Truth is treason

Free Bradley Manning, June 1st Mass Demo.

We support Bradley Manning as a true gay hero who saw injustice, stood up, spoke up and set out to correct it. This has always been the case of our  queer revolutionary heroes through the centuries.

WE ARE BRADLEY MANNING!

Join us at Fort Meade in support of Bradley Manning. By the time his court martial begins in June, he will have spent more then 3 years in prison. All for having done the right thing, for having exposed war crimes! Saturday, June 1, 2013 RALLY FOR BRADLEY AT FORT MEADE.

June 1st will mark the beginning of Bradley Manning’s fourth year in prison and the start of his trial. The June 1st Ft. Meade protest for Bradley Manning will be the largest action of our campaign! People across the nation and the globe will converge on Ft. Meade to stand up for the Army whistle-blower who risked everything to give the public real facts about our government’s wars in the middle east and foreign policy worldwide.

Details:

• 1pm Gather (Reece Road and US 175, Fort Meade, Maryland)
• 2pm March/Action
• 3pm Rally and Speak Out

Sponsored by the Bradley Manning Support Network and the national Veterans for Peace organization with the hekp of Courage to Resist, and many other groups. After more than three years of imprisonment, including nine months of torture, Nobel Peace Prize nominee Bradley Manning’s trial is finally scheduled to begin June 3, 2013, at Fort Meade.

The outcome of this trial will determine whether a conscience-driven 25 year old WikiLeaks whistle-blower spends the rest of his life in prison. Bradley believe that the American people have a right to know the truth about what our government does around the world in our name. We the People must send a message to the military prosecuting authority and President Obama, that Bradley Manning is the kin of hero and patriot we want and our country needs.

Watch a short video featuring Bradley Manning’s voice, leaked from a recent court statement on his desire to engage American citizens in “discussions, debates and reforms” concerning U.S. Foreign policy:

Check out the Bradley Manning Facebook page for more information:  HERE.

Correcting Dangerous errors in the Press about Bradley Manning: HERE.

Get On the Bus for Bradley: HERE

www.bradleymanning.org.

Get On The Bus for June 1st demo. HERE

A demo and rally is being planned for Hartford Ct. at the Federal Building, 450 Main Street, Friday June 7,  4:00-5:30.

The Religious Right’s Immigration Bill. Act Today!

A few years ago, Presente supported the “Trail of Dreams,” four young people who walked from Miami to Washington, DC, in support of the DREAM Act.¹ Two of those young people, Felipe and Juan, are now married. Juan is set to become a U.S. citizen, but Felipe is still undocumented.

If we don’t act by today, and the current Senate immigration reform bill remains as is, 36,000 same-sex binational couples like Felipe and Juan will continue to have to make the horrible choice between the country they love and the person they love.²

Tell Sen. Chuck Schumer to publicly support an LGBT-inclusive amendment to the immigration bill

Gay people were purposely excluded from the Senate immigration bill because the “Gang of Eight” who wrote it, which Sen. Schumer is a part of, did not want to lose the support of the religious right. Fortunately, last week Sen. Pat Leahy, the chair of the committee now reviewing the bill, offered an amendment that would include same-sex couples in immigration reform. The Senate could vote on it any day now.³

If one single Democrat votes “no” on the amendment, it won’t pass. Sen. Schumer, the leading Democrat working on immigration reform, is the only Democrat who has not committed to voting for the amendment.

If at least 5,000 of us tell Sen. Schumer to include LGBT families in immigration reform by today, Presente.org members will hand-deliver the petitions to Sen. Schumer tomorrow morning. Can you add your support?

Tell Sen. Chuck Schumer to publicly support an LGBT-inclusive amendment to the immigration bill

Felipe, who walked the Trail of DREAMS and is now co-director of the LGBTQ advocacy organization GetEqual, told us this:

“I fell in love and decided to build a family with Juan. It’s sad to witness a few Senators using my life as a political football. We deserve to be treated equally!”

Sen. Chuck Schumer has been getting a lot of heat the past few weeks for pushing for increased immigration detention after accepting money from private prisons. He can’t afford to lose any more popularity, especially with the LGBT community. If thousands of us make our voices heard on this, he’ll be forced to come out in support of protecting families like Felipe and Juan’s from the shadow of deportation.

Can you sign this urgent petition?

Tell Sen. Chuck Schumer to publicly support an LGBT-inclusive amendment to the immigration bill

Thanks and ¡adelante!
Arturo, Gabriela, Erick, and the rest of the Presente.org team

P.S. Can you donate $5 to support our work? We rely on contributions from people like you to see campaigns like this through.

Montreal May 27: J. Sakai on the Politics of Security

We publish this very important presentation even though none of us here in Hartford can make it. We hope that Kay will publish the presentation.

 

The Politics of Security
a presentation by J. Sakai

Monday, May 27th, 6:30 pm
@ QPIRG Concordia
1500 de Maisonneuve O., suite 204
(metro Guy-Concordia)

The recent f.b.i. and grand jury repression against anarchists in the Northwest USA, as well as the continued police repression of the Anti-Globalization resistance, has reawakened questions about movement security. There are many misunderstandings about what security is. From the belief that it is an area of cloak and dagger maneuvers to the impression that security is about lists of rules that must be obeyed. This is an area where knowledge is traditionally not written up, but passed along by word of mouth. What this workshop is meant to do is to explore the underlying politics of security as an area of struggle. Discussing basic understandings that can be applied in different situations in non-authoritarian and diverse ways.

Wheelchair accessible
Whisper translation into French will be available

For more information: info@kersplebedeb.com

Who took guerrilla out of guerrilla. Yarn art loves Corporate Sleaze soon to hit Hartford.*

Will the real punkpink please sit down.

Old punkpink has been up to it again. Well what can anyone expect? Punkpink explores guerrilla knit art and corporate sleaze in a new piece, Who Took the Guerrilla out of Guerrilla. Yarn Art Loves Corporate Sleaze. Now everyone knows that dear old pink loves art and art loves pink a lot. To anyone whose feathers are ruffled, horse got scared and ran away, we say, good.

The News Release:

Aetna Arts Week May 19-24, 2013

Join us for a week long celebration of the arts in and around the capital city. From theater and dance to music, literature, classic and cutting edge visual art, there’s something for everyone to love. So get out and pARTicipate in the arts in our community with free and low-cost events sure to get your ART beating-all thanks to your generous donations towards the Greater Hartford Arts Council’s United Arts Campaign.

Who Took Guerrilla out of guerrilla? Yarn Art loves Corporate Sleaze Soon To Hit Hartford.

By punkpink

The knitters are coming, the knitters are coming, oh thanks be to Aetna for loving guerilla art so much.

What caught my eyes within this news release was a page titled, Knit-Hit Hartford which had this to say.

Explore Knit-Hit Hartford

Guerilla knitters storm Greater Hartford! Waltz through downtown Hartford to see its trees, statures and other common sites enlivened with artistic, homemade yarn creations. (we are so glad that these creations are artistic and homemade.)

Yeap, after they storm through we will waltz through. So yes I got something to say as waltzing isn’t my bag.

Definition of GUERRILLA

: of, relating to, or suggestive of guerrillas especially in being aggressive, radical, or unconventional

but of course these knitters only use one r so maybe they are not guerrilla at all. I punkpink do testify that if Aetna is sponsoring this and the art sites are going to be in predetermined sites by some type of leaders then it can’t be and it isn’t guerrilla art at all. How in the world could a big sleazy company like Aetna be radical or unconventional. Yes, they are aggressive as any capitalist pig can be we all know that as the people have been on many occasions howling at their doors in protest which brings up another question, How can anyone who claims to be an artist cozy up to the 1% corporate sleaze. Are these folks so needy that they are willing to make art with the likes of these?  Has the message of the 1% been lost? “Goddess,” said May Day, “and these folks claim to be artists!” “Give me the guerrilla army of Ho Chi Minh or the EGP any day!”

So let’s check out the places where the artists are going to make art. Wonder wonder little stars will they do their deed under cover of darkness or if getting ready for such a big job means in the day light then maybe wearing a bag over their heads. If that is the case and guerrilla art has come out from the dark and into the day and now is being held in the arms of Corporate, arts councils with the blessing of the city of Hartford I cry for its death.

A major milestone in the struggle to free Lynne Stweart

A major milestone has been reached in the struggle for Lynne Stewart’s freedom. Lynne Stewart wrote on April 26 to confirm that the Warden at FMC Carswell recommended Compassionate Release to the Federal Bureau of Prisons.

“So Happy that the Compassionate Release was granted at Carswell and we are on the road!!!

“Who DID It? — The People Yes – and we certainly deserve a VICTORY and this is one for sure!!”

With this dramatic development, the International Campaign to Save the Life of Lynne Stewart crossed a critical threshold. We directed our attention immediately to Charles E. Samuels, Jr., the Director of the Federal Bureau of Prisons.

Following two expedited communications from former Attorney General Ramsey Clark, a probation officer charged with inspecting the residence designated for Lynne Stewart’s recovery was dispatched to the home of her son, attorney Geoffrey Stewart. Soon afterwards, we were notified that the residence was approved.

Thus, another hurdle has been overcome, paving the way for Lynne Stewart’s Compassionate Release.

There is no time to lose. Lynne Stewart has been in quarantine for several weeks at FMC Carswell since her white blood count dropped precipitously. As Ramsey Clark wrote to BOP Director Samuels:

“Further medical tests reveal that the cancer that had metastasized rapidly to her lungs, lymph nodes and shoulder remains aggressive. If the series of chemotherapy treatments slowed its spread in certain areas, it has not attenuated in her lungs. … The sustained treatment and preparations by the medical team at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City are critical to her survival.”

This is the moment to intensify our global mobilization. We must prevail upon the director of the Bureau of Prisons to file the motion for compassionate release with Judge John Koetl, the sentencing judge.

ASK FIVE OF YOUR FRIENDS OR COLLEAGUES TO SIGN THE PETITION. PUT THE PETITION ON YOUR FACEBOOK PAGE AND SEND A TWITTER MESSAGE NOW.

Among the latest signers are: Fr. Miguel d’Escoto Brockmann, Bianca Jagger, Margaret Ratner Kunstler, Mark Lane, Noam Chomsky, Medea Benjamin, Rosa Clemente, Kathy Kelly, James Ridgeway and William Blum.

This update was prepared by co-coordinators Mya Shone, Ralph Schoenman and Ralph Poynter.

Petition HERE

More crappy immigration reform unless we stop it!!

This was posted today on our facebook page. It comes via comrade David Schultz and originally from The Spanish Speaking Center of New Britain Ct. Yes it is what we are talking about and yes this type of  junk must be opposed and stopped. David writes this on Facebook. If you can send it out and about.

Connecticut: Please call your rep and senator to read over bill 6665 and to put the additional provisions into 1143. ICE doesn’t belong in anti racial profiling laws. It only adds to racial profiling.

Spanish Speaking Center of New Britain, CT

Not the 1st time I share this but timely … there’s currently some legislation pending on ‘racial profiling’ & ‘bias policing’. Bill 1143 which passed thru the Judiciary Committee will provide little protection for anyone but law enforcement and allows officers to ask drivers about immigration status. I don’t understand why they haven’t endorsed Bill 6665 that gives all drivers more protections, access to a copy of the traffic stop reports officers are required to fill out after every stop, and also prohibits police officers from ICE work.

Why would undocumented drivers want a driver’s license if the officers can still ask for their ‘Green Card’? Tell your state representatives and senators to read Bill 6665 and copy the additional provisions into Bill 1143! Copy of the Stop Report .. no Green Carding … 3rd Party Reporting of Police Misconduct.

“Cowardice asks the question-is it safe? Vanity asks the question-is it popular? Expediency asks the question-is it political. But conscience asks the question-is it right? There comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, popular, or political, but because it is right!” Dr. Martin Luther King