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The Winnemem Wintu Tribe will hold a four-day War Dance (H’up Chonas in Winnemem) May 24-27 at the McCloud River site where they hold their Coming of Age ceremonies. The War Dance signifies the tribe’s spiritual commitment to defend at all costs the ceremony from heckling, flashing, and violating disruptions by recreational boaters that have occurred in previous years. More than 400 volunteers from throughout the country, native and non-native, are expected to converge upon the sacred sites to help the tribe close the river and protect the War Dance from interference by boaters.
On April 28th, hundreds of women and men gathered at the capitol building in Sacramento, held a two hour rally, then marched through the downtown district. Speakers said that California needs to be at the forefront to keep the tide from turning against abortion and other women's rights. Protesters insisted that the war on women is very real, and vowed to be heard in the legislature and on the streets.
Related demonstrations were planned in almost every state in the US on the same day. The only states where protests were not scheduled were North Dakota and Mississippi. The California state capital event was supported by Deaf Survivor Advocacy for Empowerment (DeafSAFE), Women's Health Specialists of Sacramento, and Bay Area Coalition for Our Reproductive Rights (BACORR) , amongst others.
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deafSAFE | Women's Health Specialists | BACORR
Members of the Winnemem Wintu Tribe from northern California on Monday, April 16 challenged Randy Moore, U.S. Forest Service Regional Forester, at his Vallejo office to protect indigenous women from racial slurs and physical harm during coming of age ceremonies planned for this June. Although claiming to be unfamiliar with the issue, Moore promised to review the Winnemem's request to close 400 yards of the McCloud River arm of Shasta Reservoir for 4 days so that the Tribe can conduct the ceremony. Moore committed to respond to the Tribe's request by May 1, 2012. While closing the river will mean a lot to the Tribe, it will have no impact on the Forest Service, said Caleen Sisk, Winnemem Chief and Spiritual Leader.
During a Coming of Age Ceremony in 2006, a woman “flashed” the ceremonial participants with naked breasts and yelled racist insults. “If someone did this during Mass, they would be arrested,” Chief Sisk said. “Like many traditional people, we hold our women in high regard," said Sisk. "This beautiful ceremony is vital to our girls' transitioning to womanhood with confidence, grace and knowledge. We must hold this ceremony for our tribe to survive."
Read more and view photos | Winnemem Tribe press release and more photos
The legendary poet, essayist and feminist Adrienne Rich died on March 27, 2012, at the age of 82 in her Santa Cruz, California home. Rich was one of the most celebrated poets of the last half-century and a lifelong advocate for women, gay and lesbian rights, peace and racial justice. She was a key figure in the women’s movement and an uncompromising critic of the powerful.
Women's rights advocates will celebrate the 39th anniversary of Roe v. Wade in San Francisco's Justice Herman Plaza on the same day that the annual "Walk for Life" calls for its repeal in other parts of the city. On Saturday, January 21st, the Rally for Reproductive Justice will feature music, children's entertainment and speakers from 11 am to 1pm. All activities will take place under large tents so attendees can enjoy the event shielded from forecasted rain showers.
Speakers will include Senator Mark Leno, San Francisco Supervisor David Chiu, Change.org's Women's Rights Director Alex DiBranco, Dr. Sophia Yen of the Silver Ribbon Campaign and Patty Belasalma, President of California NOW.
Tabling organizations will be on hand including ISIS (Internet Sexuality Information Services), World Can't Wait, Bay Area Coalition for our Reproductive Rights, SF NOW, and Religious Communities for Reproductive Justice, amongst others. Local artists the Raging Grannies and Ziva Hadar will perform on stage while balloon twisters and face-painters round out the program for this all ages event.
Event Announcement
CODEPINK Activists confronted GOP presidential candidate Tim Pawlenty on his anti-gay and anti-reproductive rights stance at the annual America's Health Insurance Plans (AHIP) conference in San Francisco on June 16th. Showering the GOP presidential candidate with pink glitter and confetti, they shouted, "Where's your courage to stand up for gay and reproductive rights? Welcome to San Francisco, home of gay hero Harvey Milk!"
Meanwhile outside the Moscone Center where the convention was held, demonstrators rallied in favor of a single payer healthcare system and the removal of the health insurance industry. Satirical Billionaires for Wealthcare, "welcomed" conventioneers as they entered the building saying, "Keep the money flowing! We shareholders love those profits!" They carried a sign with a large photo of Pawlenty that read: Invest in America, buy a Congressman — or a Governor. Pawlenty is former governor of the state of Minnesota.
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Single Payer Now |
CODEPINK |
Billionaires for Wealthcare
After more than a decade of legal battles, a decision by a final court ruled against the group Friends of Juana Briones House. The oldest house in Palo Alto, named for its famous resident who was a latina pioneer, is being dismantled, piece by piece.
Juana Briones healed the sick and cared for the poor. An elementary school and park in Palo Alto both bear her name. Her house, parts of which were built in 1844, is being destroyed by the current property owner who has fought off historic preservationists, latino/latina activists, and descendants of Briones for years. Feminists joined in the struggle for the home's preservation as well. Jeanne McDonnell, biographer of Juana Briones, stated that historic buildings associated with women are more likely to be demolished than those associated with men.
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Past Indybay Coverage
2008: Activists Work to Save Former Home of Juana Briones | 2009: Action Revived to Save Juana Briones House | 2010: Juana Briones Birthday Celebration
On May 15th, Santa Cruz SlutWalk took the sidewalks to make a unified statement about sexual assault and victims’ rights, to demand respect for all, and re-appropriate the term slut. The demonstration was one of many around the world sparked by a statement on January 24th from a representative of the Toronto Police to a group of students. The officer shared insight into the police force's view of sexual assault by stating, "women should avoid dressing like sluts in order not to be victimized."
To mark the 100th anniversary of International Women's Day, the Global Women’s Strike held the 2nd Annual Mother's March on March 8th in San Francisco. The Mother's March also takes place in other parts of the state, Philadelphia, and Los Angeles, as well as in Haiti, Guyana, India, Peru and the UK.
In their call-out for the march, organizers wrote:
"The GWS march is for communities of color, those in urban and rural areas, and other impoverished communities suffering from loss of jobs, lower wages, cuts in education, welfare, healthcare and childcare, those facing homelessness, foreclosures, and criminalization. Mothers produce/care for the world's people. Most women do caring work: grandmothers, mothers, daughters, partners. Unrecognized, unpaid or low-paid, women care for children, elders, people with disabilities, and each other. In Haiti and Palestine, wherever there is occupation, women do survival work without which resistance would be impossible. Budget cuts increase hunger and threaten those of us on lowest incomes, starting with communities of color."
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Wikipedia: International Women's Day
Previous Indybay feature: International Women's Day 2009
On February 26th, more than a hundred people united energetically in Santa Cruz, along with cities across the nation, to demonstrate their disgust with systemic violence against women. At noon, people converged at the Clock Tower before marching down Pacific Avenue to Laurel St. People chanted "Not the Church, Not the State; Women must decide their fate" as they continued up Laurel St. and onto Mission St./Highway 1 where there was a brief occupation of the Mission and Bay intersection.
Demonstrations nationwide were organized in response to HR-3, the "No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act." In large measure, H-3 would render permanent the restrictions on federal funding of abortion in the United States laid out in the Hyde Amendment.
The Hyde Amendment currently bans all federal money from going to abortions, except in cases of incest or rape. The GOP's HR-3 will change this language to "incest or forcible rape." This would mean that a woman would have to somehow prove that rape was "forced" in order to get access to abortion. Protesters say this language reinforces the notion that some kinds of rape are not as serious as others. Read more and view photos
A lawsuit, filed in Fresno Superior Court on February 24, says that Fresno Police Chief Jerry Dyer's ringtone for Cynthia Sterling, an African-American former counsel member, is a slave song: "Mammy's little baby loves short'nin' bread." The lawsuit also alleges that Dyer mimics stereotypical slave dialect, making comments including "yessa massa, I is yo pet" and "Um hum, I'm the mayor's boy, I'm the mayor's boy, yes'um, I'm the mayor's boy."
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