FGM Banned in Eritrea

On April 4, the country of Eritrea banned the practice of female genital mutilation (FGM). They join fourteen other African countries in taking a formal, legislative stance against the harmful, traumatizing, and life-threatening practice.

The passing of this law was a victory for the National Union of Eritrean Women. Their campaign against FGM brought about this legislative action.

~Mothering

States Resist Real ID Nightmare

Montana and Washington states defied the U.S. government in late April. They each enacted the first state laws to reject the 2005 federal Real ID Act. Calling it a “Real Nightmare” states are putting pressure on Congress to amend or repeal the REAL ID’s national standards for driver's licenses. 30 states have passed or are considering proposals condemning the license standards.  Americans are urged to tell their Congresspeople NO to the Real ID Nightmare.

The REAL ID would impose huge costs on states to implement this national ID. Drivers licenses would likely cost $100. Identify theft would increase.  States object to federal intrusion into what had been a state responsibility and lack of  federal funding for it. Many also fear the specter of a national ID card. Bills condemning Real ID have been introduced in 15 more state legislatures.

~Stateline.org

Farm Workers Win at McDonald’s 

After a two-year campaign by the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW), McDonald’s agreed to pay more for Florida tomatoes.  The mostly immigrant farm workers will get higher wages and better working conditions. The CIW won its first precedent-setting agreement in 2005 with Yum Brands, which owns Taco Bell. Now CIW plans to win the same deal with Burger King.

~ Workers World
55 W. 17 St, New York NY 10011

Union Sues Meatpacking Plants 

United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) has sued the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency for their illegal raid on Swift & Co. Meatpacking plants in six states.

            1,000 ICE agents invaded Swift plants on Dec. 12 in Nebraska, Texas, Utah, Iowa, Minnesota and Colorado. They arrested 1,200 workers and sprayed them with chemical weapons. They forced them onto busses without any opportunity to prove their legal status or contact family members or lawyers. They took them to military camps. Some were still there two months later. ICE forbid parents to contact children. They were left waiting at schools and day care centers. Many of the children ended up being housed in prisons.

The government claimed the immigrants were using stolen identities to tap into bank accounts or private information. Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff  said the raids were necessary because terrorists can use such phony papers to get on airplanes! But none of the 170 arrest warrants were related to terrorism. And only 65 of the 1,200 workers face criminal charges for identity theft. They used false social security numbers to get jobs. All the other workers were legal residents targeted simply because of their ethnicity.

            There has been an outpouring of support from local churches and charities in areas affected by the raids. Hundreds of people lined the streets in Greeley CO during the raid to protest what was happening. Over 130 groups are helping families of the victims in Greeley alone.

~ Industrial Worker
POB 13476, Philadelphia PA 19101

Victory--at Last--for Los Angeles 8

After 20 years Los Angeles immigration court has dismissed charges against the last two members of the Los Angeles 8. Judge Bruce Einhorn  found that “the government has failed to carry its burden of proving respondents deportable based on clear, unequivocal and convincing evidence.”

            In 1987 FBI agents invaded the homes of seven Palestinian men and one Kenyan woman in the middle of the night. They arrested them and charged them with violating the McCarran-Walter Act of the Red-scare era. The eight had raised funds and passed out literature that aided the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), a Marxist group. In 1988 a federal district judge ruled that the McCarran-Walter Act was unconstitutional because it denied immigrants their First Amendment rights.

            In 1987, no one—citizen or not—could be prosecuted for association with an organization. It did not matter what the group’s relationship was with the US government. But the case proceeded because of the PFLP’s Marxist character. And the FBI claimed that the PFLP intends destruction of property and assassination of leaders of states.

The LA 8’s supporters say that the government will probably appeal the decision despite all the legal and political embarrassment.

~ Workers  World

Asian Immigrants Win $2.5 Million Suit 

On Jan. 11, a federal jury awarded $2.5 million to 200 Chinese Daily News employees as part of a class-action lawsuit. The jury found the newspaper failed to pay overtime and allow rest and meal breaks for non-managerial staff. Included in the suit were newsroom, advertising and pressroom staff as well as reporters and other hourly employees at its Monterey Park office.

            The workers are immigrants from Hong Kong, Taiwan, China and Vietnam. They don’t speak English, so the company took advantage of them. They worked 12-hour days, six days a week. The company told them not to fill in more than eight hours a day on their time cards. They did not keep records of hours for reporters and sales people.

~ Workers World

Immigrants’ Victory  in Virginia 

On Feb. 2, in front of the General Assembly building in Richmond VA, a group of immigrants began a hunger strike. They were protesting 50 anti-immigrant bills that had been introduced in the Assembly. The bills would make it a crime to be an undocumented immigrant in Virginia. It would also become a crime to transport or visit undocumented immigrants or  provide them with jobs, public services or humanitarian help. Churches, teachers, doctors or staff of support organizations could be charged criminally. Immigrant children would be denied an education. The proposed laws would have authorized local and state police to assume federal immigration functions.

            On Feb. 3, immigrants and hundreds of non-immigrant students and groups marched to the state capitol. They demanded a NO vote on anti-immigrant laws and an end to the raids by ICE.

            On  Feb. 4, immigrants and religious ministers held a vigil in front of the General Assembly in support of the hunger strikers and their community. By this time many negative bills had been approved by the House, but had not yet been approved by the state Senate.

            On Feb. 5. immigrant groups visited legislators in their offices to express their concerns and demands. Then they formally announced the end of the hunger strike and the Immigrant Journey for Justice.

            On Feb. 24 the General Assembly ended its session. The State Senate voted down 42 of the most dangerous anti-immigrant proposals.

~ People’s Tribune
PO Box 3524, Chicago IL 60654

Budget Cuts Restored After Thousands Protest 

In December, thousands of people converged on the State House in Massachusetts to protest $425 million budget cuts by Gov. Mitt Romney. The cuts slashed programs in mental health, childcare, partner violence hotlines, elder outreach, beds for the homeless, public higher education, public safety and other human services. Romney claimed the cuts were needed to balance the budget. Protestors suspected Romney was playing to conservative voters in preparation for his presidential bid.

            Newly elected Gov. Deval Patrick announced that he would restore the cuts. Patrick said, “Overwhelmingly these broad-based cuts have a serious negative impact on thousands of Massachusetts residents.”

            Tens of thousands of families have been pushed off welfare. State officials now admit that the “Full Employment Program,” which subsidizes businesses to hire former welfare recipients, is a failure. Training programs for those on public assistance often fail to prepare people for the workforce. Women struggling in poverty and raising their children are already working. They should be recognized and compensated for that work.

~ Survival News
95 Standard St, Mattapan MA 02126

Poor Peoples Union Declares Victory in Washington 

On Feb. 1 the city of Olympia WA banned sitting, panhandling or performing on public sidewalks. So the Poor Peoples Union (PPU) set up a tent city they called Camp Quixote in downtown Olympia. The encampment grew to 50 people with 25 tents, a kitchen, portable toilet and communal hall. Residents organized trash brigades, made decisions collectively, and banned drugs and alcohol.

            On Feb. 6, the city manager entered the camp and the police chief gave a verbal order for the people to leave. They did not. On Feb. 8 the City distributed fliers. On one side of the fliers the city promised to arrest Camp Quixote residents. On the other side it listed phone numbers for shelters. Most of the numbers were for places that had no available space. Other numbers didn’t even work.

            On Feb. 18 the Unitarian Universalist Church of Olympia granted Camp Quixote the right to stay on church land for 90 days. In their new location, residents are planning their next move.

            The Homelessness Marathon is a 14-hour radio broadcast featuring the voices of homeless people from around the US and Canada. The Tenth annual Homelessness Marathon was broadcast from Fresno CA. There is a tent city in Fresno. The city has received $8 million to address affordable housing issues. Most of that has not reached the homeless or the poor.

            There is another tent city in St. Petersburg FL. It allows the homeless to maintain dignity, safety and privacy as they work towards saving enough for their own apartments. Most of them will have to work 6-12 weeks to make enough for first/last/security on an apartment, another $200-$400 for water and electric deposit and then some furniture.

            In San Jose, in coordination with the national Homelessness Marathon, the Community Homeless Alliance Ministry (CHAM) organized a barbecue to protest homelessness. In California there are 170,000 homeless people, one quarter of the country’s entire homeless population. There are 59,000 families on the Section 8 waiting list in San Jose. At current funding levels it will take 60 years for these families to get into the program and find affordable housing.

~ People’s Tribune

Black Broadcasting Company Bans Racist and Sexist Music 

Roberts Broadcasting Cos.LLC announced in April that they will no longer play any music whose lyrics promote violence, racism or sexism.  The company owns four television stations: WRBU in St. Louis, WZRB in Columbia, S.C.,WAZE in Evensville, Ind., and WRBJ in Jackson, Miss. They also operate a hip-hop station, WRBJ-FM in Jackson.

            They will not be censoring language, Roberts spokeswoman stated. “We’re going to ban them altogether, which is a hard move for a hip-hop station. It it’s offensive in any way toward women, toward African Americans, it’s not going to be played on Hot 97.7.”

            Michael and Steven Roberts are the owners of Roberts Broadcasting. Steven Roberts stated, “We take tremendous pride in being African-American and refuse to let anyone, White or Black, strip us of that pride.”

The Michigan Citizen
2669 Bagley, Detroit 48216; 313.963.8282