[Bloquez l'empire!] Getting involved with Solidarity Across Borders: Upcoming activities and campaigns; Committees and projects (please read)

[No One is Illegal Montreal]

---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Mon, 2 Jan 2006 04:15:56 -0800 (PST)
From: sans frontieres! <sansfrontieres at resist.ca>

If you receiving this e-mail, you're part of the Solidarity Across Borders 
network. This e-mail provides an update about the current organizing 
activities of Solidarity Across Borders, and how to get involved. Take the 
time to read and, if you can, to get involved.

This e-mail contains info about: 1) Important General Assembly; 2) Vote 
Out Coderre; 3) Delegation to Volpe in Toronto; 4) Committees and 
Projects: a) Action, b) Outreach, c) Support Work, d) Suivi, e) Womens, f) 
Indigenous Liaison, g) People's Commission against Security Certificates, 
h) Newspaper, i) Other Campaigns; 5) Media List; 6) Web Page; 7) Staying 
in touch.

Background info to Solidarity Across Borders, including our demands, is 
available at http://www.solidarityacrossborders.org


::: 1) IMPORTANT GENERAL ASSEMBLY :::

PLEASE NOTE: The next GENERAL ASSEMBLY of Solidarity Across Borders will 
be SATURDAY, January 21 at 1pm. This assembly will be dedicated to 
deciding an action plan for 2006, based on suggestions by the Action 
Committee.

The assembly will take place at QPIRG-Concordia (1500 de Maisonneuve West, 
#204, metro Guy-Concordia). There will be kids activities on-site, as well 
as translation into English, French, Spanish, Arabic, Urdu and Farsi. 
QPIRG-Concordia is wheelchair accessible.

The agenda of the assembly will be planned jointly by the Action Committee 
and the Suivi Committee. The date of this meeting will be posted on the 
SAB list.

Please note that for formal votes, a member of SAB is someone who agrees 
with the main demands of SAB and: is active in a SAB committee or project; 
or is a directly-affected migrant who has attended at least one assembly 
before.


::: 2) VOTE OUT CODERRE :::

Solidarity Across Borders has endorsed the Vote Out Coderre Campaign, 
initiated by the Justice for Adil Charkaoui Coalition, and endorsed by 
several Montreal-area groups, including Haiti Action Montreal and the 
Ligue des Noirs.

Denis Coderre is a Montreal-area Liberal Member of Parliament for the 
north Montreal riding of Bourassa. As Immigration Minister, Coderre as 
responsible for the regressive Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, 
which resulted in single judges deciding refugee claims, instead of two 
judges (which halved the chances of refugee protection). Moreover, no 
Refugee Appeals Division was ever implemented at the Immigration and 
Refugee Board, despite Coderre's promises. It was Coderre who lifted the 
moratorium on deportations to Algeria, and it was at Coderre's Ottawa 
office that several non-status Algerians were tasered by police in May 
2003. As Minister, Coderre also signed the security certificate against 
Adil Charkaoui and 3 others, meaning detention without trial, and the use 
of secret evidence.

There will be various activities as part of the Vote Out Coderre effort, 
including a postering and information campaign, and a press conference.

To help out with the Vote Out Coderre campaign, please contact Tatiana at 
tatiana at resist.ca or phone 514-859-9023.


::: 3) PICKET VOLPE IN TORONTO :::

Members of Solidarity Across Borders marched for one-week to Ottawa from 
Montreal to support our demands, but we were ignored by current 
Immigration Minister Joe Volpe. This January, we're getting on the 401 and 
making the six hours to drive to Toronto, to confront Volpe on his own 
turf, and to re-iterate our demand for a full and inclusive regularization 
program for all non-status people in Canada, as well as end to 
deportations and detentions, and the abolition of security certificates.

In Toronto, we will be joined by allies with No One Is Illegal-Toronto and 
the Campaign to Stop the Secret Trials. We will picketing together on 
Saturday, January 14 in Toronto.

If you have a car that you can drive, or lend, for the caravan to Toronto 
on January 14, please contact sansfrontieres at resist.ca or 514-848-7583.

If you would like to participate in the picket against Volpe in Toronto 
and need a ride, contact sansfrontieres at resist.ca or phone 514-848-7583.


::: 4) COMMITTEES AND PROJECTS :::

There are several committees and projects that SAB members are actively 
involved with. The work of the committees is the heart of SAB organizing.

a) ACTION COMMITTEE

The Action Committee has the mandate to organize protests, pickets, 
actions, delegations, and more, to publicize our demand for a full and 
inclusive regularization program for all non-status people. We aim to 
directly target the decision-makers in support of our demands.

The next General Assembly on January 21 will determine the action plan for 
2006, which will be actualized by the Action Committee.

To get involved with the Action Committee (we need members!) please 
contact sansfrontieres at resist.ca or phone 514-859-9023.


b) OUTREACH COMMITTEE

The Outreach Committee has the mandate to make links with local groups and 
individuals active on the issue of immigrant and refugee rights, as well 
as to promote the existence of SAB. Moreover, the Outreach Committee 
organizes monthly dinners and socials so that the SAB network can meet and 
socialize together, in an informal setting.

To get involved with the Outreach Committee, please contact 
sansfrontieres at resist.ca or phone 514-859-9023.


c) SUPPORT WORK COMMITTEE

The Support Work committee focuses on supporting migrants in the SAB 
network who are facing deportation, detention or otherwise confronting the 
immigration and refugee system. We work alongside directly-affected 
migrants and their friends and family, aiding in the various tasks 
necessary in offering allied support, within the constraints of our 
limited resources and time. The Support Work Committee's work takes place 
within the framework of an active SAB campaign around our demands for 
regularization, and against deportations, detentions and security 
certificates.

If you would like to be part of the Support Work Committee, please contact 
sansfrontieres at resist.ca or phone 514-859-9023.


d) SUIVI COMMITTEE

The role of the "Suivi" (Follow-up) Committee is to prepare and mobilize 
for general assemblies and SAB events. The Suivi Committee also checks 
email and phones messages, keeps contact lists updated, responds to 
various day-to-day requests (media, requests for more information, etc.), 
helps out the different SAB committees and makes sure all planned actions 
and events are going ahead smoothly. The Suivi Committee also takes care 
of SAB finances and acts as a decision-making body between general 
assemblies.  Its meetings are open to all SAB members. The Suivi Committee 
welcomes new members to become involved, even if only for a couple hours a 
week!

To get involved with the Suivi Committee, please contact 
sansfrontieres at resist.ca or phone 514-859-9023.


e) WOMEN'S COMMITTEE

The Women's Committee -- comprised of SAB members who identify as men or 
women -- is focused on outreach to women migrants, and the particular 
challenges organizing with women refugees. Women's committee members are 
also active within the Outreach and Support Committees. Another mandate of 
the Women's Committee is to educate and raise awareness within SAB about 
patriarchy and sexism.

To get involved with the Women's Committee, please contact 
sansfrontieres at resist.ca or phone 514-859-9023.


f) INDIGENOUS LIAISON

Solidarity Across Borders is attempting to develop our analysis around 
indigenous sovereignty issues, and reinforce our direct links with members 
of indigenous communities. Currently, SAB has committed to offering basic 
courtroom support to native activists facing criminalization in 
Kanehsatake.

To get involved with Indigenous Liaison efforts, please contact 
sansfrontieres at resist.ca or phone 514-859-9023.


g) PEOPLE'S COMMISSION

Solidarity Across Borders is supporting the Justice Coalition for Adil 
Charkaoui in endorsing and organizing a People's Commission of Inquiry 
into Security Certificates. Part of the work of the commission will be to 
investigate and report on the actions of Canadian officials and Canadian 
government bodies in relation to security certificates, including: 
equality of treatment of non-citizens; the security certificate review 
process; detention; and deportation and torture.

The organizers of the commission needs lots of help. To get involved, 
contact Poya (poya at resist.ca) and Mary (mfoster at web.ca) or phone 
514-859-9023.


h) NEWSPAPER

Solidarity Across Borders will be producing a newspaper (our third!), 
focused on the theme of immigration and work. The newspaper will be 
published in spring 2006.

If you would like to help with layout, design or distribution of the 
newspaper, please contact jaggisingh2003 at yahoo.ca or 514-848-7583.


i) OTHER CAMPAIGNS

Solidarity Across Borders also supports the campaigns of member groups. 
For example the Immigrant Workers Center is organizing a campaign around 
the CSST (Commission de la santé et de la securité du travail) to make 
sure their premiums cover domestic workers. Domestic workers are the only 
salaried workers in Quebec who are obliged to self-insure.

Member groups of SAB are encouraged to contact the suivi committee, so 
that campaigns can be discussed, and endorsed, at SAB general assemblies. 
The suivi committee can be reached at: 514-859-9023 or 
sansfrontieres at resist.ca


::: 5) MEDIA LIST :::

If you are interested in receiving or sharing news articles of interest to 
Solidarity Across Borders, you are encouraged to join our new media list. 
You can join the list by visiting: 
https://lists.resist.ca/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/sab-media


::: 6) WEBPAGE :::

Our webpage is maintained by Pat L and Pat C. If you would like to help 
them with the webpage, don't hesitate to get in touch: 
griffon81 at hotmail.com and zapat at resist.ca


::: 7) STAYING IN TOUCH :::

If you've read this far, and you have e-mail, you're probably staying in 
touch via our news and announcements list (a low-volume list).

If you know anyone who wants to stay informed about the SAB network by 
e-mail, encourage them to join our list by visiting: 
https://lists.resist.ca/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/sansfrontieres

Most active people in the SAB network stay in touch by phone, by receiving 
occasional calls from members of the suivi committee about our assemblies, 
dinners, actions, pickets, delegations and more.

To get on the phone list, e-mail your number to sansfrontieres at resist.ca 
or phone 514-859-9023.

If you know anyone who would like to stay informed about the organizing of 
Solidarity Across Borders, tell them to get in touch!

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http://www.solidarityacrossborders.org
514-859-9023 -- sansfrontieres at resist.ca