Browse Cases

Showing 551-575 of 1219 results

Mexican students defend public education at UNAM, 1999

Country
Mexico
Time period
11 March, 1999 to 6 February, 2000
Classification
Defense
Cluster
Economic Justice
Human Rights
Total points
8 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Mackenzie Welch, 12/04/2012

The National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) is the largest university in Latin America, with over 270,000 enrolled students. It is credited with educating a number of Mexican presidents as well as prominent Latin American academics. In 1999, students attending UNAM paid approximately $0.02 for semester tuition.

Operation Rescue activists resist abortion clinic in Wichita, Kansas (Summer of Mercy), 1991

Country
United States
Time period
15 July, 1991 to 25 August, 1991
Classification
Change
Cluster
Human Rights
Total points
5.5 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
David Zhou, 30/04/2012

There are few issues in the United States as divisive and bitterly fought over as the issue of abortion. In 1973 United States Supreme Court ruled on Roe v. Wade that the issue of abortion was one of privacy, a right covered by the Constitutional right to privacy. After the ruling was handed down there was a firestorm of anti-abortion furor, with numerous death threats issued against Justice Blackmun, who wrote the majority opinion piece. 

Wisconsin labor unions and allies campaign against Governor Walker's "Budget Repair Bill", 2011

Country
United States
Time period
14 February, 2011 to 11 March, 2011
Classification
Defense
Cluster
Democracy
Economic Justice
Total points
4 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Justin Woodruff, 11/04/2012

On Valentine's Day 2011 Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker proposed his Budget Repair Bill.  This bill would eliminate the ability for several labor unions to collectively bargain with the state.  

The bill would also limit groups allowed to bargain to be able to negotiate only base wages for their members.  Additionally, this bill forced state employees to increase the percentage they would pay for health insurance from 6% to 12%, and retirement pension from less than 1% to 5.8%.  

Tamil diaspora protests in Toronto against Sri Lankan civil war, 2009

Country
Canada
Time period
30 January, 2009 to May, 2009
Classification
Change
Cluster
Human Rights
Peace
Total points
6 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Jessica Piec, 11/04/2012

For many years in Sri Lanka, tensions have existed between the Tamils, 12.6% of the total population, and the Sinhalese, representing 74% of the population. One of the main root causes of this conflict could be traced back to British colonization, which saw partiality displayed by the British toward the Tamils through concessions and the subsequent marginalization of the Sinhalese.

Rochester City School District students campaign against budget cuts to arts programs, 2010

Country
United States
Time period
5 June, 2009 to 18 June, 2009
Classification
Defense
Cluster
Economic Justice
Human Rights
Total points
4 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Pendle Marshall-Hallmark, 06/04/2012

In the spring and early summer of 2009, the Rochester City School District faced serious budget cuts to its schools. Among the schools to be affected was the magnet School of the Arts (SOTA), one of the highest performing schools in the district, which placed a special emphasis on the inclusion of arts in the student curriculum.

There was a scheduled School Board Meeting to be held regarding the budget cuts on June 10, at which time a vote on whether they were to pass was to take place.

Newfoundland loggers strike, win better working conditions, 1958-59

Country
Canada
Time period
31 December, 1958 to March, 1959
Classification
Change
Cluster
Economic Justice
Human Rights
Total points
6.5 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Ron Vadnais, 22/04/2012

In the mid 1950’s hundreds of loggers were employed by the Anglo-Newfoundland Development Company (AND). Many of these workers were employed out of Grand Falls, near the town of Badger, Newfoundland, Canada. These particular workers soon felt that they were not being treated as they should be, and became increasingly frustrated with the low wages and uncomfortable living situations in the bush camps. These camps had cramped, cold, uncomfortable sleeping areas and lacked both showers and heaters for warmth.

Cambodian “Umbrella War” of 1942

Country
Cambodia
Time period
July 19, 1942 to July 20, 1942
Classification
Defense
Cluster
National/Ethnic Identity
Total points
6 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Christopher Baker Evens 31/03/2012

The French Protectorate of Cambodia began in 1863, but it wasn't until 1906, with the coronation of King Sisowath that the French took significant control of governance and cultural life. Even so, this loss of self-determination was mostly felt by the elites in the capital. However, anti-French sentiment gradually grew into a revolutionary movement.

Rochester, New York, women defy ban on voting, 1872-1873

Country
United States
Time period
1 November, 1872 to 18 June, 1873
Classification
Change
Cluster
Democracy
Human Rights
Total points
3 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Rachel S Ohrenschall, 29/3/2012

Before the U.S. civil war (1861-65), women struggling for their rights worked also for the end of slavery. The annual women’s rights convention of 1857 failed to meet because Susan B Anthony had spent her time that year lecturing against slavery. In 1863 women leaders Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucy Stone plunged into agitation for the anti-slavery 13th amendment to the U.S. Constitution; it was passed in 1865.

British Columbia locals save ancient forest remnant from destruction, Canada, 2004-2006

Country
Canada
Time period
March, 2004 to April, 2006
Classification
Defense
Cluster
Environment
Human Rights
National/Ethnic Identity
Total points
8 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Ruth Vanstone, 28/03/2012

Cathedral Grove is one of the last remaining remnants of an ancient Douglas fir ecosystem in MacMillan Park on Vancouver Island, British Columbia. Many of the trees are over 800 years old, reaching up to 250 feet in height. 

Indigenous allies in Ontario defend Lubicon Cree land against logging, Canada, 1991-98

Country
Canada
International
Time period
Spring, 1991 to June, 1998
Classification
Defense
Cluster
Economic Justice
Environment
Human Rights
National/Ethnic Identity
Total points
10 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Ruth Vanstone, 28/03/2012

The right to Aboriginal reserve land has been a contested issue throughout Canadian history, but perhaps one of the most disturbing violations of Aboriginal land rights is illustrated through the Lubicon Cree, a First Nations band in northern Alberta.

Landless workers win land rights in Nova Ronda Alta, Brazil, 1982-1984

Country
Brazil
Time period
12 March, 1982 to January, 1984
Classification
Change
Cluster
Democracy
Economic Justice
Human Rights
Total points
9 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Elizabeth Reilly, 06/04/2012

Brazil is the largest country in South America with resources comparable to the continental United States as well as vast amounts of land for agricultural development. At the time of this campaign, two-thirds of the population went hungry and were without work. 48% of the arable land was controlled by 1% of the population for large-scale agricultural enterprises. In 1964, there was a military coup that resulted in a twenty-one year military dictatorship and small farmers were pushed off their land, which was taken by the government.

Pennsylvania anthracite coal workers strike for better wages and working conditions, 1902

Country
United States
Time period
12 May, 1902 to 23 October, 1902
Classification
Change
Cluster
Economic Justice
Human Rights
Total points
7 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Benjamin Bernard-Herman, 23/10/2012

At the turn of the 20th century, the United States was heavily dependent on coal to supply its energy needs. At the time, two major types of coal were mined - anthracite and bituminous coal. Anthracite coal burns cleaner than bituminous coal, and was thus preferred by many Americans for residential use. The major anthracite coal site in the United States is the so-called “Coal Region” in Northwestern Pennsylvania.

South Koreans stop plan for nuclear waste dump on Gulup Island, 1994-95

Country
South Korea
Time period
22 December, 1994 to 30 November, 1995
Classification
Defense
Cluster
Environment
Total points
10 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Leah Grady Sayvetz 04/04/2012

In the 1980’s and 90’s South Korea’s nuclear industry was growing, and the Korean environmental and anti-nuclear movement grew along with it. During the 1980’s, over fifty percent of the country’s electricity came from nuclear power, so that by the end of the decade, storage of the radioactive waste posed a formidable challenge as on-site storage facilities began to reach capacity.

Danilo Dolci leads fast and reverse strike for employment, 1956

Country
Italy
Time period
29 January, 1956 to 2 February, 1956
Classification
Change
Cluster
Economic Justice
Human Rights
Total points
5 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Kevin Strand, 23/03/2012

One of the most prophetic activists and philosophers from the Western World was Danilo Dolci of Italy. To many he was known as the “Gandhi of Italy” and he devoted the majority of his life’s work to improve the conditions of the impoverished parts of Italy and especially the slums of Sicily. When he was 24 he renounced his middle class heritage, and moved to Western Sicily in order to begin a campaign to ease the poor conditions of southern Italy. He identified the problems that plagued Sicily as: severe unemployment, starvation, poverty, and Mafia influences.

Serbians win reinstatement of elected opposition members, 1996-1997

Country
Serbia
Time period
November, 1996 to February, 1997
Classification
Defense
Cluster
Democracy
Total points
10 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Tarit Rao-Chakravorti, 23/03/2012

The 1996-1997 protests in Serbia were an important step forward in the expressing the voice of the Serbian people and laid the groundwork for a broad, popular nonviolent movement that would eventually lead to the overthrow of longtime Serbian dictator Slobodan Milosevic. The campaign, which stretched from November 1996 to February 1997, was a public condemnation of Milosevic’s annulment of an opposition party victory in the November 1996 parliamentary elections.

U.S. officials nonviolently intervene in South Korea to protect leading dissident Kim Dae Jung, 1985

Country
South Korea
United States
Time period
6 February, 1985 to 22 Febuary, 1985
Classification
Third-party nonviolent intervention
Cluster
Democracy
Human Rights
Peace
Total points
8 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Natalia Choi and Mackenzie Welch, 20/03/2012

South Korea experienced political turmoil in the decades following the Korean War under the rule of several autocratic leaders who severely limited political freedom in society. As S. Korea was a crucial ally against the expansion of communism, the U.S. government was wary of being openly critical of the corrupt S. Korean government. However, the U.S. no longer could ignore the violation of human rights in South Korea when Kim Dae Jung, a leading pro-democracy dissident, sought U.S. assistance in his return from exile to Korea in 1985.

Freedom Summer campaign for African American voting rights in Mississippi, 1964

Country
United States
Time period
June, 1964 to August, 1964
Classification
Change
Cluster
Human Rights
Total points
8 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Rachel S Ohrenschall, 19/03/2012

By 1964, a handful of Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) field workers had endured three years of continued repression as they challenged Mississippi’s racial discrimination. Only 6.7% of black Mississippians were registered to vote in 1962, the lowest percent in the country. In 1963 SNCC’s Mississippi operation was facing a stalemate. Since arriving in 1961 they had few concrete victories to show for their hard and dangerous work in the state. They had gotten few people to attempt to register, and even fewer were successful.

Ahmedabad textile laborers win strike for economic justice, 1918

Country
India
Time period
February, 1918 to 19 March, 1918
Classification
Defense
Cluster
Economic Justice
Total points
10 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Natalia Choi, 16/03/2012

A heavy monsoon season had destroyed agricultural crops and led to a plague epidemic claiming nearly 10 percent of the population of Ahmedabad in 1917. During the period of intense plague outbreak from August 1917 to January 1918, the workers of the textile mills in Ahmedabad were given ‘plague bonuses’ (some of which were as much as 80 percent of the workers’ wage) in an attempt to dissuade the workers from fleeing during an outbreak of a plague.

Guatemalan indigenous peoples campaign for equal rights, 1977-1981

Country
Guatemala
Time period
1 May, 1977 to 14 February, 1981
Classification
Change
Defense
Cluster
Human Rights
National/Ethnic Identity
Economic Justice
Total points
4 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Mackenzie Welch, 17/03/2012

On February 4, 1976, a massive earthquake hit the highlands of Guatemala and displaced more than one million people. Indigenous groups from the departments of Sacatepequez, Chimaltenango, Guatemala, and Quiche were hit the hardest and the weak response from the national government brought to light the racial inequalities affecting indigenous peoples.

Congolese win independence from the Belgian Empire, 1959-60

Country
Democratic Republic of the Congo
Time period
May, 1959 to May, 1960
Classification
Change
Cluster
Democracy
National/Ethnic Identity
Total points
9 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
David Zhou, 12/03/2012

In the 1950s, revolution was brewing in the Belgian Congo. Africans living in colonized countries felt the winds of change swirling as their mother countries in Europe struggled to stand back up after suffering often devastating defeats in World War II, championing the ideal self determination and freedom while continuing to oppress their colonies.

Indian farmers and fishermen stop coal plant in Sompeta, Andhra Pradesh, 2010-11

Country
India
Time period
14 July, 2010 to 23 June, 2011
Classification
Defense
Cluster
Economic Justice
Environment
Human Rights
Total points
8 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Elizabeth Reilly, 16/03/2012

Coal is the main commercial energy in India and the government launched an internal improvement program in the early 2000s to bring energy to the hundreds of millions of people in the country without technology and other modern conveniences. Andhra Pradesh was the most ambitious state in this endeavor, as it proposed for 7 major and 30 smaller coal-powered power stations.

Philadelphia African-Americans desegregate trolley cars, 1865-1869

Country
United States
Time period
1865 to 1869
Classification
Change
Cluster
Human Rights
National/Ethnic Identity
Total points
8 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Dilcia Mercedes, 16/3/2012

In 1865, the Civil War shook the foundation of the United States when the South was forced to give slaves their freedom. Although the slaves were granted their freedom, African Americans were still severely restricted in their everyday activities. One of those activities was getting around.  The segregation laws in the U.S. made it difficult for African Americans to safely move from one destination to the next.

Ivorians demand switch to multiparty democracy, 1989-1990

Country
Ivory Coast
Time period
April, 1989 to May, 1990
Classification
Change
Cluster
Democracy
Economic Justice
Total points
9 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Tarit Rao-Chakravorti, 15/03/2012

Felix Houphouet-Boigny ruled Cote d'Ivoire for thirty-three years, following its independence in 1960 until his death in 1993. However, Houphouet-Boigny oversaw an important transition to a multiparty system in 1990, which led to the implementation of democratic elections. The transition to a multiparty system came after a large-scale nonviolent campaign by civil servants and students to demand a government that more accurately reflected the will of the people.

South Korean environmentalists protect Gyeyang Mountain against golf course development, Incheon, 2006-2011.

Country
South Korea
Time period
June, 2006 to 22 June, 2011
Classification
Defense
Cluster
Environment
Total points
10 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Jinkwon Lee, 29/03/2012 and Hayden Dahmm 15/05/2014

Incheon is a dense city of 3 million in the northern part of South Korea. One significant destination in the area is Gyeyang Mountain, which lies adjacent to the city and attracts 10,000 tourists daily. Gyeyang is largely undeveloped and is home to over 600 endangered species. Since 1989, there have been four attempts by corporations to develop the slopes of the mountain, but all plans have been rejected by the regional government. 

Canadian First Nations people protect water from dumpsite, 2009

Country
Canada
Time period
8 May, 2009 to 22 September, 2009
Classification
Defense
Cluster
Environment
Total points
9 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Kelli Klotz, 06/03/2010

The First Nations people respect water and consider it a live giving force.