NEWS

A bill criminalizing gatherings of more than two people in DC is drawing outrage and opposition from community and labor activists, as well as civil rights advocates. “This is a clear and blatant violation of the Constitutionally-guaranteed right of the American people to assemble,” said Metro Council President Jos Williams.

Come out and show your opposition to Councilmember Graham’s recently introduced anti-loitering bill on Wednesday, March 18th at 10:00am at the DC City Council building on 1350 Pennsylvania Ave NW.

If you can, stay and testify! Sign up by sending an email to htseu@dccouncil.us or call (202) 724-7808 by 5pm on March 16th with your Name, Address, Phone Number, and Organization and Title, if you have one. You may also submit written testimony, which can be longer, and you can do without being at the hearing.

Men in crisp suits and gleaming shoes stood uncomfortably on the red-carpeted sidewalk outside U Street’s Local restaurant last night as demonstrators swirled past them chanting and waving signs accusing DC mayor Adrian Fenty of selling out to the campaign contributors trying to push through to the fundraiser inside.
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In a victory for immigrant workers across the country, the Department of Justice has announced an investigation of alleged “discriminatory police practices and unconstitutional searches and seizures” by the Phoenix, AZ police. Sheriff Joe Arpaio recently marched a group of 200 shackled and chained immigrant prisoners through the streets of Phoenix to a tent city in the Arizona desert, drawing widespread protests and condemnation.
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By Ramon Zepeda

On Saturday, February 28, 2009, I joined activists and advocates from across the nation in Maricopa County, Arizona to march in solidarity with the immigrant community and to protest the policies of Sheriff Joe Arpaio.
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Workers at the Sheraton Crystal City hotel publicly launched their fight for justice last Thursday with a delegation to the general manager asking for a fair and democratic process for deciding whether to form a union, without management interference.
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This month Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio marched 200 chained and shackled immigrants from a detention center to a segregated tent city in the desert surrounded by a recently installed electric fence. Arpaio has cut their access to healthcare and plans to force them to work in chain gangs if they “misbehave.” They could be your neighbors, stand in solidarity with immigrants in Arizona.
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Day laborers are now able to communicate more effectively with employers thanks to the help of volunteers at DC Jobs with Justice (DC JwJ), which is seeking more volunteers. “I’ve found volunteering as an English teacher to be particularly rewarding,” says DC JwJ volunteer James Ploeser. “You’re not just teaching language skills – you’re working with day laborers to help them assert their basic rights, and accompanying them as they fight to have those rights respected.”
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As we all know, our country is in an economic crisis. People are losing their jobs, their homes, their ability to provide their children with quality education, and their ability to retire with dignity and peace of mind. The cost of the most basic necessities such as health care, utilities, and fuel continue to skyrocket. In this current economic crisis, the worst since the Great Depression of the 1930’s, workers and their communities need more opportunities to get ahead.
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