Rights and Humanity

apsies:

skybarn:

My son, Liam, was diagnosed at ten weeks with a rare liver disease named Biliary Atresia. He has been doing well, but it has become clear that he needs a new liver as soon as possible. This is very expensive, even though we have very good health insurance (something I wish for everyone!). Liam loves zoos, Yo Gabba Gabba, being hilarious, incredibly smart and stubborn. He’s pictured with his equally awesome twin brother, Finn.

Liam’s the bravest person I’ve ever met. He’ll have a long full life, with some medical issues and medication side effects, but we need to get him through this. Thanks for even taking a look.

Awesome kid, awesome dad. Do what you do, tumblr.

Skybarn is one of the first people I followed on Tumblr, over 3 years ago. He is one of the smartest, funniest and all-around high quality people ever.

Please click through, please donate. I will and you should, too.

Headlines: April 3 & 4, 2012

News:

U.N. ceasefire mission fails to curb Syria violence

ICC Prosecutor statement: Fears over justice for Gaza victims

Bahrain hunger striker’s life in danger, daughter says

Amnesty International Demands Russia Release Punk Singers Detained Following Church Performance

Despite Annan Plan Agreement, Syria Continues to Make Arrests Across the Country, Including Raiding a School, Beating and Arresting 13 Students

Jordan: Pro-reformists detained for “insulting” the King must be released

Amnesty slams “inhuman” Ariz. prisons

Colombia: FARC must go further and put an end to all kidnapping and hostage-taking

US: Follow Up Rebuke to Syria on Landmines

EU: Ease Burma Sanctions Gradually to Match Progress

Bosnia and Herzegovina: Roma, Jews Face Political Discrimination

Turkey: Coup Trial Offers Chance for Justice

Palestinian Authority/Israel: Escalating Assault on Free Expression

Senegal: Human Rights Priorities

Quarter of a million Pakistanis flee fighting in Khyber: group

UN says 2.4 million people are victims of human trafficking and most are sexually exploited

UNICEF aims to raise awareness of children at risk in Africa’s Sahel region

UN in Haiti sees jump in cholera cases

TAKE ACTION:

End 40 Years of Solitary Confinement: Justice for the Angola 3

Demand Freedom of Education in Iran

Call on Congress to stand up for the rights of Native women!

(via crookedindifference)

Apr 02

Headlines: April 2, 2012

News:

Red Cross head leaves DC after plea to review, release some from Guantánamo

Burma poll: Aung San Suu Kyi hopes for ‘new era’

Analysis: Has the Refugee Convention outlived its usefulness?

In Haiti, Global Failures on a Cholera Epidemic

$500m of US food aid lost to waste and company profit, says Oxfam

Arab states agree to provide millions to pay Syrian opposition fighters

Brazil: Outrageous Supreme Court ruling gives green light to rapists

Amid Looting, Amnesty International Urges Armed Groups in Mali to Protect Civilians, End Chaos

Greece plans sweep of migrants and asylum-seekers

Sierra Leone: Pass Freedom of Information Bill

Angola: Violent Crackdown on Critics

Philippines: Military Leadership Should Act on Abuses

Senegal: Protect Children from Forced Begging

TAKE ACTION:

Free All Prisoners of Conscience in Myanmar

US: Child Sentenced to Life Seeks Clemency (pdf)

Togo: Students Arrested at Demo, Risk Torture (pdf)

Mar 28

Headlines: March 28, 2012

News:

Syria authorities target children, says UN rights chief

How to Eradicate Hunger: Economically Empowering Rural Women

Hundreds of Afghan women jailed for ‘moral crimes’

Asylum claims hit record high from Syria, Tunisia, Ivory Coast

China allows detained rights lawyer first visit in two years

UN says Haiti quake victims at risk over donor deficit

Achieving an HIV- and TB-Free Generation

During Pope’s Visit, Cuban Authorities Increase Harassment of Activists, Including Blocking Phones and Surrounding Houses

In Hostile Terrain: Human rights violations in immigration enforcement in the US Southwest

Maldives must investigate sexual harassment of detained women protesters

Bahrain: Vital Reform Commitments Unmet

Saudi Arabia: Stop Arbitrary Arrests, Travel Bans on Opposition

India: Halt Execution of Punjab Bomb Conspirator

TAKE ACTION:

Stop the Execution of Mark Wiles in Ohio

Nothing But Nets launches emergency appeal for South Sudan

Help Peruvians protect their health and environment: Hold Doe Run accountable!

Mar 27

Headlines: March 27, 2012

News:

Arab spring leads to wave of Middle East state executions

UNDP’s Grynspan: Sustainable development moral imperative

Raúl Castro Greets Pope Benedict at Start of Closely Watched Visit

Syrian government accepts Annan peace plan

Japan: 40 years on death row

Suzanne Nossel’s Testimony on the Syrian Human Rights Crisis

EU countries must investigate complicity in CIA renditions

Saudi Arabian human rights lawyer banned from travelling to US

Egypt: Children on Trial

Kazakhstan: Allow Peaceful Protests

IMF: Withhold Funds to Angola

US: Implement Farm Safety Rules for Children

Two independent journalists killed in Syria

TAKE ACTION:

I pledge to stand with women and girls, to spread the word about the challenges they face, the potential they hold and the simple solutions that help them survive and thrive.

Make the DREAM Come True

Man Sentenced to Death for Blasphemy in Pakistan

Threadless: Design a t-shirt about empowering women to change their world, benefitting CARE (ends March 30)

Mar 26

Headlines: March 26, 2012

News:

Kenya slum fires demonstrate need to ensure housing rights

Syria: Local Residents Used as Human Shields

NATO: Clarify Response to Deaths at Sea

Albania: Reprimand Official for Anti-Gay Remarks

U.S. Pays Families of Afghan Victims in Massacre by Soldier

Israel’s Top Court Orders Settlers to Leave Outpost

U.S. and Turkey to Step Up ‘Nonlethal’ Aid to Rebels in Syria

African Union force steps up hunt for Joseph Kony

Niger’s complicated hunger crisis

The annual hunger season is beginning once again in the vast, arid strip of land just below the Sahara desert, and the medics at Ouallam - a small town an hour’s drive north of Niger’s capital Niamey - have seen a sudden leap in admissions in the past week and are bracing themselves for an exceptionally tough few months before October’s harvest.

The United Nations’ World Food Programme expects that almost 400,000 children in Niger could find themselves so malnourished that they end up like those in Ouallam’s hospital. Nearly one in 10 are likely to die as a result.

(via crookedindifference)

Mar 23

Headlines: March 23, 2012

News:

In Resolution, U.N. Council Presses Sri Lanka on Civilian Deaths

‘I am because you are’ – the first ever UN panel on sexual orientation and gender identity

Palestinian prisoner of conscience on trial for defending right to protest

Russian Arms Flow Must Stop to Clear Way for Syrian Ceasefire

Ecuadorians protest over mining controversy

Mali: Coup heralds period of uncertainty on human rights

Suriname Amnesty Law Threatens President’s Trial for Human Rights Violations

Amnesty International Demands Release of Cuban Journalists Jailed for Listening to Hip Hop and Declares Them “Prisoners of Conscience”

Palestinian hunger striker ‘at risk of death’ highlights injustice of administrative detention

Lebanon: Stop Abuse of Domestic Workers

Iraq: Investigate Death of VP’s Bodyguard in Custody

U.S. approves Egypt military aid despite rights fears

Events:

Tomorrow, March 24, is World TB Day.

TAKE ACTION:

Stop the attack on generic medicines. Stop Novartis.

No more arms for atrocities: Time for a bullet proof arms trade treaty

Tell Congress: Stop playing with our food

Jobs/Scholarships:

Positions at Oxfam America - many in Boston

Women Deliver is offering scholarships for their next conference in 2013

Mar 22

Headlines: March 22, 2012

News:

Lawyers in China to swear allegiance to Communist Party

Ugandan girls trafficked for sex

Water-short world will need ‘more crop per drop’ - experts

UN rights body approves resolution pressing Sri Lanka to conduct credible war crime probes

Ivory Coast: U.N. Official Exonerates Government in Security Force Killings

Disaster risk reduction aid ‘negligible’, inequitable -report

Nigeria: The Country Gets Tea Against Malaria

Rape, torture plague Myanmar’s Kachin conflict: rights group

Syria: Government Uses Homs Tactics on Border Town

Malawi: Arrests Signal Deteriorating Rights Environment

Sharp rise in harassment and attacks against activists and journalists in Cuba

Mali: call on coup leaders to release arrested politicians

Events:

Today is World Water Day!

TAKE ACTION:

Don’t Let Serbian Families Lose Their Homes

A Human Face of the NDAA: Charge or Release Gitmo Detainee

Mar 21

Headlines: March 21, 2012

News:

Kony2012 funds would be best spent on former child soldiers, says UN official

Sahel food crisis: Chadian women describe the hardships they face - audio slideshow

Salvadoran news website threatened for its reporting

Bahrain’s king pledges to press on with reforms

Bloomberg Bans Food Donations To NYC Homeless Shelters

U.N. Security Council unanimous in backing Syria peace bid

Palestinian journalist’s camera broken at protest

UAE: Saadiyat Workers Better Protected but Gaps Remain

Zimbabwe: Six Sentenced for Watching Arab Spring Video

Access to energy - necessary but not sufficient to cut poverty

Al Jazeera English live blogs: Bahrain, Syria, Egypt, Yemen, Afghanistan

Events:

Tomorrow, March 22, is World Water Day. Thousands of restaurants across the country will participate in the UNICEF Tap Project during World Water Week, March 19-25. Find one here.

TAKE ACTION:

Serbia: Roma Families at Immediate Risk of Eviction (UA 85/12) pdf

Sudan: Sudanese Activist and Teacher Detained (UA 84/12) pdf

Colombia: Family Targeted by Paramilitaries (UA 18/12) pdf

More Amnesty International Urgent Action cases in need of your help can be found here.