Global Activism Expo Sat April 25th

Global Activism Expo 2009
Saturday, April 25, 2009 @ noon - 6:00 p.m.
http://chicagopublicradio.org/Event_Detail.aspx?eventID=924

Hosted by Worldview’s Jerome McDonnell, Chicago Public Radio Presents…is thrilled to again present this remarkable celebration – complete with food, music and over 100 Chicago-area Global Activists, all featured guests of Worldview’s Global Activism series. On the air for over six years now, the Series continues to be inspirational, and bringing everyone together for this Expo has quickly become an annual event.

Doors open at noon on Saturday and stay open until 6 pm; it’s FREE – so bring your classes, your children, your neighbors, your friends and family.

Free parking is available in NEIU Lot L. View the NEIU Campus Map for detailed directions, and click here for directions to the campus by car and public transportation.

This year there will be a variety of food for sale from local ethnic restaurants (cash sales only!), and an outdoor eating area in addition to space set-aside in the Expo for your enjoyment. We’ve added a Performance Stage where the amazing talent associated with many of these organizations will be performing for you; and we’ve arranged for break-out rooms where presentations will be made by various organizations throughout the day, so that you can better learn what they do and how you can get involved.

Check out all the organizations that are scheduled to attend the 2009 Global Activism Expo.

View and print the schedule of breakout sessions with participating organizations.

There's a LOT Going on with the Student Activists

There is a lot going on with the Student Activists!!

We’ve raised over $400 through online donations and checks in our fundraiser to support education for the Darfuri refugees in the Djabal camp in E. Chad. If you haven’t done so already, please make a personal donation, and ask others to do the same: parents, friends, classmates, professors, EVERYONE. Our goal is $1,000 by the rally next Sunday the 19th. Visit youthunitedfordarfur.org to make a donation, or go straight to the Student Activists’ custom fundraising page: www.educationpartnership.org/groups/426

Sat April 11- Sat April 18th: “Witnessing Genocide” Show of drawings by children living in the Dafruri refugee camps + photos of these camps. In Flaxman Library and 12h floor of Sharp Building. Can you help me hang this show tomorrow (Friday)? Please let me know!


Monday April 13th 4pm SAIC Auditorium. Student Meeting with SAIC’s president Duke Reiter to discuss the current state of our school and the future of SAIC. Not to be missed!!


The Student Activists are bringing LOST BOYS from SUDAN to SAIC NEXT WEEK: WED and FRI NIGHT!! TELL YOUR FRIENDS/ CLASSMATES/ PROFESSORS, ANYONE!! OPEN TO THE PUBLIC!! THIS IS HUGE!!

Wed April 15th 6-9 Michigan rm 501. Screening of “Lost Boys of Sudan” + follow-up discussion with SPECIAL GUESTS Peter Magai Bul-- Assistant Secretary, Sudanese Community Association of Illinois and John Dut Kuol-- Treasurer, Chicago Association for the Lost Boys of Sudan. Find out first-hand about the experience of Sudanese refugees coming to America. This is the kick-off for our month-long “Conflict, Film, and Activism” Series of Film Screenings and Discussions sponsored by the Student Activists. Open to the public!! Bring friends, Tell classmates/professors. Help spread the word!

(We will also still have our regular Wednesday weekly lunch meeting in 1302 Michigan from 12:15-12:45 to check in about the Student Activists’ many ongoing projects and to voice your thoughts and ideas.)

Fri April 17th 4:30-7:00 Screening of “The Devil Came on Horseback” + follow-up discussion with a return of our special guests Peter and John Dut. Michigan rm 908. Watch a powerful documentary about the experience of a US observer sent to document-through photos and video- the continuing violence in Darfur. Talk with Peter and John Dut about the ongoing crisis in Sudan. Part of “Conflict, Film, and Activism" Series of Film Screenings and Discussions sponsored by the Student Activists. Open to the public!! Bring friends, Tell classmates/professors. Help spread the word!



Sunday April 19th: 1-4, YOUTH UNITED FOR DARFUR RALLY in Federal Plaza (intersection of Adams and Dearborn). FEATURED SPEAKERS: Congresswoman Schakowsky, State Senator Collins, Stella Kenyi from the Enough Project, Harold Rogers from Chicago Black Trade Unionists, Deng-Lost Boy of Sudan, Mohamed Kauda from Darfur Assoc in Illinois, Ashal Yai Sudanese Student and Poet, Rev. LaDonna Sanders from South Africa Ubuntu Project. FEATURED MUSICIANS: Company of Thieves, The Hood Internet, Scott Lucas of Local H, Paul Green’s School of Rock. Find out more at youthunitedfordarfur.org This should be HUGE!!!! Open to the public!! Bring friends, tell classmates/professors. Help spread the word!


In preparation for the rally, the SAIC Student Activists are asked to be in charge of the display of artwork. (drawings and photos will be on display in the Sharp building this week, then will be brought to display at the rally.) Can you help me construct a wooden display rack so that we can display the drawings at the rally? Please let me know if/when you have any spare second in the coming week so that we can get together in the wood shop to get this thing built!

Also, do we want to make signs or t-shirts for the rally? Maybe on Friday the 17th after our screening + discussion of “The Devil Came on Horseback” ?


Thurs April 23rd “Left Behind” SAIC Auditorium 6-9 pm Panel Discussion organized by Platypus, addressing issues of global capital, trade unions, workers rights, international solidarity, and immigration, in light of recent economic and political change. See the event page on facebook for more info. Looks like it'll be a great event.


Sunday April 26th 6-9, Ballroom, Screening of “Crossing” + follow-up discussion led by reps from LiNK: Liberty in North Korea. This is an epic dramatization based on the experiences of North Korean refugees. Part of “Conflict, Film, and Activism" Series of Film Screenings and Discussions sponsored by the Student Activists. We have the BALLROOM for this event. Let’s work together to make this event HUGE!! Open to the public!! Bring friends, Tell classmates/professors. Help spread the word!


Monday April 27th SAIC Auditorium 4:30-6:30 Screening of “Kuxa Kanema” + follow- up discussion about the role of film in addressing social and political conflict. Final Film in the “Conflict, Film, and Activism" Series of Film Screenings and Discussions sponsored by the Student Activists. Open to the public!! Bring friends, Tell classmates/professors. Help spread the word!



Friday May 1st: Chicago’s Historic MayDay Rally! “Because immigrant and labor rights are human rights. Because human rights are fought for and won.” Get together with other Chicagoans and take a stand for workers’ rights, immigrants’ rights, or whatever cause is dear to you! SAIC students being organized by Student Activists and Platypus. We’ll be sending out more info on this in the coming weeks.

As a precursor to the May Day rally, there’s a great event going on at Roosevelt University TOMORROW, Friday April 10th:
Roosevelt University Activist Alliance presents a panel on May Day/International Worker Solidarity: Speakers: Les Orear - 98 year old former Chicago Stockyards Worker and current President Emeritus of the Illinois Labor History Society will share his experiences and knowledge on the history of May Day, especially as it relates to Chicago history. Aaron Hughes - an Iraq Veteran Against the War will share his report back from a trip to the first ever Iraqi Freedom Congress. and more! Friday, April 10th, 2009, 6:00pm-8:00pm, Roosevelt University
430 S. Michigan Ave., Spertus Lounge, AUD 244


The SAIC Student Activists are in high demand! President Duke Reiter has asked if the Student Activists would like to schedule a meeting to talk with him and discuss our ideas about improving the community at SAIC. What times look good for you guys? Maybe the last week of classes?

Also, Bert Schlingmann from the IRFM office would be happy to meet with our group to talk about SAIC’s current “green” initiatives and to listen to our ideas about how to improve SAIC’s environmental responsibility. What days/times would work with your schedule? Maybe the week after next?



Whew! There’s a lot going on, and the success and coolness of our events depends on your participation, and our ability to promote our events to get a big turn-out. Please help spread the word about our many ongoing projects!


Got some design skills? Please help design posters and flyers for our film + discussion series “Conflict, Film, and Activism”, or other events! You’ve got all the info in this email. Please let me know if you’re working on a flyer, and send me your designs asap! We’ve got FUNDING for printing!!


Hoping to hear how you can help out: flyers, posters, rally signs, rack to display Darfuri artwork at rally, write an article about our activities, fundraising for Darfuri students, helping to promote events, There’s lots to do! Gimmie a call or float me an email about what you're interested in helping with.

Looking forward to all of our awesome activities in the coming weeks,

Regards,
-Lisa Nonken

Student Leader, SAIC Student Activists
studentactivists@saic.edu

Also make sure to join the SAIC Student Activists' group pages on Facebook and the SAIC Portal!

Darfur Event at Chicago Cultural Center THIS THURSDAY!!

Building Peace in the Pursuit of Justice:

Perspectives on Darfur

Thursday, April 2nd

6:30pm Doors Open

7 – 8pm Program

8 – 9pm Refreshments

and Exhibits

Chicago Cultural Center

78 E. Washington St.

Chicago, IL 60602

5th Floor – Garland and

Washington Rooms

Admission is FREE!

RSVP to darfur@parliamentofreligions.org.

For more information call Alisa Roadcup

at 312-629-2990 ext. 237.

Join us for an evening of compelling and inspiring presentations,

interactive exhibits and a LIVE QUESTIONS CAMPAIGN BOOTH on

the humanitarian crisis in Darfur.

Ameerah Haq, the Deputy Special Representative of the

Secretary-General for Sudan will share her inspiring story of

involvement with the United Nations Development Programme.

Brief presentations on the 2009 Parliament of the World’s

Religions and Amnesty International’s Darfur Campaign will

also highlight the evening.

Learn what you can do right now to promote peace and

reconciliation internationally and in your own backyard!

This event will feature an interactive art exhibit, Displaced, a

traveling installation that will guide you through four themed

refugee experiences: Conflict in Darfur, Flight and Displacement,

Life in a Displacement Camp, and Toward a Solution. Placards,

photographs, maps and handouts form the core content of

each theme.

You will have the chance to make your voice heard through

participating in the LIVE QUESTIONS CAMPAIGN BOOTH hosted

by FLASHPOINT The Academy of Media Arts and Sciences

Don’t miss this extraordinary opportunity to discover what

other activist groups are doing about pressing social concerns

in their communities. Bring a friend, bring your class, but most

importantly, bring yourself to this exciting and interactive event.

Select Partners for this event include: SPIN (Student Pluralism Interfaith Network), Center of Christian-Muslim Engagement for Peace and Justice at the Lutheran School of Theology Chicago and FLASHPOINT The Academy of Media Arts and Sciences, Amnesty International, Council for a Parliament of the World's Religions, and the United States Council for the UN Development Program.

Flyer PDF is uploaded on the "files" folder on the Student Activists'  SAIC Portal Group Page.  Check it out!

Sign Up on Darfur Rally's RSVP Page

Go to http://www.savedarfur.org/page/event/detail/4vxr5#rsvp to RSVP for the Youth United for Darfur Rally:

This year's Youth United for Darfur rally will take place at the Federal Plaza on April 19, 2009, at 1:00pm as the culmination of a Chicago-wide fundraising effort, lasting 10 weeks. Through raising awareness in their local communities, student activists will support the ENOUGH Project's Sister Schools program, which provides educational opportunities in eastern Chad to children displaced by the Darfur crisis, and the local Sudanese Community Center that meets the human service needs of Illinois residents of Sudanese descent. Collaborative efforts with major international organizations such as the Save Darfur Coalition and Amnesty International will bolster the power of youth and their ability to make a difference locally and globally. Additionally, this rally will emphasize the importance for the Obama Administration to take swift action in promoting peace and justice in Darfur. Since the Holocaust Remembrance Day falls in April, the rally will encourage attendees to take action and make "Never Again" a reality. This event will include speeches by respected dignitaries, live music, and opportunities to take action through letter writing and petitioning. For more information about the rally please visit www.youthunitedfordarfur.org or send an email to info@youthunitedfordarfur.org.  

Time:	Sunday, April 19 from 1:00 PM - 4:00 PM
Location:	Federal Plaza (Chicago, IL) 50 W Adams Chicago, IL 60610

Darfur Fundraising Flyer

Dear SAIC Faculty and Students,

 

As part of a Chicago-wide effort to end the genocide in Darfur, the SAIC Student Activists are participating in the Youth United for Darfur Rally that will take place on April 19^th at 1:00pm at Federal Plaza in Downtown Chicago.  The event is being organized by our coalition of over 35 student groups, including high schools, colleges, and youth groups.  We are collaborating with major human rights organizations, such as the Save Darfur Coalition and the Enough Project in order to create an effective and successful event.  Our goals are three-fold:

 

1. Showing Darfuri children in refugee camps that residents of President Obama's home state stand with them and that they are not forgotten.

 

2. Showing the world the fact that Illinois' American and Sudanese youth are working together in their efforts to bring peace to Sudan.

 

3. Showing President Obama that Illinois vocally supports new efforts to end the conflict in Sudan.

 

In case you are unaware, the genocide in Darfur, Sudan, which began in 2003, has taken the lives of up to 400,000 people and has displaced over 2.5 million people.  Although international efforts have attempted to stop President Omar Al-Bashir and his Janjaweed militia from murdering, raping, and displacing so many innocent people, demands for peace and justice have been largely ignored.  And yet, there is still hope.  Through united actions such as the one that the Student Activists are part of, we can demand that politicians make it a priority to address this ongoing crisis. 

 

Prior to the rally, student groups, including the SAIC Student Activists Group, will be fundraising for the Sister School Program, which supports schools attended by Darfuri refugees in the Djebal refugee camp in Eastern Chad.  By supporting these schools, displaced youth will gain the education necessary to eventually return to their homeland and create a better future. 

 

The SAIC Student Activists aim to raise $1,000 to support these important efforts toward the overall goal of $15,000 by April 19^th.  We are doing our part in fundraising by asking classmates, teachers, family and friends for small donations that will truly make a tremendous difference (Your donation of $25, $15, or even $5, makes a huge difference!).  Please consider donating money to help Chicago’s students successfully support the less fortunate youth affected by the genocide in Darfur. 

 

To make an online donation, visit www.youthunitedfordarfur.org.  On the home page, click “Donate.”  You will be taken to a page on which all of the student groups involved are listed.  Please select the link for the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.  From there, click the “Donate” button (you can choose how you want to donate; $20.00 will provide a student with a desk and bench, $6.00 pays for a textbook, and $50.00 supports a teacher’s kit, $10.00 buys a basketball) and safely enter your credit card information to make a contribution.  If you would like to donate with cash or checks (checks made out to “Enough Project”), you can drop them off in my mailbox in the Columbus Building outside the Sculpture Department Office.

 

Thanks so much for your help in our efforts!  If you have any questions, please email studentactivists@saic.edu or call me at (860) 916- 8278. 

 

Sincerely,

Lisa Nonken

Student Leader, SAIC Student Activists

chicago.indymedia.org Terrific Website for Chicago Activism

Check out the website for Chicago's Independent Media Center:

http://chicago.indymedia.org/

Their event calendars are great resources for upcoming activist events in the Chicago area.  

If there's an event that looks particularly interesting to you, please speak up so we can bring it to the attention of other SAIC Student Activits!  

It's great if we can all help each other keep track of the many events going on around the city!

Earth Day Plans

That's right! Earth Day will be here in less than a month!  I bet you have creative ideas for how the Student Activists can capitalize on this momentous day to raise awareness about environmental responsibility at SAIC.  

Here are some great links about Earth Day 2009:

http://www.earthday.net/earthday2009

Earth Day Events in Chicago

More Chicago Earth Day Events

Earth Day Events in Chicago's Parks 

Even More Chicago Earth Day Events from the Chicago Reader!!

Please share with me your ideas, and consider taking on a leadership role in this initiaitve, as part of the Student Activists' Environmental Sub-Committee.   

 

In our Earth Day activities, we will be able to work with SAIC's office of Instructional Resources and Facilities Management.  For instance, their trash and recycling contractor, Allied Waste, would be able to place put a large cube of crushed aluminum outside the Columbus Building for the day.  This would function well as the centerpiece to our Earth Day awareness activities ie, members of the student activists could team up for shifts to hand out flyers about recycling in Chicago and at SAIC.  It would be great to have some give-aways like stickers or the like.   

Want to design flyers or posters or banners for us to use?  What messages would you like to send about environmental responsibility at SAIC and in Chicago?  Please share your ideas!

Earth Day will also be the kick-off event for our campaign with Res Life and IRFM to make the end of the semester more “Green”, focusing on urging dorm residents to recycle or donate all they can as they clear our their rooms.

 

I hope you can join us for the meeting with representatives from the Res Life and IRFM offices to discuss Earth Day plans and ways to make the end of the semester more environmentally responsible.  Wed April 1^st 12:30 room 820D Sharp.  

Right after the meeting, Student Activists who are able will head to the Corner Bakery to snack and solidify our next steps toward the realization of our Earth Day projects.  

 Join us!

Earth Hour Sat 8:30 pm

Student Association encourages you  to save the date for Earth Hour 2009!

Earth Hour 2009
Saturday, March 28th
8:30pm - 9:30pm

It?s time once again to turn out and take action against global climate change. Nearly a billion businesses, organizations, schools and individuals around the world will turn off their lights on Saturday, March 28, at 8:30pm during Earth Hour, and we encourage you to join in.  SAIC will be participating by dimming the lights in classrooms and lounge areas that are not in use during this time frame.

Chicago is proud to return as a flagship city for Earth Hour, a global movement led by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and presented locally by ComEd. Last year, more than 2.7 million adults in the Chicagoland area turned off their lights, resulting in an electricity savings of 7 percent in the region ? the equivalent of taking more than one million cars off the road for one hour, or planting 158 acres of trees.

We hope you?ll help build on last year?s momentum by participating in this exciting global initiative. We encourage you to register your support at  www.earthhourus.org/chicago. You can also download outreach materials and get suggestions for Earth Hour activities.

Saturday, March 28th at 8:30 pm: Turn out. Take action. Earth Hour 2009.

For more information on Earth Hour, please visit EarthHourUS.org

The First Free Speech Board is Finally Going Up!

Introducing the FREE SPEECH BOARD!

 

SPEAK UP & SHOUT OUT!

 

Starting next week ,this new message board outside the Student Association Office on the 13^th floor of the Michigan Building will be a place to POST WHATEVER YOU WANT: personal messages, event announcements, questions, requests, ads, love letters, rants, ANYTHING!   Unlike the other bulletin boards on campus, messages on the Free Speech Board DON’T need to be approved by SAIC’s office of Campus Activities.  Try to include a contact email address on your posting, so that people can respond to your message.   All messages will be removed at the end of each month. 

 

The next month will be a “TRIAL” period to see if people actually make use of the board.  If the experiment is deemed a success, the project will be become much more ambitious, with the prospect of a Free Speech Board installed in every SAIC building, and a Free Speech channel on SAIC’s portal homepage.  With your participation, these Free Speech Boards can become a valuable forum for communication within the SAIC community.  So get up to the 13^th floor and POST YOUR MESSAGE TODAY!!

 

 

Brought to you by the SAIC Student Activists.  saicactivism.blogspot.com

 

Questions?  Contact SAIC’s Office of Campus Activities:  312.629.6883

 

Note:  For info on SAIC’s POSTING POLICY, which pertains to all other bulletin boards on campus EXCEPT the new Free Speech Zone, go to the portal page:  Services> Campus Activities> Posting Policy

Full Speed Ahead for April Darfur Rally!

SAIC’s Student Activists are helping to raise awareness and funds for Darfuri students living in refugee camps.  They have teamed up with Youth United for Darfur, a coalition of over 35 student groups from colleges, universities, and high-schools in the Chicago area sponsored by several prominent international organizations such as the Save Darfur Coalition, STAND and Amnesty International.  This coalition is staging a major rally in Federal Plaza at 1 pm on Sunday April 19^th to culminate their 10-week fundraising drive supporting education in the Djabal Refugee camp in Eastern Chad.   A portion of their donations will also go towards the new Sudanese Community Center, which supports Sudanese refugees living right here in Chicago. 

 

The rally will feature musical acts and rousing speeches by activists, politicians, and survivors of the Sudanese crisis.  Artwork by Darfuri students will be on display, and attendees will be invited to record a video message of support that will be played for Darfuri children.

 

A similar event in 2007 attracted thousands and helped ensure the passage of anti-genocide legislation.   (Images posted here are from last year's rally.)  This year’s innovative event has three key goals:

 

-Showing Darfuri children in refugee camps that residents of President Obama's home state stand with them and that they are not forgotten. 

 

-Highlighting for the world the fact that Illinois' American and Sudanese youth are working together in their efforts to bring peace to Sudan.  

 

-Demonstrating to President Obama that Illinois vocally supports new efforts to end the conflict in Sudan.

 

This undertaking is remarkable not only because it is entirely student-driven, but also because it creates a way for Chicago’s students to directly reach out to their peers in the Darfuri refugee camps, who have been cut off from education, opportunity, and the outside world.   

 

For more information, visit youthunitedfordarfur.org, where you can also find the SAIC Student Activists’ fundraising page.  Donations of clothing and funds will also be collected at the rally.

 

Quick summary of the crisis in Darfur:  

Darfur is a region of western Sudan, approximately the size of France. 

The country has been in violent turmoil since 2003, when the black African Darfuris rebelled against the country’s Arab-ruled government, headed by President Omar al-Bashir.  The government responded by arming the Janjaweed militiamen, who brutally attacked the people of Darfur, wiping out whole villages and terrorizing survivors. According to the UN, the ensuing civil war has killed approximately 300,000 people due to warfare and resulting disease and malnutrition, and over 2.5 million more Darfuris have been displaced from their home villages.  The displaced are currently living in refugee camps:  many remain within the borders of Sudan, although an increasing number are fleeing to crowded camps in neighboring Chad.  Last month, the UN’s International Criminal Court released a warrant to arrest President al-Bashir for war crimes and crimes against humanity.  In response, al-Bashir called for the immediate removal of all major foreign aid organizations who had been providing food, medical attention, and education to the Darfuri refugees.  The UN has estimated that if aid organizations are not permitted to resume their work, up to 100,000 Sudanese could die each month.  It remains a highly volatile situation, and the lives of millions Darfuri’s lives hang in the balance. 

 

Sources:

 

UN News Centre: http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=30081&Cr=darfur&Cr1=icc

 

Reuters:

http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSTRE52G68P20090318

 

BBC:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/topics/sudan