CONTENTS:

PHILLY AREA ACTION:

NATIONAL & INTERNATIONAL ACTION:

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Cheri 4 Sheriff - Office Grand Opening, 5/19/2011, 4:00 pm

 

Date: Thursday May 19, 2011: Time: 4:00 pm - 7:00 pm

Location: 718 Market Street, Center City, Phila., PA

Phone: 888-434-7914

 

Cheri Honkala has found a new home! Come out to a reception at Cheri's campaign headquarters. Light refreshments will be served. This event is free and open to the public. For more information about Cheri's campaign: 888-434-7914, www.cherihonkala.com, and cher4sheriff@gmail.com

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All Out! Palestine March/Rally on May 20th?  (Please Forward)

At least 15 Palestinians were killed by Israeli troops yesterday as they approached the borders in commemoration of the Nakba.It is critical that we protest the Israeli bloodshed and to show active solidarity with the Palestinian Nakba protesters. As tens of thousands of Palestinian Nakba protesters converged on Israeli border stations, Israeli troops -- on high-level government orders -- shot them down in cold blood!

With Palestinian people in the news being shot as they join in the struggle for democracy in the Arab Spring, it is time for us to come together and call for an end to the 63 year old Nakba that they are experiencing

Emergency protest! All out! - Al-Nakba: 63 years and counting

Friday, May 20, 2011, Assemble @ 4:30 pm at  March from Israeli Consulate (19th & JFK) to City Hall March starts at 5 pm, Rally at City Hall

This spring marks the 63rd year of the formal existence of Israel----63 years since the state of Israel was founded on stolen land that was ethnically cleansed of its native population. Palestinians term the occasion the 'Nakba' or 'catastrophe.' After all this time, they are still unable to return to their homeland, and are forced to remain under Israeli occupation where they are stripped of all basic human rights. In reality, the Nakba never ended, and continues to this very minute, to the seconds that pass as I type this letter.

While Zionists celebrate Israel's "Independence Day," we will be mourning the hundreds of thousands of Palestinians who were forced from their homes, who were massacred, and who still suffer as a result of Israel's brutal policies. The Nakba continues because of US taxpayer “$3 billion annual” funding of Israeli Apartheid.

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Juntos and SEAMAAC invite you to the “Family Summit for Immigrant-Friendly Schools.”  We recognize your support and advocacy for greater equity on behalf of immigrant communities and all students in Philadelphia.  We are asking for your support and commitment toward working together to find best practices and models in our schools for immigrant families and the broader community.

For the past four years, immigrant parents from JUNTOS and SEAMAAC have been developing their leadership in organizing for language access resources and immigrant friendly programming in the Philadelphia School District.  These parents participated in a series of workshops and regular meetings to discuss their visions for immigrant-friendly schools, visited schools nationally with innovative programs for immigrant families, and conducted surveys with school principals to identify resources and best practices for immigrant parents and students. At the summit, parent leadership in South Philadelphia will share their action plan for immigrant-friendly schools with parents, students, principals, District officials, and community members.
The summit will be Saturday, May 21, 2011 from 2:00 – 4:00 PM at Andrew Jackson Elementary School located at 1213 South 12th Street.
Please RSVP with the number of people you will bring to Zac Steele or Katie Souder at mexjuntos1@yahoo.com, (215)-218-9079, or Nicole Yarbrough at nyarbrough@seamaac.org, (215)-467-0690.

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Hear the latest of Philadelphia's Jazz Giants at the PUP Jazz Fest- May 27

 

PUP's annual Spring Jazz Fest has featured some of the all time great Philadelphia Jazz musicians  over the years.  Saxophone legends Tony Williams, Booties Barnes and Byard Lancaster have played along with other greats like Sid Simmons, Rufus Harley, Barbara Walker, Eddie Green, John Swanna and Tony Green.

 

On May 27 we are bringing you the next in our line of the classic Philadelphia Tenor Saxophonists- Larry McKenna. 

To benefit the Philadelphia Unemployment Project. Honoring former PA Secretary of Labor Sandi Vito and Eagles owners Jeffrey and Christina Lurie for producing Oscar winning documentary Inside Job

 

Home cooked soul food buffet - Tickets $50- $25 for PUP members

For tickets or more information contact PUP at 112 N. Broad St. 11th Floor, Philadelphia 215-557-0822 www.Philaup.org

 

John Dodds, Director, Philadelphia Unemployment Project

www.Philaup.org, fax 557-6981

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Breakfast Talks return to White Dog Cafe + more!

 

White Dog Cafe ~ University City
3420 Sansom Street. Philadelphia, PA 19104215.386.9224 / www.whitedog.com

Upcoming Events:

White Dog Presents
Breakfast Talks at White Dog Cafe (University City)

White Dog Cafe is proud to announce the return of our weekly "Breakfast Talks" hosted by John Dowlin. The Breakfast Talks will take place on Saturday mornings starting at 10:30am at our University City location and will feature a $15/guest breakfast menu. See the June schedule below.

June 4 - "Cuba Today: Self-Reliant and Socialist"
Poet, translator and Bryn Mawr scholar Prof. Enrique Sacerio-Gari will present a fresh look at changes now underway and how U.S.-Cuban relations could be framed within a more constructive, promising contest -- with updates on current exchanges and citizen diplomacy.

June 11 - "Fracking in Pennsylvania"
As the fracturing for natural gas continues at great risk to the state's drinking water, a statewide emergency has been announced by concerned citizens. Join "fractivisists" Iris Bloom and Claudia Crane for a White Dog "Wake-Up".

June 18 - "Local Currency"
Paul Glover, a co-founder of Ithaca Hours and colleague of Susan Witt who launched BerkShares for Berkshire County, Ma. will discuss local currencies throughout the U.S. and how local cash is both legal and smart, a safe bet against the "funny money" now being printed by the Feds.

June 25 - "Independent Voters"
Now the largest and fastest growing block of voters in America (at 38%), independents hope to take back our democracy -- hijacked by the two party duopoly -- and open primaries that are still closed to "we the purple" in Pa. and 18 other states. Hear updates from Jenn Bullock and others from IndependentVoting.org

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NATIONAL & INTERNATIONAL ACTION:

NATIONAL NUKE-FREE CALL-IN DAY
DON'T FORGET TO SEND A LETTER TO YOUR CONGRESSMEMBERS!

115+ ORGANIZATIONS NOW SIGNED ON TO GROUP LETTER; IS YOURS?
AND NEW JAPANESE PETITION AGAINST UNCONSCIONABLE RADIATION STANDARDS


A quick reminder that Wednesday, May 18, was National Nuclear-Free Call-In Day. Please call your Congressmembers on Wednesday, tell them to reject President Obama's request for an additional $36 Billion for nuclear loans, and instead to end the program entirely and rescind the money already approved.

It is especially important to call if your Representative or one of your Senators is on one of the Appropriations Committees (list reprinted at the bottom Committees are now working on energy appropriations--this is when they are paying the most attention to these issues. So stop this program now!

If you haven't sent a letter to your Congressmembers yet this week (and unfortunately, most haven't), please do so now here.

More than 115 grassroots organizations and businesses already have signed the organizational letter to the Appropriations Committees. The text of the letter is here. This letter will be hand-delivered to the Appropriations Committee members and released to the media the week of May 23. Thus, we've extended the deadline to sign on until 9 am eastern time, Monday, May 23. If your group can sign this letter, please e-mail your name, title, organization name, city and state to nirsnet@nirs.org. Please note: this letter is for organizations and businesses only; individuals should e-mail their Congressmembers here (however, you may want to read the letter to get talking points for your phone calls on Wednesday!).

* Finally, our colleagues in Japan have set up a new international petition to increase pressure on the Japanese government to change their unconscionable radiation standards in the wake of Fukushima. At the currently allowable 20 MilliSieverts/year (20 times U.S. standards), one in 200-250 children can be expected to develop cancer and one in 550 can be expected to get a fatal cancer. This is simply unacceptable. Please sign this petition now. Please note that after signing, you will be sent a confirmation e-mail. You must confirm by sending this e-mail back to have your signature counted.
Thanks for all you do
Michael Mariotte, Executive Director, Nuclear Information and Resource Service, nirsnet@nirs.org, www.nirs.org
NIRS on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Nuclear-Information-and-Resource-Service/26490791479?sk=wall&filter=12
NIRS on Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/nirsnet
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Tell Walmart: Intervene Before Labor Activists Are Sentenced to Death


 

In Bangladesh, the minimum wage for a garment worker is a mere $43 per month.  This equals 20 cents an hour-- the lowest wage, by far, of any major garment producing country.  Walmart is the leading exporter of these garments.

When Bangladeshi workers staged protests demanding a livable wage, factory owners responded with fabricated criminal charges against three labor leaders from the Bangladesh Center for Worker Solidarity: Kalpona Akter, Babul Akhter, and Aminul Islam. These three organizers spent 30 days in jail, where they were threatened and tortured. They are now free on bail; however, the falsified charges against them remain. If convicted, they face possible life imprisonment or even the death penalty.

ACT NOW!

As the largest buyer of Bangladeshi-made clothing, Walmart has the power to ensure that Bangladeshi garment workers who face poverty wages and abusive conditions can stand up for their rights without risking harassment, imprisonment and torture.

Ask Walmart to tell its suppliers that have instigated false charges against labor leaders that those charges must be dropped; that the officers responsible for torturing these individuals must be held accountable; and that labor rights defenders like the Bangladesh Center for Worker Solidarity must be allowed to operate freely. Some cases are scheduled to be decided in a 60-day tribunal, which could start any day. Please take action by May 31st! ________________________________________________________________________________

 

 

"What will you do when Palestine is free?" /   Join us! www.whenireturn.org #whenireturn 

 

WHEN I RETURN--A collective celebration of hope and promise

When I Return is an online participatory campaign that features simple notes by Palestinians, Arabs and allies describing what they hope to do when Palestine is free and/or they return to Palestine. It seeks to unleash the internal life of our longing for home, and highlight the imaginative expanse of our dreams.
When I Return intends to evidence the Nakba’s daily resonance, as not only a vanishing point in a past to be commemorated, but a persistent moment binding us to our past, our present and to each other. In this project, we hope to take part in reviving the celebratory and revolutionary spirit that has always been a part of the Palestinian national struggle, working against all odds, bolstered by our collective will to always resist, always dream.  In this year of revolutionary hope and change, now more than ever, we know, as we have always known, Palestine will be free.  


This project asks you, for just a moment, to take liberation for granted, and to think of your first day after liberation. What will you do? Where will you go? What will you be dreaming of next?


In order to contribute to this project, please send us a statement in whatever medium you choose, video, audio, text, musical piece or artwork, in Arabic, English or Spanish, that completes or addresses either of two statements:  

“When I return to Palestine, I will…”
or
“When Palestine is liberated, I will...”
It can, but need not be, somber; the joys of liberty and freedom can be as mundane, funny or as profound as you wish.
Please submit to: whenireturn@palestineconference.org or #whenireturn

In your submission, please tell us:
1) Your first and/or last name (however you would like to be featured)
2) Your current location
3) If you are Palestinian, your town/village of origin. We are the freedom makers, we are the dreamers of dreams!

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Afghanistan Exit and Accountability Act | Fault Lines in Pakistan

 

Wage Peace Newsletter: No Exceptions - End the War Now

 

It has been a long decade of war. For almost 10 years, at great damage to ourselves and the world, our country has devoted itself to using overwhelming military force to destroy anyone our government defines as "enemies." The killing of Osama bin Laden should compel us as a nation to re-examine this destructive cycle and demand an end to the war….

Take one min and send your representative a letter urging them to co-sponsor the Afghanistan Exit and Accountability Act.  

Peter Lems/ Program Director, Education and Advocacy for Iraq and Afghanistan/American Friends Service Committee

Facebook: AFSC Wage Peace Campaign http://www.afsc.org/

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Obama, Netanyahu and AIPAC, Oh My!


From: CODEPINK [mailto:info@codepink.org] [ http://www.moveoveraipac.org ] May 18, 2011

 

It seems that no matter how abusive the Israeli government gets, as it was last weekend when it *killed protesters during the al-Nakba demonstrations* [ http://www.economist.com/blogs/democracyinamerica/2011/05/israel_and_palestine_0 ], it--along with its U.S. lobby-- gets rewarded. This week's reward is that President Obama will not only meet with Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu during his U.S. visit, but Obama will also speak at the AIPAC (American-Israel Public Affairs Committee) policy conference. *If you are appalled that President Obama is pandering to the pro-occupation lobby, send a letter to Obama today to express your outrage and urge him to get out of bed with AIPAC.*

[ http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/424/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=6845 ]

 

Show that AIPAC doesn't speak for you by printing out *our sign*  http://www.codepink.org/downloads/MOA_NotRepresentMe_Sign8_5x11.pdf ], filling in the blank, and *sending us a photo [ mailto:laps65pray@photos.flickr.com ]* of yourself with it. We're making a big collage for a digital billboard truck that will circle the AIPAC convention.

 

And better yet, there's still time to *join us this weekend at our Move Over AIPAC gathering in DC*

[ http://codepinkalert.org/form.php?modin=133 ].

*Just added to the Move Over AIPAC program:* Palestinian Member of Knesset, Haneen Zoabi and Former US Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Charles Freeman.

 

*Full schedule available online: **www.moveoveraipac.org/schedule* [ http://www.moveoveraipac.org/schedule/ ].

 

Visit *MoveOverAIPAC.org* [ http://www.moveoveraipac.org ]* *to register for this conference and series of actions. If you can't make it to DC, watch the conference on livestream from *9am-6pm EST this Saturday, May 21 *and tweet your questions to *@moveoveraipac*.  

 

Palestinians deserve the same democratic rights that people all over the Arab world are fighting for. Netanyahu and AIPAC represent a one-sided policy of 'Israel right or wrong' that is no longer tenable. We must ask Obama to be on our side: the side of peace and justice.  ----  Onward for Justice -----

      Order our new Ahava Boycott T-shirt today!

      [ https://codepink.myshopify.com/products/stolen-beauty-t-shirts ]*

            ( I did order & receive one - it's beautiful....  marlena santoyo)

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If IKEA's Swedish workers are almost all in unions, why can't their American counterparts even TALK about one?

 

Tell IKEA: No more unionbusting. No more intimidation.

http://act.americanrightsatwork.org/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=2123&track=20110512_adv_ikea

 

View the full message: http://act.americanrightsatwork.org/o/4022/t/0/blastContent.jsp?email_blast_KEY=36770

 

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* "We're going to war" VIDEO

How does the US make the decision to go to war......and spend billions of dollars and disrupt (and in

some cases destroy) hundreds of thousands of lives?  A behind the scenes peek at how well they think

the whole thing out before hand.

Video:    http://www.brasschecktv.com/page/1103.html

 

* Actually, "The Rich" Don't "Create Jobs," We Do. By Dave Johnson

http://www.ourfuture.org/blog-entry/2011051913/do-we-depend-rich-create-jobs

 

 

 

 

 

 

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