Baltimore Activist Alert - May 21-22, 2014

21] Protest against TAFTA – May 21
22] Protest in support of imprisoned Qatari poet Mohamed Al Ajami – May 21
23] Colombia's U'wa Indigenous People Two Decades On, Their Struggle Continues – May 21
24] African Liberation Day – May 21
25] Monthly Meeting of Get Money Out - Maryland – May 21
26] Webinar "How to Measure Progress? Replacing GDP." – May 22
27] Hand out peace diplomas at JHU – May 22
28] “Command and Control: Nuclear Weapons, the Damascus Accident, and the Illusion of Safety” – May 22
29] New Populism Conference – May 22
-----
21] – On Wed., May 21 at 10 AM, join a protest against TAFTA. Trade negotiators from the United States and Europe will be gathering for a Stakeholder Forum to push forward the next big trade deal, the Transatlantic Free Trade Agreement (TAFTA) – also known as T-TIP. Come out to George Mason Law School, 3301 N. Fairfax Drive, Arlington, to defend fair trade, jobs, food safety, basically all that keeps us safe and healthy. http://pol.moveon.org/event/events/event.html?event_id=141176&id=95907-6674649-ms8ZIgx&t=3.

22] – Protest in support of imprisoned Qatari poet Mohamed Al Ajami on Wed., May 21 from 11:30 AM to 12:30 PM at the Qatari Embassy. 2555 M St. NW, WDC. Mohamed Al Ajami is a Qatari poet and a third year literature student at the University of Cairo who has been imprisoned for criticizing the Qatari regime in one of his poems. Through his poetry, Al Ajami has taken a stand for human rights and values in the Gulf region and the Middle East. Because he is an inspiration to us, CODEPINK has teamed up with the Free Mohamed Al Ajami Campaign to host a rally on his behalf. Arrested in 2011, Al Ajami has been dealt the severe and unjust punishment of 15 years in prison, including five months he has spent in solitary confinement.

23] – Amazon Watch and EarthRights International invite you to a "Green-Bag Lunch" presentation: Colombia's U'wa Indigenous People Two Decades On, Their Struggle Continues with Aura Tegria Cristancho, U'wa Association Legal Advisor, on Wed., May 21 from noon to 1:30 PM at the EarthRights International Offices, 1612 K St. NW, #401, next to Farragut Square, WDC. Colombia's U'wa indigenous people are a global symbol of the fight for indigenous rights and cultural survival in the face of environmental calamity. Since the 1990's, their struggle to keep oil activities out of their ancestral territory has inspired impressive solidarity from around the planet. Though the stakes are high – as demonstrated by the killing of three U.S. citizens in 1999 – the U'wa commitment to protect their culture and environment remains steadfast. They continue to request international solidarity to strengthen and support the campaign to defend their territories.

24] – The Emergence Community Arts Collective, 733 Euclid St. NW, on Wed., May 21, from 6 to 9 PM, will host the All-African People's Revolutionary Party in a celebration of African Liberation Day! Join them for political education, a discussion of the documentary “United States of Africa: Beyond Hip-Hop,” and more. Email aaprpmd@gmail.com or 202-294-5593.

25] – The Monthly Meeting of Get Money Out - Maryland is on Wed., May 21 from 7 to 8:30 PM at the Episcopal Cathedral of the Incarnation, 4 E University Pky., Baltimore 21218 or by conference call. Refreshments are provided. Call In at 1-619-326-2772, code 1136243#. In-person meetings are on the third Wednesday evening of the month. Conference calls are every Monday evening at 7 PM, also at 1-619-326-2772, code 1136243#

In the just-concluded amazing first year, dozens of volunteers manned the phones at too-numerous-to-count phone bank parties. Volunteer lobbyists spent literally hundreds of hours in Annapolis. Almost 40 state Senators and Delegates co-sponsored our resolution. Our political muscle was clearly visible to legislative leaders, culminating in a lopsided win in a State Senate Committee and a strong vote on the Senate floor - far more than anyone expected in our first year. The first state (Vermont) just passed a version of this resolution. There are active teams in almost all fifty states. The groundwork is laid.

This resolution for the "Democracy Amendment" will be Maryland's formal application for a Convention of the States for proposing a constitutional amendment to allow the limitation of spending in elections, and clarifying that only natural persons have constitutional rights. When two thirds of the states pass a version of this, there is the amendment. This is a way to bypass Congress, as provided by Article V of the Constitution. Get Money Out - Maryland is the Maryland affiliate of Wolf Pac: www.Wolf-Pac.com. No need to RSVP, but *we want to hear from you* at 410-849-0670 or admin [at] GetMoneyOutMD.org. Go to http://www.getmoneyoutmd.org/.

26] – On Thurs., May 22, the Institute for Policy Studies: Ideas into Action for Peace, Justice, and the Environment is hosting a Webinar "How to Measure Progress? Replacing GDP." Visit www.ips-dc.org or email info@ips-dc.org.

27] – The Pledge of Resistance-Baltimore will hand out peace diplomas at the Johns Hopkins University commencement in the football stadium on University Parkway on Thurs., May 22 from 8 to 9 AM. Afterwards have breakfast at One World Café. RSVP at 410-366-1637 or mobuszewski at verizon.net.

28] – On Thurs., May 22 from 8:30 to 9:30 AM, hear opening remarks by Representative Jim Cooper, ranking member, Strategic Forces Subcommittee, House Armed Services Committee, followed by the featured speaker, Eric Schlosser, author of “Command and Control: Nuclear Weapons, the Damascus Accident, and the Illusion of Safety.” The discussion will be moderated by Joe Cirincione, president of Ploughshares Fund and author of “Nuclear Nightmares: Securing the World Before It Is Too Late.” The event will be held at the Rayburn House Office Building, RHOB 2212. Food and refreshments will be provided. RSVP to rsvp@ploughshares.org.

Since the dawn of the nuclear age, the United States has faced the dilemma of how to deploy nuclear weapons without being destroyed by them. Join famed investigative journalist Eric Schlosser for a discussion about the secret history of nuclear accidents and near misses, the extraordinary heroism exhibited by American missile and bomber crews, and the combination of human fallibility and technological complexity that still poses a grave risk to human kind.

29] – On Thurs., May 22 from 9 AM to 5 PM be at the New Populism Conference at the Washington Court Hotel, 525 New Jersey Ave. NW, WDC. Tickets are $35, which includes lunch. Discuss strategies for educating, energizing and mobilizing around an agenda for economic change that strong majorities of people already support, including: good jobs and full employment; a living wage; a break-up of the big banks; an increase in Social Security benefits; and an end to the fiction that corporations are people; and no more buying of legislators. Register at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/new-populism-conference-tickets-8500668729.

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