Baltimore Activist Alert Sept. 15 – 16, 2013

Baltimore Activist Alert Sept. 15 – Sept. 21, 2013 "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 & stickers 2] Web site for info on federal legislation 3] Join Nonviolent Resistance lists 4] Buy coffee through HoCoFoLa 5] Gallopinto: 5 Years of Solidarity – through Sept. 28 6] Immigration Reform! – through Oct. 18 7] Fair elections in El Salvador – Sept. 15 8] “Women, Unions, and Radical Change” – Sept. 15 9] Peace and Pancakes – Sept. 15 10] SodaStream Boycott Action – Sept. 15 11] 50th Anniversary of the Bombing – Sept. 15 12] Josh Ruebner Book Tour – Sept. 15- 20 13] Pentagon Vigil – Sept. 16 14] Please help explain Obamacare – Sept. 16 14] Marc Steiner on WEAA – Sept. 16 – Sept. 20 15] Pledge of Resistance/Fund Our Communities meeting – Sept. 16 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] – Gallopinto: 5 Years of Solidarity continues through Sat., Sept. 28 at the Amalie Rothschild Gallery at the Creative Alliance, 3134 Eastern Ave., Baltimore MD 21224. Curated by artist and co-founder, Maria Aldana, the Art of Solidarity celebrates five years of collaborations between Nicaraguan and North American artists. Gallopinto is both the title of the show and the staple rice and bean dish of Nicaragua. The exhibit includes documentary shorts, photographs, marmolina, and sculptures created by the participants from 2008 to 2013. The gallery hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 11 AM to 7 PM. Email info@creativealliance.org. 6] – The 40 days of prayer, fasting and advocacy for Immigration Reform continues through Fri., Oct. 18! The Interfaith Immigration Coalition and Conference of Major Superiors of Men invite you to participate. Sign up at http://www.fastaction.us. 7] – The Campaign Kick-Off and Grassroots Lobbying Workshop #2 is happening on Sun., Sept. 15 from 10 AM to 6 PM at La Casa, 3166 Mt. Pleasant St. NW. Join the Committee in Solidarity with the People of El Salvador (CISPES) to support free and fair elections in El Salvador! The idea is to develop a grassroots campaign, from targets to tactics! See https://www.facebook.com/events/563178500414268/. 8] – Usually, the Baltimore Ethical Society, 306 W. Franklin St., Suite 102, Baltimore 21201-4661, meets on Sundays, and generally there is a speaker and discussion from 10:30 to noon. On Sun., Sept. 15 the platform address is “Women, Unions, and Radical Change,” and it will be delivered by Hugh Taft-Morales, BES leader. If it’s true that “women hold up half the sky,” then why are they still paid only 77% of what men are paid for the same work? Why is this so half a century after President Kennedy signed the Equal Pay Act? And why are women working 9 to 5 still burdened with a disproportionate share of family duties? Answers to these questions help explain the fact that women have often been at the forefront of organized labor’s most radical manifestation. Come explore the role of women in the labor movement from the textile strikes of the early 19th century through Elizabeth Gurley Flynn’s broad and radical agenda to the intersection of feminism and labor today. Hugh Taft-Morales joined the Baltimore Ethical Society as its professional leader in 2010, the same year he was certified by the American Ethical Union as an Ethical Culture Leader. He also serves as leader of the Ethical Humanist Society of Philadelphia. Go to http://bmorethical.org/ or Twitter: @bmorethical or Facebook: http://fb.com/bmorethical/or email ask@bmorethical.org. 9] – Join the Kadampa Meditation Center for Peace and Pancakes on Sundays at 10:30 AM at KMC Maryland, 2937 North Charles St. All are invited to participate in guided meditation and chant praying for world peace. There will be a talk based on Buddhist thought followed by brunch. Call 410- 243-3837. Brunch is $5. 10] – There is a SodaStream Boycott Action on Sun., Sept. 15 at 2 PM at the Columbia Heights Mall. SodaStream manufactures beverage carbonating devices in an illegal Israeli settlement. Tell shoppers to stop buying SodaStream products and tell store managers of Bed, Bath & Beyond, Best Buy, Staples, and Target (all located in Columbia Heights Mall) to stop stocking SodaStream goods! The action will feature live music with lyrics, signs and slogans that highlight the need to end the occupation. Visit http://sodastreamboycott.org/. 11] – The 50th Anniversary of the Bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church will be commemorated on Sun., Sept. 15 at 4 PM at the Emergence Community Arts Collective, 733 Euclid St. NW, WDC. Join the National Black United Front for a Community Commemoration of the killing of four little girls. Email blackunitedfront@gmail.com or go to nationalblackunitedfront.org. 12] – On Sun., Sept. 15 at 9 AM at Busboys and Poets, 5th and K Sts. NW, WDC, Josh Ruebner, US Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation [mailto:uscampaign@endtheoccupation.org], starts his book tour for "Shattered Hopes: Obama’s Failure to Broker Israeli-Palestinian Peace." The $3.1 billion in military aid to Israel in the 2014 budget means the average individual taxpayer will be giving Israel $21.29 in weapons this year. He will also be at these sites--on Tues., Sept. 17 at 12:30 PM at the Palestine Center, and at 7:30 PM at George Washington University, and on Wed., Sept. 18 at 7 PM at American University, and at the National Organizers' Conference in Arlington, VA on Fri., Sept. 20 at 7:30 PM. Also on Thurs., Sept. 19 at 7 PM, Ruebner, National Advocacy Director of the U.S. Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation, and founder of Jews for Peace in Palestine and Israel, which merged with Jewish Voice for Peace, will speak at the Owen Brown Community Center, 6800 Cradlerock Way, Columbia, MD 21043. The sponsor of the talk is the Committee for Palestinian Rights. Contact the group at CPR_Maryland@yahoo.com. 13] – 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 Mon., Sept. 16, and it is sponsored by the Dorothy Day Catholic Worker. Email artlaffin@hotmail.com or call 202-882-9649. 14] – OFA volunteers are holding a national Day of Action to get the word out about the benefits of Obamacare -- and make sure folks know what the open enrollment period starting on October 1st means for their communities. Can you be at an Obamacare Day of Action at 400 Cathedral St., Baltimore 21201 on Mon., Sept. 16 at 5 PM? Go to http://my.barackobama.com/Attend-Obamacare-Day-of-Action-Event. 15] – The Marc Steiner Show airs Monday through Friday from 9 to 11 AM on WEAA 88.9 FM, The Voice of the Community, or online at www.weaa.org. The call-in number is 410-319-8888, and comments can also be sent by email to steinershow@gmail.com. All shows are also available as podcasts at www.steinershow.org. 16] – The Pledge of Resistance-Baltimore usually meets on Mondays at 7:30 PM, and the meetings take place at Max’s residence. There will be a meeting on Mon., Sept. 16. The proposed agenda will include preventing an attack on Syria, anti-drone activities, the next visit to the NSA on Sat., Oct. 5, the trial of the CIA Six and the third Wednesday visit to Rep. Sarbanes’ office. Call 410-366-1637 or email mobuszewski at verizon.net for directions. 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