petition for juárez and guatemala...

**note: this action will continue through the spring of 2007...

the day of the dead is a major commemoration in mexico and guatemala during which families celebrate their ancestors by visiting and sprucing up grave sites, welcoming the souls of the dead into their homes with altars and offerings of flowers and food, and engaging in other festivities...

during the fall of 2006**, thousands of amnesty international activists helped commemorate the day of the dead by participating in a "cross petition" by creating and signing crosses protesting the murders of women in juárez/chihuahua and in guatemala and calling on the mexican and guatemalan governments to take steps to end the femicides...

amnesty activists from around the country took part, sending crosses from places as far apart as california, massachusetts, illinois, missouri, new york, and georgia...0n november 2nd, activists held vigils and delivered the crosses to consulates and embassies of both countries, where they met with officials...activists from highschools, to colleges, to individual members sent some 3000 crosses to the washington, dc office alone on day of the dead, and more than a thousand have come in since...in most of the meetings, officials were welcoming, and acknowledged that femicides are a serious problem...however, amnesty international wants to send a clear message that the issue is still a priority, and you can help make this action even more successful than it has already been by continuing to create and send crosses through spring 2007...

to get more information on how to participate in this creative action click here for english and click here for spanish...

peace out <3

middle tennesseans take action against torture in january...

january 11th will mark the five-year anniversary of the arrival of the first guantanamo bay prisoners...this date stands as a symbol of attempts to end protections of justice and humane treatment by the united states...

amnesty international members hold a vigil or rally in front of courthouses and other visible locations such as town squares and campuses across the country. ..the vigils will be to demand that the u.s. government end this dark chapter in u.s. history by closing the facilities in guantanamo bay and disclosing the rest of the detention centers...in addition to events across the country and around the world, there will be a press conference and rally in front of the u.s. supreme court...

did you know that despite a major international outcry and expert condemnation of u.s. government policy, hundreds of people of around 35 different nationalities remain held in a legal black hole at the u.s. naval base in guantánamo bay in cuba, many without access to any court, legal counsel or family visits...denied their rights under international law and held in conditions which may amount to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, the detainees face severe psychological distress...and that there have been numerous suicide attempts...

to get more information on the human rights scandal referred to as guantanamo bay click here...

for information on united states government obligations under international law click here...

to read the indepth report guantánamo - an icon of lawlessness click here...

to join us on january 1th here in middle tennessee e-mail us here...

peace out <3

nashville activists write to prisoners of conscience...

because, as we say, "lest they not believe that they have been forgotten,"...

back in november we signed up to participate in amnesty international's annual write-a-thon which takes place on or near december 10th every year - international human rights day ... we pledged to write 40 letters that day to prisoners of conscience or people, regardless of their actions, who are the targets of human rights violations...

on thursday december 12th rosa and i met at jj's market near vanderbilt and between the 2 of us wrote nearly 50 holiday cards of hope...local member betsy asked for the addresses of the prisoners of conscience who had been targted to receive cards so we believe that we wrote at least 60 cards matching our pledge and then another 50% ... and maybe more!

we sent cards to 25 of the men on tennessee's death row as well as the people whose cases are mentioned here...

what did you do???

peace out <3

too flawed to fix...

after the botched lethal injection execution of angel diaz in florida last week and a federal u.s. district court ruling in california calling lethal injection "intolerable" it is time to abandon the search for an 'ideal' way to extinguish a human life and focus instead on developing genuine solutions to crime...

Call to Action: Speak Out Against Lethal Injections!...

Amnesty International USA Response to U.S. District Judge Jeremy Fogel's Ruling Deeming California's Lethal Injection Procedure "Intolerable"

(Washington, DC) – Sue Gunawardena-Vaughn, Director of Amnesty International USA's Program to Abolish the Death Penalty, issued the following statement in response to U.S. District Judge Jeremy Fogel's ruling that California's lethal injection procedure represents "an undue and unnecessary risk" of a violation of the constitutional prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment:

"Judge Fogel's ruling comes at a time when numerous states across the country are encountering significant legal challenges to the constitutionality of their respective lethal injection methods. Earlier today, in the wake of a horribly botched execution, Florida Governor Jeb Bush created a Commission on Administration of Lethal Injection to examine the constitutionality of that state's lethal injection protocol.

"While Judge Fogel's ruling chastises California for continuing to administer a procedure that 'lacks both reliability and transparency,' the flaws that taint the state's death penalty system go well beyond the specifics of its executing mechanism. It is plagued by racial bias and there remains the very real possibility of executing an innocent person. California officials should not waste the state's valuable resources trying to 'perfect' the apparatus of death. Instead, they should unequivocally reject the death penalty, which is both futile and irreparably flawed, and focus instead on developing genuine solutions to crime. The continuing search for an 'ideal' way to extinguish a human life is no sign of a humane, evolved society. California can and must do better."

peace out <3

nashvegas' take back the night recap...

on october 23rd amnesty international members in nashville participated in the annual take back the night rally and march as part of local activists commitment to the international stop violence against women campaign...

in particular a shout out goes to amnesty international members jennifer kinsey, diba enayat, and becky owens for giving their time and energy to advance preparations and representing aiusa in the event...diba is tennessee's stop violence aganst women campaign coordinator...

here's diba's summary of the events that night - photos from the night can be viewed here ... if you're not an amnesty member become one today!!!

peace out <3

Amnesty International had a table set up and there was a pretty good turnout so a lot of people stopped by our table and took information. Then they had a speaker, Byron Hurt, the director of "Hip-Hop: Beyond Beats and Rhymes." He spoke about the role that men have in stopping violence against women. After his speech, we marched from the Olin field, where we were, to the Centennial Park pavilion they had designated. As we marched, we yelled chants promoting stopping violence against women. When we reached the pavilion, there was an open mic. This was probably the most powerful part of the night. Some incredibly brave women stood up and told very personal stories about their experiences with sexual violence. It was incredible to see such a range of women from different backgrounds come together for one cause--they ranged from former prostitutes to students.

Surrounding the pavilion and also the olin feild was a clothesline with a t-shirt hanging for every woman who has lost her life to domestic violence. It was a pretty powerful visual image. Overall, I think the march went well--it really does play a role in healing for those women who have survived gender-based violence by showing them that they are not alone and really helps men understand the impact that gender based violence has on women and how we can all come together for this cause.

holiday cards that change lives...

tonight in nashville members and friends of amnesty international will gather to write their most significant holiday cards of the season...

each year during the winter holidays, amnesty international asks its members to send messages of support to prisoners of conscience and their families around the world...holidays can mean little to those who fear they've been forgotten by the world...a simple greeting card brings them renewed hope...

the prisoners and human rights defenders featured here need your support...please let them know they are not forgotten...

write to them in your living room from ANYWHERE in the world just by clicking here ...

it may be the most significant thing you do this holiday season...

peace out <3

outraged and heartbroken...

...is an apt way to describe how i felt after viewing the independent film osama on international human rights day december 10th...

osama is the first film made in afghanistan since the rise and fall of the taliban, and it shows that hope is a rare commodity there...the protagonists, a 12 year-old girl (marina olbahari) and her mother, lose their jobs at a local hospital when the taliban shuts it down..as the family's father and brother are dead and women are not allowed unescorted in the streets, they have little choice but to try and pass off the little girl as a boy and get her a job....

the young girl gets work in a tea shop, but merely walking through the streets to get to work and speaking to customers cause her deep anxiety...it gets worse when the taliban round up all the young boys -- including our heroine -- and shuttle them to a training center....a street thief knows her secret and tries to help her blend in, but her feminine looks soon betray her...

as i viewed the film i often had no more idea of what's going on than our hero does, which increases the film's sense of danger and fear...

osama is also unafraid to be brutal, showing matter-of-factly the strange and unkind justice that goes on in afghanistan...it can be shocking and difficult to take at times...remembering the terrified look on the young girl's face left me acknowledging deeply that we're all human...each and every one...

it's a must see...

peace out <3

p.s. special thanks to jeff anderson for sharing his words with me via the internet...

join the 16 days of activism against gender violence...

the 16 days of activism against gender violence is a global campaign running from nov. 25th through dec. 10th....amnesty international's theme this year is "16 shelters for 16 days," stressing the importance of creating safe and secure shelters for women fleeing violence....this is linked to amnesty's ongoing campaign to stop violence against women ...

here in music city usa our local chapter will hold a screening of OSAMA on december 10th as our action during this 16 days of international action...for information on this free public event click here ...

there is an easy action you can take as part of the 16 days of activism against gender violence by clicking on this link - you can't control the actions of others but you can take action - so please do it today...

peace out <3

a letter on world aids day...support hr 5674

i received this letter to take action on world aids day ... and i did ... you should too!

Dear Randy,

In commemoration of World AIDS Day this year, call on your Representative to support the Protection Against Transmission of HIV for Women and Youth Act of 2006 (HR 5674).

This legislation can help to address specific factors that leave women and girls at an increased risk of HIV infection - including sexual violence, economic disempowerment, and lack of access to information on HIV prevention.

Amnesty International believes that human rights-based policies should be at the center of all responses to HIV and AIDS, and that gender-specific strategies to address the particular vulnerabilities of women and girls are essential to effectively combat HIV and AIDS worldwide.

Sending best wishes,

Vienna Coluccion
on behalf of AIUSA's HIV and AIDS project
www.amnestyusa.org/hiv_aid