Baltimore Nonviolence Center

Wednesday, July 17, 2019

Baltimore Activist Alert -- July 19 -- September 22, 2019

52] Baltimore Peace Camp to hold rally – July 19

53] No More Deaths Vigil – July 19

54] Black Lives Matter/Peace & Justice Vigil – July 19

55] Peace Walk – July 19

56] Migrant and Refugee Way of the Cross – July 19

57] Ballroom Dancing – July 19

58] Trip to the Harrisburg Peace Garden and the State Museum – July 20

59] Trip to the Harriet Tubman Museum – July 20

60] BARCS benefit – July 20

61] Canvass with Kris and Bill – July 20

62] Tree Maintenance – July 20

63] Summer Adoption Event – July 20

64] Peace Vigil – July 20

65] Protest Hopkins Hospital suing the poor – July 20

66] Know Your Rights – July 20

67] Music for Change – July 20

68] Hiroshima Commemoration – August 6

69] Nagasaki Commemoration – August 9

70] The Warmth of Other Suns – through Sept. 22

71] Emergency Demonstration against an attack on Venezuela or Iran

72] Donate books, videos, DVDs and records

73] Do you need any book shelves?

74] Join the Global Zero campaign.

75] Peace Park Antinuclear Vigil

-----

52] – On Fri., July 18 at 10 AM, join youth of Baltimore Peace Camp as they bring a message of peace and hope for all! Begin at 300 E, 29th St. and march to the Wyman Park Dell together. The Peace Rally will be followed by a “Play In.” Contact Nawal Rajeh <nrajeh@gmail.com>.

53] – On Fri., July 19 from 4 to 5 PM, get over to No More Deaths Vigil, hosted by Close Immigrant Children Prisons at U.S. Customs and Border Protection, 1300 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, WDC 20004. Honor the children killed by Customs and Border Patrol. Call for an immediate transition from a cruel detainment system to compassionate case management system along the southern border. No child should be imprisoned! Bring signs and friends! See https://www.facebook.com/events/412231139382407/.

54] – There is usually a silent vigil on Fridays, from 5 to 6 PM, sponsored by Homewood Friends Meeting, outside the Homewood Friends Meetinghouse, 3107 N. Charles St. The next scheduled vigil is on July 19. Black Lives Matter.

55] – On Fri., July 19 at 5 PM, join a Peace Walk, hosted by No one left unhelped inc. Join the family and friends of Taylor Hayes on the 3900 block of Edmondson Ave. off of Lyndhurst Ave. for a Forever Taylor-Put Down The Guns Peace Walk. Shanika will NOT be celebrating the death of her daughter but walking as she has done many times and many miles state to state and hopes that no other mother will have to feel her pain. Call 443-625-7720 and Miss Lisa can answer your questions. Go to https://www.facebook.com/events/1139209962954516/.

56] – Join Sacred Heart of Jesus Church (SHOJ), 600 S. Conkling St., Baltimore 21224, for a walk, praying the Migrant and Refugee Way of the Cross on Fri., July 19 at 7 PM through the streets of Highlandtown. Call 410-342-4336.

57] – There is an opportunity to participate in ballroom dancing, usually every Friday of the month in the JHU ROTC Bldg. at 8 PM. Turn south on San Martin Dr. from the intersection of Univ. Parkway and 39th St. Drive on campus by taking the third left turn. The next dance will be on July 19. Call Dave Greene at 301-570-3283; or email eneergdivad@gmail.com.

58] – On Sat., July 20, join Physicians for Social Responsibility Harrisburg for a field trip to the Harrisburg Peace Garden and the State Museum. Contact rlittle@verizon.net.

59] – On Sat., July 20 from 8:30 AM to 7:30 PM, get involved with a Fundraiser Bus Trip to the Harriet Tubman Museum on the Eastern Shore, hosted by Benjamin Banneker Historical Park & Museum, 300 Oella Ave., Catonsville 21228. Visit over ten stops along the Underground Railroad Byway. Listen to Master Griots Janice Curtis Greene and Bob Smith portraying Harriet Tubman and Frederick Douglass as they unweave stories and songs. The cost is $100. Visit https://www.facebook.com/events/2460485550651821/.

60] – On Sat., July 20 from 9 AM to 12:30 PM, attend a Sweet Shop Event benefiting BARCS, hosted by Clarity Belle at Afters Café, 1001 S. Charles St., Baltimore 21230. Enjoy a sweet treat and your favorite coffee drink while shopping Clarity Belle! A portion of boutique sales will be donated to BARCS. Look at https://www.facebook.com/events/682252115555985/.

61] – Canvass with Kris and Bill on Sat., July 20 at 10 AM or noon or 2 PM, hosted by Friends of Bill Henry starting at the Dickey Memorial Presbyterian Church, 5112 Wetheredsville Rd., Baltimore 21207. Sign up here to knock on doors with Councilmembers Bill Henry and Kris Burnett -- https://bit.ly/2KCmxCP. Now more than ever, there is a need an independent voice in City government to promote accountability and transparency from top to bottom. You will get all the training you need to be successful and have fun. Go to https://www.facebook.com/events/343198159906443/?event_time_id=343198166573109.

62] – On Sat., July 20 from 10 AM to 1 PM, do Tree Maintenance with Gunpowder Valley Conservancy. Tickets are at gunpowdervalleyconservancy.org. Newly planted trees need TLC to survive. Spend several hours to help young trees grow into healthy forests! Register online at gunpowdervalleyconservancy.org/calendar. Also visit the website for updated location and driving directions. Summer 2019 sites will be at Loch Raven Reservoir. See https://www.facebook.com/events/308497446747823/?.event_time_id=317994555798112.

63] – On Sat., July 20 from 11 AM to 3 PM, enjoy a Summer Adoption Event! It is hosted by Pitties and Purrs Rescue, Inc., 5007 Honeygo Center Dr., Perry Hall 21128-9815. The group will be at the Pet Valu in White Marsh to showcase the adoptable animals. Merchandise will also be available to purchase! All proceeds will benefit the animals of Pitties &Purrs! Visit https://www.facebook.com/events/411669802759493/.

64] – Each Saturday, 11 AM – 1 PM, Chester County Peace Movement holds a peace vigil in West Chester in front of the Chester County Courthouse, High & Market Sts. Go to www.ccpeace.org. Email ccpeacemovement@aol.com.

65] – Taking Neighbors to Court, a recent report by the AFL-CIO, National Nurses United, and the Coalition for a Humane Hopkins, investigated the medical debt collection practices at Johns Hopkins Hospital. The report found that since 2009, Johns Hopkins Hospital has filed more than 2,400 lawsuits in Maryland seeking the repayment of medical debt from former patients, including the hospital's own employees. The highest density of these lawsuits cluster in the neighborhood closest to the hospital, and are disproportionately impacting low-income patients of color. The hospital's use of wage and property garnishment has put many patients at risk of further financial hardship, and contributed to numerous bankruptcy cases. Johns Hopkins Hospital receives millions of dollars in tax exemptions to provide charity care to low-income patients -- and they deserve better. MCRC is a member of the Coalition for a Humane Hopkins which is calling on Hopkins to stop suing patients and their families for medical debt, and respect their own Registered Nurses' right to organize.

The Humane Hopkins Coalition's research and outreach effort will lay the groundwork for MCRC's advocacy and policy work surrounding medical debt issues in Annapolis next session. Until then, you can join efforts by attending a Sat., July 20 Rally from 2 to 3:30 PM on North Broadway between New Orleans and Monument Streets (in front of the Dome). Register at this link: bit.ly/JHHRally. Visit https://www.facebook.com/events/689078054861926/.

66] – The Capital Area Immigrants’ Rights (CAIR) Coalition will do a Know Your Rights Presentation on Sat., July 20 from 4:30 to 5 PM at Stony Run Friends Meeting, 5116 N. Charles St., Baltimore 21210. Email mdoutreach@cair.com. Phone: (443) 703-2590, Email: sroffice@StonyRunFriends.org.

67] – On Sat., July 20 from 5 to 8 PM, get with Music For Change, hosted by Tejas Music at Merriweather Park at Symphony Woods, 10431 Little Patuxent Parkway, Columbia 21044. Tickets are at www.flipcause.com. Let's get together to support a great cause with a night of music, food and friends! Pack a picnic and a blanket and help raise some of the funds needed to create a Community Ecology Center! The Community Ecology Institute is in the early stages of creating the center on a newly purchased 6.5 acre organic farm in the heart of Columbia, Maryland. People will be able to come out and learn through direct, get your hands dirty, experience about how they can lead happier, healthier, more connected and sustainable lives. See www.communityecologyinstitute.org and https://www.facebook.com/events/1177999779038740/.

68] – HIROSHIMA COMMEMORATION on Tuesday, August 6, 2019: 5 PM Demonstrate at 34th & N. Charles Streets against Johns Hopkins University’s weapons contracts, including research on killer drones, commemorate the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, and celebrate the UN Nuclear Weapons Ban Treaty. 6 PM March to Homewood Friends Meetinghouse, 3107 N. Charles St., Baltimore. Enjoy some refreshments. 6:30 PM The program will begin. We will recognize the Back from the Brink movement, the UN Nuclear Weapons Ban Treaty and the call for divestment from corporations profiting from nuclear weapons and endless war. Hear from Ms. Michiko Kodama, an atomic bomb survivor, a Hibakusha, from Hiroshima, who will come from Japan to share a horrifying experience. 8 PM Enjoy dinner with our guests at a local restaurant.

69] – NAGASAKI COMMEMORATION on Friday, August 9, 2019: 5 PM Join the Homewood Friends Meeting PEACE & JUSTICE VIGIL This vigil takes place every Friday from 5 to 6 PM. 6:30 PM Savor a potluck dinner with members of the peace and justice community. Dave Eberhardt, a member of the Baltimore Four, will share some poetry. There may also be some music. 7 PM We will make the connection between the movements to end the draft and the current one to abolish nuclear weapons. Les Bayless of the Silver Spring Three will inspire by sharing his thoughts on the fiftieth anniversary of his draft board raid. Patrick O’Neill, a member of the Kings Bay Plowshares will discuss a disarmament which took place on April 4, 2018. Contact Max at 410-323-1607 or mobuszewski2001 at Comcast dot net.

70] – BALTIMORE SISTER CITIES [baltimoresistercities.org] is hosting through August 23 a JAPANESE-AMERICAN ART EXHIBIT AT CITY HALL called “Flightless Cranes/Tobenai Tsuru” in the North Gallery, 100 N. Holliday St., Baltimore 21202. The title means “a crane cannot fly.” The curator is Kirk Butts, and the artists are Aimi Chinen Bouillen, Ahraun Chambliss, Mary Champagne, Kei Ito, Sanzi Kermes, and Ayaka Takao. Admission is free, but you need an ID in order to enter the building. The exhibit celebrates the 40th year anniversary of Baltimore and Kawasaki’s sister city relationship. It showcases 6 young Japanese, American, and Japanese-American artists, looking for commonalities in their immigrant identity and relocation themes that are part of their artistic heritage. The artists include several members of Baltimore Kawasaki Sister City Committee and other artists both local and national.

71] – The Trump Administration is again beating the war drums. Most recently, the target is Iran. Should the Trump administration initiate an act of war against Iran, consider joining us. It is a violation of U.S. law for the Trump Administration to attack a country that has not attacked us, as only Congress can declare war. The Trump administration is nevertheless beating the war drums for war against Iran and Venezuela. Should a war criminal, John Bolton, convince Trump to attack either of these countries, such a military strike would demand an immediate and unequivocal response from us to show that we will not tolerate his abuse of power.

Let's mobilize to show that we the people will not tolerate another military adventure, which would be bound to have profound negative consequences. If a military strike against Iran or Venezuela takes place, then meet at 33rd and N. Charles St., Baltimore 21218. If the attack is before 2 PM local time, then the event will begin at 5 PM, local time. If the attack occurs after 5 PM local time, then the event will begin at 5 PM, local time, the following day. Contact Max at 410-323-1607 or mobuszewski2001 at Comcast dot net.

72] -- If you would like to get rid of books, videos, DVDs, records, tarps and table cloths, contact Max at 410-323-1607 or mobuszewski2001 at comcast.net.

73] -- Can you use any book shelves? Contact Max at 410-323-1637 or mobuszewski2001 at comcast.net.

74] -- Join an extraordinary global campaign for the elimination of nuclear weapons: http://www.globalzero.org/sign-declaration. A growing group of leaders around the world is calling for the elimination of nuclear weapons and a majority of the global public agrees. This is an historic window of opportunity. With momentum already building in favor of Zero, a major show of support from people around the world could tip the balance. When it comes to nuclear weapons, one is one too many.

75] – A Peace Park Antinuclear Vigil takes place every day in Lafayette Park, 1601 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, 24 hours a day, since June 3, 1981. Go to http://prop1.org; call 202-682-4282.

Donations can be sent to the Baltimore Nonviolence Center, 325 E. 25th St., Baltimore, MD 21218. Ph: 410-366-1637; Email: mobuszewski2001 [at] comcast.net. Go to http://baltimorenonviolencecenter.blogspot.com/.

“One is called to live nonviolently, even if the change one works for seems impossible. It may or may not be possible to turn the US around through nonviolent revolution. But one thing favors such an attempt: the total inability of violence to change anything for the better" - Daniel Berriga

In Patriarchy No One Can Hear You Scream: Rebecca Solnit on Jeffrey Epstein and the Silencing Machine

Published on Portside (https://portside.org/)

In Patriarchy No One Can Hear You Scream: Rebecca Solnit on Jeffrey Epstein and the Silencing Machine

Rebecca Solnit

July 10, 2019

Literary Hub

https://portside.org/sites/default/files/styles/medium/public/field/image/silentscream.jpg

One of my favorite books when I was young was T. H. White’s The Once and Future King, and one of its central themes is the attempt of King Arthur to replace an ethos of “might is right” with something closer to justice. Justice means everyone is equal under the law—and equality means both that everyone has equal value under the law and that everyone is subject to the law. That’s been a foundational concept for the United States, but might is right has never ceased to be how things actually work at least some of the time. In White’s novel, might means in part the capacity for physical violence on the part of individual warriors, armies, tribes, and kingdoms, but the ability of individuals (and corporations and nations) to commit that violence with impunity is another kind of might that matters now.

The great work of investigative journalists in recent years has let us see might, naked and corrupt, doing its best to trample, silence, discredit the less powerful and their rights and with it the idea of right as an ethic independent of power. That these men actually run the media, the government, the financial system says everything about what kind of systems they are. Those systems have toiled to protect them, over and over. Indeed, power is not vested in them but in the individuals and institutions all around them. This makes it essential to look past individual perpetrators to the systems that allow them to commit crimes with impunity.

Maybe one of the reasons rape has so often been portrayed as “a stranger leaps out of the bushes” is so we’ll imagine rapists acting alone. But in so many cases rapists have help in the moment and forever after, and the help is often so powerful, broad, and deep—well, that’s why we call it rape culture, and that’s why changing it means changing the whole culture. Sometimes it’s the family, community, church, campus looking the other way; sometimes it’s the criminal justice system. If Jeffrey Epstein goes to jail for the new round of indictments—which only came about because one investigative journalist, Julie K. Brown of the Miami Herald, did an extraordinary job of digging up what had been buried in his case—a host of people who knew, laughed, looked the other way, allegedly helped him sexually abuse children for years will still be at large, and the circumstances that allow other Epsteins to attack other children will still exist.

Epstein gambled on the differential between his power and voice in the world and theirs and for the most part he won, because the game was rigged by dozens of people around him, even by the legal system that sealed the records, kept the victims and their lawyers from knowing what his plea deal was, and gave him an obscenely inconsequential sentence. What was the punishment for softballing child rape? Well, Alex Acosta, who was the US attorney in charge of the softballed Florida case against Epstein, is now our secretary of labor. US Attorney General William Barr worked for the law firm that defended Epstein.

And one of Epstein’s buddies, who’s been accused of raping a child under Epstein’s control and then threatening her if she spoke up, is president. The plaintiff in the civil suit about that alleged assault dropped the case just before the 2016 election, reportedly because of threats; 60 million Americans chose to vote for a man accused of raping a child in a case that has yet to be thoroughly investigated. Both Trump and Epstein have been furiously defended by former Harvard Law professor Alan Dershowitz, who has also been accused of abusing girls under Epstein’s control. Earlier this year, the Miami Herald’s Julie K. Brown reported, “An attorney for lawyer Alan Dershowitz wrote a letter to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit on Tuesday, asking whether the media should be excluded from the proceeding because his oral arguments on behalf of his client could contain sensitive information that has been under seal.” Money buys silence.

In so many cases rapists have help in the moment and forever after, and the help is often so powerful, broad, and deep—well, that’s why we call it rape culture.

Dershowitz, along with Clinton independent counsel Kenneth Starr (he who made Monica Lewinsky a household name), defended Epstein in the Florida case. Starr was later fired from a plush job as president at Baylor University, where one victim’s lawsuit alleged that during his reign little was done about fifty-two rapes, including five gang rapes, by thirty-one of the university’s football players. The Chicago Tribune later reported, “Former Baylor University President Ken Starr said Tuesday that he raised money on behalf of a former Baylor football player who was recently acquitted of sexual assault.” That’s what we mean by rape culture; when campus leadership rallies around the high-status males accused of rape, rather than letting the legal system pursue something resembling justice, or standing up for victims.

In 2011, when a refugee worker in a New York City luxury hotel accused International Monetary Fund Managing Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn of sexually assaulting her, it seemed fresh and meaningful to connect the private abuse of power to the public abuse of power, or rather to show how the implicit might-is-right ethos in the latter was explicit in the former. Now it seems exhaustingly obvious that what’s happening to refugees, to the climate and the biosphere, to the poor under hyper-capitalism, is a vicious disregard for their rights and humanity, and that some of the men perpetrating public brutality are monstrous in private is a given.

Monsters rule over us, on behalf of monsters. Now, when I think about what happened with Strauss-Kahn, who was subsequently accused of sexual assault by several other women, and with cases like his, it’s the secondary characters who seem to matter most. These men could not do what they did without a culture—lawyers, journalists, judges, friends—that protected them, valued them, devalued their victims and survivors. They do not act alone, and their might is nothing more or less than the way a system rewards and protects them, which is another definition of rape culture. That is, their impunity is not inherent; it’s something the society grants them and can take away.

The Senate’s Brett Kavanaugh hearing was a referendum on this aspect of rape culture. Christine Blasey Ford told us how she was assaulted and that Kavanaugh was not alone in the room as he attacked her, and then we got to see senators waffle, deny, excuse and ignore, and we learned about the malevolent machismo of prep-school culture and how the great fraternity of the northeastern power elite of the USA operates first and last to protect its own. The law of the land is now handed down to us by a man whose redfaced, self-pitying, rageful lack of self-control was displayed to a watching world and who got the job anyway. And as the American Bar Association put it, “A year after Yale Law professor Amy Chua wrote an op-ed article praising U.S. Supreme Court Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh as a mentor to women, her daughter is beginning a clerkship with him.” Meanwhile, Christine Blasey Ford got death threats and had to go into hiding. Countless women in other cases—including dozens who filed civil suits against Epstein—signed nondisclosure agreements that rendered them silent for life, further protecting the perpetrators.

For many serial predators, an elaborate infrastructure let them continue committing crimes with impunity. The Weinstein Company was a device for drawing victims into Harvey Weinstein’s spiderweb, then paying off the victims to silence them, or sending lawyers after them, or in the case of Rose McGowan, former Mossad spies so no one would hear her say what he did. As Ronan Farrow reported in 2017, “Weinstein monitored the progress of the investigations personally. He also enlisted former employees from his film enterprises to join in the effort.… In some cases, the investigative effort was run through Weinstein’s lawyers, including David Boies, a celebrated attorney who represented Al Gore in the 2000 Presidential-election dispute and argued for marriage equality before the U.S. Supreme Court. Boies personally signed the contract directing Black Cube to attempt to uncover information that would stop the publication of a Times story about Weinstein’s abuses, while his firm was also representing the Times, including in a libel case.” It takes a village to silence a victim, and there are a lot of willing villagers.

Like Epstein, the musician R. Kelly reportedly pursued children to sexually exploit them for decades, and money and intimidation silenced past victims and set up future victims. The journalist who spent those decades trying to make someone care enough to do something to stop the crimes, Jim DeRogatis, wrote in the New Yorker when Kelly was indicted, “Taken together, the five-count indictment from the Eastern District of New York and the thirteen-count indictment from the Northern District of Illinois present a harrowing account of a nineteen-year criminal enterprise comprised of ‘managers, bodyguards, drivers, personal assistants and runners’ all designed to ‘promote R. Kelly’s music and the R. Kelly brand and to recruit women and girls to engage in illegal sexual activity with Kelly.’ … For years, many journalists, music critics, radio programmers, concert promoters, and record-company executives ignored or dismissed the allegations against Kelly, especially when he was generating income and scoring hits.”

Monsters rule over us, on behalf of monsters.

Back in 2011, Cyrus Vance, New York City’s attorney general, dropped the charges against Strauss-Kahn on the ground that the victim—who had been extensively attacked by Strauss-Kahn’s lawyers and by journalists eager to discredit an African refugee woman—was not credible, though she later won a settlement in a civil suit with, of course, a nondisclosure agreement that silenced her. The Daily News reported in 2018, “FBI agents are probing the Manhattan district attorney’s office over its handling of high-profile cases that were dropped once lawyers for the well-connected subjects made donations, the Daily News has learned.

Manhattan’s top prosecutor came under fire last year after questions surfaced about his office’s 2015 decision not to go after ex-Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein after model Ambra Battilana accused him of groping her breasts in his Tribeca office. A lawyer hired by Weinstein at the time had given Vance $24,000 and another attorney sent him $10,000 after the decision to spare the powerful producer an arrest.” We read back then that a woman had tried to report on Weinstein’s sexual crimes in the New York Times in 2004, only to have her male editor dismiss the story; we learned this time around that another woman journalist tried to report in 2003 on Epstein’s sexual abuse of a 16-year-old, only to have her Vanity Fair editor, under direction of Graydon Carter, delete that part of her story. In patriarchy, no one can hear you scream.

These stories about the famously rich and powerful are illustrative of how it works, but the system of patriarchy doesn’t only work for them. A perfect specimen of how it used to work and often still does for any privileged male emerged this month in reports about a rape case in New Jersey, one in which an incapacitated 16-year-old girl was allegedly assaulted by a boy who filmed himself raping her and shared the video with the text “when your first time having sex is rape.” The New York Times reported of the judge in the case, “But a family court judge said it wasn’t rape. Instead, he wondered aloud if it was sexual assault, defining rape as something reserved for an attack at gunpoint by strangers. He also said the young man came from a good family, attended an excellent school, had terrific grades and was an Eagle scout. Prosecutors, the judge said, should have explained to the girl and her family that pressing charges would destroy the boy’s life.”

Judge James Troiano said, “He is clearly a candidate for not just college but probably for a good college.” In other words, because he was a privileged boy on the path to being a privileged man, he mattered so much that the victim did not matter at all, and the fact that he’d committed a crime did not matter either, which lays the groundwork for him and others like him to keep committing crimes and victims of those crimes to be told their rights don’t matter.

Truth is whatever the powerful want it to be, which is one of the fundamentals of authoritarianism.

Might is right.

Might is right. You see it all over again in the rape charges that columnist E. Jean Carroll made against Trump last month: Senator Lindsay Graham said, “He’s denied it. That’s all I need to hear.” Earlier this year the Washington Post noted, “President Trump’s pitter-patter of exaggerated numbers, unwarranted boasting and outright falsehoods has continued at a remarkable pace. As of June 7, his 869th day in office, the president has made 10,796 false or misleading claims,” and Lindsay Graham knows it, but as with his furious defense of Kavanaugh, he’s chosen an ethic in which anything a powerful man says goes and nothing a woman says matters. Truth is whatever the powerful want it to be, which is one of the fundamentals of authoritarianism. Might is right.

The underlying error in The Once and Future King, as I look back at it, was the assumption that you could have unequal power in the land—knights in armor with weapons and weapons training, versus unarmed women and serfs and servants—and somehow use it to institute equality. Chivalry is dead; it was always rotten. Arthurian romance was never going to be about the redistribution of power and wealth, but democracy is supposed to be, and we understand now in our new age of plutocrats (and the old age of patriarchy) how unlikely it is that people will be equal under the law while they are so unequal in might.

Some of that might is monetary, some of it is the corrupt power structures in the financial, political, and entertainment sectors that gave us Fox’s Roger Ailes and CBS’s Les Moonves and New York state’s Eric Schneiderman and Baylor’s football team so many more monsters who seemed to see the abuse of women as part of their puissance. Some of it—quite a lot of it—is gender. There are lots of good reasons for the courts to prosecute individual cases, but justice will not be done until might is no longer right, and power that includes the power of being heard and valued is distributed equally.

Rebecca Solnit

San Francisco writer, historian, and activist Rebecca Solnit is the author of twenty-something books about geography, community, art, politics, hope, and feminism and the author, most recently of Call Them By Their True Names: American Crises (and Essays) and Drowned River: The Death and Rebirth of Glen Canyon on the Colorado.

Source URL: https://portside.org/2019-07-16/patriarchy-no-one-can-hear-you-scream-rebecca-solnit-jeffrey-epstein-and-silencing

Donations can be sent to the Baltimore Nonviolence Center, 325 E. 25th St., Baltimore, MD 21218. Ph: 410-323-1607; Email: mobuszewski2001 [at] comcast.net. Go to http://baltimorenonviolencecenter.blogspot.com/

"The master class has always declared the wars; the subject class has always fought the battles. The master class has had all to gain and nothing to lose, while the subject class has had nothing to gain and everything to lose--especially their lives." Eugene Victor Debs

Baltimore Activist Alert -- July 18 - 19, 2019

40] Europe in a Changing Global Context – July 18

41] Stop Violence Now – July 18

42] Catholic Coalition Direct Action – July 18

43] Mandela Day of Service and Culture – July 18

44] Peoples Town Hall – July 18

45] Civilian Review Board Meeting – July 18

46] Department of Housing and Community Development Action Plan – July 18

47] The Threat of Constitutional Crisis – July 18

48] United States-Saudi Arabian Relationship – July 19

49] Food Rescue – July 19

50] White House vigil– July 19

51] WIB peace vigils – July 19

-----

40] – On Thurs., July 18 from 8:45 to 9:45 AM, get over to Europe in a Changing Global Context, hosted by the Atlantic Council and Embassy of the Netherlands at 1030 15th St. NW, 12^th Floor, WDC 20005. Tickets can be had at www.atlanticcouncil.org. Hear a conversation with His Excellency Mark Rutte, Prime Minister of the Netherlands. He will share his perspective on the transatlantic relationship, the need for greater US-European cooperation in a rapidly changing global context, and the ongoing political transitions in Europe and their wider implications. His opening comments will be followed by a moderated armchair discussion and an open Q&A.

Prime Minister Rutte has served in his current position as head of government of the Netherlands since October 2010 and has also been the leader of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD), a member of the new pan-European liberal party group Renew Europe (previously ALDE), since 2006. Check out https://www.facebook.com/events/2050391675269622/.

41] – On Thurs., July 18 from 9 AM to Fri., July 19 at 4 PM, Stop Violence Now, hosted by Maryland CEU Institute and Eastern Shore Psychological Services, LLC in MCEA Conference Center, 12 Taft Court, Rockville. Tickets are at marylandceu.com. While the workshop is about preventing violence, it is important to note that in most cases, untreated family violence and trauma drives violent behaviors among teens and adults. Prevent and treat family violence and chaos and you will prevent future violence. Visit https://www.facebook.com/events/343533049576886/.

42] – The Catholic Coalition has planned a strategic campaign to increase the visibility of Catholics willing to take more risks to stop the inhuman treatment of migrant children and to end child detention. The first phase is a prayerful direct action on Thurs., July 18 starting at 10 AM on the East Lawn of the Capitol, across from the Russell Senate Office Building. Union Station is closest Metro. The event will include civil resistance. Email emccarthy@cmsm.org.

43] – On Thurs., July 18 from 11 AM to 8 PM, get with the Mandela Day of Service and Culture, hosted by Prince George's African American Museum and Cultural Center, 4519 Rhode Island Ave., North Brentwood 20722. Participate in a 10th anniversary global commemoration of Nelson Mandela’s legacy of social justice, freedom, and humanitarian service. Neighbors, newcomers, families and friends, coworkers and community members, are welcome to join a day honoring community service and celebrating African Diaspora artifacts and culture. Check out https://www.facebook.com/events/700536600405411/.

44] – Go to the PEOPLE’S TOWN HALL: CONTINUED CHANGES TO POLICING IN OUR CITY on Thurs., July 18 at 6 PM to learn how to ensure we have real police reform in Baltimore City. It takes place at Union Baptist Church, 1219 Druid Hill Ave., Baltimore 21217. Join the ACLU, coalition partners, and community members from all around Baltimore City to reflect and provide input on the latest Consent Decree updates, New policy changes in BPD, Chance to give direct feedback — and draft public comment for submission and a General overview, community testimonies, and general feedback regarding local control, and recent changes to policing efforts in our city.

Police must use their authority consistent with the constitution and must be accountable to the communities they serve. Join local grassroots efforts and coalition members in learning more about upcoming actions, long term efforts, and help advocate for policy change in Baltimore. Look at https://www.facebook.com/events/348048212538176/.

45] – On Thurs., July 18 from 6 to 9 PM, there is a Civilian Review Board Meeting, hosted by Baltimore City Office of Civil Rights and Wage Enforcement, 7 E Redwood St., Baltimore 21202. The monthly meeting will review cases and authorize new complaints for investigation. Go to https://www.facebook.com/events/381864642473323/.

46] – On Thurs., July 18 from 6:30 to 8 PM, attend a Public Hearing, DC DHCD's FY20 Annual Action Plan, hosted by DC Department of Housing and Community Development at One Judiciary Square, 441 4th St. NW, Old Council Chamber Room, WDC 20002. DHCD receives federal funding for policies and programs in (1) affordable housing; (2) special needs housing; (3) homelessness; (4) homeownership; and (5) community development and public service activities. Each fiscal year, it develops an "Action Plan" on the best uses of federal resources.

DHCD has completed its FY2020 Draft Annual Action Plan. District residents and stakeholders are strongly encouraged to give input on the proposed plan no later than August 2, 2019. DHCD will submit the Action Plan to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development by August 16, 2019. District residents who would like to present oral testimony are encouraged to register in advance. Please provide your name, address, telephone number, and organization affiliation, if any. If you want to submit a written statement, please send it to opm.questions@dc.gov. Go to rootstoroofsdc.com. Visit https://www.facebook.com/events/358267744795805/.

47] – On Thurs., July 18 at 7 PM, be at Profs & Pints: The Threat of Constitutional Crisis, hosted by Live Nation Concerts at the Warner Theatre, 513 13th St. NW, WDC 20004. Tickets are $14. This is a scholarly look at the Mueller investigation’s findings and next steps for President Trump, Congress, and the nation, with Randall D. Eliason, George Washington University law professor, white-collar crime expert, and former Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, and Joshua A. Geltzer, founding executive director and visiting professor of law at Georgetown University's Institute for Constitutional Advocacy and Protection.

Our nation’s political system is at a critical juncture, with Democrats in Congress squaring off against a president with a penchant for disregarding the political norms that bound his predecessors. With talk of impeachment and a polarized and heated 2020 election in the air, Profs and Pints is staging a special event in which two talented law professors and acclaimed legal experts will help you gain a thorough understanding of our current situation and the challenges ahead.

Professor Randall Eliason will address “The Mueller Report: Where Do We Go from Here?” Professor Joshua Geltzer will examine “When the People Speak.” What if Trump refuses to leave after the 2020 results are counted? See https://www.facebook.com/events/1060115250849470/.

48] – On Fri., July 19 from 10 AM to noon, hear a discussion about the United States-Saudi Arabian Relationship, hosted by the Middle East Policy Council in the Russell Senate Office Building, WDC 20002. The 97th Capitol Hill Conference featuring the topic of U.S. - Saudi relations will be held in Room 485. The guests are Ms. Dana Stroul from the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, Ms. Elisa Catalano Ewers from the Center for a New American Security and Mr. Tom Lippman and Amb. Gerald Feierstein from the Middle East Institute. The event is free and open to all but please don't forget to RSVP by clicking https://bit.ly/2NIkGi2, emailing info@mepc.org or calling 202 296 6767. See https://www.facebook.com/events/474788009989777/.

49] – On Fri., July 19 from noon to 1 PM, Fridays at Grace Baptist Church, 3201 The Alameda., Baltimore 21218, are by Food Rescue Baltimore. Bring a bag, bring a friend, and take delicious, nutritious, free rescued food. Look at https://www.facebook.com/events/644335165987205/?event_time_id=644335232653865.

50] – On Fri., July 19 from noon to 1 PM, join the Dorothy Day Catholic Worker in a vigil urging the powers that be to abolish war and torture, to disarm all weapons, to end indefinite detention, to close Guantanamo, to establish justice for all and help create the Beloved Community! This vigil will take place at the White House, 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. NW. Contract Art @ artlaffin@hotmail.com or at 202-360-6416.

51] – Women in Black VIGILS FOR PEACE take place on Fri., July 19 from noon to 1 PM. One is at McKeldin Square, corner of Light and Pratt Sts., in the Inner Harbor, Baltimore. Use the purple circulator line. Enjoy an AFTER VIGIL LUNCH at the Inner Harbor. Bring Your Own Sandwich or stop by one of the food trucks in the McKeldin Square.

Another is at Roland Park Place, 830 W. 40th St., Baltimore. Free Parking available. Vigil at noon. Lunch in the Greenway Room is at 1 PM. If there's a storm, there is no vigil, but there will be lunch. Contact Anne: awyattbr@gmail.com. The final vigil is in Chestertown, Kent County on the Eastern Shore at Memorial Park at Cross Street and Park Row. Email wibbaltimore@peacepath911.org.

To be continued.

Tuesday, July 16, 2019

Baltimore Activist Alert -- July 17, 2019

27] How to Feed the World Without Destroying It – July 17

28] Rule of Law in Mexico – July 17

29] Food Rescue – July 17

30] War in Syria: The Kurdish Perspective – July 17

31] School of Food and Food Rescue – July 17

32] Residential Solar – July 17

33] Baltimore Solar Co-Op Information Session – July 17

34] Community Conversation with Ayanna Pressley – July 17

35] Sign-making for the People's State of the Nation Address – July 17

36] Activist Salon – July 17

37] Sanctuary DMV Accompaniment Training – July 17

38] "Pleasure Activism: The Politics of Feeling Good” – July 17

39] Court Support Volunteer Training – July 17

------

27] – On Wed., July 17 from 9 AM to 1 PM, check out How to Feed the World Without Destroying It, hosted by World Resources Institute and Cirad - La recherche agronomique pour le développement. At World Resources Institute, 10 G St. NE, WDC 20002. Tickets are at www.wri.org. Can we feed 10 billion people without destroying the planet? Find the answer at the interactive worldwide launch of the complete "World Resources Report: Creating a Sustainable Food Future." See https://www.facebook.com/events/396165190993167/.

28] – On Wed., July 17 from 9 AM to noon, check out Rule of Law in Mexico: Challenges, Opportunities Under AMLO, hosted by the Washington Office on Latin America - WOLA and Due Process of Law Foundation at 1666 Connecticut Ave. NW, Suite 400, WDC 20009. An estimated 93 percent of crimes in Mexico are never reported or investigated. A year after the election of Andrés Manuel López Obrador, what's been accomplished—and what remains to be done—to combat corruption and strengthen rule of law? Visit https://www.wola.org/events/corruption-rule-of-law-amlo/ and https://www.facebook.com/events/683504255445253/.

29] -- Wednesdays at the Free Farm, 3510 Ash St., Baltimore 21211 by Food Rescue Baltimore continue on Wed., July 17 from noon to 1 PM. Bring a bag, bring a friend, and take delicious, nutritious, free rescued food. See https://www.facebook.com/events/2335352913149645/?event_time_id=2335353063149630.

30] – On Wed., July 17 from noon to 1:30 PM, War in Syria: The Kurdish Perspective, hosted by Turkish Heritage Organization in The First Amendment Lounge - National Press Club, 529 14th St. NW, WDC 20045. Tickets are at events.r20.constantcontact.com. Join THO in host special guests Member of the Yekiti Party and Political Commission of ENKS Abdullah Kedo, President of the Independent Syrian Kurdish Association Abdulaziz Tammo, Co-Founder of the Syrian Cultural House Farouk Belal, and Syrian American Council Policy and Advocacy Officer Shlomo Bolts. Contact Pinar Gezgec at pgezgec@turkheritage.org or 202-261-6506. Look at https://www.facebook.com/events/2570476722971367/.

31] – On Wed., July 17 at 2 PM, and every Wednesday until July 24, 2019, School of Food and Food Rescue Baltimore will give out food at 1412 N. Wolfe St., Baltimore 21213. Bring a bag, bring a friend, and take delicious, nutritious, free rescued food. See https://www.facebook.com/events/2105994779640314/.

32] – On Wed., July 17 from 6 to 7 PM, there is an opportunity to learn about residential solar, hosted by The Valleys Planning Council and Irvine Nature Center at the Valleys Planning Council, 118 W. Pennsylvania Ave,, Towson 21204. Interested in residential solar and saving money on panels and installation? Consider the option of a Co-Op! Please join VPC and Irvine Nature Center who will be co-hosting a one-hour information session presented by Solar United Neighbors. Check out https://www.facebook.com/events/727702740977408/.

33] – On Wed., July 17 from 6 to 8 PM, get with Go Solar: Baltimore Solar Co-Op Information Session, hosted by the Irvine Nature Center, 11201 Garrison Forest Rd., Owings Mills 21117. Tickets are at www.solarunitedneighbors.org. Join Solar Neighbors United, the Valley Planning Council, and the Baltimore Solar Co-Op for an information session about the best ways to incorporate solar energy into your home. Discussion includes available tax incentives, discounts, and other ways to make solar energy more affordable. Learn more or at solarunitedneighbors.org/baltimore. Email mdteam@solarunitedneighbors.org. See https://www.facebook.com/events/661024407704817/.

34] – On Wed., July 17 from 6 to 8 PM, participate in a Community Conversation with Ayanna Pressley, hosted by Busboys and Poets, 450 K St. NW, WDC 20001. She is from Massachusetts’s 7th District. It is important for us to recall that the USA is a wonderfully diverse nation, and our federal government is in sore need of more voices representing that diversity. Busboys and Poets prides itself on creating a space where politics, culture, and art intentionally collide, in order to come together over what unites us. Pressley was the first African American woman elected to the Boston city council and the first elected to represent the 7th congressional district. Go to https://www.facebook.com/events/477079149529486/.

35] – On Wed., July 17 from 6:30 to 9 PM, get over to a sign-making session for the People's State of the Nation Address, hosted by Peoples Power Assembly, 2011 N. Charles St., Baltimore 21218. See https://www.facebook.com/events/2379488295423916/. Learn more about the Malaya Movement for justice and democracy in the Philippines. Check out https://www.facebook.com/events/314933046056501/.

36] – On Wed., July 17 from 6:30 to 8 PM, come to an Activist Salon, hosted by the Women's Institute for Freedom of the Press, Washington, District of Columbia. Enjoy an evening of presentations, discussions, song, award ceremony, food and drink with other activists. Learn about the programs of New Story Leadership for the Middle East (NSL), Global Woman, and other organizations. See https://www.facebook.com/events/2361685527442214/.

37] – On Wed., July 17 from 6:30 to 8:30 PM, attend a Sanctuary DMV Accompaniment Training, hosted by Sanctuary DMV at Christ Congregational Church, 9525 Colesville Rd., Silver Spring 20901. REGISTER HERE https://forms.gle/AF4bHymwykNp4vtK8. Over the past two years, volunteers with Sanctuary DMV's accompaniment program have supported dozens of immigrants at their ICE check-ins, immigration court appointments, and more. They show solidarity, reduce the likelihood of detention with their presence, and keep relatives or lawyers informed in case of an arrest. There is an increasing number of requests for accompaniment and need more volunteers to help fill the need. Because of the volume of requests for check-ins and appointments in Baltimore in particular, help build a bigger volunteer base in Maryland. Go to https://www.facebook.com/events/467396844074967/.

38] – On Wed., July 17 from 7 to 9 PM, catch the Book Talk with Adrienne Maree Brown, hosted by Eaton Workshop, 1201 K St. NW, WDC 20005. Brown will discuss her new book "Pleasure Activism: The Politics of Feeling Good." Look at https://www.facebook.com/events/359999954713254/.

39] --On Wed., July 17 at 7:30 PM, be at a Court Support Volunteer Training, hosted by Sanctuary Streets Baltimore at Grace United Methodist Church, 5407 N. Charles St., Baltimore 21210. As the assault on immigrant rights and well-being continues, you are invited to join in solidarity with our neighbors and learn more about how to support Baltimore’s compañerxs via accompaniment to court dates and ICE check-ins. See https://www.facebook.com/events/434489593946862/.