(Source: The Seattle Times)
Martin Luther King Jr. was leading his “Poor People’s Campaign” when he was assassinated in Memphis, Tenn., on April 4, 1968.
King’s campaign, and its call for economic fairness, was what brought him to the city to march with striking public-works employees. (more…)
Join the Women’s Center for the final in SIUC Film & Discussion Series during Sexual Assault Awareness Month 2012. This event will take place in the Illinois Room of the SIUC Student Center.
This session will feature “The Purity Myth: The Virginity Movement’s War Against Women” featuring Jessica Valenti. For more information about this event, contact Jenn Freitag at rcsprevention2@thewomensctr.org or 618.549.4807.
(Source: NPR)
Civil rights groups are lobbying Congress to put an end to racial profiling, the practice of targeting people because of their race or religion. A bill before Congress aims to do just that. On Tuesday, a Senate Judiciary panel heard from victims, police and lawmakers.
The story begins in February 2001, when President George W. Bush delivered an address to Congress in which he promised to stop racial profiling. Then came the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
“In the national trauma that followed, civil liberties came face to face with national security,” says Illinois Sen. Richard Durbin. (more…)
Shryock Auditorium, Front Steps
2-6PM
Come out to Shryock for fun in the sun, food, games, and live performances in this celebration of Asian Cultures. It’s not only a fitting end to Asian American Heritage Month but also the school year. Kickoff a great summer vacation with SIUC!
Info: linhtran@siu.edu
(Source: The New York Times)
Viral video of a senior Israeli Army officer striking a Danish man in the facewith a rifle on Saturday in the West Bank, during a mass bicycle ride challenging restrictions on the use of certain roads by Palestinians, has drawn attention to an increasingly acrimonious struggle between the government of Israel and European rights activists who travel to the region.
As my colleague Isabel Kershner reported, on Sunday, Israel blocked scores of pro-Palestinian campaigners from flying to the country — to take part in what activists called a “flytilla,” in reference to the flotillas of boats that have challenged Israel’s naval blockade of Gaza in recent years. In addition to deploying hundreds of police officers to Ben-Gurion International Airport, Israel’s government prepared to meet the threat of activism by tourists with sarcasm, in the form of a letter to be handed to them on arrival, suggesting that they should travel to Syria or Iran instead.
Ofir Gendelman, a spokesman for Israel’s prime minister, posted a copy of the sardonic letter, to be handed to any activists who made it to Israel, on Twitter.
#airflotilla2 provocateurs who will land in Israel will receive this letter which sheds light on their true nature pic.twitter.com/ppLLgRgt
After video of the jarring use of force by Lt. Col. Shalom Eisner, the deputy commander of the army’s Jordan Valley brigade, spread online and in the Israeli media over the weekend, the senior officer was suspended. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned the soldier’s actions as a blot on the record of the Israel Defense Forces, saying, “this conduct is unbecoming of the IDF and of Israel.”
A spokesman for the military, who also condemned the use of force, claimed that the video posted online by the Palestinian-led International Solidarity Movement was misleading because it did not show violence by Palestinian and foreign activists that took place at about the same time. In an interview with the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, the Dane who was struck, Andreas Ias, called that claim “a complete lie.” The activists cycling through the Jordan Valley, he said, “just wanted to enjoy the bike tour and the view.”
Yedioth Ahronot, an Israeli newspaper, reported that Lt. Col. Eisner admitted later, “I should not have flung my weapon like that,” but also complained that the video was edited to make him look bad.
Lt. Col. Eisner claims that some of the protesters started attacking him with sticks which caused one of his fingers to break. He also suffered a major injury in his wrist which required a cast. “The weapon was the only thing I had in my hands. The whole thing lasted 60 seconds, we prevented them from getting on the road and they boarded the bus. Obviously, they didn’t show the part where they attacked us with sticks in the video.”
The officer also expressed regret that the military had not filmed the entire confrontation, but, later on Monday, the 20-year-old Danish activist told my colleague Isabel Kershner later that the I.D.F. was filming and still had not provided any documentation of violence by protesters.
A female Dutch activist told The Times that Colonel Eisner had also hit her and a Palestinian woman in the face, and a Palestinian man in the back, with his rifle. An Israeli news blog, +972, published a photograph of the officer swinging his rifle at a man’s back.
The video and the letter came to light the same weekend that an Israeli blogger, Dimi Reider, reported that Israeli immigrations officials asked a Swedish woman to sign a pledge promising not to get in touch with any pro-Palestinian organizations during her stay in Jerusalem. An copy of the document the woman was compelled to sign in exchange for a visa, called an “Obligation Form,” provided to Mr. Reider, who writes for +972.
The text, in somewhat broken English, reads: “I undertake that I can’t be a member of any pro-Palestinian Organizations and not be in contact with any other Members of any pro-Palestinian Organizations, as well I will not participate in any pro-Palestinian activities. I understand that if I will get caught doing even one of these things, all relevant legal actions will be taken against me, Including deportation and refusal of entry into Israel.”
The woman, Anna Pgereld, told +972 that she has “been in East Jerusalem on and off for six months now, visiting friends.” On her way back from a short tip to Egypt, Ms. Pgereld said: “I was invited into an office and was questioned about my religion, if I had contact with any religious organizations here, what I do during the day, how much money I have got to spend and where I got it, what I do in Sweden and so on. Then we had to wait again, not knowing what would happen. After 4 hours and 20 minutes, I was asked to sign this contract.”
The beating of the Danish activist comes as a young Belgian photographer, Jan Beddegenoodts, is attempting to raise money online to complete a documentary he made recently about the experience of some international activists and journalists who make extended trips to the region. The online trailer for his documentary, “The Taste of Freedom,” shows that Mr. Beddegenoodts, 24, recorded footage at both Palestinian protests and Israeli raves.
In a description of his project on the “crowdfunding” Web site Indiegogo, Mr. Beddegenoodts writes:
“The Taste of Freedom” reflects the state of mind that comes naturally when you get shot by rubber bullets in the morning and rave like there is no tomorrow at night. I feel deeply connected with the Palestinian protesters who are non-violently demonstrating for more freedom. Protest after protest the Israeli army gives them a brutal response. A few hours and kilometres later, I am in Israel, surrounded by beautiful souls in one of the most unique rave scenes in the world.
Two completely different dimensions, but they have one thing in common: a search for the taste of freedom. Protesting for the basic needs of freedom or raving to find freedom in their mind.
Laughing and loving, raving and dancing but a part of the conflict never dies.
In an e-mail to The Lede, Mr. Beddegenoodts explained that he recently spent two months in Jerusalem and six months in the West Bank, mainly working on a documentary about the protest movement in the West Bank village of Nabi Saleh, outside Ramallah. A trailer for that documentary, “We Are Nabi Saleh,” is can be found on YouTube.
Israel’s apparent frustration in response to the efforts of foreign activists, many of them young Europeans, can perhaps be explained by the importance the country places on economic and cultural ties to Europe. The Israeli government’s decision to defend its occupation of the West Bank by arguing that it has a better human rights record than Syria or Iran brings to mind remarks made on this subject by the late British historian Tony Judt, who told The London Review of Books in 2010:
Israel wants two things more than anything else in the world. The first is American aid. This it has. As long as it continues to get American aid without conditions it can do stupid things for a very long time, damaging Palestinians and damaging Israel without running any risk. However, the second thing Israel wants is an economic relationship with Europe as a way to escape from the Middle East. The joke is that Jews spent a hundred years desperately trying to have a state in the Middle East. Now they spend all their time trying to get out of the Middle East. They don’t want to be there economically, culturally or politically – they don’t feel part of it and don’t want to be part of it. They want to be part of Europe and therefore it is here that the EU has enormous leverage. If the EU said: ‘So long as you break international laws, you can’t have the privileges of partial economic membership, you can’t have internal trading rights, you can’t be part of the EU market,’ this would be a huge issue in Israel, second only to losing American military aid.
(Source: The New York Times)
(Source: Chicago Tribune)
 |
In most common occupations women still make less than men doing the same job for an equal amount of hours, according to new data released on Tuesday.
(Source: Fox 13 News)
By Dan Merica, CNN
Kevin Kloosterman, a former Mormon bishop, said he “came out” last year — just not in the way that many people associate with coming out.
“I came out and basically made a personal apology to (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) folks for really not understanding their issues, not really taking the time to understand their lives and really not doing my homework,” Kloosterman said in an interview with CNN.
Though not speaking on behalf of the church, the then-bishop stood in front of a crowd of gay and straight Mormons at a November conference on gay and lesbian issues in Salt Lake City, Utah, where the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is headquartered.
Donning a suit and tie, Kloosterman was visibly shaken, struggling to find the right words as tears welled up in his eyes.
“I’m sorry — deeply, deeply sorry,” Kloosterman told the group in a speech that was captured on video. “The only thing I can say to those of you who have been so patient, and have gone through so much, is for you to watch and look for any small changes with your loved ones, with your wards (Mormon congregations), with your leaders. And encourage them in this repentance process.”
Kloosterman’s apology was just one example of what many Mormons and church watchers see as a recent shift in the Mormon community’s posture toward gays and lesbians, including by the official church itself.
Though the church’s doctrine condemning homosexuality has not changed, and the church remains opposed to same-sex marriage, many say the church is subtly but unmistakably growing friendlier toward the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community, including voicing support for some gay rights.
Students at the church-owned Brigham Young University recently posted an “It Gets Better” video about the gay and lesbian community there, while a gay Mormon in San Francisco was selected last year for a church leadership position.
A new conference series on gay and lesbian Mormons — the same one Kloosterman addressed last year — is seeing an uptick in popularity.
Church spokesman Michael Purdy would not comment on whether church members are changing their stance toward gay and lesbian issues but said in an e-mail message: “In the Church, we strive to follow Jesus Christ who showed immense love and compassion towards all of God’s children.”
Purdy wrote, “If members are becoming more loving and Christ-like toward others then this can only be a positive development.”
‘It is definitely getting better’
The Brigham Young students who taped the pro-gay video this month were contributing to a popular video series meant to inspire hope in young people who are struggling to come to terms with their sexuality identity.
The video featured students telling stories of being gay at Brigham Young, sharing tales of heartache, loss and even suicide.
“It kind of is a very different world to be gay and Mormon because it feels like neither community accepts you completely,” said Bridey Jensen, a fifth-year senior and acting president of Understanding Same Gender Attraction, the group that posted the video.
“We put out the message for youth that are going through this, and we want them to know that we were them a few years ago, and it gets better and there is a place for you,” she said.
Though chastity is a requirement at Brigham Young, gay and lesbian students say they are under more scrutiny. The school’s honor code says that “homosexual behavior is inappropriate and violates” the code.
But Jensen said reaction to the video, which has been viewed almost 400,000 times on YouTube, has been “overwhelmingly positive.”
Carri Jenkins, an assistant to Brigham Young’s president, told CNN that the production of the video is not a violation of the honor code and that the students will not be punished.
The honor code, Jenkins said, is “based on conduct, not on feeling and if same-gender attraction is only stated, that is not an honor code issue.”
Jensen said that while gay and lesbian Mormons face a tough road, she sees a shift toward greater acceptance. It is definitely getting better within the church, she said. “They are not so quick to judge. They understand that they don’t understand everything. I am glad I can be a little part of it.”
Some scholars of Mormonism, such as Columbia University’s Richard Bushman, said they see the very existence of such a gay rights group at Brigham Young as a step toward greater acceptance of gays and lesbians.
“The last 10 years have been a huge sea change in terms of willingness to accept homosexuals,” Bushman said. “Gay kids are still going to have a tough time in the church, but this level of acceptance and acknowledgment — that is really that last decade I would say.”
Most gay Mormons point to 2008′s push for Proposition 8 in California, which banned same-sex marriage in the state but has faced legal challenge in the courts, as a low point in the relationship between the church and gay and lesbian community.
Mormons make up 2% of California’s population, but they contributed half of the $40 million war chest used to defend Proposition 8, according to a Time magazine report.
The church’s Proposition 8 activism angered many gay rights groups around the country, with some labeling the church “bigoted,” “homophobic” and “anti-gay.”
But church officials pushed back against the perception that the Proposition 8 backlash has provoked a Mormon softening on gay and lesbian issues.
“Many positive relationships have come from the Church’s experience in supporting traditional marriage in California,” Purdy, the church spokesman, said in an e-mail exchange with CNN.
Purdy draws a distinction between being against same-sex marriage and against equality for gays and lesbians.
He reiterated that the church was “strongly on the record as supporting traditional marriage,” but he said its stance should never be used as justification for violence or unkindness.
“The Church’s doctrine has not changed but we certainly believe you can be Christ-like, loving and civil, while advocating a strongly held moral position such as supporting traditional marriage,” Purdy wrote in an e-mail message.
“We do not believe that strong support of traditional marriage is anti-gay,” he wrote. “We love and cherish our brothers and sisters who experience same gender attraction. They are children of God.”
Church doctrine says that sex outside marriage is a sin and can lead to excommunication. Since gay people cannot be married in the church, any sex for them would be premarital and, therefore, sinful.
“The distinction between feelings or inclinations on the one hand, and behavior on the other hand, is very clear,” the church’s website says. “It’s no sin to have inclinations that if yielded to would produce behavior that would be a transgression. The sin is in yielding to temptation. Temptation is not unique. Even the Savior was tempted.”
Openly gay and a church leader
Mitch Mayne seems to relish his role as a lightning rod.
Mayne, an openly gay Mormon who blogs about homosexuality and the church, received the calling — a term Mormons use for being invited into a church position — in August.
Mayne is now executive secretary in a San Francisco ward of the church.
“I view myself as gay and being completely whole as being gay,” Mayne said.
Many observers of Mormonism say Mayne’s calling marked a unique moment in church history. Purdy said that Mayne’s appointment is “not unique,” but it’s hard to find precedent for an outspokenly gay executive secretary.
Mayne said he sees his job as building bridges with the gay community in San Francisco and showing them “there are pockets in the Mormon Church where you can be yourself.”
The biggest obstacle toward building those bridges is the threat of excommunication, said Mayne, who told CNN that in some wards just being gay can lead to expulsion from the church.
According to church doctrine, a formal disciplinary council can be called at the request of church leader.
While the leaders of the church mandate councils called for murder, incest or apostasy, it has a long list of reasons to call a disciplinary council.
According to the church’s website, the list of reasons includes “abortion, transsexual operation, attempted murder, rape, forcible sexual abuse, intentionally inflicting serious physical injuries on others, adultery, fornication, homosexual relations. …”
Some wards are observing that guidance while others aren’t, Mayne said.
“Here in the Bay Area … we are no longer seeking out LGBT members of the church and excommunicating them,” Mayne said. “Our role is to bring people closer to the Savior, so if we are routinely excommunicating people, then we are really not doing our job.”
Mayne said he believes the challenge is to convince church leaders that they don’t ever have to excommunicate gay members.
And he said the Proposition 8 campaign was the “least Christ-like thing we have ever done as a church.”
“Not only did we alienate gays and lesbians, but we alienated their parents, their friends, those who support them — the ripple effect went way beyond the gay community, and I don’t think we were prepared for such a negative fallout,” Mayne said. “I think the church deserved the black eye they received.”
He added, “As a result of that really horrible time, I think we are entering a really good time to be a gay Mormon. It is getting better.”
‘Mormonism doesn’t simply wash off’
When the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints speaks, the City Council of Salt Lake City listens. At least the council seemed to in 2009 when it voted on an ordinance to make it illegal to discriminate against gay and transgendered residents in housing and employment.
“The church supports these ordinances because they are fair and reasonable and do not do violence to the institution of marriage,” church spokesman Michael Otterson told the council.
Shortly after the church’s expression, the City Council approved the measure unanimously.
Many gay rights activists said they saw the move as an olive branch after the Proposition 8 debate.
“The tone and the culture is evolving, and the way the LGBT people are being treated is changing. I don’t think the church’s policy has caught up to that change in culture,” said Ross Murray, director of religion, faith and values at the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation. “The Mormon church hasn’t gotten nearly as politically involved as they had since 2009.”
Though Murray sees the church lobbying for anti-discrimination laws as a positive step, he said the church’s shift is more about style than substance.
“It is going to take a lot of intentional effort to actually prove they are different,” Murray said. “That burden, because of the really public nature of their support of Prop 8, falls harder on the Mormon church than others.”
Joanna Brooks, a popular Mormon blogger and president of Mormon Stories, a nonprofit group that facilitates conversations on Mormon issues, echoes Murray’s sentiments.
She said she sees the church’s stance as challenging gay Mormons to choose between the religion they most likely grew up with and their desire for romantic companionship.
“Mormonism doesn’t simply wash off,” she said, adding that the church can’t make it that “either you are gay or you are Mormon, or either you support gay rights or you support the church.”
(Source: Fox 13 News)
Ofir Gendelman @ofirgendelman 
So. Ill. Activist 