Hello all!

I know, things have been kinda slow our way as of late, but we have some exciting events coming up that you should REALLY check out. Oh, and, if you haven't already heard: we dropped the first part of our name, since it was getting ridiculously long. So, we're now UNCA Students for a Democratic Society! AND, we won an award for Outstanding Student Group of the Year! Ok, so on to the events:

Wed April 18th 7pm RH125: Crisis in the Philippines a talk by Mark and Melissa Dimondstein who are antiwar and labor activists with NC Labor Against the War and the American Postal Workers Union. They will be speaking about the "war on terror" and the current situation in the Philippines and about their delegation to the Philippines hosted by the Filipino labor movement, the Kilusang Mayo Uno (http://www.kilusangmayouno.org/).

Fri April 20th 7pm RH125: Live from Iraq: An Eyewitness Account Come hear Sami Rasouli, an Iraqi-American currently living in Najaf, Iraq talk about the current situation in Iraq. Rasouli moved to the United States in 1985 to seek medical help for his oldest son. His family decided to live in Minnesota, opening up Sinbad's Cafe and Market. In 2004, he decided to move back to Najaf and founded the Muslim Peacemaker Team, which works to rebuild devastated cities, reduce violence and protect human rights. You can read the latest Democracy Now! interview with Sami Rasouli here: (http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=07/04/02/1345213). He will also have original Iraqi artwork from both adults and children for sale - half the proceeds go to the artists and half go to the Muslim Peacemakers Team, so bring some extra cash for a good cause!

Hope to see you out at both of these important events! And hey - if you're going to the dance party at the Grey Eagle, it starts at 9pm, so you can still come to the talk beforehand. That's right. And remember - we still do meet, every Tuesday in the Highsmith Boardroom, but our meetings are starting at 7:30pm from now till the end of the semester.