XR’s Nurse-Ins and Civil Disco-bedience

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Editor’s Note from Rivera Sun

Thanks for your patience with Nonviolence News this week. I was on my way back from World Beyond War’s #NoWar2019 conference and caught a nasty bug on the airplane.  Besides having to stay in bed all day yesterday, it was an eye-opening trip.  Ireland has banned fracking, raises all its meat and dairy organically, and has a policy of neutrality. That neutrality is why I took part in a protest of the US military use of the civilian airport in Shannon, Ireland. (Photo at right of myself holding banner next to Nobel Winner Mairead Maguire.) It was amazing to visit a country that doesn’t spend half of its budget on military (like the US does). It reminded me that another world is possible, if only we dare to envision it. 

My “Nonviolence News Top Pick” award this week goes to the Aussie Extinction Rebellion for holding a civil disco-bedience to “Staying Alive”. And, wait for it, if that die-in in the middle of the video doesn’t catch your heart, I don’t know what will. Watch the video here.   Tied for top pick is Extinction Rebellion UK’s 200-person mother and baby nurse-in to call attention to the peril we are placing our children in.

Runner-up award goes to the migrant rights activists who launched an unusual effort: they’re offering anonymous job search assistance to ICE agents who want to quit their jobs.  This response is both strategic and highly principled nonviolence. Other stories not to miss include the Palestinian women who saved their homes from demolition with a 24-7 occupation, Dick’s Sporting Goods chain’s decision to destroy $5 million worth of guns so they couldn’t be resold, and the laundromat libraries in Milwaukee increasing literacy one load at a time.

This week’s news includes stories from Ethiopia, Haiti, Argentina, the Philippines, Scotland, Britain, Afghanistan, Palestine, Sudan, Ireland, the Netherlands, and more. Don’t forget to share your favorite stories on social media! The more people hear them, the more likely they are to use similar kinds of nonviolence to make change in their own lives. 

With solidarity,
Rivera Sun, Editor

Photo Credit: Extinction Rebellion UK’s nurse-in calling attention to the peril all babies are facing due to the climate crisis. Photo by Marc Duell, Daily Mail.

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Here’s what you’ll find in
this week’s Nonviolence News:

Victory! Success Stories
Recent Actions
Migrant Justice
Climate Action
Peace Action
Constructive Program
Knowledge & Reflection
Calls-to-Action

Here are some recent successes brought about by nonviolence in action.

Abiy Ahmed wins Nobel Peace Prize for his role in ending the decades-long war between Eritrea and Ethiopia.   Read more >> 

After changing the company’s gun sales policy, Dick’s Sporting Goods destroys $5 million worth of guns rather than returning them to wholesalers to be sold elsewhere.   Read more >>  

The Royal Shakespeare Company announced that after months of protests from the public, including school strikers, it had decided to end its eight-year relationship with British Petroleum.  Editor’s Note: this link includes the history of the campaign as well as the announcement of the change.   Read more >>  

Here’s how people are taking action this week for a wide range of causes. 

Why Haitians are protesting en masse.  Read more >>    

Ecuador declares state of emergency as people take to the streets in protest of austerity measures.  Read more >>   

25,000 Argentinians rally for the Revolutionary Socialist Left demonstration, sending a message to the powerful.   Read more >>  

Thousands of Filipino teachers march to demand promised salary increases from the government.  Read more >>  

Singer Rihanna refuses to perform at Super Bowl halftime show, choosing to stand with Colin Kaepernick instead. “I couldn’t dare do that,” Rihanna said of the halftime show. “For what? Who gains from that? Not my people. I just couldn’t be a sellout. I couldn’t be an enabler. There’s things within that organization that I do not agree with at all, and I was not about to go and be of service to them in any way.”  Read more >>   

LGBTQ advocates flood Capitol Hill on day one of US Supreme Court’s first trans civil rights case in US history.   Read more >>    

Over 100,000 march in Scotland for independence.   Read more >>   

#BlizzardBoycott trends on Twitter calling for a boycott of a major game company that censored a player for speaking his political views on Hong Kong.  Read more >>   
   

In addition to major victories this week, here are some other actions that happened toward migrant justice.

Activists help ICE agents quit their jobs with free and confidential job search help.   Read more >>  

200 people march on ICE warden’s home in an escalation of pressure against unjust immigration policies.  Read more >>  

Nonviolence towards the Earth is nonviolence toward humanity.  Here are ways people are working to save the planet . . . and our species.

Extinction Rebellion global actions mobilized tens of thousands to take to the streets, shut down the roads, glue themselves to doors and planes, and much more.  Here is a round-up of stories. Read more >>  

Hundreds of mothers hold nurse-in during London Extinction Rebellion action.  Read more >>  

Jane Fonda moves to Washington, DC, to get arrested for climate justice during #FireDrillFridays.  Read more >>   

Blind paralympian climbs on top of jet and glues himself to it.   Read more >>  

Around the world, people are using nonviolent action to wage peace. Here are some of this week’s stories.

Afghan youth hold “Youth on the Road to Peace” Conference to connect war, militarism, and the environment.   Read more >>  

100+ Irish citizens and international allies protest the US military use of Shannon Airport.   Read more >>   

Rage Against the War Machine and Women’s March on the Pentagon gather 100+ peace activists to speak out against the war machine at the US White House, Capitol Building, IMF Bank offices, and other points in Washington, DC.   Read more >>  

Constructive Program is a term coined by M.K. Gandhi. It describes campaigns that build new systems and solutions, empowering people to solve problems and build resistance community. 

Laundromat libraries aim to build literacy in Milwaukee, WI.  Read more >>   

New initiative aims to mobilize the restaurant industry to fight climate change — a voluntary 1% tax.  Read more >>   

Los Angeles and San Francisco move forward with establishing public banks.  Read more >>   

We are fortunate to live at a time when there is so much knowledge about nonviolence available to explore. Here are some articles that invite us to dig deeper.

How Palestinian women used nonviolent action to defend their homes from demolition.  Read more >>   

How a Sudanese women-only Facebook group morphed from playing detective on cheating boyfriends to a force of revolutionary change.  Read more >>  

Did you know that the US has a secret history of anti-car protests?  The Dutch have a history of similar protests, too, but it’s not secret!  Read more >>    

Why we need resistance studies today.  Read more >>   

Can we celebrate Gandhi while also learning from his errors?  Read more >>   

New resistance podcast explores how a French village rescued 5,000 Jews in World War II.  Read more >>   

How to make reverse graffiti with activist slogans.  No paint, just a toothbrush and some elbow grease.   Read more >>  

Here are a few upcoming actions inviting your participation and support. 

Join #FireDrillFridays with Jane Fonda in Washington, DC, to oppose militarism and the climate crisis.   Read more >>  

Oct 17th, join the International Center on Nonviolent Conflict’s free webinar on how people have used civil resistance to survive ISIS, using acts of popular disobedience, non-cooperation, protests and public defiance to improve their lives and defend their values. Learn more >> 

Nonviolence News is a sister project to Nonviolence Now. The Nonviolence Now campaign is intended to introduce and share stories of nonviolence, and to ignite the potential of principled nonviolence globally.

Author/Activist Rivera Sun has written many books and novels, including The Dandelion Insurrection and The Way Between.  She is a nationwide trainer in strategy for nonviolent movements and her essays are published in journals across the country and around the world. www.riverasun.com