Sharing Our Human Rights Values When Blindsided by Hate

The ongoing trial of confessed Norwegian terrorist Anders Breivik not only demonstrates the degree of hate that he had for others, as he justifies murdering over 70 children. It also draws attention to others who share his view. On April 18, Norwegian news media reported on a “pen pal” for Mr. Breivik in the United States who believes that the murder of such innocent children was “necessary.” The ideology behind such hate is important, but it is not the point on this article.

Let us simply agree that no ideology of any kind justifies murdering children. Let us simply agree that any ideology — that would hate others of any identity group so much that they believe innocent children or any people deserve to be murdered — has an inherent basis in HATE. It could be any ideology that is against people of a given race, gender, religion, ethnic background, culture, nationality, or any other identity group. It is not just objectionable in this instance; it is objectionable in ANY instance.

Sadly, Mr. Breivik is not alone in his views on the expendable nature of our fellow human beings’ lives. Too many can rationalize violence, murder, and hatred of others, and there is no end to extremists with such cruel and inhuman ideologies. In the American national press, Mr. Breivik’s friend was identified (which I will not do here other than “Mr. F.”). Moreover, the press also posted a link this Mr. F.’s Facebook web page.

Suddenly, all the person’s “Facebook friends” were suddenly the “friend” of a person who thinks it is acceptable to murder children. Can you imagine how cruel and shocking to expose your “friends” or even acquaintances to this? One day, on Facebook a young man is a student busy at school, or a woman is a waitress, or someone is a relative, or watches the same mainstream television program. The next day, they are the “Facebook friend” of someone who applauds the murder of children. No one deserves to be blindsided by such hate. (I specifically waited until Mr. F’s Facebook page was taken down before I wrote this article.)

They were no doubt in stunned shock. Then of course, the natural response would be that they don’t agree with such extremist positions! One day, you are busy at school, at work, or at home. The next day, you are associated with an extremist. It is not fair.

But there is something we can do about this. I understand all of us are busy, but we must make time for our social responsibility. Social responsibility is an essential part of our balance in life that helps define who we are, and what we believe. We must let our friends, our associates, and our families know that we support: human rights, equality, and compassion for all.

— Human Rights for All. We must make time in our lives to demonstrate our individual and personal commitment to universal human rights, dignity, and respect for others. This applies to all of us. When we support such human rights, they are not just for one race, one culture, one religion, one gender, one nationality, but for ALL of our brothers and sisters in humanity. The most essential of our universal human rights is our right to life. This was a right that Mr. Breivik and countless other extremists around the world in various identity groups are willing to deny to our fellow human beings. Such right to life is an inherent part of standing for human rights. It is codified in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. It is part of the inherent declaration of what it means to be an American. As the UDHR states in Article 3, “Everyone has the right to life…” and as U.S. Declaration of Independence states that among our unalienable rights “are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” So when we state we support human rights, it is important to understand the magnitude of what we support. It is also important to let others know what we believe.

— Equal Rights for All. The other aspect of such human rights is a commitment to equal human rights for ALL people. There are those who object to such commitment to human equality. They find the very word “equality” to be offensive. You will find the anti-equality extremists in a broad range of identity extremists and supremacists. But we support such equal rights as an inherent definition of such universal human rights, including the right of freedom of conscience, religion, speech, and expression. We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men and women are created equal.

— Compassion for All. The final and most important part of human rights is human compassion. We cannot live in hate and support human rights. We must Choose Love, Not Hate. We cannot be a coherent society based on cruelty and indifference. There is no “other,” there is only just our fellow human beings, no matter how we agree or disagree. We must find a way to offer an outstretched hand, not Mr. Breivik’s upraised fist, to our fellow human beings.

— Let Others Know Who You Are. Our friends know a lot about us. They know our appearance. They know the books we read, the entertainment we enjoy, and the foods we eat. But do they know our stand on human rights? Let others know who you are. Certainly, your shared commitment to human rights, equal rights, and compassion is just as important as such other aspects of life. Send a message today to your friends, your acquaintances, your family: “Human Rights, Equal Rights, and Compassion for All.” In your social networking, make sure that those you know understand your commitment.

If they don’t accept you as a friend with that position, then you need to find out why. We can’t expect that everyone has an “understanding” on these essentials in the world today.

We need to constantly remind others and ourselves what we believe in:

Human Rights
Equal Rights
Compassion

For ALL.

Who knows what life you may change by standing up for these values? Who knows what person may have to think twice before something they say or do? Maybe it will even be you or me.

When we stand for human rights, equal rights, and compassion, we can never be blindsided by hate.

The darkness of hate will see us coming a mile away by the light of life and conscience in our views. No, we will not be blindsided by hate. But those who have come to believe that hate is acceptable choice in our society will see that there are other alternatives in life.

They will see that we can make other choices. We can choose human rights, equal rights, and compassion for all.

Together, we CAN be Responsible for Equality And Liberty.

======================

P.S. To my Facebook friends, I have created a little icon on human rights and equality that you can use as a badge to replace your profile picture anytime you feel the need to make a statement.

I will continue to make such icons that you can use to spread the message of hope to others. I also provide this link to instructions on how to change your Facebook profile picture.

PepsiCo Responds to R.E.A.L. on Pakistan Human Rights

Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.) did hear back from one company on the U.S.-Pakistan Business Council regarding our concerns on the human rights abuses of Pakistan Hindus and Christians — Pepsi Cola. R.E.A.L.’s initial message, and Pepsi’s response is provided below.

Please express your appreciation to PepsiCo by letting them know you appreciate their stand on human rights.

=================================

R.E.A.L.’s Message to PepsiCo:

Pepsi-Cola Public Relations –
My name is Jeffrey Imm, I am a human rights activist. Pepsi is on the board of directors of the U.S.-Pakistan Business Council promoting business in Pakistan. Human rights activists have been expressing their concern about the growing human rights abuses against Hindus and Christians in Pakistan, including forced marriage and forced religious conversion of Hindu and Christian girls. This is against the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Pakistan constitution. We are looking to see if your company is willing to make a positive statement in support of human rights for all people, including Hindu and Christian girls in Pakistan.

We are holding a public rally in support of univesal human rights for all on Saturday, April 14 in Washington DC. If you have such a statement, we would be glad to share this with the public.

Thank you.

Jeffrey Imm
Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.) human rights coalition

=================================

PepsiCo responds:

“Dear Jeffrey,

Thank you for contacting us to share your concerns about human rights abuses.

As a global corporation, PepsiCo strongly supports fundamental human rights for all people, and we commend the efforts of all those who are working to protect those rights around the world. In our own businesses, we have a very clear global policy on human rights in the workplace (which is communicated annually to our associates in more than 20 languages), and we do not tolerate any infringement or abuse of human rights. In addition, we are a signatory of the United Nations Global Compact, which also guarantees human rights in the workplace.

We agree that the protection of human rights around the world requires constant vigilance on the part of international organizations and human rights coalitions such as yours. Please know that we will continue to do our part to strengthen and promote that commitment.

Thanks again for writing.

Kind regards,
Asheley
Consumer Relations Representative”

=================================

THANK YOU PEPSICO!

American Women’s Equal Rights Must Be Part of Our Constitution

To my fellow Americans – on behalf of the human rights coalition Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.), we stand in support of Constitutional rights for women and all Americans, and support the Equal Rights Amendment (E.R.A.), which Americans have been struggling to pass for over 40 years, and there continue to be efforts to extend the deadline to get the Equal Rights Amendment ratified.

So it is astounding to us to hear, from an organization that calls itself the “National Constitutional Center,” that women do not need the Equal Rights Amendment. Nothing could be further from the truth. I would urge the leaders and the Board of Trustees of the “National Constitutional Center” to reconsider this position on the Equal Rights Amendment designed to ensure equal Constitutional rights for all American women.

Our Constitution guarantees rights and liberties consistently everywhere in America – without exception, without caveat, and without question. Our Constitution is intended to be an expansion on the DECLARATION of what it means to be an American – the truths that we hold self-evident. But we are not and we will not be complete as a nation, until our Constitution recognizes these truths not just for men, but also recognizes these truths for women and ALL AMERICANS – as ONE NATION, INDIVISIBLE, WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL.

Constitutional equal rights for women is not a left-wing or a right-wing, a liberal or a conservative issue. Constitutional equal rights for women is not a women’s or a men’s issue. Constitutional equal rights for women is an AMERICAN issue. It is our inherited obligation and responsibility to fulfill the truths we hold self-evident for ALL Americans. It is a historic opportunity to pursue the great dream and the great vision that America is and must be not only for us, but also for the world.

Yet I have sat and listened to the stories and tears of American women, whose rights have been abused in different parts of this great nation, and it makes my heart sick. I have heard and I have seen how they been treated as second class citizens, in business, in court, in government, and even by law enforcement. I have seen the uneven application of law and fairness that are basic fundamental principles of those truths that we hold self-evident. I have seen, especially in these days of great poverty among many of our citizens, how they can abused – even sexually abused because they are women, and people in business and people in law-enforcement have not made it a priority to defend their RIGHTS AS AMERICANS.

Perhaps you have not heard such stories; you have not seen such instances of abuse and disgrace across our great nation. But even those who have not heard or seen such shameful violations of American women’s rights have certainly heard and read the public dialogue over the past week. One only has to read the recent news stories and hear the interviews of those who think it is acceptable political dialogue to call American women “prostitutes” (and even more vulgar terms) to get the message of the level of intransigence against women’s rights and dignity. The timing of this latest attack on American women could not be a clearer indication of the threat to American women’s rights and dignity today. It should speak volumes to those who question the need for an Equal Rights Amendment to America’s Constitution.

We cannot and we will not complete the building of our great nation, by neglecting the Constitutional rights of half our country. We cannot and we will not become the nation that we were destined by failing to guarantee the Constitutional rights for our daughters, our sisters, our wives, and our mothers. We cannot and we will not become an American beacon of hope to oppressed women around the world – when we fail to give Constitutional rights to American women at home. We cannot and we will not ever truly become the UNITED States of America that we must be, when we allow and tolerate a division among our Constitutional rights for men and the Constitutional rights that all women should enjoy without question – simply because they are Americans – one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for ALL.

United We Must Stand – as Americans in support of Equal Rights for all women and men in America.

Jeffrey Imm
Founder
Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.)
https://www.realcourage.org
usa@realcourage.org

==========================

Equal Rights Amendment

Section 1. Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.
Section 2. The Congress shall have the power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article.
Section 3. This amendment shall take effect two years after the date of ratification.

==========================

Human Rights Day Event 2011 – Activists Call for Rights, Dignity for All

At the National Press Club in Washington DC, Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.) coordinated a Human Rights Day event on December 8, inviting co-sponsors from various groups to speak on behalf of human rights issues important to their organizations. The groups remembered the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) by the United Nations on December 10, 1948 and the inherent human rights, human dignity, respect, and social justice that all of our fellow human deserve – of any identity group and in any part of the world.

* Jeffrey Imm, Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.)

* Ahmar Mustikhan, Senior Journalist and Area Expert, Balochistan

* Carolyn Cook, United for Equality

* Jared Pearman, Spokesperson of Falun Dafa Association of Washington DC

* Husain Abdulla, Americans for Democracy and Human Rights in Bahrain (ADHRB)

* Niemat Ahmadi, United to End Genocide

(For each individual, we have provide Internet links to their Human Rights Day Event remarks.)

The speakers discussed the need to consistently show respect, compassion, dignity, and human rights to people in different parts of the world and in different identity groups.

Human-Rights-Day-300x200 — Human Rights Day – Remembering the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR)

============

R.E.A.L.’s Jeffrey Imm spoke on the need to emphasize respect, instead of arrogance, in recognizing human rights, stating that it was arrogance by those who believe that they had superior rights to others that is a key problem in human rights around the world. He urged the world to make a “declaration of love” towards their fellow human beings, and to Choose Love, Not Hate, in our lives and the lives of others in our communities, our nations, and our identity groups. Jeffrey Imm spoke of the dire situation of poverty around the world and the impact on such poverty on human rights, stating that such poverty can undermine human rights for many, including individuals in the United States of America who he was working to support. He urged people to give to charities and to people in need.

R.E.A.L.’s Jeffrey Imm also spoke on the future of human rights being defined by the example we set, and the way we treat our children. He spoke on the continuing disgrace of abuse, rape, kidnapping, and murder of children around the world, as well as by those in institutions and society who have not made chidren’s rights a priority. Jeffrey Imm urged the United States to adopt the Convention on Rights of the Child.

He also spoke on atrocities against children in the United States of America (the murder of 7 year of Jorelys Rivera, the murder of children in Texas), in Pakistan (the brainwashing of children by terrorists, the rape and murder of young girls, and the killing of Christian minority girls, including the recent killing of Amariah Masih), in Sudan and Dafur (rape of young girls, killing of children, and loss of their culture and innocence), in Balochistan (over 168 children have “disappeared” with teenage boys killed by authorities in a “kill and dump” campaign), in People’s Republic of China (the lack of concern of about a 2 year old child killed in the street, the government-sponsored forced abortions and infanticide, and the killing or abandonment of minority children such as children of Falun Gong practitioners), and in Bahrain (five children killed and hundreds of children subjected to excessive force by anti-protest authorities). Jeffrey Imm also spoke on the institutional willingness to accept such abuses of children, including an Afghan girl released from prison on the condition she marry her rapist, and the reports of child abuse at the Pennsylvania State University and other institutions in America. He also decried the so-called “honor killings” of young girls and boys by those who believe their cultural or religious views justified abuse and murder of children, and called for an end to these, noting that there were 3,000 such cases in the United Kingdom alone, according to stophonourkillings.com. He spoke of the oppression against children in the United States of America, and his own efforts to stop such abuses.

Jeffrey Imm stated that these “are all OUR children,” who “are our common bond and bridge to the future.” He suggested that in this season of reflection and gift-giving in much of the world, that we should first reach out to help the children and the less fortunate among us. He stated that our greatest gift to children from adult human beings must be in making a renewed commitment to protect our vulnerable children around the world. Jeffrey Imm stated, “We must give the gift of our courage, our consistency, and our commitment for the universal human rights and dignity to all of our children around the world…. We must set an example for our children. We must provide a beacon and symbol of hope for our children. We must show that by our words and more importantly by actions, in the United States and around the world – to our children – and to each other… We are Responsible for Equality And Liberty.”

A more detailed description of Jeffrey Imm’s remarks can be found at this web link.

A YouTube video of his remarks is online.

Jeffrey_Imm_HR_Day_2011 — Jeffrey Imm, Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.), Human Rights Day Event 2011

============

Ahmer Mustikhan, a senior journalist and Balochistan area expert, spoke on the issue of supporting democracy and human rights for the Baloch people, and called the end to abuses against Pakistan minorities. Regarding the challenges within the Pakistan government, Ahmer Mustikhan called for the United States and the nations of the world to prevent the Pakistan military from interfering with the democratic government in Pakistan. “It is true the democratic government of President Asif Ali Zardari gave the Baloch 300 bodies in the last four or so years, but still we would support it against the military generals. Democracy does make a difference in the lives of people and we can not remain oblivious to this fact,” Mustikhan said. Mustikhan, who founded the DC-based American Friends of Balochistan and co-founded the International Voice for Baloch Missing Persons, also asked the world community to intervene in Balochistan on the same lines as they did in Libya to stop the genocide there and safeguard the right to self-determination of the Baloch people. He said scores of Baloch teenagers have been made victims of enforced disappearances and killed. He narrated the story of a Baloch minor boy Abdul Wahid Baloch, aka Balaach Baloch, who gained fame after his picture showing him clad in a Balochistan flag was posted on social websites last year. Ahmar Mustikhan also spoke on the issue of Pakistan minorities, including Pakistan Christians, and urged the Pakistan government to free Asia Bibi, who has been imprisoned on trumped-up charges of the “blasphemy law,” which has been used to target and oppress religious minorities in Pakistan.

A more detailed description of Ahmer Mustikhan’s remarks can be found at this web link.

A YouTube video of his remarks is online (Part 1, Part 2).

Ahmar_Mustikhan_HR_Day — Ahmar Mustikhan, Senior Journalist and Area Expert, Balochistan – regarding the oppression and abuse of the Baloch people and Pakistan minorities on Human Rights Day Event 2011

============

Carolyn Cook, founder and CEO of United for Equality, spoke at the National Press Club in Washington DC on December 8, as part of a Human Rights Day Event, calling for a renewed commitment by Americans in support of the Constitutional rights for all American women, as part of our global human rights goals. United for Equality is a social justice enterprise seeking the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment (E.R.A.) by 2015. Carolyn stated that we must change the way people think and what we tolerate in our culture regarding the rights and dignity of our fellow Americans and fellow human beings. Carolyn spoke out against the discrimination and the efforts to deny full equality to women in America, in every aspect of their lives. She stated that we need to take our system back and make it ours. Carolyn Cook stated that United for Equality’s coalition successfully introduced a bill to the 112the session of the United States Congress calling for Congress to remove the time limit on the Equal Rights Amendment (E.R.A.), as the United States previously had the ratification of the E.R.A. in 35 states, and it requires ratification in 38 states and by 2/3s of the House and Senate. She pointed out how previous U.S. government officials sought to halt the efforts to ratify the E.R.A. after 10 years when nearly all of the required states but 3 had ratified this Constitutional Amendment, and pointed out that women have no desire to “start over” the ratification of the E.R.A.

Carolyn Cook also spoke on the paradigm of options we have as activists and participants in defending human rights. Carolyn urged a more holistic approach towards addressing human rights as lifelong causes. She discussed lessons learned from the Occupy movement and other social activist efforts to bring change to the world. Her discussion on lessons from the Occupy movement are detailed in the YouTube video of her speech beginning at 6:36 minutes in on Part 1 and continuing and concluding in Part 2 of her remarks.

A more detailed description of Carolyn Cook’s remarks can be found at this web link.

A YouTube video of her remarks is online (Part 1, Part 2).

Carolyn_Cook_HR_Day_2011 — Carolyn Cook, CEO and Founder of United for Equality, Speaks on Behalf of American Women’s Constitutional Rights – on Human Rights Day 2011 Event

============

Jared Pearman, Spokesperson for the Falun Dafa Association of Washington, DC, spoke on behalf of human rights and human dignity for the Falun Gong / Falun Dafa. He provided information about the Falun Gong as “a peaceful spiritual practice rooted in traditional Chinese culture,” which “consists of meditation, five gentle sets of exercises, and a moral philosophy centered on the values of truthfulness, compassion, and tolerance.” While pointing out that Falun Gong is not political, Mr. Pearman stated that “as Falun Gong grew in popularity throughout the 1990s, China’s communist leaders began to view the practice and its moral philosophy as ideological competition.” For the past 12 years, he indicated that “China’s rulers began a campaign to eradicate Falun Gong. Since then, like underground Christians and Tibetan Buddhists, millions of Falun Gong adherents have been denied the right to peacefully practice their faith.” Despite massive arrests, torture, killings and denial of human rights for the Falun Gong by the Chinese Communist Party, Mr. Pearman stated that “Falun Gong has not been crushed, and reports from China indicate that the number of practitioners is instead growing. Ordinary citizens are increasingly standing up in defense of Falun Gong and are refusing to participate in the persecution.” He called for the Chinese government and the world to recognize and defend the human rights of the Falun Gong. Mr. Pearman offered “an alternate vision of what China could be — an alternative way of conceptualizing Chinese national identity”…. that “connects with China’s moral and spiritual traditions of Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism, and holds that the cultivation of virtue, honesty, and humanness are the true sources of national greatness.”

A more detailed description of Jared Pearman’s remarks can be found at this web link.

A YouTube video of his remarks is online.

Jared_Pearman_HR_Day_Falun_ — Jared Pearman, Spokesperson of Falun Dafa Association of Washington DC, oppressed in the PRC and denied their most basic human rights and dignity by those who view their practice and support for traditional Chinese values as a threat to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) – Speaking at 2011 Human Rights Day Event

============

Husain Abdulla, leader of Americans for Democracy and Human Rights in Bahrain (ADHRB), spoke on behalf of Bahrainis oppressed by government forces that seek to deny democracy. He spoke of the initial protests on February 14, 2011, of those who sought to join the “Arab Spring” movement for democracy, and the brutal oppression of the Bahrain government. Since March 2011, Husain Abdulla stated that Bahrain protesters have been subjected to torture and death. 45 were killed, over 2,000 arbitrary arrests, 1,866 cases of documented torture, 5,000 prisoners of conscience, destruction of 40 places of worship, and 3,000 fired from their jobs, 500 forced out of Bahrain, 3 on death row, 477 students expelled from universities, and 300 students had scholarships taken away — all in retaliation for the willingness to protest against the Bahrain government. He stated that over 500 doctors have been detained. He noted that Bahrain is a close ally to the United States, and he urged Americans to call for the American government to end the “blind eye” to Bahrain human rights violations.

A more detailed description of Husain Abdulla’s remarks can be found at this web link.

A YouTube video of his remarks is online (Part 1, Part 2).

Husain_Abdulla_HR_Day_2011 — Husain Abdulla, speaking at National Press Club on Human Rights Day Event – Americans for Democracy and Human Rights in Bahrain (ADHRB) — speaking on behalf of Bahranis oppressed by government forces that seek to deny democracy

============

Niemat Ahmadi spoke at the National Press Club Human Rights Day Event on December 8, 2011, to address the abuse of Darfuris and Sudanese. Niemat Ahmadi represents the United to End Genocide group. She spoke about the Genocide in Sudan which has been ongoing for over 8 years, and that have driven 4,000,000 out of their homes. Niemat Ahmadi spoke on the need for Americans to call for justice regarding Omar Al-Bashir. She noted that the efforts of Al-Bashir regime have changed their tactics and seek to use rape against women as a weapon of war against the Darfuri people. Niemat Ahmadi spoke of the continuing attacks on Darfuri cities, homes, and attempts to stop safe travel of people of African nationalities who have been fleeing to displaced persons camps. Niemat Ahmadi urged those in Arab nations seeking democracy in their nations to stand up to dictatorial Arab regimes who have supported the brutal Al-Bashir regime.

A more detailed description of Niemat Ahmadi’s remarks can be found at this web link.

A YouTube video of her remarks is online (Part 1, Part 2).

Niemat_Ahmadi_HR_Day_2011 — Niemat Ahmadi, with United to End Genocide, Speaks Out on the Darfur Genocide in Support of Human Rights – at Human Rights Day Event 2011

===============

In R.E.A.L.’s Jeffrey Imm’s concluding remarks, he urged the human rights activists to continue to work together in the coming year on joint activists. He noted that after the winter comes the spring, and in the spring, he often goes to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum during Holocaust Remembrance Days to participate in the reading of the names. Even if there is only one or two people there, Imm noted, there is someone to remember, and it is done simply because it is the right thing to do.

He urged human rights activists to remember that in their work of spreading hope, reaching out to offer dignity, justice, freedom, and consistent universal human rights to all. That is the vision and the mission of being collectively…

Responsible for Equality And Liberty….

Choose Love, Not Hate, Love Wins.

real_ribbon_v — Orange Ribbon for Universal Human Rights – Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.)

2011 Human Rights Day Remarks – R.E.A.L.’s Jeffrey Imm

2011 Human Rights Day Event Remarks, National Press Club, Washington DC

December 8, 2011

Jeffrey Imm, Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.)

(Full Remarks on YouTube)

December 8, 2011

Welcome and thank you for coming today!
It is another good to be Responsible for Equality And Liberty.
That is the name of our human rights coalition, Responsible for Equality And Liberty, and we are here today to invite our fellow human rights activists in a joint event where we remember the December 10, 1948 adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) by the nations of the United Nations.

People around the world remember this human rights accomplishment as Human Rights Day, and there events going on around the world.

Here in Washington DC, Responsible for Equality And Liberty, has sought to also celebrate Human Rights Day here at the National Press Club, as we have done over the several years, with speakers on various human rights campaigns, to share our common bond together in our efforts to be responsible for our universal human rights for all people around the world.

Our common bond is our humanity. This includes the inherent human dignity and human rights for all people of all identity groups everywhere in the world that represent our universal human rights. We come from the nations of the world, from different races, different ethnic groups, different religions, different genders, and different identity groups – but our universal human rights apply equally to all – without exception, without reservation.

Our universal human rights are also based on our shared respect for one another as human beings. Such respect is essential in our human society. We find those who seek to be superior or arrogant in seeking rights for themselves that they would deny to others. But our universal human rights are based on shared respect for all people of all identity groups everywhere in the world. Our universal human rights require a commitment to being responsible for BOTH equality and liberty for all.

In our individual campaigns, we struggle with those who would seek to deny such universal human rights. We see extremist groups, totalitarian governments, and those with hate in their hearts seeking to deny human rights to others. Let us never forget this problem is one of human respect, first and foremost. If we are to RESPONSIBLE on this matter, we must treat all human beings with respect, even those with whom we disagree. The challenge we see in human rights is not only a challenge for individual campaigns, but it is a challenge for humanity itself.

So our combined campaigns for human rights must begin with a declaration of love and respect for our fellow human beings. The view with Responsible for Equality And Liberty is that we offer an outstretched hand, not an upraised fist – to all of our brothers and sisters in humanity.

Our common bond is our humanity and our common legacy must be one where we show our love and respect for one another, even as we challenge those who oppress, and even as we challenge those deny human rights and dignity to others. We must set an example. We must set a standard. We must offer a vision of the future based on hope.

We urge others to Choose Love, Not Hate. But we are not preaching about our own perfection, rather we are setting a goal for our society and ourselves with humility.

Our goal in our human rights campaigns must also be finding and building for the future of human society together.

That future must begin with a commitment to the most vulnerable among us, whether they are minorities in the race, religion, gender, ethnic background or other identity groups. It is easy to ignore those who are different. But the global danger is that we become arrogant and fail to respect their human rights. We have seen this around the world: in the United States, in Asia, in the Middle East, in Africa, in Europe. We have individuals who will speak today on campaigns to defend the human rights of minorities and other groups who are denied human rights based on perceptions in culture, including women in America.

Our future in human rights must also address the issue of the terrible poverty around the world, and the impact of this poverty on effectively denying the human rights of people. I also urge Americans to address this issue as well. Just a short drive from where we meet today, you can see some of the most dire circumstances of poverty and neglect. There are those who would seek to leverage such poverty to abuse the vulnerable in our society in America and around the world. To challenge the poverty in human rights around the world, we cannot also neglect the need to challenge the issue of poverty itself. Give where you can, help where you can. Use your declaration of love and respect to help those who need help.

If our commitment to the future must address the most vulnerable among us, then the most important part of that commitment is our children. Without our children, there is no future for human society. Our children are the future leaders of Earth, and we must set an example on human rights, respect, and love for one another – not just for our own sake – but also for our children’s future. I say “our children” because they are our shared responsibility and our shared future. We cannot just only expect the parents of our children to look out on their behalf, no more than only our parents looked out on our behalf. All of human society has a responsiblity to equality and liberty for our children, and all of human society has an obligation to safely protect and preserve our children, so that can live and grow to become the future leaders of our Earth.

But if we were to assess human society based on how its most vulnerable, we would a sorry story. Too few nations, including the United States of America, are signatories to the United Nations’ Convention on the Rights of the Child. A few weeks ago there was a separate event where people remember the ratification of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) on November 20, 1989.

If we are committed to human rights, we must first and foremost be committed to human rights for our children. Yet an endless parade of violence and abuse against children and young people continues throughout America and throughout the world.

On Monday of this week a 7 year old girl, Jorelys Rivera, was found murdered, sexually abused, and left in a trash bin. (Lifting her photo to the audience). This is the face of human rights in America and the world today. Our children are abused, raped, tortured, and killed in America and around the world with impunity. In Texas, children were killed by their own mother, after putting a Facebook posting warning of threats against them. In Pennylvania, institutional leaders ignored reports of repeated attacks and rapes of young boys for over a decade at the Pennsylvania State University, of which I myself am an alumnus.

This week in Afghanistan, a teenage girl who had been raped and imprisoned by the Aghan government as a result of being a victim, was finally given an oppportunity to be released from prison after 2 years, if she married her rapist.

Our disgrace in human rights for children are not just by criminals and extremists, it is by governments, it is by institutions, and it is by too many in society. This disgrace in human rights for children is only a reflection of the state of our society on human rights. We see extremist views from people who claim that they represent religious or cultural views justifying pedophilia and honor killings. On regular basis, such so-called “honor killings” frequently of young girls are reported at the international human rights group’s web site stophonourkillings.com. In the United Kingdom alone, there were 3,000 so-called honor killings last year.

This threat to our children affects all of us and all of in this room and the individual human rights campaigns represented here.

In Sudan and Darfur, children are killed, young girls are raped, children are starved, authorities refuse to let children learn about their culture, and some children are taught to become soldiers.

In Pakistan, we see an endless and horrifying oppression of young children, brainwashing by extremist of young minds, tying bombs onto children for terrorist acts, the abuse, rape, and murder of young Christian girls and other religious minitories, including a young girl Amariah Masih, who was murdered resisting an attempted rape and reported forced religious conversion.

In Balochistan, we have seen over 168 children who have “disappeared” and teenage boys killed as part of a brutal “kill and dump” campaign by authorities.

In China, only two months ago, the world saw heartless people continue to walk by as a two year old girl Yue-Yue was run over by a vehicle and left to die in the street. At the U.S. Congress a short drive away, I have sat and listened to testimony from young Chinese women forced into having abortions and heard reports of how the government instructed doctors to kill young babies. The Falun Gong, here with us today, could tell the story of how the children of their supporters are also oppressed, tortured, killed, and others left to be orphans or without parent as the Chinese Communist Party takes their parents away for their beliefs.

In Bahrain, I have a report from a few weeks ago of 5 children killed and hundreds of children subjected to excessive force by a brutal government that seeks deny democracy and human rights.

We such abuses too regularly, and it is easy to view such disgraces as statistics rather than as human beings, who are precious, unique, and loved.

My friends have also been asking why Responsible for Equality And Liberty has had less press conferences this year. One of my own personal focus has been dealing with people suffering in dire poverty in this nation and seeking to help them from their difficult living environment. This has included a teenage girl who came to me with her own story of abuse and I have been intervening to protect her and other American girls suffering from abuse as a result of their poverty, by those who seek to take their hope, dreams, and their innocence away.

They are all OUR children. They are all OUR responsibility for equality and liberty. Every one.

In the month of December, we see some people celebrating holidays of various sorts and some providing gifts to children.

I believe we can give them a special gift this year.

We must give the gift of our courage, our consistency, and our commitment for the universal human rights and dignity to all of our children around the world.

Some believe that abuses against our children are simply a law enforcement issue. Nothing could be further from the truth. If we are to be responsible as individuals in a human society, each of us must be responsible for the children that are our common bond and bridge to the future.

We must set an example for our children.

We must provide a beacon and symbol of hope for our children.

We must show that by our words and more importantly by actions, in the United States and around the world – to our children – and to each other…

We are Responsible for Equality And Liberty.

Al-Qaeda: Release Warren Weinstein

This is a message to Al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri. Today, you have announced that you are behind the August 13 kidnapping of USAID contractor Warren Weinstein.

You make this announcement while the world is preparing to celebrate the anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights next week.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), agreed to by the United Nations on December 10, 1948, was created in response to the “disregard and contempt for human rights have resulted in barbarous acts which have outraged the conscience of mankind” begins with an opening article that applies to ALL of humanity. It states “All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.”

This includes you, me, and Warren Weinstein.

We all have the same responsibilities to human dignity and to act in a spirit of brotherhood and sisterhood to all of our fellow human beings.

Your actions to kidnap USAID contractor Warren Weinstein are not only criminal actions, but they are also actions that defy the very universal rights and dignity that all human beings have.

Certainly most of the world rejects and condemns the actions of Al-Qaeda. Certainly most of the world rejects and condemns cowardly kidnapping and attacks on elderly individuals who seek to improve the lives of others, such as Mr. Weinstein.

But also the world must be consistent in extending our love and human dignity to all people. So, as with all others in the world, Dr. Ayman al-Zawahiri, I urge you too to look within your heart. I urge you too, to free your heart from the burden of disrespect to others, the press of indignity towards others, and disease of hate towards others. I urge you too, to act as a decent human being and find the human decency and conscience to release Mr. Weinstein.

Al-Qaeada – Choose Love, Not Hate – Love Wins.

Jeffrey Imm
Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.)
https://www.realcourage.org

R.E.A.L. Supports Human Rights for Falun Gong

Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.) stands united with practitioners of the Falun Gong, who seek our universal human rights and dignity. For over 12 years, there has been a continuing effort to deny human rights to practitioners of the Falun Gong in the People’s Republic of China (PRC).

R.E.A.L. has reported a number of these incidents, as well as efforts to protest such human rights abuses. The Epoch Times provides a comprehensive reporting.

Too much of the world has remained silent at this abuses of the Falun Gong. This includes their recent protests in Hawaii at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), which the PRC media will not report. This includes the abuses in Communist Vietnam on November 8, where 50 Falun Gong were beaten and arrested for non-violent protest outside the PRC embassy in Hanoi.

However, we also seen many, many instances of human rights courage and solidarity, including protests throughout Washington D.C., which R.E.A.L. has been honored to join. Ten years ago in the PRC on November 20, 2011, human rights activists made an appeal to the conscience of human beings in the PRC and around the world to end the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners.

The persecution of the Falun Gong has continued. In addition, PRC representatives have sought the harassment of PRC representatives around the world.

In my experience with the Falun Gong, they have remained the spirit of non-violent peaceful protest that those of us in America look up to and respect. They protest with spirit, but with dignity. They express their defense of human rights, but remain compassionate.

The United States Congress has recognized their plight and called for action on this in House Resolution 605 in March 16, 2010, which recognizes that Falun Gong practitioners and their family members have “suffered persecution, intimidation, imprisonment, torture, and even death for the past decade solely because of adherence to their personal beliefs.”

But R.E.A.L.’s support does not end in our solidarity and shared anguish over the plight and the human rights injustices of the Falun Gong. Sympathy is not enough.

We also call for action. We call for real courage of the United States government to make this and other human rights abuses in the PRC a priority in discussions and meetings with the PRC. It has been nearly two years since the passing of H.R. 605.

Where does the United States government stand on its objectives to call “upon the Government of the People’s Republic of China to immediately cease and desist from its campaign to persecute, intimidate, imprison, and torture Falun Gong practitioners, to immediately abolish the 6- 10 office, an extrajudicial security apparatus given the mandate to ‘eradicate’ Falun Gong, and to immediately release Falun Gong practitioners, detained solely for their beliefs, from prisons and re-education through labor (RTL) camps, including those practitioners who are the relatives of United States citizens and permanent residents”? Respectfully, I ask if President Obama and our leaders can let us know where they stand on this in discussions with the PRC? There are many Americans whose hearts go out to the Falun Gong practitioners around the world and seek to support their human rights and human dignity.

All of us involved in human rights are grateful and appreciative our every effort to stand in solidarity and leadership on human rights issues. But we also know that good intentions and noble words need the sacrifice and seriousness to make changes. They are complex, difficult issues to be certain, given many international issues and the world economy.

But as Americans, we stand first and foremost on the truths that we hold self-evident on such inherent human rights and dignity. That is not just a promissory note to future Americans, but it is also a declaration of our identity as a nation; they may be large shoes to fill, but the American vision is based on such large goals and aspirations. Furthermore, as world citizens, we have an obligation to defend the Universal Declaration of Human Rights for all people around the world.

July-22-Falun-Dafa — Two Falun Dafa practitioners hold a candle at the candle light vigil in Washington, DC on July 22nd -- marking 11 years of persecution in China. (Jeff Nenarella / The Epoch Times)

July-22-Falun-Dafa-DC-Imm — Responsible for Equality And Liberty's Jeffrey Imm Joins Candlelight Vigil (Jeff Nenarella / The Epoch Times)

DC Suburb Rockville – Equal Rights Amendment Event November 12 (7 to 10 PM)

United4Equality invites the public to an event to raise awareness and funds in support of the Equal Rights Amendment (E.R.A. on November 12, Saturday night from 7 to 10 PM at the Strathmore Court Apartments Community Room at 5440 Marinelli Road in Rockville.

========================================

Please join us for this special fundraising event that highlights the historic Equal Rights Amendment campaign and our revival effort going on now! Would you help us spread the word to your members and friends?

Attachments include: event flyer and our bill before the 112th Congress.

era-button — Equal Rights Amendment (E.R.A.) - The Time Has Come NOW!

Discovering Equality & Sisterhood Through Storytelling

A fundraiser for the Equal Rights Amendment 2015 Campaign*

Saturday, November 12 from 7-10 pm

Strathmore Court Apartments Community Room

5440 Marinelli Road, Rockville, MD

Conveniently located across from White Flint Metro garage

(free parking on weekends)

Featuring

National Storyteller- Ellouise Schoettler

Pushing Boundaries: My Uncommon Story

(ERA Campaign Director, 1979-1982, US League of Women Voters, Leader in Women’s Arts Movement)

and

Founder and CEO, United for Equality, LLC – Carolyn A. Cook

(Architect of HJ Res. 47 & ERA 2015 campaign)

AUDIENCE DISCUSSION * RAFFLE * HORS D’OEUVRES * WINE & PUNCH

Suggested Donation: $35 (Checks made payable to United for Equality) at door

or mail donation to United 4 Equality, LLC, PO Box 42606, Washington, DC 20015.

You may also purchase tickets online via PayPal at www.united4equality.com

RSVP: Holly (Friends of ERA) 301.530.9594 or joseph.holly@gmail.com

*There’s no need to start all over again to pass the Equal Rights Amendment.

Remove ERA’s time limit (H.J. Res 47) for victory in 3 more states!

**United 4 Equality, LLC is a nonpartisan, social justice enterprise solely committed to the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment by 2015.

===================

Google Map Directions Link to Strathmore Court Apartments

Google Map Directions Link to White Flint Metro

Carolyn Cook NPC — Carolyn Cook of United4Equality Speaks of the Need for Constitutional Equality for Women in America and Consistent Support for Women's Rights Around the World

Mohamed Yahya October 17 Remarks – United Nations

UN Book Wish Foundation Organization Conference October 17, NYC

Mohamed Yahya, Damanga Coalition for Freedom and Democracy

Chinese Pro-Democracy Group Protests Kennedy Center Hosting of Chinese Ballet Promoting Message of Communist Violence

My good friends in support of Chinese democracy, freedom, and dignity sent me this article below in Epoch Times about the Kennedy Center hosting of performances of the Chinese National Ballet organized by the Communist Chinese government. They protest the ballet’s history of glamorizing Communist violence and oppression. They have organized 25 human rights groups to join them in an Open Letter which will be published stating their protest on this.

We fully respect the rights of the Kennedy Center and all private businesses to chose what and who they will have at their establishments. We respect their freedom of expression, including that we disagree with. We support our universal freedoms and human rights for the Chinese people and all people around the world.

But we also have our freedom to protest and to speak out against messages that glorify violence against others, and we have the freedom to speak out for democracy and freedom for the Chinese people.

We reject the glorification of Communist violence, and we reject glorification of a message of oppression by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). We reject the messages of violence and oppression which have been part of this ballet’s performances.

We support freedom, democracy for the Chinese people.

We reject the totalitarianism of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

041110-Images-AFP-1 — Freedom Plaza Rally Speakers for China Freedom

We call for the end of the Laogai concentration camps.

We call for the end of the forced abortions and abuses against women and children.

We call for the end of the oppression of all minority groups, religious minorities, Falun Dafa, and all those oppressed by the CCP.

fushan-house-church — Fushan House Church Attack -- China Aid Report

We will do so in the streets of Washington DC, we will do so in the streets of Hong Kong. We will do so everywhere around the world, someday in the streets of Beijing – when the Chinese people are free at last….

The pain of the Chinese people who seek democracy and freedom is a voice the world cannot ignore.

So we stand with our brothers and sisters in support of Chinese democracy, freedom, dignity, and justice – because we are all Responsible for Equality And Liberty.

=====================================

By Matthew Robertson
Epoch Times Staff

September 23, 2011

Chinese Ballet at Kennedy Center Extols Violent Revolution
Epoch Times

Chinese Ballet at Kennedy Center Extols Violent Revolution

By Matthew Robertson Epoch Times Staff

September 23, 2011

A scene from “The Red Detachment of Women,” where women wield rifles and knives in pursuit of the landlord villains. Hundreds of thousands of innocent people were violently killed in the Party’s land reform campaigns, which are glorified in the ballet. (Maopost.com)

WASHINGTON—Audiences at the prestigious Kennedy Center are being asked to applaud a ballet that celebrates a movement that went on to murder hundreds of thousands. The Chinese National Ballet is performing on Sept. 22-24 “The Red Detachment of Women,” which glorifies the history of the communist land reform campaign in China, while concealing the reality of the violence that suffused it. In 1931 Mao Zedong, head of the communist-controlled regions, signed off on a policy of land reform that would “Rely on the poor peasants and hired laborers, make allies of the middle-peasants, exploit the kulaks and exterminate the landlords.” What followed in the 1930s, 40s, and into the 50s, was mass violence directed at “class enemies”: torture, arson, live burials, smashing and theft—a reign of terror designed to impose the political will of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) on villages across the country. Hundreds of thousands were killed. Acts I and II from “Red Detachment” performed at Kennedy precede a scene from “Swan Lake” and the Chinese nationalist favorite “Yellow River.”

“They used this play to trick the Chinese people, and now they’re tricking Americans,” says Wu Fan, editor of China Affairs and co-author of an open letter that opposes the performance.

“They’re bandits and arsonists attacking wealthy people, taking their property and splitting the profits, and they’re portrayed as heroes,” he said in a telephone conversation. “Americans would not stand for a ballet that made Hitler seem glorious. Why should they accept one that makes Mao heroic? Both are mass murderers.”

The “Red Detachment” is a flagship of the CCP’s revolutionary operas, infamous in China because eight of them were the only operas permitted in the country during the Cultural Revolution, from 1966-1976. It is most well-known for being performed for President Nixon when he visited China in 1972.

The open letter, sent to media, politicians, and the Kennedy Center, argues that the performances are part of the CCP’s comprehensive approach to Western nations, which conceals hostility and a desire for dominance, while engaging in spying, propaganda, and infiltration.

A landlord from the ballet cowers as one of the revolutionary woman soldiers hardens her face and strikes a pose with her pistol. Land owners were a class to be struggled against and mercilessly eliminated in the early years of communist insurgency and rule in China. (Maopost.com)

Organizations that signed the letter include Washington Forum, the United League for Democracy in Laos, and the Non-Violent Movement for Human Rights for Vietnam—all groups opposing communism in one way or another.

The thrust of the activists’ complaints is echoed by academics. As Xing Lu, a China scholar, writes in her book: “Hatred permeates every model opera.” The basic message of these operas, Xing Lu writes, is that those designated as villains must be eliminated through violent struggle so a new society can be established.

The plays are meant to foster a “deep hatred for all class enemies and love for the Communist Party,” Xing Lu writes. The “Red Detachment” is the epitome of the genre. It eulogizes communist ideology and showers hatred on class enemies.

The “Red Detachment” is adapted from historical events during the early 1930s, telling the story of how a victimized peasant girl joined a woman’s detachment in the CCP’s red army and overthrew the landlords on Hainan Island, off the south coast of China.

The sinologist Simon Leys explains what land reform, carried out in various regions from the 1930s until the early 1950s, entailed: “By the fall of 1951, 80 percent of all Chinese had had to take part in mass accusation meetings, or to watch organized lynchings and public executions,” he writes.

The crowd was expected to roar in unison when the accusations were read out. “These grim liturgies followed set patterns that were once more reminiscent of gangland practices,” he says, with the purpose being to “ensure collective participation in the murder of innocent victims.”

The airbrushed version of one such history, on which the “Red Detachment” ballet is based, went from novel to ballet to film and then into ballet as commissioned by Jiang Qing, Chairman Mao’s wife.

Jiang was czar of the arts and guardian of revolutionary ideology in China during the Cultural Revolution, and personally made sure the performances were sufficiently red. She added rouge to the cheeks of the female lead and ordered that red flannel be used for collar tabs. She also made a Party representative the protagonist of the play, ensuring it would “present correctly the relationship between the army and the people.”

The Kennedy Center at night. (Lisa Fan/Epoch Times)

The depictions of females engaging in violence (in the play they wield rifles and large knives, strike aggressive poses, and kill landlords without mercy, for example) were anathema to prevailing notions of femininity in China at the time.

Scholars have suggested that such imagery may have contributed in no small part to a culture that saw young female Red Guards run rampant during the Cultural Revolution, torturing and killing their school teachers, ransacking houses, and brutalizing other supposed “class enemies.”

Along with the ballet format, acting techniques are pulled from Beijing opera and Chinese folk dances, and the music is meant to be clear and simple so as to communicate the message effectively. The dumbed down messages also had the useful outcome of “enforcing the uniformity of thought characteristic of… totalitarian societies,” Xing Lu writes in her book.

As simple messages are repeatedly drilled into people’s minds through performances like “Red Detachment,” “the range of word choices became smaller and smaller, the Chinese worldview became narrower and narrower,” Xing Lu says. “Especially when singing became automatic, lyrics and music exercised a hypnotic power to take away the ability to think.”

According to a number of scholars who have written about the play, the story finishes with the protagonist vowing to follow Mao’s motto that “political power grows out of the barrel of a gun.”

Chinese Pianist Plays Propaganda Tune at White House (Video)

The play will be performed in the theater named for former president Dwight D. Eisenhower. Perhaps it is best that this staunch anti-communist is not around to hear the refrain “Communist ideology is the truth, the Party leads the way” sung in the theater that bears his name.

The Kennedy Center could not be reached at press time.