Please join us on Tuesday May 8th, from 7:00pm-8:00pm at the Waltham Public Library for a discussion about how to create a safer community for and with victims of domestic and sexual violence.  

 

Specifically, we will be discussing Bill S918 which protects the employment rights of victims of domestic violence by providing 15 days of unpaid leave to plan for their safety.

 

This event, being organized by Brandeis Senior Marla Merchut and Brandeis Junior Becca Miller is in conjunction with the Waltham Representative Thomas Stanley as well as

REACH and Jane Doe Inc. This event is an out growth of the legal studies class Advocacy for Policy Change. We believe this is an event and topic very important to the Brandeis community and we would appreciate your support and attendance.

When: Tuesday, October 25th at 8 PM
Where: Pearlman Lounge

Sponsored by Brandeis Labor Coalition

Occupy Wall Street has shown a new break through in class consciousness among the working and middle classes against the financial sector. Yet, the attacks on working people and organized labor has been going on for decades. But labor and its allies are fighting back – from occupations to Ohio. Andrew Porter, a native Ohioan, will discuss the recent efforts of YDS to work against Issue 2 – a ballot measure that would prevent public employees from bargaining for health care and pensions.

Learn how you can get involved in labor solidarity here and around the country.

For more information, contact David Duhalde (dduh...@brandeis.ed)
Visit the Brandeis Labor Coalition at www.brandeis.edu/~labor

Read more about it here, from our Live Blogging Occupy Wall St series of posts, to my own experience at Occupy Chicago.

Know of other members of the Brandeis community (sutdents, alumni, family) participating in other city chapters? Tell us about it here, in the comments section!

I visited OccupyChicago for the first time this week, on Friday, October 7th when the movement had been active for exactly 2 weeks. I was lucky enough to meet up with esteemed former contributor Lev Hirschhorn ’11.

What stuck out to me the most:

The diversity of people: From what I’ve heard in the media and how I think of protests in general, I expected it to be mostly white, liberal college kids complaining about the government. Maybe that’s even how the movement started out, but that’s not how it is anymore. There were white, black, Hispanic, and people of all skin colors there. There were men, women and people who don’t subscribe to the binary. There were people who resembled stay at home mothers, businessmen, students, unemployed people and more. Young and old. Dressed nicely and not so nicely. All together.

The lack of police interaction: This is again a misconception that has been spreading in part due to the media. Nationwide, the OccupyWallSt movement gained popularity and notoriety after the NYPD arrested about 700 protesters on the Brooklyn Bridge. We’ve all seen the mace videos. So it came as quite a surprise to see the police watching the protest from across the street, walking through the crowd of protesters at times, but not interacting in any way.

As you will see in some of my pictures, there are barricades up along the streets. However, I learned that these are NOT related to the protest, but in fact were put there for the Bank of America Marathon, which ran through that intersection on Sunday. I have not heard of any arrests or conflicts so far related to the Chicago protest, aside from the police directing protesters not to sleep on the streets and requiring them to continue moving their stores of food (which I don’t fully understand why they must do.)

My Experience:

On Friday, it was business as usual: a crowd of people standing in front of the Federal Reserve Bank building, at Jackson and LaSalle (231 N LaSalle Street). Although the protesters don’t have much space on these chosen blocks, unlike OccupyWallSt, in Liberty Plaza, their protest is situated at the intersection of the Bank of America Building, the Federal Reserve Bank Building.

How do the bankers feel about this bombardment? Well, story has it that, in response to the protesters’ oft-repeated refrain “We…are…the 99%!,” someone hung a sign in one of the Federal Reserve Building’s windows which read “We are the 1%”

To add some levity to the mood (at least I hope that’s why), one protester came adorned in a yacht club outfit with a similar sign.

But the mood was pretty enthusiastic anyway, what with the drumming, the chanting, and the sign-holding. People even ordered pizza and handed it out to protesters and passers-by.

These people are taking shifts, staking out the area 24/7. I was only there for an hour, but already was caught up in the enthusiasm and unity. Chanting can be really fun. It’s going to take me some more time to decide what I think about the protesters’ requests and how effective these demonstrations are, but I know I’ll be going back to find out more.

This fall the FCC will face massive corporate pressure to gut media-ownership rules and pave the way for more media consolidation. In Congress the “Super Committee” will weigh cuts to public media as it trims the federal budget. Meanwhile, Net Neutrality protections preserving the free and open Internet are under increasing threat.

On Oct. 21 the Boston Media Reform Network is hosting a town hall exploring how today’s shifting media landscape impacts the news and information needs of local communities, especially Boston. We will screen portions of the documentary Page One: Inside the New York Times, which chronicles the media industry’s transformation in the face of this changing landscape, to help frame the town hall conversation. New York Times reporter Brian Stelter, who is featured in the documentary, will participate in our discussion.

Here are the details:

What: Town Hall Meeting on Media and Democracy
When: Friday, Oct. 21, at 7 p.m. Doors open at 6:30.
Where: Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Room 10-250, 77 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, Mass.
Who: Brian Stelter, New York Times reporter, Kate Novack, Page One: Inside the New York Times producer, Andrew Rossi, Page One: Inside the New York Times director, Sasha Costanza-Chock, professor of civic media at MIT, and Craig Aaron, president and CEO of Free Press

The town hall also kicks off the Social Movements/Digital Revolutions Conference, which will bring together hundreds of activists and media makers who are fighting to forge a new digital future: http://www.digitalmediaconference.org

The Boston Town Hall Meeting on Media and Democracy is sponsored by the Boston Media Reform Network, Free Press, Lesley University, Mass. Global Action, the MIT Center for Civic Media, the MIT Comparative Media Studies Program and Open Media Boston, with support from Participant Media.

Read Shea’s e-mail below to find out more about what’s going on, why, and how to get involved:

Last weekend, 5 Brandeis students went down to NYC to join the Occupy Wall St. protestors. It was wonderful, awe-inspiring and empowering. This weekend, we want to bring even more students down: we will be joining an ever-growing movement, comprised of citizens from over 40 states, students from over 20 colleges, humans of all walks of life who have the courage to live the change they want to see in the world.

If you have any interest in coming along, or joining the new Boston occupation that will be starting this weekend, we will be holding TWO meetings to plan our trip and discuss anything related to the ongoing occupations: tonight, Monday the 26th, and tomorrow night, Tuesday the 27th. Both meetings will be held at 10PM in the Peace Room, located above lower Usdan, next to Levin Ballroom.

If you cant make either of these times, please email me (Shea Riester) at srie...@brandeis.edu or call me at 9176452444!

In the last week, the Occupy Wall St. protestors have been joined by Lupe Fiasco, Immortal Technique, Chris Hedges and Reverend Billy! To get a feel for the spirit of the occupation, here’s a report from last night in Liberty Square from occupywallst.org:

Drums blared for hours into the night when the Assembly wasn’t in session, until the time came for quiet. The drummers ended by reciting from the Principles of Solidarity we approved in Friday’s General Assembly, in the rain. Before the police lined along the Broadway side of the plaza, they cried together, “We are daring to imagine a new socio-political and economic alternative that offers greater possibility of equality.” And more. “Safety in numbers!” a sign by them says. “Join us.”

For more information:

occupywallst.org
occupytogether.org
adbusters.org

Occupy Wall St: a Briefing

Our own Tahrir Square moment is happening right now in the newly renamed “Liberty Plaza” in the Financial district in NYC.

1. What is this movement? What is going on here?

The protesters in Liberty Plaza are a heterogeneous, ambiguous group, as they were in the Cairo, Barcelona and Athens protests of 2011. Why? Because collectively we represent no political party or organization–we only share a common set of ideals:

We believe that our government has been co-opted by moneyed interests. We denounce the way big businesses and banks dominate the political and economic sphere. In short: we demand government by the people and for the people, not in the interests of corporate America and the richest 1%.

We are not limiting ourselves by affiliating with a specific movement. We comprise elements of many “progressive” social movements: the environmental movement, education reform, the food movement, the campaign finance reform movement, the fair-labor movement, and the anti-globalization movement. We believe these movements are all intricately connected, and we are now acting on that belief.

2. How will we do this?

We are using the global tactics of the Arab Spring, and of the 2011 Spain “Democracy Now” movement: first, a large-scale occupation and protest. Second, we aim to propose a series of solutions to these problems through grassroots participatory democracy based on people’s assemblies and consensus decision making.

Citizens are taking democracy to the streets, and they are not leaving any time soon. This is not a one-day protest. The occupation is scheduled to continue for the next month at least.

3. How do I get involved? How can I help?

The most effective way, as it was in Cairo, Madison and Barcelona, is to get down to Liberty St. and Broadway and join the occupation.

If you can’t do this, spread the word as far and wide as you can:

Twitter
Facebook
Official websties: occupywallst.org, nycga.org
More info/news: adbusters.org

You can also watch the occupation live, 24/7.

Please pass this email on to your friends, family, and fellow citizens!

Thank you!

The Newton Teen Center, a drop-in center for teens aged 13-18, needs several dedicated volunteers to support our programs. Our mission is to provide a safe and enjoyable place for the teenaged population of Newton to spend time with their peers, participate in substance-free activities, and establish a meaningful, welcoming community supervised by caring adults who provide resources, encouragement, and inspiration. Regular activities include fooz ball, billiards, Xbox video games, television/movies, computers, fitness room, music room, and cooking, as well as occasional meetings and other events. The center is open Tuesday through Saturday from 5:00 – 9:00 p.m.

ONGOING POSITIONS (6-month commitment):

Weekly Pottery/Sewing Class Chaperones: Be a role model for teens while providing a safe and fun environment! We are looking for two volunteers to co-lead weekly trips with a group of middle school and high school adolescents to either the Mudflat pottery studio in Somerville or the Hip-Stitch sewing studio in Newtonville. You will serve as a role model by being an active participant on the trips, while connecting and building relationships with the teens. You will also provide a safe and inviting/fun environment for everyone on the trip

Event Chaperones: Do you like to hang out with teens? Come be a chaperone on trips and for special events. We are looking for enthusiastic volunteers to engage and monitor our teens during special events and field trips. Volunteers serve as role models by being active participants, while connecting and building relationships with the teens and providing a safe, fun, and nurturing experience for everyone.

Spanish Speaking Volunteers: Serve Spanish-speaking teens by acting as a role model, mentor, and translator. The Center needs energetic, creative and dedicated Spanish-speaking volunteers to participate in activities and trips while helping Spanish-speaking youth feel part of the Teen Center community. You will serve our Spanish-speaking teens by acting as a role model, mentor, and translator.

Student Council Co-Advisor: Help our teens learn how to run an effective student council. Would you like to serve as co-advisor to the Newton Teen Center Student Council? The Newton Teen Center is looking for a volunteer to assist with meetings, field trips and community service projects and to serve as a role model and mentor to our teens by teaching them how to act appropriately in a group, follow an agenda, be a team player and positively represent the program to the public

Substance Abuse Social Worker/Counselor: Help our teens deal with substance abuse issues. We are looking for a qualified volunteer to establish a recovery and/or anti-smoking/drugs group for adolescents who attend our Center. You would serve as a role model and mentor to adolescents by modeling appropriate and healthy behavior. This role requires working with staff to organize occasional activities, trips and events that promote healthy choices and positive behavior as well as teaching a variety of constructive coping mechanisms and exercises to educate teens about the negative side effects of drug usage, particularly smoking and alcohol abuse.

Goal-Setting/Quilting Group Leader: Help teenage girls learn to set goals and achieve them – and make a quilt. The Newton Teen Center is looking for a volunteer to lead a weekly group for teenage girls to engage them in a process of setting and achieving goals and of making a quilt that acknowledges their success. The leader will assist group members in setting achievable, realistic goals for which they will create quilting squares when achieved. You will also provide a safe and inviting/fun environment for everyone in the group.

The Newton Teen Center is located at 1254 Chestnut St., Newton Upper Falls.

If interested, fill out a Volunteer application and send it to cgu...@ncscweb.org.
For more information about the Center, www.newtonteens.org.

However, we still criminalize it in many states today, and the effects are seen in many aspects of life: the higher rate of suicide amongst gay teens, the only recently repealed Don’t Ask Don’t Tell policy which allowed individuals to be fired by the U.S. government because of their sexual orientation, the very fact that many gays remain closeted out of fear that they will face repercussions if their sexual orientation is known.

Although legalizing same-sex marriage is only one step in the process of ending discrimination, it is one of the most tangible steps we can take at the moment.

Same Sex Marriage and the Constitution lists 4 of the most often cited reasons for “heterosexual monopoly on marriage” and then gives counterarguments. Here is my brief summary and extrapolation of these issues.

• Definition, Tradition, Religion
  In Jan. 2000, Sen. Clinton said “Marriage has got historic, religious and moral content that goes back to the beginning of time, and I think a marriage is as a marriage has always been: between a man and a woman.”

  Traditions in marriage have changed much over the course of time. In Roman times, before Christianity became the adopted religion,same-sex marriages were commonplace. As for the religious component, there are even Christian sects in favor of gay marriage now, but since when has religion dictated civil policy in America? Some churches do not recognize divorce, but civil divorces are still legal.

• Natural Law
  Women and men are meant to reproduce, therefore a coupling which cannot result in offspring is not natural.

  Immanuel Kant recognized that if satisfaction from marriage came from the potential for reproduction then sterile or post-menopausal marriages would not be allowed. In today’s society many couples choose not to have children or are biologically unable to, but they are not seen as “unnatural” in the eyes of the law, and their legitimacy as a couple is not questioned, why can’t those same benefits extend to same-sex couples?

• Equation of Marriage with Procreation and Child Rearing
  Same-sex couples can’t provide a stable and nurturing family structure for children since they are not comprised of a mother and father.

  Assuming a gay couple wanted to have kids, it is a double-standard to examine their ability to provide for their children, when there is no system in place to monitor opposite-sex couples’ relationships and ability to provide for their children. (In addition, there is not credible data to support the claim that same-sex parents would be any worse than opposite-sex parents.) If adoption comes into the equation then the same policies should apply to couples of all sexual orientations, but otherwise, it is not the state’s right to approve or deny consenting individuals’ right to procreate and raise their children.

• Eroding Institution of Marriage
  If same-sex marriages are legalized, it is a slippery slope of moral depravity and legal malaise. It will harm the family unit and institution of marriage.

  There is no evidence that same-sex marriage has had much of an impact on opposite-sex marriage or divorce rates, and in fact Denmark, (the first country to recognize same-sex couples as “registered partners”) has the highest marriage rates it has had since the 1970′s. Although allowing more people into the marriage club will make it less exclusive, why would that make marriage less attractive to opposite-sex couples? This same argument was used when interracial marriages were still illegal, but that does not seem to have hurt the incidence or sacredness of marriage.

If you know of other arguments for or against that you would like to discuss, please post them.

My family collects books- not specifically rare ones, not ones that would necessarily be worth a lot of money, just ones we enjoy reading. My grandmother’s house is cluttered with overwhelming piles of books, and we probably have a few hundred in my house as well. We try just to keep books we would want to read a second time, and donate the rest, but it can be hard to give something away that you’ve read, that you’ve experienced, when it’s still in good shape.

At the same time, I’ve become an avid recycler. This transformation took place pretty recently; sometime between January and this July. I went from being someone who proclaimed an apathy towards the environment (everyone supports animals and the environment; why do I have to?) to someone who picked receipts out of the bathroom garbage to carry downstairs to the recycling bin for paper.

Just knowing I have so much paper lying around my room (old class notes, cards, receipts, newspapers) which could be put to good use bothers me. It may not be logical, but I feel like for every paper I hold onto, a tree is being cut down in a rain forest somewhere, to print another paper for me to use. I’m sure on a small-scale it doesn’t work this way, but think about it; if we all contributed all of the papers we had but didn’t need to the companies that are printing paper in the first place, we’d definitely decrease the “need” for deforestation.

So, as you can imagine, I’ve started to feel pretty guilty about holding onto all these books when they could be recycled (either by circulating them to others, or literally sending them off for their pages to be ripped out and reused). At the same time, I keep buying more books, adding to this problem. While I frequent the library, there’s something special about owning a book and taking your good time reading it. E-books are a whole separate issue, since you need to have a portable device with you to read them, and they just don’t have the same integrity as paper.

In my quest to recycle, I came across 1-800-Recycling, a site which tells you what you can recycle and where, calculates your distance from the closest stores that accept your kind of recycled goods, and links you to resources listed by state. 1-800-Recycling’s advice is to make accessories out of your old neglected books, or cut through them to create intricate 3-D carvings. While both of these ideas sound cool, there’s still something sacrilegious about cutting up books.

So I’m asking you for input: what do I do with my old books? Should I give them all away to a library or school, donate them to a place where they will use the paper to print new books, make them into works of art, or is there a brilliant new idea no one has even considered?

On the heels of reading this blog post honoring the women’s movement, I received an e-mail from NY Senator Kirsten Gillibrand telling me about how women are still treated unfairly in the work place, receiving .78 per $1 earned by a man.

Not that this statistic is very clear- does this mean for the same job, or are men making more because they tend to be in higher positions (a whole separate problem)?

Paycheck Fairness Act, which would

“…provide justice to victims of gender discrimination, protect employees who share information about their salary with their co-workers, and require employers to prove that wage discrepancies are based on work performance and not on a person’s gender.”

My initial reaction was disbelief that we haven’t gotten to this stage yet. Even in my short life term I seem to recall hearing about several pieces of legislation going through Congress, if not being passed, which would balance the pay scale for men and women. With multiple laws in place against gender discrimination, I am mystified by the idea that this is not a mute issue by now.

However, the fact that it is still an issue is an even better reason to support this legislation. So, in honor of suffrage, sign the Paycheck Fairness Act and celebrate gender equality across the U.S.!

Cradles to Crayons?
IMP: What kind or work does Cradles to Crayons do?
MH: Cradles is a non-profit organization that provides, free of charge, essential goods to children from low income and homeless families that they need to feel safe, warm, ready to learn and valued. We do this by collecting donations from corporate organizations, faith-based groups, and individual families.

Volunteers then come into the Giving Factory and sort through these items to make sure they are of the highest quality possible. A social service agency can fill out an order form for an individual child, and these orders are filled each week as they come to us.

IMP:What, if anything, sets Cradles to Crayons apart from other nonprofits?
MH: In the non-profit world, C2C has established itself as one of the most efficient non-profits, and has recieved a 4-star rating (the highest rating possible) from Charity Navigator for three consecutive years. C2C is also unique in that all of the donations come from Massachussetts and stay within the state; the organization is a way to connect families with excess to families in need.

Where do YOU come in?
IMP: How did you get involved with Cradles to Crayons? Had you volunteered there before becoming an intern?
MH: After completing a trip with Volunteer Vacations where a lot of the volunteering that we did in Houston, Texas focused on helping children, I knew that I wanted to continue to make an impact to under priveleged children and started looking online for organizations in the Boston area.

I had heard of Cradles to Crayons before, and saw that there was an interning opportunity for college students during the summer time. I had never gotten the chance to volunteer here before, but quickly fell in love with the organization. Going in to intern a couple days a week has definitely been one of the highlights of my summer.

So, being an intern…
IMP: How long is your internship for? When did you start?
MH: My internship has lasted for almost three months, we started training on June 1st and my last official day here as an intern will be August 19th. Although I am not exactly sure what my plans will be in the fall yet, I hope to remain in close contact with the staff at Cradles and at least come in to volunteer as often as I can. And of course, I would like to continue to help organize volunteer groups to come in and volunteer at Cradles along with me.

IMP: As an intern, what kind of work are you doing for Cradles to Crayon?
MH: As an intern, some of my responsibilities have included giving orientation to volunteer groups that come in to Cradles and the leading them in on their specific project for the day. I have also participated in several workshops that have taught me more about the inner workings of a non-profit. However, my biggest goal as an intern has been to try to get college students (Brandeisians specifically!) more involved with volunteering here, as it is a truly rewarding experience.

The Best and the Worst?
IMP: What is most rewarding about your internship? Least?
MH: The most rewarding aspect of the internship is definitely the people that I get to work with every time I come in. There are always different groups, and many people are very enthusiastic about volunteering! People who come in have a variety of backgrounds, and everyone brings a different strength to the table.

One of the hardest things about being an intern here is that, although an impact made every day, it has made the realities of children living without a winter coat or shoes to walk to school very real for me. There are still thousands of children in Massachussets who could benefit very much from Cradles’ help, and helping to get Brandeis students enthusiastic about this as well, would really make a big difference.

What can WE do?
IMP: How can members of the Brandeis community get involved?
MH: There is no limit to how many members of the Brandeis community can get involved! Everyone can help out in their own way, whether it’s coming in to volunteer, applying to work as an intern for the fall, spring or summer semester, hosting a drive on campus or donating to a drive. There is certainly something that everyone can give to make a change to child in need.

Thanks Margaret! If you have any questions for Margaret about C2C or how you can help, leave a comment here or contact Margaret at mhu...@brandeis.edu.

If you have a suggestion of someone you think we should interview let us know by posting a comment below!

That is the situation that Tiawanda Moore is facing at the moment, after having been the victim of sexual harassment at the hands of a police officer who came to investigate a domestic disturbance call in her house.

According to a Huffington Post article, Moore claims that after the officer took her into her bedroom to interview her privately, he groped her chest and gave her his home phone number. When she tried to report the incident to the Internal Affairs sector of the Chicago Police Department, officials were not helpful and, as her boyfriend says, “discouraged her from filing a report.” So, she did the smart thing, and taped her conversation with the officials. Unfortunately, that’s a crime in her state.

As the article discusses, Massachusetts and Illinois are the only 2 states in the U.S. which have with the strictest privacy laws, making it illegal for anyone to record a conversation with another party is the other party is not aware, a crime usually prosecuted when the party being covertly taped is a police officer.

“Technically, so long as a person isn’t physically interfering with an on-duty police officer, it’s legal to record the officer in every state but Massachusetts and Illinois. Arrests still happen in other states, but there’s little legal justification for them, and the charges are usually dropped, or never filed at all.”

However, even with this distinction, Illinois surpasses Massachusetts in the lack of transparency it allows.

“…Illinois is the one state where the law clearly forbids citizens from recording of on-duty cops…(Courts in Massachusetts have generally held that secretly recording police is illegal, but recording them openly isn’t.)”

Which is exactly what happened to Moore, who was arrested later that day and now faces a charge which could put her in jail for 15 years.

The ACLU has called for a reform of this Illinois law in many cases, but none have made their way to the Supreme Court yet, often because district attorney drops the charges to a misdemeanor before the case goes to trial. However, if we allow the law to remain out of the hands of the public, we also take away a person’s best weapon against his attackers: their very own statements.

Many states allow people to record their conversations with others as long as there would be no obvious reason why the party who is being taped would think he was speaking in confidence (i.e. when talking to a doctor or lawyer, when someone specifies the conversation is off the record, etc.). I think we should work harder to make sure that when people tape something in order to defend themselves they do not then become the unintended victims of their own efforts.

For more information, read the full article at the Huffington Post, or check out this related Techdirt article.

Kevorkian, a life-long advocate for a person’s right to terminate his life, was convicted of second-degree murder in 1999 and sentenced to 10-25 years in prison. In 2007 he was released early on parole due to good behavior, one of the conditions of his parole being that he not practice euthanasia or provide care for anyone who was disabled or over the age of 62. Furthermore, Kevorkian was forbidden from commenting on assisted suicide, a huge curtailment of freedom of speech.

Kevorkian chose to continue to advocate for people’s freedoms while following these restrictions, running to represent Michigan’s 9th Congressional district in 2008 on a campaign which emphasized people’s ability to take their 9th Amendment Constitutional rights into their own hands. He lost the election, but continued to speak at various universities and other centers of learning about what he believed in, in broad strokes.

A brilliant artist, musician, author and speaker, he will be missed.

For more information, read about Kevorkian’s life and death in the New York Times.