Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.) held a human rights public rally at the Washington DC Capitol Reflecting Pool on May 17 to address the global human rights challenge to equality and liberty and the extremist war on women in America and around the world. We demanded that our legislators acknowledge this supremacist threat to our freedoms and call for action to fight it. We believe that the first step is to broaden public awareness and concern about this growing human rights problem.
At the May 17 rally, we addressed the ongoing global problem of radical extremism that abuses Muslims, non-Muslims, and people around the world. We reject an ideology opposed to the universal human rights of equality and liberty. Furthermore, we addressed a “war on women” which takes place around the world, resulting in the demeaning of women, the oppression of women, attacks on women, and killing of women.
We addressed recent attacks around the world and so-called “honor killings” in the United States, Canada, UK, Europe, Iraq, India, Israel, Pakistan, Jordan, and throughout the Middle East. It is estimated that 5,000 women are murdered in “honor killings” every year. We read the names of women who have been known to be killed in such “honor killings.”
We addressed this problem of “honor killings” in the United States and around the world. We also spoke about the upcoming movie to be released “The Stoning of Soraya M.” about a stoning of a woman in Iran. We encouraged the public and especially other women to see this movie “The Stoning of Soraya M” that is scheduled to be released on June 26, 2009, and she had posters regarding the movie.
One of our supporters recently saw a pre-release of this film, and she urged the public to visit the web site for this movie at http://www.thestoning.com. We also pointed out that such “honor killings” are an ongoing global problem; we addressed the case of a 13 year old girl who was stoned to death in Somalia at the end of October 2008 for her “crime” that she was gang-raped. We further urged women to become educated on this ongoing repression and attacks on women around the world, including in the United States.
Other rally attendees sought to reach out to the public on this problem of attacks on women, and they distributed pamphlets regarding the upcoming movie “The Stoning of Soraya M.” out to the public.
Jeffrey Imm addressed that this issue is not unlike the unpopular issue of white supremacism that human rights groups needed to bring to the public’s attention in the 1960s. He also addressed the issue of the war on women, including attacks that have been continuing in the United States, and indicated that R.E.A.L.’s concerns on this are for protecting both the safety and human rights of women both in America and around the world. He then played the movie trailer for “The Stoning of Soraya M.” for the public with a portable computer linked to our sound system.
This is the third R.E.A.L. public rally in the past three months regarding the war on women, and R.E.A.L. plans to continue this public campaign in defense of women’s safety and inalienable human rights of equality and liberty. We also plan to have a public rally in June to address the planned June 26 release of “The Stoning of Soraya M.” as it is representative of the continuing, global problem in the war against women. More information on this planned June rally will be available soon.
One of our supporters is planning to continue to speak publicly on this issue of the “war on women.” Jeffrey Imm is scheduled to speak on blogtalkradio on this subject on Wednesday, May 20 at 9:30 PM ET; the call in number is 347-838-8011. You can find out more about the Wednesday blogtalkradio show online at: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/FreeMeNow/
We note that, while the recent mainstream news media has saturated news coverage on swine flu deaths, there has been minimal to non-existent reporting on the issue of continuing, weekly “war on women” around the world. We refuse to accept silence and indifference on the “war on women.”
This “war on women,” which claims at least hundreds of victims every month, is a direct assault on nothing less than the human rights and lives of half of humanity itself. R.E.A.L. believes that this existential human rights crisis must get the public and media coverage that this crisis deserves.
As one of the figures telling a French reporter in “The Stoning of Soraya M.” states “I want you to take my voice with you.” We must continue to be the voice and the defense for those women abused, oppressed, and murdered around the world who live in helpless and hopeless situations. R.E.A.L. and all those human rights activists who defy this war on women” will continue to be that voice. We view the lives of every woman as precious and unique, and we will continue to fight for their universal human rights as human beings. “They cannot get away with this.”