Photos from the KEEP 2012 send-off fundraiser last Saturday. It was a great and loving gathering of radical korean folk. KEEP 2010ers in NYC came out in force (pictured)! Meejin shared her experience from KEEP2010 and how it threads through to her work today with groups like CAAAV (woohoo). And, the family keeps growing. 

Amazing to be reminded how much queer Korean and POC folk are active in, support and help drive multi-issue movements for justice, self-determination, and liberation, as well as local cultures of resistance. (Not because it’s strategic or generous, but because it’s necessary for our own survival and the survival of those whom we love.) Case in point would be the recent and awesome CPR-led Stop and Frisk anti-policing local organizing work. 

Source: showand

Funeral Procession at South Korean Consulate
Save Jeju NYC Action Committee
Mar 12, 2012

As you read this, the South Korean government is blasting away lives and precious natural resources while hundreds of riot troops suppress peaceful protestors. We cannot allow this to continue.



South Korean Navy and Samsung Corporation Blast Paradise and Peace Island

Gangjeong, South Korea—Despite an official appeal from Jeju Governor Woo to the South Korean Navy to halt the blast of the sacred Gureombi volcanic coastline on Jeju Island, the Navy and Samsung Corporation have proceeded to detonate 800 kilograms of explosives near the seashore. The blasting is estimated to last for five months using 43 tons of explosives.

Yesterday, Governor Woo issued an emergency written appeal to Seoul citing concern about the environmental destruction and likely clashes between village protestors and police.

An intense standoff is now underway between Gangjeong villagers and hundreds of police in riot gear who were shipped from the Korean mainland to suppress the peaceful protests. Already dozens of arrests have been made, mostly of women who chained themselves to trucks and other barricades to block Samsung vehicles transporting the explosives. Activists have also used kayaks to block Samsung ships from dredging the coastline, which is home to several endangered marine life, such as the red-footed crab and soft coral reef.

“It is a sad day for Jeju Island, for democracy, for the environment and for peace,” said Gloria Steinem, author and longtime feminist who has been supporting the nonviolent resistance on Jeju Island to stop the naval base.

“Jeju isn’t just any island,” explains American actor Robert Redford. “It has just been selected as one of the “Seven Wonders of Nature” for its breathtaking beauty, unique traditions and sacred groves. Of the world’s 66 UNESCO Global Geoparks, nine are on Jeju Island.” The Gureombi coastline is a continuous volcanic rock formation along Gangjeong village, along the southern part of Jeju Island, which is approximately 50 miles south of the Korean peninsula.

For the past five years, Gangjeong villagers have been waging a nonviolent campaign against the construction of the naval base. In a referendum, 96 percent of the villagers voted against the base. Despite these and other democratic efforts, the South Korean government has arrested, fined and beaten nonviolent protestors for impeding the construction.

Many international arms experts suspect that the naval base will be in the service of the U.S. missile defense system as part of the U.S. pivot towards the Asia Pacific in its efforts to contain China. Villagers say they are the unfortunate target of an arms race between the US and China.

For more information, visit www.savejejuisland.org and/or facebook page,http://www.facebook.com/SaveJeju andhttp://www.facebook.com/groups/nonavalbase/. 

Source: youtu.be

15 / 2011

Last year, I only reached 8 percent.

I am continually humbled and inspired by stories of giving. From the weekly tithe growing up in the catholic church to examples of the poor giving generously to those more poor and more oppressed, even now. And talking with friends about how/why they give and the milestones they set for themselves. 

So, last year when I did the math and came up short—I’d given 8% of my income to non-profits, community organizations, and individuals—I was really disappointed. And I asked myself how/why. (Part of this was that 2010 was an uncertain year: I’d quit an unhappy job and begun freelancing. Blah blah blah. And in the end I was fortunate enough to do better than I thought and I landed in a much better place.)

This year for 2011 I set a goal to give my money more intentionally to folks that need it most (and prioritizing community organizing, progressive structural change, grassroots movement building and with communities underserved/oppressed by mainstream institutions and states): At least 10%. Aspirationally 15%.

And I met it. As of 12/31, I count 16.3%. But it’s not just about numbers and markers… I’d like to keep exploring what the right level is for me, how I might give more (20% 30% 40% ?), and how this fits with a vision of change I’d like to see in the world. 

Writing about this is a process for me, and one I’ve long wanted to engage in. And I’ll try to write more… about whom I gave to (like here and here) and more importantly why. I’m keenly interested to hear from others about their stories of giving, and alternate strategies/points of view. I’d love to engage in dialogue about how we help effect change in the world through these and other forms of support and solidarity. 

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