AIM Against Stoning

This Saturday thousands of people in more than 100 cities all around the world will come together against stoning, and The AIM will be among them.

In Glasgow, AIM HQ have organised a rally starting at 2pm and are planning to talk about the reality of stoning, give information and leaflets to passersby and gather signatures so end stoning, save Sakineh, and remove Iran from the UN Commission On The Status Of Women.

Our newest supporter Olive Green has painted 2 banners for us to use and we are also looking forward to some great video footage courtesy of a shiny new AIM video camera (well actually it belongs to Lilith but I am pretty sure she'll let us borrow it quite alot lol)

In Niagara Falls, Canada AIM members Coffy and Dee will be attending a rally and will also be representing The AIM as one of the guest speakers. Coffy and Dee are very active in their area and often take part in rallies and protests so we feel there is no one better to to speak on behalf of us all to the people of Niagara.

It was also recently arranged that AIM Puerto Rico will also be on the streets on Saturday taking a stand against stoning. AIM member Mother Justice and a local activist called Ivonne will meet in San Juan and speak to people about stoning. They have posters and other materials and we look forward to seeing some pictures and maybe some video footage of the first ever protest in Puerto Rico with an AIM presence!

Anyone who has some free time on Saturday is encouraged to take part in an event. If there is not one near you it is not too late to organise one. All you need is a petition, maybe some fliers or posters (available here), a picture of Sakineh perhaps, and if you can find anyone willing then someone to do it with you. It doesn't need to be big to make a difference. I have been to rallies with hundreds of people and also protests with just 2. Both work in different ways, but equally. If you want to do something and would like some support to do so then just email us and we'll help out as much as possible.

Artwork © Olive Green. All Rights Reserved.

3 Protests in 3 Cities

Glasgow, Toronto and Philadelphia.... were you there?

Glasgow, Scotland

On Thursday August 5th Lilith and myself took ourselves, our placards, our petitions, our letters and our voices to the main shopping street in the centre of Glasgow and set ourselves up. We were also joined to the lovely Jenny who supports the campaigns as well. The call to protest had been issued by Mission Free Iran (MFI) in response to the news that Iran planned to resume mass executions of it's political prisoners. While we were there we also continued to spread the word about the case of Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani and of the accession of Iran to The UN Commission on the Status of Women (UNCSW). Many more letters and petitions have been signed and sent and a whole pile of AIM business cards as well. The following day we even had an email from someone we had spoken to who is interested in supporting The AIM with it's work, and  we are hooking up with the The Glasgow Love Police as a result of posts we have already made about this protest. You can read the event report from MFI here.

Toronto, Canada

The call to protest was initially for that day only but was later extended and in the end at least 22 cities took part in the action. AIM member Coffy was part of the group that protested in Toronto, Canada on Saturday August 7th and you can read the event report from MFI here for that city. Coffy was able to get in touch with the organiser of the Toronto event and apparently had a very interesting very long conversation with him. He is pretty impressed with The AIM and what we do so we hope to be able to build and work with him closely in the future.

Philadelphia, USA

AIM members Capital-"X" and Perseverance and AIM supporter Jessica took a road trip from North Carolina to Pennsylvania where they were met and very kindly fed and watered by newest AIM member MC Therapist. They then all went on to attend the MOVE 9 Rally along with many others including members of our affiliate group Guerilla Republik. Capital-"X" will be posting a blog on this shortly but in the meantime please watch (and copy) this offering from them all.

Lilith

BIO
Coming Soon!

VIDEOS

POETRY

Dirty Linen

Why are women
Still rinsing out their dirty linen
behind closed doors?
Unable to voice the truth
of their religions systematic abuse
providing him, with his excuse
To remind her, of her position
Spiritual submission

Silenced by the puritanical left
helping to stitch up our lips
with political correctness.
Covering up Sharia
and its political objectives.

Cultural relativism has become
a conceptual prison for the mind
Designed, To strip away
Our right to criticise theocracy
and dangerous ideologies
Fear of causing you offence
has us self policing
In their defence
respect no longer earned
But freely given
Where our tolerance involves
granting freedom of religion for all

But what about

Freedom, from religion
demanding our respect
Whilst raping
the female power to object
To beliefs,
which have a dirty history.
Hidden between
blood stained pages
holy words and phrases
Ripe for the patriarchal
plucking.
Filled with sanctifications
To hate, to rape, to mutilate
Women,
Hidden beneath the cloth
Hanging out their dirty linen
Behind closed doors.
While we look the other way
Pretending, we cant see
The similarities
with our own stained
religious histories.

Unable to grasp
lessons from the past
Imprisoned by
Our Cultural division
Unable to show solidarity
With our sisters of
a different skin and religion

Yet i'm the one labelled a racist because I refuse to believe
That women are praying
Upon their knees
For the right
To be considered
An inferior species

As the Liberals
and the intellectuals
Spout sanitized sound bites
defending Muslim women
And their rights
to choose
Whilst supporting
the rights of her religion
to abuse

While the ministry of peace
And its propaganda machine
Is defending sharia
and its torturing regimes
Following the will
Of the mighty Allah
And his wrath
Against the dirty kufar
Apostates, Atheists
and Liberated women

Fleeing judgement
And their
Bloody punishments
Stoning, beheadings
and honour killings.
Seeking asylum
and secular rights
under attack
by the Islamic right
its global mission
submission
To sharia, creeping in
under the cover
Of religious
Tolerance
Its citizens
well trained
In the art of double think
defending
Religious holy rights
oblivious to the real fight
against oppressive regimes
justifying their extremes
and bleaching their dirty linen
clean
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Granny's First Gift

My Granny’s first gift
was to knit me a shawl.
Like a shroud
she bound me up real tight.
Like a present
dressed in pure white.
To be given over to him
so he could forgive me
for my first mortal sin.
Coming to earth
clothed in nothing
but my own silken skin.
and saturated in the smell
of my ancestors sin.

She stood upon his alter
so proudly, on display
the day that she
gave me away
to the almighty
and his earthly emissary.
To be washed clean
by the sign of his cross.
In the name of the father, his son
and the holy ghost.
The cold, drips from his
fingertips
welcome me
into this
exclusive family
where indoctrination
is a, lifetimes occupation.
Calling upon
his surrogate parents
to fulfil
their sacred role.

As I was sold

A sacrificial slave
for the price
of their salvation
from damnation
while the congregation

watch

Before rising
from their pews
to sing their praises to
my holy father
who is sucking it all in
as if he’d, just squeezed me
from his own
stretched and bloodied skin.
Taking a bow
for mankind
for Adam
and his mystically missing rib.
As my mothers role in creation
is taken.
By this robed
baby snatcher.
who likes them young
Spongey and innocent
Just waiting to be
filled up
by the word.

So as soon as I can walk
barely able to talk
just a curious little tot
scrambling for
coloured crayons
out the box
to scribble
between the lines
of a broken Jesus
hanging upon his cross
for me
and my future sin
which is curled up
inside my hymen
like the serpent
waiting
to suck my victims in
tempting them to take
that first fleshy taste
Juices dribbling
down our skin
until we are guilty
and confessing.

While He
He’s getting off
on the thought
Of me
a miniature bride
kneeling upon his alter
and opening up my mouth
real wide
to take the body of Christ
swallowing it down
with his spilt blood
trickling
down my chin
while the congregation

watch

Wet eyed at the sight
of these pretty little
girls dressed up in white.
All secretly wishing for that
special day
when Daddy
will give them away.

Sold off

As veiled
virgin wives
to their husbands
and his rights
to a fuck
when he likes.

My life unfolds
before my eyes
ritualised.
Until I’m standing
upon his alter
and swearing myself away
willingly
Promising to be
so faithful and true
to this man
whose standing in for you.

As the congregation
proudly

watch

Their creation
taking up her mystical vocation.
winking and waiting
for that, final deed
the sowing of his seed.
and the pattering
of tiny
Christian feet.

My Grannies final gift
was to knit me
a christening shawl.
For me to bind
my unborn child in.
It lays yellowing
wrapped up
in tissue paper
and waiting for the day
when I’m finally
strong enough
to throw it away.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A Clash of Un-Civilisations

The military, industrial complex
and its capitalist conquest.
Political Islam and its
religious crusade
These war mongering
bureaucracies and theocracies
sending out their
patriarchal representatives.
Well versed Muslim clerics
and polished politicians
dictating public opinion.
Tribal leaders pounding upon
Their war drums.
Masters of manipulation
and justification
Nationalism
and religious extremism
just too sides
of the one spinning coin.
Demanding the ultimate sacrifice
that we lay down our right to life.
For patriarch and its authority
to send its children out
like expendable plastic pieces
to their slaughter.

These two poisonous ideologies
Feeding from one other
Like the serpent suckling
upon its own swollen tail
Dependant upon each other
For their creation
of a common enemy.

Their real enemy
is you and me
and our struggle
for equality
The real victims
women
and their children.
Indoctrinated
into submission.
Bodies beaten
broken
split
blown to bits
Sacrificed upon the alter of belief
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Take AIM

The battle call has come
to join the revolution of our time.
To open up our hearts
and deprogramme our minds.
To these soothing lies
which have kept us, pacified
preoccupied and striving to satisfy
consumer, created greed.

Oblivious to humanities dying needs
the ability to feed
our starving children
and prevent the bombing
of innocent civilians.
Locked up prisons
we are all, victims
of man’s many dirty isms.

So the time has come to say
“No, not in my name.”
I refuse to play
your genocidal war games.
Cause domination
at any cost?
has lost.

We are, no longer deceived
by our faulty beliefs.
The desire, for peace
is dissolving old boundaries
eroding in the force, of today.
Realising, that it’s only… energy
flowing through our fleshy walls.
Cause collectively we are
but one mind.

Whose energy grows strong
as this same message is formed
from a crescendo
of revolutionary songs
resonating through these
war torn streets
calling for Justice
Solidarity and Peace.

SO WAKE UP

The answer that humanity seeks
are finally within our reach.
All we have to do is… breathe
open our half shut eyes and… see
release a heartfelt cry and grieve
for our loss of humanity.

Its time to FIGHT BACK!
from the heart
reclaim the mind
and join this revolution of our time
to collectively say
“ NO, not in our name.”

TAKE AIM

DIVISION
AIM UK

PUBLISHED WORK  
A Spectrum of Griefin The Open Minds Quarterly: A Psychosocial Literary Journal, Summer (2003) Volume V, Issue II
Set to self destruct posted on Writers Circle Online (2003)
Open Semi Finalist (2002) in the International Open Poetry Competition, printed in Letters from the Soul (2003)
Survivor’s Suit of Feathers in A Source of Wisdom: A Poetry Anthology (2003)

CONTACT DETAILS
Lilith on Facebook

© 2012, Lilith. All rights reserved.