Amnesty International, York

people at a monthly amnesty meeting

Events of 2022, 2023 & 2024 by York Amnesty International Group

  • At our meeting of Tuesday 13th February 2024, a fascinating talk about the situation in Ghana was given by Robert Wanjala
  • TURKEY - At the time of the Tulip Festival in Istanbul, Amnesty York asked York residents to sign tulip cards for our friends in Istanbul prisons, who cannot enjoy the city’s tulip displays themselves. 27-4-2024
  • Another Amnesty year passes and here we are again on Bishopthorpe Road with our 2024 Greeting Cards Campaign for people at risk. It is an end of the year international campaign which sees thousands of good wishes arriving from around the world to people in prison cells or at risk in their community. This year we sent cards to Australia, USA, Tunisia and Sri Lanka (on behalf of the Rohingya in Myanmar.) A monumental downpour stopped our December stall, so we tried again in January with 116 cards signed by the public. And Rachael Maskell MP and the Lord and Lady Mayoress rebooked us into their January diary to come along to our stall and write their own cards.
  • Speakers included a speaker on human rights in Egypt, Joe Dunford, the country co-ordinator for Algeria and Libya, and Rebecca Patterson, the new Amnesty Activism Rep for the North East Region.
  • We held a St Valentine’s Day event at King’s Square, asking members of the public to choose the freedoms which they valued most.
  • We heard, for Women’s Day, a talk on women’s health projects in Afghanistan.
  • We continued our link with Refugee Action.
  • We supported the York Pride event.
  • The Quilt eventually returned to York, from its temporary home in the Bradford Peace Museum, being splendidly displayed in the staircase of the Friends’ Meeting House.
  • A strawberries and prosecco evening at Judy Donovan’s home raised £600 for Amnesty, followed by the stall at Osbaldwick fair, arranged by Dian and Andrew, which raised another £471.
  • An October event in raised awareness of Osman Kavala, enduring long-term imprisonment in Turkey
  • Andrew S kept us informed of Alaa Abdel Fattah, on hunger strike in prison in Egypt, whose plight was publicised during the Cop 22 summit in Sharm el-Sheikh.
  • Letter writing at the Winning Post took place in October and November, resuming in January 2023.
  • We held our Write for Rights event at Bishopthorpe Road in December, attended by MP Rachael Maskell and Rebecca Patterson. We collected 102 cards
  • The website and social media are well used, thanks to our media team, Don and Tim
  • A talk by HealthProm, a UK Organisation on its women's health project in Afghanistan
  • 11th February 2023 - Valentine’s Day offering from Amnesty York in Kings Square: Love Your Rights.