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unplug magazine asks you to unplug from your current modes of thought and look at life in a new way, whether this means unplugging from our toxic consumer culture, mainstream society, the tv, or a limiting mindset. author megan prusynski explores life's alternatives and discusses activism, progressive thinking, and moving towards a "green" & sustainable life.

Monday, March 24, 2008

Tibet Needs Our Support

I have been following the recent events in Tibet, growing increasingly worried as China cracks down on what began as peaceful protests started by monks to commemorate the anniversary of China's takeover of Tibet (and the Dalai Lama's subsequent exile) in 1959. I have posted on Tibet and the Dalai Lama before, and it's an issue dear to my heart. The protests in Tibet have turned into violent riots, with the Chinese using their full might against Tibetans who want their freedom.

With the coming 2008 Summer Olympics, the communist Chinese government wants to silence the Tibetan uprising in their usual fashion - with brutality, brainwashing, and violence. China has long been involved in human rights violations and cultural genocide in Tibet, and now the people of Tibet are crying out for their voices to be heard. They need the world to know what is going on there, but China is trying to silence them. Foreigners and journalists have been kicked out of Tibet, so eyewitness reports are hard to come by. The Dalai Lama continues to urge non-violence on both sides, even threatening to resign as leader of Tibet in exile if violence continues. His position is one of compromise with China, autonomy for Tibet but not complete independence. And yet China accuses him of "masterminding" this violent uprising.

How can we help? The most important thing we can do is learn about the situation in Tibet and urge China to negotiate with the Dalai Lama and Tibet instead of silencing them with violence. What follows is a list of articles for more information, organizations you can support to help Tibet and Tibetans, and petitions to the Chinese government.

Beijing Wide Open: the blog of a Tibetan activist living in Beijing. Lots of great information and updated coverage of the events in Lhasa and elsewhere.

Stand With Tibet: a petition to the Chinese President calling for restraint and respect for human rights, from Avaaz.org. Sign to help them reach one million signatures!

International Campaign for Tibet: this organization works with Tibetans inside and outside of Tibet, bringing coverage of the situation and offering many ways to get involved in the movement. One of their campaigns is Race for Tibet, protesting holding the olympics in China. They are holding a series of events in San Francisco, April 7-9, when the Olympic Torch passes through.

Alternet has a collection of stories about Tibet and the current events there.

So, stay informed, get involved, and help the voice of Tibetans be heard. I am hoping for the best possible outcome and an end to the violence. China is hardly deserving of the Olympic Games if they fail to uphold basic human rights, so time is certainly of the essence.

Labels: human rights, peace, politics

Sunday, May 06, 2007

Inspiration from The Dalai Lama

His Holiness the Dalai Lama is a very important source of inspiration to me. I have read a couple of his books and I have a calendar of some of his teachings sitting on my desk. I definitely like the way he thinks and he never fails to give me food for thought. Some of my favorite quotes:

"The essential feature of true compassion is that it is universal and not discriminatory."

"In every part of the world, there are people who really speak about human rights, adn speak about the right of self-determination, and rights of animals. All of these are, I think, signs of positive change."

"Universal humanitarianism is essential to solve global problems."

"It does not matter whether you are a theist or an atheist, what matters is sincerity, forgiveness, and compassion."

"People who call themselves religious without basic human values like compassion; they are not really religious people."

The Dalai Lama is a very intelligent, compassionate, and happy person with a lot to share with the world. If you're ever seen the movie Kundun, which depicts his early life and his daring escape from Tibet when China occupied it, then you know about some of what this remarkable man has had to go through. Tibet has been taken over by China as the traditions, religious identities, and natural landscape of the Tibetan people are slowly being crushed. The Dalai Lama, as leader of the Tibetan people (even though he currently lives in exile), has never raised a fist towards China throughout their hostile takeover of his home. He is an example of leading with nonviolence, understanding, compromise, and peace.

His Holiness was awarded a Nobel Peace Prize in 1989 for his demonstration of peaceful leadership and his devotion to compassion and teaching. He was also recently awarded a Congressional Gold Medal from the US House of Representatives. I certainly think world leaders have a lot to learn from this humble Buddhist monk. and everyone can certainly learn from his ideas and his life.

Two organizations I currently support are The International Campaign for Tibet and Free Tibet Campaign. These and many other advocacy groups are trying to stand up with the Dalai Lama for the people of Tibet, and ask China to end the atrocious human rights violations and brutal occupation of this peaceful country. One campaign of particular note is Race for Tibet, an effort of the ICT to force China to own up to the tragic occupation of Tibet befor the upcoming 2008 Olympics in Beijing.

You can sign a petition to the International Olympic Committee on the Race for Tibet site, which reads in part:

In light of the IOC's Olympic Truce commitment "to create a window of opportunities for dialogue, reconciliation and the resolution of conflicts...and to encourage political leaders to act in favour of peace" (www.olympic.org), it is clear that the IOC ideals and values are very applicable for Tibet as we approach the 2008 Games. The IOC has long contended that awarding Beijing the 2008 Games will improve human rights in China, but as time passes, these assurances have not turned into concrete results.

The IOC should not let the Olympics be used by China to blatantly or insidiously try to legitimize their rule in Tibet or to promote a distorted view of the conditions there. Yet with China's selection of the Tibetan antelope (or chiru) as an Olympic mascot, we are already seeing the first results of a Chinese strategy to misuse Tibet in relation to the 2008 Olympics.

I hope someday to see the Dalai Lama speak and to visit his beautiful home country of Tibet, but I hope that I can visit a FREE Tibet, after the Dalai Lama reclaims his leadership in a sovereign country and the bloodshed and hardship China has inflicted can begin to heal. Until then, I'll keep speaking up for Tibet and learning from what the Dalai Lama has to say.

Labels: activism, peace, politics

Wednesday, March 28, 2007

Recent Sources of Inspiration...

I am getting ready to leave for a vacation to Spain (of course I offset the carbon emissions of my flights!) but I had to take a break from packing and finishing up projects to share two recommended sources of inspiration I have encountered recently.

The first is a film: The U.S. vs. John Lennon. It's about John Lennon (obviously) and Yoko Ono and their revolutionary art and music. Being a huge fan of the Beatles, I was surprised at how little I knew about John Lennon's political views and post-Beatles music. Let's just say he is my new hero! He was a self-described "Peacenik" and used art and music to open minds, reach out to others, and shed light on important issues. This film has renewed my belief that art can truly change the world. Of course, the end is sad, since such a wonderful, revolutionary, creative, and inspirational person was murdered and thus silenced (wait, you all knew John Lennon was dead, right?). But overall the film is uplifting and inspiring - and sheds some light on the 60's and 70's era of radical politics and music, but not enough change...

The second inspirational item is the book Diet for a New America: How Your Food Choices Affect Your Health, Happiness and the Future of Life on Earth by John Robbins, which I have been reading for months and just finished. This book is not new by any means, it was written in 1987, and I must admit that I wish I had read it years ago. This book is revolutionary. Robbins examines the typical American diet (namely an obsession with meat, eggs, and dairy products that pads the pockets of the industries that produce them while robbing everyone and everything else). Diet for a New America is very well-researched and based on solid science, all presented in digestible language. Basically, the point of the book is that our country's meat-centered diet is the hidden cause of many of today's biggest maladies: world hunger, overuse of water, the destruction of the world's forests, our deadliest diseases (including heart disease, many forms of cancer, diabetes, obesity, and many more), our reliance on foreign oil, pollution, soil erosion, depleting resources, unmeasurable animal suffering, and even a dwindling economy. After examining every possible effect of our meat-centered diet and especially the post-WWII industrialization of farming, Robbins ends on a positive note. There is a solution that will in time reverse many of the diseases we are afflicted with, make our lives more sustainable, boost our economy, and ensure clean food, water, air, and land for future generations: a shift in the American diet-style towards a plant-based diet. Even reducing our reliance on meat for food by 10% can have an enormous impact. Not that I really needed any more convincing to be vegan, but this book is life-altering and very enlightening (although I must admit parts of it were hard to get through and often left me in tears - yes, the truth is harsh).

I will end this post with a quote from Chief Seattle, which appears at the end of Diet for a New America and is one of my absolute favorite quotes:

The earth does not belong to man:
Man belongs to the earth.
This we know:
All things are connected
Like the blood which unites one family.
All things are connected.
Whatever befalls the earth
Befalls the sons of the earth.
Man did not weave the web of live.
He is merely a strand in it.
Whatever he does to the web,
He does to himself.

Labels: animal rights, art/culture, environment/sustainability, lifestyle, peace

Monday, March 19, 2007

4 Years and Counting...

The four year anniversary of US Involvement in Iraq has recently come and gone. It's hard to believe this conflict has been going on for over four years now, and sadly, the bodies keep stacking up. As of the time of posting, 3,218 US Soldiers have been killed in Iraq, as well as tens of thousands of Iraqi civilians. My heart goes out to the families shattered by this conflict, and I hope for an end very soon. I really don't want to see a fifth anniversary!

Pictured is my design for the Palouse Peace Coalition's peace rally commemorating 4 years in Iraq. I designed the graphic for last year's third anniversary rally, and updated it for yet another year. Since not much has changed in Iraq other than more bloodshed, the poster still rings true: "Too Many Lives, Too Many Tears, Too Many Lies, Too Many Years."

I participated in the PPC's peace rally this year and despite it being such a sad anniversary, the march was a lot of fun and very light-hearted. We marched from downtown Moscow down the highway to the mall and back, accompanied by live music from the "Peace Band" and lots of props. One man wore a Bush mask and pulled a barrel of "oil" with a sign reading "Mission Accomplished" in a wagon. He was certainly my favorite marcher that day! Others carried a wooden coffin honoring all those who have died in the conflict (my boyfriend even took a turn carrying it). There were lots of peace signs, American flags, and people in black funeral clothes. Several people led the march with a large dove, and we got a lot of responses (thankfully mostly positive, but there were a few mean-spirited war mongers too) from people driving by on the highway. I came up with a catchy new slogan to yell at people driving huge trucks and SUVs: "Burn Bio-fuels, Not Bodies!"

It was a beautiful day for a peace march! You can see the rest of my pictures in this photo set on flickr. Let's hope there is no need for an Iraq protest march next year...

Labels: activism, news/current events, peace, politics