Former U.S. Rep. Mark Schauer talks about his experience with the protestors outside the House chamber, including getting pepper sprayed himself.

According to Schauer:

"I think this rally speaks for itself. People are here to scream and holler and speak and make noise, trying to get the attention of Governor Snyder and the Republican legislature. Nothing else has worked. This is a peaceful demonstration where people are exercising their first amendment rights. No one was contacting the building, touching the building, endangering the building in any way. It's unfortunate that some of us were pepper sprayed. It was not necessary."

With no warning, or even a hint of an idea about why...about 20 seconds into this video you can see the riot police begin to spray pepper spray into the crowd of protesters:

Video streaming by Ustream

Update: 7:45pm EST: Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder has reportedly signed the controversial bill banning mandatory union membership Tuesday night. As anger escalated among the estimated 10,000 protesters in Lansing, police donning riot gear arrived with pepper spray, which was used on at least one activist. Police also arrested two demonstrators, and surrounded the Romney State Office Building.

A few photos, and I'll have much more later...

Civil disobedience inside the Capitol rotunda earlier Tuesday.

"Owned by Dick DeVos"

Update 9:20am:

Michigan Avenue, now...

Update 9am EST:

Snyder, GOP leaders to unveil right-to-work legislation plans at 11 am.

Inside the Capitol...

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An amazing crowd in Lansing right now, as the march to the State Capitol building is about to begin! I'm sure there are thousands, but I sure couldn't make a guess from here in the heart of it all beyond that. So many people from outside Michigan here to stand with us in solidarity -- it's truly touching -- thank-you all! A few notes before I'm off:

For anyone wishing to donate pizza to everyone protesting at the Michigan Capitol building, please contact Cottage Inn Pizza at (517) 267-9000 and they will see to it that your order is donated to the hungry, winter warriors.

Email from Progress Michigan (517-999-3646):

"We’re opening our office as a pit stop during the rally tomorrow. If you’re in town, join us at 115 W. Allegan, Floor 7 (above the Biggby), to get warm, grab some hot cocoa, recharge your phone, log onto free WI-FI, and make a quick bathroom break."

Details on the day's events here.

Will update either here on via Twitter @DianeSweet whenever possible.

Reuters has obtained video footage that shows a woman being executed “to cheers of jubilation” from roughly 150 men in a village near Kabul.

“It is the order of Allah that she be executed,” one man says, as another remarks, “Allah warns us not to get close to adultery because it’s the wrong way” as the executioner approaches.

The woman was reportedly kneeling in the dirt, most of her body wrapped tightly in a shawl, as a man shot her five times in the head at close range with an automatic rifle.

She then fell sideways as onlookers yelled, “Long live the Afghan mujahideen! (Islamist fighters)”, a name the Taliban sometimes use for themselves.

A shot rings out, but the burqa-clad woman sitting on the rocky ground does not respond.

The man pointing a rifle at her from a few feet away lets loose another round, but still there is no reaction.

He fires a third shot, and finally the woman slumps backwards.

When the unnamed woman, most of her body tightly wrapped in a shawl, fell sideways after being shot several times in the head, the spectators chanted: "Long live the Afghan mujahideen! (Islamist fighters)", a name the Taliban use for themselves.

But the man fires another shot.

And another. And another.

Nine shots in all.

Afghan women have won back basic rights in education, voting and work since the Taliban, who deemed them un-Islamic for women, were toppled by U.S.-backed Afghan forces in late 2001.

But fears are rising among Afghan women, some lawmakers and rights activists that such freedoms could be traded away as the Afghan government and the United States pursue talks with the Taliban to secure a peaceful end to the war.

Violence against women has increased sharply in the past year, according to Afghanistan's independent human rights commission. Activists say there is waning interest in women's rights on the part of President Hamid Karzai's government.

Just last March, Afghanisan's president Hamid Karzai endorsed a code which allows husbands to beat wives and encourages segregation.

Thousands of people gathered on the state Capitol lawn in Lansing Monday evening, to protest the treatment of two female lawmakers who were barred from speaking on the House floor last Thursday following an emotional debate over abortion.

They heard a recitation by the two lawmakers and others of The Vagina Monologues.

The performance, kicked off by the work’s author Eve Ensler who flew in from California for the occasion, was the culmination of five days of reaction to the decision by House Republican leaders to issue one-day revocations of the right of state Reps. Lisa Brown, D-West Bloomfield, and Barb Byrum, D-Onondaga , to speak on the House floor.

They said the discipline was in response to "incivility" displayed by the two representatives a day earlier during a debate over legislation to impose new restrictions on abortion clinics. Brown said she was punished for using the word vagina.

Welcoming the crowd, Brown said the legislation would “effectively overturn Roe v. Wade,” the 1972 U.S. Supreme Court decision which ended most state-level restrictions on abortion, and “turn back the clock to the 60s, when women were denied health care.”

Concluding her remarks during the House debate, Brown had said, “I’m flattered that you are all so interested in my vagina, but ‘no’ means ‘no.’”

Monday evening she said, “We shouldn’t be legislating vaginas, if you can’t say vagina.”

Via:

The play is a series of graphic tales - some funny, some violent - about vaginas. The author, Eve Ensler, said the protest setting at the capitol was a first for her show in its 16th year.

"This is a turning point moment," Ensler said. "This is a moment where we can turn this whole war on women in a whole other direction. And it's really important that we have her back and that we support her. And we let the world know this isn't going to be tolerated."

That's why thousands of Brown's supporters, young and old, attended the event. They wanted to make sure the next generation has a voice.

"She's going to change the world, and we gotta start somewhere," said Molly Kozlowski referring to her 2-year-old, who wore a "Viva Vagina" shirt and rainbow tutu. "She's going to be a strong, independent woman, and we're going to start here."

Women weren't the only ones speaking out about vaginas. There were plenty of men in the crowd supporting Representative Brown as well.

"We need to be honest talking about women's health issues, that it's not a dirty word," David Widmayer said. "This is not someone making a scene, this is how you have to talk about it if you're honestly going to talk about women's health in the legislature."

Ensler called on all women to participate in “One billion Rising,” on Feb. 14, 2013. On that day, she urged women to leave their jobs and their schools and go to the streets to dance.

“I want you to take over this place,” Ensler said. “I want you to dance for vaginas and life.”

From February 2011:

"People like Scott Walker can try and take away our collective bargaining, but they can’t take away our collective action." The working people of America continue their stand at the Wisconsin Capitol today, and workers everywhere stand with them.

[Credit: Occupy Iowa]

Precedent setting? Jurors find former state representative Ed Fallon of Occupy Iowa not guilty
of violating curfew law at Des Moines capitol because it violates Iowans' constitutional freedom to assemble.

Via:

A Polk County jury reached a verdict Friday in the first trespassing trial for an Occupy Iowa protester.

The jury found Ed Fallon not guilty of trespassing.

Fallon was charged with trespassing on the Statehouse grounds. He was one of the Occupy Iowa protesters who refused to leave the grounds after authorities said they violated an 11 p.m. curfew.

Juror Aimee Mairs told KCCI's Amanda Lewis that the decision was a matter of putting the U. S. Constitution above a state imposed curfew. She said four jurors were on board right away, but it took some time to convince the other two jurors.

Mairs said the jury decided Fallon was justified in being on the grounds for the purpose of exercising his First Amendment rights.

“It feels incredible,” said Fallon. “I’m excited about the positive aspects of this in terms of the freedom of expression and the First Amendment.”

Fifteen other members of Occupy Iowa awaiting trial were arrested at the same protest as Fallon, and all charged with trespassing. The not guilty verdict in Fallon's case could be great news for them. Or better still, perhaps charges will be simply dropped, sparing the court the expense of a jury trial.

2012 Feb. 20 • Silent Protest for Women's Rights • Virginia State Capitol • Richmond, Virginia from Silver Persinger on Vimeo.

Update: Lawmakers in Virginia put off a final vote Tuesday on a highly contested bill that would require women in the eastern US state to undergo a transvaginal ultrasound prior to an abortion.

Republican Governor Bob McDonnell, a Roman Catholic father of five, was poised to swiftly sign the so-called "informed consent" bill -- adopted by the state senate earlier this month-- into law.

But a day after 1,000 protesters descended on the state capitol in Richmond, the House of Delegates held off on third and final reading of the legislation, leaving open the possibility it might yet be amended or dropped altogether when it comes before the chamber again on Wednesday.

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Over 1,000 demonstrators assembled outside of Virginia’s Capitol on Monday. Standing silently in the cold, they lined the walkway used by the legislators who have been voting on -- and voting away -- women's rights in Virginia.

The Richmond Times-Dispatch reported that a bill to require ultrasounds of women about to undergo an abortion was scheduled for passage on Monday, but was pushed back by the House:

With hundreds protesting outside the Capitol, the House of Delegates delayed multiple contentious bills that appeared poised for final passage today.

The chamber pushed back votes on a measure that would require an ultrasound of all women considering an abortion as well as adoption- and gun-related legislation.

`From their Facebook page:

The Capitol ground rules say that we cannot assemble, hold signs, chant, yell or protest. We think silence in the face of this struggle and their unconstitutional rules presents the strongest response to their assault on women. Please come out and stand up for our rights and for the rights of all women in VA to choose the best reproductive route for themselves. These people are used to signs, yelling, chanting etc. It is not new. They are not used to silently being stared at and having to look us in the eye. It gives us the power.

Tuesday, reports indicate that even as women continue to protest at the Capitol, the ultrasound bill is now headed to the Governor:

After garnering national attention and jokes at the state's expense, a bill to require ultrasounds of women about to undergo an abortion will likely head to Gov. Bob McDonnell after final passage in the House of Delegates today.

On Monday, about 1,000 people appeared at the Capitol to oppose the measure as part of a women's rights rally that came together quickly through social media and word of mouth.

Continue reading »

Occupation of the United States Capitol on January 17, 2012 will Highlight Corruption in America’s
Political System

Harnessing the considerable power of the Occupy Wall Street movement, protestors from all over the country are being called to participate in "Occupy Congress" next week. It is the next stage in the widespread public protest that began last September in New York.

On January 17th, an Occupy "Call to Action" urges protestors to convene beginning at 9 a.m. EST on the West Front Lawn at Capitol Hill in an effort to bring the movement's message to the doorstep of Congressional lawmakers.

Rallying against corporate greed and corruption, the "99 percent" will arrive on Martin Luther King's birthday weekend to participate in a day of organized protests. According to the Occupy Congress website, the day's activities will include Teach-ins, an Open Mic, a Multi-Occupation General Assembly, Idea Sharing Sessions, and a DC Voting Rights Vigil. The day will end with an "OCCUParty."

Continue reading »

Thousands of protesters greeted lawmakers beginning a 30-day special session to address Washington state's budget woes, and police later using Tasers in a skirmish as a large crowd refused to leave the Capitol building at the end of the day.

Approximately 3,000 people protested at the Capitol throughout the day, though the number of protesters on campus at any one time varied. The protesters came from various groups, including Occupy Olympia, unions and social service groups.

Troopers used Tasers on three people when demonstrators when they tried to enter the Capitol building, and a fourth person was tasered outside on the other side of the building, where the three arrests took place after attempts to enter the Capitol from a different entrance. As clashes broke out between troopers and protesters, one trooper reported that he was bitten in the arm. Two people were arrested for assault, obstruction and resisting arrest, and another for obstruction and resisting arrest.

The protests marked opening day of sessions to focus on budget cuts as the state tries to deal with a $1.4 billion deficit. Governor Chris Gregoire has proposed reducing funding to areas like education, public safety and health care.