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welcome to our listserv announcement!
July 10, 2008
Friends & Allies,
Welcome to the Summer 2008 issue of the NESRI listserv! Thank you for staying informed about our work and for taking part in the movement to ensure that basic human needs are recognized as fundamental human rights.
Human Right to Housing Program >>>
Supporting the Right to Housing Across the Country
It is our pleasure to announce NESRI’s new Human Right to Housing Program!
Even though it’s our newest program, it’s already well underway! The Human Right to Housing Program grew out of the Special Project on the Human Rights of Hurricane Survivors, and our work with community-based partners in public housing in New Orleans. Our partner organization, May Day, represents one of far too many communities across the nation facing massive demolitions and predatory redevelopment. NESRI will work with them in the fight for their human right to housing and participatory development.
- NESRI is working to keep New Orleans in the human rights spotlight, both nationally and internationally. In April, NESRI, along with local organizers and other national supporter organizations, made a formal submission to the UN Advisory Group on Forced Evictions to conduct a fact-finding mission to New Orleans around the recent demolition of public housing. The demolitions threaten the right to housing and the right to return of over 20,000 residents. The submission details how officials in New Orleans designated public housing units uninhabitable despite contrary testimony from public experts.
- See our recent publication No Shelter From the Storm that details the city’s demolition of structurally sound public housing in New Orleans despite growing homeless rates, evictions from FEMA trailers due to hazardous levels of formaldehyde, and exorbitant increases in rent.
- NESRI released a statement regarding the crisis in affordable housing taking place across the country, after the New York Times published an article describing community responses to gentrification and redevelopment in Harlem.
- NESRI is quoted in the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder about the human right to housing and the need for congressional hearings on the national crisis in public and affordable housing.
- NESRI organized a solidarity letter of over 45 national and international human rights and housing rights groups to urge the New York City Council to vote against the rezoning of Harlem’s 125th Street. To see the international solidarity letter.
- The International Alliance of Inhabitants and NESRI issued a joint press release decrying the demolition of public housing in New Orleans.
- ENGAGE magazine article focuses on the right to return for those displaced after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. This issue highlights New Orleans’ B.W. Cooper public housing complex and features NESRI exchange delegate and founder of May Day New Orleans Sam Jackson.
- See NESRI's Human Right to Housing Info Sheet.
HUMAN RIGHT TO EDUCATION PROGRAM >>>
Promoting Dignity in U.S. Public Schools
NESRI's Human Right to Education Program Director Liz Sullivan was busy this spring presenting at events for lawyers, researchers, and educators about human rights and education. Liz presented at the annual Human Rights Conference at Suffolk Law School in Boston, participated in the panel, “Framing Dropouts Revisited” at the American Educational Research Association (AERA) Conference, and spoke at a Youth Development Symposium for New York City school counselors and administrators on reducing school suspensions.
In May, NESRI was excited to launch the official website of the national Dignity in Schools Campaign (DSC) - www.dignityinschools.org. NESRI is a founding member of the Campaign, which now has over 30 member organizations from 15 states united to fight practices that push students out of school and to advocate for the human right of every child to a quality education and to be treated with dignity. The DSC recently formed the Alternatives to Zero-Tolerance Working Group to promote federal legislation that will support positive models for school discipline to keep children in schools.
- Visit the new Dignity in Schools Campaign website and learn how to get involved by joining the DSC listserv or participating in a Working Group.
- Join us on July 24, 2008 for a national tele-conference call on How Immigrant Students Are Being Pushed Out of School, organized by the Dignity in Schools Campaign.
- See the new report from Youth Researchers for a New Education System, a group of high school students working with ICOPE, NESRI’s ally organization, which calls attention to issues of mayoral control, student participation, and the unequal distribution of resources in New York City schools.
HUMAN RIGHT TO HEALTH PROGRAM >>>
Building Support for Universal Health Care
NESRI Board Member Paul Farmer recently re-launched the Health and Human Rights Journal at Harvard’s School of Public Health. NESRI Right to Health Director Anja Rudiger contributed an article, From market competition to solidarity? Assessing the prospects of U.S. health care reform plans from a human rights perspective, which is available online at >>>.
Our Right to Health Collaborative has become an active voice in national health care reform debates, seeking to raise the bar and set parameters for emerging reform proposals. We are using detailed human rights standards to assess plans for financing and delivering health care, and we are working with organizations and coalitions to integrate a human rights vision into their advocacy.
In Montana, the Human Right to Health Care Campaign, conducted by our partner, the Montana Human Rights Network, has scored a first victory by collecting tens of thousands of signatures for a ballot initiative that would expand public programs to give health care to most uninsured children in the state. The Healthy Montana Kids initiative has made it onto the November ballot and is expected to gain widespread support. In Vermont, the new Healthcare is a Human Right Campaign, led by the Vermont Worker’s Center, is currently carrying out a health care survey and holding health care house parties.
- NESRI Board Member Paul Farmer re-launched the Health and Human Rights Journal at Harvard’s School of Public Health. Health Director Anja Rudiger also contributed to the publication. See the link to the complete journal.
- See new NESRI issue brief, Betraying an American Tradition: The Killing of Charity Hospital.
- Get involved in the Human Right to Health Interest Group, soon to be re-launched under the umbrella of the US Human Rights Network. Email anja[at]nesri.org to sign up for the new listserv.
The Right to Health Program will present at the annual meeting of the American Public Health Organization. Register here for the conference in San Diego (October 25-29), entitled “Public Health Without Borders”.
SPECIAL PROJECTS >>>
Fair Wages & A Right to Decent Work
NESRI is proud to announce another victory by its partner organization, the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW). On May 23, 2008, the CIW entered into its third major agreement with a large tomato purchaser! Following on the heels of Yum!Brands Inc. and McDonald’s, Burger King has agreed to increase wages in its supply chain for tomato pickers and implement a code of conduct that would prevent human rights abuses in the fields.
- Learn more about the CIW and their effort to protect the human rights of Florida’s agricultural workers >>>.
State Law & Human Rights
NESRI, in partnership with the Human Rights Institute at Columbia Law School and Northeastern Law School’s Rights in the Global Economy Program, has launched a training initiative for social justice lawyers working at the state level. Offering a practical vision of the human rights paradigm to the nation’s top litigators, NESRI and its partners have published a visionary training manual and hosted a training workshop on March 17, 2008 at Columbia Law School. On May 2, 2008, this collaborative, represented by Cathy Albisa, Martha Davis and Carrie Bettinger-Lopez provided another workshop titled “Using International Human Rights Law in Everyday Legal Aid Cases,” hosted by the New Haven Legal Assistance Association and Yale Law School’s Lowenstein Human Rights Project.
NESRI also helped develop and oversee an amicus brief on the international human rights of undocumented immigrants in Pedro Lozano et al v. Hazleton.
OTHER NEWS
You can now purchase Bringing Human Rights Home, a three volume series chronicling the human rights movement in the United States. NESRI Staff and Board Members contributed to this work in various ways. Order your copy through NESRI and 40% of the total cost goes directly to support our
work in building a human rights movement in the United States! Contact Laura Gosa at 212.253.1785 or
laura[at]nesri.org. Or send a check payable to “NESRI” for $275.00 to 90 John Street, Suite 308, New York,
NY 10038 and write "Bringing Human Rights Home" in the memo line. To learn more, visit >>>.
NESRI is hiring! We are seeking a full time one-year Communications Fellow with a background in journalism, media, communications or related field to help NESRI reach a wider range of social movement actors regarding the use of human rights in advancing social justice goals in the United States. See the full description >>>.
With the growth of our internship program at NESRI, our blog has also been growing! In addition to our staff, the interns have also been posting on our blog, http://nesri.wordpress.com. Read posts about the U.S. public housing crisis and what a human right to health care approach could really look like. Take a look and add it to your RSS feed. >>>
NEW PUBLICATIONS & PRESENTATIONS >>>
Human Right to Housing Info Sheet
July 2008
From Market Competition to Solidarity? Assessing the Prospects of U.S. Health Care Reform Plans From a Human Rights Perspective, Health and Human Rights Journal
July 2008
Betraying an American Tradition: The Killing of Charity Hospital
May 2008
No Shelter From the Storm
April 2008
Cathy Albisa presents at the Left Forum, Why Human Rights are an Alternative for Progressives
March 2008
Human Rights, Social Justice and State Law: A Manual for Creative Lawyering, Collaborative publication along with the Columbia Law School and Northeastern University School of Law
March 2008
SPECIAL THANKS TO:
- Our funders: Ford Foundation, Mertz-Gilmore Foundation, Public Welfare Foundation, U.S. Human Rights Fund, Libra Foundation, and all of our individual supporters for their commitment to NESRI's work promoting human rights in the United States!
- Our amazing Interns and Volunteers for their enthusiasm, creativity and hard work!
- Eric Norton at Nelson Mullins, Wade Wingard and Aimee Ault at Wingard Graphics for their tireless help with the DSC website.
- The International Alliance of Inhabitants, particularly Cesare Ottolini, Mariella Tornago and Gabriele Francescotto for organizing the Stop the Demolitions and Corruption in New Orleans Zero Evictions Campaign.
- Mitchel Lowenthal, Rahul Mukhi, Aimee Schultz, Catharine Slack, Michele Kenney, and Jared Gerber of Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP, Jay Pultman, Aimee Ferrer, Carrie Baker, and Eloise Kauvar of Allen & Overy, and Katherine Caldwell for their tremendous work on the Pedro Lozano et al v. Hazleton amicus brief.
- Brad Ott, Christian Roselund and Sam Jackson for assistance with the Charity Hospital Issue Brief.
- Marianne Lado of New York Lawyers for the Public Interest, Scott Rosenberg of Legal Aid, Ginny Shubert of Shubert Botein Policy Associates, Mike Hanley of the Empire Justice Center, Alan Jenkins of the Opportunity Agenda and Maria Foscarini of the National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty, for presenting at the legal training at Columbia Law School.
- Meredith Tax for bringing human rights conversations to the Left Forum.
SUPPORT NESRI >>>
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SPREAD THE WORD...
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DONATE...
NESRI relies on the support of foundations and individuals like you! Your 100% tax-deductible contribution to support NESRI's work will help us promote a human rights in the United States! We also accept in-kind donations (printing services, computer equipment, and frequent flyer miles, etc.) so please contact us for more details. Donate today! >>>
Thank you for all of your support!
NESRI Staff >>>
Cathy Albisa, Executive Director
Tiffany Gardner, Housing Program Director
Liz Sullivan, Education Program Director
Anja Rudiger, Health Program Director
Laura Gosa, Program & Fundraising Associate
Yana Domuschieva, Administrative Assistant
NESRI Interns & Volunteers >>>
Brandi Christie, Health Program Intern
Elizabeth Keeney, Education Program Intern
Kristin Macleod-Ball, Housing Program Intern
Kikora Mason, Housing Program Intern
Marion McCleneghan, Volunteer Board Coordinator
Jeremy Meisinger, Development & Communications Intern
Rachel Van Wert, Health Program Intern
Laura Yenchman, Legal Intern
NESRI Board of Directors >>>
Martha Davis, Chair, Northeastern School of Law
Lisa Crooms, Secretary, Howard University School of Law
Patrick Mason, Treasurer, Florida State University, Department of Economics
Mimi Abramovitz, Hunter College School of Social Work and The Graduate Center, CUNY
Carol Anderson, University of Missouri Department of History
Rhonda Copelon, CUNY School of Law
Paul Farmer, Professor of Social Medicine, Harvard Medical School
Bruce Rabb, Kramer, Levin, Naftalis & Frankel LLP
The National Economic and Social Rights Initiative (NESRI) promotes a human rights vision for the United States that ensures dignity and access to the basic resources needed for human development and civic participation. |
