Baltimore Activist Alert - Nov. 27-30, 2103

26] Music for Peace – Nov. 27 27] Thanksgiving Open House – Nov. 28 28] Support Wal-Mart workers – Nov. 29 29] Vigil To Save Guantanamo Hunger Strikers – Nov. 29 30] Justice in Palestine/Israel – Nov. 29 31] National SodaStream Boycott – Nov. 29 32] No Silent peace vigil – Nov. 29 33] Ballroom dancing – Nov. 29 34] Olney Peace vigil – Nov. 30 35] West Chester, PA demo – Nov. 30 36] Silent vigil at Capitol – Nov. 30 37] Stop the drone war command center – Nov. 30 38] Authentic Reflection: UTOPIA – Nov. 30 39] Max is seeking a place to live 40] Support the Transform Now Plowshares 41] Sign up with Washington Peace Center 42] Join Fund Our Communities 43] Donate books, videos, DVDs and records 44] Do you need any book shelves or file cabinets? 45] Join Global Zero campaign 46] War Is Not the Answer signs for sale 47] Join Peace Park Antinuclear Vigil ----- 26] – Music for Peace is an opportunity to discover music as a means to communicate and connect across cultures. Listen, play or learn. The event which takes place at 7 PM on the last Wednesday, Nov. 27, of the month at the HI Baltimore Hostel, 17 W. Mulberry St. will feature an open mic forum, guitar lessons and the chance to meet and connect with other musicians in the city. Call 410-576-8880 or visit http://www.baltimorehostel.org. 27] – Enjoy a Thanksgiving Day Open House at the Emergence Community Arts Collective on Thurs., Nov. 28 at 3 PM at 733 Euclid St. NW. If you're not able to gather with family this year, bring a dish, non-alcoholic drink or donation and spend time in the company of the ECAC family. RSVP to sylvia@ecacollective.org or (202) 462-2285. 28] – Support Wal-Mart Workers Strike on Black Friday, Nov. 29! This holiday season Wal-Mart and the Waltons expect to make huge profits again (400 billion dollars), while paying poverty wages and forcing workers to depend on food stamps and other government assistance just to survive. The workers are risking their livelihoods to speak out for all families. But instead of respecting and listening to them, Wal-Mart continues to illegally intimidate, threaten, and even fire workers. Demand that workers be heard, respected, and paid livable wages on Black Friday at 7:30 AM with UFCW Local 400 at 4301 Garden City Dr., Landover, MD 20785 (near the New Carrollton Station, Orange and Blue Lines). In Towson, gather on Joppa Road at 11 AM. See www.ForRespect.org or www.Action.ChangeWalmart.org. Call for an end to retaliation against those who bravely speak out and a real wage of $25,000/year. Join the Baltimore demo on Joppa Road in Towson near the store at 1238 Putty Hill Ave., Towson 21286. 29] – On Fri., Nov. 29 at noon, participate in the White House Vigil To Save Guantanamo Hunger Strikers--NO MORE TORTURE! NO MORE WAR! The vigil is sponsored by the Dorothy Day Catholic Worker and Witness Against Torture. See www.witnesstorture.org and www.closegitmo.net. 30] – A vigil for Justice in Palestine/Israel 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/. 31 ] – There is a National SodaStream Boycott Day of Action – on Black Friday, Nov. 29 from 2 to 3:30 PM– to Celebrate Chanukah and the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People! See http://tinyurl.com/SodaStream-NatlDayofAction2013. The action will take in front of the Columbia Heights Mall, at the Columbia Heights Metro Station on 14th St. and just north of the intersection with Irving St. Ask shoppers to refuse to buy SodaStream products, and call on local store managers to tell their corporate headquarters to stop stocking the products. Email jvpdcmetro@gmail.com or call 301-80-9224. 32] – There is no silent peace vigil on Fri., Nov. 29 from 5 to 6 PM outside the Cathedral of the Incarnation, University Parkway and St. Paul St. The vigil, sponsored by Homewood Friends and Stony Run Meetings, will next take place on Fri., Dec, 6. War Is Not the Answer. Stop bullying. 33] – 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 Nov. 29. Call Dave Greene at 410-599-3725. 34] – 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. [Route 97] in Olney, MD. The next vigil is Nov. 30. Call Chuck Harker at 301-570-7167. 35] – 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. 36] – There will be a peace vigil on the West Lawn of the Capitol at noon on Sat., Nov. 30. 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. 37] – Stop the killing...stop the drone war command center in Horsham NOW. Be at a protest on Sat., Nov. 30 from noon to 2 PM. Continue the Demand...Stop the Drone War Command Center at the Horsham Air Guard Station, Horsham, Montgomery County, PA, at corner of Route #611/Easton Road & County Line Road. Stand up...Speak Out...Protest and Demonstrate! Enjoy music, read the names of U.S. drone strike victims and their stories and hear bell-tolling. Go to www.brandywinepeace.com or call 610-544-1818. 38] – On Sat., Nov. 30 from 5 to 8 PM at 733 Euclid St. NW, WDC 20001, Authentic Reflection: UTOPIA, featuring Mariah Maxwell, will launch a campaign to promote peace and positivity in the world while also providing tangible actions to improve the capacity of disadvantaged communities. Funds from this event go directly towards The Emergence Community Arts Collective for the purpose of housing. Help fund a socially responsible entrepreneurship program named Authentic Movements, started by John Harris III, founder of Authentic Reflection. Tickets cost $15. Visit http://www.eventbrite.com/e/authentic-reflection-utopia-tickets-8801640945. 39] – Max is seeking a place to live. Let him know of any possibilities. He can be reached at 410-366-1637 or mobuszewski at verizon.dot net. 40] – You can support the Transform Now Plowshares resisters by writing the judge and the prisoners. Greg Boertje-Obed, Michael Walli and Megan Rice are currently in the Irwin County Detention Facility in Ocilla, GA, awaiting their sentencing on January 28, 2014. The three were found guilty by a jury in Tennessee in May on two counts. Judge Amul Thapar revoked their pre-trial release saying they were technically guilty of a crime of violence and must be held. Here are the addresses: Gregory Boertje-Obed 22090 Irwin County Detention Center 132 Cotton Drive, Ocilla, GA 31774; Michael Walli 4444, Irwin County Detention Center, 132 Cotton Drive, Ocilla, GA 31774: and Megan Rice 22100, Irwin County Detention Center, 132 Cotton Drive, Ocilla, GA 31774. You must make sure to include your entire return address on the outside of the envelope. No staples or paperclips can be included in your mail; no oversized envelopes. Magazines and books must be sent directly from the publisher or bookstore/Amazon. Photocopies of brief articles are likely to be permitted (based on our past experience). If you include inappropriate material or fail to comply with these rules, your mail will not get through—it will be returned to you. The second thing you can do is send a letter to Judge Thapar. We have suggested guidelines for your letter, and we are asking people to send their letter to Bill Quigley, lawyer for Mike Walli (address below), so they can be collected and delivered to the judge. If you want to send a copy of your letter to us, that would be great—our address is also below. Invite Judge Thapar to think about sentencing in light of the fact that this was an act of nonviolent civil disobedience intended to awaken the conscience of the nation, and no evidence was presented that it was an act of terrorism meant to harm anyone. You could write that you share the court's concern that Congress would write a law that wouldn’t allow a judge to distinguish between peace activists and terrorists, and are disturbed that the government defines the crime they stand convicted of as a violent "crime of terrorism.” As testimony of the defendants showed during trial, they carried out their action in a spirit of nonviolence and hope. Without making it the focus of the letter, you could mention that the action was carried out with the clear understanding of the illegality and immorality of nuclear weapons, and intent to uphold higher laws. Encourage him to consider downward departures from the high guidelines for the charges, and to use his discretion at sentencing to bring more justice into the situation by recognizing that the defendants are NOT violent terrorists as the government has implied through its interpretation of the crime; and remind him of the intentions of the three nonviolent activists: to follow the words of the prophet Isaiah to beat swords into plowshares, and build a safer and more secure world for all. Our purpose with these letters is not to reargue the case, nor is it to condemn nuclear weapons production—the judge is not engaging those issues at this time. Our purpose is to address the legal system’s distortion of the nonviolent action of the TNP resisters and to provide support to the judge for a sentencing decision that takes into account the nature of their action and their nonviolent behavior throughout their action. Letters should be sent to US District Judge Amul R Thapar, c/o Professor Bill Quigley, Loyola Law Clinic and Center for Social Justice, 7214 St. Charles Ave., Campus Box 902, New Orleans, LA 70118. If you care to send a copy to OREPA that would also be appreciated--orep@earthlink.net or OREPA, PO Box 5743, Oak Ridge, TN 37831. 41] – The Washington Peace Center has a progressive calendar & activist alert! Consider signing up to receive its weekly email: info@washingtonpeacecenter.org. 42] – Fund Our Communities campaign is a grass roots movement to get support from local organizations and communities to work together with their local and state elected officials to pressure Congresspersons and senators to join with Congresspersons Barney Frank and Ron Paul, who have endorsed a 25% cut to the federal military budget. Bring home the savings to state and county governments to meet the local needs which are under tremendous budget pressures. Go to www.OurFunds.org. 43] – If you would like to get rid of books, videos, DVDs or records, contact Max at 410-366-1637 or mobuszewski at verizon.net. 44] – Can you use any book shelves? Can you use any file cabinets? Contact Max at 410-366-1637 or mobuszewski at verizon.net. 45] – 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. 46] – WAR IS NOT THE ANSWER signs from Friends Committee on National Legislation are again for sale at $5. To purchase a sign, call Max at 410-366-1637. 47] – 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: mobuszewski [at] verizon.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 Berrigan