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
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)
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