Presented April 27, 1996 at RESIST 96
New York City, New York
Since 1988, Refuse & Resist! has recognized important examples of resistance against opression in the US. On April 27 in an award ceremony held at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York, the following individuals and groups were presented with Courageous Resister Awards.
Donovan Cole - the first US military personnel to refuse to take up arms against Haitians.
Dr. Jocelyn Elders - former US Surgeon General who was fired by President Clinton for giving straight-up, honest information about safe sex for young people.
Guerrilla Girls - masked crusaders fighting for equal representation of women and minority artists and who have also made collaborative posters resisting the brutal treatment of homeless people and police brutality.
Brenda Henson and Wanda Henson - founders of Camp Sister Spirit in Ovett, Mississippi as a cooperative meeting and living space in order to "teach and learn non-oppressive lifeways." They have defended their land and purpose against armed vigillantes and lawsuits against them for being lesbian and femminist.
Mae Frances Johnson - Chicago woman who refused to leave her apartment and organized others to also stay put in defiance of an eviction order from the Chicago Housing Authority, which was attempting to turn the apartment buildings into luxury housing.
Dr. James May - California physician who publicly announced that he would not follow Proposition 187 rules requiring that doctors refuse medical treatment to and inform the government about undocumented immigrant patients.
John C. Mayfield and Joesph Vlacovsky - two activie duty GIs who refused to submit to DNA sampling by the military. They are being courts-martialed for disobeying orders.
The MOVE Nine and Ramona Africa - Delbert, Mike, Edward, Phil, Chuck, Debbie, Janet and Janine Africa are each currently serving 30 to 100 years in prison for the death of a police office who was killed (by police cross-fire) during a raid on the MOVE headquarters in Philadelphia on August 8, 1978. Ramona Africa is one of two survivors of the bombing of the MOVE house in Philadelphia on May 1985 by the Philadelphia police. The police bombing murdered six adults and five children, and Ramona Africa was imprisoned for seven years. She continues to speak out for freedom for Mumia Abu-Jamal and fight for justice for the people.
Elaine Norwood - a Charlotte, North Carolina abortion clinic escort who was recently convicted of assault upon an anti-abortionist who had been harassing a woman trying to enter an abortion clinic. Ms. Norwood is seventy-one years old.
Jody Avirgan, Sarah Park, Marla Ruzicka and nearly fifty other high school students who traveled to Cuba in defiance of the US travel ban as part of a group organized by Global Exchange.
Kelli Peterson and classmates who formed a gay/lesbian student organization in their Salt Lake City, Utah high school. When school authorities banned the student group, these students organized mass resistance to the ban, involving thousands of students across Salt Lake City.
Sister Helen Prajean - long-time anti-death penaly activist and author of the book "Dead Man Walking."
Walter Righter - an Episcopal bishop currently on trial for heresy by that church for ordaining a gay man as priest.
Anthony Rosario and Margareta Rosario - who formed Parents Against Police brutality after their son was murdered (shot in the back) by police in the Bronx (NYC).
Jody Steinauer - who formed Medical Students for Choice to support and encourgage medical students to learn and perform abortion procedures and win medical schools to teach abortion procedures.
The residents of Billings, Montana - who came together in a show of unified force against hate crimes that were targeting African Americans, Native Americans and Jewish people in their community.
Patricia Baird Windle - abortion clinic owner who for over 20 years has remained firm in her dedication to assist women, despite serious and continued threats to her clinic, staff, her own home and family members.
Phil Zimmerman - who designed a highly effective encryption computer program to counter-affect government plans to control encryption in this country. This program, called Pretty Good Privacy, soon became available all around the world via the Internet. The US government has only recently relaxed it's attempts to prosecute Zimmerman for 'patent infringement' and for violating US laws that prohibit the export of computer encryption software (which the government classifies as 'munitions').
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