Justice, solidarity, activism — these are some of the words which were in vogue at this unique conference at George Washington University (GW) on February 20th. Sponsored and organized primarily by the Islamic Alliance for Justice of GW, the National Interfaith Council on Worker Justice, and DC Jobs with Justice, the “Islamic Perspectives on Worker Justice�? conference responded to the call of a faith that is understood to place enormous emphasis on the ideals of justice, equality, and universal sister/brotherhood.

On Saturday, Feb. 26, Dr. Dalit Baum will be speaking at the Pace Center at 3pm. Dr. Baum is an Israeli feminist activist and educator, currently teaching in California at a community school for disempowered women. She is an organizer in the Coalition of Women for a Just Peace and Women in Black, and a co-founder of 'Black Laundry' - a queer anti-occupation group. During the last two years she has been active with 'Anarchists against the Wall' in solidarity actions with Palestinian non-violent resistance.

Dr. Baum will be talking about her experiences as a queer Israeli activist in the Middle East peace process, as well as looking at what lessons Americans can learn in our anti-war efforts.

Saturday's event will be the third of Dr. Baum's appearances in Virginia as part of the Virginia Anti-War Network's first state-wide tour. Having already spoken twice in Blacksburg at Virginia Tech, following her Richmond appearances, Dr. Baum will also be in Smithfield on Sunday, Feb. 27 at the Norfolk Peace Coalition meeting; and in Charlottesville on Monday, Feb. 28 at UVa for an event sponsored by Students for Peace and Justice in Palestine.

Richmond IMCista Kendall will be covering Saturday's event both for Richmond Indymedia and Richmond Indie Radio. Tune into WRIR 97.3 FM on Monday, Feb. 28 at 12:30pm to hear his audio coverage of the event on his weekly show, Weekly Sedition.

Shawn Evans, organizer of Confluence High School in Richmond, which opens this Fall, says "the most common question I'm asked is 'where is the school,' but we don't yet have a location."

The final coup de grace for Iraq’s academe occurred in the chaos which followed the fall of the Ba‘athist government in April 2003.

Iraq’s academic professionals continue to face an uphill struggle to maintain standards following years of sanctions and months of social chaos. Although some may remain optimistic about a future free of centralized ministerial oversight and autocratic governance, many more feel bitterness for the lack of international support offered since the beginning of the US/UK invasion and subsequent occupation. As with so much of post-war Iraq, the higher education sector is yet another area where US military, political, and bureaucratic intervention has proven more damaging than revitalizing.

Local citizens speak out for three hours at Nuclear Regulatory Commission's public hearing on a draft environmental statement for Dominion VA Power's early site permit to build two new nuclear reactors at the North Anna Power Plant

The Nuclear Regulatory Commision (NRC) yesterday made a show of considering public comments and concern about the impact of proposed new nuclear power plants at North Anna. In reality, they will dismiss and ignore all of yesterday's comments which are deemed beyond the scope of their Environmental Impact Study. As it turns out, most concerns about the safety of nuclear power fall outside the NRC's study.

The Richmond Community Space Project has disbanded and disbursed our resources five years after our inception in 2000.

After almost seven years living and organizing in our fair, flustered city, Jen's heading south of the border. Fluent in Spanish for many years, she'll be spending the next several months doing solidarity work in Chiapas, Mexico. Jen also plans to travel to other destinations before rededicating herself to whatever new and very lucky home she chooses.

While many hungrily eye Shockoe Bottom for the millions of dollars in profits they stand to make by building a baseball stadium, others in this town hold the Bottom dear to their hearts: as a place to remember history, understand the foundations of our country and make movements to heal from the unjust beginnings of the United States.

Today, Shockoe Bottom exists as a flood-ravaged area with a farmers' market and a few businesses emerging from the devastation brought by Hurricane Gaston in August. In the past, it was a thriving center for the trade of Virginia-born slaves, sent out of the state to work in bondage at plantations in the deep South. Shockoe Bottom was also the final resting place for thousands of Africans at the Burial Ground for Negroes and where slave revolter Gabriel took his last breath before being hanged by the state.

To many this powerful history is worth fighting for to preserve. The Defenders for Freedom, Justice and Equality are calling all friends, supporters and allies to this Wednesday's, Feb. 16, public hearing on the Shockoe Bottom Stadium proposal. The Defenders have issued a call to reclaim sacred ground. They want opposition to come out strong to the 7:30 p.m. meeting at city hall’s council chambers.

RUSH RUSH city cuncil meeting This Wednesday night a 7 PM must be opposed.... contact your council person.

On the airwaves, on the Internet and in print, Richmond media is experiencing a strong, new radical upsurge in 2005. For years many Richmonders have gotten their local news through the racist, anti-poor daily, The Richmond Times Dispatch, right-wing radio programming and sub-par nightly TV news. Now the stars are seemingly aligning to bring us a rich new diversity of media options including 97.3 WRIR low-power FM and a new monthly publication, The Richmond Defender that is serving as the mouthpiece for the community organization of the same name.

I know it looks like the site's going through some bizarre deja vu, with the old VMI piece reemerging. We're experiencing some tech problems and will have everything taken care of real soon.

In the meantime, everyone can still post new articles and comments. So keep it up, and we'll work hard to make sure it stays up.

Richmond Indymedia, like any internet-based organization, has a huge amount of tech work to handle. If you want to help out, either through volunteering or donating, get in touch with us today: info (at) richmondindymedia.org. Donations are tax-deductible.