Zanan Group in Northern California presents: a panel discussion on Women in Prisons in the U.S., Syria, and Iran There are currently approximately 220,000 women in U.S. prisons, most of whom for non-violent offenses or self-defense in abusive relationships. In Syria, of the over 100,000 political prisoners, women prisoners suffer even more from rape and torture to which all prisoners are subjected. Many have disappeared. Most prisoners are in the Assad regime’s notorious dungeons and some are in the prisons of the Islamic fundamentalist and Jihadist groups. In Iran, there are over 240,000 people in prison. Hundreds are political prisoners including women’s rights activists. Most women are imprisoned for drug charges or their husband’s debt or for defending themselves against abusive husbands. Iran allows femicide in the form of “honor” killings. Women prisoners, in all countries face the threat of death by COVID-19 as well. Please join us for a panel discussion of former women prisoners from the US and Iran and a detainee advocate from Syria: Date: Saturday September 26, 2020 Time: 1-3 pm (Pacific Time), 9 - 11 pm London time
Speakers: Romarilyn Ralston: Program Director of Project Rebound at California State University, Fullerton, a program that supports the higher education and successful reintegration of the formerly incarcerated. She served 23 years at the California Institution for Women (CIW) and is a long-time member and organizer with the California Coalition for Women Prisoners (CCWP). Incarcerated at 24 and released at 47, Romarilyn has seen and survived the effects of extreme sentencing and medical neglect in prison. Since her release, Romarilyn was a Women’s Policy Institute Fellow, a volunteer with the Ferguson Commission, and an organizer with the Formerly Incarcerated, Convicted People & Families Movement (FICPFM) voting rights campaign in Florida. Romarilyn is a prison abolitionist tirelessly advocating for the women she left behind in prison in California, many serving life without the possibility of parole. Wafa Moustafa: One of the youngest members of Families for Freedom, a survivor from detention, and an activist and journalist from Masyaf, a city in the Hama Governorate, western Syria. Mustafa left the country on 9 July 2013, exactly a week after her father was arrested by the authorities in Damascus. Mustafa moved to Turkey and began reporting on Syria for various media outlets. In 2016, she moved to Germany and continued her interrupted studies in Berlin where she studies Arts and Aesthetics at Bard College. In her advocacy, Mustafa covers the impact of detention on young girls and women and families. Fatemeh Masjedi: an Iranian academic historian and activist based in Berlin. Member of the Alliance of Middle Eastern and North African Socialists. She was a political prisoner in Iran because of her women’s rights activities in one million signatures campaign. Moderator: Frieda Afary an Iranian American librarian, translator, writer. She produces the blog Iranian Progressives in Translation and is a co-founder of the Alliance of Middle Eastern and North African Socialists. Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web..zoom.us/j/85034046041?pwd=YlVLanJpQmxTbmpBdStPZldSSFBFdz09 <https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Finvalid.invalid%2Fj%2F85034046041%3Fpwd%3DYlVLanJpQmxTbmpBdStPZldSSFBFdz09%26fbclid%3DIwAR1zPiBzTh9yuDwc1LWsygjpyRdkwElBCHglyfxYfCJnZNM2gAEE6AFvBjg&h=AT01DvKP98aRhP9KnqHPTt0qLp94d1u021ZGkRPSSHJcIQdWfwV9YATo_h2Y8Yx0RBtLDlqhWD2WbOItS8-W2bNe5f2Q-gbml09OKzjKEexlnpVJ-mSP2NT6BZIfyi8sA1Ouuwaw3FM5THhLEE8> Meeting ID: 850 3404 6041 Password: 926226 Facebook page: گروه زنان شمال کالیفرنیا <https://www.facebook.com/zanangroupinnortherncalifornia/> -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Groups.io Links: You receive all messages sent to this group. View/Reply Online (#1071): https://groups.io/g/marxmail/message/1071 Mute This Topic: https://groups.io/mt/76573001/21656 -=-=- POSTING RULES & NOTES<br />#1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message.<br />#2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly & permanently archived.<br />#3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. -=-=- Group Owner: [email protected] Unsubscribe: https://groups.io/g/marxmail/leave/8674936/1316126222/xyzzy [[email protected]] -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
