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International Campaigns: Mexico Hundreds of Activists Turn Out at Mexican Consulates Across the Country on Behalf of Mexican Earth Defenders Rodolfo Montiel and Teodoro Cabrera On October 11-13, in a dozen locations from New York City to Seattle, more than 200 activists involved with Sierra Club and Amnesty International's joint Human Rights and the Environment Campaign turned out to call on the Mexican government to release anti-logging environmentalists Rodolfo Montiel and Teodoro Cabrera immediately and unconditionally. SEATTLE: Activists in Seattle held a vigil and marched in front of the consulate office. They passed out press releases to interested passers-by and were interviewed by the Independent Media Center and Studio X. They were also able to get a meeting with the consulate and deliver a letter to President-Elect Fox. MINNEAPOLIS: Activists in Minneapolis held two public skits on the case of Rodolfo Montiel Flores and Teodoro Cabrera. They distributed flyers, asked people to write letters and sign a petition. The Amnesty group also reached out to several Mexican organizations in the Twin Cities area to inform them of the case and to ask them to take action. NEW YORK: In New York, under a full moon on Friday the 13th, Peter Kirn of the Sierra Club and Patrick Kwan of Amnesty International USA joined about 20 activists for a candlelight vigil. They handed out more than 100 flyers to passersby and were able, earlier in the day, to meet with Maria Teresa Rosas Jasso, Consul Alterna, with the New York City Consulate. At the vigil, they were joined by a camera crew from the Spanish speaking news outlet Univision who interviewed Peter. They were also joined by a special appearance of New York City Council Member Kathryn Freed, who spoke a few words. Ms. Freed promised to propose a City Council Resolution to condemn the arrest and conviction of Montiel and Cabrera. DENVER: In Denver, Ellen Moore and Natasha Nummedal, both of Amnesty International, joined 15 activists for a vigil on Thursday, October 12. Activists, who came from Boulder, Nederland, Golden and Fort Collins, handed out flyers and wrote a letter to the Consul General calling for Montiel and Cabrera's immediate and unconditional release. Natasha and Ellen also had the opportunity to meet with the officials from the Consulate on Monday, October 16. The meeting was reportedly friendly, but at times emotional. Ellen and Natasha reported that the Consulate officials were armed with briefing papers from the Mexican government on the case and that they falsely accused Montiel and Cabrera of having previous weapons and drug charges against them. Still, Ellen and Natasha stood their ground and delivered our message. Great work! BOSTON: In Boston, Gabriel Katsh of Amnesty International helped organize a turn out of 50 people on Wednesday, October 12, for a vigil in front of the Consulate there. After about a half hour of protesting outside, Gabe joined two other activists to go inside the Consulate to discuss our concerns with the Consulate representatives. They said they would relay our concerns back to the Mexican Ambassador in Washington. In the meantime, activists outside carried on and handed out a few hundred flyers and got several pages of signatures on a petition that they are mailing to the Mexican Embassy. TUCSON: In Tucson, AZ, Sabin Calvert helped lead a group of about 20 activists for a demonstration in front of the Consulate there. During the event, the activists delivered a signed letter calling for Montiel and Cabrera's immediate and unconditional release. During the event, Consulate officials agreed to a 20-minute meeting during which they pledged to look into the case and send a formal reply to the activists as soon as possible. WASHINGTON DC: In Washington, DC, about 40 activists joined together for a two hour vigil in front of the Mexican Embassy. As officials entered and exited the Embassy, activists handed out flyers and held signs to express our call for Montiel and Cabrera's immediate and unconditional release. On Embassy official, perhaps not realizing what she was doing, agreed to put a stack of flyers on the front desk in the lobby. We handed out about 500 flyers to passersby. Activists came from as far as Richmond and Hampton, VA, each more than two hour drives away. We are still awaiting a response from the Mexican Ambassador regarding a potential meeting. He has been trying to duck our requests. AUSTIN: On Thursday, October 12, In Austin, TX, on the campus of the University of Texas at Austin, a group of a dozen activists gathered to raise the issue of Rodolfo Montiel and Teodoro Cabrera during a demonstration marking the visit by Mexico's President-elect Vicente Fox to the school. Altogether, 200 people showed up to the demonstration and raised Mexican justice and environmental issues. President-elect Fox made the trip to the University of Texas to speak to representatives of the Fortune 500. Fox News and a local Dallas TV station interviewed our activists and there was a story in the UTX paper, The Daily Texan. There were also events in Los Angeles, CA, Oxnard, CA, San Francisco, CA, and Lancaster, PA. Up to Top HOME | Email Signup | About Us | Contact Us | Terms of Use