Please click HERE for a PDF version of this newsletter.

Poverty: Human Rights Matter

By Livia Carusi

Sir William Deane, Australia’s 22nd Governor General, notably said : “It is my firm belief that the ultimate test of our worth as a democratic nation is how we treat our most disadvantaged and vulnerable”.

Deane’s belief and challenge to our great nation, in fact to all nations, remains as relevant in 2012 and beyond as it did in 1998. If we accept Deane’s belief, then the challenge thrown down to us all is how to translate this belief into action, into reality.

Human Rights & Poverty

We tend to conceive of poverty within an international framework which confronts us with horrific images of people – including the most vulnerable of all, children – who are not afforded their basic human rights, including food, water, health care, education, housing, employment. 

So what do we understand of poverty within the Australian context? And does the approach we adopt in responding to this question make a difference?

Click HERE for the complete article. Courtesy “ProgressOhio“,flickr

Human Rights & Poverty:
The State of the Nation Forum
 
Friday 21 October 2011, 9:45 to 11:30am

at St Vincent de Paul Society 43 Prospect Street Box Hill VIC

Guest Speaker: Dr Cassandra Goldie,

Executive Officer, Australian Council of Social Services

Panel Respondents:

Lucy Adams, Public Interest Law Clearing House

Michaela Guthridge, Board Member Social Policy Connections

RSVP to Livia Carusi livia.carusi@svdp-vic.org.au , 03 9895 5859 Click HERE for the flyer.

Part of Anti-Poverty Week, hosted by The St Vincent de Paul Society Victoria, in partnership with the Public Interest Law Clearing House, Social Policy Connections, and the Australian Council of Social Services.

Participating and Supporting the Cause!

In Australia this year, Anti-Poverty Week takes place 16 to 22 October. To become involved, to learn of the initiatives and opportunities, and/or to advertise an activity, go to www.antipovertyweek.org.au.

Seeking Asylum: A Just Solution?

Bishop Vincent Long  OFMConv
Respondent : Hon Malcolm Fraser
 Tuesday 11 October 2011 at 7 for 7:30 pm

ACU Central Hall 20-22 Brunswick Street Fitzroy

RSVP to justice@cam.org.au

Enquiries Mark Clarke 03 9926 5727 www.cam.org.au/justice

This year’s Rerum Novarum Oration, delivered by Bishop Vincent Long, will examine the issue of asylum seekers arriving in Australia by boat. Bishop Long himself arrived in Australia as an asylum seeker.

The Hon. Mr Malcolm Fraser will respond. As Prime Minister, Mr Fraser introduced an immigration policy that enabled the compassionate and orderly integration of asylum seekers and refugees arriving in Australia by boat from Indo-China.

Media Launch:
The Mental Health of Asylum Seekers
Rev Alistair MacraeWednesday 12 October 2011 at 11am

St Brigid’s Church hall, 378 Nicholson St., North Fitzroy Melbourne

Panel: Caz Coleman, Dr Tony Ward, Rev Alistair Macrae (President, Uniting Church of Australia)

Contact The Yarra Institute for Religion and Social Policy: (03) 9899 4777; mobile: 0409 897 971 admin@yarrainstitute.org.au;

Click HERE for the invitation to the press launch.

Lengthy periods in detention seriously harm the mental health of asylum seekers. Economist Dr Tony Ward estimates the lifetime health costs of such trauma in his report, Long-Term Health Costs of Extended Mandatory Detention of Asylum Seekers. He writes that trauma sufferers will often experience signficant lifetime mental health issues as a result of prolonged times in detention.
This report forms part of a project of the Yarra Institute for Religion and Social Policy, and is funded by Good Shepherd Australia New Zealand. Photo:Rev Alistair Macrae
 
Towards a Sustainable Culture
by Geoff Lacey
 
sufficient for the dayGeoff Lacey’s book, Sufficient for the Day: Towards a Sustainable Culture, was launched on 15 September at Dymocks in Collins Street. Speaking to some 90 guests, and Dr Paul Mees, Senior Lecturer in Planning at RMIT, launched the book, underscoring Geoff Lacey’s unique approach to the roots of the environmental crisis as well as pointing a way forward. This insightful book retails at $20, plus postage and handling. Please address orders or enquiries to Yarra Institute on 03 9899 4777, or at admin@yarrainstitute.org.au .

Click  HERE to order Sufficient for the Day: Towards a Sustainable Culture

 

 Prisons & The Justice System
Catholic Social Justice Statement 2011-2012

By Doug Rutledge 

Social Justice Sunday 2011

Prisoners are among the forgotten people in society. We hear of them only when they make a good media story: a riot in prison, a ‘celebrity’ criminal being sentenced, or as in the recent Carl Williams case, murdered. Sometimes, we hear of the ‘luxury’ conditions, and the outrage about prisoners having their own television and shower.

Political parties commonly propose “getting tougher on crime”, although the sorts of policies trotted out have rarely been shown to be effective in the real world.

And yet prisoners are as much an integral part of our society as anyone else. In the words of the Social Justice Statement from the Australian Catholic Bishops, “It is time for all Australians to revisit the needs of prisoners, their loved ones, and those who work with them. It is time to recommit ourselves to reducing the number of Australians held in prison, making better provision for ex-prisoners to become law-abiding and constructive citizens”. Click HEREto read the full article.

Cardijn in Australia Conference:

Planning for the Future:
How Cardijn’s methods can change our world

4-6 November 2011

Conference details – click HERE

Registration – click HERE

cardijnGenerations of youth around the world in the twentieth century were empowered by Cardinal Joseph Cardijn’s exhortation, “You can make a difference!”, and his See, Judge, Act method enabled Cardijn youth movements to make a significant impact on Australian society.
The conference will explore the ways in which Cardijn’s method might be developed among adults in parishes and elsewhere. Bishop Eugene Hurley of Darwin will give the keynote address, and panelists and speakers will tell of present-day experiences and initiatives.
   
Social Policy Connections featured video

Dr. Paul Mees comments on Sufficient for the Day: towards a sustainable culture

Click HERE if the video does not display properly

Click HERE to view more SPC videos

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