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Blog: protest photos from the US RNC 2008

MHolterhaus's picture
Posted September 2nd, 2008 by MHolterhaus

As follow up to my last post, I'd like to pass along some links to photos of the Republican National Convention protests in St. Paul, MN, USA. Most of the march was quite peaceful, but several groups of anarchist/vandals did incite some violence, which unfortunately overshadowed the nonviolent message that most people carried that day.

Adopting international human rights conventions at the local level to improve women's rights

The Women's Institute for Leadership Development for Human Rights used the United Nations Convention to End Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) to advocate for human rights at the local level.  Although CEDAW has not been ratified by the United States and thus cannot be invoked, WILD for Human Rights decided to apply it at the local level, in San Francisco, as a tool to combat issues such as discrimination and domestic violence.  They implemented CEDAW as a legislated municipal law with the exact wording of CEDAW; thus making it binding legally. 

Providing DNA testing and legal assistance to prisoners who may have been wrongly accused of a crime

The Innocence Project involves lawyers, law students, and law schools in assisting prisoners who challenge their convictions based on DNA testing of evidence.

Since the advent of forensic DNA testing in the 1980s it has become possible to draw up a genetic profile of a suspect and, in turn, exonerate wrongly convicted defendants.

Monitoring police conduct through personal observation

Copwatch sends teams of volunteers into the community to monitor police activities and report on incidents of misconduct. The organization was founded in Berkeley, California, with the goal of ‘reducing police harassment and brutality’ and ‘upholding Berkeley’s tradition of tolerance and diversity.’

Encouraging passage of local government resolutions to influence national policy

Cities for Peace is a coalition of local elected officials and concerned community members working to get City Councils and other civic bodies to pass resolutions against a US led war on Iraq.  Although the group focuses on the anti-war effort, this tactic has also been used to show local opposition to a variety of federal actions, such as investment in apartheid and the curtailment of civil liberties under the Patriot Act.  By the end of February 2003, 113 cities and counties had passed resolutions and over 90 new campaigns were underway.

Developing electronic advocacy groups to influence government on issues of peace and social justice

MoveOn creates electronic advocacy groups to influence government on issues of peace and social justice.  It is a grassroots organization aimed at involving ordinary people in politics in order to narrow the gap between public opinion and legislative action.  With a network of over 600,000 “online activists,” MoveOn helps busy but concerned citizens find their political voice by organizing

Reframing social justice issues through human rights education

The National Center for Human Rights Education (NCHRE) educates United States organizations on how current social justice issues in the U.S. can be framed in the context of human rights. The vast majority of organizations currently addressing social problems in the United States do not think of their work in terms of human rights. NCHRE spreads its message through conferences, meeting and community events and has distributed between 250,000 and 500,000 copies of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Distributing air quality testing equipment to community members to promote environmental justice

Since 1995, many communities across the United States have begun or joined “Bucket Brigades,” programs that instruct communities near industrial polluters how to build and use simple air monitoring devices, or “buckets.”  In the absence of strong environmental laws, standards, or environmental enforcement bodies, buckets give communities the means to independently monitor the air quality of their neighborhoods and provide them with the evidence to affect environmental and industrial policy change.

Blog: political parties using social media

MHolterhaus's picture
Posted July 8th, 2008 by MHolterhaus

The St. Paul Pioneer Press, the daily newspaper of St. Paul, Minnesota, USA, today published an article about how the Republican National Convention (to be held in St. Paul this year) is using social media (such as Twitter and Digg)
to engage constituents. This isn't that groundbreaking, since political
parties have been using social media for some time, but it does reflect
the growing importance and mainstream appeal of these tools,
particularly as a way to engage young people.

Are policital parties in other countries using innnovative online tactics to engage citizens? Let me know...