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Minutes from Villanova Amnesty meeting April 14
Posted April 15th, 2009 by April | Amnesty News, Student Groups, Villanova University
Thanks to Gabe for this recap of the Villanova University Amnesty International meeting last night.
- Urgent action appeals were handed out and letters written concerning the case of three prisoners of conscience imprisoned in Zimbabwe despite their poor health.
- Several members of Amnesty received responses to the letters we sent to Senator Casey regarding the International Violence Against Women Act. Sen. Casey informed us that although he supports the legislation his hands are tied because the legislation expired on the expiration of the last Congress and the legislation has not been reintroduced. VUAI is looking into getting an appointment with Senator Casey to lobby him in person.
- VUAI is co-sponsoring the showing tomorrow night of The Rescue of Joseph Kony’s Child Soldiers. It is produced by the same people who produced Invisible Children, which highlighted the kidnapping of children by the Lord’s Resistance Army, a rebel group in Northern Uganda responsible for years of strife and misery. The showing will be from 6:00-7:00 PM in Bartley 1010, and admission is free. We hope to see you all there!
Amnesty International events for the week of April 12
Posted April 12th, 2009 by April | Amnesty News
There are a number of inspiring Amnesty International events in Pennsylvania and New York this week.
On Monday, members of the Villanova University Amnesty International group will be visiting Graterford State Prison in Collegeville, to speak to inmates and tour the prison. The group has been conducting several visits there.
On Tuesday, the Bethlehem Amnesty International group will be holding a fundraiser at the Friendly’s Restaurant at 3099 William Penn Highway, Easton. To help, just come to dinner at Friendly’s between 5:00 and 8:00 pm. If there are 100 or more customers during that time, the group will receive 10 percent.
Also on Tuesday at 6:00 pm, the Millersville Amnesty International group will host “Darfur: An Intimate Look” at Bolger Conference Center – Lehr Dining Room. They will be showing the film “The Devil Came On Horseback.” The film will be followed by speaker Gretchen Steidle Wallace, who is a producer of the film as well as co-author of the book of the same title along with her brother, Brian Steidle. Gretchen will speak about her recent work in Chad with the Darfuri refugees.
On Wednesday, two local Amnesty chapters will hold their regular meetings. At 7:30, the Chester County group will hold its monthly meeting at Chester County Books & Music, Paoli Pike and Route 202, West Chester. And the Haverford College Amnesty group will hold its weekly meeting at 9:00 in Ryan Gym.
Finally, this Friday, April 17 marks the 14th Annual Get On The Bus to New York City. Join more than 1,000 Amnesty student/youth activists as they converge on New York City to demand justice from rights repressive-governments in China, Burma, Guatemala and Sri Lanka . For more information and to register please visit: gotb.org
For more information about these and other events, please see our Google Calendar.
Tomorrow! at Lehigh – panel on the death penalty and religious perspectives
Posted April 1st, 2009 by April | Amnesty News, Bethlehem
Tomorrow afternoon, LV CASK (Lehigh Valley Committee Against State Killing) and PA-Amnesty International are hosting an interactive discussion about the death penalty and different religious perspectives.
Where: Maginnes 260, Lehigh University
When: April 2
Time: 4pm
Cost: Free – open to the public
Refreshments will also be provided. If you have any questions please contact CalvinJohn Smiley, Pennsylvania death penalty abolition coordinator, at cjs719@gmail.com
Death Penalty and Religion Panel Flyer [Word format]
Bethlehem Group March Meeting Report
Posted March 25th, 2009 by April | Amnesty News, Bethlehem
AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL GROUP 347: MONDAY 3/23 /09 7-9:00 PM!
April 14, Tuesday—Fundraiser –come to dinner at Friendly’s Family Restaurant between 5 and 8—we get 10 percent—we need 100 customers—3099 Wm. Penn Highway (Plaza). Bring friends!
Guests: Calvin Smiley—PA Death Penalty & Lara Boffey and Arlette Ngoubene of Lehigh “Women of Liberia: Fighting for Peace ” more of this DVD next meeting.
1. Dan Laxar called for members to join Dr. Mike Sinclair of the Allentown AI group ASAP (610-439-6150) to help lobby in early April local offices of US senators and Rep. Dent. The issues are the stemming improper methods for fighting terrorism.
2. Calvin Smiley, PA Death Abolition Coordinator has a major push this week with programs at Lehigh University—please support. PA has the 4th largest death row population. NM abolished it this month; now 15 states have no penalty. He expects a circuit court ruling on GA’s death penalty case Troy Davis soon.
3. A 100 days petition- closure of Guantanamo, ban on torture, independent inquiry into interrogation practices for President Obama was signed by all present and mailed on 3/24.
4. Letters went to Sec. of State Hillary Clinton on Gaza, (as in January) and to the Chinese Prime Minister on the imprisonment of Shi Tao, arrested in 2004 for e-mailing about Tiananmen Square anniversary. Tony Marino
5. Lara Boffy of Lehigh University asked members for interviews for her study of AI in her Social Movements Class. She will attend the AGM this weekend.
6. Richard LaDuke presented an urgent letter for a death penalty case in the Caribbean.
7. Sarah Snider, recently returned from presidential elections in El Salvador described how she and Joe DeRaymond saw voting as international observers in the elections where the FLMN won over the Arena party, it’s the first upset in the history of El Salvador. (Also call her at 997-3886 if you will need 94 cent stamps for the meeting. )
8. A letter from our Group 341 supporting US legislation for prevention International Violence Against Women mailed was sent to Sen. Specter recently. A letter was distributed for Democratic Republic of Congo’s Justine Masika Bihamba (coordinator for Synergy of Women for Victims of Sexual Violence).
9. Pam Bauman and Nancy Kelley accepted actions for Equatorial Guinea—for the group.
10. Darfur: Note the op-ed piece by Hans Wuerth published 3/22. The LV Darfur Coalition met Monday with Rep. Dent. April is Genocide Prevention Month, through the Genocide Prevention Network.
New Mexico abolishes death penalty – send a thank you note
Posted March 22nd, 2009 by April | Amnesty News
Thanks to Guy Ottewell from the Ready Made Human Rights Letters website for this suggestion:
New Mexico became the second US state since 1965 to abolish the death penalty. It hadn’t seemed certain that the governor would sign the bill passed by the state legislature, but a lot of people wrote, he signed it on March 18, 2009, and you could write to thank him:
Governor Bill Richardson
Office of the Governor
490 Old Santa Fe Trail, Room 400
Santa Fe, NM 87501
Minutes from Villanova
Posted March 22nd, 2009 by April | Amnesty News, Villanova University
Here are some notes from the Villanova University AI group’s March 17 meeting about their upcoming plans.
- Urgent Action Appeals were handed out and letters written concerning the case of a Female Journalist detained in Iran.
- AI will be sponsoring a number of movie screenings in the coming weeks. This will tentatively include Race to Execution, a documentary examining the Death Penalty.
- AI is also co-sponsoring a screening of a new documentary from the makers of Invisible Children, which also focuses on the plight of children and Child Soldiers in Uganda.
- There will be no meeting next week. Instead, we encourage all of our members to attend the speech of Sister Helen Prejean on Tuesday at 7:00 PM in the Jake Nevin Fieldhouse. Prejean, who was made famous when she was portrayed by Susan Sarandon in Dead Man Walking, is an internationally famous Anti-Death Penalty activist, and will speak at Villanova about her work.
Agenda for Bethlehem group meeting tomorrow night
Posted March 22nd, 2009 by April | Amnesty News, Bethlehem
AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL GROUP 347: MONDAY 3/23 /09 7-9:00 PM!
Central Moravian Church, Christian Ed. Bldg., Basement Door, Bethlehem
Draft AGENDA
1. Welcome, Introductions, Pass the Hat, signatures for the Obama 100 days petition- closure of Guantanamo, ban on torture, independent inquiry into interrogation practices
2. Lobbying week in April with Dan Laxar—counter terrorism
3. Tony Marino—Gaza & China letters
4. Calvin Smiley—Death Penalty, Troy Davis and New Mexico’s Abolition of DP
5. Richard LaDuke: Death Penalty Haiti
6. Report on Elections in El Salvador and Joe DeRaymond—Sarah Snider (just back from El Salvador)
7. International Violence Against Women legislation—
a. Group 347 letter to Sen. Specter.
b. letter to Democratic Republic of Congo–Justine Masika Bihamba is coordinator for Synergy of Women for Victims of Sexual Violence (Synergie des femmes contre les violence sexuelles), a women’s human rights organization working in the DRC
c. DVD—“Women of Liberia: Fighting for Peace”
8. Lara Boffy, Social Movements Class, study of AI members
9. Darfur—Karen
10. Your vote on AGM resolutions (we’ll review 3 or 4 of these resolutions to get your opinions)
Local Dues–$10 annual—mail to Karen Berry at 3505 Dartmouth Drive, Bethlehem, PA 18020). Join AIUSA for $25 annually (AIUSA, PO Box 98234, Washington, DC, 20077-7015 )
UPCOMING EVENTS
March 25 (local poverty) and April 1 (creation—the environment). Dinner and discussion at Central Moravian Church—Start time is 6 p.m. Call Mike Pragheimer—610-867-4665
March 27-29: Annual General Meeting in Boston—Karen & Lara Boffey are attending
April 14—Fundraiser – just come to dinner at Friendly’s Family Restaurant between 5 and 8—we get 10 percent—we need 100 customers.—3099 Wm. Penn Highway (Plazas)
Mid-April—Gaza Talk, AI Group at Moravian College, Instructor Faramarz Farbad—more later
April 28—Allentown AI 531 Group—St. Timothy Evan. Church—140 S. Ott St.
May 4—Friendly’s Family Restaurant; 2952 Lehigh St., Allentown-across the street from the Brass Rail, near the intersection of Oxford Dr. (24th St. in Allentown) and Lehigh St. May 5—Moravian Academy AI Group, last meeting, 2: 45 p.m. presentation to their group of book on child soldiers. Call Karen if you would like to attend.
May 26 (TUESDAY) – 7 p.m. Next AI Group 347 meeting
Death Penalty Events at Lehigh University –Maginnes Hall, Room 101 comments, concerns about any of these events, particularly directions please do not hesitate to contact me, Calvin John Smiley, SDPAC-PA : cjs719@gmail.com
March 24, 7 p.m. Film “Juan Melendez-6446.” Mr. Melendez was on death row in Florida for seventeen years before being exonerated
March 26, 7 p.m- Jim Moreno- Legal Perspective. Mr. Moreno is a Federal Public Defender who strictly handles capital cases. His practice is based out of Philadelphia where he defends many people in the 3rd District Circuit courts.
April 2, 5 p.m.- Panel– The Religious Perspective with.Chaplain Dr. Lloyd Steffen, Director of Hillel Society Rabbi Seth Goren, and Catholic Chaplain Father Wayne Killian,
April 20, 4 p.m. Teach In featuring students perspectives of working on the death penalty. Students CalvinJohn Smiley, Luke Miller, Claire Sullivan and Jacqueline Scully will offer their perspectives of why they became involved in working on the death penalty, what they have gotten out of this experience and what they would like to see happen in the future with the death penalty and prison system in the U.S.
AGM Early Bird Registration Deadline Feb 12
Posted February 6th, 2009 by Jen | Amnesty News
Early bird registration ends Thursday, February 12th! Register now to take advantage of our discounted registration. Starting February 13th, registration will increase by $20.00.
In addition, the final deadline for on-line registration is February 28, 2009, so please plan to register on-line ahead of this date.
To register, visit www.amnestyusa.org/agm
You can also reserve your hotel room now to receive special discounted rates. Use this link to receive a special Amnesty rate.
The hotel is offering newly reduced rates, room rates are below:
$129.00/night (Single- European/Economy guestroom)*
$149.00/night (Single/Double)
$169.00/night (Triple)
$189.00/ night (Quad)
*This size room will only hold one guest
Act now to book your hotel room! The group discount is only available until February 28th.
If you have any questions about the AGM, please contact aiusa-agm@aiusa.org, or call (202) 544-0200.
Allentown Write-A-Thon
Posted December 8th, 2008 by Dan | Allentown, Amnesty News, Bethlehem
Though bad weather kept some people away, six Lehigh Valley volunteers participated in a Global Write-a-Thon event on December 6. Together we sent 23 letters on behalf of prisoners of conscience and human rights defenders. Pictured are four of the participants, hard at work.
Regional Conference this weekend!
Posted November 11th, 2008 by April | Amnesty News
Come join us for the Amnesty International Mid-Atlantic Regional Conference, this coming weekend in Harper’s Ferry, West Virginia. While Harper’s Ferry sounds far away, it is actually only about a three-hour drive from the Philadelphia area. Whether you’re a newly interested human rights activist or a seasoned veteran, Amnesty’s annual regional conferences offer something for everyone.
We invite you to learn more about the Regional Conference.