1. Medea Benjamin was born on Susan Benjamin on September 10,1952 and is an American political activist who, along with Jodie Evans and others, co-founded Code Pink.
51 Facts About Medea Benjamin
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Medea Benjamin co-founded, along with her husband Kevin Danaher, the fair trade advocacy group Global Exchange.
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Susan Benjamin was born September 10,1952, daughter of Alvin and Rose Benjamin.
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Medea Benjamin grew up in Freeport, New York, on Long Island, and is of Jewish descent.
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Medea Benjamin's father, Alvin Benjamin, was a wealthy real estate developer, president of The Benjamin Companies.
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Samuel Moyn wrote that Benjamin "liked how the name sounded, and she had heard a feminist interpretation of the Greek tragedy suggesting that Medea had never killed her children and was only blamed for it by patriarchal traditions".
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Medea Benjamin later returned to the United States and received master's degrees in public health from Columbia University and in economics from The New School.
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Medea Benjamin worked for ten years as an economist and nutritionist in Latin America and Africa for the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, the World Health Organization, the Swedish International Development Agency, and the Institute for Food and Development Policy.
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In 1988, with her husband, Kevin Danaher, and Kirsten Moller, Medea Benjamin co-founded the San Francisco-based Global Exchange, which advocates fair trade alternatives to what she describes as corporate globalization.
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Medea Benjamin has been involved with the anti-war organization United for Peace and Justice.
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Medea Benjamin later created the Occupation Watch Center in Baghdad to monitor the United States military, and the war's effect on civilian populations.
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Medea Benjamin is a member of the Board of Directors of Liberty Tree.
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In 2000, Medea Benjamin ran as a Green Party candidate challenging incumbent US Senator from California, Dianne Feinstein.
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Medea Benjamin advocated a living wage, universal healthcare and delaying genetically engineered foods.
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From 2002 to 2009, Benjamin engaged in numerous protests involving members of the Bush administration ; Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, and others.
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Medea Benjamin engaged in protest actions at the 2004 Democratic National Convention and the 2004 Republican National Convention.
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In 2009, Medea Benjamin joined the steering committee for the Gaza Freedom March.
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In February 2012, Medea Benjamin was arrested and deported for illegal entry to Bahrain and her participation in an illegal protest.
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Medea Benjamin repeatedly interrupted a major speech by President Barack Obama regarding United States policy in the War on Terror at the National Defense University on May 23,2013.
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On July 21,2016, Medea Benjamin heckled Donald Trump's acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention with a sign that read "Build bridges not walls".
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Medea Benjamin joined other activists on the 2024 Gaza freedom flotilla.
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Medea Benjamin participated in an anti-sweatshop movement, initiating campaigns against Nike and clothing companies such as the GAP.
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In 1999, Medea Benjamin helped expose the problem of indentured servitude among garment workers in the United States territory of Saipan, which led to a billion-dollar lawsuit against 17 United States retailers.
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For 2001, Medea Benjamin focused on California's energy crisis, assisting low-income ratepayers and small businesses.
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Medea Benjamin headed a coalition of consumer, environmental, union and business leaders working for clean and affordable power under public control.
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In September 2003, Medea Benjamin was in Cancun, Mexico challenging the policies of the World Trade Organization and in November, she was in Miami protesting the proposed Free Trade Area of the Americas while trying to bring attention to global peace and economic justice movements.
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In 2006, Medea Benjamin organized humanitarian aid for war refugees in Lebanon and spoke out against Israeli bombing.
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Medea Benjamin brought humanitarian aid and helped put together six other delegations to Gaza.
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Medea Benjamin criticized the United States government for passing legislation to send Israel $3 billion in aid, lobbied Congress and sailed on the US Flotilla to Gaza in November 2011.
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Days after Israel launched its Pillar of Defense operation targeting sites in Gaza during November 2012, Medea Benjamin led a delegation to deliver medical supplies to the Shifa hospital and the Palestinian Red Crescent in Gaza.
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Medea Benjamin helped to organize an annual gathering in Washington, DC, with the objective of exposing the "negative influence" of the United States lobby group American-Israel Public Affairs Committee.
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Medea Benjamin organized medical aid delegations to Iraq to civilians harmed by the United States military.
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Medea Benjamin testified in Congress and the United Nations against the Iraq War.
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Medea Benjamin was arrested outside the home of Blackwater's CEO.
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In opposition to indefinite detention in Guantanamo, in 2007, Medea Benjamin organized a delegation of prisoners' family members to Guantanamo Naval Base prison camp in Cuba, demanding its closing.
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Medea Benjamin was arrested many times for protests in Congressional hearings.
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On October 31,2009, Medea Benjamin led a group of Code Pink protestors at a protest aimed at military families queued up for a White House Halloween Party hosted by President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama.
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In 2009, Medea Benjamin began her efforts to bring attention to the effects of drone warfare, participating in demonstrations at United States bases where drones are piloted and at headquarters of drone manufacturers.
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Medea Benjamin organized a public fast in Islamabad in sympathy with alleged drone victims.
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Between 2003 and 2010, Medea Benjamin helped organized anti-war mass mobilizations in Washington, DC, New York City and San Francisco.
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Medea Benjamin organized the campaign Bring Our War Dollars Home, which fought to divert money from the Pentagon into social programs at home.
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Medea Benjamin later clarified that, while she did not approve of the tactics of destroying property, she did not want the arrest of those responsible.
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Medea Benjamin has been criticized by some Greens for her support for "Anybody But Bush" in 2004.
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Medea Benjamin had flown there en route to participating in a women's conference in the Palestinian territory of Gaza.
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Questions arose regarding the role of the United States Embassy in her detention, as embassy spokesman Mofid Deak said that Medea Benjamin left the country following assistance from the embassy, while Code Pink's Alli McCracken said the embassy did not help Medea Benjamin.
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In 2006, Medea Benjamin said that it was a myth that Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez had limited freedom of speech and eroded civil rights in Venezuela.
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In May 2007, Medea Benjamin appeared as a guest on talk-show host Tucker Carlson's show, which was then part of MSNBC's schedule.
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Medea Benjamin said the group had the permission of the Maduro government to stay in the embassy.
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In 2014, Medea Benjamin attended the second annual New Horizon conference in Tehran, which hosted several fascists and Holocaust deniers.
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Medea Benjamin responded saying she was "uncomfortable" with many of the attendees but learned a lot and had nothing to apologize for.
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Peter Camejo claims that, at the 2004 Green Party of the United States national convention, a supermajority of members had voted for endorsing the Nader-Camejo ticket, but a conspiracy involving Medea Benjamin caused a slight majority of delegates to instead endorse the Cobb-LaMarche ticket.