SOAW–West News for January, 2004
1) SOAW-W Event on Jan. 8 plus more.
2) Georgia Trial plus local & national Feb. & March Events.
3) Georgia Trials conclude.
School of the Americas Watch–West ~ SOAW–W
January 8 (your Webscribe's 56th birthday!), 2004San Jose Website - http://teachers.bcp.org/llauro
Los Angeles Website - www.soaw-la.org
National Website - www.soaw.org
[Details given below on Items 1-4]1) SOAWW meeting in San Francisco
Thursday, Jan. 8, 2004, 7:00 pm
These are generally scheduled on the first Thursday of the month -- Feb. 5, March 4, April 1, May 6.2) San Francisco, "Report Back from Federal Prison" with Derrlyn Tom
Thursday, Jan. 15, 2004, 6:00 pm3) SOAWW meeting in Oakland
Wednesday, Jan. 21, 2004, 7:00 pm
These are regularly scheduled for the third Wednesday of the month - Feb. 18, March 17, April 21, May 19.4) Forum on SOA/WHINSEC, University of San Francisco Law School
Thursday, Feb. 19, 2004, 7:00 pm5) National Events:
Washington, DC Lobby Days for HR 1258 (now: 102 co-sponsors; goal: 50 more)
Sat-Tues, March 27-30, 2004Vigil to close SOA/WHINSEC at Fort Benning, Georgia
Fri-Sun, Nov. 19-21, 2004SOAWW meeting in San FranciscoThursday, Jan. 8, 2004, 7:00 pmReport Back from Federal Prison with Derrlyn Tom*
Unitarian Universalist Church, 1187 Franklin at Geary, San Francisco
Agenda includes preparation for local and national events and a presentation by Louise Lynch of Fremont
who faces trial on Jan. 26 for crossing the line on 11/23/03.
For information, contact Judy Liteky, jliteky@aol.comThursday, Jan. 15, 6:00 to 8:00 p.m.SOA Watch West meeting in Oakland
Mission High School, 18th & Dolores Streets, San Francisco
Sponsored by Teachers 4 Social Justice and the Peace,
Justice and Human Rights Committee of the United Educators of San Francisco.
Donations accepted.*Derrlyn Tom, bilingual science teacher at Mission High School, was released on December 5, 2003 from Dublin Federal Prison after serving a six month sentence for civil disobedience for actions protesting the School of the Americas in November 2002 in Fort Benning, Georgia. Derrlyn's time in the Dublin penitentiary was spent researching and witnessing first-hand the racism and injustices of the prison system in this country. Come hear her experience and analysis of the institutions of schools and jails, their similarities and differences.
For more information, call Karen Zapata @ 415-516-0338Wednesday, Jan. 21, 7:00 pm4) Forum on SOA/WHINSEC
Contact Bob Nixon, robertnixon@mindspring.comThursday, Feb. 19, 7:00 pm
St. Thomas More Society, University of San Francisco Law School
Speakers will include staff of WHINSEC and Fr. Stephen Privett, President of USF.
School of the Americas Watch–West ~ SOAW–W
January 28, 2004San Jose Website - http://teachers.bcp.org/llauro
Los Angeles Website - www.soaw-la.org
National Website - www.soaw.org
[Details given below on Items 1-6]1) TRIALS:Outcome of Jan. 26-27 trials: 21 convictions in Columbus, Georgia, for trespass on 11/23/03. 7 more activists still face trial. Louise Lynch of Fremont received the sentence of one-year probation and a $500 fine. Elizabeth Bradley of Sacramento received the same sentence. Leisa Barnes, also of Sacramento, was sentenced to three months in jail. Local coverage is given below. SOA Watch stories are available at www.soaw.org under "New!"EVENTS:2) REPORT BACK from Georgia Trial with Betsy Lamb
Wednesday, Feb. 4, 7:30 pm
St. Augustine Catholic Church, South San Francisco3) SOAWW MEETING in San Francisco
Thursday, Feb. 5, 2004, 7:00 pm
These are regularly scheduled for the first Thursday of the month - March 4, April 1, May 6.4) SOAWW MEETING in Oakland
Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2004, 7:00 pm
These are regularly scheduled for the third Wednesday of the month - March 17, April 21, May 19.5) FORUM on SOA/WHINSEC in San Francisco
Thursday, Feb. 19, 2004, 5:00 pm - Maraschi Room, Xavier Residence Hall
Sponsored by St. Thomas More Society, University of San Francisco Law School6) Related Event sponsored by the Marin Interfaith Task Force
DOCUMENTARY "Discovering Dominga" followed by a panel Tuesday, Feb. 3, 7:30 pm, San Rafael7) National Events
Washington, DC Lobby Days for HR 1258 (now: 105 co-sponsors; goal: 45 more) Sat-Tues, March 27-30, 20048) LOST AND NOT FOUND! Does anyone have the "Shut Down the SOA" banner? If so, contact Michael Bass.Vigil to close SOA/WHINSEC at Fort Benning, Georgia
Fri-Sun, Nov. 19-21, 20049) DO YOU WANT EMAILS from SOAW in Washington, DC?
If so, send your email address to info@soaw.org.Details are given below:
Fremont protester gets probation for trespassing
The Argus (Fremont, CA), By Melissa EvansTuesday, January 27, 2004 - A Fremont grandmother arrested for trespassing during a November protest at a training school for Latin American military personnel will serve a year's probation and pay a $500 fine -- a lighter sentence than she said she expected.
Louise Lynch, 69, appeared Monday in U.S. District Court in Georgia, along with 28 other people who agreed to cross a picket line Nov. 21 at the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation. Activists say the school has been linked to assassinations, torture and other abuses. The others who were arrested -- including a Nobel Peace Prize nominee and six Jesuit priests -- received sentences ranging from probation to six months in jail and a $5,000 fine, according to the School of the Americas Watch, an organization formed in 1990 shortly after the killing of six Jesuit priests in El Salvador. International investigators found that 19 of the 26 militants responsible for their deaths had been trained at the school, known as the School of the Americas until 2001.
Lynch, a member of Pax Christi, a Catholic social-activism group, has attended the protest for two years. In November, the grandmother of seven and mother of 10 signed her name to a list of those willing to commit acts of civil disobedience. "I felt I had to do something," she said in an interview earlier this month. "It's really a matter of conscience."
[A] member of St. Joseph's Catholic Church in Fremont, [she] was one of three Californians arrested. She will not serve any jail time, but she will be subject to random searches for drugs and guns and will be limited in her travel activities. Lynch said earlier that Georgia Magistrate G. Mallon Faircloth, who presided over the hearing Monday, is known to be tough on Fort Benning protesters.
Lynch, who has been arrested before but has never served jail time, had braced herself to serve the maximum penalty of six months in jail and a$5,000 fine. It is unclear what criteria Faircloth used Monday to determine sentences, but officials with SOA Watch said they were pleased with the outcome. Two Jesuit priests who were arrested had opted to stay in jail until their hearing, and they were sentenced Monday to time served and released, said Sister Dorothy Pagosa, a SOA volunteer.
The time protesters must serve behind bars "pales in comparison to the torture and death" caused by the Fort Benning school, said Pagosa, whose group is seeking to close the school through vigils, publicity and the annual nonviolent protests on the November anniversary of the priests' deaths. The other two California women who were arrested live in Sacramento.
Elizabeth Bradley was sentenced to 12 months of probation and a $500 fine, and Lisa Barnes was sentenced to three months in jail.
Staff writer Melissa Evans covers religion and culture for The Argus. She can be reached at (510) 353-7005 or mevans@angnewspapers.com."The Sacredness of Civil Disobedience" is the title of a presentation by Betsy Lamb, pastoral associate at St. Augustine Church from 1997-2000, a Bay Area resident from 1980-2000. She will speak about her journey of faith in being arrested (Nov. 2003) and going to trial (Jan. 28, 2004) in Columbus, GA for protesting the School of the Americas. The talk will be on Wednesday, Feb. 4 at 7:30 pm. The event will be held at St. Augustine Church, 3700 Callan Boulevard, South San Francisco. For information call: (650) 873-2282 or contact Judy Liteky.Directions: From I-280, take Westborough west. At the third light, take Callan to the right (north).
SOAWW meeting in San Francisco
Thursday, Feb. 5, 2004, 7:00 pm
Unitarian Universalist Church, 1187 Franklin at Geary, San Francisco
Agenda includes preparation for local and national events and a presentation by Betsy Lamb (See above).
For information, contact Judy Liteky.SOA Watch West meeting in Oakland
Wednesday, Feb. 18, 7:00 pm
Contact Bob Nixon.Forum on SOA/WHINSEC in San Francisco
Thursday, Feb. 19, 2004, 5:00 pm - Maraschi Room, Xavier Residence Hall, Golden Gate and Parker.
The entrance is from the walkway along the east side of Xavier Hall.Sponsored by St. Thomas More Society of the University of San Francisco Law School
Speakers will include Colonel (ret) Kenneth LaPlante and Lieutenant Colonel Linda Gould speaking in support of SOA/WHINSEC, as well as Attorney Bill Quigley of Loyola University in New Orleans and Dr. Terry Karl of Stanford University speaking for the SOA Watch movement.
Marin Interfaith Task Force on the Americas presents:
"DISCOVERING DOMINGA"
Directed & Produced by Patricia Flynn and Co-Produced by Mary Jo McConahay
Winner "Best Documentary"-Los Angeles Latino International Film FestivalA young Iowa immigrant (Denise), born a Mayan Indian (Dominga), discovers she is a survivor of one of the most horrific massacres in Guatemalan history. She returns to her community, one of 400 Mayan villages eradicated by the U.S. supported Guatemalan military in 1982.
The film follows her emotional odyssey of self-discovery and political awakening as she travels from the cornfields of her adoptive Iowa to the highlands of Guatemala in search of her past.
As this courageous young woman comes to terms with her bi-cultural identity, her story also sheds light on the genocide against the largest Indian majority in the hemisphere and the impunity that obscures the crimes of the Guatemalan government that resulted in the deaths and disappearances of over 200,000 Mayan people.
A panel of guest speakers will report on the recent presidential elections and the progress of the genocide cases against past presidents Rios Montt and Lucas Garcia.
Christie Keith: Member of GNIB collective and former NISGUA directorTuesday, February 3, 7:30 pm
Josué Revolorio: Member of GNIB collective and NISGUA board member
Jennifer Friedman: Recent GAP volunteer, who lived in Mayan communities for seven months
First United Methodist Church
9 Ross Valley Drive (at 3rd St.), San Rafael, CASliding scale: $5-10. Benefit for MITF continuing support for Guatemala Accompaniment Project
Wheelchair access . Information: 415/924-3227 or mitf@igc.org
Endorsed by Comité Guatemala Nunca Mas and Guatemala News and Information Bureau (GNIB)
School of the Americas Watch–West ~ SOAW–W
January 29, 2004San Jose Website - http://teachers.bcp.org/llauro
Los Angeles Website - www.soaw-la.org
National Website - www.soaw.org
Georgia Trials conclude
School of the Americas Watch West - SOAWW, Jan. 29, 2004
1) GEORGIA TRIALS
A story about the third day of the trials is available at www.ledger-enquirer.comA story about Kathy Kelly, who received a three-month sentence, is available at http://antiwar.com/*
Betsy Lamb, who also received a three-month sentence, will speak in South San Francisco on Feb. 4 and in San Francisco on Feb. 5. See below for more about these and other upcoming events.
Final Sentences for the SOA 28 (listed in order of state)
Elizabeth Bradley, 49, of Sacramento, CA- 12 months probation, $500 fineDetails below on #2 and #3.
Leisa Faulkner Barnes, 49, of Sacramento, CA- three months federal prison, $500 fine
Louise Lynch, 68, of Fremont, CA- 12 months probation, $500 fine
Faith Fippinger, 63, of Sarasota, FL- three months federal prison
David Corcoran, 69, of Des Plaines, IL- six months federal prison
Scott P. Diehl, 40, of Burlington, IA- three months federal prison, $500 fine
Kathy Kelly, 51, of Chicago, IL- three months federal prison
Craig Adams, 52, of Glenwood, WI- three months federal prison
Rich Wekerle, 67, of Moscow, ID- six months federal prison
Cynthia Brinkman, SSND, 67, Ellington, MN-six months federal prison
Ozone O'Leary, currently residing in Duluth, MN- three months in federal prison
Mary Vaughan, of White Bear, MN- 24 months probation, $500 fine
Michael Walli, 55, of Duluth, MN- three months federal prison, $500 fine
Gregory Poferl, 57, of St. Paul, MN- three months federal prison, $1,000 fine
Gary Ashbeck, of Baltimore, MD- six months federal prison, 67 days credited for time served
Betsy Lamb, 65, of Columbia, MD- three months federal prison, $500 fine
Shirley Way, 42, of Stanley, NY- three months federal prison
Alice E. Gerard, 47, of Buffalo, NY- three months federal prison, $500 fine
Fr. Joseph E. Mulligan, S.J., 60, of Nicaragua- three months federal prison
Brother Mike O'Grady, S.J., 41, of Cincinnati, OH- 32 days Muscogee County Jail
Fr. Ben Jimenez, S.J., of Cleveland, OH- released on time served
Peg Morton, 73, of Eugene, OR- three months federal prison
Fr. Bernie Survil, 63, of Greenburg, PA, three months federal prison
Don Beisswenger, 73, of Nashville, TN- six months federal prison, $1,000 fine
Sarah Jobe, 22, of Nashville, TN- 12 months probation, $1,500 fine
Eric Robinson, 23, of Bellingham, WA- six months federal prison, $1,000 fine
Fr. Jerry Zawada, 66, of Burlington, WI- six months federal prisonEVENTS
2) REPORT BACK from Georgia Trial with Betsy Lamb
Wednesday, Feb. 4, 7:30 pm
St. Augustine Catholic Church, South San Francisco3) SOAWW MEETING in San Francisco
Thursday, Feb. 5, 2004, 7:00 pm
Presentation by Betsy Lamb
These are regularly scheduled for the first Thursday of the month - March 4, April 1, May 6.4) National Events
Washington, DC Lobby Days for HR 1258 (now: 105 co-sponsors; goal: 45 more)
Sat-Tues, March 27-30, 2004
Contact David Mezzera, soaw-west@att.netVigil to close SOA/WHINSEC at Fort Benning, Georgia
Fri-Sun, Nov. 19-21, 2004* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
"The Sacredness of Civil Disobedience" is the title of a presentation by Betsy Lamb, pastoral associate at St. Augustine Church from 1997-2000, a Bay Area resident from 1980-2000. She will speak about her journey of faith in being arrested (Nov. 2003) and going to trial (Jan. 28, 2004) in Columbus, GA for protesting the School of the Americas. The talk will be on Wednesday, Feb. 4 at 7:30 pm. The event will be held at St. Augustine Church, 3700 Callan Boulevard, South San Francisco. For information call: (650) 873-2282 or contact Judy Liteky.
Directions: From I-280, take Westborough west. At the third light, take Callan to the right (north).
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
SOAWW meeting in San Francisco
Thursday, Feb. 5, 2004, 7:00 pm
Unitarian Universalist Church, 1187 Franklin at Geary, San Francisco
Agenda includes preparation for local and national events and a presentation by Betsy Lamb (See #2 above).
For information, contact Judy Liteky.
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