Jo Cox friend of Palestine

The British Labor Party MP Jo Cox, who was brutally  killed last Thursday in broad daylight, on the streets of Birstall, a West Yorkshire village in her constituency on June 16th was a devoted compassionate friend of Palestine, refugees and immigrants,champion for the less fortunate; for the socially ostracised, for women; and for diversity.who dedicated her life to helping lives of people on the other side of the world, for human rights and advocated for the end of the Israeli occupation of Palestine. She often spoke against Israel’s mistreatment of Palestinian children and called on Israel to end its practice of detaining young underage Palestinians. Mrs. Cox - whose 42nd birthday would have been today frequently advocated for the rights of Palestinians' to self determination and for enforcing international human right law to protect the rights of young Palestinian children -both in her charity work and as an MP.She said in February that moves by they that moves by the Conservative government to use legal threats to curtail the boycott of Israel were “a gross attack on democratic freedoms. It is our right to boycott unethical companies.”
Jo was a true humanitarian. Who used her own voice to give the voiceless a strong, powerful voice and used hers  to hold governments to their humanitarian obligations a huge loss, the Palestinian people have lost a true friend and defender of their rights.long may we remember her.
In the following link she speaks on the arrest detention and treatment of children in occupied Palestinian territories :-.

http://www.jocox.org.uk/2016/01/07/jo-cox-on-the-arrest-detention-and-treatment-of-children-in-occupied-palestinian-territories/ 

"Parliament held an urgent and thought provoking debate this week about the way in which children are arrested, detained and treated in the occupied Palestinian territories, writes Jo Cox.

Westminster Hall, the overspill venue for backbenchers to hold debates when time pressures on the main Chamber won’t allow, was jammed with MPs keen to contribute and listen to what was a fascinating, deeply troubling discussion.

Israel is the only country in the world that systematically prosecutes children in military court and the differences between how Israeli children and Palestinian children are treated are stark. For example, an Israeli child subject to civil court proceedings has to have access to a lawyer within 48 hours. Yet a Palestinian child can be left without legal guidance for as long as 90 days. This, and many other disparities, underline the existence of a two tier justice system operating in the West Bank. One where Israeli children are subject to the rule of law; Palestinian children are not. This disparity of treatment, along with the estimate that 59,000 Palestinian children detained by the Israeli military since 1967 are likely to have been physically abused in one way or another, is deeply disturbing. It is also a clear and fundamental abuse of basic human rights and international law, including the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.

There are a number of very worrying trends that impact upon these Palestinian children and during the debate I raised the issue that 65 per cent of children report being arrested in what are often ‘terrifying’ night raids by the Israeli military.

Night raids cause a huge amount of distress to children and their families. UNICEF have powerfully argued that “all arrests of children should be conducted during daylight, notwithstanding exceptional and grave situations.” A short lived Israeli pilot scheme, unconvincingly implemented, involved issuing summonses in place of night-time arrests. But these were increasingly served after midnight defeating the intended purpose.

Personal accounts provide an insight to what children are subjected to – they are often arrested in the middle of the night by armed soldiers, their hands are bound, they are blindfolded and taken away on the floor of a military vehicle. There are also reports of them being subjected to physical and verbal abuse throughout.

Another worrying trend is that almost three quarters of children detained report not being informed of their right to silence, the fundamental right afforded anyone arrested on suspicion of a crime. This is to stop the risk of self-incrimination, a particular concern for vulnerable children.  One case documented by the organisation Military Court Watch shockingly reported that a Palestinian child was told by one interrogator that he had the right to silence while a second told him he would be raped if he did not confess.

Thirdly, the issue of transferring detainees en masse from occupied territory is a very serious issue, and is, in fact, a war crime. Yet monthly data released by the Israeli Prison Service shows that almost half of the detained Palestinian children from the West Bank are transferred to prisons inside Israel.

This is a breach of the Geneva Convention. The added human impact is that these unlawful transfers mean families struggle to visit their children often over many months.

Estimates put the number of Palestinians detained since 1967 at 850,0000. Of these almost 100,000 are children. Between 500 and 700 children are prosecuted each year, with stone throwing the most common charge. This often brings with it a sentence of between 10 and 20 years.

And worst of all the number of children involved is increasing. As of last month the number of children in detention was up to 470 – over a 200% increase since last September.

These abuses have been going on for nearly 50 years. As my colleague Sarah Champion MP, who sponsored the debate, said – this situation requires decisive action to ensure we meet our international legal obligations."

Remain

This referendum is about the type of country we want to live in. Been pondering about this for awhile but in past week my mind has firmly been made up
I'm objectively against the concept of the EU. The current leadership in Brussels is dominated by political forces that seek to erode the social gains won in the past. Their is the issue of trade deals like TTIP that would hardwire privatisation and deregulation into our political system.Many of the member states remain wedded to austerity economics and have imposed their destructive policies on the people of southern Europe. I was disgusted by the way it imposed oppressive austerity measures  on the people of Greece and Spain, and it is after all another corporate superstate, hugely undemocratic and unrepresentative,decisions affecting every man, woman and child on the continent are being made in ways it is increasingly difficult to understand and some profoundly reactionary interests dominate the EU institutions, aligned with big business and elite interests, the EU is in dire need of reform and more democracy,  it's all a bit of a mess quite frankly. The anti capitalist argument against the EU has a good case  yet at the same time the the EU does an awful lot of protections like workers rights, maternity leave, human rights and environmental safeguards,  health and safety legislation, holidays, regular breaks etc. Things I don't trust the UK to keep up with. Certainly not under Cameron. And do you really trust the likes of Farage and Johnson  when it comes to workplace rights and human rights.In fact, many of the worst EU policies, like TTIP, are precisely the ones that the UK government is most supportive of and would retain, emulate or even expand if Brexit were to occur.
Ideally we wouldn't be at the mercy of the EU or the UK government but whilst they still have such a strong say on the lives of normal people I will always choose the lesser of the evils. At the end of the day whoever we vote for the powerful always seem to get what they want. I will not be voting for the EU, per say but Brexit I don't think is the answer.
What has really consolidated my view is what has been going on recently. The campaign terrain has been marked out by the right wing eurosceptic Tories and by their outriders in UKIP. The British electorate has been told in increasingly strident terms that British “national sovereignty” is at stake.Another, slightly less subtle, message is also being delivered. Unless “Britain” rejects continued membership of the EU, the ethnic and cultural integrity of the nation will be threatened—the argument goes. The UKIP leader, Nigel Farage, has warned us of the dangers of waking up and finding Romanians have moved in next door. The implications, we will be told, are clear: for as long as the country is part of the EU, “the swamping” of the indigenous British population by alien migrants from the other EU countries cannot be halted. The noxiously chauvinist tone that has ­characterised so much of the debate about immigration invariably takes on an openly racist colour particularly when applied to the Roma people from EU states in Central and Eastern Europe.
The Leave campaign have created such a mood of toxicity in the country that resembles the one in Germany when Hitler won his first election. It has increasingly taken on a dangerous edge, warped poisonous and hysterical. It is horrifying to think where Britain will be heading if the Leave win. Every day I thank my lucky stars that I live where I do. I can't imagine how it must feel to be a refugee. To feel rejected and unwanted with no home to go to. I want to live in a country where people truly care about other human beings and who can show compassion. I want us to work together with our neighbours for the good of all people. 
There can be no doubt that if Britain leaves the EU many European regulations restricting working hours and other employment and social reforms will be scrapped. The anti-EU right also demands a rolling back of the powers of both the EU Court of Justice (ECJ) and—more urgently—of the European Court of Human Rights (EHCR). The British Tory establishment has been outraged by some of the rulings of the ECHR in particular,for instance to give prisoners in jail the same voting rights they have elsewhere in the EU. Even more objectionable to the Tories have been ECHR rulings to protect the human rights of immigrants at risk of being deported by the UK. The ECHR is itself outside the remit of the European Union. But the ECJ is bound by the overarching decisions of the ECHR when ruling on matters of specifically EU law. The Tories want a “British” convention on human rights to replace the European convention. Anyone doubting this would deliver a serious blow to civil liberties and human rights in Britain is not living in the real world.
It is possible that the vote on Thursday could produce a democratic fracture in UK politics. It is not the most likely scenario but it is possible. The only thing we know for sure is that after Thursday the winner will have been a member the Bullingdon club. Staying in however we can keep on pushing for change and reform working steadily in solidarity with our European friends as part of a  Europe-wide movement against austerity, racism and xenophobia, not left alone and isolated from our European neighbours.
The above reasons are  why I am voting to remain. We have far to much to lose.
 SHARE this if you believe Britain is at our best when we’re outward-looking, inclusive and we stand together.

Halfway there ( a poem for the summer solstice)

      

                  
                        ( in time of rising hate, fear and division, a moment of contemplation)
                                                          happy summer solstice   

Surging through veils,
to enhance, to heal,
recharge, renew, reveal,
time to celebrate,
through spirit, mind, and heart,
the turning of the seasonal wheel,
under the influence,
of a full strawberry moon,
swirl in peace for awhile,
solitary or in company,
kiss goodbye to the last shades of spring,
pay homage to forces of nature we trust,
as earth's darkness returns to light,
and summertime is reborn.

World Refugee Day

 
Today the world commemorates the strength, courage and resilence of millions of refugees. World Refugee Day was first marked in 2001.Tens of thousands of people around the world take time to recognize and applaud the contribution of those forced to flee.The annual commemoration is marked by a variety of events in over 100 countries, involving government officials, aid workers, celebrities, civilians and the forcibly displaced themselves.Never before have the immediate needs of vulnerable children and their families been so great. Some 20 million refugees half of whom are children, have been forced to flee violence, poverty and persecution from places such as Syria, Somalia, South Sudan and Central African Republic taking perilous sea voyages over the Mediterranean. According to the International Organisation for Migration, over 20,000 migrants have died in their attempts to reach or stay in Europe since 2000, and according to the United Nations, only one per cent have been resettled. It is imperative that they should be given help, protection and long term solutions.
Together, we should be creating an outpouring of compassion and show individual refugees that they are welcome here.but the persecution of refiugees continues, whipped up by forces of racism spreading fear and misinformation about security and terrorism.The EU Referendum campaign has sadly contributed to this unleashing some of the most heinious manifestations of racism we have seen in generations. Those on the far right across Europe are eager to use the crisis to further scapegoat immigrants.Last week UKIP leader Nigel Farage had the audacity to stand in front of a poster chillingly reminiscent of nazi propoganda depicting long queues of refugees heading for Europe. Earlier he stated that violence would be the 'next step ' when people felt that nothing could be done about immigration through democratic means.
It should be pointed out that despite whatever one thinks of the European Union it is a leading global donor of aid. It gives more than one billion euros a year for humanitarian assistance to support those forced to flee their homes. This funding is vital, providing access to shelter, food, healthcare, sanitation, education and other essential services. A necessary humanitarian response to one of the worst crisis's since the Second World War. In the circumstances, it could be argued and more than justified that they contribute even more. The EU is morally, and indeed legally, obliged to share some of the refugee burden
In light of this as continuing tragedy unfolds, some of the countries most able to help are shutting their gates to people seeking asylum. Borders are closing, pushbacks are increasing, and hostility is rising. Avenues for legitimate escape are fading away.Since the beginnings of civilization, we have treated refugees as deserving of our protection. Whatever our differences, we have to recognise our fundamental human obligation to shelter those fleeing from war and persecution. It is time to stop hiding behind misleading words. Richer nations must acknowledge refugees for the victims they are, fleeing from wars they were unable to prevent or stop.History has shown that doing the right thing for victims of war and persecution engenders goodwill and prosperity for generations. And it fosters stability in the long run.
The world needs to renew its commitment now to the 1951 Refugee Convention and its principles that made us strong.To offer safe harbor, both in our own countries and in the epicentres of the crises, and to help refugees restore their lives.In this context it is sad to report  that on Saturday 18 June 2016, the Convoy to Calais was refused entry to France. Over 250 vehicles carrying many tonnes of much needed aid for refugees in the 'Jungle Camp' stuffed full of desperately needed aid; food, sleeping bags, tents, clothes; love were turned away at the border by the French authorities. The reasons given for refusing the convoy entry were spurious, including the 'State of Emergency', football hooliganism and the threat of terrorist attack. None of these had any connection with this humanitarian mission.While two lorries and a handful of cars and vans managed to get through, less than half of the aid collected was delivered.
The organisers of the Convoy to Calais made it clear to the French authorities that there was no intention to cause any disruption or hold any kind of demonstration or protest, when in France.This was a convoy delivering aid and solidarity to some of the poorest and most vulnerable people on the planet who governments across Europe are trying to forget. A truly shameful state of affairs, a dangerous reaction, short-sighted and morally wrong.
Today and tomorrow we must continue to stand up for refugees.We must remember that arms trade helps exacerbate the crisis,plus poverty and inequality, war and conflict, we need to build bridges not more obstacles and borders.
In the meantime please consider signing the following petition :-

 https://t.co/8emWi22DWc


Aziza Brahim performs refugee Blues

Amnestea

.

Please Come for tea and Cake! this Sunday 19th June 2016 2.00–5.00pm  
Raise some money for Amnesty International's human rights work.

Merlin’s Lair, 
Capel Iwan, 
Newcastle Emlyn 
SA38 9LS                   

Everyone welcome - Croeso i  Pawb

*Relax to Live Music by L’Attitude  *Bookstall  *Plant Sale *Jewellery Sale 
Come whatever the weather, always a lovely event, friendly and hospitable.

Amnesty is non-political and does not accept money from Government, however the Government will double any money we raise (from the International Aid Budget).

We are raising money for an Amnesty project in Burkina Faso and Sierra Leone where Amnesty is working to help local communities to organise themselves to stop child marriage (girls as young as 10 forced to marry old men) and FGM, 

32 years anniversary of the battle of Orgreave

On this day in 1984, the battle of Orgreave took place when striking miners faced off against thousands of police under the jurisdiction of Margaret Thatcher as they attempted to blockade the Orgreave coking plant. The police showed the lengths they would go to break the strike with violent attacks, mass arrests and deliberate but fortunately unsuccessful attempts to fabricate evidence and frame miners. The insult was added to by the BBC reversing footage of miners defending themselves from police attacks to try and make out that the police were attacked first. 
It was one of the most brutal attacks by the state on its own citizens of the last 20th Century.It saw the police  going berserk under state orders, repeatedly  attacking  individuals  wherever they sought refuge,  as they fled into a nearby Wheatfield and into the community of Orgreave, where the police  carried on their pursuit through the streets. A scene of ugliness, fear and menace, as  all concepts of Law and order that  the constabulary  were supposed to withhold abandoned all its basic principles.
 At the end  the day  over 100 people were arrested, for no crime whatever, with many  more being injured along with  the Miners leader Arthur Scargill. Following Orgreave, the police  conducted a deliberate  and co-ordinated  attempt to frame arrested miners  for one of the most serious events  on the statute book - the offence of Riot. No police officer has ever been prosecuted or even disciplined for their role in the terrible events that occurred.

 The  miners strike of 1984 was one of the longest and most brutal in British labour history. A community fighting for jobs and survival was wholly denigrated and depicted as violent by the majority of the media. 32 years later  many still seek some form of justice.Today all the victims  of this bloody confrontation,are simply asking for an apology for the actions taken out against them. We should never forget, today the Orgreave Truth and Justice Campaign (OTJC) are calling on supporters to join them in a march and rally for truth and justice  at 5pm at The Old Bridge, Orgreave Lane, Sheffield S13 9NE. Supporters are encouraged to commemorate the day when 95 miners were arrested and wrongfully charged and many others were violently assaulted and wounded by a police force charging on horseback and wielding truncheons.
The huge demand for a public inquiry  since  the Hillborough  verdict  should help  to expose the real truth of what happened on that day, achieve justice and make it easier for both the mining community and the police to move on

For  further details of the Orgreave Peace and Justice Campaign

I refer you to this excellent site

http://otjc.org.uk/

An earlier post on the 30th anniversary of the Miners Strike can be found here

http://teifidancer-teifidancer.blogspot.co.uk/2014/03/30th-anniversary-of-miners-strike-their.html

The following is a pamphlet by a striking anarchist miner :-

https://libcom.org/history/tell-us-lies-about-miners-dave-douglass

The horrible threat of fascism must be thwarted.

                                     
                                            Thomas Mair, fascist murderer.

Do you know what sorrow is? A pool of blood where resentment clouded in hate devoured hope.It's been a horrible week, where we've seen the consequences of bigoted hatred.
It's looking increasingly apparent that Thomas Mair (the Killer of Jo Cox MP) was a far-right extremist with links to various fascist groups.The media are trying to put his actions down to his mental health, ignoring his political beliefs, despite Mair saying "death to traitors, freedom for Britain" in court this morning it points out that the attack was not some random act of violence, but a politically motivated targeted attack on someone who had spoken out in support of the people pictured in Nigel Farages recent ' Breaking Point' poster. Believe it or not, there are millions of people with mental health issues who don't go around committing politically-motivated acts of terror. An individual fired up by those who propogate. hate and division who deliberately set out from his home armed with a firearm and long knife, to commit a politically motivated murder. According to a US civil rights group, he bought a handbook from an American-based Neo-Nazi group with instructions on how to build a homemade gun in 1999.
Sick white supremacist ideology has driven many to do this is the past (David Copeland, Anders Breivik, Zack Davies) and if the far-right aren't prevented from spreading their poisonous message, many more will probably follow.
By not calling Mair's actions terrorism , the media has been inconsistent and has helped fuel Muslims communities that they are treated differently.Remember that this kind of thinking emerges and spreads in our own communities,sometimes amongst people we know. It's important to recognise this threat and to know who these people are so that we never have to experience the worst consequences of fascist extremism.Those that seek to spread blood on our streets for their own hateful agendas. Certain politicians  are responsible for stirring up the toxic debate on immigration in which the dreadful murder of Jo Cox took place combined  with those who have deliberately whipped up racism and anti-migrant feelings.  .
I have no hidden political agenda, I just have a dreadful  fear of the rise of fascism in a political atmosphere that was febrile and fetid long before Jo Cox’s death and is still being spread.
The lessons of history is that we must all unite to oppose fascism wherever it lurks, we must  stand firm against this vile ideology of hate, defeat it and make a better life for all .Remember that an injury to one is an injury to all., so as we remember Jo Cox we must stand together in solidarity with all victims of fascist violence. Never should this disgusting ideology be given acceptance of any kind.
We must continue push back any growth by the  forces of fascism as has been done repeatedly in the past.

Inner Terrestrials - White Nightmare

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PTE8y7z3-aw&feature=youtu.be

Well this is a story about the war,
This is the futures to unfurl.
And this is about the fate of millions,
Under attack by evil's minions.

This song is about the fascist threat,
And a history full of regret.
And this is a tale of countless dead,
Because of the lies on which we're fed.

A white nightmare
A white nightmare
A white nightmare
The great white nightmare

You know we're taught to believe in our sovereign rulers,
Just one of the lies on which we're nurtured.
Patriotism, blind faith in the state,
Relate to xenophobia and race hate.

The innocents died when the war flags flew
Are scared human beings, no different from you
In god and mercy's name, they'll have to be cleansed,
The commies, the subverts, the gypsy, the jew.

A white nightmare
A white nightmare
A white nightmare
The great white nightmare

You know they're still there fighting for a new world order,
Built on fear and children slaughtered.
And i can't think what they hope to gain,
When the rivers turn to blood, and joy turns into pain.

With a crooked pride in germanic roots,
Swastikas, shaved head, steel toe capped boots.
They're warped ideal is a nazi nation,
Born of loss and bleak frustration.

A white nightmare
A white nightmare
A white nightmare
The great white nightmare

Have they forgotten the lesson of the past?
With their misplaced pride and their aryan path.
Can the rotten see that inside their heads,
Hatred grows and hatred spreads.

Before you realised in had begun,
The world is under threat from nazi scum.
So on your feet now, do us right,
It's time to spread the love, and block out all the lies.

A white nightmare
A white nightmare
A white nightmare
The great white nightmare

You know i look around and i don't see mugs,
Who'll take this xxxx from fascist thugs.
We need one heart, one soul, one nation,
To save us all from annihilation.
We suffered from too many wars,
We must never break under their laws.
We've been hurt enough, we'll take no more,
We must defeat the fascist core.

A white nightmare
A white nightmare
A white nightmare
The great white nightmare

Thoughts on the death of Jo Cox M.P

I am deeply saddened by the tragic news of Jo Cox Labour MP's senseless horrific murder in her constituency in Birstal the North of England yesterday. My thoughts go out to her family and friends at this difficult time.
It appears to have been a right-wing politically fuelled hate attack, the alleged killer named as a local man named Thomas Mair, 53 is said to have shouted Britain First, a reference to a far right fascist paramilitary organisation of that name as he launched his attack. Piece by piece, a picture is emerging of a quiet, troubled man with a history of connections to far-right groups.Mair did have far-right affiliations, so this horrific attack can legitimately be called an act of terror, driven by an ideology of hate that grows from the fertile swamps of white supremacy and xenophobia, such as Nigel Farage’s new “breaking point” advert against the EU and refugees.
In my opinion we have far more to fear from nationalists than from immigrants. The latter often simply want a better life while the former tend towards reactionary xenophobia authoritarian thought and blaming others for their own failings.Their brains are almost devoid of empathy circuits and lack the capacity to feel genuine compassion. They therefore find it easy to dehumanize the "other" and treat their fellow human beings little different than used furniture. They place a high value on authoritarianism and care very little for fairness. At its very core, authoritarianism is a denial of the Golden Rule. They believe that any compromise represents complete capitulation. Their minds are sick having been poisoned by a steady diet of hate. Instead of making a better argument to counter yours, they try to silence you. in this tragic case sadly.forever.
Killing the messenger won't silence what she stood for, I am hoping that if anything, Jo's death would not have been in vain. She was a committed Bremainer and activist and on all accounts she was a wonderful, compassionate lady, mother of two , pro-equality MP who had made several superb speeches in Parliament, brilliant on immigration migrant issues. A rare kind of MP in days like these.. Her murder could well be a game changer for undecideds and those already considering Brexit. 
Cox, 41, was raised in Heckmondwike, West Yorkshire. Her mother Jean was a school secretary and her father Gordon worked in a toothpaste and hairspray factory in Leeds, the Yorkshire Post reported.
A mother of two, she was married to Brendan Cox, an activist and campaigner who was formerly a senior executive at Save the Children and was the adviser on international development to Gordon Brown when he served as prime minister. Jo Cox had studied at  Cambridge University before becoming head of global policy for the international aid organization Oxfam. She was the first in her family to graduate from university.Jo was co-chair of the Friends of Syria All Party Parliamentary Group and an active member of parliamentary groups working on issues involving Pakistan, Kashmir and Yorkshire’s regional economy. She was working toward trying to find a solution to Syria’s years-long civil war. Frequently speaking out about issues that concerned her like Palestine.
In a statement on Thursday following her death her husband said: "Jo believed in a better world and she fought for it every day of her life with an energy, and a zest for life that would exhaust most people.She would have wanted two things above all else to happen now, one that our precious children are bathed in love and two, that we all unite to fight against the hatred that killed her. Hate doesn't have a creed, race or religion, it is poisonous."
Could the news this week get any sadder. From the numbed people of Orlando to the numbed people of Britain, we must continue to send our love, our support, our compassion and our solidarity in our grief and determination to overcome fear, ignorance and hate. It is also worth noting that mental illness seldom functions as a reason in and of itself, especially if the label is applied so selectively. Lessons need to be drawn from what is happening.
The dark  forces of isolation, fear, false bravado, and, above all, just plain cowardice must nor be allowed to win.
Rest in Peace Jo Cox.

In the clearness

The night was black as a raven's wing,
The sky felt tragic and undone,
Slicing through the power of reason,
The world  seemed split in two,
Like a heart when the love affair has ended
Too much darkness and hatred
Time now to turn untangle,
Find in contemplation,
The edges of the world,
where loves spirit never fades.

A point of focus to remind us,
To join  together as one in hope,
Clinging on, taking time.
Booking further reservations,
To look, seek and find,
Destroy the bad, the good to make,
To recount yesterday,
Extinquish desolation,
Igniting desire and emotion.

Peace comes quietly
But surge in spirit is clearly felt,
Carried on the healing balm of day
Delivering the bright bliss,
Of tomorrow's resurrection,
Fold up your calendars,
They will not be needed,
When our dreams become the future,
Walking beside us - unafraid..

Solidarity with Orlando

ISIS is above all a mentality, a result of an international system of fascism. Of course ISIS’s mentality is against a certain way of life – the explicit targeting of an LGBT venue by an individual inspired by their twisted ideology is illustrative of bigoted hate and fascism,. We must not be afraid to call out on its roots, when every day people are murdered as a result of this.
No false flags here, this was a deliberate attack on LGBT people in an LGBT venue. It was a homophobic terrorist attack. Omar Mateen  hated queer people and deliberately picked a club because it was full of people he regarded as deviants and committed a mass shooting. He was just another typical right-wing, homophobic, religious nut, sharing the same DNA with most of the Trump voter base. ISIS and Trump are two expressions of the same violent hate; this country, the United States, made this killer. It has been making killers like him since the Mayflower. The worst mass shooting in US history, if we can conveniently forget countless massacres perpetrated against First Nations peoples like the US Calvary’s massacre of 150 Lakota at the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota in 1890.

Omar Mateen is not a foreign threat. Omar Mateen is America. Yet again, an astonishing act of violence that has us wondering what has become of this society, and why it tolerates such easy access to firearms, this shooting exposes so many of America's faultlines :- http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/commentisfree/2016/jun/12/orlando-shooting-reaction-us-gun-laws-islam-homophobia?CMP=share_btn_tw
When people are considered deviants and deserving of a murderous assault for their sexuality, a trait all of us in the community share, we cannot but come together in sadness and in mourning.Stand in solidarity with the LGBT community who struggles for existence on an everyday basis, solidarity with unjustly targeted Muslims, solidarity with the brave heroes, especially women, who fight against ISIS fascism in the Middle East and remember that in the Muslim world, the Rojava Revolution shines out as a beacon of hope against its own local version of that bigotry - ISIS. The armed forces of that Revolution - the People's Protection Units or YPG, have of course issued their own heartfelt statement in solidarity with the dead, wounded and mourning of Orlando.

We must resist those that seek to use this slaughter to demonise and and scapegoat the muslim community, most of them deplore terrorism as everyone else. We must always stand up to hate. Whatever its motivations. Informed by values of reason and empathy, love and kindness,we can stand up to hate and bigotry. No matter how bigoted a person is we will continue to survive, we will continue to resist, we will continue to live. Together in global solidarity we shall not live in fear. A time for us to unite and stand firm against homophobia, racism and Islamophobia.

" There is no simple monoliths solution to racism, to sexism, to homophobia. There is only the conscious focusing within each of my days, to move against them, wherever I come up against these particular manifestations of the same disease." 

 - Audre Lorde