Human Rights
For a society to function democratically requires more than majority rule, it requires that individual rights be protected—from the government or other members of society—and even extends to limits on the ‘tyranny of the majority’. The founders’ belief in individual rights led to the Bill of Rights.
The movement towards Human Rights—rights that belong to every human—was largely driven by the United States and culminated in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
New York’s Little Revolution
The following was published by Yes! Magazine, a non-profit magazine that focuses not only on all that’s wrong but on positive approaches, a transition to a better world. New York’s Little Revolution How the state’s fight for clean water is reshaping … more
MLK’s Final Speech
I Have Been to the Mountaintop Martin Luther King, Jr. April 3, 1968, Memphis, Tennessee “Thank you very kindly, my friends. As I listened to Ralph Abernathy in his eloquent and generous introduction and then thought about myself, I wondered … more
Fair Trade links & resources
Reliable sources for information on authentic Fair Trade Reports & News Stories: Why Your Morning Coffee Could Be the Product of Child Labor (Faster Times, November 2011) Combating Slavery in Coffee and Chocolate Production, by Jeff Nall (Toward Freedom, January … more
Chocolate: The Bitter Truth
Fair Trade isn’t just about coffee. Many commodities are subject to abuse by large trading corporations and large growers. Coffee is perhaps the largest volume, but tea, chocolate, sugar, bananas, and many others are also important. Chocolate is subject not … more
MLK: Breaking the Silence
Dr. King gave this talk nearly 45 years ago, but it seems remarkably applicable today if you replace the name Viet Nam with Iraq, Iran, or the Middle East. And despite our ast resources, we have made little progress against … more
Youth Food Bill of Rights
Declaration of Youth Food Bill of Rights July 30, 2011 We demand respect for mother earth, for the Food Justice and Food Sovereignty culture, and for the indigenous cultures that are working to establish their own autonomous food systems. All … more
Afghanistan – Ten Years of War
Following is a message from Afghan activist and former member of the Afghan parliament Malalai Joya: Message on the Tenth Anniversary of NATO’s War and the Occupation of Afghanistan I would like to thank all supporters and anti-war movements around … more
Statement from the NYC General Assembly
Following is the first collective statement from the New York City General Assembly, issued October 5 2011. As we gather together in solidarity to express a feeling of mass injustice, we must not lose sight of what brought us together. … more
Conscientious Objection
When a person refuses to participate in war or other hostilities on moral grounds, he or she is a ‘conscientious objector’, or ’C.O.’. It is not for those who are afraid of being hurt or killed, it is for those who have … more
Human Trafficking
A few years ago, police in a town in NJ raided a suspected brothel. But they didn’t find young women working as prostitutes, they found sex slaves who had been trafficked from overseas—captives whose every move was controlled by the traffickers. Trafficking … more