The Joy of ResistanceCurrent News that Gives Reason to be Optimistic"The world is not merchandise, and neither am I," was the slogan on the T-shirt worn by French sheep farmer Jose Bove as he was arrested for symbolically dismantling a McDonald's outlet in Millau. Thousands of people turned out to support Bove. Said one, "We have nothing against the Americans. It's the American system we've had enough of -- all that bad food makes for bad thinking." - Washington Post Foreign Service, 7/1/00At least 30 incidents of anti-biotech sabotage have occurred in the last year in ten states. The activists accuse agricultural and biotechnology companies of poisoning the environment by genetically engineering plants and animals. "All life on earth comes second, third or never behind corporate profit," said Nancy Oden, member of RAGE (Northeast Resistance Against Genetic Engineering). - St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 7/17/00 1,000 Philadelphia residents rallied on July 23 to demand the prosecution of the police who beat Thomas Jones. The beating consisted of 59 kicks and punches in 28 seconds, and was videotaped and shown around the world. The protesters also expressed their outrage about the police firing 45 shots in a residential neighborhood in their attempt to capture Jones, as well as the killing of a mentally ill homeless man, Robert Brown, by Amtrak police on July 18. The rally was organized by the Black Clergy of Philadelphia and Vicinity. - Tom Bishop, 7/26/00 "Homeless Family Reunited Here." "Housing by Any Means Necessary." These slogans adorned banners unfurled at an abandoned house being claimed and remodeled by activists belonging to the group Homes Not Jails in Washington, D.C. "Housing is a basic human right," said activist Jennifer Kirby. "Here, we're using sweat equity to make a home for a family that needs it most." - Washington Post, 7/21/00 150 protested the conference of the International Society for Animal Genetics in Minneapolis. "This is what a police state looks like!" they chanted as police continuously blocked their path, used pepper spray and made arrests. Among the protesters' concerns are the use of animals in experimentation, cruel farming practices, and biotechnology's potentially devastating impact on the environment and food safety. - St. Paul Pioneer Press, 7/25/00 Over 1000 people marched and rallied in Miami on Aug. 6, in support of amnesty for undocumented immigrants in the U.S. Many of the participants were Haitian and Haitian-American; other groups present represented immigrants from Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Honduras, Nicaragua, Peru and Venezuela. Also marching were members of social service and legal organizations, unions of ironworkers, carpenters and farmworkers. 20,000 rallied June 10 in Los Angeles, also demanding amnesty for undocumented immigrants. - Paul Lefrak, via fla-left-NEWS The American Indian Movement of Florida has filed state and federal civil rights complaints against the Chasco Fiesta of New Port Richey, FL, for its racist depiction of American Indian culture and spirituality. The festival glorifies a mythical Calusa figure who abandoned her "savage heathen" ways and assisted the Spanish colonialist invaders to commit genocide against the Indigenous peoples. "There is no Sambo Festival, no Frito Bandito festival. Yet as we move into the 21st century such racist depictions of Indigenous peoples and cultures are accepted and glorified," states the AIM press release, dated 8/3/00. Thousands protested at the Republican and Democrat National Conventions against corporate greed, the destruction of the environment, the high rate of incarceration countrywide, systemic police brutality, the death penalty, and for the release of political prisoners. In themainstream media, these messages were largely obscured, as was the brutality faced by those arrested. Police and guards mistreated many protesters out of sight of news cameras, hogtied people, verbally abused them, and denied them the use of phone calls, food and water for extended periods. Much of this information was gathered via the Florida Left News List. To subscribe, e-mail moderator@revolution.gq.nu.Two Eyes Magazine: Home | Issue 1 contents |