By Idle No More

The February 14th Annual Women’s Memorial March is held on Valentine’s Day each year to honour the memory of Indigenous women, including trans and two-spirit women, who have died as a result of physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual violence. Now in its 23rd year, the March remembers and honours murdered and missing women, and seeks to organize against ongoing gendered violence that women face.

Celebrating the legacy of Chico Mendes and the courage of thousands of present-day grassroots activists who follow in his footsteps.

April 4-6, 2014
School of International Service
American University, Washington, D.C.

See full program here.

Meet activists and experts from around the world to discuss and debate global environmental issues that affect all of us.

By Jenna Winton

By CHIRAPAQ

Designation believed to help strengthen dialogue between Indigenous citizens and states. World Conference on Indigenous Peoples to be held in September 2014 at UN Headquarters.

By Alyssa Macy, International Indian Treaty Council

Francisco Cali Tzay, Mayan Kaqchikel from Guatemala, was elected on February 3, 2014 to a two-year term as President of the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) on the first day of its 84^th session. Cali Tzay is the first Indigenous expert to hold such a position in the UN system.

By Jenna Winton

On January 15-17, 2014, the United Nations held the first International Expert Group Meeting on Indigenous Peoples’ Sexual Health and Reproductive Rights. The meeting was held specifically to discuss Articles 21, 22 (1), 23 and 24 of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Among those present at the meeting at the United Nations headquarters in New York were six Indigenous experts from around the world:

On January 30, 2014, two days after President Obama’s State of the Union address, policy makers, elected officials, tribal leaders, and the press convened in a Washington DC studio for the annual State of Indian Nations address. Because stories from Indian country seldom reach national media, the address is a chance for Native leaders to articulate their vision and concerns for their land and people on a national platform.

Juan de Leon Tuyuc Velasquez (Kaqchikel Maya), a former guerrilla commander during Guatemala’s 1960-1996 civil war, was killed on January 15, 2014 in Solola by unknown gunmen. Velasquez is the brother of Rosalinda Tuyuc, founder of National Association of Guatemalan Widows (CONAVIGUA), a leading human rights organization representing Indigenous women whose husbands died in the civil war.

Indigenous peoples in Guatemala rely on community radio to keep their culture, language, and traditions alive as well as to inform their communities about issues and events relevant to their lives. Because of its relatively low cost, community radio is an accessible tool. In some of the most remote areas of the country, many communities do not have access to electricity, but many have small battery-powered radios making it important means of communications within indigenous communities and among them.