People Over Profits Conference Summary ( IW - JPIC Event )

Prepared by Jennifer Reyes Lay 

On June 6, 2015 the Coalition to Abolish the Prison Industrial Complex hosted its first conference: People Over Profits: Designing a World Without the Prison Industrial Complex.  The event was hosted at the University of Missouri St. Louis, with the support of the Office of Equal Opportunity and Diversity.   We had a good turnout of around 50 people total who attended the all-day Conference.

During the Conference we had presenters from local community organizations come in and educate attendees about what is the prison industrial complex (PIC), how it impacts our lives, and what are some local alternatives to PIC.  These guest presenters covered topics of breaking the school-to-prison pipeline, restorative justice initiatives, police reform and oversight, ending the war on drugs, and economic alternatives such as building solidarity economies and time banks. 

The morning portion of the Conference was dedicated to education, then we had a break for lunch which was provided to attendees, and in the afternoon we had some group brainstorming sessions for next steps and actions we could take to implement some of the alternatives we had been learning about in the morning.  At the end of the day, we engaged the practice of the “circle” from restorative justice practices, and everyone had a chance to go around and say a few words about how they were feeling or what they thought of the conference.  There was overwhelming support and gratitude expressed by the attendees for the knowledge they gained, for how well organized everything was, and a desire to get more involved in the work to abolish the prison industrial complex. 

This Conference was hosted by the Coalition to Abolish the Prison Industrial Complex, which is co-led by Jennifer Reyes Lay, member of the International Committee for Justice, Peace, and Integrity of Creation for the Incarnate Word Congregation.  We would not have been able to host this Conference without the generous support of our donors including the JPIC Committee of the Incarnate Word Congregation, and we are very grateful for their support in helping to educate more people about the prison industrial complex and the more life giving alternatives that put people over profits. 

Financiamiento para el desarrollo sostenible - Financing for Development

La conferencia que se celebrará del 13 al 16 de julio en Addis Abeba representa una oportunidad única para acordar un plan de financiamiento para el desarrollo sostenible. Ese plan puede sentar las bases para la adopción de la agenda post-2015 en septiembre y de un acuerdo global sobre cambio climático en diciembre.

Lee más en: www.un.org/ffd3

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With less than two months to go, the countdown is intensifying for the Third International Conference on Financing for Development in Addis Ababa on 13-16 July 2015, aimed at securing the resources needed for the well-being of people and the health of our planet. 

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon and Mr. Wu Hongbo, Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs and Conference Secretary-General were joined by World Bank president Jim Yong Kim, IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde, WTO Director-General Roberto Azevêdo, UNCTAD Secretary-General Mukhisa Kituyi and UNDP Administrator Helen Clark, as well as the Prime Minister of the host country Ethiopia to urge world leaders to come to the Ethiopian capital ready to commit to a financing plan to end extreme poverty by 2030. They stress the importance of this upcoming Conference to mobilize the means to achieve a sustainable and prosperous future.

For more information, visit: http://www.un.org/esa/ffd/ffd3/

Koch Brothers’ Budget of $889 Million for 2016 Is on Par With Both Parties’ Spending

The Koch Brothers are working on their budget for the 2016 election cycle, and they've announced that a group of about 300 people will spend almost $900 million. That is on par with how much money each presidential campaign will spend!

 

This is unfathomable and unconscionable. Make sure you're connected with NETWORK throughout the next two years to combat the power of big money in politics:

 www.networklobby.org/emailsignup.

 

Read more:

 http://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/27/us/politics/kochs-plan-to-spend-900-million-on-2016-campaign.html?_r=1

Economic inclusion

"Rather than a trickle down strategy, it focuses on economic inclusion and building a local economy from the ground up; rather than offering public subsidy to induce corporations to bring what are often low-wage jobs into the city, the Evergreen strategy is catalyzing new businesses that are owned by their employees..."

This week's Planet Local post highlights the innovative Evergreen Cooperatives. Read the post http://bit.ly/lfGlPl and watch The Democracy Collaborative's new animated video about the initiative.

 

End poverty

Thanks to Martha Ann

(By Martha Ann Kirk, CCVI) For the change of the millennium, our  Incarnate Word Congregation decided to reach out to Zambia. For 2000, the global community organized by the United Nations set Millennium Development Goals.  As we approach 2015, where are we in relation to those Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)? According to Ban Ki-moon, the Secretary General of the UN, the goals have been the most helpful global strategy ever used for the reduction of poverty, but much still needs to be done. How can we contribute to the UN Post-2015 Development Goals and create awareness in each of our communities that what we do locally is important for the whole? Learn more: http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/   For some women’s perspectives on the goals, see  http://therivardreport.com/womens-perspective-un-post-2015-development-agenda/  by Sr. Martha Ann Kirk who contributed to the Istanbul Summit focused on this.

In Zambia, media branch out to cover forests, climate change

Zambia’s media houses are ill-equipped or often uninterested in covering environmental stories, according to some of the country’s leading journalists, having a negative impact on the level of public scrutiny of policy decisions affecting the environment.

“There is lack of education among reporters on issues to do with climate change,” said Hellen Mwale, a reporter for the Daily Nation, one of Zambia’s most widely read newspapers. “Most of us lag behind when it comes to topical environmental stories. We often rely on press statements because we don’t have the initiative to generate our own ideas and … we feel stories to do with the environment are difficult.”

Journalists are misleading the nation with their current level of reporting, said Chief Ndake of the Nsenga-speaking people of eastern province of Zambia. Read more:

http://blog.cifor.org/23665/in-zambia-media-branch-out-to-cover-forests-climate-change#.U_UeaWd0zIW

 

ECONOMIC JUSTICE WORKSHOP

Thanks to GLT
An ECONOMIC JUSTICE WORKSHOP will be presented at Sacred Heart Catholic Church, 2123 W. Commerce St. on Sunday, August 17, 2014 from 3:30 - 5:30 P,M.
This is an opportunity to learn about economic insecurity in our communities and what we can do about it.
A time to study and reflect on our traditions - religious and civic- that call us to provide opportunities for shared prosperity.
A launching point for a community-wide LIVING WAGE AND ECONOMIC SECURITY campaign, which will require a large base of leaders interested in economic issues such as:
Living Wages
Payday Lending
Job Training
Adult Literacy
Cost of Health Care
Affordable Housing
Jobs
Education
Please call Sister Gabriella at 210 351 3533 to tell her of your presence at this important workshop.

RESOURCES FOR THE FEAST OF ST. FRANCIS 2014

2014 marks the 35th anniversary of St. Francis named as the Patron Saint of those who promote ecology, by St. John Paul II.  Pope Francis, equally inspired by St. Francis, highlighted early in his pontificate how the poor are disproportionately and unjustly harmed by environmental degradation, including climate change. DOWNLOAD FLYER HERE

From St. Francis to Pope Francis to You! Creating a Climate for Solidarity is a 90 minute multimedia presentation combining short video testimonials with group reflection processes that highlight the impacts of climate change on the world’s poorest and most vulnerable people and communities. Each program will be offered in Parish, College, and Youth versions and in both English and Spanish. All materials will be FREE of charge! READ MORE- CLIC HERE: http://catholicclimatecovenant.org/resources/feast-of-st-francis-2014/

 

 

 

Get over the growth fetish

Perpetual growth is a piece of nonsense. The focus should be on protecting livelihoods through sustainable means.

Construct a building, demolish it, reconstruct, break it down again, and go on repeating this meaningless exercise. You will have economic growth, as currently measured. But no net gain in employment during the endless cycle of construction and demolition, no net increase in productive capacity, and no appreciable change in poverty levels.

Add to this the ecological cost of mining materials and using energy for the construction. And when the owners of the building decide it is more profitable to employ machines instead of people, you’ll have net loss of livelihoods.

India’s growth story is, of course, not as caricaturish, but it is not far off. Despite many years of a cracking pace of growth, net increase in employment in the formal sector has been insignificant in the last two decades. READ MORE - CLIC HERE-

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/opinion/get-over-the-growth-fetish/article6182959.ece

 

Localization: for people and the Earth

Across the world, millions of people are linking hands in the spirit of resistance and renewal. Communities are coming together to dismantle corporate power and re-build more just, democratic, ecological and human-scale economies - from the ground up. Watch and share our short film about this emerging 'movement of movements' for localization.
 

For all children in Africa - Equality Now

If the world is going to progress, it is vital that children are protected and educated. However, again and again we see that it is girls who are disproportionately denied these basic human rights. And, when human rights are denied, communities suffer.

Equality Now and our partners currently have five cam...paigns in Africa that directly affect children. Please join us in calling on government officials to fulfill their obligations to protect the rights of all African children—girls and boys—so that they are safe and healthy and can pursue an education.

 

Nigeria – Bring Back Our Girls:
http://www.equalitynow.org/take_action/nigeria_bringbackourgirls

Mozambique – Protect girls and women, not rapists: http://www.equalitynow.org/take_action/mozambique_action591

Egypt – Enforce the FGM law and hold Soheir’s abusers accountable:
http://www.equalitynow.org/take_action/egypt_action385

Kenya – Ensure Justice for Liz and all survivors of sexual violence:
http://www.equalitynow.org/take_action/adolescent_girls_action541

Sudan - Support victims of sexual violence instead of criminalizing them:
http://www.equalitynow.org/take_action/sudan_561

March Against Monsanto

It's almost here! The March Against Monsanto is on May 24, and people around the world will come together to show their opposition to Monsanto, the mega-corporation that's become a symbol of all that's wrong with our food system. Find an event near you or follow along on their page: Against Monsanto

Monsanto’s RoundUp, one of the most popular herbicides in the world, has been linked to another form of cancer. This time it’s Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma. Millions of gallons of RoundUp (glyphosate) are used around the world on GMO plants like corn and soy. GMO corn and GMO soy are now in approximately 80% of the products that appear in the average American supermarket. Read more

6 Outrageously Greedy Companies

"Ebeneezer Scrooge knew how a greedy capitalist deals with workers during the holiday season:  Consider yourself cheated when they take a day off with pay to celebrate with their families."
      Lynn Stuart Parramore, 11-27-2013, http://admin.alternet.org

Using that working definition of a "greedy capitalist," Parramore offers her list of
"6 Outrageously Greedy Companies"
*  K-Mart
*  McDonald's
*  Sears
*  Walmart
*  Apple
*  Macy's

Surprised by some of the companies on Parramore's list of "Outrageously Greedy Companies"?  CLICK HERE to find out the reasons for her choice. 

REFLECTION:  Might the holiday policy of these companies be one example of "the idolatry of money" that Pope Francis cautions against in Evangelii Gaudium?