Support the women of Zimbabwe!

Hello Athenites!

Women of Zimbabwe Arise (WOZA), a group of over 75, 000 human rights defenders in Zimbabwe, frequently suffers from political persecution from the government. Although the formation of a unity government in Zimbabwe has meant that day-to-day conditions have marginally improved, there is still a lot of work to do before good governance is a reality.

On February 2nd, 2010, 22 WOZA members were arrested in Zimbabwe's second city of Bulawayo, because they were discussing the constitutional reform process. It is clear that WOZA needs the help and moral support of fellow activists all over the world.

Please use Amnesty Canada's campaign in order to send a message of solidarity to WOZA members or make a donation that will go to public awareness and directly to WOZA. Click here to get involved.

If you live in the United States, you may prefer to make donations or participate through their branch. you can find some information about their Valentine's Day campaign for WOZA here.

Your help, whether it is a simple message of hope or a financial donation, is appreciated.

Peace,
Steph

(WOZA Coordinator
Amnesty International Canada
wozacoordinator@amnesty.ca)

Happy 2010!

Hey everyone! Welcome to a new (and, I hope, a fabulously feminist) decade.

With hopes that 2010 will be even better, I will provide you, in no particular order, with some good news and some fun pictures from '09:

1) The United Kingdom upheld a woman's right to a safe abortion.

2) Need I say more?

3) The High Court of Delhi, India, repealed Penal Code 377, which rendered consensual homosexual intercourse illegal. Gay men and women in Delhi no longer face the threat of criminal prosecution.

4) In addition, India also struck down the "Immoral Traffic Prevention Bill," which would have criminalized the purchase of services from sex workers. Indian NGO SANGRAM did amazing work to fight against sex worker stigma.

5) Yemen has passed a new law which sets the minimum age of marriage for both girls and boys at 17. This bill was passed after the tragic news of a Yemeni child bride who died in childbirth at age 12.

6) I know this never happened in real life...but I like it anyways...Oh, Obama. Even though the U.S. health care bill has been tragically diluted, I still like you.

Happy 2010, everyone. And if you're looking for more ways to get involved with your community in 2010, check out here, here, here, here, here, and here (to name only a few). So volunteer at your local women's shelters, check out soup kitchens and food banks, write some letters, talk to your friends, and most importantly, be safe, be happy, be healthy, and spread some love and peace.

:)

Steph

Various Odds and Ends: Feel Good Friday

Hey everyone!

No particular topic today, just an assortment of fun stuff that will hopefully put a smile on your face.

1) Amnesty International's Write-a-thon happened yesterday, and was a great event (as always). I couldn't attend the event at the Canadian National Office, as I was busy writing the Economics exam from hell, but here's a quick update on what went down. (And just so you know, it's not too late to participate! You can always write letters!)

-more than 2,500 Write-for-Rights events across Canada
-to date, more than 3,700 letters written (and more being added to the total every hour)
-to date, about $8,700 dollars have been raised for Amnesty International Canada (and more is being added every day!)

2) A just-released documentary about Indian sex workers campaigning for their rights with the local grassroots organization SANGRAM. These women have effectively mobilized, collectivized, spoken out against sex worker discrimination, and have taken important steps in HIV prevention. Watch the amazing short documentary here.

3) This video was produced by Providence St. Vincent Medical Centre in Portland, Oregon, with the help of over 200 utterly awesome employees. The purpose of the video is to promote breast cancer awareness, and the video has certainly gone viral, with almost 5 million you tube views. And the video is totally successful in putting a smile on my face for a much-needed Friday afternoon DANCE PARTY YEEEEESSSSSSS.



Leave your favourite feel-good links, videos, etc. in the comments, and have a great weekend, everybody!

Peace,
Steph :)