By Ruby Love, Sarah Bradley, & Jasmine Kozak Gilroy
WEDNESDAY 4/20
MEXICO: Government Repression Grows Against Indigenous Self-Defense Forces
Evergreen Library. 6:30 pm.
On Wednesday, a panel of speakers will meet in the Library to “explore the politicized incarceration of Nestora Salgado, neoliberalism, and the Drug War in Mexico as well as touch on indigenous, feminist, and ecological justice movements in Mexico.” The event features five different speakers, each planning to focus on a specific topic related to the event’s overall theme.
According to the event’s Facebook page, the speakers include:
Nestora Salgado, “Indigenous leader, a naturalized U.S. citizen, and ex-political prisoner in Mexico.” She was detained by Mexican federal soldiers in 2013 as a result of her activism. She was held in a maximum security prison and denied contact with her attorney and her family.
Dr. Filiberto Barajas-Lopez, U.W. College of Education professor, will give insight into the auto-defensa movement.
Su Docekal, Chair of the Freedom for Nestora Committee in Seattle. Docekal will discuss the movement to free Salgado, her case’s legal implications. Docekal will also look at U.S. military aid and its connection to repressing indigenous uprisings in Mexico.
Jair Ramirez, organizer with the Freedom for Nestora Committee. Ramirez will speak about social movements in Mexico and current events.
Kennedy Saira will make final remarks and facilitate the Q&A portion of the event.
If you are looking to educate yourself about issues relating to the plight of political prisoners, US foreign policy, social justice movements in Mexico and beyond, and the tension between corporate and community interests, this event is for you! Educate yourself!
FRIDAY & SATURDAY
4/22-4/23
Social Justice Bloc Party
Olympia-Rafah Solidarity Mural Project. 6 pm Friday. Noon Saturday.
The second annual Social Justice Bloc Party will be an opportunity to interact with activists, organizers, and artists, learning about different local organizations, and celebrating together with music, art, and food. The Olympia-Rafah Mural Solidarity Project cultivates a culture of resistance and art. The Social Justice Bloc Party event page on Facebook describes its mission as such: “We work as a Palestinian solidarity project connected to local & global struggles against borders, incarceration and deportation with a vision of liberation from the violence inflicted by militarism, colonialism, racism and capitalism.
On Friday at 7 p.m., there will be a musical performance by Latin American folk trio Sin Fronteras, and KAOS Community Radio will be playing music from 8:30-10 p.m. On Saturday, in addition to tabling by local social justice minded groups, a series of workshops will be held.
The block party will feature artwork by Line Maker, a Oaxacan-Mexican artist and cooperative member of ASARO (Assembly of Revolutionary Artists of Oaxaca). There will be select prints available from the Migration Now! Portfolio and from the Imaging Apartheid Portfolio.
The Social Justice Bloc Party is open to all members of the community. A donation from $15-$40 dollars is suggested to support the event.
WEDNESDAY 4/27
SPRING ARTS AND CRAFTS FAIR
Evergreen Library Lobby. 11 am.
When Etsy became a digital sensation in the mid 2000s it redefined the meaning of local crafts, bringing together makers and shoppers across the country. While the site helped to make crafting cool again, it also chipped away at the tradition of local craft fairs as it provided an easy way to by hand goods from home.
Three times a year Evergreen Student Activities helps support student work and local artists by hosting the Arts & Crafts Fair, which brings the best of Olympia crafters to our campus. So far a number of different vendors are signed up to sell all sorts of things; flower crowns, rings embedded with pieces of Barbie dolls, beaded jewelry, apothecary products, screenprinted pillows, zines, wild hand sewn clothing, and a huge selection of patches.
With such a wide selection of vendors from all kinds of artsy and crafty disciplines, the Spring Arts & Crafts fair will inevitably have what you’re looking for- whether it’s a unique Mother’s Day present, a thank you gift for someone who took care of your cat over break, or just something fresh to deck out your denim jacket.
