Tag Archives: Children

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Trapped and dying in Qatar

02/27/2015 Nativegrl77

Thousands in Qatar are trapped working in horrific conditions, and barred from escaping home by abusive bosses. An American company could help free them and we can make their CEO act by bringing the slave horror right to her hometown. Join the call:

Forced to work under the desert’s scorching sun, denied food, drinking water, and barred from escaping home, thousands of men in Qatar are modern day slaves. And we can help free them.

Last year, one person died every other day building a billion dollar mega-project for Qatar’s 2022 World Cup. A major part of the project is managed by an American company with a CEO who lives in a quiet part of Colorado. If more than 1 million of us stand together for freedom, we can confront her with our voices every time she leaves her house to go to work, or to ski, until she takes action.

This same tactic pushed Hilton Hotels to protect women against sex trafficking in days — join the urgent call to help free Qatar’s modern slaves:

https://secure.avaaz.org/en/bloodiest_world_cup_loc/?biEWLbb&v=54097

Qatar’s “guest worker” program is at the root of the problem. It lures people from Nepal and Sri Lanka with promises of good jobs, but when they arrive their employers confiscate their passports and force them to work long hours in 50 degree heat with no chance of escape.

The US company, CH2M Hill, say the local contractors and government laws are to blame, but CH2M Hill is the public face of World Cup construction. Their CEO can and must take a lead role in ensuring we don’t see seven more years of worker deaths. She could even threaten to take their business elsewhere unless this system is changed.

CH2M Hill has a responsibility to help stop this modern day slavery. Our call now could persuade CH2M Hill to speak out and then lead other companies to weigh in until every single worker has the freedom to return home. Join the call — when we reach 1 million, our voices will be delivered directly to CH2M Hill CEO Jacqueline Hinman again, and again and again:

https://secure.avaaz.org/en/bloodiest_world_cup_loc/?biEWLbb&v=54097

One big global outcry at the right time can save thousands of lives. When Hilton Hotels wasn’t doing enough to protect women and girls from sex trafficking at their hotels, Avaaz staff brought our call to the CEO’s front door and the policy was changed in days. Let’s do it again

With hope,

Emma, Nell, Mais, Ricken, Alice and the whole Avaaz team

Sources:

Death toll among Qatar’s 2022 World Cup workers revealed (The Guardian)
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/dec/23/qatar-nepal-workers-world-cup-2022-death-toll-doha

Building a Better World Cup (Human Rights Watch)
http://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/qatar0612webwcover_0.pdf

At a Qatar Project Overseen by Americans, Workers Die Almost Daily (Bloomberg)
http://www.bloomberg.com/bw/articles/2013-09-26/at-a-qatar-project-overseen-by-americans-workers-die-almost-daily

Qatar accused of dragging its feet over treatment of migrant workers
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/nov/12/qatar-accused-dragging-feet-migrant-workers-world-cup-amnesty

Qatar risks losing World Cup without job reform (Reuters)
http://sports.yahoo.com/news/qatar-risks-losing-world-cup-without-job-reform-124324042–sow.html

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

John Tye – Avaaz.org

02/27/2015 Nativegrl77

Stop settlement subsidies

Americans have sent $200 million to far right Israeli settlers — tax free. Millions that could pay for U.S. health care and education instead pay for sniper rifle scopes and surveillance cameras to push Palestinians off their land. Tell the IRS to enforce its own rules and stop subsidizing settlements:

Over $200 million has been funneled, tax free, from US donors to radical Israeli settler groups. Millions that should go to health care and education here at home instead pay for sniper rifle scopes and surveillance cameras to help extremist settlers push Palestinians off their land.

It’s shocking, and it’s illegal. Everyone knows these tax breaks violate IRS rules — but there hasn’t been an outcry to force the IRS to audit these pseudo-charities and cancel their tax benefits. Now is the moment to change this.

Israel’s pro-settlement Prime Minister will address Congress in Washington next week, and the media is looking for a controversy. We can give them one, with a major media outcry — and legal action to push the IRS to stop settlement subsidies. Sign now:

https://secure.avaaz.org/en/stop_settlement_subsidies_a/?biEWLbb&v=54264

Tax deductible donations are supposed to be a privilege reserved for actual charities that help people — not systematic campaigns to disenfranchise Palestinians through force. The law is clear that these “charities” don’t qualify. The IRS looks the other way because it’s taboo to criticize illegal Israeli settlements.

Stopping these tax breaks wouldn’t affect donations to support Israel or Judaism — only donations headed to extreme right-wing militias, working to occupy land that the U.S. government agrees they don’t own.

During Netanyahu’s visit, the press will be reporting on these issues in detail — and if we ensure our call is a major part of that coverage, and combine it with legal action, we can make it impossible for the IRS to keep ignoring this. Sign now:

https://secure.avaaz.org/en/stop_settlement_subsidies_a/?biEWLbb&v=54264

President Obama has made clear that there is no room for settlement expansion in the path to Israeli-Palestinian peace. With the world’s eyes on Netanyahu’s visit, we have the chance to bring the hopes of the world to bear on this key moment, and help win a key victory for a more just future, with rights for all.

With hope and determination,

John, Nick, David, Terra, Rewan and the whole Avaaz team

SOURCES

Can I Take a Tax-Deduction on My Donation to Israeli Settlements in Palestine? (Foreign Policy)
http://foreignpolicy.com/2015/01/29/illegal-tax-deduction-charity-israel-settlements-palestine-irs/

Tax-Exempt Funds Aid Settlements in West Bank (New York Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/06/world/middleeast/06settle.html

West Bank settlement expansion surged under Netanyahu (Haaretz)
http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/1.631924

Press Briefing by Press Secretary Josh Earnest, 10/1/2014 (White House)
http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2014/10/01/press-briefing-press-secretary-josh-earnest-1012014

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Greg Loarie, Earthjustice

02/27/2015 Nativegrl77

Bee populations are plummeting. And scientists are pointing to toxic bee-killing pesticides known as neonicotinoids as a cause.

We’re fighting in court and partnering with other groups to demand action now to save bees, but we need your help.

Join us and 4 million Americans to tell President Obama to suspend the use of toxic bee-killing pesticides now!

These pesticides make the whole plant poisonous to insects, including the nectar and pollen, which bees eat. At miniscule doses the pesticides can kill bees outright, but even at doses that may not kill immediately, they impair bees’ ability to breed, forage, fight disease, and survive the winter.

Nearly one-third of our crops—including many vegetables, fruits, nuts, and seeds—depend on bees for pollination.

We cannot delay action any longer.

Take action today and help us ensure that these pesticides do not become the final straw for bees.

Thank you for your help,

Greg Loarie
Attorney