Baltimore Activist Alert November 2 – 4, 2014

Baltimore Activist Alert November 2 – 4, 2014

"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] Food drive – through Nov. 8
6] Can you donate a kidney?
7] Friendship Walks event – Nov. 2
8] Baltimore Brew – Nov. 2
9] Peace and Pancakes – Nov. 2
10] Dreamers’ Moms fasting – Nov. 2 to ?
11] Equitable and Inclusive D.C. – Nov. 2
12] A.C.T.O.R. – Nov. 2
13] Musicians for Frosh – Nov. 2
14] Pentagon Vigil – Nov. 3
15] Marc Steiner on WEAA – Nov. 3 – 7
16] Beyond Extreme Energy/Protest at the DNC -- Nov. 3 - 7
17] Film AMERICAN PROMISE – Nov. 3
18] Pledge/FOC meeting – Nov. 3
19] 'What the Hell Happened to the American Dream?' – Nov. 3
20] Pass Ballot Initiative #71 – Nov. 4
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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 mobuszewski at Verizon dot net. 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 mobuszewski at Verizon dot 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 Francine Sheppard at 5639B, Harpers Farm Rd., Columbia 21044. The coffee will arrive some time the following week and you will be notified where to pick it up. Contact Francine at 410-992-7679 or FrancineMSW@aol.com.

5] – The Men and Families Center, 2222 Jefferson St., Baltimore, continues its food drive through Sat., Nov. 8. The organization is collecting canned and unperishable goods so that food pantries in the center are stocked for the holidays! Call Quandra or Rodney at 410-614-5353 or email menandfamiliescenter.org.

6] - A relative – or sort of relative – of the Berrigans by the name of Michael Moore has an ex-wife suffering from renal failure and is on dialysis four times each day. Her only hope is to receive a kidney from a donor. Her name is Mary Ann Nowak, and she can be reached at 760-632-5462 or by email at bunnykimhm@hotmail.com. Anyone willing to be tested or who has already been tested and is able to donate a kidney would give new life to this woman. Many thanks for any and all consideration you can give. Thanks for reading, for caring, for considering--Liz McAlister.

7] - On Sun., Nov. 2 from 10:30 AM to noon, Friendship Place will be hosting its inaugural Friendship Walks event. Friendship Walks will feature speakers and activities for the whole family. The purpose and objective is to get the Washington D.C. region to remain focused on ending homelessness. Friendship Walks, a one mile walk on the National Mall, will support the work of Friendship Place and to educate the public about positive solutions to homelessness.

Friendship Place offers the most effective model for addressing adult homelessness, with innovative, customized, person-centric programs that empower participants to rebuild their lives, find homes, get jobs and reconnect with friends, family and the community, permanently. All proceeds raised will go directly back into funding programs. Contact Zachary Tobler, development associate, Friendship Place, 3655 Calvert St. NW, WDC 20007, at 202-431-7567. The cost is $30 for adults, and $10 for youth. There is no charge for children 6 & under. Everyone who registers can set up their own fundraising page with a link to send to friends and family. Register at http://www.friendshipwalks.org/.

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 AM to noon. On Sun., Nov. 2, Fern Shen, founder and editor of Baltimore Brew will tackle “Brewing in Baltimore: An Alternative to Mainstream Media.” She is a veteran journalist, who worked at The Hartford Courant, The Evening Sun and The Washington Post for 17 years. In 2009 – with mainstream media here and across the country suddenly cutting back, laying off and shutting down - she struck off into somewhat uncharted territory. She started Baltimore Brew – an online-only news website with reported news stories, culture and community dialogue. Since then, she’s found the response to the Brew’s unique blend of highly-professional but dogged accountability reporting and community coverage enlightening and uplifting. She’ll talk about what the experience has taught her about the challenges and opportunities faced by the city and the Fourth Estate.

An award-winning writer on The Post’s Metro staff, she covered Maryland state government and the General Assembly, local government, education, crime, environment and social issues. On the Style staff, she helped create and wrote for The Post’s “KidsPost” section, a daily page of news and features for young readers. Call 410-581-2322 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] – On Mon., Nov. 3 at 11 AM in front of the White House (Lafayette Park), Dreamers’ Moms USA from across the country and allies will come together to fast as a call for President Obama to keep his promises to protect families and finally provide administrative relief in the form of an expanded Deferred Action for 11 million aspiring citizens. Dreamers’ Moms is a group of brave immigrant women who have stepped out of the shadows to fight to keep their families together! Mothers who have been deported will gather on the same date at the border (Tijuana/San Diego) and begin fasting in solidarity with their sisters in D.C. FAST WITH THEM. Take a picture of yourself or group holding this sign “I am fasting for 11 million immigrants - deferred action for all, in solidarity with Dreamers’ Moms USA.” Join them every day in front of the White House from 10 AM to 7 PM. See https://www.facebook.com/events/1502875543327461/?ref=6&ref_notif_type=plan_user_invited.

11] – On Sun., Nov. 2 from 1:30 to 3:30 PM, be at the Mount Pleasant Library, US Department of Arts and Culture, 3160 16th St. NW, WDC 20010, for the second convening in digging deeper around ideas, tactics and questions that came out of the inaugural DC Imagining. IT'S TIME TO GET CREATIVE ABOUT ENSURING THAT D.C. IS AN EQUITABLE AND INCLUSIVE CITY. WHAT DO YOU WANT TO SEE? Visit http://www.eventbrite.com/e/meeting-two-the-dc-imagining-tickets-12919030167.

12] – At Busboys and poets, 2021 14th St. NW, WDC, on Sun., Nov. 2 from 5 to 7 PM, attend A Continuing Talk On Race, which is held on the first Sunday of every month. To be added to the A.C.T.O.R. email list, email press@busboysandpoets.com. See http://busboysandpoets.com/events/event/a.c.t.o.r-a-continuing-talk-on-race609.

13] – The Charm City farewell event is on Sun., Nov. 2 from 5 to 8 PM. A Musicians for Frosh Gathering is at Ryan's Daughter, 600 E Belvedere Ave, Baltimore 21212. This event will bring together people from across the state and from all walks of life to celebrate in song and close out the campaign’s final days. And when you're playing Irish music in Baltimore City, there's a pretty good chance a special Democrat who knows a tune or two will join the session. Contributions are appreciated, but not required. RSVP at https://act.myngp.com/Forms/4683462137488605184?midqs=5307210685879418880.

14] -- 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., Nov. 3, 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.

15] – The Marc Steiner Show airs Monday through Friday from 10 AM to noon 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] – On Mon, Nov. 3 at 2 PM, join the Actions Against Extreme Energy and the Pentagon. Protest at the Democratic National Committee, 499 S. Capitol St. SW, WDC 20003. Go to https://www.facebook.com/events/1500102190276531/?ref=22. As part of the Beyond Extreme Energy week of actions to retire fossil fuels, the Popular Resistance Climate Justice affinity group is organizing a protest to call out the Democrats for their corruption by the oil and gas industry. Meet at 1:40 PM in front of Union Station to march to the DNC or meet there at 2 PM. Tell the Democrats their 'all-of-the-above' energy strategy will worsen climate chaos. Call (202) 479-1237.

17] – On Mon., Nov. 3 at 7 PM, 24] – Beyond the Classroom presents a film “American Promise” at the University of Maryland, College Park on Mon., Nov. 3 from 7 to 9 PM at 1104 South Campus Commons, Building 1, College Park 20742. The film spans 13 years as Joe Brewster and Michèle Stephenson, middle-class African-American parents in Brooklyn, N.Y., turn their cameras on their son, Idris, and his best friend, Seun, who make their way through one of the most prestigious private schools in the country. The film “plays a vital role in shifting the perceptions our society holds about young black boys, allowing us to have a new dialogue about the achievement gap and how we all have a collective responsibility to identify and remove unintentional hurdles so that every child, regardless of their race or gender, can reach their full potential and brighten our country’s future.” – Rashid Shabbaz, Program Officer, Open Society Institute. Special Jury Prize, 2013 Sundance Film Festival. See http://www.beyondtheclassroom.umd.edu/. Call 301-314-6621 or email at btcinfo@umd.edu.

18] – The Pledge of Resistance-Baltimore usually meets on Mondays at 7:30 PM, and the meetings take place at Max’s residence. The next meeting will be on Mon., Nov. 3. The proposed agenda will include anti-drone activities, including getting a drone law passed in Baltimore’s City Council, Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, Syria and Ukraine, KILL THE MESSENGER & CITIZEN FOUR, a march from the EPA to the Pentagon, Beyond Extreme Energy. Call 410-366-1637 or email mobuszewski at verizon.net for directions.

19] –Join the 'What the Hell Happened to the American Dream?' Tour! Watch a FREE film screening of Forward 13: Waking Up the American Dream and participate in discussions in some of the cities hardest hit by the mortgage crises which are facing tough mid-term elections. Organizational support is provided by Bernie Sanders’ office, 350.org, Move to Amend and local foreclosure groups. Filmmaker Patrick Lovell will be at the event and beaming in some special guests through Skype. On Mon., Nov. 3 at 7:30 PM, go to the Angelika Film Center, 2911 District Ave., Fairfax 22031. Visit https://www.facebook.com/forward13film.

20] – On Tues., Nov. 4 at 7 AM, the D.C. Cannabis Campaign, a grassroots effort to pass Ballot Initiative #71, is urging you to vote YES. See http://DCMJ.org/. The Ballot Initiative calls for the legalization of marijuana in Washington, DC!! Read the ballot at initiative: http://DCMJ.org/ballot-initiative/. Go to https://www.facebook.com/dcmj2014.

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