Tag: UK

Four countries that have nearly eliminated gun deaths

Posted on by kathiemm
Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, Parkland, Florida. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license. Author: Coral Springs Talk from Coral Springs, United States.

Anyone who believes that all human beings are hopelessly and incurably aggressive and that nothing can be done to halt the growing number of mass shootings in this country should read Chris Weller’s article in Business Insider.

And please don’t try to tell me we the people can’t move our country in the same  directions as Australia, the UK, Norway, and Japan if we become more active, more educated about political candidates, more willing to speak out on behalf of nonviolence, more willing to speak truth to power.  No community, however rich or white, can be safe from gun violencse while the NRA owns such a large percentage of our Congress.   Do you care about your kids, grandkids, nieces, nephews? if so, maybe it is time for you to become a gun control activist.

A light in the darkness

Posted on by kathiemm

By guest author San’aa Sultan

Candlelight vigil in support of Palestinian prisoners
Photo by Sabiha Mahmoud; used with permission

Over the past few weeks we have heard stories of bravery, courage, hope, happiness, and grief from Palestine. The stories accompanied the news that just over 1,000 Palestinian prisoners would be freed in exchange for Gilad Shalit, an Israeli IDF officer who was  kidnapped from his tank in the Gaza strip and kept captive by the Palestinians.

As the news spread across the globe and different opinions were voiced, youth in the UK were planning something very different to send hope to those illegally detained by Israel.

Students, activists, and solidarity societies all over the UK planned a candlelight vigil, “A light in the darkness: A vigil for peace.”  The intention was to send light to those who had none.

A silent gesture of solidarity, peace, and compassion was being whispered about in the cold streets of Preston, Sheffield, Derby, Birmingham, and London by people who valued their freedom and that of the oppressed.

On Sunday evening the 30th of October, people all over the UK came together to light their candles, say prayers, send off Chinese lanterns and relight the flame of hope amongst those whose hope was stolen.  The vigil in London is set to take place later in the week.

Simple acts of solidarity like this work wonders to bring a touch of humanity to the struggles of those whom our systems work so hard to dehumanise.