Baltimore Activist Alert -- January 20 - 21, 2021

36] SOUPer Bowl Food Drive – Jan. 20 – Feb. 7

37] What the Biden Administration can do – Jan. 20

38] North Korea's Nuclear Fuel Cycle -- Jan. 20

39] Mayor issues an Executive Order to align city with the Treaty – Jan. 20

40] Arts Song Brew – Jan. 20

41] Plan Colombia -- Jan. 20

42] The Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons – Jan. 21

43] Community Resource Day – Jan. 21

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36] – On Wed., Jan. 20 at midnight to 11:45 PM EST, get over to a SOUPer Bowl Food Drive, hosted by the Anne Arundel County Food Bank.  This will continue each day through Sun., Feb. 7. Visit https://aafoodbank.org/. Fight hunger and celebrate the Big Game with a virtual "SOUPer Bowl" food drive in support of Anne Arundel County Food Bank.

37] – Jim Zogby wrote about what the Biden Administration can do: "After Bush, Obama, and Trump: What Biden Can Do." Read it here http://www.gdnonline.com/Details/913336?emci=736d81f6-5f5a-eb11-a607-00155d43c992&emdi=667d4339-805a-eb11-a607-00155d43c992&ceid=389907.  Register to receive the dial-in information for the Zoom call on Wed., Jan. 20 from 2 to 2:30 PM ET sharp. After you register at https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJcvd-GqrDssHNZBwpPxwiu53DsO1FDLERts?emci=736d81f6-5f5a-eb11-a607-00155d43c992&emdi=667d4339-805a-eb11-a607-00155d43c992&ceid=389907, you will automatically get the dial-in information for the call.

38] – Attend online a seminar North Korea's Nuclear Fuel Cycle with Sulgiye Park, Stanford University on Wed., Jan. 20 from 2:30 to 3:30 PM ET. Register in advance for this webinar: https://stanford.zoom.us/webinar/register/8416068696120/WN_f4pQF0UNQkW4i3NIi1hotA.  Contact Emilie Silva at emilieds@stanford.edu. Determination and verification of the nuclear activities of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) are critical to ongoing disarmament and nonproliferation efforts. This study assesses the complete nuclear fuel cycle of the DPRK, from its capacity to produce fissile material precursors at mining and milling facilities in Pyongsan, to activity at the main Nuclear Scientific Research Center in Yongbyon.

39] – On Wed., Jan. 20 at 6 PM EST online, Mayor Nicole LaChappelle of Easthampton, Massachusetts, will issue an Executive Policy Order to align this city with the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons by divesting the city from the nuclear weapons industry and refusing contracts with companies that make nuclear weapons.  You can listen in via this zoom link, and also ask to speak for up to three minutes in support of the Mayor at the start of the City Council meeting at 6 PM: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84068677458?pwd=UWVpL2ZtajA5ZktmQkJCZVFiUWZ6dz09#success.

40] – On Wed., Jan. 20 at 7 PM, the Maryland Poor Peoples Campaign is hosting a Theomusicology & Movement Arts Song Brew.  Maryland Artists of All Mediums are invited! A song brew is a virtual gathering where artists (and artists yet-to-be) of all mediums – not just singers and musicians – come together to create song and reflect on issues facing us today. Sign up at https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJIsdOipqD8rE9Pl29VSM0RuqzubyjFncNBf?link_id=11&can_id=4b9d4061aec5469758759317ac0f5285&source=email-maryland-poor-peoples-campaign-weekly-update-35&email_referrer=email_1040387&email_subject=maryland-poor-peoples-campaign-weekly-update.

41] – The 3rd Virtual Human Rights Delegation to Colombia will happen on Wed., Jan. 20 at 7:30PM.  THIS EVENT IS FULLY BILINGUAL.  The theme will be: “The Impact of the Anti-Drug Policies of the US in Colombia, Including Plan Colombia.”  The guest speaker is Pedro Arenas, Co-founder Corporación Viso Mutop; Member of the Civil Society Committee before the UN Drug Commission; Associate, International Drug Policy Consortium. In preparation for this event, read “Part 1: The Forgotten Story of How Joe Biden Helped Ramp Up the War on Drugs in Colombia” at https://covertactionmagazine.com/2021/01/11/exclusive-series-bidens-foreign-policy-history-and-what-it-portends-for-his-presidency/.

You can watch and participate in this event via: Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88170044754 or Twitter: https://t.co/V6RsqZ3AaC. @TaskAmericas @FriendsLatinAm https://t.co/kj6ELnJrXo https://twitter.com/hey_ter/status/1346489943741190144?s=20 or Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/100000046015883/posts/3934332816578213/?d=n.

42] – Join the International Physicians for the Prevention of War and others for a global health discussion with leading health experts marking the entry into force of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW).The webinar will take place on Thurs., Jan. 21 from 9 to 10 AM ET and will explore the TPNW in the context of a global pandemic and climate crisis, with a focus on the role of health professionals in advancing the eradication of nuclear weapons through evidence-based policy-making. Panelists will highlight practical actions that attendees can take in their own organizations and related health field. Sign up at https://www.ippnw.org/news/global-health-webinar.

43] – On Thurs., Jan. 21 from 10 AM to 1 PM EST, be at the Community Resource Day at the Franciscan Center of Baltimore.  See https://www.facebook.com/fcbmore/. The idea is to give everything away. If you would like to volunteer for this event or would like to partner on this event, email Angela Hall at AHall@fcbmore.org. 

To be continued

Donations can be sent to Max Obuszewski, Baltimore Nonviolence Center, 431 Notre Dame Lane, Baltimore, MD 21212.  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  

How to Fight Climate Change and Fascists at the Same Time

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

How to Fight Climate Change and Fascists at the Same Time

Kate Aronoff

January 14, 2021

The New Republic

Politicians in the United States have long had a single, instinctive response to crises both real and imagined: make new kinds of cops. After 9/11, the Bush administration created the Department of Homeland Security. Amid a ginned-up border crisis two years later, it created the Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Now, after last week’s raid on the Capitol, President-elect Joe Biden is being pushed to create a Cabinet-level appointee tasked with fighting domestic terrorism, bolstered by the bold new statutes criminalizing it that he’s promised. That’s despite the fact that there’s a much better way to defang the violent far right and countless other crises boiling in our teetering republic. The best way to contain the militant GOP, while helping the U.S. face global warming and more, is to expand democracy—not the national security state.  

The people who stormed the Capitol last week and the politicians who incited them should be held accountable, a process begun by yesterday’s impeachment vote. But we already have laws for dealing with domestic terrorism. The relevant agencies just haven’t wanted to enforce them, preferring almost always to target either whole categories of people—predominantly, nonwhite people—and forms of small-d democratic dissent like nonviolent protests. Anti-pipeline protesters, for instance, have found themselves on the losing end of a rash of new legislation making sit-ins and other peaceful disruptions to “critical infrastructure” a felony. New counterterrorism measures may be framed as protecting democracy, but more often they constrain it. 

White nationalist thugs feel empowered in American society for much the same reason that passing comprehensive climate policy feels like an endless uphill battle: Our electoral system was never meant to govern a majoritarian, multiracial democracy. The Founding Fathers’ fears of democracy leading to mob rule spawned a number of undemocratic institutions—from the Electoral College to the Senate itself, which grossly overrepresents white, rural voters over the 63 percent of the population that lives in cities. Exemplified by the election victories of a Black man and a Jew in Georgia, the last few months have unsettled those who fear what might happen if a government built to be run by white property owners and businessmen starts representing other people, too. 

Still, every structural incentive remains for Congress to misrepresent public opinion, where sizable majorities both hate Trump and want the government to act swiftly on climate. Thanks to gerrymandering that has rendered some 70 percent of congressional districts uncompetitive—and insufficient campaign finance rules that let shadowy corporate contributions run wild—quick cash injections can elect ever-more-extreme Republicans ready to go to war against emissions-reductions rules or anything else that might threaten their donors’ corporate profits. While some Republican voices have been loudly debating this week how to seize the party back from Trumpism, the truth is that moderate Republicans are a dying breed. Conservatives who don’t deliver can always be primaried from the right. It’s an ideological race to the bottom, where the end point—if there is one—is a GOP far more extreme than the one that carried out the attack on the Capitol last week.

“Without a political reconstruction and deep reforms to that antebellum electoral system, there is no stopping Trumpism as the dominant force in the Republican Party,” Waleed Shahid and Nelini Stamp wrote this week. The good news is that there’s plenty of low-hanging fruit to help the U.S. better represent its people. The filibuster allows the Senate minority to hold up any legislation it wants to. With 51 votes, it could be abolished. Washington, D.C., has a population bigger than Vermont’s and Wyoming’s, yet no voting representation. So long as there’s a Senate, making D.C. a state could make that body a more democratic one. The kinds of commonsense democratic reforms embodied in H.R. 1—automatic voter registration, the restoration of the Voting Rights Act, and guards against partisan gerrymandering—would help keep politicians from being able to choose their voters, making districts more competitive and allowing more people to vote. Its campaign finance provisions, in particular, would help limit the fossil fuel industry’s outsize influence over policymaking, with federally financed 6–1 matching funds that would allow small donors to compete with polluting megadonors. It would further support a constitutional amendment to end the system established by the Supreme Court decision Citizens United, which opened the floodgates to unchecked corporate influence. It would also help slow the revolving door between government and the private sector, among other reforms. Yet peeling back the laws that favor minority rule in the U.S. also means a more fundamental change to its outdated political system. 

Shahid, who serves as the communications director for Justice Democrats, and Stamp, the national organizing director of the Working Families Party, recommend H.R. 4000, the Fair Representation Act. The act would establish nationwide ranked-choice voting and require districts either to elect multiple representatives from each district or, if too small for that, to elect representatives on an at-large basis. Passed into law, they explain, these provisions “would create a multi-party, proportional-representation system in the House similar to the kind many other democracies around the world enjoy,” with new, larger districts spanning the urban and rural areas currently segmented off into separate constituencies. Some 74 million people will still have voted for Trump in the last election. But such a change would make Republicans have to compete for the 81 million who didn’t, too. 

A functional and representative government is a worthy goal in itself. But democratic reforms should also be considered a form of climate adaptation policy. Today’s Republican candidates might waffle on the issue of outright climate denial but enthusiastically campaign on barely veiled white supremacy. Taken together, it seems likely that their response to this crisis they’ve declined to curtail—and which will displace millions—will be simply to criminalize climate migration and double down on racism and xenophobia.

The security state built after 9/11 already defines how the U.S. responds to climate emergencies. In 2001, the Federal Emergency Management Agency was incorporated into the paranoid Frankenstein monster known as the Department of Homeland Security. As a result, its staff often have more resources to handle terrorist attacks than the sorts of disasters becoming ever more frequent as temperatures rise. John Kerry’s new post is housed within the National Security Council, and he’s talked frequently about the need to conceptualize the climate crisis as a national security threat. 

Building up the military-industrial complex hasn’t been great for national security itself, as disastrous forever wars and the inflamed diplomatic relationships they’ve created show. It’s even less well-suited to stem either the climate crisis or the unhinged right. But expanding our already grotesquely bloated national security state in the name of climate change would be an aggressively on-brand way for the U.S. to deal with that problem, playing right into the worst elements of the Republican Party.

In the coming weeks, there’s guaranteed to be talk of whether fighting the American far right, and holding Donald Trump accountable for inciting a raging mob, will detract from the Biden administration’s ability to make progress on Covid-19 relief, climate policy, and other urgent priorities in the first hundred days. The beauty of democratic reform is that it would help the country move toward all of these goals simultaneously. Even the most ambitious of democratic reforms are no quick fix for what ails U.S. democracy, and won’t necessarily put robust climate policy within reach. But it’s hard to imagine a sustainable twenty-first century without them.

Kate Aronoff @KateAronoff

Kate Aronoff is a staff writer at The New Republic.

The New Republic New Year sale: 3 months for $5.

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Source URL: https://portside.org/2021-01-15/how-fight-climate-change-and-fascists-same-time

Donations can be sent to Max Obuszewski, Baltimore Nonviolence Center, 431 Notre Dame Lane, Apt. 206, Baltimore, MD 21212.  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 -- January 18 - 19, 2021

21] Peoples Power Assembly Car Caravan – Jan. 18

22] Call for unity and justice – Jan. 18

23] Time of Nonviolent Action -- Jan. 18

24] DC Poor People’s Campaign – Jan. 18

25] Ending the War in Yemen – Jan. 18

26] Maryland MLK Monday Meeting – Jan. 18

27] Sunrise Movement Baltimore online – Jan. 18

28] Get Money Out – Maryland – Jan. 18

29] Dialogue with Rep. Ilhan Omar -- Jan. 18

30] National Organize to Win Call – Jan. 18

31] Sunrise Movement Baltimore online – Jan. 19

32] New Day for Climate Action – Jan. 19

33] Protest JHU’s weapons research – Jan. 19

34] Hold the Biden administration accountable – Jan. 19

35] Say No to War on Yemen – Jan. 19

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21] – The Peoples Power Assembly is holding a Car Caravan and Rally on Mon., Jan. 18 at noon starting at 2011 N. Charles Street, Baltimore 21218. Call 410-218-4835. Honor Dr. King Jr. - Jail Trump - Unite Against Racism, War & Bigotry - Defend workers and poor people's rights! Visit https://youtu.be/lsTriZu8Nuo.

22] – The National Religious Campaign Against Torture [nrcatlist@nrcat.org] invites you to join a national faith response to the attempted coup as well as a response to the FBI’s current warning of plans for armed protest by white militia groups in state capitols and Washington, D.C. between Jan. 16-20. Over MLK weekend, clergy and laity across the U.S. will join in a call for unity and justice by preaching and teaching in the spirit of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. who said that “True peace is not merely the absence of tension; it is the presence of justice.” On Monday, MLK Day, you are invited to join in a national prayer vigil featuring prayer, fasting, and visible signs of peace-making that will continue until noon on Jan. 20, when Joe Biden and Kamala Harris will be sworn into office. See http://www.nrcat.org/get-involved/inauguration-2021.

23] – On Mon., Jan. 18, Martin Luther  King Day, at noon, get with a Time of Nonviolent Action (Socially-distanced/Personally Masked/bring a folding chair on which to sit) at Lockheed Martin, 230 Mall Blvd., King of Prussia, PA located directly behind the King of Prussia Mall, just before the UN Nuclear Ban Treaty’s ENTRY INTO FORCE. People will bring the Treaty’s weight of international law to the United States' largest nuclear weapons contractor in a public on site presence at the corporation’s complex in King of Prussia, PA.   Beginning in 1977, the Brandywine Peace Community's nonviolent protest and resistance to nuclear weapons and war is among the longest, most enduring and dramatic campaigns in U.S. history.  On January 18, large banners and signs, including NOTICES OF VIOLATION: LOCKHEED MARTIN, along with symbols of nuclear weapons abolition will dot the entrance. There will also be readings of Dr. King accompanied by the tolling of a bell of peace. Visit www.brandywinepeace.com or call Bob at 215-843-4827.

24] – On Mon., Jan. 18 at 6 PM EST,  join the DC Poor People’s Campaign, Resurrection City DC and Bridge People for a teach-in on systematic racism, White Supremacy culture, the Interlocking injustices and narratives we are taught in the United States. At the end join in the call for justice on this upcoming solemn Martin Luther King Day. Sign up for the Teach-in at https://www.resurrectioncitydc.org/events/race-class-the-arc-of-justice-mlk-day-2021?link_id=0&can_id=4b9d4061aec5469758759317ac0f5285&source=email-dc-ppc-mlk-teach-in&email_referrer=email_1045246&email_subject=dc-ppc-mlk-teach-ininfo Here!

25] – On Mon., Jan. 18 from 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM EST, get with Ending the War in Yemen | Socialist Night School, hosted by the Metro D.C. Democratic Socialists of America. You MUST RSVP at the link below to get Zoom info at https://actionnetwork.org/events/ending-the-way-in-yemen-socialist-night-school?source=direct_link&fbclid=IwAR0QDoQ4n8j1xeQ77vQzHfmgxQeSTe6xuCG06HML1OU9ixYZ7HHglhbJunA. The war in Yemen is one of the world’s most pressing crises right now, having intensified in March 2015 when a U.S.-supported Saudi-led coalition intervened against Houthi rebels aligned with the former president Ali Abdullah Saleh. The war has turned the country into a humanitarian catastrophe. Riyadh expected its airpower, backed by a regional coalition including the United Arab Emirates could defeat the Houthi insurgency in a matter of months. With U.S. military support, Saudis and Emiratis have bombed hospitals, health clinics, schools, factories, markets, residential areas, even school buses full of children, killing thousands of Yemeni civilians. The Saudi-Emirati “coalition” has blockaded the ports of Yemen and cut off the flow of food, fuel, medicine, and clean water, resulting in the worst humanitarian crisis on the planet, with 20 million people on the brink of famine and a 27% COVID-19 death rate.  Email info [at] mdcdsa.org.

26] – On Mon., Jan. 18 at 7 PM, be at a Poor Peoples Campaign Maryland MLK Monday Meeting. This year’s MLK Jr. Day is the late Congressperson Cummings' 70th birthday: and his wife, Maya Rockeymoore, will be gracing the event with her presence!  Celebrate old beginnings onto looking Forward Together towards new beginnings as the group will review 14 Policy Priorities and continue discussing housing issues in MD.  Tune in https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZEpdeGqqTotHdc9m1nFw8njX4od1mofCR24?link_id=10&can_id=4b9d4061aec5469758759317ac0f5285&source=email-maryland-poor-peoples-campaign-weekly-update-35&email_referrer=email_1040387&email_subject=maryland-poor-peoples-campaign-weekly-update.

27] – Join Sunrise Movement Baltimore online on Mon., from 7 to 8 PM to rally for the Maryland Environmental Human Rights amendment to the Maryland state constitution. Thanks to the Maryland Campaign for Environmental Human Rights for leading this effort and hosting this event!  Register at https://actionnetwork.org/events/stakeholder-zoom-call-sb151hb82-constitutional-amendment-environmental-rights?emci=0ffecebd-2758-eb11-a607-00155d43c992&emdi=5e5ce58e-2958-eb11-a607-00155d43c992&ceid=177631. Email nina@mdehr.org.

28] – There is a Get Money Out - Maryland BOARD MEETING on Mon., Jan. 18 at 7:30 PM.  There is two ways to join the conference: 1) dial 1 301 715 8592 with a meeting ID: 931 3066 2622. The password is 173976 and 2} click on your device if you have downloaded the app from Zoom.  This is a GMOM Board strategy session. Observers are welcome. Visit https://www.getmoneyoutmd.org/.

29] -- Join MoveOn on Mon., Jan. 18 at 8 PM ET for a livestream discussion with Congresswoman Ilhan Omar and advocates to discuss the work ahead to rebuild our democracy, which includes holding Donald Trump, his GOP enablers, and his violent supporters accountable for their unprecedented assault on our democracy. Sign up at https://act.moveon.org/survey/rr_how_to_protect_and_expand_our_democracy/?t=14&akid=287888%2E37684438%2EYb7Rcf.

30] – Our Revolution [info@ourrevolution.com] is holding the first National Organize to Win Call of 2021 on Mon., Jan. 18 at 8:30 PM EST featuring newly sworn-in U.S. Rep. Marie Newman, Karen Carter Peterson, who is running in a special election for Louisiana’s 2nd Congressional District, Jane Kleeb, Nebraska Democratic Party Chair and Our Revolution Board member, Daniel Biss, Candidate for Mayor in Evanston, IL and Amar Shergill, Chair of the Progressive Caucus of the California Democratic Party.  RSVP at https://www.mobilize.us/ourrevolution/event/148017/?akid=1001.8252965.6n_Ce0&rd=1&t=8.

31] – Join Sunrise Movement Baltimore online on  Tues., Jan. 19  at 12:30 PM for a virtual kick-off rally calling on the Maryland General Assembly to #SaveMarylandTransit by passing the Transit Safety & Investment Act. The Maryland Transit Administration currently projects a $2 billion shortfall in funds needed just to maintain a state of good repair for MARC trains, buses, subway, light rail and mobility over the next decade. Join the bill sponsors Del. Brooke Lierman and Sen. Cory McCray and more than 40 organizations and transit supporters throughout Maryland to call on the General Assembly to do the right thing: close this gap and fund basic transit capital needs! Get involved at https://www.facebook.com/events/136053408242063?emci=0ffecebd-2758-eb11-a607-00155d43c992&emdi=5e5ce58e-2958-eb11-a607-00155d43c992&ceid=177631.

32] – Find out why it is A New Day for Climate Action on Tues., Jan. 19 at 4 PM ET with the Environmental Defense Fund. Look at the opportunities we have to address climate change through their leadership. How do we seize this moment to make a meaningful difference for the future of our climate and the health of our families and communities – while helping to build a more equitable and prosperous America for all?  RSVP at https://web.cvent.com/event/7576a994-8fe3-4b6a-973b-146f56ebae82/?locale=en-US&i=PpiYrOonzkO6K6OpjjWEwg.

33] – There is a Vigil to say "No Drone Research at JHU" at 33rd and N. Charles Sts. on Tuesdays from 5 to 6 PM. Contact Max at mobuszewski2001 at Comcast dot net or 410-323-1607.  You may consider contacting President Ron Daniels and telling him that the university should reject all military contracts, including those for killer drone and nuclear weapons research.  The president’s mailing address is Office of the President, 242 Garland Hall, The Johns Hopkins University, 3400 N. Charles St., Baltimore, Maryland 21218.  You can also reach his office by Phone: (410) 516-8068, Fax: (410) 516-6097 or email: president@jhu.edu.

34] – The Center for Popular Democracy (CPD) is dedicated to holding the Biden administration accountable to the issues that matter most to our communities. This means securing progressive wins like raising the minimum wage, healthcare for everyone, rent and eviction relief, strengthening our right to vote, and moving policies at all levels of our government to dismantle structural racism in our country. Come together with Busboys and Poets to host Reflections on Politics, Race and Culture: Where We Are and Where We’re Going on Tues., Jan. 19 from 6 to 8 PM ET.  Andy Shallal, Founder and CEO, Busboy and Poets, Ben Jealous, President, People for the American Way, and Jennifer Epps-Addison, Network President and Co-Executive Director, CPD/CPDAction will speak and bring together organizers, activists, artists, entertainers and political leaders to welcome the incoming administration and to share a vision of how we hold them accountable to the needs, hopes and dreams of our communities. 

Don’t miss your chance to be in conversation with visionaries including Angela Davis, Alicia Garza, Somava Saha, Nikki Giovanni and Alice Walker. Stick around to enjoy music from Dupont Brass and DJ Carmen Spindiego. RSVP https://www.eventbrite.com/e/reflections-on-politics-race-and-culture-a-presidential-inaugural-event-tickets-136862614765?emci=5a8bf4e7-6157-eb11-a607-00155d43c992&emdi=5b8bf4e7-6157-eb11-a607-00155d43c992&ms=DEV_EMAIL_SIGNUP_01152021&ceid=447376. Contact Beth Slade at bslade@populardemocracy.org!

35] - On Tues., Jan. 19, at 8 PM ET, in anticipation of the January 25 World Says No to War on Yemen Global Day of Action, CODEPINK Congress will feature two Yemen experts, Dr. Aisha Jumaan and Hassan El-Tayyab. Guests will join Medea Benjamin, the co-founder of CODEPINK; Marcy Winograd, the coordinator of CODEPINK Congress; and Hanieh Jodat Barnes, the president of Muslim Delegates and Allies.  RSVP for the Zoom link at https://www.codepink.org/yemen_j25. Follow the presentations and the Q & A, there will be a Capitol Hill Calling Party to urge our reps to support the removal of Trump’s designation of the Houthis in Yemen as terrorists. Such a designation would have serious humanitarian repercussions. Join in making sure that Biden keeps his promise to stop US support for the catastrophic war on Yemen. Contact marcy@codepink with questions.

To be continued.

Donations can be sent to Max Obuszewski, Baltimore Nonviolence Center, 431 Notre Dame Lane, Baltimore, MD 21212.  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 – January 17 – 18, 2021

Baltimore Activist Alert – January 17 – 18, 2021

"I speak as an American to the leaders of my own nation. The great initiative in this war is ours. The initiative to stop it must be ours." -Martin Luther King Jr.

Friends, this list and other email documents which I send out are done under the auspices of the Baltimore Nonviolence Center.  Go to www.baltimorenonviolencecenter.blogspot.com. 

If you appreciate this information and would like to make a donation, send contributions to Max Obuszewski, BNC, 431 Notre Dame Lane, Apt. 206, Baltimore, MD 21212.  Max Obuszewski can be reached at 410-323-1607 or mobuszewski2001 [at] comcast.net.

1] Books, buttons and stickers

2] Web site for info on federal legislation

3] Get involved with NCNR   

4] Volunteer with a Catholic Worker house  

5] Free Prakash Churaman  

6] Virtual screening of "Baltimore's Strange Fruit” -- Jan. 17

7] “1619 and 2021: Where We Were and Where We are Going” – Jan. 17

8] Adoption Event at Petco – Jan. 17

9] Julian Assange and Press Freedom – Jan. 17

10] Weekly Seekers' BLM Witness – Jan. 17

11] Audubon Afternoon -- Jan. 17

12] Healthcare Emergency Town Hall – Jan. 17

13] The Letter from Birmingham -- Jan. 17

14] Peacemakers Salon – Jan. 17

15] Beloved Community – Jan. 17

16] How US Policy is Hurting Hondurans and Nicaraguans – Jan. 17

17] Pentagon Peace Vigil – Jan. 18

18] Annual MLK Day Celebration – Jan. 18

19] Black Lives Matter caravan – Jan. 18

20] Food Rescue – Jan. 18

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1] – Buttons, bumperstickers and books are available.  “God Bless the Whole World, No Exceptions” stickers are in stock. Call Max at 410-323-1607.

2] –To obtain information how your federal legislators voted on particular bills, go to http://thomas.loc.gov/.  Congressional toll-free numbers are 888-818-6641, 888-355-3588 or 800-426-8073. The White House Comment Email is accessible at http://www.whitehouse.gov/contact/.

3] – THE ORGANIZING LIST will be the primary decision-making mechanism of the National Campaign of Nonviolent Resistance [NCNR].  It will be augmented by conference calls and possibly in-person meetings as needed.  It will consist of 1 or 2 representatives from each local, regional, or national organization (not coalitions) that wishes to actively work to carry out the NCNR campaign of facilitating and organizing nonviolent resistance to U.S. wars.

To join the ORGANIZING List, please send your name, group affiliation, city and email address to mobuszewski2001 at Comcast dot net.  Different local chapters of a national organization are encouraged to subscribe.  

4] - Suzanne Fontanesi and Jeff Ross are in the beginning stages of renovating the basement of their house for purposes of bringing in a volunteer (targeting young adults in discernment mode), starting next fall. They are trying to grow a Catholic Worker House in Irvington (West Baltimore). In a nutshell, there is a lot that a volunteer could do in that neighborhood/Baltimore, in addition to prayer and daily community living and in addition to plugging into all the good work that people are already doing in and around Baltimore (and beyond).  If you think you might know of anyone who might be interested in starting a conversation with them about becoming such a volunteer/community member, please contact Jeff/Suzanne at 443-690-6872.

5] – Prakash Churaman was 15 when he was arrested and accused of murdering his best friend. NYPD detective Barry Brown coerced him into making a false confession over the course of hours in an interrogation room. He was convicted and sentenced to life in prison by Judge Kenneth Holder, a former prosecutor. That conviction was overturned this summer and now for the first time he has a chance to come home if money can be raised for his bail. Here is the link to a video which tells his story: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6FStlvKjTt4&t=7s. Here is the link to Gofundme: https://www.gofundme.com/f/freeprakashchuraman and another one to a petition: https://www.change.org/p/freeprakashchuraman.

6] – On Sun., Jan. 17 from 10 AM to 12:30 PM EST, Jews United for Justice will host a virtual screening of "Baltimore's Strange Fruit: A Story of Food Apartheid and the Struggle for Sovereignty" in observance of the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday. It will be followed by a talk-back with the filmmaker, Eric Jackson. The film explores the intersections of food, land, and race and class politics through personal narrative and social commentary. The film journeys through the historical woes and triumphs of people of African Descent within the food system, while highlighting contemporary efforts to address the complex nature of food apartheid in Baltimore.  Contact Jillian Manko at jmanko@baltimorehebrew.org. RSVP at https://www.signupgenius.com/go/30e0a4eaba82caaf58-bhcjustice.

7] - Usually, the Baltimore Ethical Society, 2521 St. Paul St., Baltimore 21218, meets on Sundays, and generally there is a speaker and discussion at 10:30 AM.  On Sun., Jan. 17, hear about “1619 and 2021: Where We Were and Where We are Going.”  This talk will be a brief summary of the 1619 Project and a more in-depth analysis of the project’s place in our contemporary society. The literary and artistic works of the 1619 Project can be used to foster conversations and tangible work about redress for economic and social wrongs that have been committed against African-Americans in America. Rick McCray is a father of three sons, a husband, a son and a brother.  He is a graduate of Duke University with two degrees in History and African & African-American Studies and a graduate of Howard University School of Law with a Juris Doctorate. Email PRESIDENT@BMORETHICAL.ORG for the ZOOM LOGIN INFORMATION.

8] - On Sun., Jan. 17 from 11:30 AM to 1:30 PM EST, there is an Adoption Event at Petco, hosted by Lovepaws.  Meet Nala, Pranzer, Ally, and Miss Tea Pot at the Rockville Petco, 1507 Rockville Pike, Rockville 20852.  Folks will be outside the store all masked up and spaced apart in compliance with the CDC guidelines and showing off adorable adoptable pups! Visit https://www.facebook.com/lovepawspg/.

9] – On Sun., Jan. 17 at noon Eastern Standard Time for a Forum on "The Trial of Julian Assange and its Implications for Press Freedom" with UN Special Rapporteur Nils Melzer, and former CIA Russia analyst Ray McGovern. Ray warned that he appears rather disheveled; as he has let his hair grow in solidarity with Julian Assange. Get the Zoom link or call-in phone number at https://uumilwaukee.org/event/the-trial-of-julian-assange-and-its-implications-for-press-freedom/ or watch it live on YouTube here: https://youtu.be/wWhGfQq_wTQ.  Contact Ann Batiza at 414-238-3903 or annwisc@gmail.com.

10] – On Sun., Jan. 17 from 12:30 to 1:30 PM ET, join the Weekly Seekers' BLM Witness at the Seekers Church, 276 Carroll St. NW, WDC 20012. Visit https://www.facebook.com/seekerschurchDC/. Since last spring, Seekers have been witnessing weekly for Black Lives Matter in front of Seekers Church, accompanied by a musical background of stirring peace and justice songs. It is a wonderful opportunity to show up for racial justice and experience unity as passing drivers and pedestrians of all races and ethnicities wave and raise fists. Cars honk, bicyclists ring their little bike bells, and sometimes passers-by ask for a sign and join in.  This will continue through Jan. 24.

11] – On Sun., Jan. 17 from 3 PM to 4:30 PM EST, enjoy an Audubon Afternoon with Dr. Sahas Barve, hosted by the Audubon Society of Northern Virginia. Learn how birds stay warm in cold weather and extreme elevations. Sahas is an avian evolutionary ecologist and currently a Peter Buck Fellow at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History where he studies how birds stay warm in the high Himalayas. He is also an avid birder and hopes to see 6000 bird species by the time he is 60. Learn more about him at his website www.sahasbarve.com. Look at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/audubon-afternoon-with-dr-sahas-barve-tickets-126576492697?aff=efbeventtix&fbclid=IwAR1n-InLeImOyT8puZXFqvcpioYZw5OPuIN7EGB964znI699iRMtCVtVMxE.

12] – COVID-19 is a Giant Wake-Up Call for Medicare For All.  Join the Progressive Democrats of America Healthcare Emergency Town Hall on Sun., Jan. 17 at 4 PM ET.  PDA has recognized #COVID19 as a giant wake-up call for #SinglePayer expanded and improved #MedicareForAll and the #GreenNewDeal since the very beginning of the pandemic, precisely because #UniversalHealthcare where ALL of the people get ALL of the care is so clearly what we need to beat this national and international scourge. Our traditionally under-served communities have been hardest hit, especially those in the “Healthcare deserts” of our inner cities and rural regions, and especially most unjustly in our BIPOC communities who had been struggling disproportionately even before COVID-19 with the existential threats of poverty, systemic racism, climate change, and political corruption throughout US history. The simple fact is that the only way everyone will get ALL of the testing, contact tracing, and treatment, including effective and timely vaccinations for COVID-19, is if it’s in the control of We the People not they the commercial for-profit interests of Big Insurance and Big Pharma. RSVP for secure log-in by sending an email to mikefox@pdamerica.org.

13] – On Sun., Jan. 17 at 4 PM and again at Mon., Jan. 18 at 4 PM EST, get with a Prophetic Call to the Church: The Letter from Birmingham.  This Online Event is organized by the Metro D.C. Synod, ELCA and African Descent Lutheran Association. On Good Friday, April 12, 1963, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was arrested in Birmingham, AL after violating an anti-protest injunction and was kept in solitary confinement. During this time, Rev. Dr. King penned the “Letter from Birmingham Jail” on the margins of the Birmingham News, in reaction to a statement published in the same newspaper by eight white clergymen condemning the protests.  Honor Rev. Dr. King’s dedication to reforming the Church and American culture by listening to the African-American voices of rostered leaders of the ELCA, once again asserting a call for action to the Church by reading the very words written by Rev. King. Go to https://www.facebook.com/metrodcelca/.

14] – Maxine Garcia [maxine@codepink.org] is alerting us to the first Peacemakers Salon on Sun., Jan. 17 at 5 PM ET. CODEPINK co-founder Jodie Evans will host the Salon and share plans for Local Peace Economy and 1 Billion Rising Gardens, who are joining in Planting Seeds of Peace: a defiant creative call for revival, restoration and transformation. Jodie will be talking more about how tending a garden is inextricably connected to nurturing our communities.  Then, CODEPINK Divest campaigner Nancy Mancias will also be joining to discuss how BlackRock is infiltrating the Biden Administration and what we need to do about it. Meet the new Director of Cultural Strategy and Anti-Imperialism Ciara Taylor, Co-founder of the Dream Defenders, was Membership Manager at The Peoples Forum. Ciara will be discussing the new political education program that she is leading at CODEPINK. We hope you’ll be able to join us with your questions and concerns!  Go to https://www.codepink.org/peacemaker_salon_jodieevans?utm_campaign=peacemakers_salon_jodie&utm_medium=email&utm_source=codepink.

15] – On behalf of the 140 million poor and low-income people in the country, the Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival – with 45 state coordinating committees, thousands of religious leaders and hundreds of supporting organizations – calls upon the nation to join in a season of prayer and action.  On Sun., Jan. 17 at 8 PM ET hear a "Prayer for Beloved Community in the Midst of COVID and Chaos, " which will be a 30-minute prayer service as a part of A National Call to Love, Light and Leadership.  Then on Mon., Jan. 18  at 1 PM ET, participate in a  MLK Moral Monday -- A National Interfaith Service of Love, Light and Leadership.  Build the beloved community with Love tied to Justice, Light grounded in Truth, Leadership rooted in a Moral Agenda for the Nation. Visit https://www.poorpeoplescampaign.org/?link_id=1&can_id=4b9d4061aec5469758759317ac0f5285&source=email-building-the-beloved-community&email_referrer=email_1045720&email_subject=building-the-beloved-community.

16] – On Sun., Jan. 17 at 7 PM ET, check out a Webinar: How US Policy is Hurting Hondurans and Nicaraguans.  Experts on Honduras and Nicaragua will talk about the consequences of US policy. Vicki Cervantes began working in solidarity with Latin America movements in the 1970s. Magda Lanuza is a Nicaraguan Salvadoran feminist specializing in sustainable development. REGISTER at https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_w4Q79vNTSCKCbSkhy7fRfA?eType=EmailBlastContent&eId=3dddfc56-5f0a-4d46-88e4-bd89ea415c42.

17] – There is a weekly Pentagon Peace Vigil from 7 to 8 AM on Mondays, since 1987, outside the Pentagon Metro stop.  The next vigil is Jan. 18, and it is sponsored by the Dorothy Day Catholic Worker.  Email artlaffin@hotmail.com or call 202-882-9649.  The vigil will be outside the Pentagon's south Metro entrance and in the designated "protest zone" behind bicycle fences across from the entrance to the Metro.  By Metro, take Yellow Line and get out at the "Pentagon" stop. Do not go to the Pentagon City stop! Go up south escalators and turn left and walk across to protest area. By car from D.C. area, take 395 South and get off at Exit 8A-Pentagon South Parking. Take slight right onto S. Rotary Rd. at end of ramp and right on S. Fern St. Then take left onto Army Navy Dr. You can "pay to park" on Army Navy Dr.,  and there is meter parking one block on right on Eads St. Payment for both of these spots begin at 8 AM.  No cameras are allowed on Pentagon grounds. Restrooms are located inside Marriott Residence Inn on corner of S. Fern and Army Navy Dr.  

18] – Participate in the 37th Annual MLK Day Celebration on Mon., Jan. 18 from 9 AM to 5 PM.  Celebrate in the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in this day-long, virtual gathering that will include a historic tour, a convocation with panelists and a keynote speaker, community workshops, and opportunities to get involved in social justice work.  Focus the program on the theme of ‘Uniting the Beloved Community’. To join, go to https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83743553639 on the day.

19] – Join the Immigration Outreach Service Center and many Faith Communities on Mon., Jan. 18 from 10:30 AM to 12:30 PM in a caravan in solidarity with Black Lives Matter.  Gather between 10:30 and 11 AM in the St Matthew Church rear parking lot on Woodbourne Avenue. Watch for the entrance sign. You’ll be directed to line up in specific lines facing the back of church and ministry building. The car caravan is planned to begin at 11:15 AM. Decorate your car and windows with expressions of MLK and BLM. Email or call Ryan at – ryansattler@comcast.net / 717-891-6156.

20] – On Mon., Jan. 1 from noon to 1:30 PM EST, participate in Food Rescue at Land of Kush, 840 North Eutaw St., Baltimore.  This Food Rescue will continue until Mon., Apr. 26. Food Rescue Baltimore is proud to partner with The Land of Kush each and every Monday to bring free vegan and plant-based food to the community. Bring a bag, take what you want, while supplies last. #KeepItFreshDay #MeatlessMonday. See https://www.facebook.com/The-Land-of-Kush-102096254517153.

To be continued.

Donations can be sent to Max Obuszewski, Baltimore Nonviolence Center, 431 Notre Dame Lane, Baltimore, MD 21212.  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