Friends,
As we hunker down for the first week of the Stay-at-Home order in WA State, it is important to notice our discomfort in this time of social distancing. Many of us have the privilege of sheltering in our own homes and with plenty of domestic comforts— a full refrigerator, the option of relative privacy, access to the hobbies that give us purpose and pleasure, the company of loved ones, connection to the outside world via phones and social media, etcetera.
The discomfort we feel in spite of all the amenities should provide important insight into the psychology of incarceration and detention. Being institutionally severed from the rest of society leads to psychological damage from which it is extremely difficult to emerge rehabilitated and with "improved" behavior. As we continue to notice the feelings—anxiety, restlessness, fear, loneliness, depression—that crop up during this time, let’s keep in mind that humans do not thrive or heal in isolation.
And with the added context of a global pandemic, the inhumane treatment of incarcerated and detained people continues. Some overlooked factors, like the difficulty of maintaining social distancing and basic needs met contribute to imprisoned people’s heightened vulnerability. More generally, medical negligence, poor sanitation and close confines heighten the threat of Coronavirus in prisons and immigration detention centers.
WPJC invites you to reflect on the insights that this time of discomfort offers and join organizers around the country for the
- National Week of Digital Action to #DefundHate #FreeThemAll and Imagine a world with no cages! Every day from March 30th to April 4th has a different call to action and target. Stay updated on specifics here, or follow DWN on social media. You can pledge to participate here: www.tinyurl.com/FreeThemAllPledge.
It is our moral responsibility in times like this to show up for each other and prove that the backbone of our civilization must be solidarity, not militarized solutions. Here are a few action items through which you can show up for each other and our community:
- Sign the petition to End the separation of families at the border. The evidence is clear: the Trump administration’s coercive, discriminatory practice of family separation constitutes torture. Despite claims that the practice has stopped, more than 1,100 children have been separated from their parents since a court order demanded the administration stop this harmful practice
- Sign Got Green's Emergency Justice Petition in Response to COVID-19. Many demands listed in this petition aim to reduce the inequitable economic impacts of COVID-19 across Washington State, including through suspending housing payments and expanding cash assistance.
- Sign Physicians for Social Responsibility’s Take Action Petition to pass an economic stimulus package that doesn't reward polluters, exacerbate the climate change crisis, worsen environmental injustice, or fail to address the critical needs of workers and their families.
- Scroll down our Webpage for the link to organizers' guide of COVID-19 related resources and mutual aid initiatives in town (anything you might need from food bank to renters rights and helplines!). Shout out to Emm, Dayjha, Anne, Tallen, Eddie, Lila and many other incredible youth organizers for putting this together!
In peace,
Marii Herlinger & Aline Prata
Whatcom Peace & Justice Center
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Mike Yarrow Peace Fellowship
Learn about peace and justice issues, nonviolent movement building, and gain skills such as public speaking, group leadership, media development, conducting surveys, public relations, outreach, and lobbying. After an intensive training scheduled for July 3rd-6th you will have the support & mentorship to carry out a nonviolent campaign or project of your choice.
Open to anyone 14-23 years old. Applications are due June 1st. To apply, fill out the online form here. In past years, Bellingham had two Mike Yarrow Peace Fellows. Read a reflection from one on WPJC's blog.
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Sign the petition for Whatcom County Public Hospitals
Whatcom County has less than half the national average of hospital beds per capita. Even without the pressure of a pandemic, ER wait times are alarming. The COVID-19 crisis highlights something Whatcom County has known for years: we do not have the hospital capacity necessary to serve our community.
People need an alternative to PeaceHealth. Although PeaceHealth operates as a "nonprofit," many executives have million dollar salaries. PeaceHealth St. Joseph's is one of the hospital chain's most profitable assets, and they use profits from our community to expand their operations elsewhere instead of reinvesting them into Whatcom County.
Sign the petition here.
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March 30-April 4
#FreeThemAll National Week of Digital Action
Check this link for details
4 p.m., April 2
Organizing in a Time of Social Distancing: The Wisdom of Disability Justice Organizers - webinar recording available here
6-7 p.m., April 3
Livestream of Musician JP Falcon Grady
Via Facebook Livestream
4-5 p.m., April 3
Friday Peace Vigil
Corner of Magnolia and Cornwall
1-2 p.m., April 4
#FreeThemAll Solidarity Day Webinar
9 a.m.-12 p.m., April 4, April 5
Confronting Forced Migration and Violence in the Americas Webinar Series
7-8 p.m., April 4
Livestream of Musician JP Falcon Grady
Via Facebook Livestream
12 p.m., April 6
Racial Justice Has No Borders Town Hall Webinar
5 p.m., April 7
#nowaytotreatachild Campaign Webinar
5-6:30 p.m., April 9
ACLU's Flights and Rights Monthly Series
4-5 p.m., April 10
Friday Peace Vigil
Corner of Magnolia and Cornwall
10:30-11:30 a.m., April 11
RAD for DVSAS (Radical Awareness Dance for Domestic Violence and Sexual Abuse Survivors)
4-5 p.m., April 17
Friday Peace Vigil
Corner of Magnolia and Cornwall
4-5 p.m., April 24
Friday Peace Vigil
Corner of Magnolia and Cornwall
11 a.m.-3 p.m., April 26
Sharing our Voices in times os social distancing: Building a Photo Journal - Online Workshop with Talia London
RSVP here to receive the link
4-5 p.m., April 30
WIHS (Whatcom Intergenerational High School) Online Information Session
11 a.m.-1 p.m., May 5, June 2, and subsequent first Tuesdays
Monthly Anti-War Protest
Downtown Seattle Federal Building
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Sharing our Voices in times os social distancing: Building a Photo Journal, April 26th via Zoom
About the Speaker:
Talia London - Unangax (Aleut), Born and Raised on Lummi Nation
Talia is a Native Feminist whom is passionate about co-constructing spaces with young folx to share narratives that counter colonial stereotypes about Native people. Talia is currently a PhD student, receiving her degree in Social Justice Education by the University of British Columbia.
About the Workshop:
- Learn how to utilize a storytelling method called story circle to write a short personal narrative. Story circle is a useful template to tell a personal narrative in 8 simple steps!
- Learn basic photography skills using your phone!
- By the end of the workshop you will have constructed one photo journal with 6-10 photos that will complement your narrative!
- You'll have the opportunity to have your work published on the WPJC Blog!
Where? RSVP here to guarantee your spot and receive the Zoom link NOW.
Admissions: Sliding scale $5-30, free based on your need and upon request
Facebook link: https://www.facebook.com/events/240159520469953/
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2019 International Day of Peace WPJC members, participants and speakers (From left to right: Ashanti, current Board President; Aline Prata, Executive Director and co-Emcee; Victoria Matey Mendonza, co-Emcee; Zarna & Patty, WoC Speak Out - keynote speakers; Gaby, NWIC instructor & community member)
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Get involved: Seeking Volunteers for International Day of Peace 2020 Planning Committee
Remember how much fun we had last year? It's time to get to work on our biggest event of the year and we need your help! While it is unlikely we will be able meet in person anytime soon, we're looking for an infusion of new energy, creative ideas, and networks to make this year's International Day of Peace event the best we've ever had!
We need volunteers of all ages, backgrounds, and skillsets, so please consider joining us in building the future of this event if it has moved you in the past. If you'd like to be involved this summer in planning this September 21st event, please reach out to joshinformant@gmail.com as soon as possible.
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Demands for immediate protection for farmworkers in WA state
Community to Community has organized a list of demands for Governor Inslee to protect farmworkers during the Coronavirus crisis:
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Enact Emergency Orders with funding for staffing to ensure all COVID-19 protocols, are being followed in the fields and packing/processing. Provide personal protective clothing and equipment to farmworkers at no cost to them.
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Ensure there will be no retaliation against workers asking for better protections, or for becoming ill.
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Require transparent recruitment and hiring information and housing protections for all farmworkers related to COVID-19.
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All farmworker housing, tools, and equipment must be fully sanitized before farmworker families move in and use the equipment.
Call Gov. Inslee at (360) 902 - 4111 to help make these demands.
C2C is also demanding the Employment Security Department to stop processing and approving H2A visa applications immediately for farms in Washington State.
By design, the H2A guestworker visa program makes it nearly impossible to regulate the protocols necessary to prevent COVID-19 contagion. The current protocols are not enforceable and give individual corporate farms loopholes. This has potentially deadly consequences for farmworkers and rural communities already underserved in healthcare, transportation, and infrastructure.
There is no plan within Governor Inslee's protocols to prepare for the influx of an estimated additional 20,000 H2A workers into the state once the season begins. Furthermore, there is no protection for those H2A workers that are already here -- not during their long-distance travel, nor while they are living in crowded housing and working in close contact in the fields.
Email Employment Security Department (nstreuli@esd.wa.gov) to add your voice to these demands.
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Racial Justice Has No Borders Town Hall
The Racial Justice Has No Borders Coalition is having a Town Hall Webinar on April 6th, at 12 p.m. PST. They will be examining where the presidential candidates and their parties currently stand on US military policy, Defense spending, the ongoing "War on Terror", and militarization at home.
The Town Hall is part of a shared campaign demanding the immediate end to the 2001 Authorization for the Use of Military Force (AUMF) that has been the basis of escalated US military intervention.
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Confronting Forced Migration and Violence in the Americas
SOA (School of the Americas) Watch invites you to join them for the Confronting Forced Migration and Violence in the Americas Webinar Series on Saturday and Sunday, April 4th and 5th, 2020. Together with Stop US Arms to Mexico, Alliance for Global Justice, No More Deaths, Veterans for Peace, and others, they are facilitating a series of five one-hour webinar workshops. The series will examine the impacts of US-backed state violence in the Hemisphere, the root causes of forced migration, militarization, and how to use effective narratives, mutual aid, research, and lobbying to nourish our collective work as we face the current humanitarian crisis.
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Webinar hosted by the #nowaytotreatachild campaign, April 7 at 8 pm ET / 5 pm PT
Speakers will be sharing information on the situation of Palestinian children in Israeli prisons amidst the COVID-19 pandemic and providing updates on congressional advocacy efforts concerning H.R. 2407, the "Promoting Human Rights for Palestinian Children Living Under Israeli Military Occupation Act." The bill prohibits U.S. taxpayer funding for the military detention of children in any country, including Israel. Tune in on April 7 to learn more.
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Call the Office of Foreign Asset Control to help lift sanctions on Iran!
The Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC) is a financial intelligence and enforcement agency of the Department of Treasury that's responsible for enacting policies like U.S. sanctions against other countries. They manage individuals and organizations on watch lists based on who presents the biggest “threat” to national security, so that they can freeze bank accounts, block particular business assets, or halt shipments across borders at the drop of a hat.
Because OFAC handles the nitty gritty parts of the sanction process, they’re not usually touched by activists like you and me. Until now.
Activists from Win Without War and our progressive partners in the #EndCOVIDSanctions coalition sent tens of thousands of petition signatures to Sec. Mnuchin and Congress. But so far, it hasn't been enough to lift sanctions. That’s why we are asking you to take a few minutes today to call OFAC, and leave a message to voice your concern about the devastating effects of U.S. sanctions on people fighting coronavirus in Iran.
Call and urge OFAC to ask Sec. Mnuchin to suspend COVID sanctions on Iran through our partner MPower Change’s call platform that will anonymize your call!
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Demand a global end to armed conflict!
None of us have ever seen anything like the coronavirus crisis. Most of the news right now is highly discouraging, but it’s also uplifting to see so many people getting creative and keeping spirits high in order to try and make it through this.
Because the truth is, it’s going to take all of us, everywhere, to conquer this health crisis. That’s what every doctor, scientist and public health official tells us. Yet far too many human lives continue to be stolen in armed conflict.
We know how the military-first approach responds to global health crises: it ignores human needs. So let’s do something BIG.
Add your name NOW and join the chorus for peace and tell U.S. leaders that YOU support a global ceasefire!
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40 Free American Indian and Alaska Native Films
Vision Maker Media has partnered with AAPB to bring you 40 free American Indian and Alaska Native films. Watch films such as Aleut Story, Apache 8, The Medicine Game and other popular titles completely free! Check it out here.
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Toolkit: Palestine Organizing & COVID-19
As organizers building a better world with justice for all people, we know that times of great social crisis must be transformed into moments of great possibility. Inspired by generations of resilient organizers, the US Campaign for Palestinian Rights (USCPR) national organizing and advocacy staff created this toolkit for local Palestinian rights organizers wrestling with the challenges of this moment.
In this toolkit, you will find resources to care for your communities, build people power using digital tools, and connect struggles from the U.S. to Palestine.
—The USCPR
The USCPR welcomes your additions: contact@uscpr.org.
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Realities of Advanced Medical Interventions Presentation by Doctor Bill Lombard of WWU
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Dr. Bill Lombard's "Realities of Advanced Medical Intervention" Video (WWU)
Watch this video from our community partner Western Washington University, about the Realities of Advanced Medical Intervention.
Link to Dr. Lombard's Slides: here
Glossary for Video and Slide Terms: here
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