Editor’s Note From Rivera Sun
Around the world, it’s clear that people are tired of having their rights – and even their very identities – denied and excluded. Thailand held its first-ever Pride Parade, bringing both LGBTQ+ and their allies out into the streets for a much-needed statement of visibility, acceptance, and support. Thousands of women marched in Argentina to end femicide. Meanwhile, in Nicaragua, feminist groups have been outlawed by the regime. In Afghanistan, a group of volunteers is risking their lives to provide education to the girls who have been functionally (if not officially) banned from attending school.
Chicago students walked out of class to object to the idea of putting more police in schools in the wake of the Uvalde massacre. (They also demanded equal funding for the four schools in their area.) The students join a chorus of Black and Brown voices trying to stop pro-gun factions from arming teachers, increasing security, and adding more police to schools. With ongoing racial disparity and disproportionate impact, parents and youth are worried that the brutality and discrimination they face will grow worse.
Paris tree-sitters won protection for 40 trees near the Eiffel Tower. Palestinians, Iranians, and Pakistanis all took to the streets in protest of inflation and rising prices. In the United Kingdom, climate activists are shutting down Heathrow Airport while animal rights activists disrupted the Queen’s Jubilee Celebrations. Workers at a water bottling plant, paint factory, news station, and coffee shops are on strike.
Scroll down through the full round-up to the Peace Section. In it, you’ll find a fascinating article on how the recent mobilization to end the war in Yemen provides a model for reviving the peace movement. You’ll also see stories about how Palestinians are shutting down a weapons factory, how the Western Sahara peace team is persevering amidst grave challenges, how veterans are taking action to stop the militarization and war worship of US Memorial Day, and much more. I hope these stories give you ideas for action and a sense of solidarity from every corner of the world.
Enjoy this week’s Nonviolence News!
Rivera Sun, Editor
Photo Credit: Women of the movement Ni Una Menos (Not one (woman) less) take part in a march to the Congress to protest against femicides and gender violence, in Buenos Aires, Argentina June 3, 2022. REUTERS/Mariana Nedelcu
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Paris Protesters Celebrate Saving Trees Around The Eiffel Tower: Protesters in Paris are celebrating having saved more than 40 trees – one of them over 200 years old – from being chopped down or threatened with damage around the Eiffel Tower as part of a €72m scheme to create a huge garden. After weeks of protest including a hunger strike, Paris officials initially said they would consider the fate of the trees on a “case by case” basis. Now they have conceded that the “extreme sensitivity” of cutting the trees down has persuaded them to abandon the idea altogether. Read more>>
Trailer Park Residents Take On Venture Capitalists — And Win: As gentrification sweeps the West, investors are buying up mobile home parks. Residents of this Colorado park got together and bought it themselves. Read more>>
Oil Companies Pull Out of Drilling In Arctic National Wildlife Refuge: Drilling in the refuge has long been a controversial issue, as the 19.5-million-acre wilderness area is home to 45 species of mammals including polar bears, bowhead whales and caribou and considered sacred by the Indigenous Gwich’in people, according to the Gwich’in Steering Committee. “These exits clearly demonstrate that international companies recognize what we have known all along: drilling in the Arctic Refuge is not worth the economic risk and liability that results from development on sacred lands without the consent of Indigenous Peoples,” the Gwich’in Steering Committee said. Read more>>
After Strike, Cedars-Sinai Workers Approve 3-Year Contract With 17.42% Raise, $21/hour Minimum By 2024: “Reaching an agreement was not easy. But we fought hard for better working conditions, wages and benefits that reflect the difficult yet vital work we do every day to provide the best care for our patients.” Highlights of the ratified three-year contract include access to proper personal protective equipment and testing for employees, and notification of exposures, as well as average raises of 17.46 percent at the end of three years, the union said. Read more>>
Albany Passes ‘Right To Repair’ Law For Electronics: It may soon be easier to get your busted iPhone fixed. Under a bill passed by the state legislature last week, digital electronics manufacturers – such as Apple or Samsung – will be required to make repair instructions and parts available to both consumers and independent technicians. The “right to repair” legislation, which still needs to be signed into law by the governor, is believed to be the first of its kind in the United States. Read more>>
Palestinians Pay Partial Wages Amid Protests Over Rise In Food Prices: The Palestinian Authority announced on Tuesday it would pay partial salaries to most of its employees after Israel transferred some revenues it collects on the Palestinians’ behalf, Palestinian officials said. A week into June, the Palestinian Finance Ministry said employees will receive 80% of their salaries on Tuesday. It has been unable to pay full wages since November, blaming Israel’s withholding of tax revenues and weaker international donations. Read more>>
Squeezed By Soaring Inflation, Iranian Pensioners Hold Nationwide Protests: With the cost of living skyrocketing, struggling Iranian pensioners and retired government employees have held protests in more than 16 cities across Iran. Videos posted on social media sites on June 6-7 showed retirees chanting anti-government slogans and demanding higher pensions. Hyperinflation and a dramatic rise in food prices have made it harder for Iranians to make ends meet. Read more>>
Pakistanis Stage Protests In Peshawar & Swabi Against Gas, Power Cuts: A large number of people from different walks of life staged protests in Peshawar and Swabi against the excessive power and gas cuts demanding the Pakistan government to ensure an immediate smooth supply of electricity and natural gas. Read more>>
Tunisian President Cuts Judges Wages After They Strike In Protest Of Sackings: Tunisia’s political crisis deepened on Monday as President Kais Saied ordered judges’ salaries cut to take account of strike days after they began a week-long work stoppage in protest at his move to dismiss dozens of them. Saied, who has progressively sought to tighten his grip on power, last week dismissed 57 judges, accusing them of corruption and protecting terrorists. Read more>>
Three Month Strike Set To End At Sibanye As Miners Back Deal: South African precious metals miner Sibanye Stillwater (SSWJ.J) said on Friday that trade unions leading a strike at its gold operations had a mandate from their members to accept a three-year wage deal. Read more>>
Myanmar Junta Rejects Appeals To Democracy Activists’ Death Sentences: Myanmar’s military government said on Friday that appeals by two prominent democracy activists against their death sentences had been rejected, paving the way for the country’s first executions in decades. The government has received widespread condemnation abroad for ousting an elected government in a coup more than a year ago, and for the brutal crackdown that it has since unleashed on critics, opposition members and activists. Read more>>
Hundreds Gather To Mark Tiananmen Anniversary In Taiwan: Hundreds of people gathered in Taipei on Saturday to commemorate China’s bloody crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrators in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square 33 years ago. Chinese-run Hong Kong deployed heavy security to prevent any sign of protest there. Read more>>
‘Indoor Rain’ Prompts Staff At Boston Starbucks To Strike Over Working Conditions: Workers at a Boston Starbucks location are on strike over what they say are unfair working conditions. Water pouring from the ceiling was the last straw, Starbucks employees who spent Tuesday picketing outside their store. “This is not the first time we have had indoor rain,” Natalie Borg, who has worked at the Cleveland Circle Starbucks for the last year. “It was a bit otherworldly because there was a lot of water coming from the ceiling and it was not clean water.” Read more>>
Extinction Rebellion Global Newsletter: XR reports on fossil fuel focused rebellions in Finland, Denmark, Sweden and the Netherlands (pictured above). In each, rebels launched sustained actions that disrupted fossil fuel facilities, highlighted fossil fuel subsidies, and pushed for an immediate switch to renewable energies. there’s also a special report from Sri Lanka, which is being rocked by price shocks, power cuts, mass protest, and outright political turmoil. Read more>>
XR Protests Enter Fourth Day As Oil Facility Near Heathrow Blocked: Climate change campaigners have staged a protest at an oil facility near Heathrow Airport on their fourth day of action. Extinction Rebellion (XR) said about 30 protesters returned to the Esso West fuel terminal in west London. It is part of a campaign to urge the government to stop using fossil fuels. Read more>>
Organizers Are Demanding a Green New Deal for the Gulf South: The Gulf South for a Green New Deal comprises about 300 organizations working for climate, racial and economic justice. The Green New Deal project proposed by progressive activists and lawmakers carries special weight for sustainability in the Gulf Coast. Much of the Gulf South region of the United States — Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida — is politically conservative, which means the fight against the fossil-fuel economy is a truly uphill battle. Nonetheless, activism for transformative change is quite widespread throughout the Gulf Coast region. Read more>>
Walk For Appalachia’s Future Connects Struggles In The Region: Activists just completed the “Walk for Appalachia’s Future” through West Virginia, North Carolina and Virginia to highlight the impacts of fossil fuel extraction on communities and the land. At each stop, they held events with local activists to learn about their struggles and make broader connections. Read more>>
As SpaceX Grows, So Do Complaints From Environmentalists, Indigenous Groups and Brownsville Residents: Elon Musk’s private space company has evolved into a sprawling industrial complex. But concerns are increasing about beach closures, noise and potential harm to threatened species. Read more>>
Animal Rebellion Activists Arrested After Disrupting Platinum Jubilee Event On Mall: Animal rights activists linked to Extinction Rebellion have been arrested after disrupting the start of platinum jubilee celebrations by storming the Mall during the trooping the colour parade. Scotland Yard said officers made several arrests after the protesters jumped over barriers lining the Mall and confronted marching Grenadier Guards with leaflets demanding an end to hunting on royal land. Read more>>
Protests Erupt After Video Shows Brazilian Police Gassing Man to Death: In Brazil, protesters are demanding justice for Genivaldo de Jesus Santos, a Black man diagnosed with schizophrenia who was killed by federal police in the city of Umbaúba on May 25. Video of the incident shows a pair of officers trapping Santos inside a vehicle after releasing a tear gas canister inside. Read more>>
Landmark California Task Force Calls for “Comprehensive Reparations” for Slavery: The task force’s report backs wide-ranging reforms to redress the harms of state-sanctioned white supremacy. Read more>>
Black Birders Week Enters Its Third Year Bigger Than Ever: In its third year, Black Birders Week 2022 is focusing on making outdoor spaces safe for all people of color. The celebration caught on like wildfire and is now observed in cities nationwide from New York to Philadelphia, Cleveland to Raleigh, North Carolina. Overall, Black birders are simply looking for those to enjoy their outdoor hobbies with, even if that support is from afar. Feeling safe while alone in predominantly white spaces calls for the disruption of racism in these environments. Read more>>
Chicago Students Want Police Out Of Their Schools: On June 2, 250 students at Little Village Lawndale High School (LVLHS) in Chicago walked out of school to demand “Police out!” They marched through Little Village, which is the largest Latino neighborhood in Chicago, to the North Lawndale neighborhood, which is a Black community. The protest was organized by the LVLHS FightBack student group, which called for “Black and Brown Unity.” Other demands raised by the students included equitable funding for all four schools. Read more>>
13 Months Of Foot-Dragging Prompts 13-Minute Work Stoppage: Members of the NBC News Guild stopped work for 13 minutes Tuesday to protest more than 13 months of management foot-dragging on their pay equity proposal, which workers presented during bargaining for a first contract. The union’s proposal would establish an annual study to identify and close pay gaps. Read more>>
Poor People’s Campaign Demands Meeting With Biden As Millions Face Rising Costs, Stagnant Wages: “Why don’t poor people get meetings in the Oval Office instead of corporations?” Low-wage workers, union presidents, and progressive faith leaders on Monday urged President Joe Biden to meet with a handful of the millions of Americans living in poverty before the Poor People’s Campaign rallies in Washington, D.C. on June 18 to demand an economy and democracy that works for everyone, not just the wealthy few. Read more>>
Sherwin-Williams Workers Strike in Kentucky: In Bowling Green, Kentucky, Sherwin-Williams workers went on strike on Friday over what they say are hard-nosed bargaining tactics as the company tries to push concessions on workers. Despite bad weather this weekend, workers say that they are determined to hold the line. Read more>>
Ithaca Starbucks Workers Call for Local Boycott After Company Closes Union Store: Workers are calling for a local boycott of Starbucks in Ithaca, New York, after the company announced that it would be closing a recently unionized store in a major escalation of its anti-union campaign. Read more>>
Borjomi Workers Strike As Georgia Prepares to Take Over Russian Shares: Workers at Georgia’s iconic mineral water firm haven’t been paid, and dozens have been laid off, since the company’s Russian owners fell under American and European sanctions. Read more>>
Thai LGBTQ+ & Allies Join First Official Pride Parade: Thousands of members of Thailand’s LGBTQ+ community raised rainbow flags in the country’s first official pride parade on Sunday evening to celebrate pride month and support gender equality. Also waving blue, pink, and white transgender flags, marchers made their way through the main streets of Bangkok. Some chanted and called for same-sex marriages to be legalised and for sex workers’ rights. Read more>>
Thousands Join Anti-Femicide March In Argentina’s Capital: Thousands of people marched against femicide and gender violence in Argentina’s capital of Buenos Aires Friday afternoon, as part of a movement now in its seventh year called Ni Una Menos, or “Not One Woman Less.” The march was held in the center of the capital, culminating at the National Congress, where protesters lit candles to remember victims of gender-based violence. Marchers held banners that read “We want to stay alive” while others featured photographs of femicide victims. Read more>>
Victims of Forced Sterilization in California Are Fighting for Reparations: Through December 2023, the California Victim Compensation Board will review applications for reparations filed by people who were forcibly sterilized during two periods of time in which state employees were empowered to decide whether thousands of people were worthy of bodily autonomy and the right to reproduce. Gaining justice for survivors of the state’s abuse is not only a reproductive health issue, it’s a racial justice issue. Read more>>
Nicaraguan Government Outlaws Feminist Groups Serving Vulnerable People: Women’s rights groups supporting marginalized and impoverished people are banned by Ortega’s authoritarian regime. Read more>>
The Volunteers Risking Their Lives To Secretly Educate Afghanistan’s Girls: PenPath is an NGO that works to reopen closed schools in the country’s rural areas and has so far educated more than 115,000 children. PenPath has 2,400 volunteers, including six women who give secret classes to secondary school-aged girls. Despite multiple assurances made by the Taliban at international forums, teenage girls are still banned from classrooms in Afghanistan, nine months on from the group’s takeover of Kabul. Read more>>
These Queer-Led Groups Are Securing Housing For LGBTQ+ Youth And Elders: Pride month brings a lot to celebrate! But, there’s still much work to be done in the quest to achieve true queer liberation. Today, LGBTQ+ youth face homelessness at a risk 120 times that of their straight counterparts. These great organizations are working to transform this stark reality by offering safe spaces, long-term housing, and other resources to queer youth and otherwise marginalized communities. Read more>>
How Unions Are Fighting to Protect Abortion Rights: From collective bargaining to creative use of release time, unions can defend the reproductive freedom of their members. Here’s how some are doing it. Read more>>
Pamplona’s Heart – Doña Marta Gives Hope To Venezuela’s Migrants: Doña Marta Duque has been providing food, drink and a place to stay for weary migrants at her home since 2015. Read more>>
Race Forward’s Butterfly Lab Releases New Toolkit: This report and toolkit for immigrant narrative strategy features our learnings and tools that were tested in the first phase of the Lab, and is being used by Butterfly Lab partners including the Center for Cultural Power, National Partnership for New Americans, 350.org, and National Immigration Law Center. Download it now! Read more>>
The Mobilization For Yemen Is A Powerful Model For Today’s Peace Movement: By emphasizing support and solidarity, groups led primarily by Yemeni-American women are building momentum to end the world’s “forgotten war.” Read more>>
Palestine Action Scotland Occupy Thales Weapons Factory In Glasgow: This morning, Palestine Action Scotland made its debut – as activists took to the roof of weapons company Thales’ Glasgow factory. A team of six activists scaled the site in the early hours of the morning and are currently occupying the building, rendering it unusable and forcing workers to evacuate. Inside the factory they have dismantled and destroyed factory equipment and facilities. Thales is one of the world’s largest arms companies. Read more>>
Peace Team Helps Western Saharan Activist Find Healing & Safety: The incredible NVI project to support the Khaya Sisters came to a dramatic point last Wednesday. After 544 days of house arrest and repressive siege, Sultana Khaya, accompanied by our US volunteers, stepped off the airplane in the Canary Islands into a huge crowd of supporters and international media. She left Western Sahara to obtain urgent health care. She said last week to us. “You saved my life & you inspired hope among the Saharawi people that nonviolent resistance can work in Western Sahara”. Read more>>
Helping Peacebuilders Find Healing For Their Own Trauma: In 2020, AFSC piloted a trauma healing program in South Sudan to help peacebuilders get the support they need. The project has since reached 600 peacebuilders throughout the country and will continue until 2024, writes AFSC’s Zaina Kisongoa. Read more>>
Reimagining Peace As A Rejection Of A Militarized Status Quo: What does peace mean in a world with endless war and militarism? Dianne Otto reflects on the “specific social and historical circumstances that profoundly influence how we think about [peace and war].” She pulls from feminist and queer perspectives to imagine what peace could mean independent of a war system and militarization. Read more>>
Memorial Day 2022 Recap of Veterans For Peace Actions: “As veterans we know the legacy and culture of violence U.S. militarism wreaks on our society. Peace at home, Peace Abroad is more than a slogan, but rather a commitment to tirelessly work against the violence in our society that holds weapons of war in higher priority than the safety of our children and children around the globe.” Visit Veterans For Peace’s 2022 Memorial Day recap page to find images and reports of VFP members and chapters taking action to remember ALL victims of war. Read more>>
Rural Europe Takes Action | For Resilience and Peace – Political Action Now! Rural areas are wholesome spaces and only policies which take this wholesomeness into account will be supportive to rural areas where thriving societies live, work and evolve. We have gathered examples of how it works. The moment to start a new integrated rural policy is now. Read more>>
A Vehicle For Protest In Iranian Artists In Exile: The PaykanArtCar project has turned an Iranian-made sedan that was once gifted by Shah Mehammed Reza Pahlavi to the Romanian dictator Nicolae Ceausescu into a vehicle for activism against Iran’s rulers. The idea is to use the car as a canvas on which Iranian artists can protest the depredations of the regime in Tehran. Read more>>
How an Indian Prince Built a Queer Sanctuary in Gujarat: The LGBTA+ Community Campus Rajpipla occupies 15 acres of farmland where a palace once stood. Around 500 people have come through the campus since it began receiving visitors in 2017, Patel says. Many come seeking a rare safe space to talk about LGBTQ issues, away from rural communities where homophobia is often the norm. Read more>>
Guns To Gardens–Presbyterian Peace Fellowship: PPF had already been in the process of launching this “Guns to Gardens” project before the Buffalo, Laguna Woods, and Uvalde massacres happened this month. Check out their initiative here. Read more>>
A Short Documentary On The San José de Apartadó Peace Community In Colombia: The peace community San José de Apartadó is a rural community of about 1500 inhabitants living in the north of Colombia. They do not belong to any organisation, do not carry weapons, and are bound together through an unswerving ethic of peace. Yet they being brutally fought by the state. In the framework of the Global Campus, San José is developing a comprehensive perspective for a peaceful future. Read more>>
How to Spot Conspiracy Theories: In recent years, politicians, public figures, and growing online conspiracy communities around the world, such as QAnon, have made the belief in harmful conspiracies more mainstream. Disinformation and conspiracies are contributing to brutal violence. Here’s what you need to know. Read more>>
We Need A Culture Of Nonviolence: Our society is defined by a culture of violence. This year, Campaign Nonviolence’s Action Days aim to build momentum toward a radical, nonviolent future. Read more>>
Respected Activist Faces Prison Over Alleged Plotting With U.S. Government: A Tajik activist is in deep trouble after meeting with U.S. diplomats. Yet immediately following her arrest, a delegation from Washington had only warm words for the government. The affair is further chilling civil society in Tajikistan: Activists fear Western partners will abandon them at the first signs of resistance from Dushanbe’s authoritarian rulers. Read more>>
End Title 42 And Restore The Right To Claim Asylum: For the past two years, immigrants have been stopped from crossing the U.S.-Mexico border to apply for asylum in the U.S. The Biden administration announced it would end this inhumane policy. But last week, a federal court ordered the administration to keep the order in place—and now Congress is considering legislation to extend these restrictions. Tell elected officials to block attempts to reinstate Title 42 today. Learn more>>
Scalawag Invites You To Pop Justice: This a new series of webinars breaks down the ways popular culture—music, film, television, TikTok, journalism, and more—upholds the police state and ultimately stalls conversations on abolition. As part of Scalawag’s 3rd annual Abolition Week, pop justice will exclusively feature perspectives from currently and formerly incarcerated folks. (June 20-25) Learn more>>
Internet for All – The Affordable Connectivity Program and the Need for Digital Connectivity: Attendees of the educational webinar will hear from experts on the importance of the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP), which aims to connect all people in the U.S. to affordable, reliable high-speed internet. This webinar kicks off an Affordable Connectivity Program Week of Action, where The Leadership Conference and partner organizations will reach out to communities to encourage households to sign up for this broadband opportunity. (June 13) Learn more>>
Cancel RIMPAC: The Pacific Peace Network and its allied organizations call for the cancellation of the dangerous, provocative and destructive international Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) naval war practice and for increased citizen pressure for a demilitarized Pan-Pacific Zone of Peace. Show your support here>>
ReDebunking World War II: From June 20 – July 31, World BEYOND War will be teaching an online course on the accurate history of, and debunking myths about, the Second World War — with an eye to preventing a (very different) third and final one. Learn more>>
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