Thursday, October 27, 2011

Baltimore Activist Alert - Part 1

Baltimore Activist Alert Oct. 27 – Nov. 2, 2011

 

"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 BNC, 325 East 25th Street, Baltimore, MD 21218.  Max Obuszewski can be reached at 410-366-1637 or mobuszewski [at] verizon.net.

 

Tune into the Maryland Progressive Blog at http://mdprogblog.org.

   

1] Books, buttons and stickers

2] Web site for info on federal legislation

3] Join Nonviolent Resistance lists  

4] Buy coffee through HoCoFoLA  

5] Middle Passage Mural – through Oct. 29

6] Occupy Freedom Plaza – Oct. ??

7] Occupy Baltimore -- Oct. ??

8] Violence Against Women in Mexico & Central America – Oct. 27

9] End Factory Farming conference – Oct. 27 - 29

10] El Salvador – After the Floods – Oct. 27

11] Author of BLOOD ON THE TRACKS at AFSC – Oct. 27

12] Haiti, After the Earthquake – Oct. 27

13] Mother Jones play -- Oct. 27 - 30

14] Conference on investment in the Holy Land -- Oct. 28 - 30

15] Healthcare march in D.C. -- Oct. 28

16] White House vigil – Oct. 28

17] WIB Inner Harbor vigil – Oct. 28

18] WIB Roland Park vigil – Oct. 28

19] Justice for Palestine/Israel vigil – Oct. 28

20] Students march in D.C. -- Oct. 28

21] Silent vigil at Homewood Friends – Oct. 28

22] Fair Development Conference -- Oct. 28

23] Ballroom dancing – Oct. 28

24] Farmers Market – Oct. 29

25] Challenge Empire – Oct. 29

26] Pro bono day – Oct. 29

27] Olney peace vigil – Oct. 29

28] West Chester, PA demo – Oct. 29

29] Canvas with Bill Barry – Oct 29

30] Silent vigil at Capitol – Oct. 29

31] Enough Is Enough – Oct. 29

32] Accounting for Artists -- Oct. 29

33] Robin Hood Tax Teach-In – Oct 29

34] Building Houses Out of Chicken Legs – Oct 29

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1] – Buttons, bumperstickers and books are available.  "God Bless the Whole World, No Exceptions" stickers are in stock. Donate your books to Max. Call him at 410-366-1637.

                           

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 the war in Iraq.

 

To join the ORGANIZING List, please send your name, group affiliation, city and email address to donmuller@msn.com.  Different local chapters of a national organization are encouraged to subscribe.  

 

THE NOTICES LIST will include only notices of NCNR actions and related information and is open to any interested person to subscribe.  It will be moderated to maintain focus & will include periodic notices about getting involved in NCNR national organizing.  To join the NOTICES List, send an email message to ncnrnotices-subscribe@lists.riseup.net. You will get a confirmation message once subscribed.  If you have problems, please write to the list manager at ncnrnotices-admin@lists.riseup.net.

 

4] – You can help safeguard human rights and fragile ecosystems through your purchase of HOCOFOLA Café Quetzal. Bags of ground coffee or whole beans can be ordered by mailing in an order form. Also note organic cocoa and sugar are for sale.  For more details and to download the order form, go to http://friendsoflatinamerica.typepad.com/hocofola/2010/02/hocofola-cafe-quetzal-order-form-2010.html. The coffee comes in one-pound bags.

 

Fill out the form and mail it with a check made out to HOCOFOLA on or before the second week of the month.  Be sure you indicate ground or beans for each type of coffee ordered.  Send it to Adela Hirsch, 5358 Eliots Oak Rd., Columbia, MD 21044.  Be sure you indicate ground (G) or bean (B) for each type of coffee ordered. The coffee will arrive some time the following week and you will be notified where to pick it up.  Contact Adela at 410-997-5662 or via e-mail at adela4peace@verizon.net.

 

5] – See Joe Norman's Middle Passage Mural in the Main Gallery at the Creative Alliance at the Patterson, 3134 Eastern Ave., Baltimore, MD 21224, an epic tale of 10 million souls from Africa to the Americas between the 15th and 19th centuries. The exhibit will be there through Sat., Oct 29.  Call 410-276-1651; go to www.creativealliance.org; or email info@creativealliance.org.

 

6] – The occupation of Freedom Plaza, 14th & Pennsylvania Ave. NW, continues as U.S. troops, contractors and mercenaries remain in Afghanistan now for an 11th year.  The idea is to make the space a Tahrir Square, Cairo or Madison, Wisconsin.  NONVIOLENTLY resist the corporate machine by occupying Freedom Plaza to demand that U.S. resources be invested in human needs and environmental protection instead of war and exploitation.  Stop the Machine! Create a New World! Go to http://october2011.org/.

 

7] – Occupy Baltimore continues at McKeldin Square, Pratt and Light Sts.  General assemblies take place at 8 PM each evening.  Sign up at http://groups.google.com/group/occupy-baltimore/.  Ask for the digest or you get hundreds of emails. 

 

8] – Organized crime, weakened governments, and increased militarization have produced epidemic levels of violence against women, feminicide and the systematic targeting of women activists. Doubly at risk in both the political arena and in their communities and relationships, violence is often used to discredit or silence women fighting for justice – and therefore, demands a different response. Yet, the perspectives and unique strategies of women defenders are given little attention and under-sourced.

Violence against Women and Women Human Rights Defenders in Mexico and Central America is a discussion scheduled for Thurs.
, Oct. 27 from 4:15 to 5:45 PM at Just Associates, 2040 S St. NW, Suite 300, WDC.  This conversation with women activists and lawyers will provide valuable insights into the nature of violence that women face, how women are organizing to provide for their own safety and their movements, and how we can better support their vital political work. RSVP to Natalia Escruceria by emailing natalia@justassociates.org.

9] – Attend the National Conference to End Factory Farming: for Health, Environment, and Farm Animals starting on Thurs., Oct. 27 at 4:45 PM through Sat., Oct. 29 at 4:45 PM in Arlington, VA. Join Farm Sanctuary as we bring together experts from the environmental, public health, and animal welfare movements for our first-ever National Conference to End Factory Farming: for Health, Environment, and Farm Animals. This conference will be unique in its exclusive focus on factory farming and the problems surrounding it, and aims to reach a broad audience of professionals and advocates from the animal protection, health, and environmental movements to collaborate on these issues.  Go to http://factoryfarmingconference.org.

10] – El Salvador: After the Floods is taking place on Thurs., Oct. 27 from 6 to 7:30 PM at the Consulate of El Salvador, 2332 Wisconsin Ave. NW, WDC 20007. Several groups including Committee of Solidarity with the People of El Salvador(CISPES) invite you to this presentation by Dr. Oscar Luna, Ombudsman for Human Rights, Yanira Cortez Estévez, Adjunct Ombudswoman for the Environment and Berta Medrano, director of GAIA El Salvador.  While the government and people of El Salvador are moving forward with efforts to rebuild after the rains and floods of Tropical Depression 12E.  What can be done to work towards long term solutions that address the structures that create poverty, cause environmental degradation, and exploitation of both the world's natural and human resources?   You are invited to participate in this forum. Email hierald@serrnetwork.org. 

11] – On Thurs., Oct. 27 at 6:30 PM, hear S. Brian Willson, author of "Blood On The Tracks" at the Thursday, October 27, 6:30 PM at the FRIENDS CENTER, The Rufus Jones Room, 15th & Cherry Sts., Philadelphia. He studies and becomes a visionary as to what a post-imperial life in America might actually look like. He not only talks the talk, he re-designs and re-constructs a very modest home in northern California into a completely self-sustaining, solar-powered home. The event is sponsored by Veterans For Peace Chapter 31, American Friends Service Committee & Brandywine Peace Community.  Call 610-832-7028. Go to https://secure.pmpress.org/index.php?l=product_detail&p=330.

 

12] – Etant Dupain, a journalist and community organizer from Haiti, will be discussing the human rights situation and the influence of the international community in a talk HAITI, After the Earthquake on Thurs., Oct. 27 from 7 to 9 PM at Georgetown Univ., Reis Bldg., room 262. He is the director of Bri Kouri Nouvèl Gaye, Noise Travels News Spreads, the grassroots partner of TransAfrica's Let Haiti Live Project. Their main campaigns are accountability for post-earthquake aid, humanitarian assistance to factory workers and organizing for the withdrawal of the MINUSTAH UN Peacekeeping Mission. Email Becca Polk at becca@soaw.org.

13] – "Can't Scare Me - The Story of Mother Jones" continues to be performed through Sun., Oct. 30 at 2 PM at the Theater of the First Amendment, George Mason Univ., 4400 University Dr., MS 3E6, Fairfax, VA 22030.  This is the World Premiere written and performed by Kaiulani Lee, called "the most dangerous woman in America."  The performances are as follows: Thurs., Oct. 27 at 8 PM, Fri., Oct. 28 at 8 PM, Sat., Oct. 29 at 2 & 8 PM and Sun., Oct. 30 at 2 PM.  Go to http://atlasarts.org/events/2011/07/cant-scare-me-the-story-of-mother-jo...

14] – There is an Investment and Business Conference in Washington, D.C. running from Fri., Oct. 28 through Sun., Oct. 30 hosted by The Holy Land Christian Ecumenical Foundation. You can register at http://www.hcefgifts.org/index.php?route=product/category&path=92.

 

15] – On Fri., Oct. 28 at 11:30 AM at Freedom Plaza, 14th and Pennsylvania Ave. NW, WDC, join a march to the Chamber of Commerce and AHIP against the health-industrial complex.

 

16] – A peace vigil takes place every Friday from noon to 1 PM at Lafayette Park facing the White House.  Join the Dorothy Day Catholic Worker and friends. Contact Art Laffin: artlaffin@hotmail.com.   

 

17] – Every Friday from noon to 1 PM, Women in Black, Baltimore, host a vigil at Pratt and Light Sts. in the Inner Harbor. Peace signs will be available. See http://www.peacepath911.com/ or write wibbaltimore@hotmail.com or call 410-467-9114.

 

18] – There is also a noon vigil on Oct. 28 at Roland Park Place at 830 W. 40th St.  Call 410-467-9114.

 

19] – A vigil for Justice in Palestine/Israel (now in its 8th year) takes place every Friday from noon to 1 PM at 19th & JFK Blvd., Philadelphia (across from Israeli Consulate.  It is sponsored by Bubbies & Zaydes (Grandparents) for Peace in the Middle East. Email cswartz@pil.net. Go to http://phillyjewishpeace.org/.

20] – Occupy DC is calling for a March/Action on Student Debt on Fri., Oct. 28 from 3 to 4:30 PM starting at McPherson Sq., 15th and K Sts. NW.  Students from a dozen local universities including GW, American, Howard, UMD, UDC, Georgetown, and others will join Occupy K St for a fun creative action on outrageous student debt in the US.

21] – There is a silent vigil on Fri., Oct. 28 from 5 to 6 PM outside of Homewood Friends Meeting, 3107 N. Charles St., in opposition to war in Afghanistan, Iraq and Pakistan. Placards say: "War Is Not the Answer." The silent vigil is sponsored by AFSC, Homewood Friends and Stony Run Meetings.

 

22] – The Fair Development Conference hosted by United Workers begins Fri., Oct. 28 at 6 PM at 2640, 27th & St. Paul Sts., with dinner and a welcome, followed by keynote addresses: Marian Kramer has been an organizer and leader in poor people's movements, including the welfare rights movement since 1966; Janaina Stronzake is a leader of Movimento Sem Terra (MST), or the Brazilian Landless Rural Workers' Movement. The MST has led more than 2,500 occupations of large estates in Brazil, leading to the settlement of around 370,000 families on the land; and Jan Rehmann teaches philosophy and social theories at Union Theological Seminary and at the Free University in Berlin. He is co-editor of the "Historical-Critical Dictionary of Marxism (HKWM)," and his most recent books are "Theories of Ideology" and "Critique of Postmodernist Nietzscheanism." Go to http://unitedworkers.org.

 

On Sat., Oct. 29, there will be workshops and discussions, a film screening, dinner and dance party! Doors open at 9:30 AM.  An official welcome will take place from 10 to 11 AM.  The workshops run from 11:15 AM through 5 PM. Then enjoy dinner and a film screening produced by NESRI -- "More Than A Roof — The Human Right to Housing," followed by a panel discussion. This will be followed by a dance party until 10 PM. 

 

On Sun., Oct. 30 the action event will be from 11 AM to 2 PM--The Haunted Harbor March! This will be A Terrifying Tale of Poverty Zone Development.  Meet at Charles St. & Lombard St. The Inner Harbor has been haunted by labor and human rights abuses including poverty wages, disrespect, sexual harassment, lack of healthcare, denying education opportunities, wage theft, unsafe work environments and general exploitation for the sake of profit. Workers and allies have had enough. United Workers will lead a march from the Baltimore Development Corporation down to the Inner Harbor featuring "Poverty Busters" lighting up their proton packs and blasting these abuses out of this dimension, replacing them with shared fair development principles of Human Rights, Sustainability, and maximizing public benefits.

 

To register for the conference, see http://unitedworkers.org/fair- development/conf/.  Email conference@unitedworkers.org.

 

23] – 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 Oct. 29.  Call Dave Greene at 410-599-3725.

24] – Go to the West Baltimore Farmer's Market for fresh fruits, vegetables, breads and other treats every Saturday from 8 to noon.  CPHA has worked with the West Baltimore Marc TOD and Transit Inc. (WBMTTI) to establish a Farmer's Market at the West Baltimore Marc Train stop at Smallwood Road at Franklin and Mulberry Sts.  Since opening in June, over 300 people buy fresh groceries there every Saturday morning. WBMTTI will continue to include the community in the transit-oriented developments on the west side and continue to improve the area around "the highway to nowhere" until it becomes the highway to somewhere. Go to www.cphabaltimore.org.

 

25] – On Sat., Oct. 29 from 9:30 AM to 4:30 PM, "Jesus, Justice, Palestine-Israel:  Challenging the Politics of Empire" will feature noted Biblical scholar & author Prof.  Richard  A.  Horsley,  PhD, Distinguished Professor of Liberal Arts and the Study of Religion, Univ. of Massachusetts, Boston  and from Jerusalem Sabeel founder, Rev. Dr. Naim Ateek, author of "A Palestinian Christian Cry for Reconciliation," & "Justice and Only Justice." They will speak at Ravensworth Baptist Church, 5100 Ravensworth Rd. (corner of Braddock Rd. at I-495 exit 54 east) Annandale, VA.  Contact Susan Bell at avocets@bell.nu or 703-751-5646 or Paul Verduin at phverduin@gmail.com at 301-518-5551. Go to www.sabeeldc.org.   

 

To Register: Send $30 check (students $10) payable to "Ravensworth Church" (please write "Sabeel Symposium" on memo line) with name/address/e-mail address/phone and mail to Susan Bell/Sabeel, 1324 Kingston Ave., Alexandria, VA 22302. Lunch is included in registration fee/please indicate any dietary restrictions.  Scholarships and limited transportation assistance is available on special request.

 

26] – The Bar Association of Baltimore City is sponsoring Pro Bono Day 2011 on Sat., Oct. 29 at Legal Aid, 500 E. Lexington St. from 10 AM to 2 PM. At this event, participants will be able to discuss civil legal problems with volunteer attorneys at a legal clinic free of charge. No registration is necessary, but call 410-539-5936 or email info@baltimorebar.org.

 

27] – Friends House, 17715 Meeting House Rd., Sandy Spring, MD 20860, hosts a peace vigil every Saturday, 10:30 to 11:30 AM, on the corner of Rt. 108 and Georgia Ave. in Olney, MD.  The next vigil is Oct. 29. Call Chuck Harker at 301-570-7167. 

 

28] –  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.

 

29] – Contact Bill Barry at wbarrymd@hotmail.com if you help canvas on Sat., Oct 29 at 11 AM for his campaign as a Green Party candidate for city council.  Go to http://www.facebook.com/pages/Bill-Barry-For-City-Council/288013304548751?sk=wall or go to www.citizensforbillbarry.org.

 

30] – There will be a peace vigil on the West Lawn of the Capitol at noon on Oct. 29. Look for the blue banner with the message, "Seek Peace and Pursue It.--Psalms 34:14." The vigil lasts one hour and is silent except when one responds to the occasional questions. Go to http://www.quaker.org/langleyhill/seekpeace.htm or email seekpeacevigil@yahoo.com.

 

31] – Enough Is Enough March & Speak-Out Rally is happening on Sat., Oct. 29 from noon to 6 PM on West Front Lawn, US Capitol Bldg., WDC.  This will be an open mic event that puts We the People front and center. Go to http://www.coffeepartyusa.com/EnoughMarch or to http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=259753490709602.

32] – Accounting for Artists is an opportunity to learn the basics of accounting in this free workshop organized by Maryland Lawyers for the Arts and run by CPA Jonathan Mayo, called "Best Accountant for Starving Artists" by City Paper. It is on Oct. 29 at 2 PM at Maryland Art Place, 8 Market Place, suite 100, and topics include record keeping, spreadsheets, accounting software, and taxes. It is free, but reservations are required. RSVP to Emily@mdartplace.org. Call 410-962-8565 or go to http://www.MDartplace.org.

 

33] – On Sat., Oct. 29 from 2 to 3:30 PM, join the global day of action with a march, creative action, and giant "robin hood tax" teach-in at the Department of Treasury & Bank of America.  Folks will be constructing the world we want to see—so bring out your uniforms: nurse's scrubs, doctor's coats, teacher's chalk boards, green jobs hard-hats, and more. Occupy K Street – DC consensed to support this action in solidarity with Robin Hood actions at #OccupyWallStreet and globally occurring the same day. If you want to participate in the planning, come to McPherson Square, 15th and K Sts. NW, at 6 PM for the general assembly and/or committee work at 8 PM. Go to http://www.adbusters.org/blogs/adbusters-blog/robinhood.html.

 

34] – Building Houses Out of Chicken Legs: Black Women, Food and Power is a talk by Univ. of Maryland Professor Psyche Williams-Forson, which examines the complexities of food, gender and race. It takes place on Sat., Oct. 29 at 3 PM at the Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History and Culture, 830 E. Pratt St.  You can attend the talk as long as you pay the museum admission fee. Call 443-263-1800 or go to http://www.africanamericanculture.org/. 

 

To be continued.

 

Donations can be sent to the Baltimore Nonviolence Center, 325 E. 25th St., Baltimore, MD 21218.  Ph: 410-366-1637; Email: mobuszewski [at] verizon.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

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