Guatemala: send an email, help save lives

Yesterday, I received an email from my friend, Palmer Legare.  Please take action and send an email to help protect lives.

Friends and comrades,

   Please excuse the rush that I have in writing this.  Please take immediate action as my life and the lives of hundreds of unarmed peasants in the community Saquimo Setana are in danger.  Briefly:

*On August 31, 2010, at approximately 11:00 am, armed members of the wealthy family of Maria Elena Garcia Ical began burning houses of the Q’eqchi Maya peasant community of Saquimo Setana.

*Palmer Legare began recording a video of the arson.  He was then attacked and briefly detained by the family, beaten with a pistol and his life was threatened.  The camera was stolen and he was barely able to escape.

*Approximately 7 hours later, Guatemalan police and army arrived in the community.  They stayed until 2:00 am, but refused to disarm the wealthy family.

*On September 1, five members of the community and Legare traveled one hour by foot and three hours by truck to the city of Coban to file a complaint.  They asked to speak with public prosecutor Sebastian Cucul, and were told to wait in the lobby.  While they were waiting, the leader of the attack, Maria Elena Garcia Ical, entered the building and went to the second floor.  Shortly after Legare and another community leader went up to the second floor and waited outside the attorney’s closed office until a custodian opened the door to take out the trash.  At this time Legare saw that the wealthy attacker was meeting with the public prosecutor.  Shortly after, public prosecutor Cucul sent a message that he would not meet with community members or with Legare.

*The group then went to the police to file the complaint.  Shortly after they entered, a police officer said that the police would arrest the husbands of two of the women who were there if they saw them.  They also said that they are waiting for the weather to improve and then they will go to the community to destroy the houses and kick out the residents.  This despite a recent judge’s order that the police are not to execute such an eviction.

*At approximately 6:30 in the morning today, September 2, we were called by members of the community saying they had been walking towards their cornfield to harvest corn needed to sustain their families.  They were met by armed members of the wealthy family, who refused to allow them to go to their fields.  They threatened that if they informed anyone of this, they would be killed and their bodies would be thrown in the river.

*Shortly after this, family members and/or supporters of the community used horses and pistols to attack community members.  Children, women and men in the community huddled together in an attempt to defend themselves.

*Shortly after this, communication with the community was lost and there has been no communication for nearly two hours.  A commission lead by leaders of the Committee of Peasant Unity and accompanied by Palmer Legare of the Guatemala Solidarity Project will travel to the community immediately after sending this and other alerts.

*Older information and videos about political prisoners from the community is available at http://guatemalasolidarityproject.org/actions.htm

ACTION NEEDED URGENTLY

*Please immediately email the governor of the department of Altaverapaz,  gobernadoraltaverapaz@gmail.org and it is important to cc: esay@oj.gob.gt,solidaridadguatemala@yahoo.com,stuand_wckr@yahoo.com,gobernadoraltaverapaz@gmail.org,fdaltaverapaz@mp.gob.gt,mpcoban@hotmail.com

Please write in English or Spanish your concern about the situation.  Your email can be very brief or long but it is important they know they are being watched and preferred that the email be in your own words.  Please include your location in the email.

 

*Please make financial contributions of any size.  $5 donations are extremely helpful.  $5,000 donations are extremely helpful.  Checks should be made out to “UPAVIM Community Development Foundation” and mailed to UPAVIM, c/o Laurie Levinger, 28 McKenna Rd, Norwich, VT 05055.  If you want your funds to be used as emergency relief and support in case of an eviction, write the word “eviction” in the memo/note section of the check.  If you wish the donation to be used for any purpose determined by the community Saquimo Setana, write “Saquimo Setana” in the notes/memo section.  Or leave the notes/memo section and with leaders from various communities we will determine the most urgent need for the funds.  The GSP is completely volunteer driven, and all funds received will go directly to support the communities.

Poster Guatemala Information Center 1989, design Mark Vallen

Arise everywhere!

My daughter is on vacation on Cape Cod and she snapped this picture to send to me-- someone she met at the red Barn in Orleans who works for an organization in Texas called Arise!  I know there's an Alabama Arise, also-- maybe more?

Thank You, M'am

She was a large woman with a large purse that had everything in it but hammer and nails. It had a long strap, and she carried it slung across her shoulder. It was about eleven o'clock at night, and she was walking alone, when a boy ran up behind her and tried to snatch her purse. The strap broke with the single tug the boy gave it from behind. But the boy's weight and the weight of the purse combined caused him to lose his balance so, instead of taking off full blast as he had hoped, the boy fell on his back on the sidewalk, and his legs flew up. the large woman simply turned around and kicked him right square in his blue-jeaned sitter. Then she reached down, picked the boy up by his shirt front, and shook him until his teeth rattled.

After that the woman said, "Pick up my pocketbook, boy, and give it here." She still held him. But she bent down enough to permit him to stoop and pick up her purse. Then she said, "Now ain't you ashamed of yourself?"

Read the rest of this very short Langston Hughes story at American Literature.

Leonard Peltier beaten in prison - you can help

Thirty years have passed since the conviction of Leonard Peltier for the murder of two FBI agents, and I worry that some people may not even know who he is.

The two agents were killed on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in 1975, at the height of the American Indian Movement. Peltier was convicted in 1977 after a trial rife with irregularities. Many believe him to be innocent and Amnesty International considers him a political prisoner.

Robert Redford produced a film directed by Michael Apted in 1992 about the AIM uprising and the framing of Leonard Peltier, Incident at Oglala, which you can download at the Leonard Peltier Defense Offense Committee website. Apted also directed a highly fictionalized but still compelling film Thunderheart the same year.

A letter has been circulating from Leonard Peltier's sister, Betty Peltier-Solano,describing how Leonard was severely beaten after being transferred to Canaan Federal Penitentiary in Waymark, Pennsylvania. She fears for his life.

Please, read this letter and then take action. Leonard Peltier's wellbeing depends on prison officials knowing that we still care and are still watching.

Forwarded on behalf of the Leonard Peltier Defense Offense Committee

URGENT! Leonard Peltier's Safety in Jeopardy!

Dear LP Supporters,

I am so OUTRAGED! My brother Leonard was severely beaten upon his arrival at the Canaan Federal Penitentiary. When he went into population after his transfer, some inmates assaulted him. The severity of his injuries is that he suffered numerous blows to his head and body, receiving a large bump on his head, possibly a concussion, and numerous bruises. Also, one of his fingers is swollen and discolored and he has pain in his chest and ribcage. There was blood everywhere from his injuries.

We feel that prison authorities at the prompting of the FBI orchestrated this attack and thus, we are greatly concerned about his safety. It may be that the attackers, whom Leonard did not even know, were offered reduced sentences for carrying out this heinous assault. Since Leonard is up for parole soon, this could be a conspiracy to discredit a model prisoner. He was placed in solitary confinement and only given one meal, this is generally done when you won't name your attackers; incidentally being only given one meal seriously jeopardizes his health because of his diabetes. Prison officials refuse to release any info to the family, but they need to hear from his supporters to protect his safety, as does President Obama. His attorneys are trying to get calls into him now.

This attack on LP comes on the heels of the FBI's recent letter, prompting this attack by FBI supporters as an attempt to discredit LP as a model prisoner. Anyone who has been in the prison system knows well that if you refuse to name your attackers or file charges against them, then you lose your status as a victim and/or given points against your possible parole and labeled as a perpetrator. It is not uncommon, in fact is quite common for the government to use Indian against Indian and they still operate under the old adage "it takes an Indian to catch an Indian". In 1978, they made an attempt to assassinate him through another Indian man who was also at Marion prison with LP. But Standing Deer chose to reveal the plot to him instead of taking his life in exchange FOR A CHANCE AT FREEDOM. When Standing Deer was released in 2001, he joined the former Leonard Peltier Defense Committee as a board member. He also began to speak on Leonard's behalf until his murder six years ago today. Prior to his murder, Standing Deer confided with close friends and associates that the same man who visited him in Marion to assassinate Peltier, had came to Houston, TX and told him that he had better stay away from Peltier and anything to do with him.

We are aware that currently, the FBI is actively seeking support for his continued imprisonment of Leonard Peltier and also also seeking support from Native People. So please be aware, and keep Leonard in your prayers. The FBI is apparently afraid of the impact we are having. If they will set him up to blemish his record just before a parole hearing, what will they do when it looks like his freedom will become a reality? We need to make sure that nothing happens to him again!

Please write the President, send it priority or registered mail. Email to Change.gov or email President Obama. Call your congressional representatives and write letters, not email, to them. Do what you can to get the word out to insure that LP is receiving adequate medical attention for his injuries.

I am asking you, supporters of Leonard and advocates of justice at this time to help. I don't know what else to do. Please Help!

Thank you Betty Peltier-Solano Executive Coordinator
Leonard Peltier Defense Offense Committee

Also call and request Leonard be treated with dignity and respect.

let the Bureau of Prisons know that the public will hold them accountable for the safety and wellbeing of Leonard Peltier. Please make sure to use Leonard's prisoner ID number ("register number") 89637-132

Warden Ronnie R. Holt, Warden
USP-Canaan
U.S. Penitentiary
3057 Easton Turnpike
Waymart, PA 18472
Phone: 570-488-8000
Fax: 570-488-8130
E-mail address: CAA/EXECASSISTANT@BOP.GOV

D. Scott Dodrill, Director
Northeast Regional Office
Federal Bureau of Prisons
2nd & Chesnut Streets., 7th Floor
Philadelphia, PA 19106
Phone: 215-521-7301
E-mail: NERO/EXECASSISTANT@BOP.GOV

Harley G. Lappin, Director
Bureau of Prisons
U.S. Department of Justice
320 First Street, NW, Room 654
Washington, DC 20534
Phone: 202-307-3250
Fax: 202-514-6878

Ask President Obama to investigate this incident:

The Honorable Barack H. Obama
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500
Comments: 202-456-1111
Switchboard: 202-456-1414
Fax: 202-456-2461
E-mail: http://www.whitehouse.gov/contact/

-----
Time to set him free... Because it is the RIGHT thing to do.

Friends of Peltier
http://www.FreePeltierNow.org

Artwork by Rigo 99 at the Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive.

Solidarity and hope: service Weds. night with Macedonia Church

I received an email announcing "A Service of Thanksgiving and Hope" and wanted to pass it on. Here's a way to show that Springfield can act in solidarity, can envision a future where we are united, not divided.

A Service of Thanksgiving and Hope Responding to the Burning of the Macedonia Church of God Wednesday November 26 7 to 8 pm Old First Church, Court Square, Springfield

The Macedonia Church of God in Springfield was burned to the ground on election night, November 4, 2008.

As Thanksgiving approaches, please join the community to say all of us can work and live together in peace. The entire community of Greater Springfield is invited to respond with a reaffirmation of solidarity and hope. The homily will be given by Bishop Bryant Robinson from the Macedonia Church of God. Clergy of every faith are invited to robe and process.

Invite your friends and family. Clergy, alert your congregations. The time is short, but the message is critical. Yes we can!

"How good it is for brothers and sisters to stand together." Psalm 133

Info: Fred Rose, Pioneer Valley Project, 827-0781, generalpvp@verizon.net.

Do a lot of good in just five minutes

Ever stumbled on a site that says, Click here to plant a tree, feed a hungry child or save a tiger? It's true, it's that easy! Of course it's only pennies-- or sometimes fractions of-- but it does add up. If you had a penny for every single person in the U.S., you'd be a millionaire three times over.

A very comprehensive site for donating by click is at The Non-Profits.com. ; the site lists more than fifty opportunities to give. Check it out.

A personal favorite of mine is Care2. I've been a member for some years, now, and the site just keeps getting better and better. Start here for Click to Donate. Better yet, if you want to see your efforts as they accumulate, create an account and the site will keep track of how many feet of rain forest you've saved, how many chimps you've fed, how many pounds of carbon you've offset, etc.

Don't stop with Click to Donate, though. Care2 has a great news service for people particularly interested in animals and the environment (although the site covers everything) a petition site, a great ecard collection, and more. Community is an overused word on thw web, but you really will find a great community at Care2.

New Orleans - it's NOT too late to make a difference

Before Katrina: 6,000 homeless people in the city. After Katrina: 12,000, some of whom have been camping across the street from City Hall. The mayor was going to kick everyone off last week, but now it's been postponed. What wasn't postponed, unfortunately, was the bulldozing of the first of four public housing projects.

The Poor People's Economic Human Rights Campaign (PPEHRC) had joined community activists in trying for a temporary injunction. That failed, because the judge said City Council had voted to demolish the projects four years ago. The destruction of three other projects, however, may be able to be held off indefinitely. At lest 3,000 people who used to live in public housing remain scattered throughout the country.

It's not that public housing in New Orleans before Katrina was so great; it needed and deserved renovations. The N.O. Housing Authority wants to replace the public housing projects with mixed-income, mixed use developments. Sounds great in theory, but too often is just an excuse for the displacement of poor people.

The PPEHRC National Coordinator Cheri Honkala is calling on all of us to make sure HUD knows we are watching them. We want the existing public housing projects preserved and renovated. (Actually, we want a lot more than that, but let's start here.)

Secretary Alphonso Jackson

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
451 7th Street S.W., Washington, DC 20410
Telephone: (202) 708-1112 TTY: (202) 708-1455

(press #6 for employee directory)

HUD Inspector General Hotline for complaints:

1-800-347-3735
TDD: (202) 708-2451

The Poor People's Economic Human Rights Campaign is a movement of organizations to which my organization, Arise for Social Justice, belongs. Four years ago we marched together in NYC at the Republican National Convention. This year, if all goes well, we'll be together again in Minneapolis, MN.

You can check out some of Cheri's day to day postings from New Orleans here.