Living Justice - April 2009
 APRIL 2009Dear friends and supporters, Welcome to the April edition of ERISJ's Living Justice e-bulletin. We have been busy collaborating with various community organizations, and have some great projects underway! We have been receiving interest from many new groups and individuals from WA as well as around the world. If you experience problems viewing this E-Bulletin, you can view it online here.
In this issue:
Wednesday 29 April: Trafficking of Humans Talk
Our own Dr. Suma Kaare, Social Justice Education Coordinator, will present a talk on behalf of ACRATH, the Australian Catholic Religious Against the Trafficking of Humans. The event will be hosted here at ERISJ from 6:00-7:30 PM on Wednesday, 29 April. Hope to see you there! RSVP for the above event (gold coin donation): kathleenlaffan@hotmail.com,Ph 9337 9429 (Kathleen) or delanybrigidine@iinet.net.au, Ph 9381 1669 (Bernice) Our Community Engagements
Aboriginal Australia - exciting new partnership The Institute has accepted an invitation from Aboriginal elders to become a major partner in one of the largest Aboriginal-run projects in Western Australian history. The project straddles eight major fields, with the first (Cultural Corridors) being a juvenile justice diversionary program. Seen together, the eight projects aim at nothing less than the full revival of Aboriginal people in Western Australia, as well as new forms of partnership with, and learning from, Aboriginal people by the rest of the population. Initiated within Nyoongar Western Australia, these projects have built so much momentum and excitement during the past 12 months that there are already suggestions that they ‘go Statewide’. Stay tuned for much more information in coming issues of Living Justice, and on our website. Heads Up for May:Saturday 9 May: Resilient Cities: Saving Our Cities from Peak Oil and Climate Change Saturday 16 May: Non-Violent Direct Action Intensive hosted by Khristo Newall Tuesday 19 May: Free Info Night Saturday 23 May: Politics, Participatory Democracy and Social Justice Immersions - Special Feature!Khristo is back! And he brings with him a first-hand look at the last two Immersions, Timor-Leste and India. Report from Timor-Leste (East Timor) Our group of seven had three incredible weeks in September/October 2008 experiencing life in Timor-Leste. We spent several days at the Bakhita Community Centre, where we gained insight into daily village life, ran daily activities for children, were hosted by local families for meals, and visited a local coffe plantation. We were also lucky enough to be invited to a local wedding party! We also went to Balibo to visit the infamous site of the killing of five western journalists at the beginning ofg the Indonesian invasion.
Perhaps the most challenging but rewarding days were spent in the villages of Railako, where we were hosted individually in local families homes for four days. This was a powerful experience! Climbing Mt Ramelau at the end of the immersion, we were able to appreciate the incredible beauty of the country from the viewpoint of its highest peak.
Overall it was a powerful experience for the group, coming to terms with the reality of a country devastated by war, occupation and conflict, and interacting with local people and groups trying to bring about change in this scenario.
Report from India The India immersion was an awesome experience for all involved. The trip included Mumbai, Delhi and Chennai as well as some time in rural areas of India and of course some memorable train journeys in between. In Mumbai the group was privileged to be hosted by the Director of Mani Bhavan, a Gandhi Memorial Institute, and to spend a day exploring the impact and legacy of Gandhi on India and his philosophy of non-violence – made particularly poignant given the recent attacks on this city. We also had an incredible day visiting the largest slum in India, hosted by a local NGO working in this area. In Delhi the group was hosted by an NGO who began work with drug addicts, but have now expanded into many other areas, including HIV/AIDS work, palliative care, and transgender and injecting drug user programs. This NGO, which sees itself more as a community than an agency, has grown from humble beginnings 30 years ago to one which now employs over 300 staff, more than 90% of whom are former addicts and/or HIV+. To spend some time around this community was a powerful experience for all of us.
Is this something you want to experience? Fantastic! We are now taking registrations for the 2009 Timor-Leste (East Timor) Immersion. Register here... Social Justice Congresses2 day, group-based workshops providing induction into social justice. Congresses and Weeks are suitable for schools, TAFE, Universities, NGOs and PD in most workplaces. Content and delivery approaches are tailor-made and linked to the client's desired outcomes. Read more...
Social Justice Weeks5 days of intensive engagement in expert-facilitated social justice events, to add to our clients' existing efforts at social justice awakening, inspiration and ongoing commitment to action. These are delivered by one of our social justice education experts, on your premises to either the entirety of your organisation or just a portion. Read More...
Other Social Justice Networks - Upcoming eventsThursday 2 April - National Close the Gap Day - Oxfam Australia is hosting a screening of the feature film Samson and Delilah, directed by Warwick Thomson, at the Luna Cinema in Leederville on Thursday 2nd April at 6:30pm. This is a pre-release screening. To book a ticket (no charge) please click here and pick the Friday 3 April - Ward Protest - The Deaths in Custody Watch Committee (WA) and family members of the late Mr Ward are holding a public protest and call for justice for Mr Ward. A list of the demands will be presented to the Attorney General & Minister for Corrective Services. Click here to download the flyer. Monday 6 April - Green Urbanism Down Under: US academic Tim Beatley presents his reflection on living in Australia and in particular Fremantle. 4pm at CUSP, 3 Pakenham St, Fremantle. Download PDF flyer (184.94Kb) Monday 6 April - “Leadership for Sustainability”. This program is designed to support people who are leading sustainability initiatives (personal; communal; environmental) and is run by The Winding Staircase. An informal conversation/information session will be held at Cafe Villa, 128 Oxford St Leederville on Monday 6th April 2009, 5.30-6.30pm (RSVP if you are coming). For more information download flyer. Friday 10 April (Good Friday) - A Social Justice Stations of the Cross liturgy will be held at 10am in Russell Square, Northbridge. Each of the ‘stations’ in this liturgy revolve around a contemporary issue of social injustice, the suffering borne by people and the way forward. Created by the Sundowner Community and Ruah Community Services. Read more. April 27 - Bush Fire Appeal Art Auction - Supporting the rebuilding of Bruno's Art and Sculpture Garden, Marysville, VIC, the auction will take place at Caversham House in Caversham, WA. Click here to dowload the flyer. NB: Information about other organisation's events is provided in good faith, but we can take no responsibility for omissions or errors. If you have news, an event, or link you’d like included, please email admin@erisj.org.au by the 25th of each month for possible inclusion in the next ‘Living Justice’.
 See also, previous editions of 'Living Justice' or check out our full events calendar. | ||||||||||||||||
‘Til next edition, in solidarity and peace,
The team at the ERISJ, Fremantle
www.erisj.org.au Tel:
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