Baltimore Activist Alert March 26 - 28, 2017

Baltimore Activist Alert March 26 - 28, 2017

"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 410-323-1607 or mobuszewski [at] verizon.net.

1] Books, buttons and stickers

2] Web site for info on federal legislation

3] Join Nonviolent Resistance lists  

4] Two friends are looking to buy a house in Baltimore

5] Call Sen. Mike Miller to tell him pass a fracking ban

6] Religion and politics in 2017 – Mar. 26

7] “Kayla and Me” - Mar. 26

8] Support Palestine in 2017 – Mar. 26

9] Jewish Resistance at AIPAC – Mar. 26

10] Film OPEN BETLEHEM -- Mar. 26

11] “Protester Has Been Released” -- Mar. 26

12] BALTIMORE GREEN FORUM – Mar. 26

13] Labor Seder– Mar. 26

14] Shut down AIPAC – Mar. 26 - 28

15] DECOLONIZING DIALECTICS – Mar. 26

16] Pentagon Vigil – Mar. 27

17] Marc Steiner on WEAA – Mar. 27 – Mar. 31

18] War on Drugs -- Mar. 27

19] Film HOOLIGAN SPARROW -- Mar. 27

20] Immigration group meeting --- Mar. 27

21] Get Money Out of Maryland conference call – Mar. 27

22] UN Conference on Abolishing Nuclear weapons – Mar. 28 – Mar. 31

23] Philly peace vigil - Mar. 28

24] Stop JHU’s drone research -- Mar. 28

25] The Francis Factor – Mar. 28

26] Intro to Image Theatre – Mar. 28

27] Know Your Rights, Immigration and Protests – Mar. 28

28] Spanking black children – Mar. 28

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1] – Buttons, bumperstickers and books are available.  “God Bless the Whole World, No Exceptions” stickers are in stock. Call Max at 410-323-1607.

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.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 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] – Janice and Max are looking to buy a house in Baltimore.  Let Max know if you have any leads—410-323-1607 or mobuszewski at Verizon dot net.

5] – Chesapeake Physicians for Social Responsibility has asked for help.  We must ban fracking in Maryland. However, a few senators appear to be the main obstacles to a ban.  Call Senator Mike Miller at 1-888-997-5380 and tell him you support a fracking ban.

6] -- Religion and politics in 2017 is the topic of discussion at the Dumbarton United Methodist Church, 3133 Dumbarton St. NW, WDC 20007, on Sun., Mar. 26 from 10 to 11 AM.  Widely known journalist Ray Suarez will speak to a special adult education session.  Suarez was host of NPR’s Talk of the Nation (1993-1999), and a senior correspondent on the PBS evening TV program, The News Hour (1999-2013). He is the author a number of books, including “The Holy Vote: The Politics of Faith in America,” and the more recent “Latino Americans: The 500-Year Legacy that Shaped a Nation.” He will be happy to sign copies of these books. Go to http://www.dumbartonumc.org/journalist-ray-suarez-speak.

7] –  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., Mar. 26, the Sunday Platform Address is “Kayla and Me.” Fritz Williams will reflect on his relationship with Kayla, his granddaughter who is serving a four-year sentence as an accomplice to a violent crime. She and her boyfriend became addicted to heroin, and she was waiting for him in their car (which they were living in, by the way) while he, armed with a pointed finger inside a jacket pocket, robbed a Turkey Hill convenience store. Fritz wrote a letter to the judge, but failed in his attempt to secure a more moderate sentence, and once a month now, he makes a 700-mile round trip to visit her at the women’s prison near Erie, PA, and every week he writes a letter to her – exactly 120 letters so far. What will come of it all is hard to say. Most drug addicts and alcoholics suffer relapses, and for heroin addicts, relapses are often deadly. But for Fritz and his granddaughter, his efforts to support and encourage her have produced an amazingly open and loving extended conversation between an 80-year-old man and a troubled young woman in her early 20s.  Call 410-581-2322 or email ask@bmorethical.org. 

8] – Support Palestine in 2017 at The White House, 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., WDC, on Sun., Mar. 26 from noon to 5 PM. Protest AIPAC! #SupportPalestineInDC2017.  Al-Awda, The Palestine Right To Return Coalition and co-organizer ANSWER COALITION will once again spearhead this National Rally to Support Palestine in DC 2017! This rally will start at The White House and end up in front of AIPAC's annual convention! AIPAC is the primary organization lobbying to continue the brutal illegal occupation of Palestine for over 68 years. Protest to end this outrageous lobby that ultimately supports the oppression and ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian people!  Go to www.gofundme.com/refugees48.  Visit https://www.facebook.com/events/1794689540780462/.

9] – There will be Jewish Resistance at AIPAC on Sun., Mar. 26 from noon to 8 PM.  When the Trump Administration goes to AIPAC, the #JewishResistance will be there. Go to https://www.facebook.com/events/1924954067735469/.

10] – See a Holy Land film on Sun., Mar. 26 at 2:30 PM at the  National Cathedral, Perry Auditorium, 3101 Wisconsin Ave. NW, WDC 20016. See the film OPEN BETLEHEM, as part of the 3rd Annual Voices from the Holy Land Film Series.  Call 301-518-5551 or visit voicesfromtheholyland.org. The film spans seven momentous years in the life of Bethlehem, revealing a city of astonishing beauty and political strife under occupation. Drawn from 700 hours of original footage and rare archive material, Open Bethlehem follows the story of director Leila Sansour as she returns to her hometown as it is soon to be encircled by The Wall. Chronicling Sansour’s campaign to stop occupying Israeli forces encircling Bethlehem, this fierce and poignant story maps a determined and ongoing effort to unite Christians, Muslims and Jews in the desire for free access to the Holy City.

A welcome address will be given by Rev. Timothy Tutt, Westmoreland Congregational United Church of Christ.  The discussion will be moderated by Aziz Abu Sarah.

11] – On Sun., Mar. 26 at 3 PM at Red Emma's Bookstore Coffeehouse, 30 W. North Ave., Baltimore 21201, JANET SARBANES PRESENTS THE PROTESTER HAS BEEN RELEASED.  Populated by wise animals and hapless humans, the book brilliantly evokes an end-of-the-world feeling that is equal parts dread and hilarity. In nine precisely rendered stories and a novella featuring the U.S. president’s daughter, Sarbanes takes on the big questions with gallows humor: What is freedom? What is love? What is art? And what does it matter now?  Call 443-602-7585.  RSVP at http://www.redemmas.org.

12] – The BALTIMORE GREEN FORUM, a monthly environmental education and discussion forum, takes place on Sun., Mar. 26.  The presentation and Q&A goes from 4 to 5:15 PM, followed by announcements & networking from 5:15 to 5:45 PM.  Finally there will be a Roundtable Discussion from 5:45 to 6:30 PM.  The forum is at 1105 Providence Road, Towson 21286. Go to http://www.mpchurch.org/location-2/.  The topic for discussion is Potty Training: How to Green Our Treatment of Human Waste & Water The Do’s and Don’ts of Composting Toilets and Greywater Systems.

 Former head of Maryland Nonprofits, the Knott Foundation, and Light Street Housing, Greg Cantori has been living what he believes by frequently commuting 50 miles round trip by bike to work. He's the former president of One Less Car and Bike Maryland. He has lived tiny (lived on his sailboat for 5 years and has a tiny home on wheels). Twelve years ago, he disconnected his family home from their septic system - Come learn what happened next! Go to www.cantori.com.

  With some simple modifications and a few hundred dollars, Greg's family of four has been using a dry (aka composting) toilet and greywater system he installed with the help of his teen daughters.  You will learn how flushing is an impossibility for 2.4 billion people (1/3 of our population!) worldwide that have no access to toilets at all.  You will also learn to modify your plumbing system to eliminate using water for flushing. 

The Baltimore Green Forum seeks to educate and stimulate dialogue about what humans can do to make modern civilization more sustainable, including adjusting to finite resource limits and preserving biodiversity and a healthy environment. We do this through 8 monthly meetings a year. The topics are far ranging. They vary from local to planetary and from philosophical to scientific to very practical.

     BGF is open to the public and is free of charge, but donations to Maryland Presbyterian Church are collected during the meeting to thank the church for their generous gift of the space to us. Email BaltimoreGreenForum@gmail.com or call Sam Hopkins at 410 554-0006.  Go to http://www.baltimoregreenforum.org.

13] –  Resist Pharaoh/ Labor Seder 2017/ Teach-in will be happening at the Adas Israel Congregation, 2850 Quebec St. NW, WDC, on Sun., Mar. 26 from 5 to 8 PM, hosted by Jews United for Justice. Each spring, the Labor Seder brings together the Jewish, activist, and labor communities to celebrate the freedom story of the Exodus and connect it to all our work together for justice here and today. The Seder will be turned into a giant community teach-in.  At the Seder participants will eat, sing, and learn together - then split up into teams to learn a variety of crucial ways to organize for action.  Refreshments (vegetarian and kosher-certified) will be served. Learn more and get tickets at bit.ly/laborseder17. Visit https://www.facebook.com/events/424299107907786/

14] – Support Palestinian Human Rights: Shut Down AIPAC, starting Sun., Mar. 26 through Wed., 28!  It was a sad week for human rights as David Friedman was confirmed as US ambassador to Israel. However, all our hard work to oppose Friedman paid off as the confirmation came down along party lines with only two democrats voting for him.  The first day of AIPAC is also the next court date for Palestinian human rights defender Issa Amro, who is facing 18 charges in Israeli military court for his nonviolent activism to end Israeli apartheid and occupation.  Go to http://www.codepink.org/stop_aipac_2017?utm_campaign=marchmaynation3&utm_medium=email&utm_source=codepink.

15] – On Sun., Mar. 26 at 6 PM at Red Emma's Bookstore Coffeehouse, 30 W. North Ave., Baltimore 21201, hear about DECOLONIZING DIALECTICS with WITH GEORGE CICCARIELLO-MAHER in the Free School Classroom.  Anticolonial theorists and revolutionaries have long turned to dialectical thought as a central weapon in their fight against oppressive structures and conditions. This relationship was never easy, however, as anticolonial thinkers have resisted the historical determinism, teleology, Eurocentrism, and singular emphasis that some Marxisms place on class identity at the expense of race, nation, and popular identity. In recent decades, the conflict between dialectics and postcolonial theory has only deepened. In his new book, Decolonizing Dialectics, scholar & activist George Ciccariello-Maher breaks this impasse by bringing the work of Georges Sorel, Frantz Fanon, and Enrique Dussel together with contemporary Venezuelan politics to formulate a dialectics suited to the struggle against the legacies of colonialism and slavery. Call 443-602-7585.  RSVP at http://www.redemmas.org.

16] – 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 Mar. 27, 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. 

17] – The Marc Steiner Show airs Monday through Frida fr6m 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.

18] – On Mon., Mar. 27 from 6 to 8 PM at the Penn North Resource Center, 1610 N. Carey St., Baltimore Communities United members are have a discussion on the drug war!  Is the war on drugs really a war on us? Our communities? Our families? Go to http://www.communitiesunite.org/.

19] – University of Maryland’s Beyond the Classroom, 1102 South Campus Commons, Building 1, 4250 Lehigh Road, College Park, on Mon., Mar. 27 from 7 to 9 PM, as part of the Spring 2017 Series on "People Power: Activism for Social Change," presents a documentary HOOLIGAN SPARROW [China 2016]. The danger is palpable as intrepid young filmmaker Nanfu Wang follows maverick activist Ye Haiyan (a.k.a Hooligan Sparrow) and her band of colleagues to Hainan Province in southern China to protest the case of six elementary school girls who were sexually abused by their principal. Marked as enemies of the state, the activists are under constant government surveillance and face interrogation, harassment, and imprisonment. Sparrow, who gained notoriety with her advocacy work for sex workers’ rights, continues to champion girls’ and women’s rights and arms herself with the power and reach of social media. Filmmaker Wang becomes a target along with Sparrow, as she faces destroyed cameras and intimidation. Yet she bravely and tenaciously keeps shooting, guerrilla-style, with secret recording devices and hidden-camera glasses, and in the process, she exposes a startling number of undercover security agents on the streets. Eventually, through smuggling footage out of the country, Wang is able tell the story of her journey with the extraordinary revolutionary Sparrow, her fellow activists, and their seemingly impossible battle for human rights. RSPV at https://www.facebook.com/events/645706498965772/.

20] –  The next meeting of the immigration group is on Mon., Mar. 27 at 7 PM at the Woodbrook Baptist Church, 25 Stevenson Lane, between Charles St. and Bellona Ave.  It is best to park in the lot behind the church and come in the back door. Go straight ahead, turn left up the stairs and into the fellowship hall. Feel free to invite friends who are interested in immigration Rights.  As a new group, new voices are welcome new voices in discussions on how to be most effective in fighting — locally, statewide and nationally — the Administration’s horrendous actions. Go to https://www.google.com/amp/www.nbcnews.com/news/latino/amp/trump-strongholds-effort-underway-keep-immigrants-safe-n731941.

21] – Get Money Out of Maryland has a weekly teleconference, every Monday evening at 8:30 PM.  Call 605-475-6711, and use the Code 1136243#.  Go to http://www.getmoneyoutmd.org/.

22] – From Tues., Mar. 27 through Fri., Mar. 31, attend the U.N. conference to negotiate a legally binding instrument to prohibit nuclear weapons, leading towards their total elimination.  This is happening at the United Nations in New York City. Peace advocates will be organizing inside and outside of the UN to put pressure on nuclear armed states and to support the majority of countries that genuinely seek the total abolition of nuclear weapons.  

23] – Each Tuesday from 4:30 - 5:30 PM, the Catholic Peace Fellowship-Philadelphia for peace in Afghanistan and Iraq gathers at the Suburban Station, 16th St. & JFK Blvd., at the entrance to Tracks 3 and 4 on the mezzanine.  The next vigil is Mar. 28.  Call 215-426-0364.

24] – Vigil to say "No Drone Research at JHU" each Tuesday at 33rd & North Charles Sts. join this ongoing vigil on Mar. 28  from 5:30  to 6:30 PM. Call Max at 410-323-1607.

25] – On Tues., Mar. 27 from 6:30 to 8 PM, be a part of The Francis Factor After Four Years: Pope Francis' Message to the United States at the ICC Auditorium, Georgetown University. RSVP at https://catholicsocialthought.georgetown.edu/events/the-francis-factor-after-four-years/rsvp. Four years after the Pope’s surprising election and four months after a surprising U.S. election, what has been the impact of Francis' global leadership and visit to America? How do Pope Francis’ strong words and humble ways challenge Americans to live out their faith in a divided nation and hurting world? These questions and more will be addressed by the new Papal Nuncio to the U.S., Archbishop Christophe Pierre, and an expert panel of respondents.

26] – Intro to Image Theatre will take place at 641 D St. NW, WDC, on Tues., Mar. 28 from 7 to 10 PM.  The DC Coalition for Theatre and Social Justice Winter Workshop Series continues. Join coalition co-director Mimsi Janis for Intro to Image Theatre. In Image Theater, the body is used to create images that help participants explore power relations and group solutions to concrete problems. In this workshop participants will play a range of Image Theatre games. Wear clothes that are comfortable and allow for freedom of movement. No experience necessary, all levels welcome. Register at www.dcctsj.weebly.com/workshops.

27] – Know Your Rights, Immigration and Protests, will be the topic at the Johnson Center Cinema, George Mason University, Fairfax Campus, 4400 University Drive, Fairfax, VA  22030, on Tues., Mar. 28 from 7 to 10 PM, hosted by ACLU of Virginia.   Following recent raids by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and protests in cities nationwide, it is more important than ever to understand.  What your rights are if ICE approaches you in your home, at work, or on the street.  How to use the ACLU of Virginia’s free Mobile Justice Virginia app for iPhone and Android, which lets you record law enforcement and submit videos and incident reports automatically to the ACLU.  What your rights are when participating in a peaceful protest. Refreshments will be served.  Contact Bethany Letiecq at bletiecq@gmu.edu or 703-993-5076.

28] – On Tues., Mar. 28 at 7:30 PM at Red Emma's Bookstore Coffeehouse, 30 W. North Ave., Baltimore 21201, catch a conversation Why do so many African Americans have such a special attachment to whupping children? Studies show that nearly 80 percent of black parents see spanking, popping, pinching, and beating as reasonable, effective ways to teach respect and to protect black children from the streets, incarceration, encounters with racism, or worse. However, the consequences of this widely accepted approach to child-rearing are far-reaching and seldom discussed. Weaving together race, religion, history, popular culture, science, policing, psychology, and personal testimonies, hear from Dr. Stacey Patton who will connect what happens at home to what happens in the streets in a way that is thought-provoking, unforgettable, and deeply sobering. Dr. Patton is an award-winning journalist, author, and child advocate. Call 443-602-7585.  RSVP at http://www.redemmas.org.

To be continued.

Donations can be sent to the Baltimore Nonviolence Center, 325 E. 25th St., Baltimore, MD 21218.  Ph: 410-323-1607; 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