The Blessings of Getting Involved in the FAC
Weekly Update 2017-12-21
Dear Members and Advocates,
This holiday season, our warmest wishes go out to you and your families. For those who are able to spend the holidays with your family, cherish them. For those who are separated from family as a consequence of the registry, who are forced into homelessness or who are currently incarcerated, you are not forgotten. Your FAC family is here and will be here in 2018, and beyond, to keep fighting for you and for all of us.
In 1964, Nelson Mandela and eight others were sentenced to life in prison for going against the government. For 27 years he was imprisoned, isolated and forced to do grueling manual labor. We all know that eventually his release was secured. He even went on to serve as the President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999. But for decades he survived without any hope for release. There was no light at the end of the tunnel for Mandela and the eight others.
Gay McDougall was director of the Southern African Project of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, who defended South African political prisoners during the apartheid-era. When asked what kept Mandela sane during those years, she said it was the community they formed for themselves. “One of the things that was extraordinary about [Mandela] is his sense that being in a group — a collective — of people committed to the same principles, along with making collective decisions about the way forward, is an essential element in movement-building and survival in circumstances that are harsh and oppressive,” she said.
For anyone who feels isolated and abandoned, know you have your FAC family. Get involved! For anyone who is having a hard time seeing the light at the end of the tunnel, know that it’s there! It’s a painfully slow process, we know – we’re on the front lines, but the tide is shifting!
Happy Holidays,
Your Florida Action Committee Family
SOME HEADLINES FROM THIS WEEK
Now it makes sense… political contributions over human rights.
My mind has been racing since watching the webcast of the Miami-Dade Public Safety Committee meeting this week. How is it that Ron Book, the same guy who has publicly vilified registered sex offenders, called them monsters, lied in testimony about recidivism rates (in…
NY Daily News Needs to Shame Sex offenders Posthumously
This week’s tragedy in Washington, when an Amtrak train derailed killing several passengers, could have stood alone as “big news” for the NY Daily News. So why did the news outlet need to run as story titled, “Third man killed in Washington state Amtrak derailment was…
Disney Princes are Sex Offenders
In interesting article, written by a professor from Osaka University, was published in Japan Today. In it, she points out that the prince from the fairy tale, “Snow White”, is a sex offender. She writes, “Imagine a loved one, say a sister or daughter, is lying…
Carnival Cruise Line’s Ban on Sex Offenders does Little to Protect Passengers
Carnival Cruise Lines has banned registered sex offenders from cruising aboard its ships. A move that we maintained is unnecessarily discriminatory and has caused families to miss out on vacations. But more often than any incident caused by a registered person on one…