Dear Global Justice Readers,


A large increase in military aid to Mexico is included in the 2009 Supplemental funding bill currently being debated in the U.S. Congress. This boost to the package of weapons and training locked in by Bush-era Mérida Initiative (Plan Mexico) funding is a disturbing signal that the Obama Administration is following the ill-conceived path forged under Bush's presidency-prioritizing military approaches to social and economic issues. Rising U.S. military involvement in Mexico has been widely opposed by Mexican human rights groups. The latest funds were allocated as part of a broad "supplemental" budget package that skirts debate and minimizes public scrutiny.

Please tell your Congressional Representatives that you oppose further militarization of our Mexico policy. The new Administration needs to move beyond knee-jerk military responses to complex social issues. We recommend this background analysis by Laura Carlsen.

At the same time that the U.S. is boosting military aid, human rights conditions in Mexico are in decline. The atmosphere of crisis generated by widespread violence related to narco-trafficking has provided the Army and police forces a fresh pretext for ignoring human rights and defending impunity for well-connected criminals and abusers.

Examples of unpunished crimes are many. In Oaxaca City more than two-dozen activists were gunned down by paramilitaries organized by state police during an uprising in 2006. The government has neither investigated nor held accountable those responsible. Even in the case of Bradley Will-the one foreigner killed-the authorities, have invented preposterous theories to shield allies and persecute opponents.

2006 was a turning point for Mexico. In May that year, weeks before the uprising in Oaxaca and months prior to the presidential election, police brutally attacked demonstrators in San Salvador Atenco in Mexico State. Federal, state, and local police arrested and tortured hundreds of demonstrators and raped or abused 26 women. No one involved in planning and carrying out the attacks and rapes has been charged, yet 12 demonstrators are still imprisoned on sentences ranging up to 112 years!


Please join the campaign to free these twelve political prisoners.

source: Global Exchange

as always, just passing it on

Dear Fair Trade and Planet One Gifts Supporter,

Yesterday, during the first White House meeting between U.S. President Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, Obama successfully pressured Netanyahu to agree to peace talks. However, Netanyahu gave no indication that his government would halt settlement expansion or ease the blockade on Gaza.

Despite these promising small steps on the part of the Obama Administration, much of Washington continues to cater to AIPAC's demands for unconditional U.S. support--including over $3 billion in military aid each year--no matter the cost in civilian lives. Even after last December's Gaza invasion, Washington remains silent.

The Israeli invasion, which dropped hundreds of one-ton bombs and included the widespread use of white phosphorous, represents a level of violence and impunity that U.S. taxpayers should not accept.

At this point in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the U.S. can no longer support Israel without demanding serious movement towards peace and respect for human rights in return. The U.S. needs to help Israel understand we can no longer accept the indiscriminate killing of Palestinian civilians, nor can we accept the ongoing blockade of the Gaza Strip. We need a change towards a just and lasting solution.

Join the global movement actively working towards breaking the siege on Gaza, and educating U.S. citizens about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. We encourage every U.S. citizen to go to Israel and Palestine, and see the facts on-the-ground.

Join Global Exchange and CODEPINK delegations to Gaza and the West Bank, and return to educate your communities.

Take Action!

Call your Congressional Representatives! Demand that Israel be held accountable for its disproportionate use of force, and use of white phosphorous in the invasion of Gaza.

Participate in Global Exchange and CODEPINK delegations to the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, and Israel proper. Check-out the list of delegations below!

Can't Join a Delegation? Contribute! Donate money towards toys, school supplies, and playground equipment for children in Gaza.

2009 Delegations to Gaza, the West Bank, and Israel proper

CODEPINK delegation to Gaza through Egypt:
May 28-June 5
CODEPINK delegation to Gaza through Israel:
June 5-June 14
(we now have enough support for the Egypt trip, but we are in need of more participants and donations for the Gaza delegation through Israel)
Global Exchange delegation to the West Bank and Israel:
July 25-August 4
December 5-December 15
Global Exchange "Fair Olive Harvest" delegation to the West Bank:
October 30-November 9

Thank you, as always, for your work on behalf of peace & justice

source: Global Exchange

as always, just passing it on

Obama/Clinton to visit Mexico

Dear Readers,
US-Mexico relations are at a tense and defining moment. During Felípe Calderón's first two years as president, drug war violence has reached an all time high. Meanwhile, the effects of the U.S. financial and economic crisis are spilling over our southern border - with job loss and the devastation of family incomes and savings hitting Mexicans, just as they have in United States.
At the same time, disputes over NAFTA provisions have gone public, and some panicky voices in the U.S. national security establishment have even suggested that the overall disintegration of Mexico is so serious that the Mexican state itself is in danger of "catastrophic failure." This sense of crisis - whether manufactured or real - has reduced the focus on traditional, bi-lateral concerns like immigration policy.
On March 25th and 26th, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will visit Monterrey, Mexico to lay the groundwork for an April 16th and 17th trip by President Barack Obama to Mexico City where he will meet with Mexico's president, Felípe Calderón. Additional preparatory visits by Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and Attorney General Eric Holder add to the sense that the new U.S. Administration is giving Mexico top priority.
As these official visits take place we will be intensifying our coverage of Mexico -- both on this list serve and our website. If you would like to receive Mexico-specific news on a regular basis, sign up here.
Linked to this message please find:
1. An excellent piece by our colleague Laura Carlsen, who lays out a case for skepticism regarding claims that Mexican cartels are orchestrating widespread violence on the U.S. side of the border;
2. A review of David Bacon's Illegal People: How Globalization Creates Migration and Criminalizes Immigrants by Ted Lewis recently published in Z Magazine;
3. A backgrounder on Mexico's appearance before the United Nations Human Rights Commission; and
4. An article from The Associated Press covering recent disputes over NAFTA trucking provisions that will be a front and center topic of bi-lateral conversations.
Sincerely,
Global Exchange


Source Global Exchange

as always, just passing it on

2004 U.S. intervention repeated; Republicans threaten Salvadoran voters 4 days before election

We need you to call the U.S. State Department, and demand an official statement of respect for El Salvador's March 15 presidential election, and urge Secretary Clinton to seek a positive relationship with whoever is elected!

Call the U.S. State Department's El Salvador/Nicaragua Desk today: (202) 647-1510.Yesterday, two Republican congressmen gave speeches on the floor of the House of Representatives threatening Salvadorans living in the U.S. will lose their immigration status and be outlawed from sending money home to their families if voters in El Salvador exercise their right to elect the opposition FMLN party's candidate on Sunday.

Rep. Trent Franks (R-AZ) said, "Should the pro-terrorist FMLN party replace the current government in El Salvador, the United States, in the interests of national security, would be required to reevaluate our policy toward El Salvador, including cash remittance and immigration policies to compensate for the fact there will no longer be a reliable counterpart in the Salvadoran government."

Rep. Dan Burton (R-IN) stated, "Those monies that are coming from here to there I am confident will be cut, and I hope the people of El Salvador are aware of that because it will have a tremendous impact on individuals and their economy."
These threats carry considerable weight for Salvadoran voters, as 25% of the Salvadoran population lives in the U.S., and 20% of the nation's economy consists of remittances from those family members. As in 2004, we expect these open, blatant threats to be plastered across the front pages of newspapers across El Salvador in the coming days. These threats endanger the sovereign right of the Salvadoran people to elect their own government, free from outside manipulation.


TAKE ACTION!
Call the State Department to demand an immediate public declaration of U.S. neutrality toward the Salvadoran election! CALL: (202) 647-1510 (El Salvador/Nicaragua desk) "I am calling to urge Secretary Clinton to immediately make a public statement declaring that the United States will respect the results of Sunday's presidential election in El Salvador and seek a positive relationship with whoever is elected." "On Wednesday, Members of Congress publicly threatened to revoke the immigration status of Salvadorans living here in the U.S. and outlaw the remittances they send back to their families. These threats have been extensively covered by the media in El Salvador. Without a statement by the State Department refuting these threats, the integrity and fairness of the Salvadoran election will be severely compromised."

The Republicans' statement stand in stark contrast to last week's declaration by over thirty House Democrats and one Senator who publicly committed to U.S. neutrality, to respect the election results, and to maintain a positive relationship with whichever government is elected. In a March 5th press conference in Washington, D.C., Rep. Raúl Grijalva (D-AZ) stated, "the proper position of the U.S. Congress and government is one of neutrality and respect for El Salvador's independent democratic process."

With the election less than a week away, it is imperative that the State Department declare this same position of neutrality and respect for El Salvador's independent democratic process, and reject the Republicans' threats and lies about immigration status and remittances. The integrity and fairness of El Salvador's presidential election is in danger as long as such a statement is not made.

Stay updated with news from within El Salvador with CISPES

Learn more background information on the role of the U.S. government in Salvadoran elections.


Thank you, as always, for your work on behalf of peace & justice.

source: Global Exchange

Capitol Power Plant in Washington D.C.

This Weekend The Action Begins In Washington, DC.

Power Shift promises to be the largest youth climate conference ever held in the U.S. Two days later, youth and climate activists from across the country will take part in a mass mobilization at the Washington D.C. coal plant--known as the Capitol Climate Action.

In addition to sending hundreds of youth to Power Shift by bus, Global Exchange is sending two groups, one to each of these historic events, by train. During three days on the train, we'll have plenty of time to prepare for Power Shift and the protest, reconnect with old friends, and build community with new ones. We will also avoid dumping thousands of tons of CO2 into the upper atmosphere.

This is history in the making, and we don't want you to miss any of it. So keep up with Global Exchange on two blogs dedicated to each of these momentous events.

Stay up-to-date on two historic actions with Global Exchange
You do NOT want to miss this!Keep track of activities at GX's Power Shift blog.Follow events at the Capitol Climate Action at GX's Climate Justice blog.

Read more of Global Exchange's Climate Justice blogHeaded for the Capitol and it's 3AM on the California Zephyr
It's 3am on the California Zephyr and we're stopped in Salt Lake City, Utah. The California Zephyr is the Amtrak train we are on for the first leg of our cross-country trip to the Capitol Climate Action. It originated in the San Francisco Bay area and has so far passed through Sacramento, Truckee, Reno, Winnemucca, Elko and now Salt Lake City.

I ought to be asleep, but instead I'm checking out images and YouTube videos about coal mining in Utah.

There's a lot of coal mining in the eastern part of the state, which you could probably guess from names like Carbon County and Carbonville. Carbon County has some quaint old ghost mining towns you can visit to see what it was like back in the day, but mining companies don't spend a lot of time publicizing today's practices.Longwall mining.

Longwall mining is one of the preferred practices around here these days. Longwall mining chews up an underground slice of coal a couple of miles long and 500-1000 feet wide. It has a number of nasty side effects like, for example, the fact that after the longwall operation is done, there's a long chunk of earth missing. So the land above suddenly subsides, sometimes doing severe damage to above ground structures, changing the course of rivers and similar neat stuff.

Mining coal is just a nasty business. We need to leave the rest of this stuff in the ground.

Yesterday, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid announced that they wanted the Capitol Power Plant to quit using coal. That's an important victory for the Capitol Climate Action before the action even takes place next Monday.

But as nice as this success is, there are much bigger fish to fry. And that's the real point of the Capitol Climate Action. Coal needs to be abandoned everywhere.

Thank you, as always, for your work on behalf of peace & justice, Global Exchange


Source: Global Exchange

Every-bunny Loves Fair Trade!!


Make Easter sweeter for cocoa farmers by buying Fair Trade chocolate and demanding that World's Finest Chocolate switch to Fair Trade certified cocoa! Help promote Fair Trade! During the Easter season, companies like Word's Finest Chocolate sell millions of dollars worth of chocolate. Unfortunately, the chocolate that we often enjoy is not so sweet for the hundreds of thousands of child laborers involved in the harvesting of cocoa to make that chocolate, many of whom toil as slaves.

The US chocolate industry committed to ending abuses such as child slavery by July of 2005, but has not kept its promises. It is up to the consumers of the world's largest chocolate companies to hold them accountable. Let them know that this is not acceptable!

Here's what you can do:

*Send a fax to World's Finest Chocolate and demand that they take their share of the responsibility for ending forced and abusive child labor on their farms by using Fair Trade Certified cocoa.

*Purchase Fair Trade Easter gifts and show others that Fair Trade is possible! Visit the Planet One Gifts Fair Trade Online Store to see our selection of chocolate and other gifts. This year, you can order fair trade gifts, organic chocolates and Fair Trade Easter Baskets.

*Talk About Fair Trade in Your Classroom! Easter is the perfect occasion to talk with children about where their chocolate comes from and what they can do to help their peers on cocoa farms around the world. Global Exchange has lots of resources available for teachers and children of all ages to learn more about how fair trade is helping farmers and their children build a better life.

*Keep up the good work! Fair trade is on the rise! According to the Fair Trade Resource Network, the world market for Fair Trade products is expanding at 10 to 25% per year, with about 60% sales coming from a small number of food products, such as chocolate and coffee.

Continue making Fair Trade a reality!

For more information on how your school, church or community group can get involved or to order additional materials to promote fair trade in your home this Easter, please contact Gioioa von Disterlo at fairtrade@globalexchange.org or 415.575.5538.


Source: Global Exchange

Climate Emergency Action in Washington, DC

On March 2, a vast coalition of concerned citizens will blockade the coal-fired power plant that serves the US Capitol to serve notice that we will no longer accept business as usual that expands the use of coal -- known to be a leading cause of climate change. This mass action will take place in conjunction with POWER SHIFT - a gathering of thousands of youth climate activists.

Please join us as we travel by train to Washington, DC to take part in the urgent nonviolent action convened by poet, Wendell Berry and Bill McKibben the educator and leader in the movement for climate sanity. The action is being led and organized by dozens of leading environmental, religious, human rights, peace and justice organizations.


source: Global Exchange