· September, 2011

Stories about Digital Activism from September, 2011

Jamaica: Gratitude to Garvey

  26 September 2011

In his ongoing effort to petition President Obama to exonerate Marcus Garvey, Geoffrey Philp says: “Marcus Garvey's cause was justice, plain and simple. And it is ironic that unjust methods were used to malign his good name and to bring about his eventual imprisonment on fraudulent charges.”

Philippines: Anti-Planking Bill Draws More Planks

  26 September 2011

A proposal in the Philippines to ban planking has drawn much criticism online and offline. Planking has been used by student activists as a creative form of protest, especially in last week's nationwide campus strikes against education budget cuts.

China: Interview with a digital dissident

  25 September 2011

Tom from Seeing Red in China interviews Xiaomi (twitter: @xiaomi2020), one of the organizers of Yizhe, a group which translates Western journalism on China so that they are more accessible to ordinary Chinese. Though not politically-oriented, some members of the group were identified by authorities because they translate news considered...

Update on Global Voices Mentorship: Meet the Activists

  24 September 2011

For over a month, ten Global Voices bloggers have been working with activists from ten different countries as mentors of members of the new Blogger Swarm initiative of Activista, the youth network of international development organization ActionAid.

Cuba: “Damas” March Tomorrow

  23 September 2011

Uncommon Sense will have his eye on Cuba tomorrow as “the Damas De Blanco (‘Ladies In White)…participate in a march and other ceremonies commemorating Our Lady of Mercy, the patroness of prisoners, a fitting celebration for a group committed to advocating for the release of Cuban political prisoners.”

Mexico: Uproar Over Twitter Law Proposed by Veracruz Governor

  23 September 2011

A controversial law in Mexico could imprison those who spread rumors through social networks on the charge of "disturbing public order". Mexicans are speaking out against the law, which has been labeled #LeyJavierDuarte on Twitter after the name of Veracruz governor, Javier Duarte.

Spain: Crowdsourcing Democracy

  23 September 2011

The website 100 medidas (100 measures) [es] is a crowdsourcing project that is collecting citizen's recommendations on how to improve  the government. People will vote for the best 100 measures, which will be sent to the government elected on the November 20, 2011 general elections.

Chile: Twitter Reports on March for Education Reform

  22 September 2011

El Dínamo has put together a Storify post [es] with reports, pictures, and reactions to today's march for education reform. You can read more tweets about the march by following the hashtags #yomarchoel22 (“I march on the 22nd”) and #yoapoyoalosestudiantes (“I support the students”).

Mexico: Twitter Users Accused of “Terrorism” are Released

  22 September 2011

Two Twitter users who faced jail over “terrorism and sabotage” for spreading rumors of narco-related violence on social networks have been released. Bloggings by boz explains: “The local government created a new regulation against ‘disturbing the peace’ that might be used for future cases, but said the two released Twitter...

Cuba: Parents Detained; What Happens to Child?

  22 September 2011

Uncommon Sense calls the “countless number of children [who] have been separated from their families…one of the regime’s more unforgivable sins” and goes on to highlight the plight of a two-year-old boy whose parents are allegedly “in jail because of their active opposition to the Castro dictatorship.”

Uganda: Anti-Museveni Author Freed After Five Days

  22 September 2011

The Ugandan government has freed the author of a book who was imprisoned for five days without access to his lawyers or family. Vincent Nzaramba’s little known book 'People Power, Battle the Mighty General' called for a coup and a revolution in the country, thrusting the little known activist into the spotlight.