Ten Things About Judge Sonia Sotomayor

Today, President Obama nominated Judge Sonia Sotomayor to be the next U.S. Supreme Court justice. Of course, the Right is already fighting against her confirmation—so we need to get the facts out about her impressive qualifications and background.

Below is a list of 10 key things about Sonia Sotomayor that you might not know. Can you check it out and send it to 10 friends today? If each of us forwards the list, we can start to get the word out about Judge Sotomayor, and help to ensure that she gets a speedy and fair confirmation process.

Ten Things To Know About Judge Sonia Sotomayor

1. Judge Sotomayor would bring more federal judicial experience to the bench than any Supreme Court justice in 100 years. Over her three-decade career, she has served in a wide variety of legal roles, including as a prosecutor, litigator, and judge.

2. Judge Sotomayor is a trailblazer. She was the first Latina to serve on the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and was the youngest member of the court when appointed to the District Court for the Southern District of New York. If confirmed, she will be the first Hispanic to sit on the U.S. Supreme Court.

3. While on the bench, Judge Sotomayor has consistently protected the rights of working Americans, ruling in favor of health benefits and fair wages for workers in several cases.

4. Judge Sotomayor has shown strong support for First Amendment rights, including in cases of religious expression and the rights to assembly and free speech.

5. Judge Sotomayor has a strong record on civil rights cases, ruling for plaintiffs who had been discriminated against based on disability, sex and race.

6. Judge Sotomayor embodies the American dream. Born to Puerto Rican parents, she grew up in a South Bronx housing project and was raised from age nine by a single mother, excelling in school and working her way to graduate summa cum laude from Princeton University and to become an editor of the Law Journal at Yale Law School.

7. In 1995, Judge Sotomayor "saved baseball" when she stopped the owners from illegally changing their bargaining agreement with the players, thereby ending the longest professional sports walk-out in history.

8. Judge Sotomayor ruled in favor of the environment in a case of protecting aquatic life in the vicinity of power plants in 2007, a decision that was overturned by the Roberts Supreme Court.

9. In 1992, Judge Sotomayor was confirmed by the Senate without opposition after being appointed to the bench by George H.W. Bush.

10. Judge Sotomayor is a widely respected legal figure, having been described as "...an outstanding colleague with a keen legal mind," "highly qualified for any position in which wisdom, intelligence, collegiality and good character would be assets," and "a role model of aspiration, discipline, commitment, intellectual prowess and integrity."

Judge Sotomayor is an historic, uniquely qualified nominee to the Supreme Court. Let's get the word out and make sure we get a prompt, fair confirmation on her nomination.

Thanks for all you do,

–Nita, Kat, Daniel, Ilyse and the rest of the team

Sources for each of the 10 things:

1. White House Statement, May 26, 2009.
http://www.moveon. org/r?r=51451&id=16226-9017427- rxGuxQx&t=1

2. White House Statement, May 26, 2009.
http://www.moveon. org/r?r=51451&id=16226-9017427- rxGuxQx&t=2

3. Cases: Archie v. Grand Cent. Partnership, 997 F. Supp. 504 (S.D.N.Y. 1998) and Marcella v. Capital Dist. Physicians' Health Plan, Inc., 293 F.3d 42 (2d Cir. 2002).

4. Cases: Flamer v. White Plains, 841 F. Supp. 1365 (S.D.N.Y. 1993), Ford v. McGinnis, 352 F.3d 382 (2d Cir. 2003), and Campos v. Coughlin, 854 F. Supp. 194 (S.D.N.Y. 1994).

5a. "Sotomayor's Notable Court Opinions and Articles," The New York Times, May 26, 2009.
http://www.moveon. org/r?r=51454&id=16226-9017427- rxGuxQx&t=3

5b. Cases: Bartlett v. N.Y. State Board, 970 F. Supp. 1094 (S.D.N.Y. 1997), Greenbaum v. Svenska Hendelsbanken, 67 F.Supp.2d 228 (S.D.N.Y. 1999), Raniola v. Bratton, 243 F.3d 610 (2d Cir. 2001), and Gant v. Wallingford Board of Education, 195 F.3d 134 (2d Cir. 1999).

6. "Sonia Sotomayor: 10 Things You Should Know," The Huffington Post, May 26, 2009.
http://www.moveon. org/r?r=51452&id=16226-9017427- rxGuxQx&t=4

7. "How Sotomayor 'Saved' Baseball," Time, May 26, 2009.
http://www.moveon. org/r?r=51455&id=16226-9017427- rxGuxQx&t=5

8. "Sotomayor's resume, record on notable cases," CNN, May 26, 2009.
http://www.moveon. org/r?r=51453&id=16226-9017427- rxGuxQx&t=6

9. "Sotomayor's resume, record on notable cases," CNN, May 26, 2009.
http://www.moveon. org/r?r=51453&id=16226-9017427- rxGuxQx&t=7

10a. Judge Richard C. Wesley, a George W. Bush appointee to the Second Circuit.
http://www.moveon. org/r?r=51451&id=16226-9017427- rxGuxQx&t=8

10b. "Sotomayor is Highly Qualified," The Wall Street Journal, May 9, 2009.
http://www.moveon. org/r?r=51456&id=16226-9017427- rxGuxQx&t=9

10c. Honorary Degree Citation, Pace University School of Law, 2003 Commencement.

Happy Mother's Day

One Million Signatures Campaign winner of Global Women's Right award

Elenor Esmael, Christian Amanpor, Soraya fallah,One million signature campaign,Mavis Nicholson Leno


See the pictures

-->

The One Million Signatures Campaign has been recognized as the special winner of the Eleanor Roosevelt 2009 Global Women's Rights Awards, along with Christiane Amanpour and other people who have contributed part or all of their lives or careers to women's rights issues. The Campaign received the award last night, April 29^th 2009, at a gala dinner reception hosted by the Feminist Majority Foundation in the Beverly Hills Hotel, Los Angeles, California.

After reading a short introduction about the Campaign, Dolores Huerta acknowledged the pressure induced on Campaign members, the imprisonment of Alieh Eghdam Doust, the attendance of two of the Tehran based activists, Fariba Davoodi Mohajer and Sussan Tahmasebi, at the gala, and congratulated the Campaign on the news of the release of Maryam Malek from prison. Dolores Huerta then handed out the 2009 Global Women's Rights Awards to the Campaign. The One Million Signatures Campaign was honored in special recognition of its ground-breaking work to demand an end to laws in Iran that discriminate against women.

Read more

See more picturs

https://plus.google.com/photos/100666141513840933217/albums/5330699837960162737?banner=pwa

Sussan Tahmasebi will talk in UCLA

Tehran-based Campaign activist Sussan Tahmasebi
is giving a talk, in English, entitled
"The One Million Signatures Campaign in Iran: A Model
for Change and Equality".
Please come and let all supporters of human rights and
equality know about this fabulous opportunity to hear
about campaign’s efforts in Iran.
A Lecture by:
Sussan Tahmasebi
Saturday, May 2nd
4:300 p.m.
UCLA, Bunche Hall Room 2209A (2nd floor)
Sussan Tahmasebi is a founding member of the One Million
Signatures Campaign in Iran and the editor of the English
language website of the Campaign - Change for Equality,
http://www.campaignforequality.info/English/. In April 2007
she was summoned to court due to her participation in a
peaceful gathering against discriminatory laws which took
place for the first time on June 12 2006 in haft-e-tir square.
As a result she was sentenced to 2 years imprisonment; the
court has subsequently suspended one and a half years of the
sentence, leaving her to serve six months in prison for acting
against national security. The appeal is under review. Sussan
Tahmasebi was also among 33 women arrested on March 4,
2007. She was released after four days and was charged with
“gathering and colluding with the intent to harm national
security, disturbing public order and disobeying police orders”,
but was acquitted of these charges in January 2008
Parking is available for $9 in Lot 5, 3, 2.
http://maps.ucla.edu/campus/

[16days_discussion] Iranian and Afghan Women: sisters in struggle against religious extremism

Elahe Amani Iranian and Afghan Women: sisters in struggle against religious extremism 27 - 04 - 2009 The new Shiite Family Law that was passed swiftly in Parliament and signed by president Karzai, sent a shock wave to all the gender equality / human rights communities all over the world. About 300 brave Afghan women gathered in front of a recently built Shiite mosque to show their opposition to a law that not only violates the basic human rights and human dignity of Afghan women but also is in clear contradiction to the constitution of Afghanistan. Iranian women who share the same struggle against religious extremists gave a strong support to their Afghan sisters in Iran and in the diaspora. The controversial Shiite Family Law is reminiscent of the brutal social dictatorship of the Taliban. According to Sima Ghani, a young rights activist, the 300 women who protested the law were there regardless of which sect of Islam they follow. Many believe if the law is implemented, it will be the first step towards the imposition of a Taliban brand of Islamic Family law in Afghanistan. Adeleh Mohseni from Kabul in an interview with Iranian Women Solidarity Network said that " it was just yesterday that the Taliban were claiming Shiite blood is " Mubah", but today, they respect their laws and admire those who wrote it. It is interesting when it comes to the issues related to women, they all collaborate". On April 14th Iranian women's organizations Focus on Iranian Women , The Feminist School , Women's Field, Women's Commission of Tahkim Vahdat(Strethening Unity ) , Women's Committee of Tahkim Vahdat Iranian Researchers' Association, Committee of Human Rights Reporters, Health Activists Association (Talashgaran Salamat) and Farasoo Association (Tabriz) issued a joint statement " In Support of Women in Afghanistan Against Their New Family Law". " We, the Iranian women's movement activists have been trying regularly and responsibly to follow the activities, achievements and failures of women in the area. Because we believe that each achievement or failure which is faced by women, especially in our region, can have reciprocal effects on Iranian women and our society at large. We have experienced that we are able to amend our moves in order to gain equal rights by learning from each other. Hence when we were informed that a new law called "Family Law" was approved in Afghanistan we decided to unite in your cause and struggle against the anti woman law." Also, the One Million Signature Campaign, a broad network of gender activists aiming to change the discriminatory laws against women and girls in Iran, posted an article to the Campaign website, titled " Equality is Our Rights, Report from Women's March" The article states " This is the first organized reaction of Afghan Women and a hopeful sign for a broad women's movement in Afghanistan". It was not long ago that the Iranian women's movement formed a broad and successful coalition against the Family Law which eased the restriction on polygamy. The collective voice of Iranian women saying " No to Polygamy" made the law take a step back from implementation and review the law. Any such short term victories in Iran and Afghanistan should not be taken for granted. The patriarchal forces and political power brokers who compromise women's rights and dignity in order to further their political agenda are behind these laws and are keenly seeking new windows of opportunity to pass and implement such laws, or, if faced with resistance at local and global level, to take a step back. In Stopping the brutal practice of stoning in Iran, Iranian women have experienced "Rare Victory for Women's Rights in Iran" . One of the lessons learned from the encounter and struggle of women rights activists with both the state and non-state forces of religious fundamentalists in Iran and Afghanistan, is that local resistance and opposition along with global support can halt their assault. In the age of information technology and with the emergence of the new media, these regressive, obsolete and fanatical measures cannot possibly be implemented quietly. Despite all the atrocities, war and terror inflicted on our world by state and non-state actors, the awareness of the global community about the rights and dignity of all people and communities is a transnational collective force, a leaderless network that no longer can be ignored. Despite the fact that 300 women protestors in Kabul faced with more than a 1000 counter protestors who throw stones at them and called them " dog" and spat at them, despite the fact that the Iranian women who demand change to the discriminatory laws in Iran are facing arrest and detention, despite the fact that their websites being filtered, papers being banned, and their safety and security is fragile, the movements for rights and dignity, for equity and equality, keep moving forward and gaining more strength. Martin Luther King was right when he said "We shall overcome because the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice." Videos: Afghan women protest against 'rape' http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/7999875.stm Stones Thrown at Afghan Women Protesters http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-dBX25jJWto Afghanistan Women Protest http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0o2RyUzRDvY

Help Free Journalist Roxana Saberi

I joined feminists and human rights activist worldwide in urging the Iranian government to commute the sentence of journalist Roxana Saberi and hope you will take action too. Saberi was initially arrested in February, purportedly for working without press credentials. In March, she was charged with espionage and being an American spy. She was sentenced to 8 years in prison after a one day, closed-door trial. Iran's Nobel Laureate Dr. Shirin Ebadi will defend Roxana Saberi during her appeal. We must stand behind Dr. Ebadi and Saberi at this critical time! No evidence against Saberi has been released by the Iranian government. It is increasingly evident that the charges against her are baseless and reports indicate that she may have been forced to make incriminating statements while imprisoned. Urge Iran's President, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad; Iran's Head of the Judiciary, Mahmoud Hashemi Shahrudi; the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay; and the U.N. and Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon to intervene immediately to free Roxana Saberi from prison and commute her unjust sentence. Take Action: http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/1400/t/900/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=887

Global Women Rights award

MEDIA ADVISORY

For immediate release Contact: Alba Gibson 310.384.1732
April 6, 2009 Merilee Newman 310.556.2500

Feminist Majority Foundation announces
Global Women’s Rights Awards Recipients

Awards ceremony hosted by Mavis and Jay Leno

FEATURING: Christiane Amanpour, CNN’s Chief International Correspondent
Dr. Neal Baer, Executive Producer of Law & Order: SVU
Mariska Hargitay, Actor on Law & Order: SVU
Janet Johnson Bryant, Liberian Mass Action for Peace
Abigail Disney, Producer of Pray the Devil Back to Hell
Gini Reticker, Director of Pray the Devil Back to Hell
Billie Heller, National Committee on U.N./ CEDAW
One Million Signatures Campaign, for Iranian women’s rights

WHEN/WHERE: Beverly Hills Hotel
April 29, 2009, Wednesday
6:30 p.m. – 9:30 p.m.

LOS ANGELES — Hosted by Mavis and Jay Leno, the Feminist Majority Foundation will hold its Fifth Annual Global Women’s Rights Awards the evening of April 29th at the Beverly Hills Hotel, honoring extraordinary people who have worked tirelessly for global women’s rights.

This award is given annually to a select few individuals who have contributed significantly – often against great odds and at great personal risk – to advance the rights of women and girls and to increase awareness of the injustices women face on account of their gender:

Christiane Amanpour, CNN’s chief international correspondent who, at the risk of her own life, was among the first television correspondents to bring to the world’s attention the plight of women under the brutal Taliban regime in Afghanistan.

Janet Johnson Bryant helped lead an unprecedented mobilization of women from across Liberia to end the bloody 14-year-long civil war. Producer Abigail Disney and Director Gini Reticker championed their story to worldwide audiences in their award-winning film, Pray the Devil Back to Hell.

Dr. Neal Baer (Executive Producer) of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (SVU), and Mariska Hargitay (as Detective Olivia Benson) have brought television audiences a better understanding of violence against women, including international human trafficking and child soldiers in war.

Billie Heller will receive a special award for her nearly three decades of work to win U.S. Senate ratification of the International Women’s Rights Treaty (CEDAW).

The One Million Signatures Campaign will be specially recognized for their groundbreaking work to demand an end to discriminatory laws in Iran against women. Iranian campaign activists, including Nobel Laureate Shirin Ebadi, are being repeatedly arrested and harassed for speaking out for women’s human rights.

The evening will feature a panel discussion with the honorees. The evening raises funds for the Feminist Majority Foundation’s global programs, including its Campaign for Afghan Women and Girls. With President Obama’s promise to change US policy in Afghanistan, the Feminist Majority Foundation is working ensure that women and girls are not left out of the security and development plans.

The Feminist Majority Foundation (FMF), founded in 1987, is the nation’s largest feminist research and action organization dedicated to women's equality, reproductive rights and health, and non-violence. Feminist Majority Foundation was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002 for its efforts to help the women and girls of Afghanistan reclaim their full rights.

####

Note to Editors: Feminist Majority Foundation (FMF) board member and gala co-chair Mavis Leno, FMF President Eleanor Smeal, and FMF Executive Vice President Katherine Spillar are available for interview preceding the event.

Kurdish American Youth Organization conference

April 14, 2009 (Tuesday)

2009 KAYO Conference Schedule Kurdish American Youth Organization | 2009

*Note: Some details in the schedule are subject to change. KAYO Conference Schedule* 9:00 – 9:55am Registration and Socializing Session 10:00 – 10:10am Welcome and Opening Remarks Mr. Rebaz Qaradaghi – KAYO National Director 10:10 – 10:25am Words for the Kurdish Youth Mr. Delovan Barwari – Freelance Writer and Activist 10:25– 11:35am PANEL: Leadership Panel Chair: Ms. Rundik Barwari – KAYO-SC Chapter Treasurer Mr. Qubad Talabany, US Representative for the Kurdistan Regional Government Dr. Norman Léonard – Director of Outreach at SDSU Ms. Van Aran – KYC-ATL Chapter Member 11:35 – 11:45am break 11:45am – 12:00pm Activisim in the United States Mr. Goran Sadjadi – Activist and KAYO National Advisor 12:00 – 1:30pm lunch break 1:30 – 1:45pm Building bridges between Kurdish Youth Mr. Siyar Ozsoy, PhD Candidate, University of Texas and Former Advisor to the Mayor of Diyarbakir 1:45– 2:55pm PANEL: Kurdish Identity Panel Chair: Mr. Minhaj Akrayi – KAYO-SC Member Dr. Kamal Artin – Art-in-Mind Director and Activist Dr. Edip Yuksel – Philosopher, Lawyer and Religious Scholar Ms. Soraya Fallah – Chair of Women’s Rights Committee, KNC-NA 2:55 – 3:05pm break 3:05 – 4:15pm PANEL: Kurdish American Youth Organization Panel Chair: Mr. Nezar Ahmed – KAYO National President Ms. Zeen Almissouri – KAYO-SC Chapter Vice President Mr. Peshkout Doski – KAYO-TN Chapter Vice President Mr. Dindar Ali – KAYO-UTD Vice President

One Million Signature Campaign for equality in Californian Inistitute of Art( Calart)

Featured in


The nation's first art institute to offer BFAs and MFAs in both the visual and performing arts, CalArts is dedicated to training and nurturing the next generation of professional artists, fostering brilliance and innovation within the broadest context possible. Emphasis is placed on new and experimental work and students are admitted solely on the basis of artistic ability.
This week CalArt will feature one of the most growing movements around the world by gues speaker Soraya Fallah, women rights activist and active member of the campaign, a performance by Cklara Moradian, spoken word artist and member of One Million Signature Campaign for equality, and artist and musician Goerge Gozalyan.
The One Million Signatures Campaign is a movement that started from Iran and officially launched on August 27, 2006. This movement aims to collect one million signatures in support of a petition addressed to the Iranian Parliament asking for the revision and reform of current laws, which discriminate against women. One of the main aims of the Campaign is to educate citizens and particularly women about the negative impact of these discriminatory laws on the lives of women and society as a whole. Those who agree with the aims of the Campaign can support it by signing the petition. Those who are interested in becoming more involved can become involved in local groups working on the Campaign.
The One Million Signatures Campaign has been awarded the prestigious Global Women’s Rights Award from the Feminist Majority Foundation (FMF). The members of the Campaign are pleased and honored to be recognized once again by other women’s rights activists and feminists around the world for their work.
Each year the Feminist Majority Foundation honors distinguished individuals or groups active in promoting women’s rights internationally with the Global Women’s Rights Awards. This year (2009), the Iranian One Million Signatures Campaign is the recipient of this award, "in special recognition of their ground breaking work to demand an end to discriminatory laws against women in Iran."
On April 29 Beverly Hills Hotel will host the attendees who like to see the award winners.

World’s Women For Life against Honor Killing; a brutal reality of the culture of death

"Honor killing" generally refers to acts of violence, usually murder, committed by family members and/or acquaintances of a female, who has allegedly brought dishonor upon the family.

A woman can be targeted by (individuals within) her family and/or her tribe, village, and kinsmen for a variety of reasons, including but not limited to: refusing to enter into an arranged marriage, being the victim of sexual assault , seeking a divorce — even from an abusive husband — or (allegedly) committing adultery. The mere perception that a woman has behaved in a way that "dishonors" her family is sufficient to trigger an attack on her life.

Honor crimes happen more often in transitional systems, such as regions, which are facing war, revolution, globalization, and/or political changes. Rape is often used as weapon of war; subjecting women to threats on all sides; that of dishonor and the brutality of sexual exploitation. They are violated against from both the authorities and their own families, especially in Islamic countries and/or cultures that have been dominated by Islam. In these cultures shame takes on a more predominant role.

Women are killed simply for being in love, having an “illegitimate” relationship with someone, or being suspected of having a relationship. Women’s emotions and sexuality is directly linked to shame in these cultures, resulting in the need for retaliation by the dominant powers.

A case that brought “honor killing”, especially by way of stoning to the International public arena, was that of Du’a Khalil Aswad and a video taken by an eyewitness and subsequently published online. The brutal images forced the world to look at this act of violence and begin a dialogue about crimes, which are systematically ignored and hidden.

On April 2007, after speaking to several Women’s rights organization in Northern Iraq, there seemed to be a clear consensus regarding Du’a’s murder. They all agreed that the killing of Du'a was one single case in a larger context of societal issues, but exceptional in the way it was prosecuted. The way she was murdered was not just absolutely terrifying, but it was also public. In the sense that it was suddenly not just a secret of a remote culture anymore; rather brought into our homes through the medium of internet. We were forced to face the violence and not turn away.

The murder of Du’a does not follow the classical form of stoning, as practiced and legalized by certain Islamic sects. It forces us to ask if we can consider her murder, an act of stoning, or a truly terrible act of mob violence. This question is asked not as a way to diminish the incident. Some may argue that, how she was killed does not make a difference. It is however significant for one reason. It is important to note the procedure, because it leads to a better understanding of cultural motive and etiology.

Watching the video can tell the story better. It is hard to watch the video even years after the incident, but in order to analyzing it, I had to.

In the grainy low-quality video, a dozen men surround a woman curled into a fetal position on the ground, and they kick and punch her.(it is not part of Stoning procedure) Hundreds of onlookers fill the village square in Bashika. The beating continues as Du'a Khalil, tries to protect her head from the blows. After several minutes, a cinder block is passed through the crowd and a man uses it to smash her head.

Kurdistan regional government (KRG) officials are trying to understand and stop a rise in honor killings. The Kurdish government has overturned Iraqi laws that allow relatives to kill women who were perceived to have dishonored their families.

It is crucial that the KRG(Kurdish Regional Government) legally protect women and their right to life. The Kurdish Parliament must push to implement the law, which regards “Honor killing” as a murder, rather than an excusable case.

Women Organizations around the world must not only encourage regimes and government entities to ban this practice. Women and human right activist must force these bodies of law to implement an end to such a horrifying act of violence.

The world must also consider the social, political, cultural, and economical situations of these regions, which lead to a rise in these acts of violence.

At the time of this horrible incident, Amnesty International wrote a request to the KRG, asking for details of these cases, including the names of all those who have been tried for alleged "honour crimes" since the law was changed, how many were convicted and the sentences imposed in each case. The organization has also written to the Iraqi government to seek information about investigations into the stoning to death of Du'a Khalil Aswad and the subsequent murder of 23 Yezidi workers, and calling for the perpetrators of these crimes to be brought to justice promptly and fairly and without recourse to the death penalty. Amnesty International is also urging the Iraqi authorities to amend the law to ensure that "honour killings" are made a serious criminal offence and to take concrete measures to protect all those at risk of becoming victims of "honour crimes".

World’s Women For Life hopes that the public will understand that crime in the name of “honor” or any kind of violence and killing against women cannot remain the sole issue of the families involved, it is a concern for the entire society.

We are also urging pro-women organizations and human rights organizations to stand up for those women who silently suffer in the hands of those they are supposed to trust the most.