Los Angeles Indymedia : Activist News

February 20, 2012
LOS ANGELES and RANCHO CUCAMONGA - With the United States incarcerating more people than any other country on Earth, and with the rampant abuses that occur throughout the opaque detention system, Occupy movements nationwide were eager to heed the call to "Occupy for Prisoners," which issued from prison solidarity activists who have long been in support of the Pelican Bay and Corcoran hunger strikes against solitary confinement in the special housing units, or SHUs.

A protest outside the infamous twin towers jail in Downtown LA, where the ACLU was instrumental in exposing prisoner abuse by LA County Sheriff's deputies late last year, drew large numbers of protesters, and a smaller facility at San Bernardino County's West Valley Detention Center, where inmates participated in the solidarity hunger strike during it's peak last year, likewise drew a loud demonstration.

From the newswire: Occupy for Prisoners by Rockero

Saturday February 4, 2012 was an international day of solidarity for political prisoner Leonard Peltier. A call was put out for demonstrations in front of federal buildings world-wide. Such an event occurred here in Los Angeles in the proximity of the downtown Federal Building and was well-attended. Leonard Peltier, who has been wrongfully imprisoned for 35 years, has received little exposure in the mainstream media. (Although, good documentaries have been made about him.)

"He's been in prison for over 30 years for a crime that he did not commit; his health is extremely bad," said Corine Fairbanks of AIM (American Indian Movement) Southern Cal, who was involved in two of the three events on February 4. "It was wonderful to see people going out of their way to participate in these events. I believe we definitely need to continue to educate people, especially young people, as to who Leonard Peltier is. I think there's a concentrated effort made by various governments for us to forget who he is. When I say educate, I'm saying that people need to be aware of not only who he is and the sacrifice he and his family have made being that he's a prisoner of war, but people also need to put more pressure on President Obama, put more pressure on the U.S. government for his release."

Peltier's trial has been deemed illegitimate by Nelson Mandela, Mother Teresa, the Dalai Lama, and many others. Peltier has received six Nobel Peace Prize nominations. His activism includes selling his paintings, proceeds of which have benefited the Lakota people.

Story and photos: International Day of Solidarity with Leonard Peltier: Clemency Now! by RP, photos by Isabel Avila

LOS ANGELES - Using the budget shortfall in Sacramento as cover, Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) Board President Monica Garcia and LAUSD Superintendent John Deasy have recommended a draconian budget that cuts off all funding for adult education--the veritable lifelines for immigrant families, impoverished communities, and students of color. Unconscionable in any circumstances, their proposed budget is even more grievous given the hundreds of millions of dollars of public property and resources they have given away to private charter corporations over the past couple of years.

More than 345,000 students are currently enrolled in various adult education programs including English as a second language, high school graduation, occupational programs, and many others.

Efforts are underway to save these critical programs. So far thousands of signatures have been collected, hundreds of phone calls made, and various other means of trying to convince the LAUSD Board to save Adult Education have been employed. Moreover, it isn't just the students at these schools and community activists supporting adult education. Indeed, many local business support LAUSD Adult Education for reasons including providing workers from the community better prepared for positions.

Supporters are asking for signatures on the on-line petition, as well as for support at a demonstration this Thursday, February 9, at 1:30 at the LAUSD offices, 333 S Beaudry Ave in Los Angeles, 90017.

From the newswire: Even Local Businesses Support Efforts to Save LAUSD Adult Education by Robert D. Skeels

February 4, 2012
WEST LOS ANGELES - Just one block South of a very urban section of Wilshire Blvd with 40 story high-rise buildings and often grid locked streets sits the Kuruvungna Springs. The Springs are on a part of the University High School campus. The Springs and the surrounding area were once the site of a Tongva village.

This last Saturday the Green Party and the Foundation hosted a tour that also included a Tongva blessing of the land. Fresh potable water is bubbling out of the ground and into small streams and pools. The water is said to have healthy restorative powers.

In 1992 a group of local environmentalists working together with Tongva descendants formed the Gabrienlino/Tongva Springs Foundation. The foundation was able to secure a lease for the land from the Los Angeles Unified School District for one dollar a year. The Foundation found funding, both private and public and has restored much of the site. The work goes on and there is still much to be done to preserve and protect the springs.

The foundation's current lease expires next year and they are hoping to secure a new long-term fifty-year lease from the school district. Supporters are urged to contact the school district and encourage them to extend the lease and ensure the continued protection and ongoing restoration of this sacred site.

From the newswire:Protecting Sacred Sites: The Kuruvungna Springs by A | | Video: Tongva Springs by imalastsalami

"The Kawaiisu Tribe of Tejon thanks Secretary Ken Salazar for 'Reaffirming' the Tribe to the list of Federally Recognized Tribes in the United States. 'Reaffirming of Recognition,' means that Congress and the President of the United States recognize the Tribe through the Treaty, because the Treaty represents prior Federal Recognition. The United States now is back in compliance with the Treaty, except for the Tejon Reservation and Graves issues. . . . They have been fighting a legal case for two years in California Federal Court, docket number 1:09-cv-01977, to stop development on their Indian Reservation at the Tejon Ranch near Los Angeles, that gives the corporation permission to unearth the burial remains and spiritual burial objects of thousands of their ancestors that died on the reservation. The timing of regaining recognition, while awaiting a ruling on the Federal Case is an unexpected gift that the Tribe embraces with gratitude. . . ."

More: Tribe Thanks Secretary Salazar For Righting Wrongs Of The Past by David Laughing Horse Robinson

Video: The Kawaiisu people and legal history of land by Kernvillekate | | More Information and videos: Kawaiisu Tribe of the Tejon (Blogspot)