Local Group to Confront County Attorney, Sheriff Joe and his Posse

This Friday, June 16th, protesters will confront the recent actions of Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio and County Attorney Andrew Thomas that have put over two hundred immigrants in jail since March.

An anti-human smuggling law, passed in August of last year, is being used to criminalize people who are not committing the crime the law was intended to punish, but are, according to Arpaio and Thomas, conspirators who can be charged because they allegedly paid someone to smuggle them across the border. Despite the fact that the authors of this state law have opposed the misuse of this law, arrests continue. Additionally, a Maricopa County Superior Court judge ruled last Friday that people can indeed be prosecuted in this context.

Local activists are concerned due to the fact that Sheriff Joe’s posse is on the job to arrest possible smugglers and conspirators, likely leading to racial profiling. A member of Sheriff Joe’s posse has also been linked to hate speech against immigrants. “I’m horrified at the thought of over-zealous armed civilians in Sheriff Joe’s posse hunting brown-skinned immigrants,” says Phoenix Copwatch member Alia Souissi. Phoenix Copwatch, a group which fights police brutality, is the organizer of the event, which will include protest at the Madison Street Jail, Sheriff Joe’s office, and Andrew Thomas’ office.

The group is calling for an end to the enforcement of this law against immigrants who are not smuggling people across the border, the release from jail of all those charged with conspiracy, and a stop to Sheriff Joe’s posse’s arrest efforts. For more details on the protest, click here.

Eat Mole with the Magonistas!

Come to the dinner on Sunday June 11th, learn about CIPO-RFM, and help the indigenous people of Oaxaca.

CIPO-RFM, the Consejo Indígena Popular de Oaxaca “Ricardo Flores Magón” (People's Indigenous Council of Oaxaca) is a representative group of Indigenous peoples in the state of Oaxaca Mexico. The Council is an independent, autonomous organization which seeks to empower the poor, disenfranchised, indigenous people of the region.

The Magonista Caravan is a group of people from Tucson who will be travelling to Oaxaca to work with the CIPO communities.

You are invited to join us for a traditional Oaxacan meal to raise money to buy medicines and medical supplies to take with us to help the communities.

Celebrate Environmental and Animal Rights Activism

The term Green Scare, alluding to the Red Scare of the 1940s-50s, is an expression used by activists to refer to actions taken by the U.S. government against individuals within the environmental and animal liberation movements in the last eight months. The term has been widely used to describe the sweep of arrests, indictments, grand juries, and large-scale surveillance that has been taking place around the country. Many have alluded to these actions as a “green witch hunt”, aimed at disrupting and discrediting local and national environmental and animal rights movements. To read more about the Green Scare, click here.

Events in Arizona are part of a global weekend of solidarity with eco-prisoners, including Jeff “Free” Luers, an environmental activist, who received a disproportionately long sentence (22 ½ years) six years ago after confessing to attempting to burn three SUVs at an auto dealership in Eugene, Oregon, as desperate attempt to bring awareness to global warming, pollution, and war for oil.
What's going on around Arizona:
Phoenix
What: Demo against government intimidation at Phoenix FBI office (201 E. Indianola Ave - South of Indian School Rd on 2nd St), Saturday, June 10th at 3pm
For more information, click here.
Tucson
Join us on June 17th to celebrate environmental activism! A day of films, workshops and discussion, with music by Peg Millett, at the Historic Y Auditorium, 300 East University Avenue.
JUNE 10 "Resist the Green Scare Punk/HC Show" at Dry River Infoshop
Flagstaff
A rally was held on June 3rd on the City Hall front lawn.

more information and background of those impacted by the Green Scare in Arizona | More information on Green Scare events in general | more information on the Green Scare and supporting eco-prisoners.

Third Annual Migrant Trail Walk Ends Sunday

Read More>>> | More information about the Migrant Trail Walk | Arizona IMC Border Issues Coverage

In Solidarity with Atenco!

In Resistance to Empire!

Protest at Wal-Mart, Sunday, May 28 @ 1pm

1650 W Valencia Rd.

On May 3rd and 4th, state and federal police attacked the municipality of San Salvador Atenco in Mexico. Hundreds were arrested and abused, a 14 yr old boy, Francisco Javier Cortes Santiago, was killed, and 45 of 47 women arrested have reported sexual abuse including rape. So what does this have to do with the great American low-wage shopper's paradise? The police action was in response to local vendors of Atenco resisting forced removal from land used as an open market and support from the community. Wal Mart has plans to replace the area where locals gather to sell their goods with a Wal Mart. Atenco has recent history with resistance, having stopped an airport from being built on their farmlands. They have recieved support from La Otra Campana(The other Campaign) and the EZLN, and we must step up and put international pressure for justice on this issue.

A Carpool will be meeting at 12pm at Dry River, 657 W St Mary's Rd. If you have room or need a ride please come.
For more info: CMI-Chiapas - Mexico Solidarity Network

Human Rights Groups Call Legislation “Reprehensive, Not Comprehensive”

Today the US Senate approved an immigration reform package containing a limited program to regularize select undocumented immigrants while simultaneously increasing enforcement and militarization of the border.

The Senate bill will now head to conference with the US House of Representatives, where it will be combined with HR 4437 – the bill that provoked unprecedented protest across the nation due to its harsh enforcement provisions. If access to permanent residency for those in the U.S for more five years is removed from Senate bill 2611, it will closely parallel the House bill. Provisions include the construction of a “triple fence” at the border, the deployment of the National Guard in border communities, local authorities enforcing immigration laws, and institutionalizing the disenfranchisement of millions by excluding them from paths toward legalization and excluding government services in languages other than English.

Extreme enforcement measures have already resulted in an ongoing human rights crisis on the border, including shocking annual death rates of migrants crossing the border, and escalating violations of the human and constitutional rights of migrants as well as the residents living on the US-Mexico border – a region that is home to over 6 million people on the U.S. side alone.

While the conference committee begins deliberations, border communities are launching a series of responses. Last week, a vigil was held in Tucson commemorating the 9th anniversary of military troops’ killing of Esequiel Hernandez on the Texas border. On Tuesday 23rd the City Council of El Paso passed a unanimous resolution to reject militarization of the border and called for comprehensive immigration reform.

click here for more information

Join the Spring Black Mesa Caravan 5/27 – 6/5

This spring, a caravan of work crews will be traveling across the states and spending a week with families affected by mining and relocation laws on Black Mesa from May 26/27-June 5/6. Anyone with a willingness to work is invited. Hands-on projects will demonstrate how these communities are actively shaping their future and working to assure cultural survival. While your assistance will be appreciated, the opportunity to learn from traditional elders is an honor and a privilege.

You will learn about traditional indigenous ways of life, and co-participate in practices that provide the basic foundations of life (water, food, shelter, and clothing). Work projects include corral, roof, and home repair, water catchments, dry land farming, and if possible a small solar power set up. Work crews will be spread out, visiting people of both the Hopi and Dineh Nations. Host elders and families may also be giving presentations.

For more information visit Black Mesa Indigenous Support’s website

Over 50 arrested and one killed as police violently attack a farmers market near Mexico City

As of the afternoon of May 3, Subcommandante Marcos of the EZLN (National Zapatista Army of Liberation) announced during a public act in Mexico City a new red alert and closure of Zapatista caracoles and suspension of activities of La Otra Campaña, which has now become a struggle to support the people of Texcoco, who for the past two days have been experiencing severe government repression. (chronology of events)

Protestors visited the Mexican Consulate in Tucson on Thursday morning, presenting a letter and a short list of demands.

Read More:
• Mexico Indymedia
• Chiapas Indymedia
• San Diego Indymedia

Art Show and Symposium In Flagstaff May 5-6

On May 5, the Gender Politics and Sexual Identity Art Show opens at the Hive, 319 S. San Francisco St. in Flagstaff. This is an open art show on gender and gender identity, sexuality, sexual assault, body image, and their cultural and social representations through the eyes of contributing artists.

-Show opens at 6pm. Film, Music, and Performance at 8pm.

-Film Screening by PMS Media

-Music by Red Dress Press

-Fire Spinning Performance by Flagstaff Circus Arts Collective

-Suggested Donation $5

We are still seeking more artists for this show! Contact Meya at 928-255-1054 or e-mail againstsexualviolence@yahoo.com if you would like to show your artwork.

On May 6, Addressing Sexual Violence, a Symposium, Community Discussion and Potluck takes place from 10am-6pm at the Hive. The event is divided into three parts: Survival, Transition into Healing; Roots of Sexual Violence; Creating Change. To read the program in its entirely, click here.

If you have any questions about this event, or would like to table for your organization, please contact Adam at 928-779-3227 or e-mail againstsexualviolence@yahoo.com.

International Day Without Immigrants

These are links to more information about what is planned and what's happening today. Become the media: publish your stories and photos of what you experience today to the newswire.

Tucson May Day plans | Phoenix | May Day Virtual Sit-In | US IMC Coverage | Portland IMC Radio Coverage | Bilingual Radical Context of May Day Pamphlet

Combined Coverage of the April 10 Day of Action and Aftermath

• Phoenix: Report and photos, more photos, and a long audio report.
• Report from Flagstaff
• Tucson: reports (1,2), photos (1,2), and videos(1, 2), as well as stories (1, 2) covering the aftermath of the police negligence at the event and the demands made to city officials by organizers.

Tens of Thousands in Marches Across Arizona

STUDENTS TAKE THE STREETS

Transforming the Streets into the Classroom: Students Protest in Arizona

Risking suspension and having to jump over fences after schools were locked down, students have walked out of classes and taken the streets across Arizona this week to protest national immigration legislation. Following initial walk-outs in Los Angeles, America's youth are claiming their political power and are speaking out against U.S. House Resoluation 4437 and the U.S. Senate version of the bill.

March 31 Story about Continued Tucson Protests

March 30 Photos from Protest in Downtown Tucson

Read More about Nation-wide Student Demonstrations at U.S. Indymedia Center

Democracy Now! March 29 Story

LAST WEEK'S MASS DEMONSTRATIONS IN ARIZONA

More than 20,000 people jammed the streets through central Phoenix near Senator Jon Kyl’s office on Friday to protest anti-immigration legislation that would further criminalize undocumented immigrants and build new fences along the Arizona-Mexico border. The Senate Judiciary Committee, which Kyl serves on, is planning to finish writing the Senate version of HR 4437 on Monday. The largest march in Phoenix history complements recent protests nation-wide, including more than 500,000 in Los Angeles, 40,000 in Denver, and over 100,000 in Chicago.

The fight to protect the San Francisco Peaks from the proposed Snowbowl Ski Resort expansion and snowmaking joined the pro-immigrant sentiment on Saturday when more than 1,200 people marched through downtown Flagstaff in support of sacred sites and immigrant rights for all the Americas.

Tucsonans protested a fundraiser for Kyl attended by Vice President Dick Cheney on Thursday, and on Friday more than 1,000 people lined Oracle Road near Kyl's Tucson office to show opposition to his support for the anti-immigrant bill.

Mobilization for Sacred Sites and Human Rights in Flagstaff

Over a thousand people expected to converge in Flagstaff to march for Sacred Sites and Human Rights on March 25th

The March for Sacred Sites and Human Rights will be held in association with the National Conference of the Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlan (Chicano/a Student Movement of Aztlan aka M.E.Ch.A.), which will be taking place at NAU during that week. The theme of the national M.E.Ch.A. conference is “Human Rights will not be Denied” and it is expected to bring over eight hundred high school and university students from throughout the US to NAU.

"Every year, M.E.Ch.A. marches on an issue that the local chapter has been engaged with," said Kesia Ceniceros female co-chair of M.E.Ch.A., "This year we have asked the Save the Peaks Coalition and other organizations to collaborate on our march to protect sacred sites and human rights of the Indigenous peoples of the Americas.

The March will start at 3pm on March 25th at the Aquatic Center on NAU on San Francisco St. and conclude at the Flagstaff City Hall. The people will gather at City Hall to make speeches and call for the Flagstaff City Council to rescind the vote to sell reclaimed wastewater to Arizona Snowbowl. Those at the march representing the rights of immigrants want to end the dehumanization of migrants and stop anti-immigration legislation.

For more information regarding the “March for Sacred Sites – March for Human Rights” please contact Gabriel Yaiva at (928) 699-9601 or email yaiva@nativemovement.org . For more information visit the Native Movement website at www.nativemovement.org or call the office at (928) 213-9063. For More info on the M.E.Ch.A. conference visit www.nau.edu/mecha.

to view the press release in full, click here.

Daily Vigil in Memorial and Protest of Death on the Border

In preparation for the upcoming trial of Shanti Sellz and Daniel Strauss, members of No More Deaths in Tucson and Phoenix have launched a forty-day fast (to coincide with the Lenten and Passover seasons). As the U.S. Senate prepares to debate some of the most regressive immigration legislation since the Asiatic Barred Zone Act of 1917, No More Deaths joins voices around the country in protest and is mobilizing its supporters to demand a humane resolution to the border crisis.

Every day from 8am to sunset supporters are holding vigil at El Tiradito Shrine in downtown Tucson. Various individuals- including religious and community leaders- have participated in the fast since its kick-off on March 1st. Each day, supporters remember 100 of the more than 4,000 migrants who have died while trying to cross the border since 1994. Prayers are read and names recited daily at 8:30am, 12:30pm, and 6:00pm.

In addition to remembering needless suffering and death on the border, the fast is meant to protest the policies that cause this death. The militarization of the border has done little to reduce undocumented immigration. Rather, it has divided families and communities, fueled organized crime, driven millions of workers into the shadows and resulted in a daily humanitarian crisis along the border.

No More Deaths also reasserts its call that the United States drop all charges against Shanti Sellz and Daniel Strauss. Shanti and Daniel were arrested July 9th while attempting to medically evacuate three ill migrants to receive care in Tucson. They currently face up to 15 years in prison and $500,000 in fines. During July more than 78 migrants died in the Tucson Border Patrol Sector – the deadliest on record. Humanitarian aid is never a crime, and it is wrong to prosecute people for saving lives – particularly in this context.

A hearing will be held on Monday, March 13th in federal court to have the charges dismissed, in appeal of the January decision by Magistrate Bernardo Velasco to send the case to trial. Supporters are invited to join a procession from the shrine to the courthouse at 9am.

for more information, please visit www.nomoredeaths.org and Arizona Indymedia’s Special Coverage of Border Issues

Arizona Independent Media Teach-In in Flagstaff on March 11

What is media justice?

Are there alternatives to corporate media?

How do I get involved in the Independent Media movement?

**********

BE THE MEDIA! Arizona Independent Media Teach-In

Saturday, March 11

7:00-9:00 pm

Applesauce Teahouse 213 S. San Francisco St. Flagstaff, Arizona (Near the corner of SF St. and Butler Ave.)

FEATURING:

How-To Media Workshops

Reporting, Newswriting and Interviewing 101 with Arizona Indymedia collective members from Tucson

How-To Become an IMC Editor

Radical Library / Infoshop 101

Indigenous Action Media

*********

MORE INFORMATION? CONTACT: new_moon@riseup.net or info@indigenousaction.org