Category Archives: Activism

Articles, photos and videos about activism of all kinds throughout the world.

One Million Petition for the Recall of Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker 3

Activism, All, Politics - US • Tags: , , , , , , ,

The petition drive to recall and remove Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker has surpassed all expectations, collecting over one million signatures in just 60 days.

Petitioners were only required to collect 540,000 by law. They far exceeded this number, making a successful legal challenge of the recall highly unlikely. This is the largest recall in U.S. history. Volunteers also gathered over 845,000 signatures to recall Lieutenant Governor Rebecca Kleefisch, as well enough signatures for four of the state senators who voted for Walker’s collective bargaining bill in March 2011, adding hundreds of thousands more petitions to a pile estimated to weigh over one ton. More…

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The Great Internet Black Out Has Commenced 1

Activism, All, News: US, Politics - US, She speaks..., SOPA • Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

On Jan 24th, Congress will vote to pass internet censorship in the Senate, even though the vast majority of Americans are opposed. We need to kill the bill – PIPA in the Senate and SOPA in the House – to protect our rights to free speech, privacy, and prosperity. Many sites have blacked out today in protest of the SOPA/PIPA bills and followed Reddit’s lead. And finally this is getting some major media coverage.  Check them out…. More…

The Greatest Protest in History Has Just Started 6

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There have been so many large protests throughout the history of mankind, but in my opinion, so many sites going black ranks now as Number One!  The organization, the participation is on such a grand scale!  Many sites are going black from 8 AM to 8 PM EST on Wednesday, January 18, 2012, but Wikipedia went black as of midnight. More…

Wikipedia Blackout: Jimmy Wales Announces Protest Of SOPA, PIPA On January 18 2

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Wikipedia has apparently joined the ranks of several high-profile websites that are planning a “blackout” on Wednesday, January 18, in protest of Congress’ proposed anti-piracy legislation. During the blackout period, many web pages will become unavailable and will likely be replaced with information about the protest.

Wikipedia co-founder Jimmy Wales took to Twitter on Monday to announce that the English-language version of Wikipedia will go dark on Wednesday for 24 hours — from midnight EST on January 18 until midnight EST January 19. He noted in a later tweet that “Final details [are] under consideration but consensus seems to be for ‘full’ rather than ‘soft’ blackout!” More…

SOPA/PIPA Infographic 4

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“The potential for abuse of power through digital networks – upon which we as citizens now depend for nearly everything, including our politics – is one of the most insidious threats to democracy in the Internet age … This is no time for politicians and industry lobbyists in Washington to be devising new Internet censorship mechanisms, adding new opportunities for abuse of corporate and government power over online speech.”
- Rebecca MacKinnon (New York Times)

 “When ideas are blocked, information deleted, conversations stifled and people constrained in their choices, the Internet is diminished for all of us.. There isn’t an economic Internet and a social Internet and a political Internet. There’s just the Internet.”

WordPress Comes Out STRONGLY Against SOPA/PIPA 5

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I have been doing the “happy dance” since I read that WordPress is now strongly voicing their opposition to SOPA/PIPA.  If you are not sure what SOPA/PIPA (yeah, I know… saying SOPA and PIPA consecutively sounds like a Mexican fried pastry)… anyway, if you are not sure what it is, please click on my SOPA/PIPA category in the top menu and side bar to catch up on what has been going on.  Basically, rather than corporations, such as Disney, Viacom, Nike, and many others, using their attorney’s to file suit against those who infringe upon their copyright’s, these supporters want the government to do their dirty-work for them – thus saving all that precious money and profit even more.  On a simple accusation, these bills will allow any corporation to shut down any website WITHOUT PROOF of infringement.  As WordPress says: More…

Cop Punches Non-Violent Special Needs Woman on Bus 14

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The police brutality is truly getting out of hand. It is such a shame, too, more so to the citizens and those undeserving of such treatment, but also because there are many good cops in this world who are bearing the burden of the officers who abuse their “power”… but the “good cops” seem to be going the way of the dinosaur.  There are many schools with zero tolerance toward violence and drugs…. why can we not implement a zero tolerance on officers in matters such as this?

In this video, the police boarded a Los Angeles bus and confronted a mentally challenged woman by name. Appears there may be history there. But regardless, the most violent activity she showed is shouting obscenities.  It is very apparent she is not showing any physical threat whatsoever. In fact, it even appears as though she is having a difficult time just standing, let alone causing physical harm to the officers. Then, suddenly, wham! The cop to the right throws a right punch directly to her face. More…

Stopped They Must Be; On This All Depends | SOPA PIPA 2

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Just blogged today on Reddit’s blog:

The freedom, innovation, and economic opportunity that the Internet enables is in jeopardy. Congress is considering legislation that will dramatically change your Internet experience and put an end to reddit and many other sites you use everyday. Internet experts, organizations, companies, entrepreneurs, legal experts, journalists, and individuals have repeatedly expressed how dangerous this bill is. If we do nothing, Congress will likely pass the Protect IP Act (in the Senate) or the Stop Online Piracy Act (in the House), and then the President will probably sign it into law. There are powerful forces trying to censor the Internet, and a few months ago many people thought this legislation would surely pass. However, there’s a new hope that we can defeat this dangerous legislation. More…

Guantanamo by the Numbers | Infographic 2

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Here is an infographic provided by the ACLU on Guantanamo Bay.

Did you know… there are 89 men who have been cleared for release, yet still being held prisoner?  This is costing the US approximately $70 million per year to house them.

Did you know… that 92% of the prisoners at Guantanamo were never al Qaeda fighters, according to government data?

Did you know the youngest prisoner held at Guantanamo was 13 years old?

I didn’t know most this… but glad I do now.  Rather a rude awakening as to what’s really going on.

More details below. More…

Occupy Geriatrics | Seniors Shut Down Local BofA 1

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According to SF Weekly, on January 5, 2012, a small group of senior citizens between the ages of 69 and 82 successfully shut down a Bank of America in Bernal Heights on Thursday with nothing more than walkers and oxygen tanks. That’s right: No shouting, chanting, tear gas, or window-smashing.

The group, which dubbed itself “Wild Old Women” set up camp right outside the Bank of America (BofA), holding signs in what they were calling “a run on the bank.” More…

SOPA for Dummies 10

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One awesome (and anonymous) person decided to put together a short but sweet Google Doc called “SOPA For Dummies” to help explain this bill is simplistic terms.

Here is the G Doc in it’s entirety:     More…

Priest Defending Free Speech is Silenced at Council Meeting 3

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Father Monk (with a birthname of “Monk,” it was destiny) speaks some very powerful and truthful words at a recent City Council meeting in Pensacola FL.  His demeanor is nothing but passive, yet passionate.  Apparently, the words he spoke were offensive to some on the council (damn, the truth hurts sometimes), and he was asked to leave.  Here is the description of the incident from the video: More…

Trinity Church Statement on #OWS Protests 2

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I posted yesterday about Occupy 2.0 and how Bishop George E Packard was arrested after climbing over a fence to get to Duarte Square. I have to give credit to the Bishop for standing up for the OWS movement like he has been doing.

However, my curiosity was peaked….  Why did OWS specifically choose this lot in an attempt to occupy?  It is private property and owned by Trinity Church, who has told the group that the did not want OWS to occupy their park.  So off to google search I go to find my answer…. More…

TIME 2011 Person of the Year: The Protester 4

2011 A Year in Review, Activism, All, News: International, News: US, Occupy Wall Street • Tags: , , , , ,

Mannoubia Bouazizi, the mother of Tunisian street vendor Mohamed Bouazizi, says, "Mohamed suffered a lot. He worked hard. But when he set fire to himself, it wasn’t about his scales being confiscated. It was about his dignity."

The decision has been made.  The Protester is TIME Magazines Person of the Year, and what a wonderful choice.

The Protester is not dreaming of nor coveting millions of dollars, nor titles such as President, Ruler, King, Queen, Sheik, etc.  All The Protester is wanting is a fair shake at life.  The ability and opportunity to find gainful employment, take care of their family, keep a roof over their head and food on their table, the ability for quality health care, reasonable tuition for a higher education… these are only a few of the many desires the average citizen of all countries want, including our own.

And this year, they spoke and will continue to speak until change is made for the betterment and fairness for all. More…

“Occupy The Future” by Noam Chomsky 1

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Noam Chomsky, photo by John Soares

(This article is adapted from Noam Chomsky’s talk at the Occupy Boston encampment on Dewey Square on Oct. 22. He spoke as part of the Howard Zinn Memorial Lecture Series held by Occupy Boston’s on-site Free University. Zinn was a historian, activist and author of A People’s History of the United States.)

Delivering a Howard Zinn lecture is a bittersweet experience for me. I regret that he’s not here to take part in and invigorate a movement that would have been the dream of his life. Indeed, he laid a lot of the groundwork for it.

If the bonds and associations being established in these remarkable events can be sustained through a long, hard period ahead – victories don’t come quickly – the Occupy protests could mark a significant moment in American history. More…

The National Defense Authorization Act will allow the military to detain YOU | My chat with Dept of Defense man 10

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John McCain and Lindsey Graham are among the senators pushing a provision to make the homeland "part of the battlefield," allowing the government to detain U.S. citizens indefinitely. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI) have been the major supporters of the amendments added to the National Defense Authorization Act (FY 2012) (NDAA) which, in a nutshell, will allow the US government to have the power to lock up US citizens for life at Guantanamo Bay or other military prisons – without charge and without trial based upon suspicion of terrorism.

Should you be worried?  Absolutely.  Let me tell you about my little conversation I had less than two weeks ago with a government official while I was in Kansas City on business.

For those who are not aware, Kansas City – and Kansas in general – has a lot of military bases, therefore running across a military/government personel at the hotel I stayed at was not unusual.

My first evening there, I went out back of the hotel into the parking lot to have a cigarette.  While standing there, another man appeared for a smoke as well.  As is typical for smokers, especially when out by oneself, conversations start.  This man mentioned he had been staying at this hotel for over a month now.  Naturally, my response was to ask him the nature of his business, and he replied that he works for the Department of Defense. More…

#occupymelbourne woman stripped of tent costume by police, left in bra, panties 1

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Last week Occupy Melbourne featured a “Tent Monster” event.  Protesters pitched several tents in the park, then as the police approaced, someone inside popped out their arms and head, and danced around the park wearing their tent costume.

The first video shows the event, and you can even see some of the police smiling even though the joke was on them. More…

Funnies, political cartoons, charts, quotes, and photos about current news Reply

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A variety of political cartoon, funnies, quotes, photos and charts all about what is in today’s news, including the economy, politics, and the Occupy Movement.

Also included are several letters in regards to student loan debt.  When I started college in the fall of 1982, my tuition at Purdue, in-state and full time, was just under $800 per semester. I graduated debt-free.  Now, students will graduate with a four-year degree often well into six-figures in debt.  Higher eduction has evolved into a “damned if you do, and damned if you don’t” opportunity. More…

#occupydc More arrests Dec 4 | David vs Goliath | Photos Videos 1

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David vs Goliath #occupydc wood frame structure 04

Today, Occupy DC protesters began assembling a prefabricated wooden structure in McPherson Square. This structure was designed by professional architects and engineers with the purpose of providing warmth and shelter for the Occupiers when having the General Assemby meetings.

At 11 AM today, the Federal Park Police arrived and ordered the Occupiers to disassemble and remove the structure within the hour. More…

ALEC Protest in Scottsdale AZ | Photos and video Reply

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On November 30, 2011, hundreds of people from Occupy Phoenix and AZ-Resist activists came together for Occupy ALEC, a protest at the ALEC (American Legislation Exchange Council) conference in Scottsdale AZ.  They were met by rows of riot police and security. More…

#occupyoakland Scott Olsen, Iraq vet, spoke on camera Sunday Reply

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Scott Olsen, the 24-year-old Iraq war veteran whose skull was fractured during an Occupy Oakland protest Oct. 25, returned Sunday to Frank Ogawa Plaza outside City Hall, where he spoke on camera to Dave Morse, a reporter for Indybay.org. He seemed to be in good spirits and said he expected a “full recovery,”  but wore a neck brace and admitted he was still having difficulty speaking. More…

Occupy UC Davis calls for general strike on Nov. 28 to shut down CA campuses 2

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UC Davis General Assembly

When I entered college at Purdue University in the fall of 1982, the tuition for a full-time student who was a resident of Indiana was less than $800 a semester.  Naturally, there were slight increases over the years I attended, but nothing drastic.  They were comparable to the increase in the cost of living and wages during that period.  I was able to graduate debt-free never having needed to take out any student loans for my college education. More…