Participants withstood the twenty degree temperatures by forming a tight circle around five performers from Danza Mexica Cuauhtemoc, a local group of Native American dancers from St. Paul. They kicked off the event with some high-energy Aztec dancing and drumming in full costume. And they were certainly colder than we were as the men danced bare-chested and the women’s costumes featured bare arms and legs! After performing three ceremonial pieces, their leader explained, “We are happy to come here and dance in the cold because it reminds us of all the native peoples who were marched through the snow…who have endured so much suffering and loss of their culture. Today we dance to celebrate our culture, and we believe that expressing our culture is a human right.” Danza Mexica Cuauhtemoc finished with a rousing final dance to express “the joy within the struggle.”
Following the Aztec dances, Shailja Patel and Paul Dosh, two spoken word artists, gave impressive performances of their work. Patel, a national poetry slam champion and world renowned poet, performed a piece called “She Said No,” about a South Korean woman who was beaten to death by a U.S. soldier in 2004 because she wouldn’t have sex with him. Dosh, a professor of political science at Macalester College, performed “Shock and Awe,” about the U.S. invasion and occupation of Iraq. Both artists performed from memory and received enthusiastic ovations from the crowd. Their talent, insights, and perspectives on human rights were truly an inspiration.
The next speaker was Gerardo Cajamarca, a union organizer and activist from Colombia, who spoke in Spanish about the current political situation and widespread human rights abuses in his country. As we listened to his words through the help of an interpreter, connections between the U.S. government and human rights abuses in Colombia became obvious. Colombia is third on the list of countries receiving the most monetary aid from the U.S. The 4.5 billion dollar aid package called “Plan Colombia” designates over 80% of its funding to the Colombian military. Instituted in 2000, it was heralded as the latest preventive measure in the “War on Drugs,” since Colombia is the world’s largest producer of cocaine.
However, Cajamarca informed us that, “there has been no change in the price, purity, or availability of cocaine in the United States” since the Plan’s implementation. Instead, Plan Colombia has enabled the military (and right-wing paramilitaries with close ties to the government) to wage a counter-insurgency war against its own people. Cajamarca described numerous assassinations of union leaders and social activists, and said that “anyone who dares to challenge the political and economic system does so at great risk.” He reminded us that the worker’s right to organize is protected by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and he urged those in attendance to demand that the U.S. stop sending aid to Colombia.
Following some words of wisdom from Sarah Standefer of Women Against Military Madness, we were ready to march! We left the Spirit of the Lakes parking lot in high spirits, determined to spread the message of human rights for all. Marchers carried signs calling for an end to the war in Iraq, denouncing torture, and demanding that the United States stop funding Israel’s occupation of Palestine and Colombia’s oppression of its own people. As we marched down Lake Street with our signs and banners, we chanted messages such as “Money for jobs, not for war…hands off Iraq,” and “What do we want? Justice! When do we want it? Now!”
Two demonstrators chose to send a message about human rights while in costume. They wore George Bush and Saddam Hussein masks and dressed in orange prison jumpsuits, while carrying a sign that read, “Try ALL War Criminals.” They explained that they did so to raise awareness of two points: 1) Saddam Hussein carried out systematic atrocities and human rights violations in the early 1980s while he was an ally of the United States, and 2) many of the crimes Saddam is accused of are currently being perpetrated against the Iraqi people by the U.S. military (arbitrary detentions, prisoner abuse, the killing of civilians, and the use of white phosphorous chemical weapons).
While marching, we received many smiles, waves, and peace signs from motorists and pedestrians as the march continued. While it was clear that not everyone agreed, the vast majority of responses were positive. After an hour-long march, we found ourselves back at Spirit of the Lakes for some hot drinks and the conclusion of our program.
Inside the church, we were greeted with a rap performance from four members of the “Student Association for the Advancement of Children as People.” The SAACP is a children’s activist group from Southside Family School dedicated to exploring human rights issues faced by children around the world. The catchy beat and inspirational lyrics in their song had us bobbing our heads and singing along as they promised to “share the wealth, for peace and health,” with all of humanity. With 10-12 year olds like these working to make a positive difference, we all felt a renewed sense of hope about the future of our country. The post-march schedule of events concluded with speeches from Jess Sundin of the Antiwar Committee who spent several months in Iraq, and Joe Callahan of the Iraq Peace Action Coalition.
After a couple of hours at home, we were ready to celebrate International Human Rights Day at St. Joan of Arc. The purpose of this evening event was to give a variety of speakers the chance to address a host of global and local human rights issues, as well as to facilitate the planning of actions in response to these issues. The program began with plenty of familiar faces! The dancers from Danza Mexica Cuauhtemoc performed once again – this time indoors and with a few more performers. Gerardo Cajamarca spoke once more about the repression of human rights in Colombia. He was joined by Fr. Campo Elias, a Colombian priest who spoke about the need for solidarity between Catholic churches in the U.S. and in Colombia. To provide further background on the situation in Colombia, Amy Tucker Morris from Witness for Peace gave us a brief overview of the two years she spent living and working for human rights in Colombia.
The presentation on Colombia was followed by speeches from two MN activists concerned with upholding human rights locally. Audrey Thayer, an activist from the White Earth Reservation near Bemidji, shared her concerns about the high rate of violence on MN reservations and voiced the continuing frustrations of many Native Americans in their dealings with the U.S. government. Keith Ellison, a state representative from North Minneapolis, took the floor next, addressing the audience with passion and conviction about a variety of issues including race, poverty, criminal justice (or injustice), and the environment. He urged those in attendance to “never allow our luxuries to become more important than other people’s necessities,” and he profoundly reminded us that “it’s impossible to be members of the human race and the masters of it,” He urged all those listening to work tirelessly to break down the barriers of race, gender, and social class that divide us and to celebrate our common humanity.
The featured speaker of the evening was Jack Nelson-Pallmeyer(right), author and professor of Peace and Justice Studies at the University of St. Thomas. A renowned expert on the U.S. Army School of the Americas in Ft. Benning, Georgia, and highly knowledgeable of U.S. foreign policy, Nelson-Pallmeyer opened his talk by pointing out recent news stories about the war in Iraq that demonstrate how the mainstream press won’t address “the real issues.” He then outlined four steps that concerned citizens can take to stand up for human rights in the midst of conflict and controversy.
The first step was a call to add our voices to “The Great Revulsion.” He spoke of the war in Iraq as a prime example of our nation’s violent, profit-driven quest for empire, and he challenged us to raise our voices in demanding a radically different agenda. He pointed out that the tide of public opinion about the war has shifted dramatically within the last eight months, and he urged us to continue our vigilance in the struggle for peace and justice (even if it means that we have to “remind the Democrats to have a spine”).
Secondly, he encouraged us to define and defend human rights in a comprehensive way – not just to condemn violence and torture but to speak out against the current “eco-cide” that’s being waged against our environment. The future of the planet we call home is certainly a human rights issue.
Thirdly, Nelson-Pallmeyer stated that working to end the occupation of Iraq is perhaps the single most important action we can take to stand up for human rights in a comprehensive way. He emphasized the costs of the war - in Iraqi and American lives, as well as the billions of dollars that could have been spent on social programs. According to recent numbers, the devastation of Iraq has now cost American taxpayers $225 billion dollars. That’s $5.25 billion from Minnesota taxpayers alone for an unjust war based on lies and manipulation. Working to end the occupation of Iraq as well as U.S. imperialism in general would free up money and resources to address human needs at home.
Lastly, Nelson-Pallmeyer urged us to outline for the United States “The Great Vision” - one that recognizes international law, respects all human rights, celebrates diversity, and preserves our natural environment.
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