ISSUE #3 CONTENTS:
- HAMSA Updates a 1958 Bus Boycott Comic Book
- Jailed Blogger Writes; Leaders Appeal for His Release
- Young Jordanian Mobilizes to Stop “Honor Killings"
- Breaking Alert: Essay Contest Judge Faces Jail
- QUIZ: What do you know about the Bus Boycott?
- Become a Partner in CRIME
SPOTLIGHT CASES:
Reviving the Bus Boycott: HAMSA Updates a 1958 Comic Book
In 1955, a civil rights campaign suddenly emerged in Montgomery, Alabama. While African-Americans were denied many rights under segregation laws, this campaign addressed a simple problem: because of the color of their skin, blacks had to sit in the back of city buses.
One day, a woman named Rosa Parks sat down at the front of a bus and refused to move. She was arrested. A group of citizens decided not to sit by silently. Led by a young new preacher in town named Martin Luther King, they boycotted city buses.
What happened next is told with vivid detail in a 1958 comic book called “The Montgomery Story.” The 16-page full-color comic inspired young activists in the South to organize their own civil rights campaigns, including sit-ins protesting restaurant segregation.
Now, nearly 50 years later, HAMSA is reviving this lost classic with a new Arabic edition. The goal is to inspire a new generation of civil rights activists in the Middle East. A young Egyptian activist translated the comic into Arabic, and a Jordanian activist did the graphic design.
The comic details how Americans challenged civil rights problems and offers an inspiring story many young Middle Easterners don’t know: how a small group of activists challenged a basic civil rights abuse, despite facing obstacles like police harassment, terror bombings, and biased judges. The final section describes the “Montgomery Method,” a guide to non-violent confrontation.
HAMSA is in the process of printing and distributing the Arabic edition in the Middle East, with a Farsi edition in the works. 50 years after its debut, the comic book has a new life and audience.
Click here to read the comic book in English and Arabic. And test your knowledge with our Bus Boycott Quiz.
Imprisoned Blogger Writes from Jail; Leaders Appeal for His Release
Egyptian blogger Kareem Amer has been sitting in jail for over nine months, serving a four-year sentence for the alleged crimes of “insulting religions” and “defaming Egypt’s president.” He has released a new letter to activists – and prominent leaders are calling on Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak to release Kareem.
Kareem’s letter from an Alexandria jail urges fellow activists and bloggers not to fear expressing their thoughts. “We cannot change our society according to our beliefs while covered and frightened,” he wrote, adding: “I do not want to be a reason for people to be afraid of facing the same fate.”
While Egyptian bloggers weigh Kareem’s encouraging words against the threat of arrest, prominent Americans are calling on President Mubarak to free Kareem. Feminist icon Gloria Steinem, co-founder of Ms. Magazine, wrote asking Mubarak to pardon Kareem.
“I cannot imagine that you or the authority of your office would be threatened by the writings of a young blogger,” explained Steinem. “In fact, his sentencing by the judge is far more damaging testimony to a lack of freedom than anything he wrote. All courts make mistakes. In my country as well as in yours, one of the duties and pleasures of a chief of state is rectifying those mistakes.”
Just a few days ago, the chairs of the Religious Freedom Caucus of the US Congress wrote to Mubarak blasting Kareem’s arrest. “We would like to express our serious concern over the sentencing of this young man and ask you to seek his immediate release and pardon,” wrote Trent Franks (a Republican) and Emanuel Cleaver (a Democrat). “We urge you to ensure freedom of expression for all Egyptian bloggers.”
Add your voice to the flurry of correspondence on Kareem's case. Write to President Mubarak and write to Kareem in jail.
Young Jordanian Activist Mobilizes to Stop “Honor Killings"
In the deep struggle for women’s equality in the Middle East, Ahmad Ghashmary sees hope in the future. The young male feminist – and second-place winner in the recent HAMSA essay contest – has launched a new group LAHA (“For Her” in Arabic) to encourage grassroots activism for women’s rights.
Hailing from the conservative city of Irbid, Ghashmary explains that he first became concerned about women’s rights when one of his neighbors was prevented from attending university by her father. “We cannot lose half of our society,” he remarks. (Click to see a video of Ghashmary speaking about his efforts.)
LAHA targets so-called “honor killings,” where male family members “rid their families of shame” by killing a female relative whom they feel has “dishonored” their family. The problem, Ghashmary explains, is not simply social attitudes in some families. Courts in countries like Jordan and Syria routinely give light punishments to men who kill their female relatives. Murderers are often given only brief jail terms because judges claim to understand the motivation behind the killing.
Ghashmary, who addressed this very issue in his provocative winning essay, nonetheless believes there is hope and that “people in Arab societies are beginning to be more aware of the danger and barbarity of these rituals.”
The role of the LAHA initiative will be to network young activists – both male and female – who want to promote grassroots reform. LAHA’s core founding members come from Jordan, Syria, and Egypt, and the project hopes to attract a regional following.
"The future is in our hands," observes Ghashmary. "We need to act now."
BREAKING ACTION ALERT:
Essay Contest Judge Faces Jail
Just as The CRIME Report went to press, news broke that Moroccan journalist Ahmed Benchemsi had been detained by police. Benchemsi, editor of the groundbreaking weekly magazines TelQuel (in French) and Nichane (in Moroccan Arabic), has served for the last two years as a judge in HAMSA’s civil rights essay contest. Now, he grapples with his own civil rights challenge, facing up to five years in jail for allegedly “insulting the king.” To learn more about the case and how you can help, see HAMSA’s latest action alert.
CRIME QUIZ: What do you know about the Montgomery Bus Boycott?
In honor of the new Arabic edition of “The Montgomery Story,” here are two questions to test your knowledge of the bus boycott: (1) How old was Martin Luther King when the boycott began: 26, 34, or 45? (2) How many days did the boycott last: 35, 123, or 381?
BECOME A PARTNER IN CRIME:
Here is a list of four quick ways you contribute to the Middle East civil rights movement:
- Forward this newsletter to friends & encourage them to subscribe.
- Write a letter to imprisoned Egyptian blogger Kareem Amer.
- Join 7,500 others in demanding the release of Haleh Esfandiari.
- Apply to participate in HAMSA’s civil rights fellowship program.