Group 133's Electronic Newsletter for February 2008 =============================================== Next Meeting: Tuesday, February 12, 2008 The Northeast Regional Office is still undergoing rennovations. Our monthly meeting will be in a special location: Physicians for Human Rights Office 2 Arrow Street, Suite 301 (Near Harvard Square), Cambridge, MA 02138 =============================================== THE STATUTE OF AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL Adopted by the 25th International Council Meeting, Dakar, Senegal, August 17-25, 2001 VISION AND MISSION Amnesty International's vision is of a world in which every person enjoys all of the human rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international human rights standards. In pursuit of this vision, Amnesty International's mission is to undertake research and action focused on preventing and ending grave abuses of the rights to physical and mental integrity, freedom of conscience and expression, and freedom from discrimination, within the context of its work to promote all human rights. CORE VALUES Amnesty International forms a global community of human rights defenders with the principles of international solidarity, effective action for the individual victim, global coverage, the universality and indivisibility of human rights, impartiality and independence, and democracy and mutual respect. =============================================== CALENDAR *Tuesday, February 12th: Group 133 Monthly Meeting, 7pm Physicians for Human Rights Office, 2 Arrow Street, Suite 301, Cambridge *February 11-March 2: The Death Penalty Photography Documentary Project A photo story about the death penalty in the United States by Scott Langley on exhibit at the Lucy Parsons Center, 549 Columbus Avenue *February 13th: Journey from Victim to Advocate A Young Genocide Survivor Shares Her Story Bell Hall, Carr Center, 4-5:30pm *February 25th: "The Devil Came on Horseback" Wiener Auditorium, Carr Center, 6:00pm =============================================== GROUP CONTACTS (NOTE: To avoid potential spamming, your newsletter editor has replaced searchable parts of email addresses with words.) Group Co-Coordinators: Kelly Turley, kellyturley-AT-excite-DOT-com Rick Roth, roth-AT-igc.apc-DOT-org Newsletter Editor: Tamara Jenkins, 617-267-7262, tamara_ann_jenkins-AT-yahoo-DOT-com Refugee Action Team Coordinator: Eric Aronson, 617-512-7526, eric-AT-amnesty133-DOT-org Urgent Action Letter Coordinator: Kirsten Burt, kirsten.burt-AT-comcast-dot-net Tabling Coordinator and New Member Coordinator: Becky Ticotsky, rticotsky-AT-wesleyan-DOT-edu Treasurer: Tina Huang, tinalhuang-AT-gmail-DOT-com Secretary: Tamara Jenkins, 617-267-7262, tamara_ann_jenkins-AT-yahoo-DOT-com For questions about the following issues, please contact these individuals: Tibet Actions: Rick Roth, roth-AT-igc.apc-DOT-org Death Penalty Actions: Molly Johnson,mollykj-AT-email-DOT-com or dp-AT-amnesty133-DOT-org Stop Violence Against Women Campaign Kelly Turley, kellyturley-AT-excite-DOT-com Amnesty International USA Northeast Regional Office 58 Day St, Davis Square Somerville, MA 02144 617-623-0202 aiusane@aiusa.org www.amnesty133.org Available Positions: * Tibet Action Team Coordinator * Death Penalty Abolition Team Coordinator * Human Rights & the Environment Coordinator * Media Coordinator * Communications Coordinator * Tabling Coordinator * Web Site Coordinator =============================================== Please join us for the February meeting of Amnesty International Group 133 ! Tuesday, February 12, 2008, 7 p.m. - 9 p.m. ** Special Location: Physicians for Human Rights Office 2 Arrow Street, Suite 301 (Near Harvard Square), Cambridge, MA 02138 ** Agenda •    Letter Writing •    Introductions and Amnesty Mandate •   Special Presentation: The Children of Darfur- Dorothy Morgos, Ph.D. Dorothy Morgos, Ph.D., is a Post-Doctoral Psychology Fellow at the Yale University School of Medicine, Child Study Center. Originally from Sudan, Dr. Morgos has conducted qualitative research on refugee children and families from Darfur. Her presentation will include children's stories and art. Thank you to Group 133 member Eric Aronson for his outreach and work in preparing for this presentation! •   Get on the Bus for Human Rights 2008 Updates •   Brief Action Team/Campaign Updates •   Past and Future Events The Amnesty Northeast Regional Office still is undergoing renovations, so we are very grateful to Danielle Fox and Physicians for Human Rights for agreeing to host us! The meeting will be on the third floor, in the conference room. (Signs will be posted to help you find us!) ============================================== QUOTES “Peace, in the sense of the absence of war, is of little value to someone who is dying of hunger or cold. It will not remove the pain of torture inflicted on a prisoner of conscience. It does not comfort those who have lost their loved ones in floods caused by senseless deforestation in a neighboring country. Peace can only last where human rights are respected, where the people are fed, and where individuals and nations are free.” --His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama ============================================== GROUP 133 ANNOUNCEMENTS PHOTOGRAPHY EXHIBIT AT LUCY PARSONS BOOKSTORE The Death Penalty Photography Documentary Project; A photo story about the death penalty in the United States by Scott Langley on exhibit February 11 through March 2. Can you picture it? The Ku Klux Klan rallying in support of a black man's execution in Texas... The North Carolina death row warden wheeling a gurney into the execution chamber... Weeping family members at the moment of a loved one's execution. These are just a few of the images captured in Scott Langley's eye-opening photography exhibit which will be shown at Lucy Parson Center in Boston from February 11 through March 2. The Death Penalty Photography Documentary Project is a product of nearly ten years of work by Boston-based activist and artist Scott Langley -- exploring capital punishment through the photographer's lens. It was birthed from a college art project to creatively address a human rights issue, and started with a few photos from an execution vigil in Huntsville, Texas. The original project has since grown into an internationally shown exhibit - making it the largest, most varied known collection of photos about the death penalty in the United States' modern era. This work-in-progress highlights Scott Langley's efforts as a photojournalist and a human rights activist - bringing together the unique combination of art, journalism and education into one powerful project. The exhibit has been exhibited by Amnesty International in Boston, Philadelphia, New York, Washington DC, throughout Texas, North Carolina and North Dakota, as well as in the UK, Germany, Denmark, and in both print and video media across the world. The death penalty documentary photography, as well as other photo projects, can be viewed on the Internet at www.langleycreations.com/photo. AND... AN ARTIST'S RECEPTION! Friday Feb 15 from 6:30 to 8:30 pm On Friday 2/15, from 6:30-8:30 pm, please join us at Lucy Parsons Center for an artist's reception for our current exhibit. Photographer Scott Langley's powerful, haunting work is energized by his passion as a human rights activist to end executions. Come meet the artist and see the photos at this reception. Snacks and drinks provided. Other goodies welcome to share. HOURS OF EXHIBIT AND BOOKSTORE: Monday - Friday 12 Noon to 9 PM on Saturdays and Sundays - 12 Noon to 6 PM ** because it is a collectively run, all volunteer space, it's best to call ahead to confirm that the store is open - (617) 267-6272 **LOCATION: Lucy Parsons Center, 549 Columbus Avenue, Boston, Massachusetts 02118 Phone: (617) 267-6272; Web: http://www.lucyparsons.org/ CARR CENTER FOR HUMAN RIGHTS POLICY FILM SCREENINGS 2/13 - 4-5:30pm - Bell Hall        Journey from Victim to Advocate: A Young Genocide Survivor Shares Her Story. Jacqueline Murekatete is internationally recognized for her work as a youth leader and humanitarian, speaking out for victims and survivors of genocide. Born in Rwanda in 1984, Jacqueline was not yet ten when she lost her immediate and extended family in the 1994 genocide. Since then, her journey has taken her from an orphanage in Rwanda to a new life of advocacy in the United States. Co-sponsored with the HR PIC. 2/25 - 6:00pm - Wiener Auditorium          "The Devil Came on Horseback" exposes the tragedy taking place in Darfur as seen through the eyes of an American witness, former Marine Captain Brian Steidle, who has since returned to the US to take action to stop it. Pizza and refreshments at 6, film begins promptly at 6:30. Be sure to stay after the film for an engaging discussion with Gretchen Steidle Wallace, producer of the film and sister of Brian Steidle, and with Denise Bell, Sudan Country Specialist for Amnesty International USA. Co-sponsored with Amnesty International Group 133. =============================================== REFUGEE ACTION TEAM For information on participating in human rights work concerning refugees and immigrants, contact Eric at 617-512-7526. URGENT ACTION: IRAQI REFUGEES IN LEBANON: This month’s action concerns two high-profile Iraqi nationals facing imminent deportation from Lebanon. AI believes they may face torture and execution if forcibly returned. Your letters can make a difference. DARFUR REFUGEE RESEARCHER TO SPEAK AT GROUP 133 MONTHLY MEETING: This month’s guest speaker is DOROTHY MORGOS, a Yale postdoctoral psychology fellow from Sudan. She will discuss her research interviewing families from Darfur in refugee camps, and will show some refugee children’s art. VISAS HALTED FOR DOMESTIC VIOLENCE SURVIVORS: The Sacramento Bee reported on January 7 (http://www.womensenews.org/article.cfm/dyn/aid/3457/context/outrage) that the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is reviewing the policy of granting visas to undocumented immigrants who are survivors of domestic violence. The policy was mandated by Congress in the 1994 Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), and has granted visas to more than 30,000 abuse survivors. The National Lawyers Guild's National Immigration Project in Boston reports that DHS has ceased issuing VAWA visas, even though VAWA is still public law. Republican presidential candidate MITT ROMNEY stated in a recent campaign appearance that he was “not familiar” with VAWA. U.S. TO SPEED UP DEPORTATIONS OF CONVICTED CRIMINALS: According to Julie L. Myers, assistant secretary of homeland security and director of the bureau of Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE), federal officials plan to identify and deport more than 200,000 immigrants this year who are convicted criminals serving time in prisons and jails across the United States. This significant increase in deportations is intended to reduce the cost of housing immigrants, Myers said. Under current law, immigrants convicted of crimes are deported only after serving their sentences in this country. Many of those incarcerated were legal residents who lost their immigration status when they were convicted of crimes, which range from possession of small amounts of marijuana to violent crimes. ICE is working with states to develop new parole programs, which would reduce immigrants’ prison time if they agree to immediate deportation upon release. Contrary to stereotypes, however, among men aged 18-39, non-immigrants are five times more likely than immigrants to commit crimes that land them in prison, according to University of California-Irvine sociology professor Rubén G. Rumbaut. In other news, after an ACLU lawsuit on behalf of two immigrants who were forcibly drugged during deportation procedures, Ms. Myers announced in a January 9 memo that ICE now requires a court order for medical staff members to give sedation drugs to immigrants being deported (http://www.matt.org/english/immigration/7_us_to_speed_deportation_of_criminals_in_jail.html). ORGANIZATION COUNTERS POLITICS WITH PRO-IMMIGRANT ADS: The grassroots organization Mexicans & Americans Thinking Together has begun airing pro-immigrant ads in key locations, in response to the anti-immigrant rhetoric that has dominated the recent US political climate. The ads are supported by private online donations (www.matt.org). =============================================== Minutes from January 2008 meeting 1. Rick addressed the group. He said that he had been inspired by Nate’s film festival to apply for an SIF grant. This will enable all members of Group 133 to get business cards made up. Email Judy at judy@mirrorimage.com for an email address. The cards will include a map to the office and times of meetings. He will also be able to purchase an LCD projector and a video camera, and $400 speakers for movie events. He is looking for volunteers to start a 133 BLOG! 2. Fathi el-Jahmi has become an official action at the upcoming GOTB!! 3. Elections: The group formally elected Kelly Turley and Rick Roth to continue to be co-coordinators, Tina Huang as treasurer and Tamara Jenkins as secretary. 4. Next week, there will be a guest speaker about the devastation in the Sudan. 5. April 25th is the Annual General Meeting of AI USA in Washington DC. 6. February 26th, Larry Cox will be at the State Hours. =============================================== URGENT ACTION His Excellency Prime Minister Fouad Siniora Office of the Prime Minister Council of Ministers Grand Sérail Rue des Arts et Métiers Sanayeh, Beirut, LEBANON Fax: 011 961 1 785 014 Your Excellency: I am writing in order to express my concern regarding the safety of Bashar Sab'awi Ibrahim and Muthher 'Abd al-Karim al-Kharbit, two Iraqi nationals held in Lebanon who face possible extradition to Iraq, following a decision taken by the Lebanese government on 28 December 2007. The Iraqi government and the US military in Iraq accuse the two men of funding insurgent groups within Iraq. According to Amnesty International, if forcibly returned to Iraq these men would be at serious risk of torture, other ill-treatment and possibly execution. I respectfully request that you refrain from returning the above individuals to Iraq, where they would be at risk of torture and execution. I would like to respectfully remind you of Lebanon’s obligations under international law that individuals cannot be forcibly returned to a country where they face the risk of being subjected to human rights violations, including execution and torture. Thank you for your attention to this urgent matter. Sincerely, Address: Copies to: His Excellency Nabih Berri Speaker of the National Assembly, National Assembly Beirut, LEBANON Fax: 011 961 1 982 059 His Excellency Minister of Justice Charles Rizk Ministry of Justice Rue Sami Solh Beirut , LEBANON Fax: 011 961 1 427 975 Ambassador Dr. Farid Abboud Embassy of Lebanon 2560 28th St NW Washington DC 20008 Fax: 1 202 939 6324, Email: info@lebanonembassyus.org