Certificate for participation in 2024 Write for Rights

Thanks to everyone who wrote letters for this year's Write for Rights. Barbara reported Group 342's participation to AIUSA, and they have sent us a certification recognizing our efforts.

 

Minutes for the January 2025 meeting

 AIUSA Group 342 meeting

15 January 2025 (online only)
In attendance (via Zoom): Barbara, Frank, Marsha

GREETINGS AND CHECK-IN

GUN VIOLENCE PREVENTION (Bob's report, delivered by Barbara)

• The PA Supreme Court has blocked Philadelphia's efforts to have stronger gun laws (because a city isn't legally allowed to have stricter laws than what a state has)
• Gun Violence by the Numbers (2024 report)
• significant declines in gun violence and gun sales (sign that pandemic surge has abated)
• US Supreme Court upheld the federal law preventing domestic abusers from owning guns
• Federal funding for gun violence research has increased since 2020 ($137 million)
• In 2024 there was an 18% average decrease in homicides across 277 US cities (43% in Philly, 31% in DC)
• Ghost guns: The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) says that in 2022 it could trace only 1% of ghost guns back to individual purchasers

WRITE FOR RIGHTS

• Great news! Neth Nahara of Angola (on whose behalf we send cards at our November 2024 meeting) has received a presidential pardon after spending 16 months in jail.
• Barbara presented the case of Joel Paredes (Argentina), who was blinded when police fired rubber bullets at a peaceful protest he attended.
• In the e-mail announcing this month's meeting, Barbara included sample W4R letters to send to governement officials
• Background information and action items for year's W4R cases can be found at write.amnestyusa.org 

AIUSA ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING (AGM)

• February 21–23 in Detroit
• This will be a HYBRID event with a virtual option
• Information available at https://www.amnestyusa.org/agm2025

DISCUSSION OF GROUP GOALS FOR 2025

• Are there ways we can increase local outreach?
• AIUSA is actively working on protections for immigrants, who will be at increased risk under the new administration
• Take on a new case file? (Barbara will inquire about this)
• Barbara would like other group members to help with putting together actions, letters, petitions, etc.

Next Meeting: Wednesday, 19 March, 7:30 pm (hybrid)

Minutes for the September 2024 meeting

 AIUSA Group 342 meeting

18 September 2024 (hybrid)
In attendance (in person): Barbara, Bob, Marsha, Alex

In attendance (via Zoom): Frank, Struan, Shreya

GREETINGS AND CHECK-IN

GUN VIOLENCE PREVENTION (Bob)

• July 2: The U.S. Supreme Court declined to review a challenge to Illinois ban on assault weapons
• Assault weapons were used in both assassination attempts on Trump. Democrats have called for a ban on them; Republicans are silent. 
• A few months ago, two ghost gun makers sad they would stop selling in Philly. One has closed up shop completely.
• September 4 shooting in Georgia
• The shooter is 14 years old and will be tried as an adult.
• The father is also being charged. (This is a new tactic by prosecutors.)
• Kentucky highway shooting: assault weapon used
• The Trace website: investigates gun violence in the USA
• Recent report: through 8/11/24, 400 fewer people were shot in Philly over the same period in 2023 (a 39.2% decrease)

AIUSA REGIONAL CONFERENCES

• NYC—October 26
• Phoenix—October 19
• Georgia—September 28

AIUSA PRESS RELEASES

• Apache High School shooting
• AI reaction to US release of $320 million in conditioned military aid to Egypt
• Egypt is supposed to meet certain human rights standards but hasn't.
• The State Department overrode Congress to give the full amount to Egypt anyway, in spite of human rights abuses.

BANNED BOOKS WEEK 

• Barbara met with Shreya last week, will visit her high school group soon
• Presentations:
• Kamile Wayite (Marsha)
• Nidal al-Waheidi and Haithem Abdelwahed (Barbara)
• Alberto Amaro Jordan (Bob)
• Unite Against Book Bans (Barbara)
• The BK-16 (Barbara, briefly; Shreya, more fully later)
• mnesty International calls for a ceasefire and suspicion of weapons shipments [petition to Biden]
• Salman Rushdie's new book, Knife (about the August 2022 attack on him at Chatauqua)

ACTIONS

• Petition to US senators to support S. 761: Stop Forced Organ Harvesting Act of 2023

Next Meeting: Wednesday, 20 November, 7:30 pm (hybrid)

Minutes for the July 2024 meeting

AIUSA Group 342 meeting

17 July 2024 (hybrid)
In attendance (in person): Barbara, Bob, Marsha

In attendance (via Zoom): Kara, Dorothee

GREETINGS AND CHECK-IN

2024 NORTHEAST REGIONAL CONFERENCE

• Will be held in NYC on October 25
• Will be in-person only (no remote option)

GUN VIOLENCE PREVENTION (Bob)

• 30,000 guns seized in NC—but because they weren't reported stolen, the person who had then was sentenced to only 14 months in prison (instead of 30 months)
• June 30 op-ed in The Inquirer by the founder of RAWTools Philly (an organization that turns guns into tools) about challenges to eliminating guns on the streets 
• The police department sells old weapons, thus creating a "blue market"
• GA law mandates that all seized guns must be resold
• NC law prohibits destroying seized weapons
• STATE LEVEL: CeaseFire PA protests again PA State Rep. Craig Williams
• NATIONAL LEVEL: 2 recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions
• 8-1 ruling to ban domestic abusers from owning guns
• 6-3 ruling to overturn the ban on bump stocks

DEATH PENALTY UPDATE

• Recently: 200th death row exoneration
• Questionable convictions: Melissa Lucio (TX); Robert Roberson (TX)
• Other cases:
• Toomaj Salehi (Iran): death penalty has been lifted but still in prison [petition to Iranian authorities]
• Keith Gavin (Alabama): sentenced to die 7/18/24 [petition to AL governor Kay Ivey]
• Rocky Meyers (Alabama): celebrated his 63th birthday [birthday card to sign]

WAR ON GAZA

• Amnesty International calls for a ceasefire and suspicion of weapons shipments [petition to Biden]

SUMMER SOLIDARITY POSTCARD ACTION

• On behalf of Floriane Irangabiye (Burundi), Ilham Tohti (China), and Vahid Afkari (Iran)
• Send postcards c/o AIUSA office in Boston

Next Meeting: Wednesday, 18 September, 7:30 pm (hybrid)

Minutes for the May 2024 meeting

AIUSA Group 342 meeting

15 May 2024 (hybrid)
In attendance (in person): Barbara, Bob, Marsha

In attendance (via Zoom): Kara, Struan, Frank

GREETINGS AND CHECK-IN

GUN VIOLENCE PREVENTION (Bob)

• LOCAL LEVEL: The city of Philadelphia reached a settlement with two ghost gun manufacturers
• They agree to stop selling ghost guns in Philly permanently
• They agree to stop selling ghost guns in the collar countries for four years
• They will pay the city $1m for gun violence prevention measures
• Shootings at SEPTA facilities in Philly
• STATE LEVEL: Gun Violence Prevention Advocacy Day held May 7, organized by CeasefirePA
• Bob and Barbara attended event in Harrisburg with group led by Tom Buglio
• drop-by visits to two GOP reps: Rep. John Lawrence (from southern Chester County); Sen.Trish Baker, who runs the Senate Judiciary Commitee and keeps blocking House-approved measures from Senate consideration
• scheduled visits with two Dem reps: Rep. Melissa Shusterman (who says the House plans to put together lots of small gun violence prevention bills in the fall; Sen. Carolyn Comita (who says that the measures Trish Baker is sitting on will probably be part of budget negotiations next month, and that maybe Shapiro will trade school vouchers for a vote on these measures)
• On May 7 the PA House voted on two GVP measures: one on banning gun stocks, one on computerization of paper records of gun sales; both failed by one vote when Dem Frank Burns voted with the GOP
• NATIONAL LEVEL
• Justice Dept has closed the gun show loophole, but legal challenges are expected
• Next year the US Supreme Court will hear challenge to ghost gun regulations

DEMISE OF GROUP 112 IN PHILADELPHIA (Barbara)

• This group did not pivot to online meetings during the pandemic and just didn't meet at all, then struggled to regain members/momentum afterward. Recent efforts to rejuvenate the group have failed. 
• Dave Rendell says the group is now dormant. 
• Susanna may try to organize speaker series.

AIUSA NEWS (Barbara)

• Thanks to pressure from Amnesty, Amazon has reimbursed $1.9m in unlawful recruitment fees to 700+ migrant workers in Saudi Arabia
• Egyptian human rights lawyer Mohamed Baker (a 2021 Write for Rights case) is free after spending almost four years in arbitrary detention
• Somali journalist Mohamed Ibrahim Osman Bulbul was released the day after an Amnesty Urgent Action on his behalf went out; a few days later all charges against him were dismissed
• AI report on the state of human rights in the USA
• increase in anti-LGBT legislation
• increase in anti-Semitic and Islamaphobic incidents since the Oct 7 attacks by Hamas
• since the US Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade in 2022, increase in states limiting/criminalizing abortion [however: in Oct 2023, the state of Ohio voted in a law to protect abortion in that state]
• Hyde Amendment still limits healthcare for the poor
• sexual/gender violence especially affects indigenous, American Indian, and Alaskan Native women
• increased restrictions on the right to protest

URGENT ACTIONS (Barbara)

• Journalist at Risk: Alberto Amaro Jordán (Mexico: UA 17.24)
• Iranian rapper Toomaj Salehi now under death sentence
• We brainstormed ideas to include in a letter on his behalf
• Barbara will send out those ideas (and links to relevant online resources) in an e-mail to everyone

Next Meeting: Wednesday, 17 July, 7:30 pm (hybrid)

Minutes for March 2024 meeting

AIUSA Group 342 meeting

20 March 2024 (hybrid)
In attendance (in person): Barbara, Bob, David, Heather, Marsha

In attendance (via Zoom): Shreya, Struan, Dorothy

GREETINGS AND CHECK-IN

AREA COORDINATOR REPORT (David)

• At AGM (March 2024) there was a presentation about AIUSA's strategy for 2024 U.S. elections
• We cannot said anything in Amnesty's name about any candidates
• Top goal is to mobilize people to vote as if human rights depend on it
• Counter harmful narratives (especially negative news about the U.S./Mexico border)
• Prepare for and try to prevent crises
• Build our movement to exert more influence on the next administration and Congress
• At AGM: no presentations by former prisoners of conscience (which was a longtime tradition at AGM)
• Regional meetings will return next fall
• "Get on the Bus" campaign scheduled for April 5 (gotb.org)
• Local groups are struggling: Group 112 in Philly is dormant, may try to form coalition with PADP and Ethical Society 

OTHER AGM REPORTS (Barbara and Bob)

• Barbara: attended session on Gaza
• Bob: attended session on local groups (we now have the ability to send e-mail to AIUSA members in our area!); attended session on top issues for young people (reproductive rights, gun violence, climate change)

CASE FILES (Barbara)

• On April 16 Barbara will attend a meeting about restarting case files
• Dorothy expressed interest in being in charge of prisoner of conscience case for our group

GUN VIOLENCE PREVENTION (Bob)

• Shootings at SEPTA facilities in Philly
• "Zero Eyes" program to use AI to detects guns in subways
• May 7: Gun Violence Prevention Advocacy Day in Harrisburg
• morning: constituents visit their representatives
• afternoon: speeches on the capitol steps
• Report on Lewiston, ME, shooting from October 2023: the shooter's guns should have been seized earlier, but police did not do so

GOOD NEWS (Barbara)

• Greece legalized same-sex marriage
• In Saudi Arabia, Amazon must pay $1.9m to workers because of a major Amnesty report about deception and treatment of migrant workers there
• France enshrined abortion rights in its constitution
• Victories on past actions
• Human rights defended Bishop Don Luis Fernando Lisboa transferred to safety in Brail (Mozambique: UA 132.20)
• Human rights defender Munther Amira released (Isreal/Occupied Palestinian Territories: UA 2.24)
• Four of five families freed from detention (USA: UA 116.20)

NOWRUZ ACTION

(Thanks to Barbara and Bob for bringing mailing supplies and printouts about this year's cases!)

Next Meeting: Wednesday, 15 May, 7:30 pm (hybrid)

Write for Rights 2023 Certificate