Image: Remix by Nonviolence News from Donna B Nichols and StockSnap on Pixabay.
Editor’s Note From Rivera Sun
We all need to celebrate the wins – it is the antidote to the setbacks. After the formal impeachment of the president, South Koreans are holding massive celebrations to honor what their mass protest movement achieved in defense of democracy. Here are a few more things to savor and enjoy a moment of celebration over. A US Supreme Court ordered the return of Kilmar Abrego Garcia who was deported to an El Salvador prison without cause or due process. A federal judge reinstated the Associated Press‘ White House access, saying banning the news outlet for disagreeing with Trump’s Gulf of Mexico policy violated constitutional laws around freedom of speech and press. The United Kingdom now runs on 50% renewable power and is seeing drops in greenhouse gas emissions. Iceland has installed more than 1700 wheelchair access ramps in just 4 years. Undue Medical Debt erased $30 billion in medical bills for 20 million people in the United States. Indigenous Peoples in remote areas of Ecuador won rights and protections in a significant court ruling. The Wisconsin judge who spread lies about election conspiracies during the 2020 election has had his license revoked. Public outcry in the United States forced the Trump administration to back off on closing phone services at Social Security. (The institution remains under assault and in danger of dismantlement and privatization, however, so celebrate this momentary victory while renewing your commitment to broader action.)
In the United States, the April 5th #HandsOff demonstrations mobilized impressive crowds at over 1300 locations across the country. Organizers say more than 5 million people joined in, including people in cities across Europe. The next big day of rallies is planned for April 19th. Around 500 law firms are banding together to challenge Trump’s assault on the legal community. Unions are resisting the end of collective bargaining at the Center For Disease Control, the mass firings of federal workers, and the deportations of union members and political organizers. New York Public Schools have launched state-wide defiance of Trump’s discriminatory anti-DEI policies. Arizona Democrats walked out when Tom Homan, the ‘border czar’ gave a speech to the state legislature. Notice the scale of these actions: we have now switched from solitary acts of defiance by individuals into coordinated resistance from groups and institutions.
Pro-Palestinian activists renewed their efforts this week. Around 30,000 people joined the Palestinian March held in DC in conjunction with the April 5 demonstration and more people brought pro-Palestinian signs and flags, or wore keffiyehs, to rallies nationwide. Harvard students held a sit-in against the genocide and the persecution of pro-Palestinian activists in the US. More than 1800 academics have joined a boycott of Columbia University over its failure to protect the rights of its students, prevent deportations of students, and stand up to the Trump administration’s punitive attacks for the students’ pro-Palestinian activism. Jewish students at Columbia chained themselves to the gates to demand the release of unjustly detained student Mahmoud Kahlil. Pax Christi USA held a memorial against genocide in front of the White House. Taxpayers Against Genocide submitted their 57-page report charging US officials with complicity in genocide to the United Nations. Other taxpayers are handing out flyers with a “Not My Tax Dollars Map” nationwide that show how our taxes are diverted into Israel’s war and genocide. Microsoft workers disrupted the company’s 50th anniversary event to decry their use of AI in the assault on Gaza. In the United Kingdom, youth lined up child-sized body bags outside an official’s doorstep and demanded a total arms embargo on Israel; other Youth Demand activists held surprise actions throughout London.
Around the world in Nonviolence News, Athens workers held a 1-day general strike that halted ferries, trains, airports, and buses to demand higher wages. Turkey’s protesters are finding common cause across longstanding divisions as they try to withstand a government crackdown. Tunisians held multiple demonstrations in solidarity with a political prisoners’ hunger strike, demanding their release. Georgia remains in turmoil as mass protests oppose a repressive right-wing agenda that has even created a knock-off of the US’ DOGE. In Madrid, thousands of renters demanded affordable housing policies and rent reductions. Kazakhstan’s journalists are decrying a new dress code for covering protests; in order to be protected from police repression, they have to wear blue vests and yellow armbands or stickers. Nepalese are protesting a cable car project that negatively impacts the Indigenous Yakthung (Limbu) community. Nonviolent Peaceforce offered security in the aftermath of the devastating earthquake in Myanmar, ensured girls education in Iraq, and provided protection for 7,000 trans youth and allies at a rally in New York City.
Some interesting environmental campaigns are making headlines this week. Central American seed banks are proving vital protection for farmers amidst climate change. India’s local fishermen are resisting a massive offshore minerals mining plan. With a drum band, street theater, a memorial with children’s shoes, and wanted posters, UK school children and their families protested an oil exec for ruining their future. Local activists in Massachusetts are taking on the private jet industry. British Columbia is trying to install heat pumps in thousands of low-to-mid income homes. California is stepping up to enforce its styrofoam ban after voluntary compliance failed to make a difference.
As always, creative actions grab attention – an important aspect of nonviolent change. A huge light projection lit up the ICE Building with the message: We’re not Nazis. We’re just following orders. – ICE. Carrying coffins draped with rainbow Pride flags, Iowa students held a mock funeral for the LGBTQIA+ center after it was defunded and closed. Amidst the Trump administration’s anti-trans, anti-immigrant, and anti-DEI policies, California teachers held a stand-out action in front of schools with posters, banners and signs that welcomed every student.
Grab a second cup of coffee – here are some articles to read through slowly (and maybe take notes): one piece looks closely at what a general strike in the United States would actually look like, another examines how to stop the Insurrection Act that Trump is threatening to invoke next week, a third tells us how to deal with agents provocateurs instigating violence in our movements. There’s also an interesting interview on the path out of toxic polarization on Nonviolence Radio, an insightful article on how healing trauma might be a critically important approach to crime prevention, and a historic look at Dr. King’s organizing in the North.
There are many reasons to take a scroll through the 108 stories in this week’s Nonviolence News Research Archive, but here’s an especially good one: the calls-to-action section has a number of exciting campaigns and actions for you to join. People are always asking: what can we do? These are the answers. From pledging to put your body on the line to stop deportations to the Nonviolent Medicaid Army to the Disarm Earth Day campaign to Day Without An Immigrant Strikes on May Day to the grassroots initiative to call on military personnel to refuse to obey the Insurrection Act, you’ll find practical and effective ways to turn your outrage into action.
Explore the Nonviolence News Research Archive here>>
I hope Nonviolence News has offered you celebration, inspiration, deep knowledge, and ideas for action this week. By taking a birds-eye view of what’s happening with nonviolence, hopefully this feast of stories can nourish whatever your heart and soul need in these times.
In solidarity,
Rivera Sun
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