Amnesty International Local Group #
642
20
January
2005
Red
Mug Coffee Shop
Superior
,
Wisconsin
(unedited
minutes)
1.
Update on SVAW Spring events (Amy)
a.
Community Calendar
Beth Olson. April sexual
assault awareness month. PASVA is
organizing the Take Back The Night rally on
28 April. Group that plans it
is a large group. 1976 was the first
one in
Germany
.
There will be a march and rally.
Auburn
and Hal will represent Local Group #642 on the planning committee.
Meeting at the Building at the Women.
Pre-event the night before. All
three news channels show up for the pre-event.
Public reading on an international focus.
Amy will contact the YWCA to see if we could use it as a venue.
She’ll call before Monday or Tuesday.
Travis and
Auburn
will attend. The reading will occur
on three different dates, likely in February,
March and April before Take
Back The Night.
We can put the community calendar of events on our AI web site.
Amy will contact WST at LSS and UMD for events.
HAL will take care of getting calendar from UW-Superior.
Jason Bell will take care of getting calendar from Men as Peacemakers.
The student who went overseas will find out what the plans are from
CASDA and
April 5 flower sale. To raise
money. Will also be on their web
page.
$65 sexual assault workshop—for colleges, etc.
by a nationally known speaker will be held on April 21 at the Holiday Inn
in
Duluth
. More info at: WWW.PASVA.org.
March 8 international women’s day is the first reading.
Travis per travis. Last
Saturday in march. Maybe at the
Depot.
25 here. The UU UMD
coordinator was here, too.
2.
Local Group point person opportunities (Bret)
Bret invited people to become point persons: Outfront network (LBGT), USA
network, women’s human rights action networ4k, control arms campaign, death
penalty action network, government action network, special focus case for our
region, regional action networks, national week of student action, corporate
action network, NY will send information to you If you fill out post card.
So you can tell all of us what action is needed to be done
3.
Discussion with
Superior
Senior High (Amy)
a.
Paying for holiday cards--$38. Hal/Haji
motion. Approved by consensus.
Tee shirts. Local Group has
at 60% of cost. UMD got them and
could keep 40%. Other student groups
could do fund raising the same way. Per
Bret.
Banners to each student grop. Bret
will take care of. Each student
group will contact. If no response
Bret will follow up.
4.
2005 Local Group Action Plan (Mayra)
Brain storm. Memorial Day
garage sale
Auburn
.
Film festival. Norshor will
likely work with us again. In my
country.
Rwanda
.
Suggestions from Haji. Argument
for doing the film festival at one of the campuses where there would be fewer
distractions. Auburn al-Humsi case.
Set aside a day to make an action plan.
April 28 may be Syrian political holiday.
Strong letter writing campaign on that date.
All of us on the lift bridge with a photo.
Midwest Regional Conference highlighted our Duluth City Council
resolution on al-Humsi. Feb 1 $8
dinner for tsunami victims—do something similar do get funds for student
groups. Could have a benefit dinner.
Haji. And on the community
calendar.
5.
Amnesty International General Meeting and International Council Meeting
issues (Mayra)..
USA
General meeting Austin Texas.
International Council Meeting Aug 13-21
Full
spectrum. Will AI work on all
violations of Human Rights Declaration. At
present it is restricted to certain violations.
Ai has worked on a very narrow set of human rights.
But will it now decide whether or not to work on the full-spectrum of
human rights, including economic and social rights.
Amnesty
d (discussion). We are encouraged to
participate in the discussion. There
will be a circular on going full spectrum that will be circulated soon.
Mayra
will bring the full text to the next 642 meeting.
Controversial
issues at general meeting
Reproductive
rights—what will AI do in the future? We
have taken more restricted position in the past.
Armed
intervention. AI has been neutral.
E.g, invasion of
Iraq
,
DRC.
Mayra
could send copies of paper on armed intervention.
6.
Take Back the Night meeting (
1-21-05
)
7.
10 to 20 individuals, organizations, or issues for DOS to act
on (email from David Stamps)
We
nominate al-Humsi. Hal will
send to David
8.
Stopping
U. S.
abuse of POWs at
Guantanamo
(Jan)
“Abu Graib” was going on in
Central America
in the
1980s, but we didn’t have digital cameras then.
U.S.
use of torture is a pattern.
We have an opportunity to do something really important about
Guantanamo
. Could we prevent Congress
from allocating money for these prisons. What
book did Haji get today on torture? Haji
suggested a book club on these issues.
How we can make outreach an event that will reach others.
There is a lot of interest in issues of torture,
Iraq
,
Guantanamo
.
Partnering with Allworth Institute on a international speaker.
Mayra will follow up on films on war on terror, torture, etc. Sociology
professor suggested Control Room. Bret
suggested Panama Deception about the invasion of
Panama
video. We would see that it
is a pattern. Not isolated.
Beth workshop last spring how to conduct social action.
How to do an action plan. Beth
is interested in partnering. Kind of
like a teach in; training for
change. George lakey is a web site.
Beth said pasva would like to do it in the fall.
Feedback was to split it into two days.
Haji would like to see a class on political action.
Amy suggested that we need some rejuvenating things.
Because the film festival is so draining.
Write-athon. International
human rights day. Also the al-Humsi
case. Film festival in the spring.
Benefit dinner.
Readings
for the spring. Book club.
Can Veterans for Peace be involved? (
Warren
) Bret thought that would be
a great idea.
Training
for change. Org. social action
workshop. Perhaps college students
would be interested. Trainers could
come here.
Mayra
and Bret will brainstorm with Jan.
9.
Death Penalty Action for MLK Day (Bret & Travis)
10.
Minnesota SVAW Campaign Conference call
1-10-05
(Hal)
11
.
www.talibancountry.com film
(Bret) Director willing to come and show this film.
She was embedded with marines in
Afghanistan
.
She went back afterwards to document the human rights abuses by U.S.
Marines. Narrow opportunity in mid
February.
Auburn
will take some responsibility here.
UWS is also interested. Susanna
at UMD is also interested.
12.
The
Salvador
Option (Bret)
Augsburg
College
Feb 11 and 12. Mary Robinson.
Former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.
13.
Citizens in Action “How to Make a Difference” (
1-29-05
)
14
.
al-Humsi and SVAW dramatic reading (Auburn Powell)
15.
Other
Tuesdays
work for next meeting. Feb 8.
6 PM. Tentative.