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Event
Equal Exchange Book Club!
May 7, 2025

Equal Exchange invites you to their Book Club Meet-ups: Apr 16 and May 7

Join us for an engaging discussion of Austin Frerick’s book Barons: Money, Power, and the Corruption of America's Food Industry, where we will explore the impact of multinational corporations on the global coffee industry. In this session, we’ll dive into how these powerful “coffee barons” manipulate prices, exploit farmers, and perpetuate inequality within the coffee supply chain. 
 
As an independent coffee company, Equal Exchange stands in stark contrast to these monopolistic systems.  We look forward to your insights and hope to see you there!
 

 

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Event
War and the Environment: One Course to Address Two Existential Threats
March 24, 2025 to May 4, 2025

“Climate change is the defining issue of our time and now is the defining moment to do something about it.” (António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations).

War and the Environment is a six-week online course that features six core modules, three interactive Zoom sessions, and a strong emphasis on reflective practice, collaborative learning, and community building throughout. As the world races to prevent climate collapse, finding solutions to today’s unprecedented socio-ecological challenges has never been more urgent. While discussions on climate change continue, it is crucial to address the elephant in the room—war. The call to end war is not just about peace and security: it is essential for the survival and flourishing of humanity and the planet.

As wars, preparations for wars, and environmental destruction escalate—and much of the focus remains on human conflict—it is vital to better understand and respond to the far-reaching impacts of war and militarism on people, all living beings, and the planet. This course empowers you to do just that. By doing so, it also addresses a question of central importance to everyone—how can we live together in more sustainable and peaceful ways? This is the most pressing challenge of our time; everything else is secondary.

 

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News Article
Honduran Generals Re-Imprisoned Over 2009 Coup Protest Killing
March 19, 2025
In 2009 President Zelaya was overthrown by a US supported military coup. Honduras' civilian population responded with demonstrations, which were met with brutal violence by the military.
 
Now, after a judicial ruling two of the generals directly responsible for the death of the 19 year old Isy Obed Murillo and violent action against other demonstrators have been sent back to prison from house arrest. The search for another general who was involved is still ongoing.
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News Article
Economic Sanctions: A Root Cause of Migration
March 3, 2025
 
One of the most common tools of US foreign policy are economic sanctions. At the same time there is overwhelming  evidence that migration1 is driven in large part by adverse economic conditions and that sanctions can have severe, harmful economic and humanitarian consequences for civilians in targeted countries.
 
The cases of Cuba and Venezuela demonstrate this relationship clearly: The imposition or tightening of sanctions by the US government have, in recent years, fueled economic crises that in turn have led to record migratory outflows.
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News Article
30 year jail sentence for one of the assassins of Berta Caceres, killed March 2, 2016 in Honduras
February 26, 2025
The honduran human rights and environmental activist Berta Cáceres was assassinated on the morning of March 3 in 2016.
 
Now, after many years of waiting, the full bench of the Honduran Supreme Court of Justice has confirmed the conviction of Sergio Ramón Rodríguez Orellana, ratifying his guilt of aggravated murder for the role he had in Cáceres assasination. He was sentenced to 30 years in prison.
 
Sergio Rodríguez is part of the criminal structure that has terrorized the Lenca community of Río Blanco since 2013, with the intention of imposing the illegal Agua Zarca hydroelectric project, for the economic benefit of the Atala Zablah family.
 
 
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News Article
ICE raids, deportation flights, Petro pushes back, Rubio visits Central America, femicide in Argentina, and more
February 1, 2025
As a result of a new federal policy that lifted a ban on immigration raids in “sensitive places” like schools, churches, and hospitals, school attendance has dropped and more families are attending church services through Zoom.
Widespread ICE raids were carried out in Chicago on Sunday and New York City on Tuesday, in addition to smaller raids in Phoenix, Atlanta, San Diego, Miami, and other cities across the country.
 
Local governments have in many cases been successful in refusing to cooperate with federal immigration officials, and local communities have held “know-your-rights” trainings, which makes the work of the federal officials much more difficult.
ICE raids in Aurora and Colorado were called off due to media leaks and the ongoing organizing of activists.
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News Article
Honduras: Will there be justice for the military killing of Isy Obed Murillo? That was aided and abetted by impunity and corruption of U.S. and Canada
January 15, 2025
The so-called “democratic allies” of the U.S. and the Canadian government in Honduras are involved in drug-smuggling operations, importing cocaine in the U.S., the killing of Isy Obed Murillo during a protest and more.
 
Several key leaders of the military-backed Narco-Regimes that ruled Honduras for 23 years had to face trials because of their crimes.
 
It is impossible to overstate how much violence, destruction and harm the U.S. and Canadian-backed Narco-Regimes did to the Honduran people and society and all of its government and State institutions from 2009-2022, yet the U.S. and canadian government had no problem cooperating with them for their own profit.
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News Article
Honduras Will Reconsider u.s. Military Bases in the Country
January 3, 2025
 
Since 1982 the U.S. has maintained a Military Air Base, known as Palmerola. They have and still are using hounduran ground without ever paying for it.  
 
Now, on January 1, Honduran President Xiomara Castro critically addressed, among other things, the continued existence of the u.s. military bases in her New Year's message. She warned that these facilities would lose their justification if measures were implemented that harm Honduran citizens. Castro also expressed her desire to maintain a “constructive and friendly” dialogue with the new Trump administration; however, she made it clear that any attempt at mass deportation of Honduran migrants would be considered a hostile action.
 
 
 
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Event
IRTF Fair Trade Open House
December 21, 2024

IRTF will have an Fair Trade Open House at our office this Saturday. Stop by and give your friends and family gifts that support fair trade cooperative business that ensure living wages, community investment, and environmental sustainability. These fair trade products are grown and hand-crafted by families who depend on this vital income.

You have the chance to purchase Equal Exchange products like coffee, tea, chocolate bars, hot cocoa, baking cocoa and olive oil from a Palestinian-Israeli cooperative. But also silver bracelets and earrings with mother of pearl inlay from Nahua Indigenous people of Taxco, beaded ornaments, earrings, necklaces, headbands, and handbags from women artisans around Lake Atitlán, Mexico, jewelry and ornaments from Colombia and El Salvador and much more.

We hope to see you there!

 

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News Article
The Salvadoran trail of Ronald Johnson, Trump’s man for Mexico
December 12, 2024
Ronald Douglas Johnson served as the United States ambassador to El Salvador from 2019 to 2021. He was appointed by President Donald Trump.
 
Johnson quickly became a key ally of Bukele’s administration, making frequent appearances at press conferences, work meetings, and even private events. While Bukele ignored the criticism of  international organizations who raised concerns about the human rights violations, caused also through the detention of tens of thousands El Salvadorans without evidence or trial, Johnson downplayed the controversy, asserting that the priority was reducing crime. The US ambassador also ignored the criticism of Bukeles authoritarian tendencies. He never took a position on the fact that Bukele used heavily armed military personnel to take over Congress.
 
Sixteen months into Johnson’s tenure, Joe Biden assumed the U.S. presidency, reinstated Jean Manes as ambassador in El Salvador, and reversed many of Bukele’s concessions. But with the reelection of Donald Trump Johnson will, if the Senate confirms, become the new ambassador to Mexico.
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