|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
by Sharon Grimes, W A M M
|
|
Local Somalis Dispel Misinformation
The Twin Cities Somali community held a conference in May to help the general public better understand their community. It included information on Somali civil, religious, and political organizations and covered the April raids on three Somali-owned money-transfer businesses and reports that dozens of Somali men from Minnesota are missing. (Channel 5, 05/10/2009)
Goodman Launches New Column
Amy Goodman of Democracy Now! has launched a nationally syndicated weekly column distributed by King Features. WAMM members are urged to contact their local newspapers asking them to carry it on the opinion-editorial page. Some of Goodman’s recent columns include “U.S. Muslims Still Under Siege,” “Torturers Should Be Punished,” and “Pacifica Radio at 60: A Sanctuary of Dissent.”
Cheney’s Lies about Torture Revealed
A report that contradicts former VP Dick Cheney’s claims that torture produced information that may have saved “hundreds of thousands of lives” will be declassified by the White House. A 2004 CIA report on the torture program reports that no proof was found that “torture foiled any terror plots on American soil.” The report by the inspector general’s office is based on more than 100 interviews and a review of videotapes and 38,000 pages of documents. According to the Justice Department’s declassified summary, although some useful information was produced, the report concluded that “it is difficult to determine conclusively whether interrogations have provided information critical to interdicting specific imminent attacks.” (Who Runs Gov, 5/11/09)
Somali Students Welcomed at Augsburg
Augsburg College, located in a Minneapolis neighborhood with the highest concentration of Somali residents in the country, has seen enrollment by Somali students increase. For years the college has had a service-learning program that reaches out to the surrounding community, helping Muslim immigrants with childcare, tutoring high school students, and feeding the elderly. Now the children of those families are beginning to enroll, and this year there were 30 Somali students at Augsburg. (StarTribune, 5/6/09)
Jewish Voices for Peace
Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) rolled out a truck with a message of hope painted on the sides at the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) Conference May 3–5 in Washington, D.C. JVP wants to counter AIPAC’s lobbying for unconditional military aid to Israel with the message that “there are real people and real lives being destroyed by U.S. support for the occupation of Gaza.” JVP says the AIPAC agenda “harms Israelis, harms Palestinians, and harms all of us who want justice, peace, and stability in the region. (5/4/09)
Pianist Makes a Grand Stand
At his debut at the Walt Disney Concert Hall in April, Polish pianist Krystian Zimerman said that this would be his last performance in America because of U.S. military policies overseas. Before playing the final piece in his performance, he sat silently for a few moments, then turned to the audience and said he could no long play in a country whose military wants to control the whole world. “Get your hands off my country,” he said. Although 30 to 40 people in the audience walked out and others booed, Zimerman responded that America has far finer things to export than the military. He thanked those who support democracy, and after playing his final piece, received “tumultuous cheers.” (The Culture Monster, 4/27/09). |
|
|
|
© 2009 Women Against Military Madness. All rights reserved.
|
 |
|
Complete June 2009 Index - click here
|
|
 |
|
|
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
|
|
|
|
|
|
