Another Inconvenient Truth
In 2003, according the F.B.I.’s arrest-based Uniform Crime Reports, 90.1% of homicides were perpetrated by males and 77.5% of their victims were other males. The perpetrator of these violent acts at Virginia Tech was male. In fact, this crime is only the most recent of a long history of mass shootings committed by males in this country – many of them committed by young men and boys at educational institutions. You may recall the stories: 2 killed and 7 wounded by 16 year old Luke Woodham in Pearl, Mississippi in 1997; 3 killed and 5 wounded by 14 year old Michael Carneal in West Paducah, Kentucky in 1997; 5 killed and10 wounded by 13 year old Mitchell Johnson and 11 year old Andrew Golden in Jonesboro, Arkansas in 1998; 2 killed and 22 wounded by 15 year old Kip Kinkel in Springfield, Oregon in 1998; 15 killed and 23 wounded by 18 year old Eric Harris and 17 year old Dylan Klebold in Littleton, Colorado in 1999; 2 killed and 13 wounded by 15 year old Charles Andrew Williams in Santee, California in 2001; 2 killed by 15 year old John Jason McLaughlin in Cold Spring, Minnesota in 2003; 10 killed by 16 year old Jeff Weisse in Red Lake, Minnesota in 2005; 6 killed and 5 wounded in an Amish school house by 32 year old Carl Roberts in Nickel Mines, Pennsylvania in 2006; 33 killed and 15 wounded by 23 year old Cho Seung-Hui in Blacksburg, Virginia in 2007. These are not the only stories of male-perpetrated gun violence, but those that received the most media coverage over that past decade. In the coverage of each of these stories, including the murders at Virginia Tech, the media has failed to appropriately address the fact that men and boys are committing these crimes. It is time for that to change.
Addressing the issue of male-perpetrated violence is not about blaming men, nor is it about locating the cause of violence in a biological explanation of aggression, given that the rates and contexts of male violence vary significantly across cultures and among individual males within them. It is also not about expensive, band-aid solutions such as metal detectors and armed security, over long-term, meaningful societal transformation. Rather, we must address the ways in which we socialize our young boys in our culture. Masculinity becomes associated with dominance, aggression, power and violence and these characteristics are encouraged, accepted and perpetuated. We have to stop believing that “boys will be boys†who grow up to kill people with guns. Boys are taught, and they see, hear and live what they learn.
If these crimes had all been committed by young women, we would no doubt be asking ourselves “why?†How could a young woman perpetuate such an act of horrible violence against someone else? It would be even more unthinkable than it already is. Yet current social trends show that we are increasingly socializing our girls into more traditionally masculine characteristics as they seek to gain power and equality in our patriarchal society. As long as masculinity, and more importantly power, is associated with aggression and violence, it may be just a matter of time before females start lashing out in similar mass, destructive ways. Read the full article here.
Additional Information: Teen Shooting Sprees: A Gender Issue? | Coverage of 'School Shootings' Avoids the Central Issue | Gender Borders & National Borders
April's After-Mass Screening: Bowling for Columbine
In light of the tragedy at Virginia Tech, Rochester Indymedia's April After-Mass screening will be an abridged version of "Bowling for Columbine."
When: Friday, April 27, 7PM
Where: St. Joe's House of Hospitality (402 South Ave.)
"'Bowling for Columbine' is an alternately humourous and horrifying film about the United States. It is a film about the state of the Union, about the violent soul of America. Why do 11,000 people die in America each year at the hands of gun violence? The talking heads yelling from every TV camera blame everything from Satan to video games. But are we that much different from many other countries? What sets us apart? How have we become both the master and victim of such enormous amounts of violence? This is not a film about gun control. It is a film about the fearful heart and soul of the United States, and the 280 million Americans lucky enough to have the right to a constitutionally protected Uzi."
Rochester Food Not Bombs will be serving a meal; discussion to follow the screening. St. Joe's is wheelchair accessible and the event is free and open to the public.
Critical Mass is a slow-moving, leaderless bicycle ride that meets at 6PM at the Liberty Pole in Downtown on the last Friday of the month—Ride Daily~Celebrate Monthly!
Additional Information: What May Come: Asian Americans and the Virginia Tech Shootings | ANOTHER INCONVENIENT TRUTH: The Tragedy at Virginia Tech
Buying the War: Screening Party, Discussion, Interviews
Newsmakers, news viewers and all those affected by the news (yes, you) are invited to come together to watch Bill Moyers on PBS (and eat popcorn) at the new anti-war storefront.
What: Screening of Bill Moyers' documentary "Buying the War"
Where: Anti-War Storefront, 658 Monroe Ave. (a few doors west of Archimage).
When: This Wednesday: 4/25, 8:15pm.
The Show will air on WXXI.
Prior to the show we will join a conference call with Bill Moyers and other groups that are watching the show. Please arrive at 8:15 if you wish to join the conference call sponsored by Free Press. After the show we will have a discussion.
Brighton Fights Back Against PATRIOT ACT and FBI Abuse by Upholding Civil Rights and Liberties
In response to concern about flaws in the Patriot Act and recent revelations of FBI abuse of Patriot Act powers, the Brighton Town Council, in a vote of 5-0, today approved a resolution upholding the Bill of Rights and Constitution and protecting the rights of Brighton residents from anti-terrorism measures that the Council believes go too far. Brighton is the first community in the country to pass an anti-Patriot Act resolution challenging National Security Letters (NSLs), which were recently revealed to be overused and abused by the FBI.
Brighton also joins 409 municipalities to have passed resolutions against the Patriot Act, according to the Bill of Rights Defense Committee in Northampton, MA, which tracks the resolutions and encourages a national debate on threats to civil liberties from the Patriot Act and other post-September 11th anti-terrorism measures. Read the full article here.
Additional Information: Rochester Area Bill of Rights Defense Committee | Bill of Rights Defense Committee | PATRIOT ACT: Brighton moves to protect itself | Keep strong arm of Patriot Act from crushing our civil liberties | Group asks Brighton to stand up to Patriot Act
Anti-War Storefront "Crisis Center" is Open for Peace!
Contact the Storefront at: 585-271-2620
The Anti-War Storefront neighborhood "Crisis Center" located at 658 Monroe Avenue is an expression of the collective passion and sense of outrage among the many peace and anti-war organizations in the Rochester Metropolitan area who are deeply concerned about the continuing war in Iraq, and the potential for conflict with Iran.
The storefront—completely staffed and funded by volunteers and free-will public contributions—will host a number of peace actions, gallery exhibitions, information/education and arts events, with the goal of keeping the cause of peace and anti-war issues constantly before our government representatives, the media, and our community. We also plan to do regular phone banking from the location to increase knowledge of sensitivity to Peace/Anti-War issues both for the public and for our political leaders. The multi-use space was created to honor and uplift the principles of peace and runs for 2-1/2 months from April 15 to June 30, 2007.
The grand opening will be held from 1:00-5:00 PM on Sunday, April 15. All are welcome to attend. Check out what the space needs here.
For more information, please contact Louise at wu2004@frontiernet.net or Doug at jaria9295@aol.com.
Clarification of Thought: Addressing Sexism, Racism, Classism, and Homophobia
One of the benefits of spending a lot of time in community is that eventually you learn that you screw up just like everybody else… because eventually, someone is sure to point it out to you.
Our community recently received a challenge to look at attitudes and behavior that might reflect sexism, racism, classism and homophobia. Most of us, whether we’re aware of it or not, because we breathe these things in from childhood – they are in our culture – have conscious and/or unconscious attitudes of scorn, superiority, privilege, disrespect towards others – and often towards ourselves, as well. Rather than being defensive, we think it would be a good idea to look at those things together, and to invite the larger community (you, reading this!) into the discussion.
We will hold a Clarification of Thought series this spring, with an evening each on the topics of sexism, racism, classism and homophobia. Please join us these Fridays at 7 pm at St. Joe’s (402 South Ave.):
Friday, April 20: Racism || Friday, May 4: Sexism || Friday, May 25: Classism || Friday, June 15: Homophobia
Russians Predict US will Attack Iran this Week
I flipped on Air America this afternoon at work. I was bored, and I've been wondering who replaced Al Franken. The Thom Hartmann show was in progress. I wasn't expecting more, really, than the usual spin about the corrupt administration, frustration with neocon impunity and so on. But no, Thom was talking about a "US Plan to attack Iran on April 6th". My worst nightmare! And it was discussed seriously, for two hours.
Currently, US warships are conducting military exercises off the coast of Iran. [1] According to Radio Free Europe, there is "no pressure intended". [2] But Canada.com knows better. [3] Wonder what it looks like? CNN provides details and a map. [4] Who knows what those British soldiers were doing in (or around) Iranian territory when the Iranians took them prisoner. Tony Blair is going toe to toe with Iran over a matter of less than a mile and a half distance to determine whether these soldiers really were illegally violating Iranian space or not. [5] Formalities aside, one can't help but ask "What are all those military people and resources doing, just at the edge of Iranian territory, give or take a mile." The president tells us, he's not going to attack, but then why are the warships in the Persian Gulf?
The only question that remains is what can we do here. What will we do in the next week or two to reign in our out of control government. It is time to act. Read the full article here. See Judy's blog here.
Related Links: Dems Lay Down for Bush's Next War: Time to Go from Protest to Resistance! | Emergency Demo: No War Against Iran!
Challenging JROTC in the Public Schools
Rochester Indymedia presents the March After Critical Mass Screening: Challenging JROTC in Rochester Public Schools
When: March 30, 2007; 7pm
Where: St Joe's (402 South Ave.)
Special Guests: Documentarian Kevin Berends, as well as activists from Rochester Against War
Throughout the Spring and Early summer of 2006, Rochester Against War (RAW) focused much of its organizing work on getting the Junior Reserve Office Training Corps (JROTC) program out of the Rochester City Schools. Members of RAW argued that the JROTC program is just another means by which the US Military targets poor, inner city youth for service in foreign wars of aggression. While RAW's work to demilitarize schools continues, the Rochester City School board voted to maintain the program. Members of the School board cited the positive testimony of families with children in the program, and focused on the fact that participation in the program in completely voluntary.
Street Level Media, a public access TV project, documented this struggle. The documentary includes interviews with antiwar activists and school board members as well as footage of the board meetings where the debate took place. The piece also provides an excellent example of how governing structures such as school boards serve to insure business as usual.
Rochester Food Not Bombs will be serving a meal; discussion to follow the screening. St. Joe's is wheelchair accessible and the event is free and open to the public.
Check out: At Street Level | Rochester Against War | Critical Mass meets at 6PM at the Liberty Pole in Downtown on the last Friday of the month—Ride Daily~Celebrate Monthly!
Interfaith Vigil for Peace Draws 600
On March 18th, an Interfaith Vigil for Peace was held in solidarity with the people of Iraq the day before the 4th year anniversary of the illegal invasion and occupation that has cost the lives of hundreds of thousands of Iraqis and thousands of Americans.
The vigil, co-sponsored by over 30 local religious organizations comprised of Moslem, Christian, and Jewish people of faith, occured Sunday afternoon on East Avenue between the intersections of Oxford and Goodman. Approximately 600 people attended.
Photos:
Annette Dragon: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22
Rochester Against War (RAW): See their gallery.
R-IMC: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8
The Green Scare Benefit Tour Comes to Rochester!
Come out and support radical animal rights and environmental activists!
When: Sunday, March 25th, doors open at 5:15PM, music starts at 5:30PM, and the documentary "Behind the Mask" will screen at 7:30PM
Where: St. Joseph's House of Hospitality located at 402 South Ave.
Bands (local punk/hardcore): A Primitive and Savage Land, Straight, No Chaser, and Sam Weir
$7 recomonded donation ($2 for a Rochester Activist Bail Fund and $5 for the Green Scare prisoners) No one turned way for lack of funds!
Rochester Food Not Bombs will provide a meal; a discussion will follow the film. St. Joe's is wheelchair accessible.
What is the Green Scare? The term "Green Scare" refers to the federal government's expanding prosecution efforts against animal liberation and ecological activists, drawing parallels to the "Red Scares" of the 1910's and 1950s.
A 2002 edition of a prisoner support zine, Spirit of Freedom, defined the "Green Scare" as, "the tactics that the US government and all their tentacles (FBI, IRS, BATF, Joint Terrorism Task Forces, local police, the court system) are using to attack the ELF/ALF (Earth Liberation Front and Animal Liberation Front) and specifically those who publicly support them."
The term has now been widely used to describe an early 2006 sweep of arrests, convictions and grand jury indictments of alleged ELF/ALF activists on charges relating to acts of property damage, conspiracy, arson and use of destructive devices dubbed "Operation Backfire," the cases of the SHAC7, Eric McDavid and Rod Coronado, as well as recent repressive legislation such as the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act, which attempts to turn activists into "terrorists."
For more information, check out: greenscare.org.