tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-45229974087626719132024-03-19T07:57:16.699+00:00Amnesty International York‘Only when the last prisoner of conscience has been freed, when the last torture chamber has been closed, when the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights is a reality for the world’s people, will our work be done.’ Peter BenensonUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger117125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4522997408762671913.post-60383770483405671752021-04-28T22:34:00.000+01:002021-04-28T22:34:00.581+01:00New Website<p>We have a <a href="https://www.ai-york.uk/">new website</a> - so this is our last post on this one.</p><p>Early in May 2021 we will publish the top entries to our creative writing exhibition on <a href="https://www.ai-york.uk/">our new site</a> - not this one.<br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4522997408762671913.post-26212208624783856072021-03-05T17:17:00.000+00:002021-03-05T17:17:38.636+00:00"Last Chance for Lockdown Creativity"<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5rGPezKPGFbad6Jua-w-cknberlZDAcVhPiOBKdnUeOhbY5Jt24p6zo-3zwX56Xofa6pC5RvfmeGfTao91lRRqrOGz1nLEsWa-PJ5hCvdwHfMam0KLfPFEtNpsT6ww5F-dY_EjuqoNsNH/s2048/Locked+Poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1379" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5rGPezKPGFbad6Jua-w-cknberlZDAcVhPiOBKdnUeOhbY5Jt24p6zo-3zwX56Xofa6pC5RvfmeGfTao91lRRqrOGz1nLEsWa-PJ5hCvdwHfMam0KLfPFEtNpsT6ww5F-dY_EjuqoNsNH/s320/Locked+Poster.jpg" /></a></div><p>Our creative writing competition is in full swing. We are pleased to have received submissions from all over England but we want more - and Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are under-represented so we encourage entries from there too.</p><p>The competition is for original, unpublished fictional stories, poems or dramatic dialogues up to 500 words - on the theme of <i>Locked</i>. The top ten finalists will receive (courtesy of the author) signed copies of <i>Grandmothers</i>, the latest book by Salley Vickers - Sunday Times best-selling author of <i>The Librarian</i> and judge for this competition. The top five entries will be published on our website - and the winning writer will receive £50.<br /></p><p>Our member and competition-organiser Judy says this is "a last chance for lockdown creativity", because the final submission date is 31 March - but we also hope this is our last ever "lockdown"!</p><p>Full details of the competition are <a href="https://yorkamnestyuk.blogspot.com/p/competition-2021.html">here</a>.<br /></p><p></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4522997408762671913.post-75314261953711382862021-02-01T22:43:00.001+00:002021-02-01T22:54:08.407+00:00Quiz<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAVvmhK-X_Aw6kOdBBvdWDvWHKo20HAcBtWnWjMxi2BSO8iCFYHoVHVngf6jJ9a_JcChjzDA3B5SKJ4oJ0OlDRTUD0h8drQ2ObZlr7qJfdjPSgoTSDr1d54-TcOXSfIvSB5HFlIEVrPc51/s1920/quiz-2137664_1920.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="1920" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAVvmhK-X_Aw6kOdBBvdWDvWHKo20HAcBtWnWjMxi2BSO8iCFYHoVHVngf6jJ9a_JcChjzDA3B5SKJ4oJ0OlDRTUD0h8drQ2ObZlr7qJfdjPSgoTSDr1d54-TcOXSfIvSB5HFlIEVrPc51/s320/quiz-2137664_1920.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Our member Barbara writes:</span></span></p><blockquote><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Here is your invitation to Amnesty York's "Love Quiz" on Tuesday February 16th (as you may be busy on 14th, we have left that evening free for you).</span></span></p></blockquote><blockquote><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: arial;">It will be on <i>Zoom</i> (something we have all come to love in lockdown) at 7.30 pm.<br /></span></span></p></blockquote><blockquote><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: arial;">For the winner, there's a lovely book-token prize.<br /></span></span></p></blockquote><blockquote><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>How to Book</i>: Booking is by household: whatever number you are counts as a team.<br /></span></span></p></blockquote><blockquote><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: arial;">To register: e-mail us your household name at <a href="mailto:barbara.lodge@virginmedia.com">barbara.lodge@virginmedia.com</a><br /></span></span></p></blockquote><blockquote><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: arial;">We will send you in return the Zoom link for the quiz.<br /></span></span></p></blockquote><blockquote><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Singles</i>: If you are in lockdown on your own, you could pair up with a friend in the same situation to make a long-distance team. You can discuss answers to the questions over the phone. When booking, give us both names (and we will know you are a team) and both emails.<br /></span></span></p></blockquote><blockquote><p><i><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Money</span></span></i><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></span>: <span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: arial;">We'd like to make this a bit of a fundraiser for Amnesty York so that we are ready to go with our live campaigning once we are all safely virus-free. With the Zoom link, I will send you Amnesty York's bank details, if you would like to make a donation of any amount.</span></span></p></blockquote><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Our next monthly meeting takes place over Zoom on Tuesday 9 February. We have a guest speaker: Debora Singer, who is Amnesty International UK's country co-ordinator for Egypt. She will speak about human rights in Egypt. The meeting starts at 7.30 pm with our guest's talk then continues (from 8.30 pm) with our group's regular business. Members of other Amnesty International UK local groups (in Norwich, Bognor and Chichester, Mid-Gloucestershire and Wharfedale) are invited to join us for our guest's talk. So are you. To request a Zoom link, email <a href="mailto:yorkamnestyuk@gmail.com">yorkamnestyuk@gmail.com</a></span></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Our second creative writing competition is still open for entries - and details are still <a href="https://yorkamnestyuk.blogspot.com/p/competition-2021.html">here</a>.<br /></span></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4522997408762671913.post-68815453351647253932021-01-01T22:06:00.001+00:002021-01-01T22:22:08.447+00:00Creative Writing Competition 2021<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBVYBU8JQeDlRLi5zpEmJA2foNhb3kFinEnUhExl9lbTLkyuaJmrsmE8KZFBOQ3VJp0eOnxqh8bmRETnHQD0j1TDKEB4J6D1NFGW13LM7jJY0mH7SGy_nHE3JoXBJmWzlZ7X-BHY8rWQqD/s2048/Locked+Poster.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1379" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBVYBU8JQeDlRLi5zpEmJA2foNhb3kFinEnUhExl9lbTLkyuaJmrsmE8KZFBOQ3VJp0eOnxqh8bmRETnHQD0j1TDKEB4J6D1NFGW13LM7jJY0mH7SGy_nHE3JoXBJmWzlZ7X-BHY8rWQqD/s320/Locked+Poster.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span> </span></span></span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span>We
are proud to launch our second creative writing competition - on the
theme of "Locked". Its aim is to increase awareness of our human
rights and to raise funds for our human rights campaigning work.</span><br />
<span><br /></span>
<span>The
competition is for original, unpublished fictional stories, poems or dramatic dialogues up to 500
words. The winning writer will receive £50 and we will publish their entry here on this website. Entrants must be at least sixteen years
old and live in the United Kingdom.</span><br />
<span><br /></span>
<span>Full details are <a href="https://yorkamnestyuk.blogspot.com/p/competition-2021.html">here</a>.</span></span></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4522997408762671913.post-9760964017340706272020-12-02T11:24:00.000+00:002020-12-02T11:24:03.052+00:00Writing Competition<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSM6nzPIaywaPWjG1lFyJxqOZ6Bwnh-Xle47RFcr4_1RXmVF74AATwLeOQqewTfTKEF8dHyM6RBSovfBDZJMQiiQzzXa_WSw0lpKUWqYisogVggYBnjHdsDxDc8K-e1o0iUxMZoLo5AI5H/s1920/once-upon-a-time-719174_1920.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1030" data-original-width="1920" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSM6nzPIaywaPWjG1lFyJxqOZ6Bwnh-Xle47RFcr4_1RXmVF74AATwLeOQqewTfTKEF8dHyM6RBSovfBDZJMQiiQzzXa_WSw0lpKUWqYisogVggYBnjHdsDxDc8K-e1o0iUxMZoLo5AI5H/s320/once-upon-a-time-719174_1920.jpg" width="320" /></a> <span style="font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.3333px; left: 47.244px; top: 956.774px; transform: scaleX(0.973709);">We are planning another writing competition. Write a short story, poem or dramatic dialogue on the theme of "Locked" (maximum 500 words). Final submission 31 March 2021. First prize £50. We'll post full details here as soon as possible - later in December or in the New Year, we expect.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.3333px; left: 47.244px; top: 956.774px; transform: scaleX(0.973709);"> </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.3333px; left: 47.244px; top: 956.774px; transform: scaleX(0.973709);">In the meantime, you can <a href="https://yorkamnestyuk.blogspot.com/p/competition.html">read</a> the winning entry and runners-up from our inaugural short story writing competition or <a href="https://soundcloud.com/user-257397335">listen</a> to them (stream online or download and listen later).<br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.3333px; left: 47.244px; top: 956.774px; transform: scaleX(0.973709);"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.3333px; left: 47.244px; top: 956.774px; transform: scaleX(0.973709);"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbv9iw3F0em5is-7-PL_xp8molgIXShRSqbx1m2YlXiYdpEm8oMeHoaBm0DI9P8Nx8aeohVczrO7TZbE2dLywT_PbERyfWFXJl0wwnerfQAY5BCdBSmQ7pihwmf4unZt9LZ2VENUi-aVhs/s1600/2020+10+13+York+AI+Zoom.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbv9iw3F0em5is-7-PL_xp8molgIXShRSqbx1m2YlXiYdpEm8oMeHoaBm0DI9P8Nx8aeohVczrO7TZbE2dLywT_PbERyfWFXJl0wwnerfQAY5BCdBSmQ7pihwmf4unZt9LZ2VENUi-aVhs/s320/2020+10+13+York+AI+Zoom.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.3333px; left: 47.244px; top: 956.774px; transform: scaleX(0.973709);">We now meet monthly online - on the second Tuesday of each month. Our next meeting is on Tuesday 8 December at 7.30pm. Among other things, we will plan how to spread the word about our writing competition. You can join us. Send an email to yorkamnestyuk@gmail.com<br /></span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4522997408762671913.post-39204187296861991702020-10-01T19:45:00.003+01:002020-10-01T19:58:35.892+01:0012 Hongkongers held incommunicado in China<p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfCrRFYlg6oC4MkaQ-sssh3DkeiYkGnK66t3DvtHUSNMUbVdVdbVI176HHybqlu2IeiaaxlrGecTHp8T0RTId_WApjsN1jkII4-jMXCBexLTma62kpik-pGpc5eGAh8vl5wTETb72MypR6/s1089/Postcard+to+China.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="771" data-original-width="1089" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfCrRFYlg6oC4MkaQ-sssh3DkeiYkGnK66t3DvtHUSNMUbVdVdbVI176HHybqlu2IeiaaxlrGecTHp8T0RTId_WApjsN1jkII4-jMXCBexLTma62kpik-pGpc5eGAh8vl5wTETb72MypR6/s320/Postcard+to+China.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;">A card we sent to a detainee</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Twelve Hongkongers, including pro-democracy activists, were arrested on 23 August 2020 by the Chinese coast-guard for allegedly crossing the border in secret in a speedboat. Held incommunicado, without access to their family or lawyers of their choice, they are at imminent risk of torture and other ill-treatment. Four lawyers from mainland China that the detainees' families hired dropped the cases after they were threatened by authorities.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">We wrote in support of the detainees. You can <a href="https://www.amnesty.org.uk/urgent-actions/12-hongkongers-held-incommunicado-china">take action</a> too.</span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4522997408762671913.post-20468591798318759082020-04-09T20:01:00.000+01:002020-04-09T20:01:29.921+01:006 Year Sentence for Drawing the Female Body<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvlpt_dgp-CHtrR-UxJiMZd5VcsQ6RnJY14M36DcGi4B6zNKnofvtz4fjg7-p2_qdqBVRnA_4dYJguba6RhS5VOnXkbXRWokdzID-xwddA9nGWYxsfu-jDGOAYRC9hD2m9p5v7oKkIcinA/s1600/yulia-tsvetkova-web.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="283" data-original-width="468" height="193" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvlpt_dgp-CHtrR-UxJiMZd5VcsQ6RnJY14M36DcGi4B6zNKnofvtz4fjg7-p2_qdqBVRnA_4dYJguba6RhS5VOnXkbXRWokdzID-xwddA9nGWYxsfu-jDGOAYRC9hD2m9p5v7oKkIcinA/s320/yulia-tsvetkova-web.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Yulia Tsvetkova</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">A Russian woman has been charged with "producing pornography" for sharing her drawings of the female body online.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Activists Yulia Tsvetkova was under house arrest for four months and could be sentenced to six years in prison.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Due to the lockdown, we are not holding a meeting this month. Instead, we just sent an email to Russian authorities asking that Yulia be released and the charges dropped.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Thousands of other people in the UK alone have taken the same action as us. <a href="https://www.amnesty.org.uk/actions/yulia-tsvetkova-russia-lgbt-activist-drawing-female-body" target="_blank">So can you.</a></span><br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeP2nJvMgSmC6CuudUKdtkkpXi5plwR-0PK23MKYsJKglgrYq-xTPbL1lmqoITSoAlxNI0Z466JEA8hDbfAF2O5uPMvq68C4j-c-pSddmA8gpT740zmYYJ6M9qVkNNZciI8MVyAhSS9X2_/s1600/yulia-tsvetkova-body.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="742" data-original-width="540" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeP2nJvMgSmC6CuudUKdtkkpXi5plwR-0PK23MKYsJKglgrYq-xTPbL1lmqoITSoAlxNI0Z466JEA8hDbfAF2O5uPMvq68C4j-c-pSddmA8gpT740zmYYJ6M9qVkNNZciI8MVyAhSS9X2_/s320/yulia-tsvetkova-body.jpg" width="232" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">A selection of Yulia's drawings</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4522997408762671913.post-72414855635982151642020-03-08T23:59:00.001+00:002020-03-08T23:59:32.998+00:00Children's Rights in Pakistan<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizJWyXbLzxgJBhxQQ4nK1jqud4FJta8LBaJz7A8kqGPrRUZ28WDsWE1ZJqbOXzwf-M1s4NT2-tXF8n7YcXiBxAyhLpGPHwpHO4nv3KtEgJkLc3F00rE4B0cIEjK4txuz7VgH1g67PX8Y-E/s1600/IMG_1426.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizJWyXbLzxgJBhxQQ4nK1jqud4FJta8LBaJz7A8kqGPrRUZ28WDsWE1ZJqbOXzwf-M1s4NT2-tXF8n7YcXiBxAyhLpGPHwpHO4nv3KtEgJkLc3F00rE4B0cIEjK4txuz7VgH1g67PX8Y-E/s320/IMG_1426.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Urooj Fatima speaking at our monthly meeting last month</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">At our monthly meeting last month, Urooj Fatima explained how geo-politics (including the west's involvement in neighbouring Afghanistan) has negatively impacted the rights of children in the former FATA area of Pakistan. Children and young people living there have grown up with war and militant influences. Urooj explained that, while there is a national action plan to rehabilitate communities in these areas, there is still a war in Afghanistan and militants move freely over the border.</span><h2>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">March Monthly Meeting</span></h2>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Our monthly meeting this month takes place on Tuesday 10 March at the usual venue - York Friends Meeting House, Friargate, York YO1 9RL. We do not have a guest speaker so the meeting starts at 7.30 pm. We finish by 9.00 pm at the latest. As always, everyone is welcome to attend.</span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4522997408762671913.post-34048997716065861272020-02-03T22:19:00.000+00:002020-02-03T22:19:19.861+00:00Helping Victims of Violence in Brazil<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHxdGpB-BKJt1-WAXdX2PizdO9YX-XogHm9NH3uu-Fk1D8YOy2NCBc86zj4u9pad58-RhfpgCd0d4Clgf18wE-qy-KaDaXFqahw-aVMTjSHjcQ5HXdp6C6__9Trz5gj89mQPjpzBzd54Js/s1600/Laize.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHxdGpB-BKJt1-WAXdX2PizdO9YX-XogHm9NH3uu-Fk1D8YOy2NCBc86zj4u9pad58-RhfpgCd0d4Clgf18wE-qy-KaDaXFqahw-aVMTjSHjcQ5HXdp6C6__9Trz5gj89mQPjpzBzd54Js/s320/Laize.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Laíze Benevides speaking at our monthly meeting last month</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Laíze Benevides, a lawyer from Brazil, was the guest speaker at our monthly meeting last month.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> Laíze told us how she and her colleagues help the victims of domestic violence, state violence and sexual violence.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> She also spoke about the assassination of Marielle Franco, a black woman who she knew personally, served for eight years in Brazil's Human Rights Commission in the state parliament and was voted the fifth best councilwoman for the whole country.</span><div>
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<h4>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">February Monthly Meeting</span></h4>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Our monthly meeting this month takes place on Tuesday 11 February at the usual venue - York Friends Meeting House, Friargate, York YO1 9RL. We have a guest speaker: Urooj Fatima will discuss her experience as a journalist in Pakistan, where she investigated child abuse and children being locked up in prison. The meeting starts at 7.00 pm with our guest's talk followed by questions and answers then continues (from 8.00 pm) with our group's regular business. All are welcome to attend and, if they like, to leave after our guest's talk.</span></div>
</div>
</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4522997408762671913.post-61503463139269818152020-01-12T13:45:00.000+00:002020-01-12T13:45:29.463+00:00Write for Rights - Photo<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6L2ZG_1LywKGN2np8qL4fMddyGqmTsGq0qgRR_NY0RL51ZbPybMxXMeI4OjijkN182iaeBliyx9Y7uJ0KmvgvSI7LDFXwAFxgxTW6L1Fxue62uG9XafAbmeYX6h7sE4hkmCxr2hGpJD-x/s1600/Stall+with+Meg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6L2ZG_1LywKGN2np8qL4fMddyGqmTsGq0qgRR_NY0RL51ZbPybMxXMeI4OjijkN182iaeBliyx9Y7uJ0KmvgvSI7LDFXwAFxgxTW6L1Fxue62uG9XafAbmeYX6h7sE4hkmCxr2hGpJD-x/s320/Stall+with+Meg.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Our "Write for Rights" stall on Bishopthorpe Road in December 2019</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">To mark International Human Rights Day, we held our annual card-writing stall on the corner of Bishopthorpe Road and Scarcroft Road in York on Saturday 7 December 2019.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">This was part of "Write for Rights", which is one of the world's biggest events in support of people who are unfairly oppressed and persecuted.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">At our event, members of the public wrote about 100 cards to a mixture of people.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Yasaman Aryani believes that women in Iran should have the right to choose whether or not they wear a veil in public - and was put in jail.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Magai Matiop Ngong is in prison in South Sudan. He was convicted when he was only 15 years old - and sentenced to death.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Thank you to everyone who came to our stall.</span><br />
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<h4>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Transgender People Face Difficulties in Nepal</span></h4>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRDzetZ612sLCcKvKUv_IncC3cuoCGWMAfnttAA6viltmbri3S0rXQPCZFiE0aTeqShkIoK9P0dWN4JumhTdnS4GyimNeMsue1Ihui2uVTdVERVPNl7irNAePyIiCvu73LRI6WcOxlV_Im/s1600/Rukshana%2527s+Talk.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRDzetZ612sLCcKvKUv_IncC3cuoCGWMAfnttAA6viltmbri3S0rXQPCZFiE0aTeqShkIoK9P0dWN4JumhTdnS4GyimNeMsue1Ihui2uVTdVERVPNl7irNAePyIiCvu73LRI6WcOxlV_Im/s320/Rukshana%2527s+Talk.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Our monthly meeting in December 2019</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">At our monthly meeting on 10 December 2019, Rukshana Kapali gave an informative and well-received talk. She explained how, in Nepal, official documents use "other" to categorise transgender people and this makes it difficult or impossible for them to do ordinary things such as applying for a place at university.</span></div>
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<h4>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">January Monthly Meeting</span></h4>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Our monthly meeting this month takes place on Tuesday 14 January at the usual venue - York Friends Meeting House, Friargate, York YO1 9RL. We have a guest speaker: Laize Benevides, a human rights defender, who is on a fellowship at the Centre for Applied Human Rights at the University of York. She is a human rights lawyer from Brazil. She will discuss her work in the "favela" slums of Rio de Janeiro, focussing on the abuse of street children, humanitarian problems and the challenges of working as a lawyer in very difficult times. The meeting starts at 7.00 pm with our guest's talk followed by questions and answers then continues (from 8.00 pm) with our group's Annual General Meeting and regular business meeting. You are welcome to attend and, if you like, to leave after our guest's talk.</span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4522997408762671913.post-68879030072929792392019-12-03T22:04:00.000+00:002019-12-03T22:04:42.300+00:00Write For Rights - To Mark International Human Rights Day<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1bFNa4BIWEa4WqQImDsjml6tuAU-utvb2uXiT1gSck-Nk3tOItWhkQIdyOs-yA8YCZpIbhaY3BeDtzGJBuKgpumRmSKgjQEeyRJQnyU6V0syoSEAAb9gL2ouZDuynYOLmomA1_4NCSjKM/s1600/York+MP+writes+for+rights.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="902" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1bFNa4BIWEa4WqQImDsjml6tuAU-utvb2uXiT1gSck-Nk3tOItWhkQIdyOs-yA8YCZpIbhaY3BeDtzGJBuKgpumRmSKgjQEeyRJQnyU6V0syoSEAAb9gL2ouZDuynYOLmomA1_4NCSjKM/s320/York+MP+writes+for+rights.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">Our "Write For Rights" stall on Bishopthorpe Road in December 2018</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">To mark International Human Rights Day, we hold our annual card-writing stall, on the corner of Bishopthorpe Road and Scarcroft Road in York (opposite Sainsburys), on Saturday 7 December. The stall will be open from 11.00 am to 2.30 pm.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">This is part of "Write For Rights", one of the world's biggest human rights events, when Amnesty International supporters all over the world write millions of letters and cards for people whose human rights are threatened.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">This year we have chosen the following four cases:</span><br />
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<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHDOqO-JxZben1eEcHWFe6QhVdCge0QiwoTSPjaKOWZSq66Q-hDnxNhSC10-GyJzMmwAE18OgUgBbfCYEHiV9Mnzx3oYKuBXwacNk1JO4bFDIUaPdt3l3BqnGck4BH-_-vkO_T51sGWITd/s1600/Iran+poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1129" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHDOqO-JxZben1eEcHWFe6QhVdCge0QiwoTSPjaKOWZSq66Q-hDnxNhSC10-GyJzMmwAE18OgUgBbfCYEHiV9Mnzx3oYKuBXwacNk1JO4bFDIUaPdt3l3BqnGck4BH-_-vkO_T51sGWITd/s320/Iran+poster.jpg" width="225" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"><a href="https://www.amnesty.org.uk/actions/iran-women-jailed-viral-video-forced-veiling-hijab-law" target="_blank">Yasaman Aryani</a>, jailed for defending women's right not to wear a veil in Iran</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ-RQTmgXS54tXqvKG0Pa-LL241WvFx8ad5FAP2VKmVOt-Qr9qCa-ISEiGR2QLG8OGxVjpJHqDt0TWode3ZetXO5bdglTTdaIQDx2-KyIIlX1LXAGJvhEIvQRi8Krkg52C1kJvTHHRKqHA/s1600/Philippines+poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1137" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ-RQTmgXS54tXqvKG0Pa-LL241WvFx8ad5FAP2VKmVOt-Qr9qCa-ISEiGR2QLG8OGxVjpJHqDt0TWode3ZetXO5bdglTTdaIQDx2-KyIIlX1LXAGJvhEIvQRi8Krkg52C1kJvTHHRKqHA/s320/Philippines+poster.jpg" width="227" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"><a href="https://www.amnesty.org.uk/write-for-rights/action/marinel-climate-philippines" target="_blank">Marinel Ubaido</a>, campaigning for climate justice in the Philippines</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4Gn7u6QJruo69zgLHhJCaXv8r6PHgEABYo2RqczheEqchCdU84PclBjXFtVQBK-Scj63Aj01uBTASWTRxRLUeYZCW722w3-V5uqL5YxYGMB0deAgCCv2kEuGChWsqifwE6uvOvWlM0sJT/s1600/Trans+poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1142" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4Gn7u6QJruo69zgLHhJCaXv8r6PHgEABYo2RqczheEqchCdU84PclBjXFtVQBK-Scj63Aj01uBTASWTRxRLUeYZCW722w3-V5uqL5YxYGMB0deAgCCv2kEuGChWsqifwE6uvOvWlM0sJT/s320/Trans+poster.jpg" width="228" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"><a href="https://www.amnesty.org.uk/write-for-rights/action/young-trans-people?from=issue" target="_blank">Young trans people</a>, not allowed to register their true gender identities in the United Kingdom</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghXqda3QdyjPxrc3oArFBIQMRR0te1weqF0P88akzJmkHOjXGywb90HcDFmXrgKGj2KSmgh75NvODkZhsbGfDF6sEiyFqhZ2XYfVo-mJBq2FDdepTHMkidjUtWaf1iSKyWKBSwjfG7Cvwp/s1600/S.Sudan+Poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1168" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghXqda3QdyjPxrc3oArFBIQMRR0te1weqF0P88akzJmkHOjXGywb90HcDFmXrgKGj2KSmgh75NvODkZhsbGfDF6sEiyFqhZ2XYfVo-mJBq2FDdepTHMkidjUtWaf1iSKyWKBSwjfG7Cvwp/s320/S.Sudan+Poster.jpg" width="233" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"><a href="https://www.amnesty.org.uk/magai-matiop-ngong" target="_blank">Magai Matiop Ngong</a>, teenager facing execution in South Sudan</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div>
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<h4>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">December Monthly Meeting</span></h4>
<div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Our monthly meeting this month takes place on Tuesday 10 December at the usual venue - York Friends Meeting House, Friargate, York YO1 9RL. We have a guest speaker: Rukshana Kapali, a human rights defender from Nepal, who is on a fellowship in the Centre for Applied Human Rights at the University of York. She is a queer rights and youth activist and will talk about "The Queer Rights Movement in Nepal and Youth Deviation". She challenges notions of Nepal being progressive when it comes to LGBTIQ rights and discusses how a new generation of activists has stepped up to promote LGBTIQ rights there. The meeting starts at 7.00 pm with our guest's talk followed by questions and answers then continues (from 8.00 pm) with our group's regular business. All are welcome to attend and, if they like, to leave after our guest's talk.</span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4522997408762671913.post-23408810710357429602019-11-04T22:37:00.000+00:002019-11-04T22:37:49.338+00:00Refugees Trapped in Appalling Conditions<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKe2dmwNMSXYiQRuEzaV_zS_389QaYowpBDZKkeT5h1xKRmU4b6JpW7Zdb3FIECZucIFKAmhhpR-oao6UhAhJMAIhWuLmygE4WXJOHEnXMPzwQ8qyH95rWGUzRC_DSGdc_10n-TE9aHJHL/s1600/EritreanGuest.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKe2dmwNMSXYiQRuEzaV_zS_389QaYowpBDZKkeT5h1xKRmU4b6JpW7Zdb3FIECZucIFKAmhhpR-oao6UhAhJMAIhWuLmygE4WXJOHEnXMPzwQ8qyH95rWGUzRC_DSGdc_10n-TE9aHJHL/s320/EritreanGuest.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Tesfamhret Tsegazghi (Tesfom) at our group's monthly meeting on 8 October 2019</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Tesfamhret Tsegazghi (known as Tesfom) was the guest speaker at our group's monthly meeting on 8 October.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">He comes from Eritrea, which has been described as "the worst dictatorship" and "the African North Korea".</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">He spoke about why people leave Eritrea. The authorities there do not tolerate protests, they imprison people for minor offences and they torture their prisoners.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">He explained how people flee Eritrea - with difficulty. Getting to Eritrea's border with Sudan, getting to a refugee camp in Sudan or to Sudan's border with Libya and then to a camp in Libya are costly challenges. Many do not make it: some get arrested in Eritrea or get transported back there, some are killed and some are sold into slavery.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">About 4,700 refugees (from not only from Eritrea but also war-torn Yemen, Sudan and Syria) have been stuck in appalling conditions in camps in Libya for the past three years, thanks to the policy of the European Union to prevent them from trying to cross the Mediterranean Sea by paying former people-traffickers to hold them in Libya. Rwanda gave asylum to 500 of these people. No other country took any.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Our group agreed that we will discuss what action we can take, at ...</span><br />
<h4>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Our Monthly Meeting in November</span></h4>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Our monthly meeting this month takes place on Tuesday 12 November at the usual venue - York Friends Meeting House, Friargate, York YO1 9RL. We do not have a guest speaker so the meeting starts at 7.30 pm. We finish by 9.00 pm at the latest. As always, everyone is welcome to attend.</span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4522997408762671913.post-21901264396176979422019-10-03T22:09:00.000+01:002019-10-03T22:09:40.955+01:00Eritrea<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjod9LqjvzRzp4zQ_zNMpHrAMrEF6xBPpR1q_aHyS_B7yObAzTFFEWEuhPzz2Lx2SmO70U9hJjWMJHYEC1TY5GS37qiMmEE7AIbWL8IcyVLSNODsG7VxUNvVGR8Bn3kHnD0DTsLACQ2CSwE/s1600/86b9eb4f-82ec-4afa-932e-ba8a1733ed48.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="240" data-original-width="480" height="160" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjod9LqjvzRzp4zQ_zNMpHrAMrEF6xBPpR1q_aHyS_B7yObAzTFFEWEuhPzz2Lx2SmO70U9hJjWMJHYEC1TY5GS37qiMmEE7AIbWL8IcyVLSNODsG7VxUNvVGR8Bn3kHnD0DTsLACQ2CSwE/s320/86b9eb4f-82ec-4afa-932e-ba8a1733ed48.jpeg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Eritrea in the Horn of Africa: Image from Amnesty International Switzerland</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Our monthly meeting this month takes place on Tuesday 8 October at the usual venue - York Friends Meeting House, Friargate, York YO1 9RL. We have a guest speaker: a member of the Eritrean refugee community in Sheffield who has been collecting information from <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eritrea" target="_blank">Eritrea</a>. The meeting starts at 7.00 p.m. with our guest's talk followed by questions and answers then continues (from 8.00 p.m.) with our group's regular business. All are welcome to attend and, if they like, to leave after our guest's talk.</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4522997408762671913.post-72042217964667279172019-08-06T20:36:00.002+01:002019-08-06T20:46:11.130+01:00Hand in Hand With Azza<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dw14lF979WEYPXQG6lP0Fa9tH-YXRVsOKYyG9CuBY4jb8HqG_F-Y3-ndh9x2XYY3h55-6wWrzHcC3qtKlgjog' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Azza Soliman is a lawyer</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">in Egypt</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">. She campaigns to protect women in her home country from being harassed at work, beaten and raped. For more than 30 years she has stood up for the rights of her fellow countrywomen. The Egyptian government accuses her of harming their country's image. If she is found guilty, Azza faces years in prison. Until her trial, her bank account is frozen and she is banned from travelling outside Egypt. We call on President al-Sisi to drop the charges against her and others in the country.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">We danced around St Sampson's Square in York city centre on Sunday 14 July - to draw attention to Azza's cause.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJA-bKVI_QWz5OD-oX3VAWe5DPrYNIjfGxXKmn8V6K6xyNl7l-Kkbw28kTG5mHOwR7Zl4hesBwxY-VgIy9qQj3cnoJGrKOIYchyphenhypheng-hw5OOWpbQBB-cgJy1BxUnY4AUPuWDNKbXPSi3zwQw/s1600/AIazza-14.0+mm07142019+445.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="856" data-original-width="1280" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJA-bKVI_QWz5OD-oX3VAWe5DPrYNIjfGxXKmn8V6K6xyNl7l-Kkbw28kTG5mHOwR7Zl4hesBwxY-VgIy9qQj3cnoJGrKOIYchyphenhypheng-hw5OOWpbQBB-cgJy1BxUnY4AUPuWDNKbXPSi3zwQw/s320/AIazza-14.0+mm07142019+445.jpeg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">Dancing around St Sampson's Square</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2Ip-_1YaF7kQQlkAzkO37tvY9kPEOIg5gzNvWdyUfTCrp3A4CYnF5J1iusIKbNuZ6ukXe3F8wEi09yaHYB3o6QvKXtZ9Q01cI1diPyxm0hrpx97ZrkJd6YbHHnD0UckOF2exlf9VFi4Hs/s1600/AIazza-14.0+mm07142019+442.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="939" data-original-width="1280" height="234" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2Ip-_1YaF7kQQlkAzkO37tvY9kPEOIg5gzNvWdyUfTCrp3A4CYnF5J1iusIKbNuZ6ukXe3F8wEi09yaHYB3o6QvKXtZ9Q01cI1diPyxm0hrpx97ZrkJd6YbHHnD0UckOF2exlf9VFi4Hs/s320/AIazza-14.0+mm07142019+442.jpeg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">Another dance around St Sampon's Square</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">You can learn more about Azza and join our call for Egypt to drop the charges against her <a href="https://www.amnesty.org.uk/actions/azza-soliman" target="_blank">here</a>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Regular Meetings</span></h4>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsbALRM2EfgBI_XFVNynNl0DcHAHV6CTs95LMjsPVphRz-Ki1xxdqxyf5w2CFuQXSB9qHyMNCEiu6qsXN287tjPjYZ4LaGXml6UCY6g1YqV9LpCpdnukeQUu8ROQw4Ac9IHbU0chKkPAWw/s1600/LetterWritingJuly2019.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsbALRM2EfgBI_XFVNynNl0DcHAHV6CTs95LMjsPVphRz-Ki1xxdqxyf5w2CFuQXSB9qHyMNCEiu6qsXN287tjPjYZ4LaGXml6UCY6g1YqV9LpCpdnukeQUu8ROQw4Ac9IHbU0chKkPAWw/s320/LetterWritingJuly2019.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">Our monthly letter-writing session at the Winning Post public house on Bishopthorpe Road in York in July 2019</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Our next monthly meeting takes place on Tuesday 10 September. Once a month we also meet to write letters in support of individuals around the world who face unfair persecution; the next letter-writing session is on Wednesday 25 September. </span><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">In August we take a break.</span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4522997408762671913.post-54353322293520624882019-07-06T21:57:00.000+01:002019-07-06T21:57:38.026+01:00York Pride 2019 - Photos<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS5N59kEPutMKRa2dkWmQKHdbU2Wi-Nk86vBTAHgilt1cXvoeDnviU92019JGxXI2pztNAEfsDAqi36dRxNOE2irIXU__3bl9zFgfLGNKiJrHiWxY4eqYoXxuZSVNf0W-KFj8A05s_I_X-/s1600/DisorderlyRibbons.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1196" data-original-width="1200" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS5N59kEPutMKRa2dkWmQKHdbU2Wi-Nk86vBTAHgilt1cXvoeDnviU92019JGxXI2pztNAEfsDAqi36dRxNOE2irIXU__3bl9zFgfLGNKiJrHiWxY4eqYoXxuZSVNf0W-KFj8A05s_I_X-/s320/DisorderlyRibbons.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Messages written on ribbons by members of the public at our stall at York Pride 2019</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">On Saturday 8 June we attended York Pride, for the sixth year in a row. At our stall, members of the public wrote supportive messages on 93 ribbons.</span><div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA2LfqgE_6g-_2OP3BxXT_v3CtodgbtJmh3MnjGrLCiILNCdChJ_yGXeO3OU6ot18WEerbTzFjz3PB0NbsBqirnAUgZ7g4Gp-oRObN5rCpikqdRtbFDvRDoOKyM4LdLXnogv8C2SvY2FeX/s1600/OrderlyRibbons.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA2LfqgE_6g-_2OP3BxXT_v3CtodgbtJmh3MnjGrLCiILNCdChJ_yGXeO3OU6ot18WEerbTzFjz3PB0NbsBqirnAUgZ7g4Gp-oRObN5rCpikqdRtbFDvRDoOKyM4LdLXnogv8C2SvY2FeX/s320/OrderlyRibbons.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Messages encouraging LGBTI people and their allies in Turkey</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Afterwards, we sent the ribbons to Turkey, for LGBTI people there and their allies to wear as bracelets at Istanbul Pride.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpQtiDDkMhNvX4RBIXBq27tTFdPcfioZoJZyN3EcR1J22a3tZbhrCWfxk24_AJHul7wVWPTTErawtV8ZhmJZl8iyL28SauhA_yREN3edJtT5FIcNdRCoF3tEPwSR77adGNvUmvYOX_aVie/s1600/LetterAndRibbons.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpQtiDDkMhNvX4RBIXBq27tTFdPcfioZoJZyN3EcR1J22a3tZbhrCWfxk24_AJHul7wVWPTTErawtV8ZhmJZl8iyL28SauhA_yREN3edJtT5FIcNdRCoF3tEPwSR77adGNvUmvYOX_aVie/s320/LetterAndRibbons.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">The letter and ribbons that we sent to Turkey</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">On Sunday 30 June, hundreds of people came together peacefully for Istanbul Pride, despite it being banned - but police used tear gas and plastic bullets to disperse the crowd.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Circle Dancing in St Sampson's Square</span></h4>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">On Sunday 14 July we will have a stall in St Sampson's Square (outside Browns department store) from 10.30 am to 2.00 pm. There will be a performance of women's circle dancing, led by Karen Michaelsen, from 12.30 pm for about half an hour. Our stall will highlight <a href="https://www.amnesty.org.uk/actions/azza-soliman" target="_blank">the plight of Azza Soliman</a>.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Our Monthly Meeting in July</span></h4>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Our monthly meeting this month takes place on Tuesday 9 July at the usual venue - York Friends Meeting House, Friargate, York YO1 9RL. We do not have a guest speaker so the meeting starts at 7.30 pm. We finish by 9.00 pm at the latest. As always, everyone is welcome to attend.</span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4522997408762671913.post-1510452916036672102019-06-06T14:33:00.000+01:002019-06-06T14:33:22.778+01:00York Pride 2019<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGDKKFGelCxT_RmTX-mA1b8uQIYXdpszGu-I3geMYm0P1lhxz507-IaAKYpprNU1x1oSmn6xa9BnmW6K3Npk3a4MpWNbNNe-pQXActLGpcVY7DfIQUu4VQF5oP0UWrIK6cxKVo-WOZ4w7W/s1600/Pride+2018+Susan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGDKKFGelCxT_RmTX-mA1b8uQIYXdpszGu-I3geMYm0P1lhxz507-IaAKYpprNU1x1oSmn6xa9BnmW6K3Npk3a4MpWNbNNe-pQXActLGpcVY7DfIQUu4VQF5oP0UWrIK6cxKVo-WOZ4w7W/s320/Pride+2018+Susan.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Susan spreads the word at York Pride 2018</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">We are delighted to support York Pride - for the sixth year in a row.</span><div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">At our stall you can sign petitions to show support for LGBT+ people around the world. One petition asks Russia's President Vladimir Putin to <a href="https://www.amnesty.org.uk/actions/stop-abducting-and-killing-gay-men-chechnya?from=issue" target="_blank">end the persecution of gay people in Chechnya</a>. Another calls <a href="https://www.amnesty.org.uk/actions/demand-marriage-equality-northern-ireland" target="_blank">for same-sex marriage to be legalised in Northern Ireland</a>.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The main feature of our stand this year is supporting Pride events in the Turkish cities of Istanbul and Ankara. <a href="https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2018/07/chasing-rainbows-in-istanbul/" target="_blank">Istanbul</a> used to have a huge Pride event that attracted up to 100,000 people. Since 2016, the authorities have banned Pride, citing "security concerns and public order". When small gatherings have been permitted, attendees have been intimidated by police, who use water cannons and rubber bullets. It is likely that some sort of Pride event gathering will take place this Summer but it is likely to be small-scale and last-minute, at the discretion of the authorities.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">At our stall we invite you to write a message of support for Istanbul Pride on a piece of ribbon and then add it to our colourful display. Afterwards we plan to send them to a contact in Istanbul to be given out to Pride attendees to wear as bracelets.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The event takes place on the Knavesmire in York on Saturday 8 June and we will be there all day.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgduIoRRhUZ7-FNMUOZToK65l-zMLPsQ_HCyCTNN9d5yKYeY36T4eMCmMnWIfEmE_FjMdxfwEmNT72nAi4u9IOBLHfnwbIormxTCEHc1ebPmf2xhc5tC66i7estcF3P9NUmxjNBq5kuBi-4/s1600/Pride+2018+stall.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1200" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgduIoRRhUZ7-FNMUOZToK65l-zMLPsQ_HCyCTNN9d5yKYeY36T4eMCmMnWIfEmE_FjMdxfwEmNT72nAi4u9IOBLHfnwbIormxTCEHc1ebPmf2xhc5tC66i7estcF3P9NUmxjNBq5kuBi-4/s320/Pride+2018+stall.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Us and our stall at York Pride 2018</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Our Next Monthly Meeting</span></h4>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Tom Franklin is the guest speaker at our monthly meeting this month at the usual venue - the Friends Meeting House, Friargate, York YO1 9RL. Tom will talk about work done by the Campaign Against the Arms Trade and how to get involved. The meeting takes place on Tuesday 11 June, starts at 7 p.m. with Tom's talk followed by questions and answers and then continues (from 8 p.m.) with our group's regular business. All are welcome to attend and, if they like, to leave after Tom's talk.</span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4522997408762671913.post-6580812069642737452019-05-01T22:58:00.000+01:002019-05-01T23:18:38.163+01:00We Feel Inspired - by Amnesty International UK's AGM and Conference<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu_R4c0xnx8SzFGMkYfYNYXSQjKGLLcvyxWlKG6XNRzq0CXw1krtBt5KyrwVcHhYqnJWluC9f3ICdQoPYlhic1qREUaJ1zIvaRv74NA9z92M0jSTuywNBiL3MV5KbHqtt2EMVS3SYoguPM/s1600/AGMvenue.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu_R4c0xnx8SzFGMkYfYNYXSQjKGLLcvyxWlKG6XNRzq0CXw1krtBt5KyrwVcHhYqnJWluC9f3ICdQoPYlhic1qREUaJ1zIvaRv74NA9z92M0jSTuywNBiL3MV5KbHqtt2EMVS3SYoguPM/s320/AGMvenue.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">The venue for Amnesty International UK's National Conference and AGM in Nottingham</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "arial"; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">One of our members writes (in April):</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "arial"; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">My wife and I attended our first Amnesty International Conference and Annual General Meeting at the weekend and we were not disappointed! We are relatively new to Amnesty so didn't really know what to expect but the people we met and the talks/workshops we attended left us feeling </span><span style="font-family: "arial"; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">empowered and proud to be part of a global movement for change.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "arial"; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The main thing that I would take away from the weekend is that Amnesty seems to be broadening the scope of its focus. From the 'Austerity and Human Rights' workshop we gained an invaluable insight into the human rights issues that are all around us right here in the UK. Socio-economic issues that many would not see as human rights issues but by definition are absolutely valid issues, taken straight from Article 25 of the <a href="https://www.un.org/en/universal-declaration-human-rights/" target="_blank">United Nations Declaration of Human Rights</a></span><span style="font-family: "arial"; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. We discussed issues such as the right to access to food, housing and social security in times of adversity. We left the workshop with a strong sense that these issues do belong in scope of Amnesty and that they are the very issues that could help broaden the membership of the organisation at a local level.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: large;">The stars of the show were the young members from youth groups and student groups across the country. From ideas they presented in workshops to debating the AGM resolutions, these young people showed they are future leaders and their enthusiasm can be an invaluable driving force in mobilising activists. The highlight was seeing many young people up on stage with the new Secretary General Kumi Naidoo, protesting for climate change, another issue that quite rightly is being picked up by Amnesty International.</span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv1J0iZ7TxAprFvXyVFXZgwaHJ_ow0LtOeDyrNpSgaBm4Eaobpv7ApJxrlVf1MntnreiLiAxlCTOwKS3ct5U4EygS0V9VRs4xLtzWTkT_cuG2vqLY9ljngYH4GIjO25Y9fn9qq4LQAyjCz/s1600/KumiNaidoo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv1J0iZ7TxAprFvXyVFXZgwaHJ_ow0LtOeDyrNpSgaBm4Eaobpv7ApJxrlVf1MntnreiLiAxlCTOwKS3ct5U4EygS0V9VRs4xLtzWTkT_cuG2vqLY9ljngYH4GIjO25Y9fn9qq4LQAyjCz/s320/KumiNaidoo.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">Amnesty International's new Secretary General Kumi Naidoo in conversation about climate change at AIUK's National Conference and AGM in Nottingham in April 2019</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: large;">As we all know, campaigning for human rights is as important as ever. Lyndsay Burtonshaw of the <a href="https://www.amnesty.org.uk/stansted-15-tell-their-story-through-film" target="_blank">Stansted 15</a> said something that I think will have resonated with many of us. They said that they often feel like a fraud and suffer 'Impostor Syndrome' when defending human rights, that they are not qualified to take on some of these issues. I know I have often felt like this, having been blessed with coming from a pretty privileged background. However, this shouldn't be a reason to do nothing, if anything it should empower us to do more. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: large;">And that is how I feel after this weekend, empowered to do more. We came away with some great ideas for our York Pride event in June, ideas for local campaigns and contacts throughout Amnesty that I am sure will prove invaluable in the future. If you would like to join us then I will see you at the next meeting!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: large;">Happy Birthday to Azza Soliman!</span></span></h4>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj31qSfUXMDkDOiIGlwISqXNdDcxnVYF0qKJA82MDF4rJnpHV7tSdK5mrQJclH0vR65T_nJ_eHa-602xJewDOvXXlp_gsd2HLGizGCI08_qbIGUkFfW8rV_DPin9XR9j3NkW6Ef5ky4A8hL/s1600/azzabirthday.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="788" data-original-width="1280" height="197" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj31qSfUXMDkDOiIGlwISqXNdDcxnVYF0qKJA82MDF4rJnpHV7tSdK5mrQJclH0vR65T_nJ_eHa-602xJewDOvXXlp_gsd2HLGizGCI08_qbIGUkFfW8rV_DPin9XR9j3NkW6Ef5ky4A8hL/s320/azzabirthday.jpeg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">We wish Azza Soliman a happy birthday, in Arabic, at our monthly meeting last month</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: large;">Our monthly meeting in April took place on the birthday of <a href="http://yorkamnestyuk.blogspot.com/2019/04/female-human-rights-campaigners.html" target="_blank">Azza Soliman</a>, who campaigns in support of abused women in Egypt. To mark the occasion, we took this photo and sent it to her. She liked it!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "arial";">Supporting Refugees and Asylum-Seekers in Wakefield</span></span></span></h4>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkDNeSvNGw6hZG4cepRi-cVFTUq_9Z5cG8NyebSWnnz0MObSdixMGkhO-cV_iqDagY8mfIcfoWHI-D4AGD7QHP-e_teFRm0l9wzIk4lHn7t5vEZCU_17ZTj2x9HTQ2KhvQinq4UZhgyTZ9/s1600/LFieleding.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="692" data-original-width="1280" height="173" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkDNeSvNGw6hZG4cepRi-cVFTUq_9Z5cG8NyebSWnnz0MObSdixMGkhO-cV_iqDagY8mfIcfoWHI-D4AGD7QHP-e_teFRm0l9wzIk4lHn7t5vEZCU_17ZTj2x9HTQ2KhvQinq4UZhgyTZ9/s320/LFieleding.jpeg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">Linda Fielding (second from the left) at our monthly meeting last month</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: large; white-space: pre-wrap;">Also at our monthly meeting in April, Linda Fielding talked about her work with refugees and asylum-seekers in Wakefield (which has at any one time 300 new asylum-seekers). She is a member of <a href="https://wakefield.cityofsanctuary.org/" target="_blank">Wakefield City of Sanctuary</a> and <a href="http://www.aiukwakefield.org.uk/" target="_blank">the Wakefield Local Group of Amnesty International UK</a>. Her work is practical - providing clothes to newly arrived asylum-seekers and "Welcome to the World" packs for new babies. The "City of Sanctuary" also supports asylum-seekers through the vagaries of the refugee process.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: large; white-space: pre-wrap;">Our Monthly Meeting in May</span></h4>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: large; white-space: pre-wrap;">Our next monthly meeting takes place on Tuesday 14 May at the usual venue - York Friends Meeting House, Friargate, York YO1 9RL. We do not have a guest speaker so the meeting starts at 7.30 pm. We finish by 9.00 pm at the latest. As always, everyone is welcome to attend.</span></div>
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</span></span></span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4522997408762671913.post-70012325165353254402019-04-02T00:04:00.000+01:002019-04-02T00:09:26.152+01:00Female Human Rights Campaigners<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2YWhYqlvVPBypfotqlfDrwk_Si5YC4oZd8gMf9Vl0nkT_MYKv3uKZbPBeBQZ2hpuojwE_RjZgzPLubwY7TCC33PdpUkA9Nzc2U8q_dbSQWx1i3xdZg0jNt1cOvh2hOO8vJH6GT6V9WwCr/s1600/AzzaGroup.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="1280" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2YWhYqlvVPBypfotqlfDrwk_Si5YC4oZd8gMf9Vl0nkT_MYKv3uKZbPBeBQZ2hpuojwE_RjZgzPLubwY7TCC33PdpUkA9Nzc2U8q_dbSQWx1i3xdZg0jNt1cOvh2hOO8vJH6GT6V9WwCr/s320/AzzaGroup.jpeg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">We display a blue plaque in Castlegate</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">In March 2019, we honoured one female human rights campaigner who faces persecution in her home country and heard from another.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Azza Soliman from Egypt</span></h4>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">To mark International Women's Day, we displayed</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"> a blue plaque outside flats in Castlegate in central York where Egyptian lawyer Azza Soliman lived when she spent six months at the University of York's Centre for Applied Human Rights from 2015 to 2016.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrQv1FKYDpU_bu7p8593geA-8b7h-lUMxphyphenhyphen3rorfQzgKMSltEmXZPZlj2rFunXuFQof94mzuYoyi0qCoIM9SQwu6MCkaN7KcAcxjtgvBBcJooo3SzI12Twd8YhmYIVixVqjB1M2e2A_HX/s1600/AzzaPlaque.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="1280" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrQv1FKYDpU_bu7p8593geA-8b7h-lUMxphyphenhyphen3rorfQzgKMSltEmXZPZlj2rFunXuFQof94mzuYoyi0qCoIM9SQwu6MCkaN7KcAcxjtgvBBcJooo3SzI12Twd8YhmYIVixVqjB1M2e2A_HX/s320/AzzaPlaque.jpeg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">A close-up of the blue plaque that we displayed in Castlegate</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">On returning from York to Egypt, Azza continued to speak out, particularly on issues of rape and domestic abuse, as co-founder of the Centre for Egyptian Women's Legal Assistance. Since then, she has been arrested and faces charges such as slandering Egypt's image. She is banned from travelling overseas, her bank account is frozen and she risks a long prison sentence. We call for the Egyptian authorities to drop all charges against Azza and her colleagues and to allow them to travel and access their bank account.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg69oUxTi8dyoD7XOZ3HQz3jjSLLDbl3LytLMEkIcsV71kTWceOSXWwGCGfcgoVlPd-2Atwzznud20qfRb91HE6i1fptFM-u4lpTcGRvBGnwTS-iDwRZ0U00aM18GlXdPxgvoz2y4eawY7m/s1600/IMG_20190307_111401_resized_20190307_052443549.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg69oUxTi8dyoD7XOZ3HQz3jjSLLDbl3LytLMEkIcsV71kTWceOSXWwGCGfcgoVlPd-2Atwzznud20qfRb91HE6i1fptFM-u4lpTcGRvBGnwTS-iDwRZ0U00aM18GlXdPxgvoz2y4eawY7m/s320/IMG_20190307_111401_resized_20190307_052443549.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">Biscuits in the shape of the ankh</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">We also baked biscuits in the shape of the ankh, which is an ancient Egyptian hieroglyphic symbol that represents life. We then served the biscuits at a series of coffee mornings, where people also wrote letters and cards to the Egyptian authorities and messages of support to Azza.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRw_PZOnuLZDsJ0DYfS8KnasTk2QVZ4FYQYpaBZ-pkDDAb96zvhEDQdEDqieQiHC6c8pBv0DDIOv80dmiDBOUhujig4GphEvO-zIAWMcQK3FOFlrRv0pL2dKwltDXsLT-bHnEGj3VejRbc/s1600/CAHR+staff.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="610" data-original-width="1600" height="121" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRw_PZOnuLZDsJ0DYfS8KnasTk2QVZ4FYQYpaBZ-pkDDAb96zvhEDQdEDqieQiHC6c8pBv0DDIOv80dmiDBOUhujig4GphEvO-zIAWMcQK3FOFlrRv0pL2dKwltDXsLT-bHnEGj3VejRbc/s320/CAHR+staff.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">Staff at the University of York's Centre for Applied Human Rights show their support for Azza Soliman and enjoy our biscuits at a coffee morning</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOUfdySpdgZE6a_f1yS23Xm3M1PcIGHhCNHas0q66ZnS7L_zM9m0AlUQXq3hkzCxdY05jAmscvf1510gNfhU_1B3Cvz-WuvqJ4dMUvX6SF8cJMk0HStD64whbxsnsKspQJH9pYy9kY5nyR/s1600/PastedGraphic-1.tiff" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="240" data-original-width="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOUfdySpdgZE6a_f1yS23Xm3M1PcIGHhCNHas0q66ZnS7L_zM9m0AlUQXq3hkzCxdY05jAmscvf1510gNfhU_1B3Cvz-WuvqJ4dMUvX6SF8cJMk0HStD64whbxsnsKspQJH9pYy9kY5nyR/s1600/PastedGraphic-1.tiff" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">The York human rights embroidery group show their support for Azza Soliman and enjoy our biscuits at a coffee morning</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEs4A1JPrrKt9I8577FOzorp7p954XhsQKVCb-e-GY8klmIoXxlyFG7NAVRSypsUoa-0C38y2Oko-jHB0x4aZug0-Ocv3mRJQDS8DKxocWyXS8zTf1AqUE8XgHJkm70RymvY7cQzRYPIw_/s1600/_3170015MOD.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="240" data-original-width="311" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEs4A1JPrrKt9I8577FOzorp7p954XhsQKVCb-e-GY8klmIoXxlyFG7NAVRSypsUoa-0C38y2Oko-jHB0x4aZug0-Ocv3mRJQDS8DKxocWyXS8zTf1AqUE8XgHJkm70RymvY7cQzRYPIw_/s1600/_3170015MOD.jpeg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">A book group that Azza Soliman attended while she was in York show their support for her and enjoy our biscuits at a coffee morning</span></td></tr>
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<h4>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Han Hui Hui from Singapore</span></h4>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOOLCdwJzZU23FREDjVLYVMFtPm38Vvseea-ONi9SS4QkKE-V94mo6YkACClyRMKUa54tSQq-F-l290ZMg4FJxMIT7jsdCJzutZlhEijxPPbBlf_U3nzI25cBuBXaikBQouUPoi3SPSOLo/s1600/Hui+Hui+at+York+Amnesty.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="902" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOOLCdwJzZU23FREDjVLYVMFtPm38Vvseea-ONi9SS4QkKE-V94mo6YkACClyRMKUa54tSQq-F-l290ZMg4FJxMIT7jsdCJzutZlhEijxPPbBlf_U3nzI25cBuBXaikBQouUPoi3SPSOLo/s320/Hui+Hui+at+York+Amnesty.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">Leong Sze Hian (left) and Han Hui Hui (right, wearing matching tee-shirts) at our monthly meeting in March</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">At our monthly meeting on 12 March, two human rights campaigners from Singapore spoke. Han Hui Hui is the author of a new book entitled <i>Yearning for Justice: A Mother's Musings to her Future Child</i>. She told us how her criticising the Singaporean government led to her being interrogated by the Singapore police, charged, fined and imprisoned.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Leong Sze Hian also spoke about his campaigning for respect for the human right to freedom of expression, including the right to criticise the government.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Our Monthly Meeting in April</span></h4>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Linda Fielding from Wakefield Refugee Reception Centre is the guest speaker at our monthly meeting this month at the usual venue - the Friends Meeting House, Friargate, York YO1 9RL.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">The meeting takes place on Tuesday 9 April, starts at 7 p.m. with Linda's talk followed by questions and answers and then continues (from 8 p.m.) with our group's regular business. Everyone is welcome to attend and, if they like, to leave after Linda's talk.</span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4522997408762671913.post-6877622375194557412019-03-01T22:27:00.000+00:002019-03-01T22:30:12.754+00:00Troubling Times for Human Rights in Turkey - and Singapore<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSA0gdSZai_uWyIZfHBgJJZF7wTCJMObxvPtf-qFC6ib_9VxFWfIrxAk9gV_QCy7UiAVJDTU_Z-WV4zaUkbomZ7Je39otjdABQPVNPx00rmmhdSEJOTra81sMnZequRmNIWGz9FY-9XgdI/s1600/image.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1599" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSA0gdSZai_uWyIZfHBgJJZF7wTCJMObxvPtf-qFC6ib_9VxFWfIrxAk9gV_QCy7UiAVJDTU_Z-WV4zaUkbomZ7Je39otjdABQPVNPx00rmmhdSEJOTra81sMnZequRmNIWGz9FY-9XgdI/s320/image.jpeg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">Emel Kurma [wearing the black cardigan] at our monthly meeting in February</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Emel Kurma from Turkey was the guest speaker at our monthly meeting in February. She brought us up-to-date with difficulties in her country.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Singapore</span></h4>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Han Hui Hui is the guest speaker at our monthly meeting this month at the usual venue - the Friends Meeting House, Friargate, York YO1 9RL. Hui Hui is a human rights defender on the Protective Fellowship Scheme for Human Rights Defenders at the Centre for Applied Human Rights at the University of York.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">The meeting takes place on Tuesday 12 March, starts at 7 p.m. with Hui Hui's talk followed by questions and answers and then continues (from 8 p.m.) with the group's regular business. Everyone is welcome to attend and, if they like, to leave after Hui Hui's talk.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Hui Hui introduces her talk like this:</span></div>
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<div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">How is life as a 27-year-old Singaporean parent in a typical Singaporean family? Where the International Bar Association said the law "has also been used - time and again - to combat critics ... an effective tool for quashing dissent". Having "between 100,000 and 140,000 households living in absolute poverty ... between 20 and 35 per cent of our households living in relative poverty". A press freedom ranking of 151 and "the second best country in terms of economic freedom but is ranked 173 out of 198 in electoral freedom". The only government in the world which makes profits from public housing, public healthcare and pensions! Join us to find out if it's a democratic society or a violation of human rights.</span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4522997408762671913.post-74694382754866820222019-02-11T18:21:00.000+00:002019-02-11T18:21:25.495+00:00Troubling Times for Human Rights in Turkey<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Emel Kurma is the guest speaker at our monthly meeting this month at the usual venue - the Friends Meeting House, Friargate, York YO1 9RL. Emel is a human rights defender on the Protective Fellowship Scheme for Human Rights Defenders at the Centre for Applied Human Rights at the University of York. She will talk about ‘Troubling Times for Human Rights in Turkey’, where human rights defenders, activists and advocates from independent civil society in the country have been living in an increasingly suffocating and intimidating climate of fear since the Gezi Park protests. The meeting takes place on Tuesday 12 February, starts at 7 p.m. with Emel's talk followed by questions and answers and then continues (from 8 p.m.) with the group's regular business. Everyone is welcome to attend and, if they like, to leave after Emel's talk.</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4522997408762671913.post-36273514280992761952019-01-07T21:07:00.002+00:002019-01-07T21:08:47.570+00:00York MP Writes for Rights<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEielTAbKR89Ju1TS-FMJXRMcaMhAI1unMhqq4pjz9onAA6v0QAB5WYNl-rDfovw00WL5EP0DqteRY4471SWHmNqqjQS6QbAQW9uMAMPULdbkRP0eEfImqH3bf9zG54EgtmQG-Gh885LPYZO/s1600/York+MP+writes+for+rights.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="902" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEielTAbKR89Ju1TS-FMJXRMcaMhAI1unMhqq4pjz9onAA6v0QAB5WYNl-rDfovw00WL5EP0DqteRY4471SWHmNqqjQS6QbAQW9uMAMPULdbkRP0eEfImqH3bf9zG54EgtmQG-Gh885LPYZO/s320/York+MP+writes+for+rights.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">Rachael Maskell MP signs a card at our stall</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Rachael Maskell (Member of Parliament for York Central) and members of the public signed 138 cards with messages of support and solidarity to Atena Daemi, Vitalina Koval and Marielle Franco's next of kin at our stall on Bishopthorpe Road in York on Saturday 8 December.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">We set up our card-writing stall every year. The event is part of "Write for Rights", when Amnesty International supporters all over the world write millions of letters and cards for people whose human rights are threatened.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">The event takes place close to Human Rights Day, which is celebrated across the world on 10 December every year. The date was chosen to honour the Universal Declaration of Human Rights on 10 December 1948 - so this year marked the 70th anniversary.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Atena Daemi was jailed in Iran, for speaking out against the death penalty.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Vitalina Koval is an LGBTI activist who was attacked by the far right in Ukraine.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Marielle Franco was killed for defending the people of Rio da Janeiro in Brazil.</span><br />
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<h4>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">January Monthly Meeting</span></h4>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Our next monthly meeting takes place on Tuesday 8 January at the usual venue - York Friends Meeting House, Friargate, York YO1 9RL. We do not have a guest speaker but this month's meeting will include our Annual General Meeting so we start at 7.00 pm. Everyone is, as always, welcome to attend.</span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4522997408762671913.post-76694064854355148582018-12-01T22:17:00.000+00:002018-12-01T22:23:25.753+00:0070th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifhZZrDuyxmcS9qrygipuvnecJwjD_J25xn8SOE7ERV0SXa42TtFnYTn5dFfeVvxLX7zLVKiofen-_UgwE53KKCrpX0_9eibM2NpkyMEI0bSbdsPf8s5trei91r263DMvBcBXb5ObvhECo/s1600/AIyork%252BMP.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifhZZrDuyxmcS9qrygipuvnecJwjD_J25xn8SOE7ERV0SXa42TtFnYTn5dFfeVvxLX7zLVKiofen-_UgwE53KKCrpX0_9eibM2NpkyMEI0bSbdsPf8s5trei91r263DMvBcBXb5ObvhECo/s320/AIyork%252BMP.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">Us and (at the right hand end) Rachael Maskell MP at our Write for Rights stall on Bishopthorpe Road in York in December 2016</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">To Celebrate the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), which is on the 10th December, we are involved in organising two events.</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">On Saturday 8 December we hold our annual card-writing stall, on the corner of Bishopthorpe Road and Scarcroft Road in York (opposite Sainsburys). In this special year we hope to have over 100 postcards signed by local people (to be sent to and in support of prisoners of conscience and human rights defenders<span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline;">). The stall will be open from 11 am to 3 pm.</span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">This is part of "Write for Rights", one of the world’s biggest human rights events, when Amnesty International supporters all over the world write millions of letters and cards for people whose human rights are threatened.</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">This year we have chosen the following three cases.</span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZHFvI4oYJadtLmenYpdqKjcm-mJyZOXtDZRR-eM5zMvZdDknhqpqYjNtFDoKXijiGaTutR1NTxj5BqoWpx0f6gJBaiGPFf-uFkoiQoNBTURRw47MXBJlScMRLNCLRQ4FDOoH6INKde7Yv/s1600/Iran+Poster.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="468" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZHFvI4oYJadtLmenYpdqKjcm-mJyZOXtDZRR-eM5zMvZdDknhqpqYjNtFDoKXijiGaTutR1NTxj5BqoWpx0f6gJBaiGPFf-uFkoiQoNBTURRw47MXBJlScMRLNCLRQ4FDOoH6INKde7Yv/s320/Iran+Poster.jpeg" width="234" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: white; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">Atena Daemi, jailed for speaking out against the death penalty in Iran</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilGzjJ20L-DHUIrV08veNkBaB764n_3L6OkrX-stmy8DNbJ7gBRQhbvSTbdA3UsVvQzboiLOO-NB5K36j8XjhJIK_wgnpdDwgOLLIoDqmCAyOkIJMP74Ub1ehFm7cp2af67Ne73H1Q6Czi/s1600/Ukraine+Poster.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="465" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilGzjJ20L-DHUIrV08veNkBaB764n_3L6OkrX-stmy8DNbJ7gBRQhbvSTbdA3UsVvQzboiLOO-NB5K36j8XjhJIK_wgnpdDwgOLLIoDqmCAyOkIJMP74Ub1ehFm7cp2af67Ne73H1Q6Czi/s320/Ukraine+Poster.jpeg" width="232" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: white; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">Vitalina Koval, an LGBTI activist attacked by the far right in Ukraine</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggsYiBH6Wc117s4VA-GclKs9-JOSSyUQtPNS24GIfhhGQeXVpJrE_6VOCq3V5gjIAahfU9vBhnl6YY9Wfa3_uPRWCMQb1dUFblWo6PStklqRzm6-Xy7oZeUiQirhNdQ8P6F8VkzcTkF8Zh/s1600/Brazil+Poster.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="464" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggsYiBH6Wc117s4VA-GclKs9-JOSSyUQtPNS24GIfhhGQeXVpJrE_6VOCq3V5gjIAahfU9vBhnl6YY9Wfa3_uPRWCMQb1dUFblWo6PStklqRzm6-Xy7oZeUiQirhNdQ8P6F8VkzcTkF8Zh/s320/Brazil+Poster.jpeg" width="232" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: white; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">Marielle Franco, killed for defending the people of Rio da Janeiro in Brazil</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
<span style="color: white;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Addi</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">tionally, we are involved in a celebration of human rights - at the regular service of choral evensong at York Minster, beginning at 5.15 pm on Tuesday 11 December, in partnership with both York Human Rights City and the Minster. Entry to the Minster will, of course, be free for those attending. All are welcome irrespective of creed or belief.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: white; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">We hope to see you at one or both of these events.</span></div>
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<h4>
<span style="color: white; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">
December Monthly Meeting</span></h4>
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<div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><span style="color: white;">Our next monthly meeting takes place on Tuesday 11 December (after choral evensong at York Minster) at the usual venue - York Friends Meeting House, Friargate, York YO1 9RL. We do not have a guest speaker so the meeting starts at 7.30 pm. Everyone is, as always, welcome to attend.</span></span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4522997408762671913.post-1084250049805249232018-11-11T22:42:00.000+00:002018-11-11T22:42:34.644+00:00Service at York Minster to Celebrate Human Rights<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg48ySNZlkUWSznHm22RCqqiBE1GOTprrlV3P-R8XiH-cNfgChdFChs5pVYno8mnNksWruXbkAvrg5VneiXmIH0nsigi5-BKpPSMTg0k5RG-9SzPpRRpM6Hry36-H597VXD5OvFxj3Zh0_9/s1600/YorkHumanRights.tiff" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="306" data-original-width="834" height="117" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg48ySNZlkUWSznHm22RCqqiBE1GOTprrlV3P-R8XiH-cNfgChdFChs5pVYno8mnNksWruXbkAvrg5VneiXmIH0nsigi5-BKpPSMTg0k5RG-9SzPpRRpM6Hry36-H597VXD5OvFxj3Zh0_9/s320/YorkHumanRights.tiff" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Members of our group outside York Minster<span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">: A still from </span></span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lejjsMIlDs8&t=3s" style="font-size: 16px; white-space: pre-wrap;" target="_blank">our 2015 music video</a></span></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is a declaration by the United Nations General Assembly. It talks about human rights - rights that all people have just because they are human. The United Nations General Assembly agreed to it on 10 December 1948.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The UDHR (Universal Declaration of Human Rights) has 30 parts. Here are a few of the most important ideas:</span></div>
<div>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Everyone has the right to a nationality</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Everyone has the right to education</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Everyone has the right to work</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Everyone has the right to vote</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">No-one shall be tortured or treated in a cruel or unkind way</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Everyone has the right to choose their religion</span></li>
</ul>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">On Tuesday 11 December 2018 the regular choral evensong service at <a href="https://yorkminster.org/" target="_blank">York Minster</a> will celebrate campaigning work for human rights - to mark the 70th anniversary of the UDHR.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Our group stands up for human rights. So does <a href="https://www.yorkhumanrights.org/" target="_blank">York Human Rights City</a>. We and they will participate in the service.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Everyone is welcome to attend the service. It starts at 5.15 pm. Admission is free of charge. Before or after the service, you will have the opportunity to meet us and find out what we do.</span></div>
<h4>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">November Monthly Meeting</span></h4>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Our next monthly meeting takes place on Tuesday 13 November at the usual venue - York Friends Meeting House, Friargate, York YO1 9RL. We do not have a guest speaker so the meeting starts at 7.30 pm. Everyone is, as always, welcome to attend.</span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4522997408762671913.post-74703403540819002412018-10-06T22:00:00.000+01:002018-10-06T22:00:20.691+01:00York Amnesty Ceilidh 2018<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjjKHp6kvOd5-NyMKDwekFU1D7dRwZ_TTV_UZ5NpOW33u2z0Ow06WQpQQNJWWEgbmzt19EiCisAf7uFDYiW__fH4-bzNmgdnGO7FtFGxJZAUCZbC1xlY4_rAau8nkI0ww1fK9TAxmg1kkz/s1600/AI+Dance_54a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="267" data-original-width="400" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjjKHp6kvOd5-NyMKDwekFU1D7dRwZ_TTV_UZ5NpOW33u2z0Ow06WQpQQNJWWEgbmzt19EiCisAf7uFDYiW__fH4-bzNmgdnGO7FtFGxJZAUCZbC1xlY4_rAau8nkI0ww1fK9TAxmg1kkz/s320/AI+Dance_54a.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">One of our previous ceilidhs</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">We present a grand ceilidh - on our tried-and-tested formula. It takes place on Saturday 10 November. The venue is Melodie Park, Wigginton Road, York YO32 2RJ. Bandiera Rossa will play live music. Doors open at 7.00 pm. Music starts at 7.30 and ends at 11.00. Tickets cost £10, except for children, who pay only £5. The admission price includes snacks during the interval. A bar will be available. There will be fantastic raffle prizes.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">We recommend that you buy tickets in advance. You can do so <a href="https://www.wegottickets.com/event/450829" target="_blank">online</a> (subject to a booking fee of £1 per ticket) </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">or in person at </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Books for Amnesty, 42 Goodramgate, York YO1 7LF, </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Fairer World, 84 Gillygate, York YO31 7EQ and </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Cycle Heaven at the Angel, 2 Bishopthorpe Road, York YO23 1JJ. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">You can also telephone 01904 479477 or 0797 486 7301.</span><br />
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<h4>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Pete Sagar speaks about the Roma</span></h4>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Pete Sagar is the guest speaker at our monthly meeting this month at the usual venue - the Friends Meeting House, Friargate, York YO1 9RL. Pete is company secretary of <a href="https://www.alivingtradition.org/" target="_blank">A Living Tradition CIC</a>. He will speak about <a href="https://www.alivingtradition.org/roma.html" target="_blank">the Roma people</a>. The meeting takes place on Tuesday 9 October, starts at 7 pm with Pete's talk followed by questions and answers and then continues (from 8 pm) with our group's regular business. Everyone is welcome to attend and, if they like, to leave after Pete's talk.</span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4522997408762671913.post-10933596887564329412018-08-18T16:45:00.002+01:002018-08-18T16:45:20.839+01:00Anti-Trump March and Rally<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbEjYO0YllAKGr9a5cmfXkgqlmO8DSj2IEyxqByp7ZkH6RCwgEPITVvsmgHqyIeGqZVsyhOm63WxASb_ducQC7wSfHjq_o5J0S254bzES_kaKIzQwcuSa-eSvk4PLDOMW2afBpZVLqpAnN/s1600/TrumpDemo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbEjYO0YllAKGr9a5cmfXkgqlmO8DSj2IEyxqByp7ZkH6RCwgEPITVvsmgHqyIeGqZVsyhOm63WxASb_ducQC7wSfHjq_o5J0S254bzES_kaKIzQwcuSa-eSvk4PLDOMW2afBpZVLqpAnN/s320/TrumpDemo.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">"A Nightmare on Any Street": members of our group make a point in St Helen's Square</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">We believe that the president of the United States of America should set a good example instead of locking up children who enter his country without permission or separating them from their families - so we joined hundreds of other demonstrators in York city centre on 14 July to express our disapproval of Donald Trump's visit to the United Kingdom.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">We do not meet in August. Our next monthly meeting takes place on Tuesday 11 September. As usual, the venue is York Friends Meeting House, Friargate, York YO1 9RL and everyone is welcome to attend.</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com