From WRL's Facing Tear Gas Campaign:

Over the past several days, Turkey has seen some of its largest mass mobilizations in years. Protesters are pouring into Taksim Square, Gezi Park, and other public spaces throughout the country in the thousands to reject neoliberalism and government-backed urban gentrification. As they brave vomit-inducing tear gas, rubber bullets, water cannons, and live ammunition, it is clear that the people of Turkey are demanding much more than simply the conservation of Istanbul’s precious remaining green space. Rather, what we are witnessing in Turkey is a broad movement of people from various classes, ages, religious sects, and political backgrounds calling for real democracy. It is also imperative to contextualize this recent uprising as a continuation of many struggles that Turkish citizens have undertaken for years around economic justice, rights of minorities (including the Kurdish people), and resistance to mandatory military service.

Dannia Southerland, 62, passed away on February 9, 2013 in Durham, NC. Dannia, who went by Sunshine at the time, was on the WRL/Southeast staff from 1978 until 1984.

A strong woman with a strong presence, Sunshine had a great smile and ability to raise important issues and challenge us all. Mab Segrest wrote about Dannia in her book Memoir of a Race Traitor. Mab wrote of Dannia’s early activism organizing the first Gay Pride march in North Carolina in 1980 and that “the women’s peace movement and War Resisters League helped expand my understanding.”

May 15th is International Conscientious Objectors day.

Around the world, peace and justice activists and organizers will be remembering the generations who refused to go to war, and raising awareness of the many who continue to be persecuted and imprisoned for refusing to kill.

For info on actions around the globe, check out War Resisters International.

Calling all social justice videographers! The Network for a NATO-free Future (see member organizations below) is helping put together a counter-summit to the G8 and NATO summits happening this May in Chicago. To help give a U.S.-based community organizers and local activists an idea about what NATO is, its role in the world, and its connection to the global economy (as repped by the G8) to help mobilize people to come to Chicago, we are asking for a brief and exciting video made by you.