Will Bahrain crack down on protestors tomorrow?

	Stand up for the right to peaceful protest without the threat of violence.
	Tomorrow marks the one-year anniversary of the start of protests in Bahrain. Tens of thousands are expected to take to the streets to protest a government that has committed terrible violence against its own citizens. When Bahrain's streets awaken in protest tomorrow, will government forces crack down on peaceful demonstrators again? Will there be more tear gas, torture, killings? We don't know what will happen tomorrow. But we do know that tragedy is not inevitable. Take action for a better tomorrow in Bahrain. Call on the Bahraini government and security forces to respect peaceful protest and assembly -- today, tomorrow, and for all the days to come. As protests enter their second year, the Middle East and North Africa remain in turmoil. As I wrote you over the weekend, the crisis in Syria is escalating. Civil society is under attack in Egypt. We can't let violence against peaceful protesters rekindle anew in Bahrain. If the Bahraini government keeps its promises -- to end torture and excessive force, to release peaceful protesters from prison, and to hold those responsible for abuses accountable -- it should have nothing to fear from nonviolent protests demanding political reforms. Under pressure, Bahrain's government has taken some positive steps forward -- but human rights violations continue in the country. Scores of people sentenced to prison terms for exercising their rights to freedom of expression and assembly during last year's protests are still facing criminal charges. Two of those prisoners, leaders of the Bahrain Teachers' Association, face a critical hearing this coming weekend that could grant them their freedom -- or keep them jailed for years. The situation in Bahrain is dire, but it is not hopeless -- and we can have tremendous influence. Bahrain takes its international image seriously. And since Bahrain is a country with such close ties to the U.S., the Bahraini government is uniquely susceptible to pressure from the U.S. government and U.S.-based activists. Your action today could mean peace in Bahrain tomorrow. Tell the Bahraini government that you are watching closely -- and that when tomorrow comes, you expect them to do the right thing for human rights. With hope for tomorrow, Sanjeev Bery Advocacy Director, Middle East and North Africa Amnesty International USA		A better tomorrow in Bahrain? Tomorrow we hope to see a Bahrain without unjust arrests or protester deaths. Call on the Bahraini government to respect peaceful protests during tomorrow's one-year anniversary of Bahrain's anti-government uprising.
© 2012 Amnesty International USA | 5 Penn Plaza, New York, NY 10001 | 212.807.8400

Bumper stickers :)

An interesting collection.                                                                                                                        ELECTION 2012 IS COMING Only 86% will send this on. “Should be a 100%”. What will you do?

Trader Joes makes agreement with farmworkers; @ciw now pivots to Publix

Pivoting to Publix... Above, workers from Immokalee arrive in Friday's early morning light at the parking lot of a North Naples Publix located at the intersection of Immokalee Road and Hwy 41 -- directly across the street from Trader Joe's first-ever Florida store -- following a 35-mile bike trip from Immokalee. The action was shifted to Publix after Trader Joe's and the CIW signed a Fair Food Agreement late Thursday. With Trader Joe’s decision, the only store on this corner selling tomatoes that were bought the old way, no questions asked, will be Publix. Workers and Fair Food allies will gather outside of Publix again this Sunday (corner of Vanderbilt and 41, @ 2pm) to call on Florida's grocery giant to follow the lead of Whole Foods and Trader Joe's in backing the CIW's groundbreaking Fair Food Program. You can listen to a great story on the bike protest by clicking here. Following agreement with Trader Joe's, pressure mounts on Publix as Fast for Fair Food approaches... As reaction continues to pour in from across the country to yesterday's news of the CIW's agreement with Trader Joe's, the Campaign for Fair Food turns to Publix, demanding -- with renewed urgency -- that Florida's largest grocer do its part to improve wages and working conditions in the fields where its tomatoes are picked. We'll get back to Publix in a moment, but first just a word on the overwhelming response to the Trader Joe's agreement. And that word would be... Wow! Twitter, Facebook, blogs and mainstream media all lit up like never before in the history of the Campaign for Fair Food, with well-wishers offering heartfelt congratulations -- to both the CIW and Trader Joe's -- and Fair Food activists letting Publix and the rest of the supermarket industry know that the time for standing in the way of progress is over. The general response was perhaps best captured in a beautifully written statement from the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), the full text of which can be read at the CIW site today: Statement by the Rev. Gradye Parsons, Stated Clerk of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), and Linda Valentine, Executive Director, General Assembly Mission Counsel, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) On behalf of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), I commend Trader Joe’s and the Coalition of Immokalee Workers on reaching this agreement. By joining the Fair Food Program, Trader Joe’s has strengthened this successful, collaborative model between farmworkers, corporations, growers and consumers, that is advancing farmworkers’ human rights, corporate accountability, and consumer confidence.... I take this occasion to call, yet again, upon Publix, Ahold and Kroger to stop standing on the sidelines. Inaction in the face of generations of exploitation and a proven model for change is not neutral. Your refusal to join the Fair Food Program threatens to undermine these important gains.... (read more) We will have a complete media round-up on the Trader Joe's agreement next week. For now, please visit the CIW website today for a chock-full update from the frontlines of the fight for Fair Food -- from the Publix bike ride yesterday and reaction to the Trader Joe's agreement to a reflection on inaction and neutrality and the upcoming Fast For Fair Food... Thanks - Coalition of Immokalee Workers

Coalition of Immokalee Workers • PO Box 603, Immokalee, FL 34143 • (239) 657-8311 • workers@ciw-online.org

Tell PM Harper: stop Canada's planned wolf killings

Clicking here will automatically add your name to this petition to Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Minister of the Environment Peter Kent: "Canada's plan to kill wolves in response to habitat devastation from tar sands oil mining is cruel and misguided. Abandon this plan, preserve crucial wildlife habitat, and stop the rapid expansion of tar sands mining that threatens us all." Automatically add your name: Learn more about this campaign Tell Prime Minister Harper: Stop Canada's planned wolf killings Dear Ray, It just gets worse and worse. To make up for the fact that rapid tar sands oil mining is threatening caribou herds by destroying vast swaths of forest habitat in Alberta, the Canadian government has called for killing thousands of wolves.1 Tell Prime Minister Harper: Stop Canada's planned tar sands wolf killings! Click here to automatically sign the petition. If Alberta Canada's tar sands oil fields are fully developed, an area of boreal rainforest the size of Florida will be eviscerated, leaving in its wake giant ponds of toxic wastewater.2 It's obvious why this would pose a massive threat to all wildlife species who reside there, including birds, wolves, woodland caribou and the iconic spirit bear. But instead of preserving the habitat caribou need for their survival, the Canadian government's answer is to blaze ahead with tar sands oil extraction, and kill thousands of wolves who would naturally prey on the caribou. A paper released this week by the National Wildlife Federation reports that The Ministry of the Environment's plan calls for aerial shooting, and poisoning with bait laced with strychnine — a particularly painful type of poison. Tell Prime Minister Harper: Stop Canada's planned wolf killings! Preserve caribou habitat, and stop the irresponsible tar sands mining which threatens all of us. Click here to automatically sign the petition. This plan to kill wolves is a misguided, cruel response that does nothing to alleviate the greater problem: tar sands oil extraction is a huge threat to wildlife, local communities, and all of our futures. But despite the clear negative consequences, the Canadian government continues working to rapidly expand tar sands production and sales, including promoting the Keystone XL Pipeline to export tar sands oil all over the world. Understandably, this has begun to earn Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, and many in the country's government, a negative reputation to which they are becoming increasingly sensitive.3 The Ministry of the Environment has not yet begun this planned wolf kill. With enough public pressure, we can get them to abandon the plan, and build the case for Canada to stop their devastating race to expand tar sands oil development. Click below to automatically sign the petition: http://act.credoaction.com/r/?r=5532375&id=34874-2195979-jvttQ8x&t=10 Thank you for fighting tar sands and all their devastation. Elijah zarlin, Campaign Manager CREDO Action from Working Assets 1. "Tar Sands Development to Lead to Poisoning of Wolves," National Wildlife Federation, February 6, 2012 2. "Tar Sands," Friends of the Earth 3. "Monitoring plan would bolster oilsands image, federal documents show," Vancouver Sun, February 3, 2012 Share on Facebook Post to your wall Tweet this Post to Twitter © 2012 CREDO. All rights reserved.