Category Archives: Freedom

Charlottesville has planned several events throughout the city next week for its first official celebration of Liberation and Freedom Day.

The City Council voted last year to nix the celebration of Thomas Jeffersons birthday by removing April 13 as a paid holiday. The panel then voted to establish March 3 as Liberation and Freedom Day and provide employees a floating holiday.

Tuesday will commemorate the arrival of Union forces who liberated local enslaved people.

On March 3, 1865, Union troops under Gen. Philip Sheridan arrived in the area and planned to burn Charlottesville as part of the total war strategy to destroy the Confederacys ability to wage war.

Sheridan was sent to the city to destroy the Virginia Central railroad line, cutting off Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lees supply line to the Shenandoah Valley.

Sheridan was met by Thomas Preston, rector of the University of Virginia, and three faculty members, who persuaded him not to destroy the school and city.

Sheridan occupied the city until March 6 and, during that time, many slaves used the occupation to free themselves.

UVa and other organizations hosted a series of events to commemorate the day starting in 2017.

A vigil will then take place from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. at the site of the former slave auction block on Court Square.

A marker recognizing the auction block, criticized in recent years for being illegible, was stolen earlier this month.

Richard H. Allan III, 74, of Albemarle County, faces felony charges of grand larceny and possession of burglarious tools for taking it. The marker was set into the sidewalk and said, Slave Auction Block and underneath said, On this site slaves were bought and sold.

The plaques are located at a building erected as a mercantile store in the 1820s. A stone block outside the building was the site of slave auctions.

The Court Square Markers subcommittee of the Historic Resources Committee is considering a design for a temporary replacement.

Monday will feature a lecture at UVas Albert and Shirley Small Collections Library on the liberation of African Americans in Civil War-era Charlottesville.

Professor Ervin L. Jordan Jr. and William Kurtz, managing director and digital historian at John L. Nau III Center for Civil War History will be the speakers.

City offices will be closed on Tuesday to celebrate Liberation and Freedom Day. The voter registrars office will remain open for voting in the Democratic Presidential Primary.

Several events are planned for Tuesday.

The procession will start at the UVa Chapel at 4 p.m., moving to a blessing ceremony at the UVa Memorial to Enslaved Laborers and then down Main Street to the Jefferson School.

From 5:30 to 7 p.m., the community dinner will feature a panel discussion by descendants of people who were enslaved locally.

First Baptist Church at 632 W. Main St. will host a performance by the Aeolians of Oakwood University at 6 p.m. March 4. The event is free and open to the public.

At 7 p.m. on March 5, a concert is planned at The Haven titled Hush Harbor: African American Sacred Song Concert. It will feature local artists and musicians performing traditional spirituals used during hush harbor religious gatherings during the period of enslavement. It is free and open to the public.

Jefferson School Executive Director Andrea Douglas will discuss prominent African American women at 11 a.m. March 7.

Later that day, Douglas and UVa Associate Professor Jalane Schmidt will host a walking tour of downtown Confederate monuments starting at 2 p.m. in Court Square.

At 3:30 p.m., the Jefferson-Madison Regional Librarys Central Library will host a community retrospective on the citys Blue Ribbon Commission on Race, Memorials and Public Spaces. The discussion will also feature an update on bills in the Virginia General Assembly that would give local governments the power to decide the fate of Confederate monuments.

At 5 p.m. in Tonsler Park, city officials will celebrate the renaming of 6 Street Southwest to Winneba Way.

At 7 p.m., the Jefferson School will host a spoken word open mic session focused on liberation.

On Sunday, March 8, a psychology and theology professor will host a discussion on African American intergenerational trauma. The talk is scheduled for 2 p.m. at CitySpace.

Link:

City planning several events to mark Liberation and Freedom Day - The Daily Progress

Celebrating Black History

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) Thousands of escaped slaves made their way through Indiana on their route to freedom. Now, so many years after slavery ended, those stories are being kept alive.

The Underground Railroad was a series of safehouses, places and people who helped slaves get to freedom. Considering Indianas checkered past, there were quite a few people willing to go against the law and help thousands to freedom.

Freedom was worth the life-or-death risk for thousands of escaped slaves. In the 1800s, Indiana as a whole wasnt always the most friendly place for black people. But pockets of communities literally opened their doors to bring in those looking for an escape route.

Fountain City, formerly Newport, Indiana, is one of those places and home to the Levi and Catherine Coffin House.

People really do get a personal connection knowing they are standing on the same floor as where the Coffins stood and some of the people they helped stood that means a lot to them, said Coffin house site manager Joanna Hahn.

The theory is that the Coffins built this house to accommodate the work that they knew they were going to be doing with the Underground Railroad. So youre going to see some interesting spots around this house. A popular spot is whats behind a tiny door. The story said the Coffins at one point hid 14 escaped slaves there.

How they did it without being caught its really because this community decided to rally around what the Coffins were trying to do, said Hahn.

About 70 miles east, the community in Westfield, Indiana, had the same idea.

When people say, Where was the Underground Railroad in town? I say, Youre looking at it because literally everybody in town helped out,' said Hamilton County historian David Heighway.

He recalled the Rhodes Family Incident: A family of escaped slaves owner was trying to reclaim them. Instead of handing them over, the community did something else.

There was a crowd about 150 people at where today is the intersection 31 and 38 to prevent this from happening, Heighway.

There are a lot of these stories and places. And the Underground Railroad Network to freedom program in Indianapolis is doing its part in archiving them, while also remembering the not-so-good moments.

In order to live in the state, you had to pay a bond to say youre not going to be a nuisance to your county, and then individuals could be stopped and say show me your free papers, said Jeannie Regan-Dinius with the Division of Historic Preservation and Archaeology.

Its a painful history but an important part of Hoosier history that must be kept alive.

Read the original here:

Indiana's Underground Railroad helped thousands to freedom - WISHTV.com

Following the Federal Courts recent rejection of the ABCs appeal into the legalities of last years AFP raids on its Sydney offices, the Greens remain the party on the front foot pushing for greater press freedoms and protections for whistleblowers.

And it is Sarah Hanson-Young who is seeking to address and meet those goals, as the media union has joined her in criticising the Federal Courts ruling.

In raiding the Sydney-based offices of the ABC, the AFP sought and obtained up over 100 computer-based files linked to the networks investigative work for its Afghan Files report critical of the Australian Defence Forces actions in the Middle East. By dismissing the case, the Court dictated that the AFP had performed their actions within its permitted legal boundaries, above allegations that the raids possessed political motives.

Its clear current laws have encroached on journalists freedom, not just their ability to write sensitive stories but also to receive information from sensitive sources, said Hanson-Young in announcing proposed legislation in that area which she and the Greens, under their new leadership of Victorian senator Adam Bandt, plan on introducing at the next Parliamentary sitting.

The Greens Media Freedom Act, being a reforms-based piece of proposed legislation, would be built around four key points:

The mainstream media is perceived to be participating complicitly with the whims of the Morrison Government, instead of having the no fear, nor favour mantra to call them out on any sort of wrongdoing or corruption for example, that which is normally associated with the type of investigative journalism undertaken in the public interest. Anyone witnessing the current state of journalism in Australia would be calling out for any level of reforms in how its standards and practices are applied and performed.

That current state of media and the approach to how its journalistic practices are applied pique the curiosities as to why mainstream parties arent as proactive about pursuing stronger press freedoms and whistleblower protections as the Greens are demonstrating via their legislative intentions.

Perhaps one needs to look no further than the corruptive actions undertaken by the governing Liberal Party in recent months or years which have not gone unnoticed by Hanson-Young on behalf of her Parliamentary peers and colleagues in the LNP and Labor, as sufficient motivation on its own to introduce these reforms.

Speaking out against the Federal Courts ruling against the ABCs appeal while referring to the present laws as broken, Hanson-Young said:

We need proper protection for whistleblowers and journalists so the public know whats really happening in our names and with our taxes. We have a right to know what the Government is up to.

Journalism is not a crime. And speaking up when the Government is engaged in covering up wrongdoing should not make whistleblowers criminals.

If the law wont protect journalists, then we must have legislated safeguards to guarantee the freedom of the press and whistleblower protections. These protections must be independent of the Government.

Meanwhile, the Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance (MEAA) the union under which the employment and working interests of journalists falls echoed the calls for Parliament to draft new laws to strengthen freedom of the press, especially when it comes to protection for whistleblowers.

MEAA President Marcus Strom said:

It is clear that the motivation behind these raids is to intimidate journalists and media organisations. The raids have a chilling effect on public interest journalism by demonstrating to whistleblowers that if they reveal wrongdoing, corruption or illegal activities in the public interest, they will be hunted down and prosecuted.

If an uneasy and nervous feeling persists between the journalism industry and the Morrison Government in light of these raids, then its likely with good reason.

While Labor, given their Parliamentary minority numbers, is effectively powerless to pass any legislative matters that it could even propose, the Liberals are seen as having a working cooperation with bodies such as the AFP even more so after Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton has seen his portfolio expanded widely during Malcolm Turnbulls reign as Prime Minister and maintained under Scott Morrison, an expansion which includes his overseeing of the AFP within it.

Therefore, the LNP, from a legislative viewpoint, possesses no motivation to seriously pursue laws strengthening press freedom and the protection of whistleblowers, while Hanson-Youngs bill would effectively remove the onus off of the AFP as well as Dutton and anyone under his command as judge, jury and executioner and place it back upon processes that would dictate the reporting of matters in the public interest and relate to community standards.

So does the LNP-AFP alliance aid in spreading fear within journalists minds and laptops alike, against saying or writing anything critical of the Morrison Governments actions and/or policies?

Hanson-Young thinks so, under the guise that the connections between a free press and a properly-functioning democracy are clearly linked.

In just two years, theres been about 22 pieces of legislation the Federal Government has rammed through the Parliament that increase secrecy in our democracy, under a guise of national security.

The truth is, those in power dont want the public to know what theyre up to and are shutting down transparency and accountability to serve their own interests.

The move to introduce the Media Freedom Act falls in line with the Greens recent history of proactive and progressive visions in affirming rights of all Australians, which includes a U.S.-style bill of rights among a list of proposed societal reforms.

Hanson-Young and her Greens colleagues, in hoping for a successful campaign to get the Media Freedom Act passed, will be fighting against a series of forces, not the least of which is the LNP-AFP relationship and hoping those on all sides of Parliament dont have a short memory over the recent Your Right To Know campaign:

The campaign by the Right To Know coalition and evidence given at the Senate Inquiry has provided many examples of wrongdoing and misconduct that would never have had a spotlight on them without whistleblowers and the protection of journalists sources and media freedoms.

William Olsonis a freelance journalist and hospitality professional. You can follow Williamon Twitter@DeadSexyWaiter.

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More:

The Greens are eager to introduce press freedom laws and reforms - Independent Australia

CHICAGO - Today the American Library Association (ALA) released the following statement regarding Tennessee HB 2721, which would require a parental oversight board to replace policies and library experts in the development of library collections and services. Libraries that fail to comply with the proposed law may lose local funding, incur fines, and librarians and library workers may face jail time.

The ALA stated the following:

Tennessee HB 2721 threatens library users freedom to read and violates our professional values and ethics expressed in the ALAs Library Bill of Rights. If adopted, the bill would establish parental oversight boards whose decisions about what others can read, view, and access in the library would be final. The bill would add layers of bureaucracy that compete with elected or appointed library boards and existing library policies that govern library collection development, programming, and meeting room use. The law jeopardizes library funding and imposes fines and jail time for librarians who violate the edicts of these untrained boards.

The belief that a small group of parents know what is best for every family in their community denies the very real fact that each community is made up of families and individuals with diverse beliefs, identities and values. ALA supports the right of families and individuals to choose materials from a diverse spectrum of ideas and beliefs. Public libraries and their professional staff members already have in place the tools and procedures that will assist parents in selecting materials that fit their familys information needs, while not censoring materials or infringing upon the rights of other families or patrons to choose and access the resources and programs they want and need.

ALA vigorously opposes HB2721 and other bills like it that advance censorship under the guise of parental control.

Original post:

ALA opposes proposed Tennessee law that threatens state's freedom to read - ala.org

Yesterday was busy, and outside of a briefly dramatic Premier League game, the broader soccer internet appeared to be preoccupied with other topics. Since the Washington Spirit and Loudoun United are both quietly gearing up for the season, lets do a very old school Freedom Kicks, centered entirely on D.C. United.

First up: Paul Arriola had surgery on his ACL yesterday, and things went about as well as these things can go:

Arriola was well enough to give a smile once he awoke from anasthesia. Also, again, he gets one single day to rest up, and rehab starts on Wednesday. Pro athletes are a different breed! Im still recovering from eating two unhealthy meals and having a couple beers on Sunday.

The language of soccer: How players communicate on the field | The AthleticSpeaking of Arriola, hes a major player in this piece, which also has a Bill Hamid anecdote. This takes me back to trying to explain soccer terms to non-soccer friends when we put together an indoor team. Turns out some people did other things with their youth, and will not just automatically understand why their buddies are yelling MAN! at them.

Ryan posted a link yesterday about Uniteds interest in former Columbus Crew midfielder Mohammed Abu. Heres the update for today:

Abus a 28-year-old Ghanaian central midfielder with 6 international caps, and is apparently no longer in the coachs plans at Valerenga. In terms of style, hes a possession facilitator who can run for days, but hes not necessarily a ball-winner a la Russell Canouse. If it happens, its an...interesting pick-up. Hes certainly a solid MLS player, no doubt about that, and hes familiar with the concepts United was putting to use in their final preseason game. Its just that it would be an addition in one of the spots Uniteds depth seems to be just fine, while were all wondering whether this team is going to only have 2 forwards and 3 center backs all year.

Wayne Rooney, Derby County planning to face D.C. United in friendly | Washington PostThis is really not all that surprising, given that Wayne Rooney said he wanted to keep connections between himself and United going. What is surprising is the when, because the timing here doesnt necessarily make obvious sense for either club.

Heres what Im listening to once I get back from todays training session in the rain at the RFK auxiliary fields:

And Ill answer the questions in the tweet: No, and no.

Black History Month: You cant hold him back | Stars and Stripes FCYou know the story here, but nevertheless, lets celebrate the best dang goalkeeper in the league.

View post:

Tuesday Freedom Kicks: Mohammed Abu to D.C. United?, Wayne Rooney coming back to town, and more - Black And Red United

Commenting on the Association of British Insurers (ABI) report 'Five years on: future-proofing the freedoms,' published today, Stephen Lowe argues that pension freedom and choice' must be seen to be working for the mass market rather than just for the wealthy few before it can be judged a long-term success.

The reforms are popular but are they working? It will probably be decades before we have the full picture, when those who started taking money at the start of the new era start reaching their mid-eighties and beyond. These are early stages, but evidence such as high drawdown withdrawal rates from modest pensions does not inspire much confidence.

Wealthier individuals are the most likely to be among the winners of the policy because they can afford to take professional advice and more investment risk while sheltering pension assets from inheritance tax. It is Middle Britain', those with small to medium-sized pension assets who depend on modest pension income to sustain their living standards, who are most at risk.

Clearly a policy that only works for one particular slice of the population but leaves the majority vulnerable is going to struggle to be a long-term success."

Examples from other countries who have been in this position provide evidence that poor outcomes could be either people taking too much, too soon and running out of money too early or from hoarding to ensure it lasts and living much poorer later lives as a result.

When we asked industry figures whether pension freedom had created more or less certainty for consumers, the answer was that it depends on which consumers. Nearly half (48%) thought the change had created more certainty for High Net Worths while 13% said less certainty. For Middle Britain, just 29% said more certainty and 44% said there was now less certainty.

Clearly a policy that only works for one particular slice of the population but leaves the majority vulnerable is going to struggle to be a long-term success. That is why we must do what we can to support initiatives being taken by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) around promoting take up of the free, independent and impartial Pension Wise, easing access to advise, controlling pension costs and putting in place default investment pathways.

Stephen Lowe is group communications directoratJust Group

See the original post:

Comment: Pensions 'freedom and choice' must work for the mass market - International Investment

Photograph Source: U.S. Customs and Border Protection Public Domain

Back in 2016, presidential candidate Donald Trump promised that Mexico would pay for his proposed border wall. Turns out Mexico wasnt interested, so Trump eventually resorted to declaring fake emergencies and illegally misappropriating money from the military budget.

Hes spending tens of millions of taxpayer dollars per mile on a barrier that, Samuel Lovett of the Independent reports, migrants are scaling with $5.30 ladders (when the wind isnt blowing it over for them, making ladders unnecessary).

Yes, based on the price of rebar at a local hardware store on the Mexican side of the wall, $5.30.

What a refreshing lesson! No matter how much money politicians like Trump spend trying to restrain and impoverish the people they stole it from, those seeking freedom and prosperity find ways to win through and to do so for far less.

The wall was always a dumb and evil idea.

Dumb, because it was never going to work. The US has 95,500 miles of border and coastline. If people want to get in, theyre going to get in, even if every member of the armed forces and every sworn law enforcement officer in the country is re-assigned to nothing but securing the border. The only reliable way to keep people out is to turn America into such a crappy place that nobody wants to come here. Which, admittedly, is something our politicians are always hard at work on.

Evil, because even if it DID work the result would be less freedom, a slower economy, and worse lives for everyone on both sides of it. Capital including human capital, aka labor naturally flows to where it can be most profitably invested. If that flow is impeded, were all worse off.

Well, not all of us, I guess. The corrupt politicians doing the impeding, and their crony corporate welfare queens, make bank at the expense of the other 99% of us. Which is as good an explanation as any, and better than most, for Trumps wall fetish.

Those $5.30 rebar ladders are, a huge practical benefit to their direct users. But theyre of double benefit practical and political to the rest of us.

As a practical matter, the immigrants who come over, under, around, or through the wall make our lives better.

As a political matter, the ease with which theyre exposing Trumps multi-billion-dollar boondoggle for what it is makes it less likely that future politicians will waste our money on similar idiocy.

More:

Freedom for $5.30...and This Time Mexico Really is Paying for It - CounterPunch

BEIRUT: The European Union launched a candidate call for the Samir Kassir Award for Freedom of the Press at the Delegation of the European Union to Lebanon earlier on Tuesday.

During the press conference, Ambassador Ralph Tarraf reaffirmed the European Unions commitment to pursue Samir Kassir's struggle for free speech and an independent free press.

Since 2006, the Samir Kassir Award for Freedom of the Press rewards journalists who are devoting their lives to human rights and democracy despite the persecution and threats confronting them. The competition for the award has attracted more than 2,500 candidates over the past 15 years.

"Freedom of expression lies at the core of the European Union values, and we are strongly committed to defend independent media and protect press freedom and media pluralism, said Tarraf.

During the conference, Khoury announced that the contest is open to candidates from North Africa, the Middle East, and the Gulf until April 1, 2020, and three awards will be granted for the best: opinion article, investigative article, and audiovisual news report.

The contributions must be centered on subjects relating to rule of law, human rights, good governance, fight against corruption, freedom of expression, democratic development and citizen participation.

The jury will be composed of seven voting members from Arab and European media and one observer representing the European Union. The names of the jury members will be communicated during the prize-awarding ceremony, which will take place on 2 June 2020 in Beirut, marking the 15th memorial of Samir Kassirs assassination.

The winner of each of the three categories will receive a prize of 10,000.

More:

European Union launches 15th edition of the "Samir Kassir Award for Freedom of the Press" - An-Nahar

the state of being free or at liberty rather than in confinement or under physical restraint: He won his freedom after a retrial.

exemption from external control, interference, regulation, etc.

the power to determine action without restraint.

political or national independence.

personal liberty, as opposed to bondage or slavery: a slave who bought his freedom.

exemption from the presence of anything specified (usually followed by from): freedom from fear.

the absence of or release from ties, obligations, etc.

ease or facility of movement or action: to enjoy the freedom of living in the country.

frankness of manner or speech.

general exemption or immunity: freedom from taxation.

the absence of ceremony or reserve.

a liberty taken.

a particular immunity or privilege enjoyed, as by a city or corporation: freedom to levy taxes.

civil liberty, as opposed to subjection to an arbitrary or despotic government.

the right to enjoy all the privileges or special rights of citizenship, membership, etc., in a community or the like.

the right to frequent, enjoy, or use at will: to have the freedom of a friend's library.

Continued here:

Freedom | Definition of Freedom at Dictionary.com

As an obstetrician with 20 years of experience, I have been trusted by more than 10,000 patients to care for them at critical moments in their pregnancies. I have witnessed the exhaustion, elation, pain, grief and relief of patients during natural childbirth, Cesarean sections, abortions and miscarriages. From these experiences I have learned two very important lessons about trust and freedom.

First, I have learned to trust people to make their best decisions when presented with an incredible array of pregnancy related challenges. Second, I have learned that freedom means respecting that other people make decisions that I may not make for myself.

These values are under imminent threat from the Utah Legislature, which is why more than 500 local health care providers have signed a statement urging lawmakers to avoid interfering with the patient-provider relationship, and why Im asking Utah providers to consider adding their names.

To better understand trust and freedom in medicine, consider the cases of two patients with planned pregnancies who, at 13 weeks, discovered that the pregnancy was affected by the same genetic disorder. The women were of the same age, both already had a child and had supportive spouses. The prognosis for each pregnancy was a shortened life with likely severe developmental delay. One person elected to end her pregnancy and one elected to continue. I cared for both.

The woman who decided to have an abortion underwent a five-minute procedure provided with compassion ending in relief mixed with grief. She asked for and kept her ultrasound pictures. For the other patient, we focused prenatal care visits on preparing for the ordeal of having a newborn in the intensive care unit. In both cases I was able to provide personalized, compassionate care so that each felt respected in their decision.

Physicians regularly encounter complex situations where people in similar circumstances make different decisions. Like the two people mentioned above, most people who have abortion care are already parents. Their decisions are informed by a desire to do the best for the children they already have.

The complexities around deciding whether to have an abortion means simultaneously acknowledging that abortion stops the development of a potential human being and respecting that a pregnant person has the agency to decide what is best for her and her family. For some, only one of those things matters. My patients have taught me that compassion means recognizing that both can be true.

As a physician, I build trust through understanding the unique situation of each patient. Members of the 2020 Utah Legislature, 96% of whom are not working as medical professionals, are poised to severely damage that trust.

According to bills circulating this session, I may be required to coerce a person having an abortion to view an ultrasound even when they say they dont want to. I may need to tell a person seven weeks into a pregnancy with an abusive partner that no one in Utah can provide their abortion care. I may even be forced to broach the subject of burial or cremation with someone immediately following the trauma of a miscarriage. In all of these clinical situations I would not be permitted to honor the individuals freedom to decide.

Abortion care is extremely safe, using exactly the same techniques employed for managing miscarriages. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists strongly opposes political efforts to limit a womans ability to get the care she needs, including bans on abortion care abortion is an essential component of health care for millions of women."

Utah politicians interference with the patient-provider relationship will worsen the current state of medical care and jeopardize the future provision of care here because medical providers do not want to practice in an such an environment.

The Utah Legislature can do better than replicate the shaming and blaming we see in state legislatures across the country. We can show dignity and respect for people who deserve our trust to make the best decisions for themselves and their families.

David Turok, M.D., is an obstetrician/gynecologist practicing in Salt Lake City.

The rest is here:

David Turok: Trust people with the freedom to choose abortion - Salt Lake Tribune