An altar to Brad Will, created by artist Tanyth Berkeley, whose work has been featured at the Museum of Modern Art will be on display at the world renowned BELLWETHER gallery.

July 10th - August 8th, 2008 Opening Reception: Thursday, July 10th, 6-8PM

Vanessa Albury, Tanyth Berkeley & Todd Chandler, Tammy Rae Carland,
Patricia Cronin, Amrita Das, Leela Devi, Rob Hauschild, Paa Joe,
Joss paper effigies, Roy Kortick, Lisa Ross, Victorian hair
wreaths, Marc Swanson & Joe Mama-Nitzberg

Curated by Becky Smith

If Love Could Have Saved You, You Would Have Lived Forever is an
exhibition of art and objects that reference the aesthetics, material
culture, and traditional gestures surrounding death and remembrance.
(more…)

Great piece by journalist Clarence Page. One mistake: his implication that Amnesty International opposed the Merida Initiative. They didn’t; they supported it on ‘condition’ that it included notoriously inadequate human rights safeguards. Even though the final bill did not have even these safeguards, Amnesty refused to issue a statement of opposition to the Merida Initiative.

Sad testament to that human rights organization.

RJ

http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080629/OPINION03/806290306

Drug wars next door

As if our military didn’t have its hands full in Iraq and Afghanistan, the head of the Minuteman Project border security group seems to think they might also make good narcotics cops.

Minuteman cofounder Jim Gilchrist suggested in recent radio interviews that the U.S. give Mexico 12 months to corral its criminal drug cartels and rising violence, particularly in border towns like Juarez and Tijuana — or deploy the U.S. Army to do the job. (more…)

Building Bridges:Plan Mexico; Puerto Rico Teachers’ Strike; Ruby Dee on The
Emmy By Ken Nash and Mimi Rosenberg

Bush’s Plan Mexico Is Planned Repression
with Laura Carlsen, Director, the Americas Program,
Center for International Policy

LISTEN TO (and download) AUDIO here

WBAI Radio’s Building Bridges: Your Community & Labor Report
Produced & Hosted by Mimi Rosenberg & Ken Nash
Monday, March 3, 2008, 7 - 8 p.m. EST, over 99.5 FM
or streaming live at http://www.wbai.org
***********************************************

Bush’s Plan Mexico Is Planned Repression
with Laura Carlsen, Director, the Americas Program,
Center for International Policy

President Bush announced a $500 million per year security cooperation
plan with Mexico, the Merida Initiative or Plan Mexico. It proclaimed its
targets to be narcotics trafficking, counter-terrorism, border security, and
the administration of justice. But, it is increasingly being used to
militarize the Mexican state to counter grassroots organizing and protest from
Oaxaca to Chiapas and throughout Mexico.

http://nyc.indymedia.org/en/2008/03/95182.html
(more…)

Great news! Friends of Brad Will met with Senator Schumer yesterday in Brooklyn to urge his support of accountability for the murder of U.S. journalist Brad Will and others murdered in Mexico by Mexican government paramilitaries and bring the Merida Initiative to his attention and urge he speak out against it.

The Merida Initiative known as Plan Mexico is a $1.4 billion military package proposed by President Bush for Mexico. It is being debated in Congress now (even though they haven’t even seen the full ’security’ initiative.

Please read through the brief note (w/talking points on Plan Mexico) below and give Senator Schumer a call or email urging an end to impunity for Brad Will’s murder and the murder of innocent Mexicans in Atenco, Oaxaca and elsewhere in Mexico by Mexican security forces and that he oppose Plan Mexico. (more…)

Flier for Panel discussion and event

White House Invades Mexico Tonight- February 22, 2008 7PM

An original Theater/Dance piece commissioned for the DREAMING THE AMERICAS / THE BODY POLITIC IN PERFORMANCE (more…)

Please join us this Friday for a screening of the new film “Brad, One More Night at the Barricades” (50 min). Brazilian filmmaker and media activist Miguel will be hand to discuss his documentary tribute to a fallen friend.
When Mexican paramilitary forces shot Brad Will in the chest, killing him, his camera fell from his hands. But it didn’t stop recording. (more…)

Friends,
There will be a meeting to talk over matters that Friends of Brad Will
are working on. January 30th, 7:30-9:30pm at St. Mark’s Church, in
the big room. It will likely not be a long meeting, so please arrive
at or close to the start time.

Proposed Agenda:
i. Justice for Brad
ii. Stopping Plan Mexico (news from the Steelworkers)
iii. Panel at CUNY w/experts on Mexico participating alongside
Friends of Brad Will (February 22nd)
iv. Discussion of Marcha Migrante III, request for endorsement.

Bring a snack.

Here’s a powerpoint presentation which Witness for Peace and EDUCA (Servicios para una Educación Alternativa, A.C.) have been using. Their event/tour just came to nyc and is now in upstate ny, moving to pennsylvania, maryland, delaware, d.c. and beyond.

Download the powerpoint presentation (7.4 MB)

Demonstration, Flyering and Press Conference
on
Brad Will’s Murder,
His Family’s Recent Trip to Mexico,
and
Efforts Underway to Obtain Justice

When:

Friday, March 30, 5-6:30 pm.
Press Conference at 6p.m.

Where:

Mexican Mission to the United Nations
Two United Nations
4,5,6, 7, S train to Grand Central
then 10 minute walk

Speakers to be announced.

Rain or shine (there’s an overhang there for participants to stay in out of any precipitation

WHEN: 7PM, Tuesday, Jan 16
WHERE: 4 W 43 Ste. 311

In lieu of a meeting where we sit around in a circle, we will be having a non-meeting where we eat, see the movie “Indypendent” (by Amy Wolf, and about the Indy) and talk about Indymedia and radical journalism.

This would be a perfect meeting for new or nearly new volunteers to come to, and to bring their friends to, if interested.

THE INDY

(Also, read the new issue, www.indypendent.org)