Please note the following important Torture on Trial updates:
* February 4 - Motions hearing The motions hearing will take place at 1:30 p.m. on Monday, February 4 at U.S. District Court, 405 W. Congress, Tucson, Arizona. Several important motions will be heard by the judge at that time. There will be a support circle in the courtyard in front of the courthouse at 12:30 p.m.
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Blackwater Protesters Sentenced today, January 24, 2008
Jan 24th, 2008 by admin2
Blackwater 7 Second Trial
January 24, 2008
Beth Brockman of Durham, N.C.; Mark Colville of New Haven, Conn.; Peter DeMott of Ithaca, N.Y.; Mary Grace of Madison County, Va.; Laura Marks of Ayden, N.C.; and Bill Streit of Louisa County, Va. were sentenced today by Judge Russell Duke for their protest at Blackwater in North Carolina. Judge Duke sentenced the 7 peace activists, giving them 5 days. Most had already served the 5 days, for the ones who hadn’t served the 5 days, the judge gave suspended sentences. Continue Reading »
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Shut It Down Affinity Group Arrested at Vermont Yankee
Dec 20th, 2007 by admin2
Shut It Down Affinity Group implores Vermont Yankee to consider safety
concerns
contact: Marcia Gagliardi
VERNON, Vermont. State and local police arrested six women of the Shut It Down Affinity Group Tuesday as they implored Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant officers to allow them to present safety concerns to newly-appointed safety officer Ricardo Fernandes and his counterpart Beth Sienel. Continue Reading »
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Judge Clears Court for Trial and Sentencing of Blackwater Protesters
Dec 11th, 2007 by admin2
Friday, December 07, 2007 From Kim Williams and Steve Baggarly
Here’s the local piece on yesterday’s trial. There is also an article at dailyadvance.com called “7 Blackwater Protesters Found Guilty” by John Henderson. Continue Reading »
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Mark Scibilia-Carver sentenced to 30 days in Steuben County Jail, Bath NY for Occupation Project action
Nov 29th, 2007 by admin2
From: Ellen Grady, Nov 29, 2007
“When I turned myself in, with all my fears and doubts, I did it not only for myself. I did it for the people of Iraq, even for those who fired upon me-they were just on the other side of a battleground where war itself was the only enemy. Continue Reading »
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from Kim Williams and Steve Baggarly
The 7 protesters arrested at Blackwater USA in October for recreating the Nisoor Square massacre at the company’s front door will go to trial on Wednesday, December 5th at 9:30 am. Continue Reading »
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Greetings in Solidarity from Arenal, Nicaragua
Nov 21st, 2007 by Rob Currie
After being hit on September 4th by a “category 5″ Hurricane Felix, for the first time in our history here in Nicaragua we had 50 consecutive days of rain (reminded me of the annual monsoons in India). Over 300 deaths, 200,000 left homeless (the equivalent of over 10 million people in the United States), the region´s most extensive rain forest destroyed, and food prices soaring (the price of beans–our national staple–quadrupled). As a result of the hurricane, continued rains, and increasing lack of food and drinking water available, we faced two national epidemics–dengue (caused by mosquito bites) and leptospirosis (caused by rat bites). All of this in addition to the increasing havoc being played on our power and drinking water systems by the international oil situation (half the community in Arenal–the village where I live and work–has not had drinking water in their homes for more than four years). As Dan Berrigan has written: “No great miracles for us, not even small ones.”
I sometimes feel awkward sharing the above reality, because the last thing that folks in Arenal want to communicate is a “poor me/poor us” mentality. Decades of resistance and trying to create alternatives doesn´t leave time for self-pity, much less discouragement which, in a situation of survival, is simply an unaffordable luxury. The women and youth of Arenal continue to be tuned to the struggle for survival and the search for alternatives, in collaboration with similar communities in the region and around the world.
As I write this, we´re commemorating the 18th anniversary of the women and Jesuits assassinated in El Salvador–an anniversary of a modern-day crucifixion that we celebrate as a sign of hope that all of us remain faithful in the struggle, in the face of whatever lies in our path. Only then will we be able to experience the joy and gift of resurrection.
The women and youth of Arenal continue to open new paths to what they hope will lead to a somewhat better future. Beginning in January, we´ll have between 25 and 30 youngsters studying at the university-level–an extraordinary number for a village community in Nicaragua. Nineteen youngsters have already graduated and have fulltime employment; half of these graduates continue to work, organize, and mobilize in the Arenal community in their “free” time. Young women who have to work in surrounding textile factories (a nice way to say “sweatshops”) owned by North American, Canadian, Korean, and Taiwanese corporations, are organizing in the community in order to free themselves from these factories. They have already bought a few sewing machines in order to prepare clothing, bed sheets, and school uniforms to sell locally and in Costa Rica.
Quetzalcoalt (the youth dance group in Arenal) continues to respond to requests from all over to give performances of traditional Nicaraguan dance, preserving our customs and traditions in the face of the consumer avalanche that bombards us through the mass media. The community is preparing the 4th annual Village Fair for the third Sunday of December (you´re invited!), in which village communities near and far come together to share local foods, music, dance, art, stories, craft works, and what little we´ve been able to grow in the way of corn and beans during the year.
A team of young women continue to operate a popular pharmacy and laboratory in Arenal which has had to work overtime in the last couple of months to keep the ongoing health crisis from getting out of control. They do terrific work!
My experience here in Arenal continues to teach me many things. One of the most important lessons I´ve learned is that, as the economic situation grows worse and worse, the energy level of the women and youth in the community grows greater and greater. A seeming contradiction, but in reality it´s folks living the crucifixion in a way that offers the promise of resurrection: “the human, the difficult step-by-step, hard-won eventual glory” (Dan Berrigan, 1993).
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Three Arrested At Fr. Huachuca
Nov 18th, 2007 by admin2
November 18, 2007 (from a phone conversation with Betsy Lamb)
Betsy Lamb, Jerry Zawada and Mary Burton Riseley were arrested today at Ft. Huachuca, Arizona, where officers are trained in torture techniques.
The three had statements to give to the people on the base, and were walking up to the guardpost. They walked over a short barrier, and were arrested and charged with trespass, conspiracy, and failure to obey.
They have a court date in Federal Court on Dec. 4.
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Nov 3, 2007 Vigil at Commissioning of USS Sampson
Nov 15th, 2007 by admin2
Tom Lewis writes:
Three of us in Worcester, Mass. managed to get together a small vigil and protest at the commissioning of the USS Sampson in boston on November 3, 2007. We were met by 10 or more Boston Police who would not let us get near our on the ship but with some resistence we did get to set up a vigil in the rain at the end of the dock. In the photo are Tom Lewis, Christine Levalle, Mike Boover.
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Peter DeMott writes about Blackwater Demonstration and time in jail awaiting arraignment.
Nov 6th, 2007 by Susan Crane
Dear Friends,
I know Ellen’s been keeping you informed about my part in the protest at Blackwater Worldwide on 20 October in Moyock, NC. Immediately following our arrest we rode in a sheriff’s van to begin our four day experience of “southern hospitality”.
The skimpy portions and poor quality of the fare provided by our keepers did very little to dampen my spirits given that I had as my companions Bill, Mark and Steve with whom I shared a very rich and satisfying intellectual and spiritual nourishment.
Well, after spending four days in the Currituck County Jail, my fellow activists and I appeared in court on Wednesday and promised to return for trial on 5 December.
I arrived home Thursday night and felt so overwhelmed by the outpouring of support and encouragement regarding our protest.
Thank you all from the bottom of my heart! I’ll keep you posted as to plans for the trial. We defendants may try to subpoena Erik Prince, sole owner and mastermind of Blackwater Worldwide, for our day in court in hopes of putting the infamous Blackwater itself on trial. As you all know, this corporation has very literally been getting away with murder even as they rip off the US taxpayer to the tune of billions of dollars.
Let’s all continue to keep up our united effort to end yet another tragic, needless war and to strengthen the bonds of solidarity, of community, of love and of creative nonviolence!
Peter