Baltimore Activist Alert February 16 – 20, 2015

Baltimore Activist Alert February 16 – 20, 2015

"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.

1] Books, buttons & stickers
2] Web site for info on federal legislation
3] Join Nonviolent Resistance lists
4] Buy coffee through HoCoFoLa
5] STAND AGAINST RACISM & ISLAMOPHOBIA – Feb. 16
6] Close Gitmo vigil – Feb. 16
7] Pledge of Resistance/FOC meeting – Feb. 16
8] Human Rights Day in Annapolis – Feb. 17
9] See the film “The Turtle's Rage” – Feb. 17
10] No JHU Drone Research -- Feb. 17
11] A forum “Men or Boys” – Feb. 17
12] How Police Stops Define Race and Citizenship – Feb. 17
13] Film “Urban Kryptonite: African Roots, Foreign Diseases” -- Feb. 17
14] Black Lives Matter – Feb. 17
15] Statewide budget tele-town hall – Feb. 17
16] Film RED LINES – Feb. 18
17] Ash Wednesday Prayer Service of Repentance – Feb. 18
18] Combat Corruption in Sierra Leone – Feb. 18
19] Speak out at the White House film – Feb. 18
20] "What would Malcolm Do?" – Feb. 18
21] What criminal justice system? - Feb. 18
22] Analysis of solar power’s capacity – Feb. 18
23] Edit-A-Thon – Feb. 19
24] "Bernice Johnson Reagon: The Voice Of Freedom" – Feb. 19
25] J Street speaks – Feb. 19
26] “Where Should the Birds Fly?" – Feb. 19
27] D.C. Budget Forum – Feb. 19
28] Hope and Crisis in Greece: An Update on the Current Situation – Feb. 19
29] Enforce all the worker protection laws – Feb. 20
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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 People's Power Assembly is hosting a Vigil for Muslim Students on Mon., Feb. 16 from 5 to 6 PM at Baltimore's McKeldin Square, Light & Pratt Sts. VIGIL FOR DEAH, YUSOR, AND RAZAN. STAND AGAINST RACISM & ISLAMOPHOBIA. Honor the lives of Deah Shaddy Barakat, Yusor Abu-Salha, and Razan Abu-Salha. Go to https://www.facebook.com/events/1626211030940492/?ref_dashboard_filter=upcoming. Call 443-221-3775.

6] – On Feb. 14 Guantanamo prisoner Shaker Aamer entered his 14th year being held unjustly and indefinitely by the United States of America. On Mon., Feb. 16, Presidents' Day, join an emergency vigil outside The White House to call on President Obama to follow through on his commitment to close the Guantanamo prison camp and release those who have been cleared. As with almost half of the prisoners Aamer has been cleared for release years ago but he has been held without charge, trial, or conviction of any kind. Since the time of his arrival in Guantanamo Shaker has been tortured brutally and held in solitary confinement for much of his confinement.

United Kingdom Prime Minister Cameron has specifically asked for UK resident Shaker Aamer to be returned to his family in the UK. President Obama promised to shut down the Guantanamo prison camp in 2009 but for reasons of party politics, political will, and perhaps the legal consequences of illegally detaining, abusing, and torturing people, Shaker and the other Guantanamo prisoners remain in this shameful place. Witness Against Torture (DC) has called for this vigil. Visit www.witnesstorture.org or call 301-283-7627.

7] – 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., Feb. 16. The proposed agenda will include anti-drone activities, including getting a resolution passed in Baltimore’s City Council, lobbying in Annapolis, a march from the EPA to the Pentagon, lobbying John Sarbanes and upcoming court cases. Call 410-366-1637 or email mobuszewski at verizon.net.

8] – On Tues., Feb. 17 from 8:30 AM to 12:30 PM, be at Human Rights Day in Annapolis, Miller Senate Office Building, President’s Conference Center. The Day is sponsored by the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR). The CAIR outreach manager Zainab Chaundry will deliver remarks about the organization’s work. A continental breakfast will be provided. RVSP at www.cair.com or mdoutreach@cair.com.

9] – See “The Turtle's Rage” [2012, 70 min.] at the Jerusalem Fund, 2425 Virginia Ave. NW, WDC 20037 on Tues., Feb. 17 from 12:30 to 2 PM. When director Pary El-Qalqili was twelve years old, her father left his family in Berlin and returned to Palestine. Years later, he turned up on the doorstep, and now lives in the basement of the family home, lonely, withdrawn and filled with rage. In this tender and sorrowful film, the two travel to meet family members spread all over the Middle East, and the filmmaker strives to understand her father. The film tells the story of a mysterious man, whose life has been molded by flight, expulsion, life in exile and the failed return to Palestine. The film is composed of a daughter's search for answers from her father, through the murky terrain of suppressed memory. It is a torn biography affected tremendously by the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Visit http://www.thejerusalemfund.org/ht/d/EventDetails/i/50163.

10] – Vigil to say "No Drone Research at JHU" each Tuesday at 33rd & North Charles Sts. Join this ongoing vigil on Feb. 17 from 5:30 to 6:30 PM. Call Max at 410-366-1637.

11] – Go to the Thurgood Marshall Center, 1816 12th St. NW, WDC, 20009, on Tues., Feb. 17 from 6 to 8 PM, as the Reentry Network for Returning Citizens is concerned that the law see boys becoming men at 18 in the justice system. This discussion will speak to the mental and emotional capacity of our black youth, their environment, peer pressure, truancy, high school drop-out rate, underemployment, etc. The goal is to continue the conversation to end the school to prison pipeline, end mass incarceration, recommend and create more alternatives to prison and diversion programs. The law says that a boy becomes a man at the age of 18. This is not necessarily true. See http://www.dcjwj.org/events/men-or-boys/.

12] – On Tues., Feb. 17 from 6 to 9 PM at Busboys and Poets, 5331 Baltimore Ave., Hyattsville, political scientist Charles R. Epp will present findings from his recently published book, “Pulled Over: How Police Stops Define Race and Citizenship.” Participants can pay for their own dinner first, as the presentation begins at 7 PM. Epp earned a Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and his research focuses on law as an instrument of reform. He is the author of several books published by the University of Chicago Press: “The Rights Revolution: Lawyers, Activists, and Supreme Courts in Comparative Perspective,” which won the C. Herman Pritchett Award of the American Political Science Association, “Making Rights Real: Activists, Bureaucrats, and the Creation of the Legalistic State,” which was named an Outstanding Academic Title by the American Library Association, and “Pulled Over,” co-authored with colleagues Steven Maynard-Moody and Donald Haider-Markel. Contact Kimberly Schmidt at kimberly.schmidt@emu.edu. This presentation is sponsored by the Jeremiah Nonviolence Network.

13] – At Bloombars, 3222 11th St. NW, WDC 20010, on Tues., Feb. 17 from 7 to 9:30 PM, BloomBars presents a thought-provoking film and discussion on health and nutrition in the Black community. “Urban Kryptonite: African Roots, Foreign Diseases” (2014) by Salahdeen Asad is a documentary that uncovers many truths triggering the decline in health of African-Americans. After the screening discuss the health and diet within the black community and nutritional choices. BloomScreen Indie Film Night is a weekly series of independent and foreign films, accompanied by discussions with filmmakers, experts and other guests. The suggested donation is $10, and proceeds support BloomBars. Enjoy free organic popcorn. RSVP at http://tinyurl.com/uk-film-0217-rsvp. See a trailer at http://tinyurl.com/uk-film-trailer.

14] -- The Washington Peace Center, 1525 Newton St. NW, WDC, will host on Tues., Feb. 17 at 7 PM a discussion on BlackLivesMatter. In the first meeting, it was agreed to actively support, center, and organize for the local BlackLivesMatter work. This meeting will delve deeper into discussion on how not to co-opt the #BlackLivesMatter work. Kafiya Ahmed, the facilitator of this discussion, is a graduate student at American University who is studying peace and conflict resolution. She identifies as a Black Muslim Feminist Activist originally from Somalia, but raised in Minnesota. Go to https://www.facebook.com/events/915581625142828/?ref=6&ref_notif_type=plan_user_invited.

15] – Gov. Hogan introduced his budget for FY2016. In it were significant cuts to education, cuts to Medicaid covering low-income pregnant women, reductions in cost of living adjustments for state workers, reduced funding for libraries…the list goes on. It’s unfair to ask those already struggling to figure out a way to get by with less, especially when others aren’t paying their fair share. We build a Maryland that works for all of us when everyone pays their fair share. Sign up to participate in the statewide tele-town hall on Tues., Feb. 17 at 7 PM at http://myaccount.maestroconference.com/conference/register/ZLCNRLFKU15ICOM. Learn how you can make a difference in a fight for a fair budget! Last year, the wealthiest 3% of households in Maryland were given a tax cut. Meanwhile, multistate corporations doing business in Maryland continue to shield profits in other states.

16] – The documentary RED LINES tells the story of Syrian activists on a mission to save their country, and can be seen at American University, Hughes Formal Lounge, Hughes Hall, WDC, on Wed., Feb. 18 at 11 AM. The screening will be followed by a Q and A with filmmaker Andrea Kalin. RSVP at LibEvents@american.edu or 202-885-3847.

17] – Join an Ash Wednesday Prayer Service of Repentance at the White House on Feb. 18 from noon to 1 PM. Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent. Lent is a time for personal and societal repentance, a time for radical conversion, renewal and transformation. On Ash Wednesday people from the faith-based peace and justice community in the D.C. area will hold a prayer service in front of the White House to call for repentance and conversion to the Gospel way of justice, nonviolence and a reverence for all life and creation. Eradicate what Martin Luther King, Jr. called the triple evils of poverty, racism and militarism. Contact Art Laffin of the Dorothy Day Catholic Worker at 202-360-6416 or artlaffin@hotmail.com.

18] – N'yella Rogers, National Endowment for Democracy Fellow, presents "Harnessing Social Media to Combat Corruption in Sierra Leone “at Kay Spiritual Life Center, 4400 Massachusetts Ave. NW, WDC, on Wed., Feb. 18 at noon. RSVP or to ask for special accommodations, email KSLC@american.edu or call 202-885-3321.

19] – On Wed., Feb. 18, the White House, 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, WDC, will be holding a Countering Violent Extremism Summit, which will focus on Muslim communities as the primary targets of criminal enforcement from federal and local law enforcement agencies. As communities of color, including Muslim communities, continue to be targeted, there will be a speak-out at 4 PM to voice a categorical rejection of the rationale of collective responsibility that has become emblematic of CVE measures and program. Speak out to demand that marginalized voices should be at the table and to reject the militarization and expansion of policing. The speak-out will conclude with a vigil for Deah Barakat, Yusor Abu-Salha, Razan Abu-Salha and other Muslims who were victims of hate crimes. See https://www.facebook.com/events/341123109410412/.

20] – The All-African Peoples Revolutionary Party is hosting its Pan-African Community Talk on Wed., Feb. 18 from 6:30 to 8:30 PM at the Emergence Community Arts Collective, 733 Euclid St. NW, WDC. This month it will focus on the contribution and ideology of Malcolm X. The topic is "What would Malcolm Do?" Go to http://www.aaprp-intl.org/.

21] – Join newly elected committee leadership Erin Johnson, Esq. and Dr. Malik Burnett at the NAACP Financial Freedom Campaign, 1816 12th St. NW, WDC 20009, on Wed., Feb. 18 at 7 PM to discuss the criminal justice issues plaguing YOUR community. Find out how the criminal justice system has failed you and your community. Membership applications to join the NAACP and serve on the Criminal Justice Committee will be available! See https://www.facebook.com/events/772843752805191/?ref=6&ref_notif_type=plan_user_invited.

22] – Physicians for Social Responsibility Climate Health Action Teams are convening on Wed., Feb. 18 from 8 to 9 PM EST. Join an analysis of solar power’s capacity to help replace coal -- and improve health. The guest speaker will be a representative of the Solar Power Industry Association. Sign up for the webinar at https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/8891562881224595201. There will be a review of the number of signatures of health professionals on the letter to President Obama.

23] – Howard University’s Moorland-Spingarn Research Center (MSRC), in collaboration with Wikimedia DC, is organizing and hosting a daylong “Black History Month Edit-a-thon” in MSRC Reading Room, Founders Library, 1st Floor, 500 Howard Place NW, WDC, on Thurs., Feb. 19 from 10 AM to 4 PM. The goal of this special Edit-a-thon is to give faculty, graduate students, and others the skills they need to improve or update existing Wikipedia entries relating to African American and African Diasporic history and culture and create vital new ones using the MSRC’s unique collections.

Participants are encouraged to bring any papers or articles that they have written on relevant aspects of the Black experience, as their text, reference lists, and/or bibliographies may be helpful in creating new entries or establishing the verifiability of existing Wikipedia entries. You must register in advance at t http://library.howard.edu/content.php?pid=523806&sid=5441755.

24] – The Institute for Policy Studies, CHIME and Busboys & Poets invite you to a new monthly lunchtime series starting with "Bernice Johnson Reagon: The Voice Of Freedom" presented By E. Ethelbert Miller. This inaugural event at Busboys and Poets, 14th & V Sts. (2021 14th St, NW), WDC, on Thurs., Feb. 19 from noon to 2 PM, will be a presentation, including videos, on Reagon. Miller is a literary activist, writer, IPS board chair and director of the African American Resource Center at Howard University. Admission is $5. This new series will be held every Third Thursday at the same time and place. Contact Dorothy Marschak at dmarschak@chime-dc.org.

25] – On Thurs., Feb. 19 at 7 PM, J Street DC Metro invites you to hear J Street President Jeremy Ben-Ami at Temple Sinai, 3100 Military Road NW, WDC. He will explain how J Street is working for a better future for Israel and the Palestinian people. Register at http://act.jstreet.org/signup/dc_021915/?t=1&akid=3660.277354.eXmyZo.

26] – “Where Should the Birds Fly?" documents the separate stories and shared experience of two women in Gaza. It opens by briefly introducing us to the two major characters -- Mona Al Samouni and Fida Qishta. Mona Al Samouni is an 11 year old girl whose family died when her home was hit by Israeli rockets during Operation Cast Lead. Fida Qishta, the filmmaker, is a Gazan videographer, teacher, and human rights worker. Born and raised in Rafah, Gaza, she began her filmmaking career as a wedding videographer and soon moved on to working with international human rights observers in Gaza, documenting day to day life under siege.

The film will be screened in the 2640 space, 27th & St. Paul Sts., on Thurs., Feb. 19 at 7 PM. The director will be there for a Q&A. Visit http://whereshouldthebirdsfly.org/about.html.

27] – Mayor Bowser will host a series of three Budget Engagement Forums throughout the District in February. The forums will be open to the press and public, and the first will be at Woodrow Wilson High School, 3950 Chesapeake St. NW, WDC, on Thurs., Feb. 19 from 7 to 8:30 PM. The administration’s Budget Engagement Forums are designed as interactive discussions where D.C. residents can provide input to help shape priorities. See http://mayor.dc.gov/release/mayor-bowser-announces-budget-engagement-forums-and-executive-office-mayor-open-house.

28] – On Thurs., Feb. 19 at 7:30 PM @ Red Emma's Bookstore Coffeehouse, 30 W. North Ave., Baltimore 21201, hear from Kostis Papadantonakis who will address Hope and Crisis in Greece: An Update on the Current Situation. Seven years after Athens was set ablaze by raging protests over the murder of a teenage anarchist by the police and six years into a regime of savage austerity a coalition of non-dogmatic left-wing parties (SYRIZA) won the elections in Greece, establishing what may turn out to be the first of several democratically elected left-wing governments in the periphery of Europe in the 21st Century. Papadantonakis will provide some background to the Euro-capitalist encroachment that has fattened Greece's oligarchs and ravaged the lives of its working people. He will also present the framework for the rise of neo-Nazi racism that has been stoked by the previously ruling coalition of right-wing and centrist parties. Finally, he will summarize the just-published SYRIZA program for countering austerity and leading to democratic-socialist transformation. Call 443-602-7585. Go to http://www.redemmas.org.

29] – Join DC Jobs With Justice at the John A. Wilson Building, 1350 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, WDC, on Fri., Feb. 20 from 10 AM to 5 PM in calling on DOES to enforce all the worker protection laws that have passed over the past couple years. Contact Nikki Lewis (nikki@dcjwj.org) on how to support the enforcement. Visit http://www.dcjwj.org/events/2015-performance-oversight-hearing-on-does/.

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