Category: News / Information
Peace & Justice History for 1/24
Also, in the early 2000’s as my Dem. county party chair, I had the great honor of representing Kansas St. Senator David Haley-a very gracious man!-at a local candidate’s forum as he was running for Secretary of State (he came close but did not prevail. I tried to take the blame, but he would not let me.) KS is a red state, but he ran against the Republicans anyway. At that time, Republicans loved the computerized voting machines with no chits, but Sen. Haley wanted verification. He is author Alex Haley’s nephew.
| January 24, 1970 John Lennon & Yoko Ono cropped their hair short for the first time in years, declaring 1970 “Year One for Peace” and helped organize a Toronto Peace Festival.  John and Yoko An interview with John later that year |
| January 24, 1977 The TV mini-series ”Roots,” based on the Alex Haley novel, began airing on ABC.  LeVar Burton portrayed Kunta Kinte, a young man captured in Africa and shipped to America to be a slave, in “Roots.” The story followed an African sold into slavery, and his family’s history through emancipation. It won numerous awards and drew an enormous and broad-based audience (third-highest Nielsen ratings ever for its final episode). 85 percent of all Americans watched at least some part of the series. Listen to thoughts on Roots 30 years later |
https://www.peacebuttons.info/E-News/peacehistoryjanuary.htm#january24
Interesting. She Gives Follow-through Commentary, Even.
The ‘MAGA Granny’ Plans to Reject Trump’s Jan. 6 Pardon, and Her Reasons Behind it Might Shock You
Pamela Hemphill was sentenced to jail after posting videos of her inside the Capitol during the insurrection.
On his first day in office, President Donald Trump made good on his promise to pardon all of the roughly 1,500 Jan. 6 insurrectionists. But while many MAGA supporters like Jacob Chansley, the self proclaimed “QAnon Shaman” and the face of the deadly Capitol riot, celebrated their pardons, one MAGA celebrity is singing a different tune.
Pamela Hemphill is a 71-year-old Boise, Idaho resident. She was known as “the MAGA granny” to Trump’s supporters, but in May 2022, she was sentenced to two months in jail on a misdemeanor charge in the Capitol attack, according to the Department of Justice.
Hemphill pled guilty to the charge after she was caught live streaming the insurrection and posting videos on YouTube from inside the Capitol during the attack. More than two years later, Hemphill said she got exactly what was coming to her. “We were wrong that day, we broke the law,” she told BBC. “There should be no pardons.”
It’s been confirmed that five U.S. citizens were killed during the Jan. 6 riot. This includes Capitol police officer Brian Sicknick, who died on Jan. 7 as a result of injuries sustained during the attack, according to U. S. Capitol Police.
Rachel Scott, a senior congressional correspondent for ABC News, said she spoke to Sicknick’s brother. “We now have no rule of law,” he reportedly told Scott. The brother even went as far as to call Trump “a poor excuse of a man.”
Hemphill said accepting the president’s pardon “would only insult the Capitol police officers, rule of law and, of course, our nation.” She continued to the Idaho Statesman saying, “The J6 criminals are trying to rewrite history by saying that it was not a riot; it wasn’t an insurrection. I don’t want to be a part of their trying to rewrite what happened that day.”
So with that, she’s turning down the pardon offer, going against the president and his MAGA movement’s wishes, and she’s well within her rights to do so. The MAGA granny wouldn’t be the first person to reject a presidential pardon. In 1833, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that a pardon recipient can indeed turn down the offer. The ruling was later upheld in 1915, according to the Library of Congress.
Hemphill says her attorney plans to file an official letter of rejection of the president’s pardon.
Bits of a Couple of Pieces I Found Late, Right Before Bedtime
Fast radio burst found in an old, dead galaxy for the first time
A new discovery adds to the mystery of the source of fast radio bursts.
Fast radio bursts (FRBs) are extremely energetic pulses of radio-frequency light which travels across the universe that last just a few seconds or even milliseconds.
More than 1,000 FRBs have been reported since the first was discovered in 2007. (snip-More; click the title see it all.)
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Godless Libs Of Tulsa, OK, City Council To No Longer Force Jesus On People Just Trying To Attend Their Meetings by Rebecca Schoenkopf
Good for you Tulsa, Oklahoma! Read on Substack
The City Council of Tulsa, Oklahoma — faced with the choice of upsetting Christian Republican legislators or making non-Christian community members feel like they didn’t belong — voted 8-0 (with one abstaining) this week to eliminate the practice of starting each meeting with a prayer invocation.
Now, instead of invocations, there will be a moment of silence, so that everyone will have to sit there and feel uncomfortable instead of just those whose religion is not represented by the opening prayer.
As Hemant Mehta of Friendly Atheist reports, this all started last year after the invocation was delivered by Amy Hardy-McAdams, co-owner and creator of the Strawberry Moon Herbal Apothecary & Ritual Center in Broken Arrow. Hardy-McAdams, who described herself as “a Third-Degree High Priestess of the Artemisian Faerie Faith Tradition of Witchcraft” (which I’m sure is a real thing), was invited by retiring City Councilmember Crista Patrick, who also happened to be a Pagan and wished to see her faith represented at the meeting just as Christianity had been. (snip-More; the statements from the Gov and Schools Supt. are worth the click by themselves, but the entire thing is gold!)
Another Resource
I read the free Democracy Docket; it’s good, but not complete. However, on items like this, everyone can see it. The more of this sort of thing we have, the better.
https://www.democracy2025.org/
We will fight for people, freedom, and our democracy against any odds
Democracy 2025 is the strategic hub to protect people and their rights should the Trump-Vance administration seek to unlawfully strip away freedoms and prosperity.
We know the playbook, and we’re ready to fight back
The threats are no longer hypothetical. The effort to turn Project 2025 and other dangerous plans into action has begun.
We’ve planned for this moment. In courtrooms and communities across the country, we will use all the tools our Constitution provides to defend our rights and achieve a democracy that works for all people. (snip-Go Visit! Bookmark it, use it, and do what you can.)
The Crucible and more in Peace and Justice History for 1/22
| January 22, 1953 The Arthur Miller drama, ”The Crucible,” opened on Broadway. It was a parable that reflected the climate of fear that pervaded American society and the politics of its time, witchcraft in the late 17th century, communism in the mid-20th. In both times there existed also the fear of false accusation. From the New York Times review of the Broadway revival in November 2001: “Today, the play is a cautionary tale of astounding immediacy. Its themes include the pathology of rumor, the arrogance of the religiously righteous, the dangers of private panic in the face of public terror, and the individual’s difficulty in acting rationally in the face of mob hysteria.”  scene from the original production Read the playwright’s reasons for writing it: |
| January 22, 1973 Women won control of their reproductive rights when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Roe v. Wade that Americans have a constitutional right to privacy, and thus women may terminate a pregnancy before the last 10 weeks. Only during the last trimester, when a fetus can survive outside the womb, would states be permitted to regulate abortion of a healthy pregnancy. Prior to the Court’s ruling that the decision was private and belonged to the pregnant woman, abortion was essentially illegal in all states except New York (as of 1970).  About the decision History of New York’s law |
| January 22, 2001 President George W. Bush signed a memorandum the day after his inauguration reinstating full restrictions on U.S. overseas aid that might go to any program that provided abortions or considered them an option for women. Known as the Mexico City policy, or global gag rule, first signed by President Ronald Reagan, it had been withdrawn by President Bill Clinton as soon as he took office. |
https://www.peacebuttons.info/E-News/peacehistoryjanuary.htm#january22
This could be a resource, or you could be or know of a resource
Either way, I thought I’d paste it in here, and whoever needs it, wants it, or knows something about it can do their thing. The title leans in one particular direction, but there is more info within, and I pasted it all here.
Seeking trans-friendly employers who sponsor visas
Nobody should have to move to another country to be themselves.
However, I’ve spoken to multiple people who feel they need to move away from the US in order to avoid harms caused by the new administration’s executive orders that target trans people. Exactly how to do this is sometimes opaque and feels difficult.
If you are actively hiring for positions in a company that is friendly to transgender people, in a country that is safe for transgender people, and you are willing to sponsor visas for people seeking to emigrate for these positions, I would like to hear from you.
If this is you, please enter your details here, and I’ll make them available on a public, open source website soon.
If you’re unsure which countries are considered to be safe for transgender people, and if your country is one, Rainbow Relocation has a reasonable list, and others are available.
To be clear: I want trans people to feel safe here in the United States, and I want them to be here. But I also understand peoples’ need to feel safe in the current moment. I am not urging people to move, but I would like to make life easier for people who want to. I’m making this request in the spirit of assistance, because I’ve already been asked.
I am also probably not the right person to put this together! But I didn’t see anyone else doing it. If you are from a reputable organization that supports transgender safety in a professional way, and you would like to take ownership of this list or collaborate, or if you are already doing something like this and I missed it, please email me at ben@benwerd.com.
I’m writing about the intersection of the internet, media, and society. Sign up to my newsletter to receive every post and a weekly digest of the most important stories from around the web.
“Infinite Hope”: Angela Davis Speaks at 2025 Peace Ball Ahead of Trump Inauguration
January 20, 2025 Watch The Show
With the U.S. political establishment gathered in Washington for the second inauguration of Donald Trump, the iconic venue Busboys and Poets on Sunday hosted the Peace Ball, an event held around presidential inaugurations since 2009 and featuring voices of resistance to war, racism, poverty and more. This year’s Peace Ball featured author Angela Davis, who spoke of the power of “infinite hope” to fight against injustice. “I want us all to generate the kind of collective hope that will usher us into a better future,” said Davis. We air highlights from the event.’
Transcript
This is a rush transcript. Copy may not be in its final form.
AMY GOODMAN: This is Democracy Now!, democracynow.org. I’m Amy Goodman.
On Saturday night in Washington, D.C., Busboys and Poets hosted the 2025 Inaugural Peace Ball, which first started in 2009 with the inauguration of President Obama. The theme was “A Gathering for Positive Change.” While the event had once been held at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture, this year Busboys and Poets founder Andy Shallal was quoted in The New York Times saying that the museum had complaints about, quote, “the tone of the event,” even though some of the featured speakers are also featured in the museum, including the abolitionist, the author, the professor and longtime activist Angela Davis. The event did proceed, however, at the Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater. This is Angela Davis.
ANGELA DAVIS: A lot more is happening in the world than the inauguration of someone who represents fascism in this country and the world. And if we look back at struggles for justice and equality, we find that there aren’t often propitious moments for those struggles. We’ve always confronted waves of conservatism. And while we cannot create the conditions for the struggles in which we engage, we can bring our determination. We can bring our vision for a better future. And even as we express the deep disappointment — and I’m not going to try to enumerate all of the things about which we are collectively disappointed, but we can’t find ourselves so ensconced in that disappointment that we don’t create the kind of hope that will allow us to move forward and pass legacies to the next generation of people who are struggling. And we do — we do — we do want to join that celebration that Linda Sarsour talked about on the sands of Gaza. We want to be able to look forward to that moment.
Now, I guess I should at least mention the fact that the conditions of struggle today are horrendous. And when I try to imagine what it might mean to confront, you know, all of those who are the billionaires, who once were opposed to Trump, who are now offering themselves up to him, but when I think about the move toward fascism, I also celebrate the fact that we have never seen as many people stand up for the freedom of Palestine. People who were dissuaded in the past by Zionist propaganda are standing up and powerfully demanding a free Palestine. Free, free Palestine. And that is what we are celebrating this evening. That is what we are celebrating.
Now, I think it might be propitious — I’ll use that word again — that the inauguration is happening on the same day as we celebrate the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King. And in that context, I want to remind us that it was Dr. King who said that we cannot capitulate to finite disappointments, and what we do is we confront those finite disappointments with infinite hope. And that is what we are in the process of doing.
AMY GOODMAN: That was Angela Davis, the abolitionist, the author, the professor, the longtime activist, speaking at the 2025 Inaugural Peace Ball at the Arena Stage on Saturday night. Special thanks to the whole Democracy Now! team and to Guy Warner.
The original content of this program is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. Please attribute legal copies of this work to democracynow.org. Some of the work(s) that this program incorporates, however, may be separately licensed. For further information or additional permissions, contact us.
https://www.democracynow.org/2025/1/20/infinite_hope_angela_davis_speaks_at
Peace & Justice History for 1/21
January 21, 1661 King Charles II The Quaker (Society of Friends) Peace Testimony was presented to King Charles II of England. The testimony begins: “We utterly deny all outward wars and strife and fightings with outward weapons, for any end or under any pretence whatsoever. And this is our testimony to the whole world….” Why are Quakers pacifists |
| January 21, 1954 The first atomic-powered submarine, the USS Nautilus, built by Electric Boat Company, was launched at Groton, Connecticut. All previous submarines were powered by batteries which had to be periodically recharged by diesel-powered generators which could only run if the sub surfaced.The nuclear power plant, developed under the leadership of Captain Hyman Rickover, and its ability to produce its own fresh water, allowed Nautilus and its successors to remain underwater and undetectable for weeks rather than hours. It carried only conventional torpedoes. It has been completely restored and can be seen at the Submarine Force Museum in Groton.  nautilus submarine launch |
| January 21, 1977 The day after his inauguration President Jimmy Carter declared an unconditional amnesty for draft resisters, both the accused and those who might have faced possible prosecution. Carter’s pardon |
| January 21, 1984 A Women’s Peace Camp was set up near Volkel Airbase in The Netherlands to protest siting of U.S. nuclear weapons there. |
https://www.peacebuttons.info/E-News/peacehistoryjanuary.htm#january21
OK, So There Is Bad News Within,
but the reason I’m posting it is so we can be aware, and be better able to help our own neighbors locally. It may not be ours to start writing letters and calling on ACLU or any of those things, but maybe simply keeping our eyes open for the regular people we know or interact with. So here is this, which came to me from Death Penalty Action. It’s the first 10 EO’s issued today, plus some policy info.
All of the Day 1 executive actions Trump has announced so far
Updated January 20, 20251:50 PM ET By Lexie Schapitl Franco Ordoñez
For updates, context and analysis of Donald Trump’s 2025 inauguration, check out NPR’s live blog throughout the day Monday.
President Trump is expected to sign a flurry of executive orders, memorandums and proclamations after his inauguration on Monday, reversing many of his predecessors’ policies and reinstating actions from his first term in office.
The actions are expected to address a range of issues, including campaign priorities like border security and culture war issues like DEI policies.
Here’s what we know so far:
Immigration
Trump is expected to declare a national emergency at the U.S. southern border, designate criminal cartels as terror groups and end birthright citizenship for children born to immigrant parents without legal status, according to incoming White House officials who spoke to reporters on a call on condition of background.
Trump will also reinstate the “Remain in Mexico” policy, which would require some asylum seekers at the southern border to wait in Mexico for their hearings in U.S. immigration court, the officials said.
The moves are some of 10 sweeping executive actions on border security that incoming officials say Trump plans to sign on Monday:
- Declare a national emergency at the border: The officials on the call said this action will allow U.S. armed forces to finish the border wall and allow the secretary of defense to deploy members of the armed forces and National Guard to the border.
- “Clarify” the military’s role in border security: This action “directs the military to prioritize our borders” and protect territorial integrity “by repelling forms of invasion, including unlawful mass migration, narcotics trafficking, human smuggling and trafficking and other criminal activities,” the officials said.
- End “catch and release,” continue building the wall, and end “Remain in Mexico”
- Designate criminal cartels as terrorists: This will allow the U.S. to more easily remove members of groups like Tren de Aragua, a transnational criminal organization from Venezuela, and MS-13.
- Suspend refugee resettlement: The official said the U.S. would suspend refugee resettlement for at least four months.
- End asylum and close the border to those without legal status via proclamation: Officials said they are planning to end asylum entirely and close the border to those without legal status via proclamation, “which creates an immediate removal process without possibility of asylum.”
- End birthright citizenship: The officials said the White House plans to end birthright citizenship, which is enshrined in the 14th Amendment. They argued the amendment does not recognize automatic birthright citizenship for children born in the United States to parents without legal status. This action is likely to see immediate legal challenges.
- Enhance vetting and screening: The officials said they are going to “enhance vetting and screening of illegal aliens.”
- “Protect American citizens against invasion”: Officials said this “equips agents and officers of ICE and CBP with the authorities” they need to deport people from the U.S.
- Restore the death penalty: “This action in particular, directs the Attorney General to seek capital punishment for the murder of law enforcement officers and capital crimes committed by illegal aliens. It encourages state agencies and district attorneys to bring capital state charges for these crimes,” the officials said.
Read more from NPR’s Ximena Bustillo.
Defining ‘sex’ and ending DEI programs
Trump will sign an executive action on Monday that says it’s the policy of the United States to recognize two biologically distinct sexes — male and female — an incoming White House official speaking on background told reporters Monday.
“These are sexes that are not changeable, and they are grounded in fundamental and incontrovertible reality,” the official said.
The change will require government agencies to use the definitions on documents like passports, visas and employee records the official said. Taxpayer funds will not be allowed to be used for “transition services,” the official said.
A second action will end diversity, equity and inclusion programs in the federal government, the official said, giving as examples environmental justice programs in the U.S. Department of Agriculture, as well as diversity training.
National energy emergency and “electric vehicle mandate”
Trump intends to declare a national energy emergency on Monday, aiming to cut red tape and regulations for the energy industry, and a second one specific to Alaskan resources, an incoming White House official told reporters on a background conference call.
“That national energy emergency will unlock a variety of different authorities that will enable our nation to quickly build again, to produce coal and natural resources, to create jobs, to create prosperity and to strengthen our nation’s national security,” the official said. The official said energy prices are too high, but declined on the call to name a lower target price.
The action will end what incoming Trump officials call the “electric vehicle mandate” and will end “efforts to curtail consumer choice on the things that consumers use every single day, whether it be showerheads, whether it be gas stoves, whether it be dishwashers and the like,” the official said.
Trump has long railed against energy efficiency standards on the campaign trail, and specifically taken aim at “electric vehicle mandates,” a term he uses to encompass all policies designed to encourage a transition to battery-powered cars. Rules actually requiring 100% of vehicles to be electric do not exist on the federal level.
Inflation
Trump will sign a presidential memorandum on inflation Monday, an official from the incoming administration said. The official did not provide additional details.
NPR correspondents Tamara Keith, Ximena Bustillo and Camila Domonoske contributed to this report.
Scottie's Playtime 