Friday, January 15, 2010

How can SAIC help the people of Haiti?




Let's work together to see what the SAIC community can do to assist victims of
the recent disaster in Haiti.

Here are two articles on local Chicago Haitian charities:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/01/15/chicago-haiti-charities-w_n_424918.html

and:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/01/14/from-chicago-to-haiti-aft_n_423360.html...


Here is a list of some national/international charity organizations:


• Partners in Health: http://photos.pih.org/home2.html

• The International Rescue Committee: http://www.theirc.org/

• World Vision: http://www.worldvision.org/

• UN World Food Program: https://www.wfp.org/donate/haiti

• UNHCR (UN refugee services):
http://www.unhcr.org/emergency/haiti/global_landing.html

• UN Central Emergency Response Fund:
http://ochaonline.un.org/cerf/DonateNow/HowtoDonate/tabid/1819/language/en-US/Default.aspx

• American Red Cross
Disaster Online Newsroom
The American Red Cross is on the ground in Haiti.... See More
Text "HAITI" to 90999 to donate $10 to American Red Cross relief for
Haiti. The donation will be charged to your cellphone bill.

To send a check: American Red Cross, P.O. Box 37243, Washington, D.C.
20013;
1-800-REDCROSS or 1-800-257-7575 (Spanish)
www.redcross.org

• Mercy Corps
A group of Mercy Corps relief workers began arriving in Haiti on
Thursday.
Donate online: donate.mercycorps.org
To send a check:
Mercy Corps; Haiti Earthquake Fund; Dept NR; PO Box 2669; Portland, OR
97208
1-888-256-1900

• National Nurses United
www.nationalnursesunited.org A national organization of registered
nurses is calling for nurses throughout the U.S. to volunteer to assist
Haitian residents by providing emergency short term and long term
medical support. Nurses can sign up at the NNU Web site.

• Unicef
Donations to Unicef can be made online, by printing a form, or by
calling 1.800.FOR.KIDS (1.800.367.5437).

• AmeriCares
CNN's Ann Curry suggests donating to AmeriCares, who are "gearing up to
take in medicines to Haiti," she says.

• Yele Haiti
Haitian-born Wyclef Jean is asking his fans to donate to the community
service organization he founded in Haiti, Yele Haiti. Donations can be
made at the site, or automatically by texting YELE to 501501 to give
$5. More information about Yele Haiti here.

• Doctors Without Borders
donate.doctorswithoutborders.org

• Food for the Hungry
Donate online: http://www.fh.org
1-800-248-6437

We are working with SAIC's Office of Campus Life to determine what our school community can do to offer our support during this catastrophe. If you are intersted in helping with these efforts, please contact studentactivists@saic.edu or Jes Takla in Campus Life at jtakla@saic.edu




Monday, November 9, 2009

Invisible Children event Thurs Nov 12th!


The Invisible Children Roadies will be coming to SAIC next Thursday!

Thursday, November 12, 2009

4:15pm - 5:30pm

280 S Columbus Dr.

Join us for a screening of the documentary "The Rescue" and learn more about this organization working to address the needs of children in war-torn Northern Uganda.

Check out the event page here: http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/event.php?eid=200974680929&ref=nf

Awareness leads to action. Passion fuels change. Injustice drives humanity to join together and seek peace. Invisible Children, an organization committed to raising the profile on Africa’s longest running war, held an event earlier this year called ‘The Rescue’ where participants gathered simultaneously in 100 cities around the world. The event brought participants together to stand against the injustices in Northern Uganda and be a voice for the voiceless. We came together in solidarity, abducting ourselves for the abducted children in East Africa. The purpose of the event was to raise the profile on the war in Northern Uganda that has been called the most neglected humanitarian emergency in our world by asking our local and national media, politicians, and celebrities in each city to come out to the event in support of our efforts to end the atrocities that the rebel movement (LRA) has been committing for the past 23 years. The documentary film about this event is called ‘Together We Are Free’, and will be screened in the Columbus Drive Auditorium on Thursday, November 12th at 4:30pm. The Invisible Children roadies will be in Chicago for the screening to speak about this crisis and inspire others. This event will be hosted by the SAIC Student Activists group.
For more information visit www.invisiblechildren.com or please contact Hillary Strack at hstrac@saic.edu

THIS EVENT IS OPEN TO THE PUBLIC:
Please spread the word, just remember to bring an id so you can get into the building.

ALL STUDENT MEETING with SAIC President Reiter



Join Student Association for the first All Student Meeting of the academic year!

Students will hear from President Duke Reiter as well as from other members of SAIC administration.



Stick around after the short presentation and get your individual questions answered.


Snacks will be served as students chat with a wide variety of administrators and staff! See you there!


All Student Meeting with President Reiter
Hosted by your Student Association



Monday, November 16th


4:30pm


MacLean Center Ballroom

Thursday, November 5, 2009

$10,000 for Peace!!



Projects for Peace Information meeting
Tuesday, November 10, noon to 1 p.m.
817 Sharp Building (37 S. Wabash)

What's your idea of peace for the 21st century?
Want to win $10,000 to help make it happen next summer?
Find out how at this meeting.

One SAIC undergraduate student is guaranteed to realize his or her project.

Find out more here: www.davisprojectsforpeace.org

Monday, November 2, 2009

Nov 12th: Invisible Children Screening at SAIC


Nov 12th
Invisible Children Screening and Discussion at SAIC.

Time/Location t.b.a.

For more information about Invisible Children, check out their website:
invisiblechildren.com

Here's some info you can find there:

In the spring of 2003, three young filmmakers traveled to Africa in search of a story. What started out as a filmmaking adventure transformed into much more when these boys from Southern California discovered a tragedy that disgusted and inspired them, a tragedy where children are both the weapons and the victims.


After returning to the States, they created the documentary "Invisible Children: Rough Cut," a film that exposes the tragic realities of northern Uganda.s night commuters and child soldiers.


The film was originally shown to friends and family, but has now been seen by millions of people. The overwhelming response has been, "How can I help?" To answer this question, the non-profit Invisible Children, Inc. was created, giving compassionate individuals an effective way to respond to the situation.


Our approach to humanitarian work is founded in the strength and intelligence of the Ugandan community. We learned early on it was not only important but essential to heed the wisdom of people that had not only lived in the war, but were surviving it. People who would know better than anyone what the greatest needs were and the best ways to meet them. What we came to find is that while there have been many efforts to address the issues that stem from living and fighting in such a long-lasting war, the people of Uganda are asking for a future beyond the conflict.


Their pleas have become our development strategy.


All of our programming is a partnership between those of us at Invisible Children and those in the Ugandan community. We focus on long-term goals that enable children to take responsibility for their future and the future of their country. Our programs are carefully researched and developed initiatives that address the need for quality education, mentorships, the redevelopment of schools, resettlement from the camps, and financial stability.


Join us at SAIC on Nov 12 to find out more!

Fundraising Idea





Student Activists member Megan Pryce is working to organizing a fundraising drive to support the efforts of Peacepedalers (http://www.peacepedalers.org) to set up a school in Rwanda for children orphaned by AIDS
http://www.goodhopeschool.net

They already have a school in Uganda and need to raise 18,000 dollars for the new school.

This could be a great time of year to do a fundrasing project, in light of the holiday season. Megan was thinking that we could raise the money by creating peace sign ornaments to sell to families, friends etc. and to set up fundraising tables in the lobbies of SAIC buildings.


If you are interested, please contact Megan at mpryce@saic.edu


Monday, October 26, 2009

American Bankers Assoc. Protest Tuesday 10:30


If you're itching for a protest march, join the supporters of Arise Chicago this Tuesday morning:
Host:
Arise Chicago, SEIU & many partners!
Type:
Network:
Global
Date:
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Time:
10:30am - 12:00pm
Location:
Chicago
Street:
Wacker and Stetson
Email:

Banks took $15,000 for every man, woman and child in the U.S.
The top six banks raked in $30 billion in profits in the first half of 2009. Yet ordinary Americans are still struggling to stay afloat... The average homeowner lost $110,000 in home equity. Unemployment is at its highest rate in 26 years. Every thirteen seconds another American home goes into foreclosure.

Tell the Big Banks to Fix What They Broke


Tuesday, October 27th

10:30 AM: March Begins at Wacker and Stetson
11:00 AM: Rally at the Sheraton, 301 E. North Water St.

For more information, visit www.stopbankgreed.org.
facebook event page: http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/event.php?eid=141949243931

Contact Arise Chicago if you are interested in helping to organize student outreach: stopbankgreed@arisechicago.org
www.arisechicago.org

Meeting Tuesday 10/27 at 4:15

Hope you can make it to our meeting tomorrow, Tuesday, at 4:15 in Michigan/MacLean room 1302.

We have a number of projects underway: Presentation by the Beehive Collective on Nov 4th, Invisible Children screening + discussion on Nov 12th, a proposed show of Rwandan artwork, Marie’s ongoing recycling campaign, and more!

Have ideas for additional projects? Bring them to Tuesday’s meeting!


Looking forward to seeing you on Tuesday.

Thursday, October 15, 2009

Don't Miss the Discussion THIS FRIDAY: "Iran: Debating Engagement"


Hope you can make it to the panel discussion "Iran:Debating Engagement" sponsored by the SAIC Student Activists.

FRIDAY 7 pm, Columbus Building auditorium.

Hear from experts and participate in a lively q + a to follow!

Click here for the event announcement:
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=138894642011




The present moment is pivotal on two levels: in the aftermath of its
June presidential election, Iran has seen the largest political
upheaval in the three decades since the revolution; and just this month
the U.S. and Iran engaged in historic discussions on Iran's nuclear
program. Are these two developments related? How should the peace
movement make sense of them? Are antiwar activists in the U.S. tuned in to what the democratic movement in Iran is thinking and saying about the current situation?

This timely discussion will address these questions and illuminate the
multiple issues in play. Robert Naiman, National Coordinator for Just
Foreign Policy, supports engagement unconditionally. Kaveh Ehsani, a
professor of International Studies at DePaul University and a member of the editorial boards of Middle East Report and the Tehran-based journal Goft-o-gu (Dialogue), has long advocated improved relations between Iran and the US but believes that Iran's June presidential election was stolen and that Ahmadinejad now leads a coup d'etat administration that should not be rewarded/legitimized with international recognition.

Come hear these two experts explore both their common ground as well as their disagreements on these vital questions.

Sponsors: 8th Day Center for Justice | American Friends Service
Committee (AFSC) - Great Lakes Region | Buddhist Peace Fellowship -
Chicago Chapter | Chicagoans Against War & Injustice (CAWI) | F
Newsmagazine | Fellowship of Reconciliation – Chicago Chapter | In
These Times | Logan Square Neighbors for Justice and Peace | Logos: A Journal of Modern Society & Culture | Middle East Reasearch and
Information Project (MERIP) | National Iranian American Council (NIAC) | No War on Iran Coalition | SAIC Liberal Arts Department | SAIC Student Activists | North Shore Coalition for Peace, Justice and the Environment | North Suburban Peace Initiative (NSPI) | Truthout |
Voices for Creative Nonviolence

Thursday, October 8, 2009

Iranian FIlm at Gene Siskel



From the Gene Siskel Film Center:

20th Annual Festival of Films from Iran

The Gene Siskel Film Center welcomes you to the 20th anniversary celebration of our Festival of Films from Iran, October 3 through November 1, with a very special additional program on November 21. In this year in which Iran remains very much in the headlines, we look forward with film premieres and also take a look back at earlier films and the work of major artists.

Click on their website for more information! http://www.siskelfilmcenter.org/iran_2009