Chile students stage mass protest for education
Organisers said 180,000 people joined the march
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Tens of thousands of students and teachers have marched in the Chilean capital, Santiago, in the latest mass protest to demand educational reform.
The march was largely peaceful, but ended with clashes between riot police and masked youths throwing stones.
The protest movement - now in its fourth month - is the biggest in Chile since the return to democracy in 1990.
The government has promised some reforms, but the students say they do not go far enough.
Protest organisers said around 180,000 people took part in Thursday's march, making it the biggest in several weeks.
Some wore fancy dress or played musical instruments as they marched through Santiago.
As the march drew to a close, small groups wearing hoods threw stones at riot police, who responded with tear gas and water canon.
'Apartheid'
Student leaders are demanding wholesale reform Chile's education system, which they say is deeply unequal and desperately underfunded.
The march ended in violent clashes between protesters and the police
The system is sharply divided between private and public schools, an approach critics have labelled as "educational apartheid".
The protesters want the central government to take full control of education and increase spending on public schools.
They also want increased funding for universities, including scholarships rather than loans for poorer students, and an end to profit in education.
President Sebastian Pinera has responded by promising limited reforms and around $4 billion (£2.6 billion) in extra funding.
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“
Start Quote
The crisis in education is in fact a crisis in the model installed under the dictatorship”
Camila Vallejo
Student leader
But he has categorically rejected calls for full state control and free education.
Mr Pinera addressed the issue again on Thursday in a speech to the UN General Assembly in New York.
His reforms promised "quality education for everyone, and free education for those who require it, so as to achieve the dream that no child be left out of higher education because of a lack of resources," he said.
But student leaders - many of them left-wing - say his proposed reforms do not address the fundamental problems of a system set up during the 1973-1990 military rule of Gen Augusto Pinochet.
"The people understand that the crisis in education is in fact a crisis of the model installed under the dictatorship. The protest is not against today's government, but against the neo-liberal model," student leader Camila Vallejo told the French news agency.
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
MSNBC on NYPD Police Brutality during Occupy Wall Street Lawrence O'donnell with "The Last Word"
MSNBC on NYPD Police Brutality during Occupy Wall Street Lawrence O'donnell with "The Last
LA Times Article:Jail volunteers accuse deputies of abusing L.A. County prisoners Three volunteers at Men's Central Jail in Los Angeles...
By Robert Faturechi, Los Angeles Times
September 28, 2011
Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies brutalized inmates on multiple occasions and their supervisors failed to take complaints of the abuse seriously, according to sworn declarations from two chaplains and a Hollywood producer who volunteered in the jails.
Two of the volunteers said they heard deputies yell "stop fighting" as deputies pummeled inmates who appeared to be doing nothing to fight back.
The allegations come on the heels of Los Angeles Times stories detailing FBI probes into deputy misconduct in the jails. The declarations are expected to be filed in court Wednesday as part of a report compiled by the American Civil Liberties Union, which is a court-appointed monitor of jailhouse conditions.
It's not uncommon for inmates to make allegations of abuse, but these sworn statements are noteworthy because all three are from independent civilians in the jails who say they came forward because they were troubled by what they saw. Two have included their names. The third, a chaplain whose identity was learned by The Times, opted to have his declaration filed anonymously at the last minute for fear of reprisal.
Sheriff Lee Baca did not return calls seeking comment.
In one declaration, Chaplain Paulino Juarez said he was ministering to an inmate at a cell inside Men's Central Jail on Feb. 11, 2009, when he heard thumps and gasps. He went toward the sounds and saw three deputies pounding an inmate pressed against the wall. Juarez said he believed the inmate was handcuffed because he never raised his hands to protect his face from the deputies' fists, instead shouting: "I am doing nothing wrong; please stop."
The inmate, Juarez said, collapsed face first. His "body lay limp and merely absorbed their blows." The deputies continued kicking for a minute, the chaplain said.
One deputy eventually turned and saw Juarez. "When we made eye contact, the deputy … had a nervous and surprised look on his face. Then he began making signs to the others with his hands, motioning them to stop the beating," according to the declaration.
Later, the chaplain noticed a pool of blood, 2 feet around. He recalled one sheriff's official yelling: "Check if he has HIV."
The chaplain filed a report at the time — reviewed this week by The Times — and was interviewed by Sheriff's Department investigators. In the weeks after he filed his complaint, he said passing deputies would call him "rat" and other insults. After hearing nothing for two years, Juarez reached out to the department and was granted a meeting with Baca.
The sheriff, Juarez recalled, said he had never heard about the incident.
"This happened two years ago and I'm only finding out about it now?" Baca asked his executive staff, according to the chaplain. Baca looked over the file, about 10 pages, and told the chaplain his investigators had determined the inmate was schizophrenic. Juarez said Baca told him that deputies had to punch the inmate a couple of times to get him into the cell. "Punches are allowed, but kicks are not allowed in my department," Baca said, according to Juarez.
According to the chaplain, Baca said his investigators determined the bruises were the result of being run over by a car before the inmate was incarcerated, not from a beating.
Michael Gennaco, who heads the Office of Independent Review, said in an interview with The Times on Tuesday that the investigation file was inconsistent with the chaplain's account. The inmate's medical records showed he had only a cut on his forehead, burning in his eyes and redness to his left elbow — injuries that don't match up with an extended beating.
Gennaco also said that the inmate told investigators that he was resisting and that he deserved the amount of force deputies used.
"Some of the allegations just simply don't match up with the other evidence," Gennaco said. "We've got to rely on evidence rather than mere allegations."
Scott Budnick, a producer for "The Hangover" movies and a former writing tutor at Men's Central Jail, also gave a sworn declaration about abuse he witnessed.
In 2009, he said he opened the door to the jailhouse chow hall, empty but for three deputies kicking and punching an inmate who fell to the floor. The deputies, he said, repeatedly yelled "stop resisting" even though the inmate wasn't.
On another occasion, in 2008, he said he was standing outside his class, when he saw a deputy stop an inmate for a strip search.
"I then saw the … deputy grab the inmate's head and smash his head into the wall, hard. It was so hard that I could hear an audible crack," Budnick stated.
The chaplain who opted to be anonymous described an incident on Feb. 9. He said he was on the third floor of Men's Central Jail filling his cart with Bibles and Christian literature when he heard deputies running and keys jangling. He then saw a group of deputies kicking an inmate face down on the ground with his hands behind his back. One deputy, the chaplain said, held the inmate's feet and legs, another had a knee on the inmate's neck, while the other deputies kicked his torso, the chaplain alleged.
"Chaplain, go inside!" he said one deputy yelled.
"I didn't go inside because I had heard too many inmates tell me about beatings that the deputies had inflicted on them and I wanted to observe what was happening with my own eyes," the chaplain said.
The allegations come as new details emerge about a flurry of federal scrutiny into the jails. The FBI has confirmed that it is looking into at least two inmate allegations of abuse. The bureau is also investigating a January incident in which an ACLU monitor said she witnessed two deputies beat an unconscious inmate for two minutes. According to sources, federal agents recently paid off a deputy in an undercover sting to smuggle a cellphone to an inmate who was secretly serving as an FBI informant.
Along with the jails, the feds are investigating a sheriff's captain suspected of being overheard on a wiretap of an alleged Compton drug ring. The U.S. Department of Justice's civil rights division also recently announced a wide-scale "pattern and practice" investigation into allegations that deputies in the Antelope Valley discriminated against minority residents who receive government housing assistance.
robert.faturechi@latimes.com
Copyright © 2011, Los Angeles Times
September 28, 2011
Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies brutalized inmates on multiple occasions and their supervisors failed to take complaints of the abuse seriously, according to sworn declarations from two chaplains and a Hollywood producer who volunteered in the jails.
Two of the volunteers said they heard deputies yell "stop fighting" as deputies pummeled inmates who appeared to be doing nothing to fight back.
The allegations come on the heels of Los Angeles Times stories detailing FBI probes into deputy misconduct in the jails. The declarations are expected to be filed in court Wednesday as part of a report compiled by the American Civil Liberties Union, which is a court-appointed monitor of jailhouse conditions.
It's not uncommon for inmates to make allegations of abuse, but these sworn statements are noteworthy because all three are from independent civilians in the jails who say they came forward because they were troubled by what they saw. Two have included their names. The third, a chaplain whose identity was learned by The Times, opted to have his declaration filed anonymously at the last minute for fear of reprisal.
Sheriff Lee Baca did not return calls seeking comment.
In one declaration, Chaplain Paulino Juarez said he was ministering to an inmate at a cell inside Men's Central Jail on Feb. 11, 2009, when he heard thumps and gasps. He went toward the sounds and saw three deputies pounding an inmate pressed against the wall. Juarez said he believed the inmate was handcuffed because he never raised his hands to protect his face from the deputies' fists, instead shouting: "I am doing nothing wrong; please stop."
The inmate, Juarez said, collapsed face first. His "body lay limp and merely absorbed their blows." The deputies continued kicking for a minute, the chaplain said.
One deputy eventually turned and saw Juarez. "When we made eye contact, the deputy … had a nervous and surprised look on his face. Then he began making signs to the others with his hands, motioning them to stop the beating," according to the declaration.
Later, the chaplain noticed a pool of blood, 2 feet around. He recalled one sheriff's official yelling: "Check if he has HIV."
The chaplain filed a report at the time — reviewed this week by The Times — and was interviewed by Sheriff's Department investigators. In the weeks after he filed his complaint, he said passing deputies would call him "rat" and other insults. After hearing nothing for two years, Juarez reached out to the department and was granted a meeting with Baca.
The sheriff, Juarez recalled, said he had never heard about the incident.
"This happened two years ago and I'm only finding out about it now?" Baca asked his executive staff, according to the chaplain. Baca looked over the file, about 10 pages, and told the chaplain his investigators had determined the inmate was schizophrenic. Juarez said Baca told him that deputies had to punch the inmate a couple of times to get him into the cell. "Punches are allowed, but kicks are not allowed in my department," Baca said, according to Juarez.
According to the chaplain, Baca said his investigators determined the bruises were the result of being run over by a car before the inmate was incarcerated, not from a beating.
Michael Gennaco, who heads the Office of Independent Review, said in an interview with The Times on Tuesday that the investigation file was inconsistent with the chaplain's account. The inmate's medical records showed he had only a cut on his forehead, burning in his eyes and redness to his left elbow — injuries that don't match up with an extended beating.
Gennaco also said that the inmate told investigators that he was resisting and that he deserved the amount of force deputies used.
"Some of the allegations just simply don't match up with the other evidence," Gennaco said. "We've got to rely on evidence rather than mere allegations."
Scott Budnick, a producer for "The Hangover" movies and a former writing tutor at Men's Central Jail, also gave a sworn declaration about abuse he witnessed.
In 2009, he said he opened the door to the jailhouse chow hall, empty but for three deputies kicking and punching an inmate who fell to the floor. The deputies, he said, repeatedly yelled "stop resisting" even though the inmate wasn't.
On another occasion, in 2008, he said he was standing outside his class, when he saw a deputy stop an inmate for a strip search.
"I then saw the … deputy grab the inmate's head and smash his head into the wall, hard. It was so hard that I could hear an audible crack," Budnick stated.
The chaplain who opted to be anonymous described an incident on Feb. 9. He said he was on the third floor of Men's Central Jail filling his cart with Bibles and Christian literature when he heard deputies running and keys jangling. He then saw a group of deputies kicking an inmate face down on the ground with his hands behind his back. One deputy, the chaplain said, held the inmate's feet and legs, another had a knee on the inmate's neck, while the other deputies kicked his torso, the chaplain alleged.
"Chaplain, go inside!" he said one deputy yelled.
"I didn't go inside because I had heard too many inmates tell me about beatings that the deputies had inflicted on them and I wanted to observe what was happening with my own eyes," the chaplain said.
The allegations come as new details emerge about a flurry of federal scrutiny into the jails. The FBI has confirmed that it is looking into at least two inmate allegations of abuse. The bureau is also investigating a January incident in which an ACLU monitor said she witnessed two deputies beat an unconscious inmate for two minutes. According to sources, federal agents recently paid off a deputy in an undercover sting to smuggle a cellphone to an inmate who was secretly serving as an FBI informant.
Along with the jails, the feds are investigating a sheriff's captain suspected of being overheard on a wiretap of an alleged Compton drug ring. The U.S. Department of Justice's civil rights division also recently announced a wide-scale "pattern and practice" investigation into allegations that deputies in the Antelope Valley discriminated against minority residents who receive government housing assistance.
robert.faturechi@latimes.com
Copyright © 2011, Los Angeles Times
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Saturday, August 27, 2011
Friday, August 26, 2011
Thursday, July 28, 2011
RUNNING DOWN THE WALLS
RUNNING DOWN THE WALLS:
On Sunday, July 31st, 2011 at 10 a.m., the Los Angeles Anarchist Black Cross will host a 5k run / walk / jog / bike at MacArthur Park, in downtown Los Angeles, CA. This event is designed to raise much-needed funds for the ABCF Warchest and Revolutionary Autonomous Communities (RAC)
RUNNING DOWN THE WALLS 2011
Locations for this years run:
Cities:
Los Angeles, CA
New York City, NY
Denver, CO
Connecticut River, MA
Guelph, Ontario
Tucson, AZ
Prisons:
USP Terre Haute
USP Tucson
On Sunday, July 31st, 2011 at 10 a.m., the Los Angeles Anarchist Black Cross will host a 5k run / walk / jog / bike at MacArthur Park, in downtown Los Angeles, CA. This event is designed to raise much-needed funds for the ABCF Warchest and Revolutionary Autonomous Communities (RAC)
We are attempting to reach the goal of $3,000 with the run. Funds will be divided among the two programs:
ABCF WarchestThe ABCF Warchest program is now almost 16 years old; funds for the Warchest are divided and distributed through monthly stipends to political prisoners who receive little or no financial aid. Prisoners use this money to cover the basic necessities of everyday living. Funds have been used by prisoners to pay for stamps, shoes, clothes, as well as assisting their families with what little they can.
Revolutionary Autonomous Communities: Revolutionary Autonomous Communities (RAC) was created in the aftermath of the May Day 2007 police riot targeting migrant workers who dared stand up for our human rights. Members of the MacArthur Park area and others joined together to support those with no papers and those with no means. RAC-LA came forward to aid the community in self-organizing such that with the help of each other we might make an inhuman way of living a bit more bearable while at same time acquiring the means to one day transform this system into an image of our own humanity.
Official Runs
The ABCF is a Federation of ABC chapters that span across the country and is holding two official Running Down the Walls runs. Both New York and Los Angeles will be holding official runs on the morning of July 31st. In Sync with each other and other solidarity runs, we will collectively pound the pavement with our feet and bike tires as we exhibit our strength and stamina as examples of our tireless effort to free our imprisoned comrades.
Solidarity Runs
Every year, prisoners and supporters of political prisoners organize solidarity runs with Running Down the Walls (Los Angeles). We have had runs throughout various cities and prisons, including but not limited to: Albuquerque (NM), Arcata (CA), Ashland, (OR), Bellefonte (PA), Boston (MA), Connecticut River (MA), Denver, (CO), Elmore (AL), Guelph, (Ontario), Inez (KY), Marion (IL), Mexico City, USP. Navosta (TX), New York (NY), Pelican Bay (CA), Phoenix (AZ), Tucson (AZ), and Toronto, Ontario. We raised just thousands of funds for various local organizations in these areas. This year we hope to expand the amount of runs in prisons and other cities, as well as, increase the amount of funds raised for community projects. This year we hope to have even more runs in cities, towns, and prisons all across North America.
Raising Funds
The Warchest program was created in November of 1994. Its purpose is to send monthly financial support to Political Prisoners and Prisoners of War (PP/POWs) who have been receiving insufficient, little, or no financial support during their imprisonment.
Support the Struggle
We must remember that many of those arrested in the past or present are not far from us. Many of them were and are community and labor activists, queer, and environmental activists; people who decided to speak out against various forms of oppression and paid the price of their freedom for their actions. We must remember that anyone of these people could have at one time stood beside us in a demonstration, at a speak-out, or even at an organizing meeting. At any given moment it could be us who finds ourselves in this situation, so it is imperative that we ensure that a strong enough community of support exists for these people as well as ourselves. The strength of our movement is determined by how much we support our fallen comrades. As the Anarchist POW Ojore Lutalo says it, "Any Movement that does not support its political internees, is a shame movement." So please help us, help them! Help us, help you!
We encourage people to participate in helping us raise funds for the Warchest, which can be done in the following ways:
Be a runner: We are asking people or groups who are running to collect as many sponsor for the run as possible. Remember the money received is going to help imprisoned comrades who need your help. The person who collects the most amount of funds will be given a prize for their involvement and dedication to helping our fallen comrades.
Sponsor a runner: This can be done through a flat donation to the runner of your choice. We ask from those who wish not to run to actively support those who are running in hopes of collecting as much for our comrades as possible.
Sponsor Running Down the Walls: Any amount helps. Contact the Los Angeles Anarchist Black Cross if you wish to simply donate money to the cause.
Donate to the Warchest: Send funds directly to the Los Angeles ABCF (PO Box 11223, Whittier, CA 90603) or to the Philadelphia ABCF (PO Box 42129, Philadelphia, PA 19101) Make checks or money orders out only to Tim Fasnacht.
Get involved in the planning of Running Down the Walls: We always need help with organizing the event and we encourage people to contact us if they would like to get involved. You can do this by contacting the LA Anarchist Black Cross, www.abcf.net/la, la@abcf.net
Pre-registration for the RDTW click here
Download 3-fold registration flier for Running Down the Walls
Running Down the Walls 2011
Sunday, July 31st, 2011, 10 am - 4 pm MacArthur Park, (south west corner), 2230 W. 6th St., Los Angeles, CA 90057
Registration fees: $12 preregistration; $15, the day of the run. (Make checks out to Tim Fasnacht)
For more information contact the Los Angeles Branch Group of the Anarchist Black Cross Federation
PO BOX 11223
Whitier, Ca 90603
www.abcf.net/la
la@abcf.net
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