|
"If you are neutral in a situation of injustice, you
have chosen the side of the oppressor."-
Archbishop Desmond Tutu
Is it really a stretch to see the issue of worker's
rights in the broader context of human
rights, including rights for gays, disabled, blacks & immigrants? Then the
question
beckons- why do we live in societies that so devalue human rights &
dignity and
then come to accept this degradation as normal?
"We live in a society and world that is
hyper-judgmental. We too easily forgot our own short
comings as we accuse others. Yet as we accuse, so we are accused by
ourselves-and
there is no growth in our understanding- nothing is solved."
"I cannot continue to live with the lie that I
was meant to be here. For many years
I have had a discontent- a knowledge that this
materialistic society is not what I am about-
that a life
wholly based on spirit- yet still in this world- is the most important. My
focus
must be on those who are helpless-those in need."
Lowell Greenberg
"They came out in full. We told them that we can't
just sit still any longer. We must get
our voices heard and make our presence known. We have to say we are tired
of sitting
on the fence and looking up to the men. We want to be part of this peace
negotiation.
We want to be part of the decision-making policies governing our country."
Mary Brownell-
retired school teacher, 2000, speaking about the woman's peace
movement that was
instrumental in securing peace in Liberia in 2003
Home
Tolerance
Democracy in America-Not
Stanley Kubrick
Vegetarianism
Forest Heights, Oregon: The Stepford "Community" Lives
In myself I see a reflection of all humankind. I see the potentialities of all cultures
and norms of behavior within me. To the extent I see, or I should say feel, the human
capacity to be blind and indifferent, I feel the need to stay awake and alive The
realization that we are all part of one whole enlarges my compassion and hopefully my
ability to extend that compassion to my students.
|
PBS Society &
Politics
|
Abstinence Only Education
"CDC statisticians
estimate that nearly four million teens will get an STD this
year: Chlamydia, gonorrhea, herpes, human papilloma virus,
syphilis, trichimoniasis or HIV. Half of the country’s new HIV
cases occur among people under age 25 and Chlamydia has become
the most commonly reported infection. Since 2000, says Raquel
Castellanos, Montana has seen a 58 percent increase in this STD.
“Although we do not have scientific research which links the
sharp rise in Chlamydia to abstinence-only education, I believe
it’s no coincidence that in the same period in which over $1
million has poured in for education that dismisses the
effectiveness of condoms, that we are seeing this exponential
rise in Chlamydia among youth.”"
From
"Abstinence Only Education," by Eleanor Bader, 1/2005, ZMagazine
Online. See also:
"New Reports Show "Just Say No" Programs Ineffective &
Inaccurate," Advocates for Youth, 11.2005 |
20/20 Vision
Organization involved in grassroots
activism. Serves as a Congressional
watchdog.
Abuse/Incest Support
Action
Center
Activists' Center for Training In Organizing
& Networking.
Africana.com
AFRO-American Almanac
On-line presentation of the African in
America. A historical perspective of a
nation, its people, & its cultural evolution.
AIDS in
Africa: Heartbreak and Hope
AIDS Walk
American Civil Liberties Union
Mission is to fight civil liberties
violations wherever & whenever
they occur.
American Folklife Center
American Friends
Service Committee
Quaker organization that includes people
of various faiths who are committed to
social justice, peace, & humanitarian service.
Americans for
Peace Now
Mission is to help Israel & the Shalom
Achshav movement to achieve a
comprehensive political settlement of
the Arab-Israeli conflict consistent with
Israel's long-term security needs & its
Jewish & democratic values.
Amnesty International
Global campaigning movement that works
to promote human rights. Amnesty
International campaigns to free all prisoners
of conscience; ensure fair & prompt
trials for political prisoners; abolish the
death penalty, torture & other cruel
treatment of prisoners; end political killings
& "disappearances;" & oppose human rights
abuses by opposition groups.
Arab American
Institute
Committed to the civic & political
empowerment of Americans of Arab
descent. Provides policy, research
& public affairs services to support
a broad range of community activities.
The Aspen
Institute
Global forum for leveraging the power
of leaders to improve the human condition.
Fosters enlightened, morally responsible
leadership & convenes leaders & policy
makers to address the foremost
challenges of the new century.
Awakening
the Dreamer Initiative
Mission is to preserve the Earth’s tropical
rainforests by empowering the indigenous
people who are its natural custodians and
to contribute to the creation of a new global
vision of equity and sustainability for all.
The
Benton Foundation
Seeks to shape the emerging
communications environment in the
public interest. Demonstrates &
promotes the use of digital media to
engage, equip and connect people to
alleviate social ills.
Biodynamic
Farming & Gardening
Association
Fosters, guides, and safeguards the
Biodynamic method of agriculture.
Biodynamics is a method of agriculture
which seeks to actively work with the
health-giving forces of nature.
Bioethics
Resources on the Web
Black
Radical Congress
Purpose is to promote dialogue among
African American activists & scholars
on the left; to discuss critical issues on
the national & international scene that
pertain to the Black community; to explore
new strategies and directions for progressive
political, social & cultural movements; &
to renew the Black radical movement
through increased unified action.
Bosnia Home Page
BREAD
Bay Area Regional Exchange and
Development is a community creating
a positive alternative economy. They
trade their goods & services with each
other, using a local currency called
BREAD Hours. Using BREAD Hours as
currency ensures that their resources
stay within the community.
Bulletin of
the Atomic Scientists
Published by the Educational Foundation
of Atomic Scientists, whose mission to
educate citizens about global security
issues, especially the continuing dangers
posed by nuclear and other weapons of
mass destruction, and about the
appropriate roles of nuclear technology.
California Coalition on
Sexual Offending
The Cambodia Landmine Museum
"I want to make my country safe for my
people," Aki Ra, Founder of the Cambodia
Landmine Museum. More than just a museum,
CLMMRF is also a home that provides education
and support for dozens of at risk youth and
landmine -affected children rescued by the
CLMMRF NGO. Many children who are part
of this family have suffered overwhelming
hardships.
La Caravana Arcoiris por La Paz
(the Rainbow Caravan for Peace)
See also:
La
Caravana Arcoiris por La Paz &
Her Juggling Feet.
Le Caravana is currently in Brazil, sponsored by The Ministry of
Culture to travel throughout the country to different
communities.
"La Caravana Arcoiris por La Paz (the Rainbow Caravan for Peace)
is an intentional social project, composed of a group of people
from different parts of the World. The caravan has been
traveling the Americas since 1996 in a changing number of
vehicles developing and implementing workshops, conferences,
audiovisuals, performances, training, artistic, and cultural
events.
It is a registered NGO in Spain. It was conceived at the Rainbow
Gathering in New Mexico in 1995. The point of departure for the
caravan was the ecovillage of Huehuecoyotl in Tepoztlan, Morelos,
Mexico. Huehuecoyotl was founded in 1982 by many members of the
"The Illuminated Elephants Traveling Gypsy Company". The
original bus that is the heart of the caravan, Mazorca
(corncob), was donated by Bea Briggs of Wisconsin. The group
intended to travel seven months to the destination of Tierra del
Fuego, Argentina. After almost seven years and 13 countries they
are currently in Peru. The mission objectives are diverse
but interrelated. The group endeavors to support and serve as a
bridge to connect cultures, movements, organizations,
bioregional networks and individuals from around the Americas,
fostering among them a better ecological consciousness, a
healthy and harmonious life in relationship with Nature, as well
as self-management, peace and sustainability for local
communities, with profound respect for the Earth and all the
living creatures that inhabit her. The caravan functions as a
Living and Learning Center that contributes to the creation and
the empowerment of information networks and initiatives that
implement activities related to these objectives. An objective
is to learn from ancestral indigenous cultures and defend them.
Acknowledge their customs, territories, spiritual beliefs,
protect their places, routes and sacred centers, inspiring them
to maintain their basic values and to establish links with other
ancestral communities and other non-indigenous projects with
similar purposes. The caravan is model of mobile sustainable
ecovillage, which promotes community life, arts, spiritual
growth, all on the basis of respect and understanding as a way
to bring peace. In this manner, the experience acquired by its
members will contribute to the creation of future social leaders
with consciousness and spiritual non-dogmatic sensibility. In
addition the group intends to promote, support, rescue and learn
sustainable alternatives to development, new and traditional,
related to the use, protection, and improvement of renewable and
nonrenewable natural resources. "-
Josh
Trought, La Caravana Arcoiris por La Paz, A Story of Adventure
and Realization |
Carnegie Endowment for
International Peace
Dedicated to advancing cooperation between
nations & promoting active international
engagement by the U.S.
The Carter Center
The Carter Center, in partnership with
Emory University, is guided by a
fundamental commitment to human
rights and the alleviation of human
suffering; it seeks to prevent & resolve
conflicts, enhance freedom & democracy,
and improve health.
Center for Bioethics
Mission is to advance & disseminate
knowledge concerning ethical issues
in health care & the life sciences.
The Center of
Concern
Explores & analyzes global issues
& social structures from an ethical
perspective based on Catholic
Social Teaching.
Center for Neighborhood
Technology
Mission is to invent & implement new
tools & methods that create livable
urban communities for everyone.
Center for Respect of
Life &
the Environment
Fosters an ethic of compassion toward
all sentient beings and respect for the
integrity of nature. This ethic urges each
of us to expand our moral concern to
future generations; to poor, oppressed
& disenfranchised human beings; to
animals, plants and the earth as a whole.
With a particular focus on higher
education and religious institutions,
the Center promotes a humane &
sustainable future for all members
of the earth community.
Center
for Social Informatics
Supports research into information
technology & social change. Social
Informatics refers to research & study
that examines social aspects of
computerization.
Central
Committee for Conscientious
Objectors
Supports & promotes individual & collective
resistance to war and preparations for war.
Cesar
E. Chavez Institute for
Public Policy
The City Repair
Project
"The City Repair Project is group of citizen activists
creating public gathering places & helping others
to creatively transform the places where they live.
Projects educate people about why most American
neighborhoods are socially isolating and culturally
inactive, and how we can transform them from
the grassroots, inspire people to both understand
themselves as part of a larger community & fulfill
their own creative potential, & activate people to
be part of the communities around them, as well
as part of the decision-making that shapes the
future of their communities."
Civilrights.org
The Leadership Conference on Civil Rights
(LCCR)
is a coalition of more than 180 national
organizations
committed to civil & human
rights protection in the U.S.
The
Civil Rights Project-
Harvard University
Mission is to help renew the civil rights
movement by bridging the worlds of ideas
& action, and by becoming a preeminent
source of intellectual capital & a forum
for building consensus within that movement.
Clary-Meuser
Research Network
Mission is to provide the information,
tools, resources and expertise to enhance
personal growth & knowledge and empower
you in your efforts towards improving
environmental & social conditions where
you live, work and play.
ClinicalSocialWork.com
Coalition Against Hate
Crimes
The Coalition Against Hate Crimes (CAHC)
was started by the American Jewish Committee
in Portland, Oregon. It held its first meeting in
early October 1997. It's members are
representatives from a wide variety of community
and government organizations. Its mission is to
use the moral authority of the Coalition and
its members to give expression to the community
conscience as spelled out in the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights and its covenants.
Coalition For International Justice
Supports the international war crimes
tribunals for Rwanda and the former
Yugoslavia, and justice initiatives in East
Timor, Sierra Leone, and Cambodia.
Committee for the
Defense of
Human Rights
"Eight former Black Panthers were arrested
January 23, 2007 in California, New York &
Florida on charges related to the 1971 killing
of a San Francisco police officer. Similar
charges were thrown out after it was revealed
that police used torture to extract confessions
when some of these same men were arrested
in New Orleans in 1973. Richard Brown,
Richard O'Neal, Ray Boudreaux, & Hank Jones
were arrested in California. Francisco Torres
was arrested in Queens, New York. Harold
Taylor was arrested in Florida. Two men charged
have been held as political prisoners for over
30 years – Herman Bell and Jalil Muntaqim
are both in New York State prisons. A ninth
man -- Ronald Stanley Bridgeforth – is still
being sought. The men were charged with
the murder of Sgt. John Young & conspiracy
that encompasses numerous acts between
1968 and 1973.
Corporate Accountability
International
Non-profit national membership
organization exposing life-threatening
abuses by transnational corporations &
organizing successful grassroots
campaigns to hold corporations
accountable to consumers &
society at large.
Council on
American-Islamic Relations
Crosspoint Anti Racism
Links over 2000 anti-racism
organizations in 114 countries.
Cultures
on the Edge
Online magazine dedicated to open
dialogue & increasing global awareness
about unique segments of humanity.
Dancing
in the Shadows
Individual and Group Processes for Women
Survivors of Incest and Sexual Abuse
Democracy
Groups.org
A national directory of social change
email lists and forums.
The
Department of Peace
In the halls of Congress, in September of
2005, a landmark Bill to establish a cabinet
level Department of Peace was re-introduced
into the U.S. House of Representatives
(H.R. 3760) and introduced for the first time
into the U.S. Senate (S. 1756.). The primary
function of a United States Department of
Peace will be to research, articulate & facilitate
nonviolent solutions to domestic & international
conflict.
Dot.mil
Washington Post column on
military affairs.
DrDriving's
Road Rage & Aggressive
Driving Prevention
The
Drug Policy Alliance
Works to end the war on drugs &
promote new drug policies based on
compassion, science, public
health & human rights.
Ed Stephan's Front Door
Essential
Information
Involved in a variety of projects to
encourage citizens to become active
& engaged in their communities.
Provides provocative information to
the public on important topics neglected
by the mass media & policy makers.
Ethnic Studies at USC
Facing the
Future
Strives to educate people about critical
global issues, including population growth,
poverty, over-consumption, & environmental
destruction. Program web sites include:
PopInfo.org,
TeachersCorner.org,
CreativeAction.org,
Global-Issues.net
& StickyTeaching.org.
Federation of American Scientists
Dedicated to ending the worldwide arms
race and avoiding the use of nuclear
weapons for any purpose.
Fellowship of
Reconciliation
Interfaith peace organization.
Foodroutes.org
A project of FoodRoutes Network,
a non-profit organization dedicated
to providing strategic communications
& evaluation tools & information to
on-the-ground advocates who are working
to build awareness of and support for
sustainable farming and local food
systems.
foreignborn.com
Website for all foreign-born individuals
entering or living in the United States.
Free Burma Coalition
The FBC was founded at the University
of Wisconsin at Madison in 1995 as a
Burmese-led political initiative to support
Burmese people's aspiration & struggle
for democracy and human rights.
Freedom House
Clear voice for democracy & freedom
around the world. Founded nearly sixty
years ago by Eleanor Roosevelt, Wendell
Willkie, & other Americans concerned
with the mounting threats to peace
& democracy.
Gendercide
Watch
Seeks to confront acts of gender-
selective mass killing around the world.
Global
Exchange
Human rights organization dedicated
to promoting environmental, political,
& social justice around the world. Since its
founding in 1988, it has been striving to
increase global awareness among the
US public while building international
partnerships around the world.
Global
Migration-
Dreams Dashed on the Rocks
Washington Post series on global migration.
Global Peace
Initiative of Women
International, multi-faith network of women
leaders who come together to stimulate peace
building and reconciliation efforts in areas of
conflict and post-conflict.
The Government of Tibet in
Exile
Grace
Millennium
Voices of Northern California women.
Green
Empowerment
Mission is to promote community-based
renewable energy and water systems with
related watershed restoration projects to
generate social and environmental progress
internationally. We bring electricity and water
to communities in the less developed world
through renewable energy systems to stimulate
positive social and economic advances. All
our projects emphasize environmental concerns,
including environmental education, resource
conservation, watershed mapping, restoration
and protection activities.
Hague Appeal
for Peace |
Hague Appeal Youth Network
HateCrime.org
Healing the Children
Health Global Access Project:
Bridging the Gap in Access to
Medicines
Helen Hamlyn Research Centre
Explores the implications of social change.
Its focus is 'design for our future selves' -
using design to improve quality of life
for people of all ages and abilities.
Human Progress Network
Human Rights First
"Human Rights First is a leading human
rights advocacy organization based in
New York City & Washington, DC. Since
1978, we have worked in the United States
& abroad to create a secure & humane
world – advancing justice, human dignity,
& respect for the rule of law."
Human
Rights in Action
Helps students understand the idea
of human rights, gain a sense of
themselves as people with dignity &
hence with rights, & finally encourage
them to act.
Human Rights Internet
Dedicated to the empowerment of
human rights activists & organizations,
& to the education of governmental &
intergovernmental agencies & officials
and other actors in the public & private
sphere, on human rights issues and
the role of civil society.
Human Rights Watch |
World Report 2005
Stands with victims & activists to
prevent discrimination, to uphold
political freedom, to protect people
from inhumane conduct in wartime,
& to bring offenders to justice.
Infact
Non-profit national membership
organization exposing life-threatening
abuses by transnational corporations &
organizing successful grassroots
campaigns to hold corporations
accountable to consumers &
society at large.
Institute
for Policy Studies
"At a time when other think tanks
celebrate the virtues of unrestrained
greed, unlimited wealth, & unregulated
markets, IPS is striving to create a
more responsible society - one built
around the values of justice, nonviolence,
sustainability, and decency."
International
Campaign for Tibet
The International Campaign for Tibet (ICT)
works to promote human rights & democratic
freedoms for the people of Tibet.
International
Coalition of Historic
Sites of Conscience
Network of historic site museums
from around the world. Museums promote
stimulating dialogue on pressing social
issues and humanitarian & democratic
values.
International
Criminal Court
International Action Center
Information, Activism, and Resistance to U.S.
Militarism, War, and Corporate Greed.
International A.N.S.W.E.R.
Act Now to Stop War and End Racism.
International
Committee of
the Red Cross
Humanitarian mission is to protect the lives
& dignity of victims of war & internal violence
& to provide them with assistance.
It directs and coordinates international relief
activities. It also endeavors to prevent suffering
by promoting & strengthening humanitarian
law & universal humanitarian principles.
International
Network on
Personal Meaning
Dedicated to the advancement of knowledge
on the vital role of meaning in mental/physical
health, spiritual development, & peace-making.
Combines an appreciation for the importance of
research with a strong emphasis on the need
for public education and community service.
International Peace
Bureau
One of the world's oldest & most comprehensive
international peace federations.
Islamic Human Rights
Commission
Fosters links & work in partnership with
different organizations from Muslim &
non-Muslim backgrounds, to campaign
for justice for all peoples regardless of
their racial, confessional or political
background.
IslamiCity
Dedicated to advancing information,
fostering community & educating
people about Islam.
Justice Denied
Dedicated to the cause of justice,
especially to innocents who have been
wronged by the law enforcement system.
The Justice Project
Campaign Against Wrongful Executions.
KBOO Community Radio
"KBOO shall be a model of programming,
filling needs that other media do not, providing
programming to unserved or underserved
groups. KBOO shall provide access & training
to those communities.
KBOO news and public affairs programming
shall place an emphasis on providing a forum
for unpopular, controversial, or neglected perspectives
on important local, national, and international issues,
reflecting KBOO’s values of peace, justice, democracy,
human rights, multiculturalism, environmentalism,
freedom of expression, and social change.
KBOO’s arts, cultural, and musical programming shall
cover a wide spectrum of expression from traditional
to experimental, and reflect the diverse cultures we
serve. KBOO shall strive for spontaneity &
programming excellence, both in content & technique."
The King
Center
Established in 1968 by Coretta Scott King,
The King Center is the official, living
memorial dedicated to the advancement
of the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King,
Jr., leader of America’s greatest nonviolent
movement for justice, equality & peace.
The Kinsey
Institute
The Kinsey Institute at Indiana University
promotes interdisciplinary research &
scholarship in the fields of human sexuality,
gender, & reproduction. The
Institute was
founded
in 1947, just before the publication
of Sexual Behavior in the Human Male in
1948. Today the Institute investigates sexual
behavior and sexual health today, & carries
out its
mission through: development of
collections of resources for scholars;
programs of
research &
research publications;
interdisciplinary
conferences & seminars;
provision of
information services; &
graduate
training.
Kiva
Kiva lets you connect with and loan money to
unique small businesses in the developing world.
By choosing a business on Kiva.org, you can
"sponsor a business" and help the world's working
poor make great strides towards economic
independence. Throughout the course of the loan
(usually 6-12 months), you can receive email
journal updates from the business you've
sponsored. As loans are repaid, you get your
loan money back.
L.A. Labor News
LaborNotes
Non-profit organization that has been the
voice of union activists who want to "put the
movement back in the labor movement."
Legal Information Institute
Resource relied on by lawyers, government
workers, students, teachers, & non-lawyer
professionals whose work is directly
touched by law. Provides direct access
to all those who seek to understand legal
issues that figure in the news or impinge
on their personal lives.
Life in Africa
Purpose is to increase international
understanding of contemporary Africa
& African people, impact the lives of
African people, by providing opportunities
for Africans to help themselves, through
the use of the Internet, & promote
microfinance.
Little Rock Central High
Make Poverty History
Brings together a wide cross section of
over 200 charities, campaigns, trade unions,
faith groups and celebrities who are united
by a common belief that 2005 offers a
unprecedented opportunity for global change.
Markkula Center for Applied
Ethics
Resource for people & organizations
wanting to study & apply an ethical
approach to the crucial issues facing
our world. The Center supports research,
assists faculty in integrating ethics into
their courses, & helps businesses, schools,
hospitals, and other organizations put
ethics to work.
MelaNet
Platform for intellectual, economic & spiritual
expression of peoples throughout the
African Diaspora.
MenWeb
Addresses issues such effecting
men such as anger, grief, spirit, soul
& shadow, fathers, bringing up boys,
being a father, health, surviving childhood
sexual abuse, feminism, abortion,
relationships, battered husbands,
family court, love & betrayal,
gang youth, etc.
Middle East
Children's Alliance
Founded in 1988, the Middle East
Children's Alliance is a registered nonprofit
organization working for the rights and the
well being of children in the Middle East.
MECA sends shipments of aid to Palestine,
Iraq and Lebanon, and supports projects
that make life better for the children. We
educate North Americans about children
in the region and the brutal impact of US
foreign policy on their lives. MECA welcomes
the support of all people who care about
children and their future.short of water.
Minnesota Center Against
Violence & Abuse
Widely used website for violence
related resources.
The M.K.
Gandhi Institute for
Nonviolence
Mission is to promote & apply the
principles of nonviolence locally,
nationally, and globally, to prevent
violence and resolve personal & public
conflicts through research, education,
& programming.
Mountain
Voices
Aims to amplify the voices of those
disadvantaged by poverty, gender,
lack of education & other inequalities.
Collecting & disseminating oral testimonies
allows the least vocal and least powerful
members of society to speak for
themselves, rather than through
outsiders or "experts."
NAACP
The National Association for the
Advancement of Colored People is
a over ninety year old organization
committed to ending racism & injustice.
National Alliance for
the Mentally Ill
Grassroots advocacy organization solely
dedicated to improving the lives of
persons with severe mental illnesses.
National Coalition
Against Censorship
National Council on
the Aging |
BenefitsCheckup
A free, easy-to-use service that
identifies federal & state assistance
programs for older Americans.
National Criminal
Justice
Reference Service
Federally funded resource offering
justice & substance abuse information
to support research, policy, & program
development worldwide.
National Disabled Students Union
"National, cross-disability, student
organization. We recognize all disabled
people - those with traditionally recognized
disabilities and those who have often been left
out of the movement - as our brothers & sisters,
& we recognize all students - those who work to
learn, whether or not they are at recognized
schools - as our colleagues."
National Family
Caregivers Association
Grass roots organization created to
educate, support, empower and speak up
for the millions of Americans who care for
chronically ill, aged or disabled loved ones.
National Museum of
Women's History
National
Organization of Women
Dedicated to making legal, political, social
& economic change in our society in order
to achieve our goal, which is to eliminate
sexism & end all oppression.
National Youth and
Student
Peace Coalition
Formed in response to the events of
September 11, 2001, and has worked to
build strategic, long-term student & youth
opposition to war, both abroad with bombs
& bullets, and at home with racism, cuts to
education, & freedom-limiting "anti-terrorism"
policies.
New Civilization
Network | DoBe.org
Global network of people visualizing
a better world & working on building it.
See also the Global Ideas
Bank,
a Global Suggestion Box for socially
innovative non-technological ideas & projects.
New Labor Forum
"A place for labor and its allies to test new
ideas & debate old ones. Issues we explore
include, but are not limited to: the global
economy’s impact on work & abor; new
union organizing and political strategies;
labor’s new constituencies & their relationship
to organized labor’s traditional institutions;
internal union reform & new structural models
for the labor movement; alternative economic
& social policies; and the role of culture in a
new, revitalized labor movement.
The New
Roadmap Foundation
Provides people with practical tools &
innovative approaches for managing &
mastering basic life challenges. Educational
work has traditionally focused on three
realms of life – personal finances, health &
human relations.
The Nizkor Project
Dedicated to the millions of Holocaust
victims who suffered and died at the hands
of
Adolf Hitler and his Nazi regime
The Nobel Channel
Norbert's
Bookmarks for a Better World
Over 30,000 links on the following global human
rights, environment & other social topics.
Nursing Home Alert
Nursing home abuse & neglect
resource
center for the elderly &
their families.
Nursing
Home News
Resources for the families of victims of
nursing home abuse and neglect--ombudsmen
directory, paying for care, when do I need a
lawyer, nursing home comparison tool
& relevant news.
OneWorld
| Panos
The One World
Project
The One World Project at Clemson University
seeks to break down barriers & shift the
paradigm of hate, ignorance & exclusion to
one of compassion, knowledge & inclusion
by creating opportunities for continual
dialogue about diversity.
Organic Volunteers
"World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms
is a cultural exchange. We gather a list of
sustainable projects and organizations that,
from time to time invite volunteers to help out.
People interested in experiencing a sustainable
lifestyle use our list to make contact with hosts
they are interested in visiting. The hosts and
volunteers work out the details of their
own arrangements.
Orphans Against AIDS
The Orphans Against AIDS mission is to break
the cycle of HIV/AIDS by ensuring that all children
orphaned and made vulnerable by HIV/AIDS
receive a high-quality education.
The Osborne
Association
"The Osborne Association offers opportunities
for individuals who have been in conflict
with the law to transform their lives through
innovative, effective, & replicable programs
that serve the community by reducing crime
& its human and economic costs. We offer
opportunities for reform and rehabilitation
through public education, advocacy, &
alternatives to incarceration that respect the
dignity of people and honor their capacity to
change as they achieve self-sufficiency, adopt
healthy lifestyles, enter the workforce, form &
rebuild families, and rejoin their communities.
Paradigm Shift
Partners Against Hate
Purpose is to provide the public with
a comprehensive clearinghouse of
hate crime-related information, including
resources, news reports, & effective
counteraction tools in the fight against
youth-initiated hate violence.
Peace
Action
Works to achieve the abolition of
nuclear weapons, the development of
a peace-oriented economy, an end to
the international weapons trade, &
promotes non-military solutions to
international conflicts.
Peace Development Fund
Public foundation that dedicated to
social justice.
People for the
American Way
Purpose is to meet the challenges of
discord and fragmentation with an
affirmation of "the American Way"-
Pluralism, individuality, freedom of thought,
expression and religion, a sense of
community, and tolerance & compassion
for others.
PetitionOnline.com
Provides free online hosting of
public petitions for responsible
public advocacy.
PetitionSite.com
Physicians for
Social Responsibility
Leading public policy organization with
24,000 members representing the medical
& public health professions & concerned
citizens, working together for nuclear
disarmament, a healthful environment,
& an end to the epidemic of gun violence.
Physicians
Committee for
Responsible Medicine
Doctors and laypersons working
together for compassionate & effective
medical practice, research, & health
promotion.
Picture
Projects
Uses new media technology to create new
forms of oral history.
Pioneers of
Change
Fosters understanding, capacities & relationships
needed by younger practitioners committed to
stepping forward and creating the change they
want to see in the world. Pioneers of Change is
a global learning network supporting practitioners
in their mid-20s to mid-30.
The Portland
International Initiative
for Ecology, Culture & Learning
(PIIECL) & the Learning (LECL)
master's program at Portland
State
University
Developing and practicing cutting-edge
innovations in the field of sustainability education.
A graduate program within Portland State's
Graduate School of Education, LECL serves
students building careers in emergent fields related
to sustainability education including garden-based
education, food politics, indigenous knowledge
systems, watershed management & education,
community organizing & advocacy.
Positive Futures
Network
Dedicated to supporting people’s
active engagement in creating a just,
sustainable, & compassionate world.
Praxis
Access to resources on international
& comparative social development.
Designed to promote positive social
change through informed action.
Protest.net
Collective of activists who are working
together to create their own media.
By publishing a public record of
political activities on the web they
are taking a stand against the
established media.
Public Citizen
Consumer advocacy organization
founded by Ralph Nader in 1971 to
represent consumer interests in Congress,
the executive branch and the courts. Fights
for openness and democratic accountability
in government, for the right of consumers to
seek redress in the courts; for clean, safe
and sustainable energy sources; for social
and economic justice in trade policies;
for strong health, safety and environmental
protections; and for safe, effective and
affordable prescription drugs and health care.
The Pulitzer
Prizes
Literary & journalism awards in public
service, investigative reporting, fiction,
drama, poetry, etc.
Racial Justice
9-11
National network of Racial Justice
organizations that seeks to build the
power of people of color communities
during a time of war.
Radio for Peace International
Radio For Peace International serves
as the
global messenger of peace and hope.
Rainbow/PUSH
"Progressive organization fighting for
social change. As a mighty coalition of
conscience; workers, women and people
of color have the power to make the
American Dream a Reality!"
Rape Treatment
Center- Santa Monica,
UCLA Medical Center
The Robert Russa
Moton Museum
Committed to the preservation of the
history of civil rights in
education as it
relates to Prince Edward County. Related:
The
Washington Post, 3/4/01,
"Shame of
a Nation, The Lessons
and Legacy of
the Prince Edward School
Closings."
Rootmedia
"Virtual community"
of activists &
organizations
based in Central New York.
Russia Chronicles
Photo-essays include: "100 Years of
Revolution," "The Godfather of Russian
Rap," "A Soldier's Story," "Revolution
Square," "Living Gay in Russia, Go Girl!,"
"Exploring Lake Baikal," "Gentleman Farmer,
Laughter and Feast & Buddhist Prayer
Ceremony," "Lenin Street" and more.
Sacred Earth
Dedicated to exploring traditional plant
knowledge & cosmologies. Ethnobotanists,
Ecologists, Botanists, Conservationists,
Eco-psychologists, Herbalists, Mythologists,
Cosmologist, Philosophers & all other people
of any age, race, and spiritual background
who share a passion for nature & a concern
for the well-being of Mother Earth are invited
to participate in this forum of cross-cultural
exchange.
SagePlace
Provides support for healing & recovery,
holistic health, developing spirituality,
personal growth, & offers continuing
education opportunities for mental
health professionals.
School of Americas
Watch
The US Army School of Americas (SOA)
based in Fort Benning, Georgia, trains
Latin American soldiers in combat, counter-
insurgency, & counter-narcotics. SOA Watch
seeks to close the SOA, through vigils &
fasts, demonstrations and nonviolent protest,
as well as media & legislative work.
The Science of Medical
Marijuana
"It would be unreasonable,
arbitrary & capricious for DEA to
continue to stand between those
sufferers & the benefits of this substance."
-DEA Judge Francis Young
Service Members Legal
Defense Network
Helping service members harmed by "Don't ask,
Don't Tell, Don't Pursue."
The Sentencing Brief
Resources & information for the those
concerned
with criminal justice & sentencing issues.
The Sexuality
Information &
Education Council
Develops, collects, & disseminates
information, promotes comprehensive
education about sexuality, & advocates
the right of individuals to make
responsible sexual choices.
Shundahai Network
International network of activists &
organizations bridging the gap between
the environmental, peace & justice &
indigenous land rights communities.
Simon Wiesenthal
Center
International Jewish human rights
organization dedicated to preserving
the memory of the Holocaust by
fostering tolerance & understanding
through community involvement,
educational outreach & social action.
Sojourners
Christian ministry whose mission
is to proclaim & practice the biblical
call to integrate spiritual renewal
& social justice.
Souleyes Magazine
Documenting communities of color.
Sound Portraits
Independent production company
dedicated to telling stories that bring
neglected American voices to a
national audience.
Sourcebook of Criminal Justice
Statistics
Southern Poverty Law Center
Combats hate, intolerance & discrimination
through education & litigation.
Stanford Prison Experiment
A Simulation Study of the Psychology
of Imprisonment Conducted at
Stanford University.
State PIRG
(Public Research Interest Group)
Alliance of state-based, citizen-funded
organizations that advocate for the
public interest.
Stop
Family Violence
Stop Prison Rape
Seeks to end sexual violence
committed against men, women,
& youth in all forms of detention.
Student Environmental
Action Coalition
Student & youth run national network of
progressive organizations & individuals whose
aim is to uproot environmental injustices
through action and education. Environment
is defined to include the physical, economic,
political & cultural conditions in which we live.
By challenging the power structure which
threatens these environmental conditions,
SEAC works to create progressive social
change on both the local and global levels.
The
Sunshine Project
Works against the hostile use of
biotechnology in the post-Cold War era.
Researches & publishes to strengthen
the global consensus against biological
warfare and to ensure that international
treaties effectively prevent development
& use of biological weapons.
Survival Research Laboratories
Survivor
Project
Dedicated to addressing the needs of
intersex & trans survivors of domestic
& sexual violence through caring action,
education & expanding access to
resources & to opportunities for action.
Survivors
International
Dedicated to the treatment &
support
of survivors of torture.
Survivors of the Shoah Visual
History
To overcome prejudice, intolerance &
bigotry- and the suffering they cause-through
the educational use of the Foundation's
visual history testimonies.
Sweet Crude
"In a small corner of the most populous country
in Africa, billions of dollars of crude oil flow
under the feet of a desperate people. Immense
wealth and abject poverty stand in stark contrast.
The environment is decimated. The issues are
complex, the answers elusive. Sweet Crude, a
documentary now in post-production, tells the
story of Nigeria’s Niger Delta. The region is seething
and the global stakes are high. But in this moment,
there’s an opportunity to find solutions. What if the
world paid attention before it was too late?"- 2/2008
ThomHartmann.com: Waking up
to Personal & Global
Transformation
Tibet Online
Dedicated to ending Chinese oppression &
bringing about self-determination for
the Tibetan people.
Tobacco Free
Initiative
WHO cabinet project focusing international
attention, resources & action on the global
tobacco pandemic that kills four million
people a year today.
Tookie: Stand
Against Gang Violence
Author of the
Tookie Speaks Out Against Gang
Violence book series,
Gangs and Violence,
Life in Prison and other books intended to
discourage gang violence.
Stan "Tookie" Williams
was founder of the Crips gang in South Central Los
Angeles. He was nominated 5 times for
the Nobel Peace Prize for his work in helping
to prevent gang violence. He has was
nominated four times for the Nobel Literature
Prize for his children's books that warn young
people about the pitfalls of joining a gang &
exposes them to alternatives. He was
executed by the state of California.
Training for
Change
Helping Groups Stand Up for
Justice, Peace and Environmental
Harmony.
United for
Peace and Justice
Coalition of more than 650 local & national
groups throughout the United States who
have joined together to oppose our
government's policy of permanent warfare
& empire-building.
UNESCO
United Nations Educational, Scientific
& Cultural Organization. Main objective is
to contribute to peace & security in
the world by promoting collaboration
among nations through education, science,
culture and communication in order to further
universal respect for justice, for the rule of
law and for the human rights & fundamental
freedoms which are affirmed for the peoples
of the world, without distinction of race, sex
language or religion, by the Charter of the
United Nations.
United Nations
Development
Programme
Advocates for change, connecting countries
to knowledge, experience & resources to
help people build a better life. On the
ground in 166 countries, working with them
on their own solutions to global & national
development challenges.
United for
Peace
Collaboration of national & international
peace & social justice organizations &
local places of worship, peace centers,
& community organizations.
United Students
Against Sweatshops
Organization of students & community
members at over 200 campuses. Part
of a movement that supports the struggles
of working people and challenges corporate
power. Works to build power on campuses &
develop solidarity with workers.
U.S. Holocaust
Memorial Museum
The United States Holocaust Memorial
Museum is America’s national institution
for the documentation, study, & interpretation
of Holocaust history, & serves as this
country’s memorial to the millions of people
murdered during the Holocaust.
University of Minnesota
Human Rights Center
UrgentCall.org
Initiative to engage and educate a broad
public about the growing danger that
nuclear weapons will be used, & about
practical steps to reduce that danger.
VietKa- Archives of
the Vietnamese
Boat People
Archives of Vietnamese boat people.
According to the report of United Nations
High Commissioner For Refugees, 1/3
of Vietnamese boat people died at sea by
killing, storms, illness and food shortage,
out of a total 250,000 mixture ages of men,
women, and children.
Vietnam Veterans Home Page
Voice4Change
"Mission is to bring a positive message
to the broadest possible audience. There
are many wonderful organizations doing
critical work to make our world a better
place. Many of these organizations have
very informative web sites but do not have
the time to promote them. Our role will be
to promote these sites to increase their
effectiveness."
Voices of
Women
Supportive community for women.
War Resisters
League
Committed not only to eliminating war,
but the causes of war-causes intricately
linked to the violence that pervades
our society.
WebActive
Tool for progressive activism.
Wellesley Centers
for Women
The Wellesley Centers for Women (WCW)
unites the Center for Research on Women
and the Stone Center for Developmental
Services & Studies in an interdisciplinary
community of scholars engaged in
research, training, analysis and action. Our
work is dedicated to looking at the world
through the eyes of women because a
world that is better for women is better for
everyone. We believe that only by thoroughly
investigating the what, why, and how of a
problem can you begin to create a lasting
solution.
West Africa Network
for
Peace Building
Mission is to enable and facilitate
the development of mechanisms for
cooperation among civil society
based peacebuilding practitioners
and organizations in West Africa by
promoting cooperative responses to
violent conflicts; providing the structure
through which these practitioners and
institutions will regularly exchange
experience and information on issues of
peacebuilding, conflict transformation,
social, religious & political reconciliation;
and promoting West Africa’s social cultural
values as resources for peacebuilding.
Whole Earth
"Committed to a vision of what's needed
to challenge ingrained patterns & stale
assumptions. Curiosity. Exploration.
Independence. Community. Living fearlessly.
Principles. Tools and ideas. Whole Earth
shows you ways to take back your power
and put it to use. Here you'll find information
about restoring your local ecosystem, citizen
advocacy, & socially responsible investing.
Here are the tools for producing knowledge,
& creating communities according to your
own values and ideals."
Witness
"Armed with cameras, frontline activists
are letting
truth do the talking."
- Peter Gabriel
Williams Dailey
O'Leary
Craine & Love
Represents individuals who have been
injured by dangerous drugs like
Phenylpropanolamine (PPA), Baycol, Meridia,
Fen-Phen (Redux), Rezulin, Propulsid,
& L-Tryptophan or by defective products like
the ProteGen vaginal sling, Dalkon Shield,
silicone breast implants, and pedicle screws.
They also represent people who have been
diagnosed with PPH (primary pulmonary
hypertension) who also took prescription diet
pills such as Fen-Phen or Redux.
Wo/Men's Alliance for
Medical
Marijuana
WAMM is a patient self-help alliance.
A handful of seriously ill patients has
grown into a collective membership of
more than 250 seriously intentioned citizens.
Woman's Action for New
Directions
Mission is to empower women to act
politically to reduce violence & militarism,
and redirect excessive military resources
toward unmet human & environmental
needs.
Woman's International Center
Mission is to : (1) To Acknowledge, Honor &
Encourage Women; (2) To celebrate women
and their positive, enduring contributions
to humanity through the Living Legacy Awards;
(3)To inform and educate through WIC's force
on the pervasive outreach of the Internet; (4)
Wstablish a permanent information &
educational home for women, worldwide, to learn,
teach & create: Women's International Institute.
Women's
International League for
Peace & Freedom
WILPF works to achieve through peaceful
means world disarmament, full rights for women,
racial & economic justice, an end to all forms of
violence, and to establish those political, social,
& psychological conditions which can assure
peace, freedom, & justice for all.
Women Speak
The voice of women through photographs & words.
WomanWarPeace.org
Initial aim is to track progress on the
implementation of resolution 1325, and
ultimately to provide information to encourage
researchers, policy makers, analysts and
NGOs so they can routinely include, seek
and contribute more information and
analysis on women, war and peace.
Work of Women
WOW! (Work of Women) is a global membership
organization within World Neighbors, a not-for-profit
community development organization working in
partnership with the rural poor in hundreds of
villages in Asia, Africa and Latin America.
WOW! membership fees and donations support
& enhance World Neighbors efforts to improve
the lives of women and their families who are
living in extreme poverty, through programs that
include: literacy education, food security, nutrition,
leadership training, income generation & savings
& credit, reproductive and community health, &
clean water and sanitation.
WorkingForChange | ActForChange
ShopForChange | GiveForChange
|
Web sites made up of resources for
people with progressive values. People
can speak out on urgent issues,
read informative news and
columns, go shopping, make a
donation or volunteer their time.
World
Advocacy
List of advocacy groups in areas ranging
from animal rights to pharmaceuticals.
World Economic Forum
Gathering of world leaders to address global
problems.
World Peace Prayer Society
The World
Revolution
Large-scale, activist social movement
for progressive social change.
World
Social Forum
Open meeting place where groups &
movements of civil society opposed to
neo-liberalism and a world dominated
by capital or by any form of imperialism,
but engaged in building a planetary
society centered on the human person,
come together to pursue their thinking,
to debate ideas democratically, for
formulate proposals, share their experiences
freely and network for effective action.
The World
Development Movement
The World Development Movement
tackles the underlying causes of poverty.
They lobby decision makers to change the
policies that keep people poor. They
research & promote positive alternatives.
They work alongside people in the
developing world who are standing
up to injustice.
World Thirteen Moon
Calendar
Change Peace Movement
The World Thirteen Moon Calendar
Change Peace Movement is a planetary
organization committed to the
replacement of the irregular standard
of the the Gregorian calendar with the
regular standard of the thirteen moon,
28 day calendar.
You Are
Worth More
Online resource for retail workers
who want a voice or have a question.
YouthActionNet
Aim is to provide a virtual space where
young people can share lessons, stories,
information & advice on how to
lead effective change.
ZNet
Community concerned about social change.
Zone Tour
Object is to promote industrial
archaeology & architecture, and to
reveal a particular point of view
about the city.
|
Awakening the Dreamer
I am committed to bringing forth an
environmentally sustainable, spiritually fulfilling
and socially just human presence on this planet as the
guiding principle of our times.
Awakening
the Dreamer Initiative
The Last Decade
The decade where things change but
really remain the same. Wars, violence, destruction-
nothing changes. Singular acts of courage and mass acts
of cowardice- Fear and occasional compassion. And as
always a predilection for lies over the truth- illusion
over reality and a growing inability to peel the words
away and recognize what is in the heart. The inability
to see what is beautiful. A mass narcosis leading to
death and destruction... Deep repressed anger- ready to
spring into action at any moment. Endless generations of
violence and perpetuated fear. Mass projection of ego.
Mass victimization.
Nuclear destruction has been
avoided and environmental destruction becomes
irreversible-possibly leading to the former.
All of this inviting compassion from the Gods and
endless pain for those that see- see into themselves and
see into others. Those that bear the full weight of our
cruelty- our genocides.
Perhaps if you recognized the illusion of change you
would begin to awaken. Otherwise you are more victims
than awakened beings.
Go back to sleep or awaken. There is a choice- and
therein lies the hope.
Contentment
I am not
content. A part of me wishes to simply cease. I can't
imagine a more insane world-crueler. A part of me
recoils and seeks the peace of the mountains- where the
messages are clear and the wisdom true. A part of me
wants to fight-protest and defend what I love. I want to
imagine what is true- that my life is under constant
threat from this insanity. That the only thing that
shields me from this awareness is delusion. Hide, fight,
protect or die.
Visiting Mexico
One cannot visit
Mexico without realizing that as an American- our
wealth, our fear, our smallness of heart- these are
the things that truly separate us from the rest of the
world- from each other. Look into the face of a child-
eat with those who have little- enjoy the stories of
those that do not own or possess- Learn the stories-
free yourself from any sense that you are in anyway
superior- Maslow's Hierarchy be damned- with all this
money you are anything but self-actualized.
Have you forgotten who you are? Neat, aligned suburban
islands- clean- perfect. Innumerable laws to keep you
in servitude- protect you from yourself and others.
Protect- fear- incredible material wealth accompanied
by equally incredible poverty of spirit. Alright- it
is easy to love the sweet and beautiful- but can you
love the unlovable. How dare you say that I am
loveable- All human beings- all that lives is
loveable- How dare you judge and compare. Keep your
compliments to yourself. You cannot judge anything-
You need to humble yourself before every alter- kneel-
ask for forgiveness. You have so much and share so
little. Everything in nice balance- pretty balance- a
little here- a little there- Shove it. There is no
delicate balance- your life is one big effort to
exploit, drain and destroy every resource this planet
has to offer. When is enough, enough?
Is this an
exaggeration- too judgmental? Unfair- yes this is true
and it is sometimes OK to simply remind- but look at
yourselves- where is the subtlety? You do everything on
a grand scale.
Violence- No- To
become violent like the aggressor is to become the
aggressor- Love- Yes, but try to remember it is you-
more than anyone else that is in need of love and
healing- Pray your third world neighbors remember you
in their prayers- Best to be powerless- then you can
truly be free.
Life itself is made of pain. We experience it from the
day we are born until the day we die. Gladys is
sensitive. Her most naked truths were exposed in her
diaries and when they were exposed, a part of herself
died. To live without secrets- without the sacred is
to not quite live. When she went to England- to
receive her "treatment", the treatment was to rob more
of her self- to numb- to forget- to become like aloes-
yet this was not possible for her. For many it is not
possible. For Peter- so full of life- to be cut off
from friends- to be left steadily and more steadily
alone- imprisoned- stoic, concealing fear with false
hope- yet embedded in that hope is what remains of
self. Steven, defeated by the realization that those
he most trusted betrayed him- there is no more cruel
blow. One can accept the rejection of those who do not
know you- but to be rejected by those you thought
loved you- realizing the lie, or at least unsure- that
can defeat any spirit.
The thing is- one doesn't need a South Africa or an Iraq
or a United States- one only needs life. There are no
heroes.
Did you
know...
One in five children in America live in poverty. 4 million
low-income children under the age of 13 are hungry in some part of one or more months of
the year.
The average age of a homeless person in America is 9 years old (National Coalition for the Homeless).
Children and families make up the fastest growing segment of the homeless population
(35-40%).Often
homeless children are excluded from the public school system
because they lack a
permanent address, immunization record or
birth certificate.
Many inner city youth come from communities with 50% or more unemployment. Many of these
communities experience rampant crime and a sense of hopelessness for the future.
Government bureaucracies, isolation and neglect, gangs, child abuse, racism,
economic downturn and poverty
itself can work to help crush children and families.
Many of these problems are doubly and triply compounded for immigrant children and their
families. See: An Outsider
Looking In - A Danish vagabonds personal journey
through the American underclass.
"If we don't find a way to prevent the painful abandonment, abuse and exploitation of
children, we will spend the rest of our lives building mental hospitals and prisons."
-Karl Menninger
"Listen to the children who come to you, and see them,
really see them. Practice the ancient art from a lost tribe. Be a guardian of their
hearts. If only for a moment, reflect their hearts to them."
-Yanon Volcani, Ph.D., CSPP - San Diego, 1996
"Whoever touches the life of the child touches the most
sensitive point of a whole which has roots in the most distant past and climbs toward the
infinite future. Whoever touches the child touches the vital and delicate point where all
can be renewed, where all is pulsating with life, where the secrets of the soul lay
hidden. To work consciously for the child and to go deep down, with the tremendous
intention of understanding him, would be to conquer the secrets of mankind, just as so
many secrets of nature have been conquered in the world around us. The activity of the
child has always been looked upon as an expression of his vitality. But his activity is
really the work he performs in building up the man he is to become. It is the incarnation
of the human spirit."- Maria Montessori
|
"Nothing will benefit
human health and increase the chances for
survival of life on Earth as much as the
evolution to a vegetarian diet."- Albert
Einstein
Continued
|
A new term for modern American society- "compassion
fatigue": that tiredness and indifference that arises when society's
"garbage," its outcasts, its poor and homeless, are to often present at
inconvenient moments- after attending an opera, on one's way to work or the shopping mall,
on vacation, eating at a restaurant. The outcasts- are they not the ones who pollute
the water supplies and destroy the environment- No? Are they the ones that begin wars- No?
Are they the ones that court largess from corrupt politicians, No? Are they the ones
that export banned chemicals to third world nations and market cigarettes that kill to
youth, No? Do they receive massive tax breaks and credits, No? Do they exploit migrant
workers and illegal immigrants, No?
Perhaps they are the ones who are closer to God? Are their children
the ones that suffer? Are they the victims of machine-like bureaucracies? Are they the
meek who shall inherit the earth? The voiceless that endure today's suffering? Are they
the blessed and the truly compassionate? Maybe... If so...why are some many fatigued?- a
lack of will?, a lack of their own humanity?
See:
"Amazing
Grace," by Jonathan Kozol
White People
Today I saw a beautiful black
woman, kneeling in front of a street bench, reading
what appeared to be her hand written diary. She was
wrapped in a blanket, suggesting she had slept there
the night before.
Today I met a beautiful young 90 year old black
man in the swimming pool locker room telling me of
the benefits of swimming for longevity.
Today I met a beautiful black
woman at the hostel front desk. Her heart was open
and hopeful. She was smiling and full of life.
So many white people walking
down the street. Cold, callous and self preoccupied.
I am certain I am not entirely white. I do not
belong to the race of the unfeeling. Naked, raw
emotion can be good. Pain must be exposed to heal.
Best not to get to caught up with the story though.
But very good to feel. Note: This should not be
construed as reverse prejudice as much as a comment
on how too many- black or white- build barriers that
conceal and ultimately diminish their humanity. I
wrote this while walking through downtown Washington
DC- the penultimate city for corruption,
gentrification and marginalization of the poor.
Technology
Moving
about...frenetic energy...airplane chi. Flowing or
energy. Need for speed, always faster...seal this deal,
manage this project. Fuel, fuel and more fuel.
Everything built on something else...a monolithic
system. Step out of line...get swatted. Where is the
sky. Who holds the sky up? Where is the wisdom.
Technology is not neutral. It is cold, controlling and
unrelenting- never letting us out of its grasp. We think
we control it- but it controls us. It's hunger is
limitless„ it's thirst...unquenchable. Are we more
victims or are we the victimizers?
A machine cannot bleed. It cannot laugh. While machine
consciousness may be emergent, if and when it does
emerge, it will still be human...just not as much...or
more likely not at all.
We are a planet on the brink or destruction. To not know
this is to either be indifferent or have blind faith.
Faith is the one of the most important words of the age.
Without faith it is difficult to carry on. But if our
faith becomes an excuse to do nothing....it is delusion.
If it dis-empowers. It becomes servitude.
I will not live that much longer. Whether due to old age
or other causes, my remaining time on the physical plane
is brief. In some sense I am part of something- a whole
- that can never die. To a large degree my individuality
is am illusion. Yet for my remaining time I must do
more. To do less in the face of inevitable death is
folly. It is a waste of the time I have remaining.
2 Timothy
3:1-5
This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall
come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers,
disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, truce breakers,
false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, traitors, heady,
high-minded, lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God; Having a form of godliness, but
denying the power thereof: from such turn away...
Psalm 73
"They have no
struggles; their bodies are healthy and strong.
They are free from the burdens common to man;
they are not plagued by human ills. Therefore
pride is their necklace; they clothe themselves
with violence. From their callous hearts comes
iniquity; the evil conceits of their minds know
no limits. They scoff, and speak with malice; in
their arrogance they threaten oppression.
Their mouths lay claim to heaven, and their
tongues take possession of the earth. Therefore
their people turn to them and drink up waters in
abundance. They say, "How can God know? Does the
Most High have knowledge?"
"This is what the wicked are like-
always carefree, they increase in wealth..."
Are these times upon us?
Joel 3: 18-21
"And it shall come to pass in that day, that
the mountains shall drop down new wine, and the
hills shall flow with milk, and all the rivers
of Judah shall flow [7] with waters, and a
fountain shall come forth of the house of the
Lord, and shall water the valley of Shittim. 19
Egypt shall be a desolation, and Edom shall be a
desolate wilderness, for the violence against
the children of Judah, because they have shed
innocent blood in their land. 20 But Judah shall
dwell [8] for ever, and Jerusalem from
generation to generation. 21 For I will cleanse
their blood that I have not cleansed: for the
Lord dwelleth in Zion."
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The film "Fight Club," by David Fincher and starring Brad Pitt
and Edward Norton is a brilliant and graphic depiction of the roots of violence. Jack (the
Norton character), seems tapped and trapped in a nihilistic world - a depressed insomniac,
numbed by his work (essentially amoral and slave like) and having only a fringe, yet
inextricable connection with the Brave New World.
He initially finds psychological release in support groups for
everything from testicular cancer to parasites (biological). He recognizes his falseness
(there is nothing physically wrong with him), resents other "fakers," but seems
hooked on the "rush" he gets from these groups and the closeness it brings
him to death, hence ultimately life.
Empty, lonely and internally brutalized he literally "splits
part," and unconsciously creates a psychological mechanism to release his
creative/violent energies and resentment towards the Orwellian world of the 1990's. By
becoming a violence junkie he becomes more fully alive. By including others in his
addiction (Fight Club), he validates his drives and is able to make a societal statement.
When his primal id conflicts too sharply with his "societal"
super ego, his disassociative split shatters and the process of painful reintegration
begins.
The movie flashes in almost MTV fashion the inwardly and outwardly
destructive implications of post industrial age isolation and the collective societal
death wish that results. Depression is sometimes not far from suicide and on an individual
or societal level can lead to violent, last ditch outbursts to recapture the feeling of
being alive- a plea for help.
When one is empty inside-
what is there to lose?
More recently the
movie/musical
Sweeney Todd-The Demon Barber of Fleet Street,
in perhaps more surrealistic and bloody strokes-
depicts the intersection of life, love,
insanity, hatred, misanthropy, violence and the
denigration of life. Disturbing, shocking,
entertaining and even humorous at times- a
perverse reality that is not as unreal as one
would hope. |
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I have seen four Stanley
Kubrick films thus far, three recently. In the
late 1970's I viewed, "2001-A Space
Odyssey," and deemed it a great and
thoughtful work. Viewing it at least four
times over the years has not changed my
perception of it. In 1999, I saw
"Eyes Wide Shut," Kubrick's last
film and "A Clockwork Orange." Most
recently I viewed "A.I.," a
collaboration of Kubrick and the director,
Steven Spielberg.
Continued
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While many years ago I saw, "The
Elephant Man," "Dune," and "Eraserhead,"
"Mulhollland Dr."
is the first David Lynch film that resonated powerfully
with me. While the film's abstract alternate dream reality
is effective, though readily criticized by those seeking
plot linearity, its motifs are central to its
meaning.
The intertwined relationship between
beauty, love, sex, dependency and violence; innocence,
money, power, fame's destructiveness and emptiness; the
inner torture engendered by the irreconcilable "what is" and
"what is desired;" the desire for a new beginning when the
old goes wrong- all demons encircling the film's
characters- giving pathos with meaning. Ultimately we are
trapped by what we are and what we become. |
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The Watchmen- The
Movie The
Watchman is a graphically violent movie. In one
sense gratuitous violence, in another sense
evocative of the view of humans as fundamentally
violent. To me, the film is a commentary on the
superficiality and emptiness of modern values, the
dangers of religion, the manifest expression of
violence in society and the human condition in
general. The man created God-euphemized as Dr.
Manhattan- becomes the symbol of how reliance on
religion becomes a crutch- perpetuating violence.
How we blame the absent god for our woes- a self
created god- who is indifferent to our plight-
selfish and detached.
Veidt represents another kind
of evil- a genius seeking to save the world by
manipulating it and enshrouding himself in power.
His character is not unlike the politicians or elite
that know better what is good for the human race and
are determined to get there way regardless or even
because of ill consequence.
The Richard Nixon- becomes the
toned down Dr. Strangelove- along with the Dr.
Kissinger character- caught in an alternate reality-
a labyrinth of deception, posturing, instability and
incalculable irony- making life and death decisions
for the human race while being trapped by their own
flawed humanity.
Rorschach, to me, while
violent- is the moral center of this parallel world.
Reeking vengeance, still connected with his own
humanity- understanding the cruelty of human nature,
yet striving for truth- whether to save his friends
or to save the World. In the end his character is
annihilated by an only mildly reluctant god.
Even the conclusion, where
humanity stands united against a common enemy-seems
hollow. What happens when the enemy disappears or
his defeated?
Love in the film is treated
almost as a side show- far from redeeming- it seems
adolescent and destructive.
By constructing a
semi-convincing alternate/parallel reality, while at
the same time biting into this reality- the "real"
world- The Watchmen teaches us more about ourselves-
redeeming its depicted acts of violence with a kind
of self realization. |
The Film Avatar
The film Avatar is an amazing and supremely costly
technological spectacle. And while at times it sinks
to a morality tale with evil villains, beings of
great beauty and perfection, and a Moses and God to
destroy the villains- a nonetheless a powerful theme
emerges. For you see this world- faces a choice. The
choice between a dead world of machines and war- of
dehumanization and nightmare- or a world of natural
beauty and peace. A world of separateness or of
interrelationship. A world where every action is a
manifestation of beauty and connection or one where
there is no end to cruelty and pain. I have seen
these worlds.The
global consciousness is a reflection of the
individual consciousness. The violence and split in
our own natures manifests on the planet. The hatred,
the inner doubt, the fear- the longing- it as if the
world is an outer manifestation of our collective
inner worlds. Perhaps we will grow- evolve into a
peaceful state. If so that peace will manifest
throughout the world- the universe. Perhaps then we
will all become Avatars. |
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Angels in America
Angels in America is a brilliant
play written by Tony Kushner and first performed in
May 1990. It depicts men and woman caught up in the
period of the AIDs epidemic- still with us as I
write this- and the tribulations they experienced
facing what, at the time, was for most- the
certainty of death.
This piece is only a series of
impressions that the play left me with. It seems in
this world that suffering is part of life- and
inescapable. Each generation has had their burden of
suffering. Yet each also passes on a part of their
spirit and humanity, as well as their cultural
roots- however dim and easily forgotten,
particularly in the "modern" age, these roots are.
Yet, while we experience suffering through life, so
much of our suffering arises from within our own
heats and souls. Knowingly in many cases, but
seemingly helpless to do otherwise- we inflict
suffering on those we love the most. Often we do
this because of our own natures- limitations,
circumscribed worlds formed through ancestral times
and the arc of our lives. In my life, and so many
others, this takes the form of cruel rejection-
rejecting and rejected- not for lack of love, but
because we cannot face ourselves. I suppose this is
authentically human- but ultimately tragic. The
characters in the play represent facets in all of
us- the suffering being, emergent salvation,
inability to accept suffering, rejection of self,
rejection of others, objectification of the world-
seeing it as a cruel place- where the only response
is more cruelty. Perhaps it is only in our death
where we find salvation. Judgment is our own.
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Nothing angers me more than the human capacity for cruelty and
indifference and the needless suffering it causes.
Why are the weak preyed upon? Their misfortune
exploited?
Why
do the aged and disabled suffer as victims of crime?
Why
are workers poisoned and killed by their employers?
Their communities becoming a toxic hazard to them and their
families?
Why do automakers knowingly make vehicles that kill?
Why
do some drivers rage against other drivers?
Why
do co-workers abuse those who are subordinate and weak?
Why do the poor prey upon the even poorer, increasing each others
misery?
Why
are pets mistreated, with millions exterminated each year?
Why
are children abused?
Why are children murdered?
Why
are children mistreated and terrorized in their own homes?
Why do runaway children sometimes need to become
prostitutes to survive?
Why are immigrants around the world
forced to become sex slaves?
Why
do scientists allow children to be needlessly exposed to harmful levels
of lead, treating them like canaries in the mines?
Why are our forests being
destroyed- ancient plant and animal species wiped off the Earth- forever?
What of the countless acts of cruelty we never know about?
What screams have we not heard and infernos not known?
Why?
Must the powerful prey upon weak?...what threat are they to them- other than
exposing their own inhumanity?
Human capacity is equal to human cruelty; and it's up to each of us
to tip the balance,
Alice Walker
When you gonna wake up? When you gonna wake up and strengthen
the things that remain?
Bob
Dylan
Can we stop being fearful? Yes, but not without taking
individual responsibility in standing up - and speaking out -
in the face of evil.
Gao
Zhan, Chinese born scholar and former political prisoner.
No man should experience this.
No woman should experience this.
No child should experience this.
No animal should experience this.
No words can describe this cruelty.
There are no words.
No tears are enough.
Evil must be opposed.
It must be fought.
Yet love transcends all.
It must. It must. -Lowell
Greenberg
Tipping the balance: See:
Social/Volunteer
Action, Tolerance,
Community,
Abused Children,
Environment,
Teledemocracy,
Veterans Service Organizations,
Animal Rights,
Free Speech.
6/10/01
Boston Globe article, "In attacks on disabled, few
verdicts, by Raja Mishra."
"From 1997 to 1999 [Massachusetts] investigated
342 crimes against the disabled, and only 18 - or about
5
percent - ended with a conviction.
In all 342 cases, specially trained investigators
found strong evidence of crimes. They forwarded evidence to
police and prosecutors. But in the hands of law enforcement,
most cases were dropped.
By contrast, about 70
percent of crimes involving able-bodied victims resulted in
convictions during that period."
1/12/03 article in the Washington
Post, "Illinois Death Row Emptied Citing 'Demon of
Error,' Ryan Commutes Sentence," by Robert E.
Pierre and Kari Lydersen
"Illinois's outgoing Republican Gov.
George Ryan commuted today the death sentences of
167 people to life in prison after concluding that
the capital punishment system was
"haunted by the demon of error."
"..The action will have ramifications
for the intensifying national debate on the issue
and came a day after Ryan pardoned four death row
inmates whom he said had been
tortured into false murder confessions. Three
were released immediately and are already home with
their families."
Governor Ryan is to be praised for taking a
courageous stand. According to
Wayne F. Smith,
Executive Director, The Justice Project,
"As bad as Illinois' death penalty system is, it
is better than most.
National studies find that Illinois courts reverse
flawed death sentences on average less often than
most states. The 37 other states that have
the death penalty should take a hard look at their
own systems and follow Illinois' lead. The United
States Congress should immediately pass, and
President Bush should sign into law, the federal
Innocence Protection Act. No less than lives and
justice are at stake." |
Amazon Watch
Mission is to to work with indigenous &
environmental organizations in the Amazon
Basin to defend the environment &
advance indigenous peoples' rights in the
face of large-scale industrial development-oil
and gas pipelines, power lines, roads,
and other mega-projects.
ArtNatAm
Features art work of
Joanne Swanson,
Inupiaq Eskimo;
Urshel Taylor,
Pima Tribe;
L. David
Eveningthunder, Shoshone Tribe;
Dana Tiger,
Creek Tribe &
Jerome
Bushyhead,1929-2000, Cheyenne Tribe
Chief
Dan Evehema's
Message to Mankind
ewebtribe.com
Guthrie Studios
Harvey
Phillip Pratt
Cheyenne artist specializing in composite
drawing, skull reconstruction, skull tracing,
postmortem drawing, age progression, photo
enhancement, courtroom sketching &
historical reconstruction.
Honor The Earth
National Native grant-making &
political
advocacy organization sponsored by:
Indigenous Environmental Network
&
Indigenous Women's Network. They ask
people to recognize our joint dependency
on the Earth & be a voice for those not heard.
Hopi
Prophesies
From
rossbishop.com
Indigenous
Environmental Network
"A network of Indigenous Peoples empowering
Indigenous Nations & communities towards
sustainable livelihoods, demanding environmental
justice and maintaining the Sacred Fire
of our traditions."
Indigenous
Peoples Survival Foundation
Non-profit, humanitarian organization with the
primary mission of promoting understanding
between ancient traditional peoples and modern
civil society. Secondary mission is to utilize
indigenous knowledge and global resources to
promote economic prosperity for needy people
worldwide; while at the same time protecting the
environment out of respect for our mother Earth.
Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami
National Inuit organization in Canada,
representing the four Inuit regions -
Labrador, Nunavik (northern Quebec),
Nunavut, & the Inuvialuit region in
the Northwest Territories.
The
Longest Walk
We walk with the message: All Life is Sacred,
Save Mother Earth. We shall walk for the
Seventh Generation, for our youth, for peace,
for justice, for healing of Mother Earth, for the
healing of our people suffering from diabetes,
heart conditions, alcoholism, drug addiction
and other diseases. Through the elements of
the seasons, we shall walk through the rain,
snow, over mountains, high winds, through the
heat and cold, nothing shall deter us from
completing our mission: All Life is Sacred,
Protect Sacred Sites. Let those who doubt,
hear our pledge. Let those who believe, join
our ranks. As we walk the final miles, by our
side will be elders, families, children, people
of all races, from many walks of life, the old
and the new America. All Life is Sacred,
Clean Up Mother Earth.
Mariposa- Community of
Butterflies
Located in the Napo province in eastern Ecuador,
in a region known as the Oriente, is the small city
of Tena with a population of 22,000. Slightly north
of Tena is the smaller town of Archidona. A short
distance from Archidona is the Comunidad Lushian
Mariposa, home to the
Napo Runa Mamallacta family.
The head of this family is the eighth generation
shaman/healer Don Casimiro. Casimiro's family
includes his wife Margarita & sons Elias & Ramon.
We must preserve those cultures that still have a
connection with land & spirit & wish to preserve their
way of life. Such are the Napo Runa & other indigenous
people of the Amazon. Impinging on their cultures is
the greed of the wealthy elites, petrochemical
companies and perhaps most dangerous- the spiritual
emptiness of a world that has forgotten truth &
replaced it with the marketplace. -
Lowell
Greenberg
Native American Rights Fund
Founded in 1970, the Native American
Rights Fund (NARF) is a nonprofit law firm
dedicated to asserting & defending the
rights of Indian tribes, organizations &
individuals nationwide.
Native Art
Network
Committed to promoting authentic Native
American Art of the highest quality. Represents
individual Native American artists & families
from the United States & Canada.
National Museum of the
American Indian
The Pachamama
Alliance
Mission is to preserve the Earth's tropical
rainforests by empowering the indigenous
people who are its natural custodians
and to contribute to the creation of a new
global vision of equity and sustainability
for all.
The People's Path
Portland State
University Native
American Student & Community
Center
The Portland State University Native
American Student and Community Center is|
a learning center that provides an opportunity
to unite all communities; it is a place for
remembering, affirming, & empowering all people.
The center will be a symbol of health, goodwill,
& community pride.
Traditional Knowledge
Prior Art
Database
Index & search engine of existing Internet
-based, public domain documentation
concerning indigenous knowledge & plant
species uses. Brings together & archives
in a single location, various types of public
domain data necessary to establish prior art.
Data includes taxonomic and other species
data, ethnobotanical uses, scientific &
medical articles and abstracts, as well as
patent applications themselves. It is meant
to be used by anyone researching traditional
ecological knowledge, including scientists,
health professionals, & those involved in the
patent application process itself.
Wisdom of the
Elders
Wisdom of the Elders, Inc. (WISDOM) is
collaborating with a team of nine partners that
serve Native Americans to develop multi-media
rehabilitation curriculum for Portland-area Native
American therapists and clients. The Discovering
Our Story Project is being developed to resolve
five outcomes. One increases the skills of therapists
serving Native American clients. Four outcomes
resolve mental health, addictions, domestic
violence prevention and diabetes issues which
recent research demonstrates are frequently
co-occurring within our community.
Wolakota Foundation
Wolakota Foundation is a grassroots non-profit
organization emerging from the needs of
traditional Lakota (Dakota/Nakota) people to
maintain their cultural and spiritual lifeways for the
sake of future generations. Since it's inception,
the organization has sought to promote and protect
as well as educate others about the traditional
values and wisdom of Indigenous People.
The term Wo-lakota means: peaceful, responsible
and caring, a compassionate and generous people.
Wolakota encourages people to step forward in
recognizing the value of their own cultural roots and
in so doing, reconnecting with the strengths and
wisdom that all traditional cultures hold in common
- our connection to each other and to the Earth.
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