Bay Area hurricane evacuees still need help
OAKLAND, Calif. — More than four months after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita struck the Gulf Coast, hundreds of evacuees continue to live in the San Francisco Bay Area. Some plan to return home as soon as possible, while others struggle to put down roots in a very different area.
Stop the war meet calls for worldwide demos
The international peace movement took another step forward last month when some 1,200 people gathered in London for the Dec. 10 “Stop the War” conference. The delegates, many from the United Kingdom, included representatives from about a dozen other countries, including the U.S., Iraq, the Philippines and Poland. The meeting called for worldwide protests on the third anniversary of the invasion of Iraq, March 18-19.
National Clips
RALEIGH, N.C.: Klan members indicted for conspiracy; NEW YORK: IBM attacks pensions; BROWNSVILLE, Pa.: Hospital closes rather than obey law; ANN ARBOR, Mich.: Students force Coke off campus; CHICAGO: ‘Make steel not war’
30 years later, Peltier still battles for justice
Leonard Peltier, the long-imprisoned American Indian Movement activist, sent out a recent message to supporters: “We are all geared up to file more appeals on new information my legal team has found while reviewing withheld documents. I want you to know that we will continue to fight for my freedom.”
Anti-immigrant rallies fizzle in Texas, elsewhere
DENTON, Texas — A group calling itself “Lone Star Minutemen” called a statewide protest against immigrant day laborers in this college town in the early morning of Jan. 7. Supporters of the group had declared their intention to carry out anti-immigrant actions in Texas’ major cities. They were undoubtedly disappointed with the response they received here.
Fla. high court nixes school vouchers
TALLAHASSEE — The Florida Supreme Court dealt a stunning blow to Gov. Jeb Bush’s highly touted state-sanctioned school voucher program Jan. 5, with a 5-2 majority declaring it unconstitutional.
Abramoff pleads guilty, DeLay throws in towel
Lobbyist Jack Abramoff pleaded guilty to influence peddling and his crony, Rep. Tom DeLay, Republican of Texas, gave up his drive to win back his post as House Majority Leader last weekend.
Crowds pack Out of Iraq meetings across nation
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Five hundred people turned out to hear antiwar activist Cindy Sheehan, actor Sean Penn and other speakers at the Out of Iraq Town Hall Forum here Jan. 7, one of over 130 similar meetings held nationwide in partnership with AfterDowningStreet.org.
From the editor: Saluting all of Kings legacy
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is arguably the most important American thinker and leader of the 20th century. This weekend millions of people in the U.S. and around the world will honor his birthday and his contributions to the African American freedom struggle, voting and civil rights for all, workers’ rights, peace, democracy and human dignity. The People’s Weekly World/Nuestro Mundo adds its continuing salute to King and the freedom movement he led (see editorial, page 12).
In wake of mine disaster, mourning turns to outrage on safety issues
PHILIPPI, W.Va. — “I just don’t have words. No words,” said a woman leaving funeral services for David Lewis, 28, one of the 12 miners killed Jan. 2 in the Sago Mine. “But I’ll say this much. We will do what we have to, whatever it takes, to protect our miners. Whatever we have to.” click here for Spanish text
