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CHELSEA MANNING International Victory Day! 17 May 2017 DEFEND ALL WHISTLEBLOWERS |
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Chelsea
Manning is going to be free! Celebrate with us! On
International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia, Chelsea will
come out of prison after seven years. Her 35-year sentence was commuted by Obama. It
was a victory for Chelsea of course, but also for all of us in many countries
who supported her and benefited from her courageous whistleblowing: the
international women and lgbtq
movements, the anti-war
and anti-racist movements, the movements of whistleblowers, war veterans,
refuseniks and everyone who stands for justice. On 17 May, we celebrate Chelsea’s freedom in many cities:
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In London we will have a celebration vigil on the steps of St
Martin-in-the-Fields (Trafalgar Sq. WC2 N 4JJ) from 5.30 – 7 pm. And Peace News is having a
party at Housmans bookshop from 7pm.
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So far events that we know of are also planned in Boston, Philadelphia
and San Francisco. Details to be confirmed soon.
·
WE INVITE YOU TO ORGANISE AN EVENT, no matter how small: a
protest, a vigil, a party. Please
send us news of your event and we’ll help publicise it. In
February, Chelsea wrote an extraordinary article thanking her mates in prison (below).
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So tweet her (@xychelsea), send her a card or a photo to give her strength in
these last days of her imprisonment. We must remain vigilant against any
further persecution.
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Send money to the
Go home fund to help Chelsea
reconstruct her life when she goes home. |
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Defend
all whistleblowers This
is also an occasion to defend the thousands of whistleblowers who are
persecuted for disclosing abuse and corruption in every institution. Wikileaks, who made public Chelsea’s disclosures, is now
in greater danger after the US attorney general just declared the arrest
of the WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange
was a “priority”, at a time when Trump has made torture “legal*. |
Protest in |
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*According to Jean Ziegler from the Consultative Committee
of the UN Human Rights Council, ‘Trump has ratified the 2002 Bush’s executive
order legalising torture’ against
‘terror suspects’. See video (at 1h
5m). |
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Letter from Chelsea - 13 February 2017 To those who
have kept me alive for the past six years: minutes after President Obama
announced the commutation of my sentence, the prison quickly moved me out of
general population and into the restrictive housing unit where I am
now held. I know that we are now physically separated, but we will never be
apart and we are not alone. Recently, one of you asked me “Will you remember
me?” I will remember you. How could I possibly forget? You taught me lessons
I would have never learned otherwise. When I was
afraid, you taught me how to keep going. When I was lost, you showed me the
way. When I was numb, you taught me how to feel. When I was angry, you taught
me how to chill out. When I was hateful, you taught me how to be
compassionate. When I was distant, you taught me how to be close. When I was
selfish, you taught me how to share. Sometimes, it
took me a while to learn many things. Other times, I would forget, and you
would remind me. We were
friends in a way few will ever understand. There was no room to be
superficial. Instead, we bared it all. We could hide from our families and
from the world outside, but we could never hide from each other. We argued, we
bickered and we fought with each other. Sometimes, over absolutely nothing.
But, we were always a family. We were always united. When the
prison tried to break one of us, we all stood up. We looked out for each
other. When they tried to divide us, and systematically discriminated against
us, we embraced our diversity and pushed back. But, I also learned from all
of you when to pick my battles. I grew up and grew connected because of the
community you provided Those outside
of prison may not believe that we act like human beings under these
conditions. But of course we do. And we build our own networks of survival. I never would
have made it without you. Not only did you teach me these important lessons,
but you made sure I felt cared for. You were the people who helped me to deal
with the trauma of my regular haircuts. You were the people who checked on me
after I tried to end my life. You were the
people that played fun games with me. Who wished me a Happy Birthday. We shared the holidays together. You were and
will always be family. For many of
you, you are already free and living outside of the prison walls. Many of you
will come home soon. Some of you still have many years to go. The most
important thing that you taught me was how to write and how to speak in my
own voice. I used to only know how to write memos. Now, I write like a human
being, with dreams, desires and connections. I could not have done it without
you. From where I
am now, I still think of all of you. When I leave this place in May, I will still
think of all of you. And to anyone who finds themselves
feeling alone behind bars, know that there is a network of us who are
thinking of you. You will never be forgotten. SOURCE The Guardian To
contact |
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