Minutes for January 2023 meeting

18 January 2023 (via Zoom)

AIUSA Group 342 meeting (via Zoom)

In attendance: Barbara, Bob, Heather, Emily, Bill, Struan, Marsha

GREETINGS AND MEMBER CHECK-INS

• Happy New Year!
• Thanks to Bill for faithfully providing urgent actions and to Brendan for death penalty information

UPDATES

• GOOD NEWS: Effective January 31, the Department of Homeland Security is ending its contract with the Berks County "Residential Center" Immigration Jail! (link) 
• GOOD NEWS: The Department of Homeland Security Grants Extension of Temporary Protected Status for Haiti! (link)
• GOOD NEWS: On January 10, Governor Pritzker signed the Protect Illinois Communities Act banning the sale and distribution of assault weapons, high-capacity magazines, and switches in Illinois! (link)

AIUSA NEWS

• The 2023 AIUSA Annual General Meeting will be a hybrid event 
• March 3–5
• San Diego Omni Hotel and Whova Event Platform (online)
• Event website

GUANTANAMO BAY PRISON

• January 2023 is the 21st anniversary of the arrival of detainees at Guantanamo Bay Prison
• Send an e-mail to President Biden urging him to close Guantanamo Bay Prison (action link)
• Print and send a postcard to Secretary of State Anthony Blinken urging him to close Guantanamo Bay Prison and release Toffiq Al Bihani (action link)
• AIUSA page "Now Is the Time to Finally Close Guantanamo" website with other actions (link)
• Emily update on this topic
• attended Amnesty USA webinar last week for remembering the prisoners at Guantanamo Bay
• Nonprofit that provides direct financial support to prisoners released to foreign countries, where they may not speak the language or be able to find work to support themselves (link)
• Postcard campaign (leave postcards in places for people to find them)

WRITE FOR RIGHTS 2022 (LAST FIVE CASES)

• Support all 10 cases with a single e-mail (link)
• SHAHNEWAZ CHOWDHURY / BANGLADESH
• DORGELESSE NGUESSAN / CAMEROON
• NASSER ZEFZAFI / MOROCCO AND WESTERN SAHARA
• JOANAH MAMOMBE, NETSAI MAROVA, AND CECILLIA CHIMBIRI / ZIMBABWE 
• CHOW HANG-TUNG / HONG KONG

OTHER AI CAMPAIGNS AND ACTIONS

• Protect the Protest campaign (Sri Lanka) (video) (petition)
• Russia's war on Ukraine
• AI petition
• AIUSA will launch a Spotlight on Ukraine soon, urging all of us to contact our members of Congress, telling them not to abandon the Ukrainian people

           

NEXT MEETING: Wednesday, March 15, 7:30 p.m (via Zoom)