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Protest Drummond Coal!
Protest Drummond Coal!
IS A U.S. CORPORATION COMPLICIT IN THE MURDER OF COLOMBIAN UNION LEADERS?
JUDGE FOR YOURSELF – COME TO BIRMINGHAM TO HEAR FROM TWO COLOMBIAN UNION LEADERS AND RAISE YOUR VOICE FOR JUSTICE!
November 20, 2008
3:30 PM - 5:30 PM
Thursday, November 20; 3:30 PM
Downtown Birmingham, Alabama
Exact location to be announced - Contact Ken Crowley at 202-547-6112 or ken@witnessforpeace.org to receive an email with the exact location
Start your weekend of action against the SOA with a demonstration at the Drummond Inc. home base in Birmingham, Alabama. Drummond is a major supplier of United States coal, the majority of which comes from one of the world's largest open-pit mines in La Loma, Colombia. The corporation has been accused of serious human rights abuses of Colombian workers, 
including the deaths of three union leaders.
At the demonstration, hear about the life-threatening risks union leaders Estivenson Avila and Jesús Brochero fac
e
as they fight to protect mine worker rights and safety.
Estivenson Avila, president of the Sintramienergetica union which unites workers from the Drummond-owned and operated mine of La Loma, has been pursued by paramilitaries because of his involvement in the union.
Jesús Brochero is a top leader of Sintracarbón, the National Union of Coal Industry Workers which represents employees of the multinational-owned Cerrejón Mine in Colombia.
Aviva Chomsky, a professor of Latin American Studies at Salem State College, has worked for many years to create awareness of the plight faced by the mine-affected communities. "Here," she explains, "we have some of the most powerless people in the world—indigenous people with no resources, no electricity, no water—and some of the most vulnerable—a union in a country with the highest rates of assassination and repression against union activists in the world—taking on some of the most powerful multinationals in the world today. We have a lot to learn from their example."
Join the demonstration in Birmingham to hold Drummond accountable for its human rights crimes. Connect with activists working against the environmentally destructive practices of U.S. mining companies. The following day attend the WFP Colombia Teach-in in Columbus, Georgia to learn more about the connections between U.S. coal-mining in Colombia, Colombian paramilitaries, U.S. aid to Colombia, and human rights abuses.
Please RSVP to Ken to let us know if you'll join us in Birmingham. For More information contact Ken Crowley 202-547-6112, ken@witnessforpeace.org
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