Success Story
New Zealand Peace protesters win acquittal on charges of damaging U.S. spy base
Submitted by Staff on Wed, 03/17/2010 - 2:03pm![]() |
Protesters in 2008 punctured a cover at the Waihopai satellite station in New Zealand. Photo: New Zealand Herald |
In New Zealand, three peace activists have been found not guilty of breaking into and damaging a spy base used in the US-led invasion and occupation of Iraq. In April 2008, the three activists entered the Waihopai facility and deflated a plastic dome used to cover a satellite dish.
After the verdict, one of the three acquitted activists, Dominican friar Peter Murnane, said they acted to help mitigate the human suffering caused by the Iraq war.
WNPJ supports a water-filter project in Iraq
Submitted by Staff on Mon, 03/15/2010 - 12:02pmThe Wisconsin Network for Peace and Justice (WNPJ) donated funds for a water purifier filter in a school in Iraq last December. Sami Rasouli of the Iraqi-American Reconciliation Project, MN - has a goal of installing 1,000 water purifiers in Iraqi Schools - can you help? If your group is interested in supporting a water purifier system in Najaf, Iraq - please contact: Sami Rasouli, Muslim Peacemaker Teams, Najaf, Iraq through www.reconciliationproject.org
Deer Isle, ME first in nation to vote "Bring Our War $ Home"
Submitted by Staff on Wed, 03/03/2010 - 4:08pmLast week, the citizens of Deer Isle, a town of about 1900 residents off the coast of Maine, voted at their annual town hall meeting in favor of a resolution that "commands Maine's member of the U.S. House of Representatives from the second Maine Congressional District to oppose all legislation brought before the U.S. House of Representatives that provides further funding of the U.S. warfare and U.S. military occupation in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan." The resolution passed with a 67% "yes" vote.
Healthy Youth Act Now Law
Submitted by Staff on Tue, 03/02/2010 - 5:28pm
Great news--Governor Doyle signed the Healthy Youth Act into law! The Healthy Youth Act will ensure that public schools use comprehensive sex education programs that are medically accurate, age-appropriate, and proven effective to reduce rates of unintended pregnancy and STDs among teens.
Mascot bill signed; puts school logos to the test
Submitted by admin on Fri, 02/26/2010 - 7:32am![]() |
Governor Doyle signs race-based mascot bill, witnessed by students from Prescott High |
Gov. Jim Doyle has signed into law SB25, requiring the Wisconsin Department of Instruction to set up a process to mediate disputes about schools that use race-based mascots. Noting that Wisconsin is the first state in the nation to enact legislation of this sort, Barb Munson of the Wisconsin Indian Education Association said, "I have seen the best spirit of Wisconsin in action - people of all ages, races and ethnicities working together to make things better for all the children in our state." Full WIEA statement here, Wisconsin Radio Network report here.
2010/02/25: WisPolitics: Assembly approves bill on race-based mascots
Submitted by Staff on Wed, 02/24/2010 - 6:48pm WisPolitics reports: The Wisconsin Assembly voted 51-42 Thursday, Feb. 25, to approve legislation that could require schools to drop race-based nicknames, logos or mascots if a district resident complained to the state.
Republicans objected Tuesday to a final vote on the bill, forcing today's vote. They also objected to messaging the bill to the Senate to delay further action as GOP members complained over what they said was the oversensitivity of some and allowing a state bureacrat to weigh in on a local issue over a school's mascot.
Vermont Senate votes to shut state's only nuclear plant
Submitted by Staff on Wed, 02/24/2010 - 4:49pmBy an overwhelming 26 to 4 vote, the Vermont Senate voted to deny a request by Entergy Corp., the operator of Vermont's sole nuclear plant, to extend its forty-year lifespan by an additional twenty years, forcing a shutdown of the aging reactor by 2012. The vote marks the first time a state has moved to shut down an operating reactor, and deals a severe blow to the troubled nuclear industry, which had hoped for a revival after President Obama made massive federal loan guarantees to promote construction of new nuclear plants a centerpiece of his proposed energy policy. Pictured: Collapsed cooling tower, 2007
Global movement wins debt cancellation for Haiti
Submitted by Staff on Fri, 02/19/2010 - 6:35pm