C E B O . org

Posted 7:27 PM by Mary

For Immediate Release - Contact Jennifer Bardi at (202) 238-9088
jbardi@americanhumanist.org - www.americanhumanist.org

The Humanist magazine, established in 1941, has received a makeover for 2007
under its new editor, Jennifer Bardi. The January/February 2007 issue,
released today, will begin reaching subscribers and appearing on newsstands
this week. This edition is the first to feature a revamped Up Front section,
which includes illuminating research results, quotes from notable humanists
and other like-minded luminaries, and relevant commentary from back issues
of twenty-five and fifty years ago.

The cover story, by John Buell, examines future possibilities for
modern transportation. Buell urges us to refigure modern transportation in a
more environmentally friendly way that would improve our personal lives.
Nobel laureate Herbert Hauptman illustrates the potential of basic science
by connecting a series of past discoveries to a modern application--x-ray
crystallography--and its ultimate contribution
to the betterment of human health. And the Humanist Interview features
renowned linguist, skeptic, and social critic Noam Chomsky. He discusses the
human animal, the religious right, a collapse of secular nationalism, and
the politics of fear.

Though it has a new look, the Humanist magazine as always remains committed
to its core: critical inquiry and social concern from a Humanist
perspective, presenting moral dilemmas, exposing various rights abuses, and
grappling with the challenges of life in the 21st century, with an eye
toward solutions.

In addition to the print magazine, the Humanist Online has been redesigned
as well, with selected articles in PDF format, new web-only content, and a
link to the Humanist News blog, an interactive forum for commentary on
breaking news and political activities. More changes will follow. The
website is located at www.thehumanist.org.

"Readers of the Humanist operate from a rational philosophy informed by
science, inspired by art, and motivated by compassion," says Humanist
magazine editor Jennifer Bardi. "As such, they want a magazine that not only
points out what's going wrong in the world but also what's going right.
They like a good challenge, sharp wit, and are vitally interested in the
human potential for problem solving. And that's exactly what we're going to
give them."

Bardi is a former science editor from San Diego, California.

Posted 11:27 PM by Mary

ETHICAL ACTION ALERT
DECEMBER 10, 2006

In honour of Human Rights Day, Dec. 10, we are re-launching the UN Ethical Action Alert, a cooperative monthly newsletter issued by several ethical organizations with NGO status at the United Nations. The following actions are related to current global and national issues, and are selected with relevance to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. We are happy to receive suggestions for alerts. Feel free to forward this issue, and email ethics@att.net with comments, or requests to subscribe/ unsubscribe

Selected Human Rights and Poverty News:

Video of Kofi Annan's speech on Human Rights and Poverty:
www.hrw.org

Mme. Louise Arbour's Statement Poverty on Human Rights Day
http://www.ohchr.org/english/

"Fighting poverty is a duty that binds those who govern as surely as their obligation to ensure that all people are able to speak freely, choose their leaders and worship as their conscience guides them", High Commissioner Louise Arbour said today on the occasion of Human Rights Day. "Freedom from want is a right, not merely a matter of compassion", she added."

Interview with Muhammad Yunus, Nobel Prize Laureate 2006
http://nobelprize.org/
".. poverty in the world is an artificial creation..."

Repository of MDG documents
http://www.betterworldcampaign.org/

_____________________________

TOPIC: MDGs, Child Labor
ACTION: Petition Walmart for Zero Tolerance for child labor.
SPONSOR: Wake Up Walmart
LINK: http://wakeupwalmart.com/

Wal-Mart has repeatedly violated U.S. child labor laws and profited from overseas child labor abuses.

A recent investigation revealed children, some only 11 years old, were making Wal-Mart clothes in a Bangladesh factory. The children report being routinely slapped and beaten, forced to work 12 to 14 hours a day, often seven days a week, for wages as low as 6 and a half cents an hour.
______________________________________


TOPIC: DARFUR and protection of civilians
ACTION: Darfur: More Money for Peacekeeping and Humanitarian Aid
SPONSOR: FCNL (Friends Committee on National Legislation)
LINK: http://capwiz.com/fconl/issues/alert/

Urge your senators to provide ongoing support for the African Union peacekeeping mission in Darfur and to provide additional funds for humanitarian relief.

Specifically, encourage them to support an additional $60 million in the FY07 Foreign Operations Appropriations bill to help fund the African Union Mission in Sudan’s effort to protect civilians. Please also urge them to support $134 million in the FY07 Foreign Operations Appropriations bill to help fund ongoing humanitarian relief in Darfur and Chad

TOPIC: DARFUR: Protection of women and children
ACTION: Support the International Criminal Court: Justice for the Women and Girls of Darfur
SPONSOR: Amnesty USA
LINK: http://www.amnestyusa.org/women/darfur/

Inquiries by the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court identified “high numbers of…mass rapes and other forms of extremely serious gender violence”, and a UN Commission of Inquiry found that these abuses amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity. Since the launch of the ICC the investigation in June 2005, however, authorities in Sudan have publicly refused to comply with ICC requests or otherwise allow the Court to conduct investigations in Darfur.
_______________________________________

TOPIC: Rights of Women in Iran, CEDAW
ACTION: Support Shirin Ebadi
Sponsor: Feminist Majority, and other organizations
LINK: http://www.feminist.org/action/
(see Shirin Ebadi link at bottom of Take Action)

In an ominous action, Iran has outlawed the Center for the Defense of Human Rights – an organization co-founded by Dr. Shirin Ebadi, a Nobel Peace Laureate and a hero for her work on rights for women and children. Iran has declared the organization illegal, claiming it did not have a proper permit, and is threatening to arrest Dr. Ebadi and the center staff for continuing their work on behalf of women and children.

Please join feminists and human rights activists worldwide to support Shirin Ebadi and her work. Urge the United Nations to support Shirin Ebadi and the Iranian government to declare legal the Center for the Defense of Human Rights
__________________________________________

TOPIC: Poverty, Fair Trade, MDGs
ACTION: Tell Starbucks to Honor Commitments to Ethiopian Coffee Farmers
SPONSOR: OxfamAmerica.org
LINK: http://www.oxfamamerica.org

Oxfam America has joined a broad coalition of student groups, nongovernmental organizations, and Ethiopian community members, all calling on Starbucks to help Ethiopian farmers make more off their crops.Despite its much-publicized commitments to farming communities, however, Starbucks has yet to recognize the right of Ethiopians to make better profits off their coffee names.
_____________________________________

TOPIC: AIDS/HIV, MDGs
ACTION: Tell Novartis: Allow Affordable Drugs to Reach the Poor
SPONSOR: Oneworld.net, Oxfam America
LINK:
http://us.oneworld.net/

Novartis is challenging India's Patent law to prevent less expensive versions of its drugs being sold in India. If they win, this will threaten India's ability to produce and export affordable generic drugs, including HIV medicines, which are benefiting millions of people in India and other developing countries.
________________________________________

TOPIC: Disarmament, Nuclear De-Proliferation
ACTION: Stop Complex 2030! Say No to New Nuclear Weapons
SPONSOR: Nuclear Age Peace Foundation
LINK: http://us.oneworld.net/

The Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), which is responsible for maintaining the United States’ nuclear weapons arsenal, is designing new nuclear weapons. These new designs are being prepared under the so-called Reliable Replacement Warhead Program (RRW). The Bombplex and RRW violate international law. Article VI of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, of which the United States is both a signatory and one of the chief architects, says that the United States is obligated to engage in effective multilateral efforts leading to nuclear disarmament. By defying international law and building a new generation of nuclear weapons, the United States would be hindering international non-proliferation initiatives and crippling international nuclear disarmament efforts.
___________________________________
TOPIC: Poverty, Labor, Fair Wages, MDGs
ACTION: Tell MCDonald's/Chipotle to match TacoBell's fair wage agreement
SPONSOR: Coalition of Immokalee Workers
LINK: http://www.ciw-online.org/

Farm workers who pick tomatoes for McDonald's earn 40 to 50 cents for every 32-pound bucket of tomatoes they pick. Workers who toil from dawn to dusk without the right to overtime pay or any benefits must pick two tons of tomatoes to earn $50 in one day. As a major buyer of Florida tomatoes, McDonald's high-volume, low-cost purchasing practices place downward pressure on farm worker wages, putting corporate profits before human dignity.
Last year, the Coalition of Immokalee Workers and Yum Brands (Taco Bell's parent company) reached a groundbreaking agreement to directly improve farm worker wages and enforce a code of conduct for humane conditions in Taco Bell's tomato supply chain. Yet McDonald's has refused to work with the CIW to create similar change in its supply chain.

"Representing our individual organizations but joined in common cause, we have formed a council of peers to share information and raise awareness of ethical humanist responses to UN-related initiatives” CEBO includes representatives from: The American Hunanist Association, International Humanist & Ethical Union, National Service Conference, American Ethical Union, UN-UnitarianUniversalist, and others.