Can The World's People March Together

       It is hard to imagine that our political lords and masters, who are, no more than the bed fellows of the corporate world, will do anything about climate change. The corporate world's short term strategies for fast profit, is hardly a recipe for change that will address the issue of climate change. It is only by the pressure of the world's people that we can halt this insane policy of profit at the expense of our planet. Capitalism and conservation do not make happy partners, conservation is the sane road, capitalism the insane. 

This from Avaaz:

Dear friends,
     Something magical is happening... All across the world we’re coming together to hit the streets on November 29th — hours before the most important climate summit this decade! This is a day of action not to be missed — click on the map to find an event near you: 

      This is going to be mega! Last year almost 700,000 people took to their streets and created the largest mobilisation on climate change in history. This year we are going even bigger! If hundreds of thousands of us join events in cities and towns everywhere, we’ll show our leaders meeting in Paris that our movement cannot be ignored and we will accept nothing less than an ambitious climate deal, with a global commitment to 100% clean energy!

Click the link to join in and find an event near you:

https://secure.avaaz.org/en/event/globalclimatemarch?cl=8608269896&v=65175

Let’s seize this moment, for our future, our kids’ futures, and everything we love.
With hope,
Oli, Alice, Morgan, Iain and the rest of the Avaaz team

More Information:
No plan B if Paris climate summit ends in failure, says EU climate chief (The Guardian)
http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/jul/06/no-plan-b-if-paris-climate-summit-ends-in-failure-says-eu-climate-chief 

‘Climate deception dossiers’ expose oil industry lobbying (RTCC)
http://www.rtcc.org/2015/07/08/climate-deception-dossiers-expose-oil-industry-lobbying

Taking a call for climate change to the streets (NYTimes)
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/22/nyregion/new-york-city-climate-change-march.html

People's Climate March: the revolution starts here (article on The Guardian by Avaaz founder Ricken Patel)
http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/jul/29/peoples-climate-march-the-revolution-starts-here

Visit ann arky's home at www.radicalglasgow.me.uk

The State And Its Tool,-- Death.

       There seems to be disbelief at the Egypt court passing the mass death sentences on 528 protesters, with another mass trial of 682 due to start. To put that in perspective, that is more people sentenced to death in one fell swoop, than the total number of UK troops killed in Afghanistan in 13 years of war since 2001. We can accept that it is horrific, barbarous, outrageous, and makes a mockery of justice. However we should not be surprised, for that's what the states do best.

 They kill with impunity, they do it in several ways, they do it by sending ordinary people to foreign countries to kill other ordinary people, to enhance the state's wealth and power. They kill their own citizens by legislation, (ATOS), for example. Slow death by deliberate polices that increase poverty and deprivation, During WW1 the British state executed, (murdered), at dawn by firing squad, 306 young British soldiers, labeling them cowards. It's a state thing, killing citizens is just collateral damage in their role of power monger. The state always holds the death card to use in the event of any threat to its power, and when the state kills, it is supposed to put the stamp of legitimacy on that barbaric action. 528 death sentences, what state has not killed far more than that to hold onto and cement its power over the people?

 

This from AVAAZ:

    A kangaroo court in Egypt just sentenced 528 people to death. This is likely the biggest mass execution ruling this century, but one man can stop the killings.
      Egypt’s most important religious figure, Grand Mufti Allam has 10 days to reject the decision. Religious leaders are already condemning the ruling, and as the first Mufti to be elected by his peers, he has a legitimate mandate to be the nation’s moral leader. Let’s create a global plea from people of all religions to provide clemency and block this barbarous ruling.
      This was a political show trial -- the military regime is using the firing squad to wipe out the opposition. If the world does not speak up, the consequences for Egypt and the world are beyond dangerous. Sign now to save these lives and stop a spiral of violence -- when one million of us have joined, religious leaders in Egypt will deliver our call for compassion directly to the Mufti:
http://www.avaaz.org/en/stop_mass_execution_loc/?bwqhjab&v=37959
      After the hope of Tahrir Square, where hundreds of thousands took to the streets to overthrow decades of dictatorship, the Egyptian people democratically elected a Muslim Brotherhood government. But last summer the military staged a populist coup, Brotherhood supporters rioted, and then the military declared the party a terrorist organisation and violently cracked down -- 16,000 democracy activists, journalists, and even teenage school girls have been arrested!
     The trial was a joke -- on top of charges of rioting and destruction of property, the 528 are all accused of killing one police officer, and defense lawyers were barred from the sentencing session, which lasted less than an hour! But this is not a one off -- the judiciary is repeatedly being used to crackdown on political dissent, while security forces accused of killing hundreds of protesters are rarely held to account. There are real security threats, but as the military authorities' iron fist and intimidation grows, extremism is fuelled.
      This is the harshest mass conviction in modern Egyptian history, but what happens next in this case could have repercussions way beyond Egypt. Sign the urgent petition now asking the Grand Mufti not to rubber stamp state-sponsored murder and to provide the ethical leadership Egypt desperately needs:
http://www.avaaz.org/en/stop_mass_execution_loc/?bwqhjab&v=37959
      The world has kept silent as this regime has launched an all out attack against an imperfect but elected government and brought democracy in Egypt to its knees. Global leaders trumpet democracy at every opportunity and strongly condemn anti-democratic plots from Crimea to Caracas. But not in Egypt. Now if the world looks away and allows this cruel mass execution to happen, a dangerous message will resonate across the globe that the world will stand by democracy, except for political Islam. That wil l empower one small but very dangerous group that can hurt us all: the extremists.
     Time and again the Avaaz community has forcefully advocated against brutal injustice and for peaceful, meaningful reconciliation between embittered communities. Right now Egypt’s future hangs in the balance, and a wildly unjust and provocative ruling like the one handed down in Minya could push it over the edge. Let’s bring the people’s voice to this precarious situation and ensure that these 528 lives are saved

With hope,

Alice, Nick, Oli, Wissam, Bissan, Mais, Emily, Ari, Ricken and the whole Avaaz team

MORE INFORMATION
Hundreds of Egyptians Sentenced to Death in Killing of a Police Officer (New York Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/25/world/middleeast/529-egyptians-sentenced-to-death-in-killing-of-a-police-officer.html
Egypt Opens Another Mass Trial of Islamists (AP)
http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/eg ypt-sentences-529-death-police-attack-23036881

‘Fast’ death penalty for 529 Brotherhood supporters will be appealed: Defence (Ahram)
http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/1/64/97456/Egypt/Politics-/Fast-and-bizarre-death-penalty-for--Brotherhood-su.aspx
Egyptian court sentences 529 people to death (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/egypt-sentences-529-to-death/2014/03/24/a4f95692-6992-461e-aaf1-9bc84908a429_story.html< /span>

Visit ann arky's home at www.radicalglasgow.me.uk

The Silencing Of The People.

        This matters, this is the squeezing out of you and I, the silencing of the little people. It has to be resisted, or our voices will disappear. This appeal from Avaaz:

      The richest 1% could now control what we all see on the Internet forever. It’s the apocalypse of the Internet as we know it, and will erase the democratic promise of an information highway for everyone the founders of the world wide web imagined.
       Together, our community has built on that vision, using the web to fight corruption, save lives, and bring people-powered aid to countries in crisis. But the US and the EU are on the verge of giving the richest corporations the right to show content fast, while paywalling or slowing down everything else. Avaaz’s ability to show the world citizen journalist footage from Syria, or run campaigns to save our planet is under threat!
        Decisions on both sides of the Atlantic are being made now. But tech innovators, free speech advocates and the best web companies are fighting back. If millions of us join them now we can create the largest call for a democratic and free Internet ever. Sign up now and tell everyone:
http://www.avaaz.org/en/internet_apocalypse_pa_eu/?bwqhjab&v=34958
        Until now, any improvements in the speed and functioning of the Internet benefited all of us — if Rupert Murdoch’s ultra-conservative Fox News got a faster way to stream videos, it also benefitted independent media showing reality on the ground in Ukraine, Syria, or Palestine. Politicians called this “net neutrality” and laws protecting it used to exist in the United States until a court just struck them down. Now, the EU Parliament is threatening to pass regulation that give ISPs the right to carve up the web and control w hat we see, by slowing down or charging for sites that don't pay.
      But we can stop this. First, we will show up with massive global numbers into this week’s public meeting in the United States to decide whether to reinstate Internet protections. Then we will unleash a high powered lobby team to target the EU Parliament to ensure its committees listen to the public. This will be the big first step we need to win these important battles over the next few months.
Web providers like Verizon and Vodafone are lobbying hard for an Internet for the rich. And without a massive response from citizens, they could win, and put our whole community’s work at risk. Most of our Internet is located in the US and the EU so this affects us all. We don’t have any time to lose. Click below to join now:
http://www.avaaz.org/en/internet_apocalypse_pa_eu/?bwqhjab&v=34958
       When our community was less than half of the size it is now, we rallied and helped kill the ACTA treaty and stopped massive Internet censorship laws SOPA/PIPA. Today, we are more powerful than ever. Let’s now join together and ensure that what connects us all stays open.
With hope,
Pascal, Emma, Dalia, Luis, Emilie, Luca, Sayeeda and the whole Avaaz team
    PS - Many Avaaz campaigns are started by members of our community. It's easy to get started - click to start yours now and win on any issue - local, national or global: http://www.avaaz.org/en/petition/start_a_petition/?bgMYedb&v=23917

SOURCES:
On dangers of non-Network Neutrality (ABC news):
http://abcnews.go.com/Business/major-ways-internet-change-net-neutrality/story?id=21541399
Save the Internet
http://savetheinternet.eu/en/
EU telecoms market reforms threaten net neutrality and privacy (Wire d)
http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2013-11/19/eu-telecoms-reform-concerns

Federal court strikes down FCC net neutrality rules (The Verge)
http://www.theverge.com/2014/1/14/5307650/federal-court-strikes-down-net-neutrality-rules

Summary of BEREC positions on net neutrality (BEREC)
http://berec.europa.eu/files/document_register_store/2012/12/BoR_(12)_146_Summary_of_BEREC_positions_on_net_neutrality2.pdf

Visit ann arky's home at www.radicalglasgow.me.uk

Stoning By A Loving Religion.

         Of all the barbaric crimes committed by humans, stoning, is probably the most horrific, though I hesitate to classify those who commit this crime as human. Death by hanging, firing squad, guillotine, beheading, though barbaric crimes, as a rule they are usually relatively quick. What kind of beast can take a young woman, it is usually young women, tie their hands by their sides, bury them to their chest in a pit and then stand by and throw stones at them until they are dead. According to wikipedia, stoning is a slow form of execution by torture. What horrendous crime must these poor individuals have committed? In some case it can be, having sex out of marriage, or in a recent case, for the heinous crime of owning a cell phone.

 

 An appeal from AVAAZ, sign the petition HERE.

      There can be no justification for such cruel and barbaric treatment of human or animal, it can't be justified on religious or cultural grounds, and those who advocate it and/or indulge in this inhuman act, are beneath the beasts of the earth, there is no place in the human race where they should be accepted.

      As usual, this is another barbaric spin-off from what is called a loving religion, and like all religions, it is all about instilling obedience by means of fear. No religion is exempt from doing its damnedest to have unswerving passive obedience. A public stoning in a village will surely get all those young women to bow their heads in submission. 

 Visit ann arky's home at www.radicalglasgow.me.uk

THE CORPORATE WORLD FOSTERS CHILD SLAVERY.

        An appeal from AVAAZ regarding child slave labour in India. Slavery is abhorrent in any form, but child slavery must rank at the bottom of the barrel. No child should be denied an education, no child should have its potential destroy, no child should be denied its childhood.

  
Dear friends,

India is stalling the toughest child labour law in its history... because politicians say it’s not a ‘priority’! But the majority of MPs support it and all they need is a massive public push to bring it to a vote. Let´s raise our voices for India´s children. Sign now:

     The Indian Parliament is closing without passing the toughest child labour law in its history. Worse, the bill is supported by the majority of MPs, but it was ignored for weeks, because they felt it was not a ‘priority’!

     India is the world’s child labour capital -- kids as young as five are sold to traffickers and forced to work as modern-day slaves, abused and beaten. The historic new bill would ban outright any child labour under 14 and provide stipends for poor families to keep their children in school. But MPs have let it fall off their agenda, and Indian child rights groups say they badly need our help, now, to ramp up the public pressure.

     If the Avaaz community comes together, we can create a wave of attention to the bill, and push MPs to vote. Sign this urgent petition and forward it widely -- when we reach 1 million we’ll deliver our message to the Parliament with former child workers:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/india_child_labour_g1/?bwqhjab&v=20550

    A staggering 215 million children work in mines, quarries, and factories around the world. All nations have signed an agreement to put the eradication of child labour at the heart of their national education plans. But, India is home to the largest child labour force in the world. If the new law passes, it would ban all child labour for under 14-year-olds and all harmful work for under 18s. The law even has provisions to ensure it doesn’t hurt the poorest families -- enshrining the right to free education and proposing stipends to compensate any losses.

     Critics say the real problem isn’t the law, it’s bad enforcement. And it’s true that in the last three years in India less than 10% of the 450,000 reports of child labour were prosecuted under the existing, weak, law. But the new law packs some serious punch. The police will no longer have to wait for a court order to act. All forms of commercial child labour under 14 will be criminalised, and instead of meaningless fines or short prison sentences, the criminals will face tough penalties.

    While the majority of MPs say they'll support the bill, there's no political urgency to bring it to a vote. But each day they delay, more children are forced into a life of sweatshop misery. It’s up to us to push them over the edge. Sign the petition to India's MPs now, and share widely:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/india_child_labour_g1/?bwqhjab&v=20550

     The Avaaz community has campaigned to protect the children and the most vulnerable, time and time again. Just weeks ago, 1.2 million of us got together to help pass the most comprehensive education plan in Pakistan. How we treat our children is a reflection on our moral compass -- and it´s time to take firm steps against their abuse. Let’s join together to speak out for the future of India’s suffering children.

With hope and determination,

Jamie, Alice, Alex, Alaphia, Lisa, Jeremy, Ricken, Dalia, Rewan, Michelle and the whole Avaaz team

MORE INFORMATION:

India proposes ban on child labor (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/india-proposes-ban-on-child-labor/2012/08/29/ef9d802a-f1f2-11e1-a612-3cfc842a6d89_story.html

Getting ready for the new law against child labour (The Hindu)
http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/article3878212.ece

Over 60 million child laborers in India (India Tribune)
http://www.indiatribune.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2884:over-60-million-child-laborers-in-india

35 child workers rescued from Delhi factories (Business Line)
http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/industry-and-economy/economy/35-child-workers-rescued-from-delhi-factories/article1694550.ece

End Child Labour and Educational Disadvantage - report and film
http://educationenvoy.org/

Support the Avaaz Community!
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ann arky's home.

SMILING FASCISTS IN EXPENSIVE SUITS.

     The corporate beast is working hard at cementing its grip over our lives, it already holds tremendous sway over most elected governments with its financial clout. But they want to go even further and create what would be one massive corporate fascist regime, they want to over rule any legislation they deem hinders their plunder and rape of the planet. Legislation might be for the benefit and welfare of the people, but if it gets in the way of their sacred profits, then it will be over-ridden. New fascism doesn't come marching down the streets in jackboots, it sits in plush offices dressed in expensive suits, but it is just as brutal and ruthless. We ignore it at our peril. 

This from AVAAZ: 

Dear friends,

We have four days to stop a top-secret global corporate power grab that attacks everything from a free Internet to environmental protections. This agreement is being negotiated right now by bureaucrats backed by corporate lobbyists. Click below to crash their secret meeting with our global call to kill the TPP deal:

    Details are leaking of a top-secret, global corporate power grab of breathtaking scope -- attacking everything from a free Internet to health and environmental regulations, and we have just 4 days to stop it. 
     Big business has a new plan to fatten their pockets: a giant global pact, with an international tribunal to enforce it, that is kept top secret for years (even from our lawmakers!) and then brought down like a Death Star on our democracies. Big Tobacco, Big Oil, Big Pharma, Walmart and almost 600 other corporate lobbyists are all in on the draft -- including limits on smoking laws, affordable medicines and free speech on the Net.

    The latest round of negotiations ends in just 4 days -- but outcries in each of our countries could shake the confidence of negotiators and scuttle the talks forever. Let's get to a million against the global corporate takeover. Sign below and forward widely. Avaaz will project our petition counter on the walls of the conference so negotiators can see the opposition to their plan exploding in real time:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/stop_the_corporate_death_star/?bwqhjab&v=17858

    The deal, called the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), is written to protect investors from government regulation, even if that regulation is passed in the public interest. Leaked versions suggest the TPP would undermine protections for air and water safety and reintroduce measures from the US Internet freedom attack as well as steamrolling efforts to produce generic affordable medicines. Worse still, lawmakers who fail to conform to the TPP’s rules face sanctions in an international tribunal -- a place where corporations can sue us for deals previous governments signed in secret!   Negotiators say this is just a trade agreement, written to facilitate investment and profit for all. But the leaked draft imposes so many limits on citizen protections, it's clear this "trade" agreement is skewed to put corporate profit above people's needs -- that's not surprising since it's been drafted in secret with almost 600 corporate lobbyists.

   But there is hope: Australia is bucking against the international tribunal system, and New Zealand is objecting to the takeover of its medicine-pricing protections that keep drugs affordable. Massive public opposition, casting doubt over each country's ability to sell TPP at home, could derail the talks for good. Sign the petition now, and forward widely -- the delegates and lobbyists are watching the wave of opposition grow in real time:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/stop_the_corporate_death_star/?bwqhjab&v=17858

    US Candidate for Senate, Elizabeth Warren in a recent speech said: “Corporations are not people. People have hearts, they have kids, they get jobs, they get sick, they cry, they dance. They live, they love, and they die. And that matters, because we don't run this country for corporations, we run it for people." Let’s reach one million to stop the corporate takeover of our governments.

With hope,

Iain, Pedro, Laura, Ari, Emma, Lisa, Luca, Ricken and the whole Avaaz team

ann arky's home.

THE FIGHT FOR INTERNET FREEDOM.

      This campaign has delivered a 2.4 million petition to the European Parliament, but it seems it is not enough, so let's keep the pressure up and win this one. This from AVAAZ:

Our outcry has stunned European politicians and nearly buried ACTA, but the European Commission is now trying a last ditch attempt to revive it through a legal endorsement. We can stop it if we rally together again and demand the Court assesses ACTA's full impact on our Internet rights and freedoms. Sign the urgent petition now:

      In days, the European Commission will try a last ditch ttempt to revive ACTA. But if we intervene now this global attack on Internet freedom will collapse.
      We are so close to winning -- our 2.4 million strong petition has stunned politicians across Europe and halted the censors. Now the European Commission is on the back foot and hoping the Court of Justice will give ACTA the greenlight by presenting a very narrow legal question that is sure to receive a positive answer.
      But if we all raise our voices now we can ensure the Court looks at all the legal impacts of ACTA, and releases an opinion that tells the truth about ACTA's attack on our rights. Sign the urgent petition to European Commission President José Manuel Barroso to call on the Court to tell the whole truth:
http://www.avaaz.org/en/acta_time_to_win_eu//?vl
        The European Commission spent five years negotiating ACTA in secret with corporations, but in the last five weeks we've blown the ACTA debate into the open. Now the Commission is fighting to keep ACTA alive by getting the blessing of the EU’s highest court. The Commission, well-versed in bureaucratic dodges, may only present the court with a narrow question, preventing it from assessing ACTA's impacts on our freedom of expression, privacy and democracy.
      We’ve forced governments in Poland, Germany, Bulgaria and other countries to freeze ratification. And now, if we win this battle in the European Commission, we can stop ACTA for good. If the EU does not ratify, ACTA will never become a global agreement and negotiators will have to go back to the drawing board to produce a treaty that stops genuine abuses but protects our rights.
      Let's urgently call on the Commission and Court to give ACTA a full and fair hearing, and make sure the whole truth about this threat to our fundamental freedoms is revealed. Sign now and send this to everyone:
http://www.avaaz.org/en/acta_time_to_win_eu//?vl
       Millions of us joined together to fight for Internet freedom and stop the US censorship laws. We won, but now this threat is back on a global scale with ACTA. We've done what no one thought we could and stopped the treaty's march to ratification. Let's finish what we started and beat back ACTA, for good!

With hope and determination,

Alex, Pascal, Laura, Alice, Ricken, Dalia, Diego and the whole Avaaz team

ann arky's home.

BIG BROTHER, HE'S STILL AROUND.

        Like I keep saying, in this type of society big brother never goes away, it can be the state, it can be the fascist corporate Mafia, or both. Until we get rid of both, we will always have to fight big brother.

From AVAAZ

A new global treaty could allow corporations to police everything that we do on the Internet. Last week 3 million of us successfully pushed back the US censorship bills -- if we act now, we can get the EU Parliament to bury this new threat to all of us:

       Last week, 3 million of us beat back America's attack on our Internet! -- but there is an even bigger threat out there, and our global movement for freedom online is perfectly poised to kill it for good.

     ACTA -- a global treaty -- could allow corporations to censor the Internet. Negotiated in secret by a small number of rich countries and corporate powers, it would set up a shadowy new anti-counterfeiting body to allow private interests to police everything that we do online and impose massive penalties -- even prison sentences -- against people they say have harmed their business.

      Europe is deciding right now whether to sign ACTA -- and without them, this global attack on Internet freedom will collapse. We know they have opposed ACTA before, but some members of Parliament are wavering -- let's give them the push they need to reject the treaty. Sign the petition -- we'll do a spectacular delivery in Brussels when we reach 500,000 signatures:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/eu_save_the_internet/?vl

       It's outrageous -- governments of four-fifths of the world’s people were excluded from the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) negotiations and unelected bureaucrats have worked closely with corporate lobbyists to craft new rules and a dangerously powerful enforcement regime. ACTA would initially cover the US, EU and 9 other countries, then be rolled out across the world. But if we can get the EU to say no now, the treaty will lose momentum and could stall for good.

      The oppressively strict regulations could mean people everywhere are punished for simple acts such as sharing a newspaper article or uploading a video of a party where copyrighted music is played. Sold as a trade agreement to protect copyrights, ACTA could also ban lifesaving generic drugs and threaten local farmers' access to the seeds they need. And, amazingly, the ACTA committee will have carte blanche to change its own rules and sanctions with no democratic scrutiny.

       Big corporate interests are pushing hard for this, but the EU Parliament stands in the way. Let's send a loud call to Parliamentarians to face down the lobbies and stand firm for Internet freedom. Sign now and send to everyone you know:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/eu_save_the_internet/?vl

         Last week, we saw the strength of our collective power when millions of us joined forces to stop the US from passing an Internet censorship law that would have struck at the heart of the Internet. We also showed the world how powerful our voices can be. Let's raise them again to tackle this new threat.

With hope and determination,
Dalia, Alice, Pascal, Emma, Ricken, Maria Paz and the rest of the Avaaz team

More information:

If You Thought SOPA Was Bad, Just Wait Until You Meet ACTA
http://www.forbes.com/sites/erikkain/2012/01/23/if-you-thought-sopa-was-bad-just-wait-until-you-meet-acta/

ACTA vs. SOPA: Five Reasons ACTA is Scarier Threat to Internet Freedom
http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/286925/20120124/acta-sopa-reasons-scarier-threat-internet-freedom.htm?cid=2

What's Wrong With ACTA
http://www.edri.org/edrigram/number10.1/whats-wrong-with-ACTA

The secret treaty: Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) and Its Impact on Access to Medicines
http://www.msfaccess.org/content/secret-treaty-anti-counterfeiting-trade-agreement-acta-and-its-impact-access-medicines

ann arky's home.

ISRAELI APARTHEID.

 

         Day and daily the Palestinian people face the harsh and brutal repression of the Israeli apartheid system. It took many years of struggle by the people of South Africa to dismantle the apartheid system in that country, and let's not forget the civil rights movement in America to break down such a system in that country, here we are in the 21 century and the stench of apartheid has not been removed from the earth. The fact that such an inhumane system is still pursued is not just an indictment against the Israeli state, but also an indictment against the international community, that includes you and I.

This is an appeal for support for the Palestinian people from AVAAZ.

  

Dear friends,

In hours, brave Palestinians will risk attack and arrest to board public buses that are forbidden to Arabs. This could be the beginning of a game-changing, non-violent Palestinian spring -- direct action to win freedom and a new state. Avaaz is webcasting the action LIVE -- click to watch, and provide the global solidarity the activists need to win:

     In the next few hours, history could be made in Palestine. A small number of brave Palestinians will risk attack and arrest to commit a forbidden act -- they will board a public bus.
     Lacking their own state, Palestinians are forbidden to use buses and roads reserved for non-Arabs -- part of a host of race-based rules that US President Jimmy Carter has called "apartheid". 50 years ago, African-Americans in the US challenged these rules by simply and non-violently refusing to follow them. In a few hours, Palestinians will take the same approach, and their actions will be live webcasted by Avaaz teams at the link below.
    As diplomats stall in the fight for a Palestinian state, the Palestinian people are taking the fight into their own hands, one public service at a time. And they're doing it with the simple, elegant and unstoppable moral force of non-violence in the tradition of Gandhi and Martin Luther King. The Palestinian spring begins right now - click below to watch it LIVE, register support, and give these brave activists the global solidarity and attention they urgently need to win:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/palestine_freedom_riders/?vl

     Non-violence is the game-changing force in this long-standing conflict. Boarding buses is a symbolic act, but so was Gandhi's salt march, and Rosa Park's own courageous ride on a segregated bus in the US. Just as non-violent protest was able to topple dictators in Egypt and Tunisia, so can it finally free the Palestinian people from 40 years of crippling military oppression by a foreign power.
     There are many dangers. Israel has been arming the extremist settler population, a tactic which is likely, if not intended, to provoke awful violence that will draw the news cameras away from the brave acts of non-violence. Even the Palestinian authorities are pushing back on the action which they fear will start a democratic protest movement that they cannot control. But these few brave Palestinians have had enough, and if we stand with them now, we can help them ignite a flame that will burn its way all the way to a free and peaceful Palestinian state:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/palestine_freedom_riders/?vl

     We have no idea what will happen in the next 24 hours. Maybe the authorities will crush this brave action. Maybe it will spark into a massive conflagration. Maybe it will sow the first seed of an unstoppable movement with tremendous integrity. But we can watch it live, and lend our voices to the effort. And maybe one day, we can tell our grandchildren that we were there when Palestinians boarded the buses that would ultimately take them to freedom.

With hope and determination,
Ricken, Emma, Alice, Raluca, Pascal, Diego and the rest of the Avaaz team

 

Sources:
I Woke Up This Morning with My Mind Set on Freedom
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/clarence-b-jones/i-woke-up-this-morning-wi_b_1087407.html

Freedom Riders: 1961 and the struggle for racial justice
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/19/books/review/19foner.html

Palestinian Freedom Rides echo the Civil Rights Movement
http://www.alternativenews.org/english/index.php/topics/news/3888-freedom-rides

'Freedom Rides' to Resume in Palestine
http://www.palestinechronicle.com/view_article_details.php?id=17242

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STOP THE WALL STREET EVICTION.

         An urgent appeal from Avaaz to show solidarity with the  Occupy Wall St. movement, in an attempt to stop the police from forcibly removing the protesters.

Urgent -- tomorrow at 7 am, the New York City police plan to evict the Occupy Wall Street protesters.

       The only way to stop the eviction is a roaring outcry to New York's billionaire mayor, Mike Bloomberg, and to the owners of the protest park. We must show them that their global reputations are on the line.

       Let's flood their offices with phone calls! Avaaz will tell the media about the numbers of calls made, multiplying their impact on the public image of Bloomberg and Richard B. Clark -- the CEO of the company that owns the park. If enough of us call now, we could turn the tide and stop the eviction--but only hours are left!

Call the Mayor and Brookfield Properties Here:

New York mayor Michael Bloomberg: +1-212-NEW-YORK (639-9675) Brookfield CEO Richard Clark: +1-212-417-7063

Brookfield US headquarters: +1-212-417-7000

Brookfield Canada headquarters: +1-416-369-2300

Brookfield Australia headquarters: +61-2-9322-2000

After calling, post a message about how the call went

-- to help Avaaz count the number of calls made, and demonstrate the wave of worldwide support for the protesters.

http://www.avaaz.org/en/emergency_callin_to_stop_eviction/?vl

Suggestions for your call:

Say that you have a message for Brookfield CEO Richard Clark or NYC Mayor Bloomberg (depending on who you are calling)

Stop the eviction of Zuccotti Park

We have a constitutional right to protest.

This is one of the biggest shows of public outrage in decades and these people represent hundreds of thousands across the world who stand with the protesters and the movement for real democracy.

The protesters are cleaning up the park, keeping it clean and safe

http://www.avaaz.org/en/emergency_callin_to_stop_eviction/?vl

We can help make sure the thousands of protesters rights to freedom of speech and assembly are respected by calling Billionare Bloomberg and Brookfield. Forward to everyone!

Emma, Morgan, Maria Paz, Alice, Ben, Rewan and the whole Avaaz team

SOURCES:

Occupy Wall Street protesters fear eviction from park
http://news.nationalpost.com/2011/10/13/occupy-wall-street-protesters-fear-eviction-from-park/

Update: Occupy Wall Street Responds to Bloomberg’s Cleaning ‘Eviction Notice’
http://www.observer.com/2011/10/occupy-wall-street-responds-to-bloombergs-eviction-notice/

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EVERYBODY DESERVES A COUNTRY??

Dear friends,

             In 48 hours, the UN Security Council will meet again to discuss Palestine's bid to become the 194^th country.
Already 700,000 of us have joined the campaign. But we need more of us to shift key countries to vote in favour.
          Avaaz has made a powerful short video that tells the real story and why this is the best chance for peace.As violence sparks again and tensions rise in the Middle East, a new proposal for Palestinian independence is gaining steam across the globe -- if we can push it through the UN, it could open a new path to peace.
           But key governments are still on the fence and to tip them to support independence we need to ramp up public pressure. Many people don't feel they understand the situation well enough to take action. To help, Avaaz has made a new short video that tells the real story about the conflict. If enough people see it, sign the petition and forward it to everyone -- our leaders will be forced to listen.
          Almost 10 million of us are receiving this email. Let's change the conversation about the Middle East and build a tidal wave of support for Palestinian independence before the UN Security Council meets to discuss this initiative next week. Click below to watch the video, sign the petition, and forward this email to everyone:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/middle_east_peace_now/?vl

           While the majority of Palestinian and Israeli people want a solution to the conflict based on two states, the Israeli extremist government continues to approve the building of settlements in contested areas -- fueling hate and bloodshed. Despite repeated efforts, decades of US-led peace talks have failed to rein-in the peace killers and get an agreement. Right now, this independence proposal could be the best chance for years to break the stalemate, avoid another spiral into violence and level the playing field between the two parties to favour negotiations.
           Last month, the Palestinians presented their bid at the Security Council. Over 120 countries support them, but the US rejects the proposal, and is sending a clear message to its European allies that supporting the legitimate Palestinian bid will strain bilateral relations. It is now up to us to tell key European leaders that public opinion is behind this diplomatic non-violent push and that citizen opinion should influence policy choices, instead of the preferences of the American government.
Our campaign is exploding across the world -- Almost 700,000 of us joined the call in the first days! It has been on the front page of major news media, cited at the UN Security Council, and tweeted by the Palestinian president himself! Now let's make sure it resounds in the ears of key European leaders whose support is critical. Click below to watch the video, sign the petition if you haven't yet, and forward this email to everyone -- let's reach 1 million signers:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/middle_east_peace_now/?vl

         There is much misinformation about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and many of us feel unsure about getting involved. But this short film lays it out clearly and can empower us to act. As a nearly 10 million-strong global network in every country in the world, we have the chance to provoke a vote that could turn the tide on decades of violence.

With hope,
Alice, Pascal, Emma, Ricken, David, Rewan, and the Avaaz team

MORE INFORMATION:
Israeli settlement plan earns ire of U.S., Palestinian Authority (CNN)
http://edition.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/meast/08/16/israel.settlements/

Palestinians to present statehood bid to UN General Assembly (Guardian)
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/aug/14/palestinian-statehood-un-general-assembly

Israeli minister: Cut ties with Palestinians (Associated Press)
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5ibKJgqvlCr_xCGw5Xb0kXhOiagjQ?docId=0b01e969e8504d42823abd51c2abf8fc

UN calls on Israel not to build new settlements in East Jerusalem (Ha'aretz)
http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/un-calls-on-israel-not-to-build-new-settlements-in-east-jerusalem-1.378218

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