MAY (your) DAY (be better)

New Campaign Posters by Los Angeles based artist Shepard Fairey, originally known for his "Obey Giant" Campaign, that became definitely famous through his promotional posters during 2008 United States Presidential Elections.





The same President Obama was one of the inspiration keys of the recent Los Angeles May Day March, that brought tens of thousands of immigrants by the streets of Los Angeles on last May 1st...
“President Obama made a solemn pledge to bring comprehensive immigration reform in his first 100 days in office. He has not done that. We must continue to struggle to win legalization for everyone. We will not stop marching until we prevail,” said Rally co-chairs Juan Jose Gutierrez from Latino Movement USA.
“¡Obama escucha, estamos en la lucha! " one thousand students all together screamed.
Not even the scare of the swine flu was strong enough to stop 15000 people from joining their voices by the street, asking for better rights, hoping for better lives.

Immigration Raids are a never ending story. It is about time that Washington leaders take a stand and call for an end to the raids. They are destructive, costly and tear apart not just families, but entire communities.
One year ago Los Angeles Mayor Villaraigosa asked federal authorities to lighten up on tactics that have antagonized immigrant communities. While visiting Washington D.C., he met with Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff and asked that federal authorities stop raiding L.A.’s “non-exploitative” businesses. Instead of targeting illegal immigrants who lead productive lives, “federal immigration officials should target dangerous or violent criminals,” Villaraigosa said during the press conference.
Now, one year after, the same problems.
“We are here to demand justice, dignity and equality for everyone. We want legalization, but we can’t stop there—we demand an end to exploitation and discrimination of all forms. We need more workers’ rights, more union jobs, and access to affordable health care, education and housing for all. This is not out of reach. Our labor creates all the wealth in society—we deserve to reap the benefits."(ANSWER L.A. coordinator Preston Wood)
Just two months ago House Speaker Nancy Pelosi gave a powerful speech, calling for an end to immigration raids, but nothing seems to be changing yet, and thousands of people keep being arrested and persecuted. Just because in this amazing beautiful country you need to have enough money to be able to buy your life, otherwise you're just an outsider, it doesn't matter how hard you work.

I'm an immigrant myself, AND I SAY STOP THE RAIDS.

...IMMIGRATION REFORM NOW.

AI WEIWEI

FROM n.p.r.(National Public Radio), May 4th 2009, report by Anthony Kuhn

Nearly a year after a massive earthquake left more than 80,000 people dead or missing in southwestern China, the government still has not released figures for the number of children killed in collapsed schools. Some children's parents allege that shoddy school construction was to blame, making the issue a politically sensitive one. Chinese activists continue to investigate the deaths, despite the efforts of authorities to block them. The artworks scattered around the courtyard of Ai Weiwei's studio in suburban Beijing are a mix of classical Chinese and rebellious avant-garde. The son of a famous poet, Ai is on a personal mission: documenting the schoolchildren killed in the earthquake.

Police Detain Activists. He says that the task is getting harder, and that police in Sichuan province have detained several of his volunteers. "The police confiscate your materials and give no receipt. They send you back to Chengdu by car, and tell you, 'Don't let us see you again. You have broken the law.' When the volunteers ask what law, the police say: 'You'll find out,' " he says. Others have been less fortunate. Sichuanese environmental activist Tan Zuoren, who conducted a similar investigation, was arrested on March 28 on suspicion of incitement to subversion. In Ai's office, spreadsheets on the wall display the names, ages and schools of more than 5,000 children killed by collapsing schoolrooms. The lists were censored last month from Ai's blog (in Chinese).

Difficult To Get Answers. Ai began his investigation in December by calling about 200 government offices and asking how many schoolchildren were killed. He says he got three standard answers. "First, 'This is a state secret, and we can't possibly give it to you.' Second, 'You are an individual, what do you want this information for anyway?' Third, 'You are hurting the parents' feelings. They're suffering and don't want to discuss the issue,' " he says. Ai says he will continue calling his government to account until he gets a satisfactory answer. "Our political system has always covered up the truth and failed to take responsibility. It conceals all problems related to the political system. So this kind of calamity will continue to occur in future," he says.

Government Pledge To Release Names. China's government has pledged to release the names of all earthquake victims as part of its first national human rights action plan, announced last month. Sichuan's vice governor, Wei Hong, said in March that while the government was still working on the final tally, it had already reached a conclusion about why so many schoolrooms collapsed. "The earthquake was of a great magnitude and intensity," he said. "This was the most important reason for the damage that our schools and other facilities sustained." Some citizens, though, have found otherwise.

Probe Goes On. Chengdu resident Wang Xiaodong investigated the collapse of the middle school in Beichuan county that killed hundreds of students. Wang says he has dreamed he saw the souls of the dead children, and he remains haunted to this day. He alleges that the school's construction boss sold off some of the steel that should have been reinforcing the school's concrete. Wang obtained copies of the school's blueprints, which he says prove his point, and mailed them to anti-corruption officials in Beijing. Speaking by phone from southern Guangdong province, Wang says he is not afraid of retribution from local officials. "If I could trade my life to bring back one of the dead students, I would not hesitate. Officials' threats and dirty tricks are useless against me. Because if this issue is not resolved, life would be too painful anyway," he says.

AI WEIWEI official website