Editor’s Note From Rivera Sun A picture is worth a thousand words, they say. As I studied the image of the Stop EACOP rally against a large oil pipeline in Uganda, I noticed something odd. What appeared to be rows of supporters demonstrating from the balconies of the buildings – a clever tactic that could…
Tag: water

Turkish Forest Defenders, Japan’s Darting Boy & Texas’ Thirst Strike
Editor’s Note From Rivera Sun Turkey’s Akbelen Forest has been razed relentless by loggers, but women and community members are mobilizing to halt deforestation. They face arrests, tear gas, and intimidation, but they won’t back down in their protection of this dwindling ecosystem. It’s the kind of courage and determination that we all need to…

Uruguay Saltwater Protests, Orange Cones Vs. Driverless Cars & the Friendship From Hell
Editor’s Note From Rivera Sun If you zoom out to a distant vantage point of human history, you can see the arc of the universe bending toward a certain kind of justice. If we secure a future for humanity, historians will look back on these times and identify them as an era in which ordinary…

Argentines Defend Indigenous Rights, Hotel Workers Flex Muscles & World’s Biggest Human Peace Sign
Editor’s Note From Rivera Sun Argentines faced police repression that injured hundreds as they protested their governor’s overhaul of the provincial constitution. Though they have succeeded in getting the discriminatory clauses that undermined Indigenous Rights dropped, many continue to push to get the entire document subject to review by tribal groups – as is required…

Climate Actions & Earth Day, Pothole Flower-Planting Hijinks, Egyptian & Iranian Women Resist Morality Police
Editor’s Note From Rivera Sun On Earth Day, April 22, 2023, millions of people are taking action on behalf of our imperiled planet (or, more accurately, our imperiled species and ecosystems). With the climate crisis heating up, business-as-usual destroying hope, and politicians dragging their feet, many people are doing far more than picking up garbage…

Peruvians Blockade Mine, 200 Walkouts Against Mass Shootings, South Africans Stop Amazon Offices
Editor’s Note From Rivera Sun The mass shooting at an elementary school in Texas – which comes on the heels of the recent racially-motivated massacre in Buffalo, NY – has propelled students and allies into the streets. Walkouts and protests were held in over 200 locations calling for gun control and an immediate response to…

Albanians Protest Price Hikes, Tenants Form 10K-Strong Union, Sex Workers Walkout
Editor’s Note From Rivera Sun One thing Nonviolence News offers is the bird’s eye view on emerging trends. For example, last week, we reported that Sri Lanka is in the middle of a national strike against a collapsed economy and that Mongolians took action over “empty bellies and empty promises”. This week, Albanians are protesting…

Mexico’s Water Caravan, Mongolia’s Empty Stomach Uprising & Puerto Rico’s Beach Party Protests
Editor’s Note From Rivera Sun If you were wondering where this week’s Nonviolence News has been … the answer is Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Kentucky, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Massachusetts and finally Maine. I’ve been on the road this week, moving to Maine, which delayed the release of the new edition. But never fear! Between dodging…

Women’s Day, Don’t Say Gay, Ecobarrios, Migrant Workers & Beach Battles
Editor’s Note From Rivera Sun This week’s Nonviolence News is wide-ranging, stretching from stories of how virtual reality is making imaginative space for social justice to how Black-owned farms in the US have to fight to hold onto their land. The breadth of organizing is staggering and eye-opening. Puerto Ricans are mobilizing to stop rich…

Reflective Reindeer, Hungary’s Rainbow, and Iran’s Water Protests
Editor’s Note From Rivera Sun Examples of creative nonviolence are why I spend hours searching for Nonviolence News stories each week. Take this report from Finland, for example. 4,000 reindeer die each year in car collisions in Finland. Finally, reindeer protection groups came up with a surprising solution: paint antlers with reflective paint. When cars…