July 4th: March on the Constitution Center
Led by a group of children with a banner reading "Home of the
unemployed, land of the uninsured," KWRU members and supporters
marched to the gates of the Constitution Center to demand their
economic human rights. They carried the mattresses they had
slept on for four days at Bushville, all painted with the hard facts
of poverty in America.
In an attempt to destabilize the protest, police targeted KWRU
leaders Cheri Honkala and Galen Tyler for arrest. Sources indicate
that Cheri Honkala may be charged with assault, in spite
of the fact that she was holding up a mattress with both hands.
Police placed barriers around the perimeter of the Center and
tried to push the KWRU off of the sidewalk. Although officers pushed
and struck a number of people, demonstrators remained organized
and nonviolent.
Click
here to read a press release from the event.
July 3rd:
Today the KWRU held an educational on the effects of NAFTA and the
devastating prospect of the upcoming Free
Trade Agreement of the Americas. Organizers from around
the nation and abroad met with KWRU leadership; both representatives
from Salvadoran poor people's movement and a group of local residents
fighting to keep their homes of decades in the face of the Neighborhhod
Transformation Initiative visited Bushville, and Willie Baptist
led an organizer training session for a delegation of five homeless
people from Poor People United from Rochester, who are staying
at the site..
July 2nd:
Human rights moniters accompanied a food distribution team
today, providing food for Bushville's neighbors and documenting
violations to their economic human rights. Moniters identified problems
of lead poisoning, infested and abandoned homes, leaking rooves,
and standing water, among other violations. Voter registration,
teach-ins, and children's activities were held throughout the day.
Click here to download a human rights
violation documentation form specifically tailored to address
violations of the right to healthcare.
July 1st:
Construction--KWRU members and supporters have succesfully
erected "Bushville," clearing tall weeds and trash from an abandoned
lot in North Philadelphia. Participants documented violations of
the right to healthcare, set up several tents and prepared for nightfall.
Jackson Browne / Steve Earle Benefit--After the concert
at the Mann Center, KWRU director Cheri Honkala was introduced by
Steve Earle as "one of [his] heroes." Jackson also called Cheri
"a brilliant organizer." Click
here to see a transcipt of the event. In her speech, Cheri
emphasized the role that musicians can play in the movement. She
inviting artists to participate in the Poor People's March for Economic
Human Rights in August. Anyone interested should e-mail kwru@kwru.org.
