I ♥(HEART) HAITI: An Informational Forum and Fundraiser

WHERE: Alice Cambpell Alumni Center, 601 S. Lincoln, Urbana, IL

WHEN: Thursday, February 11th, 7:00-9:00 PM (6:30 PM doors)

WHO: UIUC Students, faculty, and community members

Before this Valentine’s Day weekend, C-U Haiti Relief will present an informational forum, performance, and fundraiser for earthquake relief efforts in Haiti.  Speakers with intimate knowledge of the country will share their experiences and perspectives on current events.  Students will be given information on ways to participate in relief efforts.  The evening will close with a musical performance by a to-be-determined ensemble.  Specific speaker and musician lineup is forthcoming.

The event is free and open to the public. There will be a $5 suggested donation for attendants (all proceeds will go directly to Haitian disaster recovery).  A donation is by no means required for attendance.  Non-monetary donations (e.g., clothing, medical supplies) are also accepted.

Please post a comment if event details are incorrect or if you have an event to add!

2/1

Quench Series
Queer Qualifications: Disclosing LGBT Involvement
Illini Union, Rm 323, 12-1pm

Knit & Craft Nite
St. Jude Catholic Worker's House, 6pm

2/2

AEMS 2010 AsiaLENS Screenings:
Up the Yangtze
Spurlock Museum, 7pm

"Out in the Silence"
Etc Caf, Wesley Foundation, 7pm

Bike Project
Women & Trans Night
Feb 2, 6pm

From: Lawyers Against The War [mailto:law@portal.ca]
Sent: Wednesday, January 20, 2010 7:11 AM
To: Undisclosed-Recipient:;
Subject: ICC Complaint Against Bush, Cheney et al

INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT COMPLAINT FILED AGAINST BUSH, CHENEY, RUMSFELD, TENET, RICE AND GONZALES; INTERNATIONAL ARREST WARRANTS REQUESTED

Champaign, U.S.A./The Hague, Netherlands (19 Jan 2010). -- Professor Francis A. Boyle of the University of Illinois College of Law in Champaign, U.S.A. has filed a Complaint with the Prosecutor for the International Criminal Court (I.C.C.) in The Hague against U.S. citizens George W. Bush, Richard Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, George Tenet, Condoleezza Rice, and Alberto Gonzales (the “Accused”) for their criminal policy and practice of “extraordinary rendition” perpetrated upon about 100 human beings.  This term is really their euphemism for the enforced disappearance of persons and their consequent torture.  This criminal policy and practice by the Accused constitute Crimes against Humanity in violation of the Rome Statute establishing the I.C.C.

The Urbana-Champaign Independent Media Center (IMC) is proud to announce that it will host the second annual IMC Film Festival during February 5, 6, and 7, 2010, and is now accepting submissions! This celebration of the art of cinematography will once again highlight local and regional independent artists, giving them an opportunity to share their work and connect with other artists, community members, and organizations.

Filmmakers are invited to submit their works by filling out the attached Submission Sheet (attached in word and in pdf format) and following those instructions.  As well, the IMC Film Festival is open to all – free of admission charges! SUBMISSION DEADLINE IS NOW FRIDAY, JANUARY 20, 2010, 5 p.m.

Here is the link to the IMC Film Fest 2010 website:http://production.ucimc.org/node/17105
And you can check out films from last year's event at: http://production.ucimc.org/filmfest2009.

In order for communities to survive and thrive in a world full of
technology, they need to build a new model of tech support. This model
should focus on democratizing technology - on disseminating, copying
and distributing tech knowledge among everyday computer users.

This model may start with a central location to help users with their
computers, but cannot end with that single source of
knowledge. Communities must develop a "critical mass" of tech
knowledge among community members in order to control their own lives
in a technology-dependent world.

The IMC Computer Help Desk is up to this challenge. The
Urbana-Champaign community has had a deficit of realistic personal
computer support options since Prairienet faded away.

When a user calls, emails or walks in to the IMC Computer Help Desk
they will not be talked down to or misled. Further, the IMC Computer
Help Desk will not perform any repair or maintenance for
anyone. Instead, the support technicians at the Help Desk will help
users solve their own problems. The Help Desk can help fix almost any

On November 3, 2009, several people spoke before Champaign city council about the police killing of Kiwane Carrington and demanded that Police Chief R.T. Finney, who was at the scene, be fired. After public comments, City Manager Steve Carter responded by saying that he had conducted his own investigation, talking to the state police and State’s Attorney Julia Rietz, and concluded that Finney had done nothing wrong. “He is an excellent police chief,” Carter said.

> To: Schweighart_Jerry
> From: Stephen Kaufman <stephenk[at]uiuc.edu>
> Subject: Chief Finney

Dear Mayor Schweighart and Members of the Champaign City Council,

Champaign Police Chief Finney is free to to be on any side of any debate.  However, when Finney is on duty as a public police officer, his wearing a U of I chief logo demonstrates a profound disregard and ignorance of issues of race that have confronted the CU community for two decades.  Moreover, it rightly raises the question,whether Finney is fit to lead the Champaign Police Department and how his attitudes on race contributed to the killing of Kiwane Carrington.

The African American community provided extraordinary leadership and was instrumental in bringing the Illinois mascot issue to its conclusion.  The local NAACP led the national NAACP to unanimously vote to end the use of Native Americans as sports mascots. Finney's persistence in wearing the chief logo speaks loudly to his lack of the concerns of all communities for racial equity.

CU Citizens for Peace and Justice held a press conference Monday, December 7, 2009 at the Independent Media Center to address the ongoing debate over the police shooting of Kiwane Carrington.

Below is video of the press conference.

Back in 1999, several local unions donated money to send 18 people from Urbana-Champaign to attend the historic “Battle in Seattle” where massive protests shut down meetings of the WTO. They came back and founded UC-IMC on Sept. 24, 2000. Come help us to document and reflect on the 10-year history of the Indymedia movement.

There will be a full day of events on Saturday, Dec. 5.

Community Media Workshops, 2-5 p.m.
-Improvisational Acting with Zoo Improv (2-3 p.m.)
-Radio Broadcasting
-'Zine Making
-Video Shooting and Editing
-Soundboard Training for Live Concerts
-Books to Prisoners Pack-a-thon
-Painting class with Cameroonian painter and anthropologist Betsam Benjamin
-Open Source Software – Linux Install Fest

Panel With IMC Activists, 5-8 p.m.

The following is video footage from a "National Day of Outrage" held by CU Citizens for Peace and Justice in coordination with the National Action Network.

There are clips from Nick Green, Dr. Lou Turner, Durl Kruse, Carol Ammons, Aaron Ammons, and Seon Williams.

Two banners were dropped on the University of Illinois campus by a group of anonymous activists in the early morning of November 20th in solidarity with the UC occupations and the UC strike. This banner drop follows a three day strike in the UC college system, national and international solidarity actions with UC, and the recent local success of the Graduate Employee’s Organization in obtaining a fair contract.

One banner, hung off the English building, reads “Education is NOT for Sale. Support the UC strike.” The International Students Movement's statement “Education is not for sale” speaks to both the UC strike and the continuation of the fight against the privatization of public education in an attempt to make college more accessible. Another banner that briefly hung off the Alma Mater, alluding to cuts in the state budget and the continued pay disparity between administrators and other workers at the university, read “Chop from the Top. Solidarity with UC.”

Despite the rain and cold, hundreds showed up on Monday, November 16, 2009 to join picket lines thrown up around several buildings on the quad at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. After negotiations broke down over the weekend, the Graduate Employees Organization (GEO) called for a strike. They have been without a contract for more than three months.

In the morning, picket lines were set up at all entrances of Gregory Hall, Foellinger Auditorium, Davenport Hall, the Foreign Languages Building, and the English Building. Hundreds of classes were cancelled across campus and all of the classes in the English Building were called off. GEO members marched in circles and joined in chants that could be heard from inside the buildings. The GEO drum corps travelled to each building to keep the picket lines inspired with live drumming. A trombone player joined them playing to the tune of the 1980s pop song, “I Want Candy,” which GEO members adapted to, “I Want Contract!”