Dr. Randall spent decades teaching young scholars, with a special interest in human needs and nonviolence, at the School of International Service at the American University. In addition to the international internship awards, Dr. Abdul Aziz Said, Vice President of Nonviolence International is proud to announce the availability of research funding for graduate students who are either attending or are alumni of the American University and are interested in researching nonviolence around the world.

For more information and applications for these programs:

Randall Global Internships

Randall Research on Nonviolence Funding

Video footage:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UinZSdV6oRI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=r1vlVZZ3Yjs

Washington DC – Today as the National Rifle Association held its first press conference since the tragic shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, two activists with the peace group CODEPINK stood up and unfurled banners that read “NRA KILLING OUR KIDS” and “NRA BLOOD ON YOUR HANDS”. The activists, Medea Benjamin and Tighe Barry, were held, questioned, and then released.

“It’s time for our government to finally stand up to the NRA. It’s time for them to protect our children, not their guns,” says CODEPINK co-director Medea Benjamin. “The NRA spokesperson was talking about ‘reckless behavior’ of the media and I stood up and said, ‘We need to stop the reckless behavior of the NRA, ban assault weapons, and have less guns on our streets, not more!’”

“From the wars the American government is perpetuating abroad, especially with killer drone strikes, to the glorification of murder in our pop culture, it’s no surprise that violence is prevalent in our society,” said CODEPINK co-director Rae Abileah. “We need a comprehensive plan to address weapons in our communities and it starts with holding the NRA accountable.”

“The NRA is out of touch, and showed a lack of remorse today. By advocating for armed guards, they want to put more guns in our schools, rather than protect our children,” Tighe Barry went on to say. “The NRA uses Washington as a way to bypass the wishes of the American public. We need to end the violence now.”

Earlier this week, CODEPINK visited the office of Senator Reid and told him it’s time to take a stand for gun control and stand up to the NRA.

CODEPINK is a women-initiated grassroots peace and social justice movement working to end U.S. funded wars and occupations, to challenge militarism globally, and to redirect our resources into health care, education, green jobs and other life-affirming activities.

Among the dozens of Facebook groups spawned by the Syrian uprising, a page supporting women’s rights has suddenly received a wave of attention, because of an image posted there by one of its followers. The picture was of 21-year-old Dana Bakdounis, without the veil she had grown up wearing – and it polarised opinion.

Text taken from BBC’s coverage of the statement, read more here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-20315531

Nonviolence International is United States fiscal sponsor for the Gaza’s Ark Project. The projects mission statement is to “build a boat in Gaza using existing resources. A crew of internationals and Palestinians will sail it out of Gaza, the only Mediterranean port closed to shipping, carrying Palestinian products to fulfill trade deals with international buyers, to challenge the illegal and inhuman Israeli blockade.”

Recent happenings

Recently the Gaza’s Ark project has announced news that Former Canadian MP (Member of Parliament 1980-88) and retired United Church Minister Jim Manly will join a crew of prominent internationals on the Freedom Flotilla’s “Estelle” sailing from Naples to Gaza to peacefully challenge the illegal and inhumane Israeli blockade of Gaza.”

Further Details about Gaza’s Ark can be found on their website through their website http://www.gazaark.org/ Donations to the Gaza’s Ark project can be contributed also through their website at this page. http://www.gazaark.org/donate/

Muslim Social Scientists of North America  (AMSS)

Religious Dimensions of Democratization

Processes in Muslim-Majority Nations Yale University, New Haven, CT Saturday, September 29, 2012

The Arab Spring

Mubarak Awad

Spark of the Arab Spring

The Arab spring was triggered in Tunisia when Mohamed Bouazizi set himself on fire after claiming he was slapped by policewoman Fedia Hamdi. This spark in the Arab World has created a great divide in cultural tradition and rigid tribal mentalities. Feelings that governments intimidated its citizens have degraded Arabs and Moslems alike and have caused unrest in the streets. Mismanagement of funds and economic stratification has created resentment and a feeling of hopelessness for a better future. Youth graduating from college cannot find jobs. They have begun realizing that their four years of college is a waste of time. Military personnel are getting into big business while college graduates have no jobs.

Condition of Arab states

Arab states have lost their vision of unity for the future. Each state has its own agenda and the resource of the land becomes family owned resources which results in a few wealthy families while their countrymen struggle. The authoritarian states, corruption, human rights abuses and violations, inflation, sectarianism, unemployment, and the influence of religion in politics have created unfavorable conditions for the citizens. Additionally, leaders are often willing to ignore the constitution or change them to put their children in positions of power without any consideration of the will or the vote of the people. These factors have resulted in public frustration, lack respect for government, lack of democracy and corruption. In some areas there has been a push to enforce Sharia Law with lack of regard to women’s rights. There has been an increase in the prominence of Islamic fanatics that hide behind religion in order to pursue their own narrow will on others in the name of Islam.

Promises of Nonviolent Action

The people in the streets have no military training or weaponry. Nonviolent resistance Methods can give them power, especially in numbers against the state regimes. Citizens can make civil resistance a part of their strategy. Techniques include mass defection from government jobs or the army, and massive demonstrations which refuse to disperse for many days. Citizens have the ability to communicate with each other faster than the government through the internet and cell phones. The people need to create an atmosphere which makes it clear that we are not happy; we need change and we will not leave. We are even willing to die for our freedom. The Arab Spring is not a conflict between nations. It is a conflict between the people and their own government. The Arab Spring took the regime by surprise. Governments have chosen to use the army against civilians rather than negotiating with their own people, resulting in unnecessary loss of life.

International action

It is unfortunate that the international community has chosen to take military action. This decision has resulted in Arabs start killing Arabs and Moslem killing Moslems. Many have accepted the roll that the UN can play in the Arab world. This is a missed opportunity for spiritual Moslems leaders from different regions and countries to form a peace team to help the Arab region before the intervention of outside forces from Europe and the United States. The UN, NATO and the United States do not think in a timely manner and give enough time for the tribes to resolve conflict using the culture, local tradition and religious tolerance. They quickly jump to use force and end the conflict immediately. But this does not address the issues roots and so the conflict will continue for many years because of the causality on all sides. Unfortunately this has happened time and time again in Islamic and Arab countries.

The state of protest 

Today Syria is experiencing a full-scale civil protest between the government and opposition forces. Civil uprisings continue against the government of Bahrain despite government changes. The countries of Kuwait, Lebanon and Oman have begun implementing government changes in response to protests. In Morocco and Jordan, constitutional reforms have been implemented in response to civilian pressure. Protests are ongoing in Saudi Arabia, Sudan and Mauritania among other countries.

Effect of the Arab Spring

The Arab Spring is young. Its effect will begin to show 10 years from now. It is a light, a warning. An inspiration for new generations to find themselves free from their parent’s mentality of accepting corruption and living free, accepting each other as human being without consideration for sex, religion or race.

 It took me two hours to not get there.  I was a bit ambitious in thinking I could figure out the DC bus system and not experience mishaps. Fate, combined with two missed buses, rush hour traffic and a faulty GPS system on my phone kept me from my destination. These two hours of chaos led to exchanges with a number of people about the woes of DC transit, the unbearable heat of August in the mid-Atlantic region, and most importantly, Rachel Corrie.

I ended up sharing her story with three people: a friend, a sister, and a very benevolent stranger, none of whom had ever heard of her before. I felt a part of a much larger human community as I saw the shock and sadness on the faces of those learning of Rachel’s fate for the first time.  I am somewhat desensitized to the tragedy of the Israeli occupation but was struck by their incredulous responses to this injustice. With three people that day, I grieved the lack of justice for Rachel and Palestine. I didn’t realize the beauty of accidental activism then, but today I thank the D.C. Metrobus system and the GPS that betrayed me for allowing me these very special exchanges.

For those who are interested in learning more about Rachel’s death and trial, visit Foreign Policy in Focus to read Stephen Zunes’ article at http://www.fpif.org/articles/us_shares_responsibility_for_rachel_corries_death

On March 29^th and 30^th, American University hosted a symposium on nonviolent movements in the Arab Spring. The event was sponsored by the International Peace and Conflict Resolution department, the Center for Peacebuilding and Development, the Mohammad Said Farsi Chair of Islamic Peace, the International Center on Nonviolent Conflict and Nonviolence International. The two-day conference featured various activists, professors, journalists, politicians, and private organization officials from the Middle East and Washington, DC.

The goal of the conference was to create a space to discuss the efforts of nonviolence in the Arab Spring throughout the last year, in particular paying attention to marginalized groups, and determine how nonviolence could be applied in the future within the region to promote peace, growth and stability. The discussions were divided into panels focusing on particular issues or regions.

On Thursday, March 29^th the panelists discussed nonviolent movements in Egypt, Tunisia and Yemen, the struggles of nonviolent resistance in Syria and Libya, and the role of nonviolence in nations experiencing a governmental transition, particularly Egypt, Yemen and Jordan.  Some of the significant questions raised during the first day of the conference included the ability of nonviolent movements to remain nonviolent in the face of violence and the role of the access of information on nonviolent strategies.

The keynote speaker of the conference was Jawdat Said, a Syrian scholar and nonviolent activist. Mr. Said emphasized the traditions of nonviolence within the Quran and stated that justice and equality sustain the rule of law and is applicable to all people, not just Muslims. His speech utilized examples from religious texts, history and philosophy to support his advocacy of nonviolence.

On the second day, March 30^th, the panels focused more specifically on marginalized groups, such as women, ethnic minorities and religious minorities, and looked at the Kurdish Regional Government in Iraq as a case study. Important questions addressed in these panels included the role of the international community in the Arab Spring, when and how minorities should join the nonviolent protests and the difficulties in comparing various Middle Eastern countries and their national revolutions. The day concluded with a wrap-up panel that examined the general conclusions of the conference and discussed the future of nonviolent movements in Middle Eastern countries still undergoing revolution or experiencing transition.

activism and local, on the ground activism to prevent a violent action against Iran.

Join the Cause!

You can sign the Iran Pledge of Resistance by clicking here.

Watch video clip describing the project here.