from top right:
Mary Brave Bird (aka Mary Crow Dog), Emma Goldman, Yuri Kochiyama, Shirley Chisholm
Tina Modotti, Ida B. Wells-Barnett, Dolores Huerta, Ernestine Rose
Angela Davis, Mother Jones, Lucy Parsons, Harriet Tubman
Ella Baker, Dorothy Day, Claudia Jones, bell hooks
Check back throughout the month as we post more on revolutionary women!
It’s here once again. The day on which we declare ourselves undocumented, unafraid, and unapologetic is just around the corner. –NIYA
This week is National Undocumented Youth Coming Out Week! The National Immigrant Youth Alliance (NIYA)—an undocumented youth-led coalition of groups and individuals committed to achieving equality for all immigrant youth—has put together resources and support for those planning on coming out. NIYA posted this on their website:
We know that coming out as undocumented is not easy. We know because we’ve been there. For many it’s terrifying experience, but it’s also a very empowering and liberating one. And you are not alone! This year, just like every year, hundreds of thousands of DREAMers, just like yourself, are making the decision to come out with you. Together, we are coming out of the shadows….
You can check out NIYA’s the Guide to Coming Out for undocumented youth and find out more about resources for advocacy here.
Also, on Friday, March 16, the New York State Youth Leadership Council will host a rally in Union Square in New York where people will share their stories together. For more information, visit their website.
This Saturday, members of For the Birds will present at Sarah Lawrence College’s 14th Annual Women’s History Conference. This year’s theme is “Women, The Arts, and Activism.” Here is our panel’s info!
Supporting the Scene: Creating and Curating A Feminist Safer Space
Saturday, March 3
4:30–6:30pm
Slonim Living Room
Sarah Lawrence College, Bronxville, NY
Feminist collective For the Birds will discuss the ways that gender informs their curatorial and activist practice, and their understanding of “safer spaces,” as well as how their scholarly journeys have been reflected in their own community-building experience.
Find out more about the amazing line-up by visiting the conference’s website. And don’t forget to register! It’s free!
See you there.
Love,
For the Birds
This week Racialicious posted a piece about a black trans woman who has been arrested and charged with 2nd degree murder after she and her friends were violently attacked by a group of white people who were yelling racist and transphobic epithets. A woman smashed a glass into CeCe’s face and, according to Racialicious,
A fight ensued between the adults and the young people after this initial attack and one of the attackers, Dean Schmitz, was fatally stabbed.
As if it were not sufficiently tragic that a group of young people were subjected to such severe violence and that Dean Schmitz lost his life, police arriving at the scene arrested CeCe, denied her adequate medical treatment, interrogated her for hours, and placed her in solitary confinement. In the aftermath of being attacked, she was not treated with care, but launched into another nightmare. The only person arrested that night, she has since been charged with two counts of 2nd degree murder. Hennepin County Attorney Michael Freeman has the power to drop these charges, a choice he made in multiple other clear instances of self-defense this year, but he has not yet done so.
CeCe’s story is a portrait of the United States Criminal Justice System. Her story is what is meant when we are told that transgender people, especially transgender women of color, experience disproportionate rates of police harassment, profiling, and abuse. She is living one of the stories rolled into statistics like: trans people are ten to fifteen times more likely to be incarcerated than cisgender (not transgender) people, or nearly half of African American transgender people have spent time in jail or prison.
Please take a moment to read the full Racialicious article here, and visit http://supportcece.wordpress.com/ to get updates on the case. To tell Michael Freeman you support dropping the charges against CeCe, call 612-348-5561 or email citizeninfo@co.hennepin.mn.us
The folks at Dream Activist have launched a campaign to stop the deportation of Yanelli Hernandez. Yanelli came to the United States as a 13-year-old and is set to be deported TOMORROW, TUESDAY, JANUARY 31! Yanelli almost took her life while being held in detention by ICE and what she needs is treatment. According to Dream Activist:
Yanelli’s case is urgent, we only have until Tuesday to stop her deportation. Yanelli came to the United States all by herself when she was 13, this means that, if deported, she won’t have anyone to support her.
We need your help to get Yanelli out, she needs to be at home with her family receiving treatment. Things are not looking good for her, ICE has already moved her to a different location. . . the last stop for detainees before they are deported. We pretty much have 1 day to stop Yanelli’s deportation.
Please make a phone call to John Morton, Director of ICE :1-800-394-5855 or 202-732-3000 or 1-800-821-9358
Dream Activist has provided a script to use if you need it:
Hello I am calling to ask that Yanelli Hernadez (A# 205 012 525) be allowed to stay in the U.S. where she needs treatment. Yanelli is suffering from depression; she has attempted to take her own life twice and should not be deported. This is wrong.
Rich Black. Oakland, CA
Check out some of the posters from the 99%! Occuprint is a poster series with works from around the world, curated by Molly Fair, Jesse Goldstein, Josh MacPhee and John Boy. They provide free online & print posters and are continuing to expand. Click here to see their website, and if you have the means, you can consider making a donation soon!
Colectivo Cordyceps. Mexico City, Mexico
Cristy C. Road. Brooklyn, NY
Dave Loewenstein. Lawrence, KS
Unfortunately, due to the reported shutdown of MTA this weekend in preparation for Hurricane Irene, For the Birds has decided to postpone The Written Bird this weekend. We apologize for the cancellation, but please stay tuned as we work to reschedule this series.
Stay safe!
This just in from the Audre Lorde Project!
The Audre Lorde Project Presents the First Annual BEDSTUY PRIDE 2011
Initiated by the Safe OUTside the System Collective of the Audre Lorde Project, a Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Two-Spirit, Trans and Gender Non-Conforming People of Color Center for Community Organizing.
August 21, 2011, 12pm-6pm
Von King Park (Tompkins Park)
670 Lafayette Ave (between Marcy and Tompkins Aves)
A, C to Nostrand Ave, G to Bedford-Nostrand Aves, G to Myrtle Willoughby Aves
Come join the Safe OUTside the System Collective of the Audre Lorde Project for our first annual BEDSTUY PRIDE. The Safe OUTside the System (SOS) Collective is an anti-violence program led by and for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Two Spirit, Trans, and Gender Non Conforming (LGBTSTGNC) people of color. We are devoted to challenging hate and police violence by using community based strategies rather than relying on the police.
Why BedStuy Pride?
The Audre Lorde Project’s S.O.S. Collective will host the 1st Annual Bed-Stuy Pride to celebrate Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Two-Spirit, Transgender and Gender-Non-Conforming people of color in the Bed-Stuy community. The day will feature performances, artists, vendors, activities for youth and adults, and more! Bed Stuy Pride 2011 is an opportunity for neighborhood folks to come together and celebrate the fabulous Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Two-Spirit, Transgender, and Gender Non-Conforming People of Color community in the neighborhood many of us grew up , and currently, live in. As an anti-violence community-based collective, SOS feels that one of the best ways to combat violence in our community is to start at home. Bed Stuy Pride 2011 is an opportunity for us to show our community how truly fabulous we are, Brooklyn style!
Volunteers are needed day of BedStuy Pride! All BedStuy Pride Volunteers and ALP members are encouraged to attend an outreach training and orientation that is scheduled on Tuesday, August 16th from 7pm-9pm at the Brooklyn office. Volunteers will learn more about organizing by and for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Two Spirit, Trans, and Gender Non Conforming People of Color. Come to the Audre LordeProject’s BedStuy Pride Outreach & Volunteer Training & Orientation for People of Color and learn how to rep ALP and build our member base at BedStuy Pride and throughout NYC.
Volunteer for Security!
We need more volunteers for security! Volunteer to help keep our community safe by volunteering for security. We have scheduled a security training on Tuesday, August 16th from 7-9pm to RSVP contact Irma Salvatierra Bajar (see below). The security training is mandatory for new security volunteers and any security folks that have never volunteered in this position before.
Contact: Chelsea Johnson-Long at 718-596-0342 ext. 11, cjohnsonlong[at]alp.org
Volunteers Needed! Contact: Irma Salvatierra Bajar at 212.463.0342 ext. 17, ibajar[at]alp.org
Sponsors: NYC Anarchist Black Cross
Endorsers in Formation: Brooklyn Men (K)onnect (BMK), Azucar! – A Queer Latin Dance Party, Lutheran Family Health Center- Project Reach Youth, New York City Anti-Violence Project, Ali Forney Center, Counterpublic NYC, New Yorker for Safe Transit, HIV Prevention Justice Alliance, Pretty Queer.com, Sanctuary for Families- the LGBT Initiative/ Community Law Project, Committee against Anti-Asian Violence (CAAAV), Brown Girls Burlesque, Marimacho Brooklyn, Filipinas for Rights and Empowerment-Gabriela USA, Q-WAVE, Right Rides, FIERCE, Roots and River Productions, Brooklyn Pride, Queer Women/Trans Caribbean Collective, Community Board 3, LadyMacho Events, Astraea Lesbian Foundation for Justice, Circle of Voices Inc.,, GMAD, Lambda Independent Democrats of Brooklyn, Palante Technology, Brooklyn Community Pride Center, Support New York, The Leeway Foundation
As part of our Birds of Summer Series, we’re pleased to announce details for a self-care skill share, “Check Yourself ‘Cause You’ll Wreck Yourself.”
Saturday, August 20 from 12pm-3pm@ Launchpad // 721 Franklin Avenue Brooklyn, NY 11238
A skill share on how to take care of ourselves while we try to fix the world.
Presentations to include Lauren Nagy of Hosh Yoga, Cassie Karopkin of Verite Catering, and massage therapist Leah DeCesare. Food sampling and donations sponsored by Raw Revolution, Earth Balance, Lightlife, Artisana, Turtle Mountain, the Integral Yoga Institute, and more!
Presenters:
Cassie Karopkin is a graduate of the renowned Natural Gourmet Institute in NYC and SUNY, Albany, and is also certified in Plant-Based Nutrition through Cornell University. She earned her kitchen stripes at Pure Food and Wine, New York’s first raw-foods restaurant.
Leah DeCesare is a queer, hard of hearing person living in Brooklyn, NY. She graduated from the Swedish Institute of Health Sciences and is a member of the American Massage Therapy Association. As a martial artist since 1999, she adopted the philosophy, “if you’re going to learn to harm people, you must learn to heal people.” As an avid athlete, she uses her work to assess and relieve overuse syndromes, enhance performance, rehabilitate injuries and reduce stress – the root of most of our ails.
At 17, Lauren Nagy began her yoga practice at a small gym in her hometown of Toms River, NJ. Lauren has since completed her 200 hour teacher training at the Center for Health and Healing and has been actively teaching since 2009. Lauren’s classes offer up the warmth and compassion of a yoga sanctuary, a safe place to grow from the inside out. Her classes include postures to help open, strengthen, tone, calm,and detoxify the body; breath control; guided meditation; and inspirational messages applicable to everyday life to help expand the yoga practice beyond the mat.
As always, check our website for updates. We’ll be posting info on our Facebook invite, too, where you can RSVP.