Baltimore Activist Alert October 1 – 18, 2017

Baltimore Activist Alert October 1 – 18, 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 mobuszewski2001 [at] comcast.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] “Viewing Globalization and the Ethical Imperative” – Oct. 1

6] March for Racial Justice – Oct. 1

7] Vegetarian Meetup – Oct. 1

8] Protest at the Pentagon – Oct. 2

9] Trump and Walmart Make America Worse rally – Oct. 2

10] "Monitoring and Verification in the Digital Age” – Oct. 2

11] White Coats for Clean Air and a Safety Study in Cove Point – Oct. 2

12] Take Action AAC meeting-- Oct. 2

13] Testify against Dominion – Oct. 2

14] Movement for Palestinian Liberation -- Oct. 2

15] RALLY TO END GERRYMANDERING – Oct. 3

16] Peace vigil – Oct. 3

17] Protest drone research – Oct. 3

18] Talking About Race -- Oct. 3

19] Immigration Forum – Oct. 3 & 18

20] BLACK BANKS AND THE RACIAL WEALTH GAP – Oct. 3

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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 2001 at comcast dot net.

5] – 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., Oct. 1, the Sunday Platform is “Viewing Globalization and the Ethical Imperative through a Humanist Lens” with Govind Nair.  The presentation will interpret the ethical implications of globalization with a focus on the role of human reason and agency. This will be based on both a broad empirical examination of salient features of the emergent global society and economy and its associated new moral imperatives.

   Nair left the World Bank in 2010 as Lead Economist after a 25-year career to engage in a private practice as a global public speaker, trainer, international consultant, and adjunct professor. He actively volunteers in multiple community activities, including at the Northern Virginia Ethical Society where he is also a Board member. Govind has traveled in over 80 countries and has worked with governments, civil society organizations, private businesses, and academic institutions on five continents. He currently teaches a graduate course in managerial economics at The George Washington University. Call 410-581-2322 or email ask@bmorethical.org.

6] – On Sun., Oct. 1 from noon to 2 PM, before the Fannie Lou Hamer awards March on Maryland, Anne Arundel Indivisible Coalition and AA County Progressive Maryland will be holding a March for Racial Justice at Lawyer's Mall, Annapolis 2140. The march will be a tribute to Fannie Lou Hamer. Email eve@marchonmd.org. Go to https://www.facebook.com/events/1972172153030021/?ti=icl.

7] –  The Baltimore Vegetarian Meetup group meets on the first Sunday, in this case Oct. 1, at 12.30 PM  at Mango Grove in Columbia. To register go to http://vegetarian.meetup.com/9.  Enjoy the great food and atmosphere, like-minded people, and lively, casual conversation. Meetup.com charges each group organizer for the services they provide. A donation of $1 per meeting will help cover these costs and would be appreciated.

8] – 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 Oct. 2, 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.

9] – On Mon., Oct. 2 from 10 AM to 2 PM, join a Trump and Walmart Make America Worse rally at University of Maryland, College Park’s Stamp Student Union. Hand out raffles/games from 10 AM to about 12:15 PM outside.  At 12:30 PM, move into the Stamp Atrium room to hear from Reps. Anthony Brown and Jamie Raskin plus gubernatorial candidate Ben Jealous, along with student speakers. This is the last stop on United Food and Commercial Workers tour, also hosted by Young Democratic Socialists of America at UMCP, who hope to highlight the problems caused by Walmart and Trump.

10] – On Mon., Oct. 2 from 11:45 AM to 1 PM, catch a panel discussion with Harvey Rishikof, Chris Bidwell, Federation of American Scientists, and Valerie Lincy, Wisconsin Project on Nuclear Arms Control, about "Monitoring and Verification in the Digital Age: Seven Recommendations for Improving the Process." It is hosted by Nuclear Verification Capabilities Independent Task Force of the Federation of American Scientists at the Capitol Visitor's Center, HVC 200, WDC. RSVP to Pia Ulrich at pulrich@as.org.

11] – On Mon., Oct. 2 from noon to 1 PM at 110 State Cir., Annapolis 21401-1924, join White Coats for Clean Air and a Safety Study in Cove Point, hosted by We Are Cove Point.  This will be the 15th consecutive rally at Governor Hogan's mansion in Annapolis calling for a Safety Study (QRA) for the fracked gas refinery, power plant and export terminal being built in Cove Point. Also rally to oppose raising the limits on how much Dominion Energy will be allowed to pollute in Cove Point. Dominion Energy underestimated the amount of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) it will emit by over 1,000 percent. ALL ARE WELCOME. If you are a health professional or scientist that has a white coat, please wear it. See http://www.wearecovepoint.org/info-on-oct-2-psc-hearing-for-dominion-cove-point/.

12] – On Mon., Oct. 2 at 5:30 PM, the Anne Arundel County chapter of Progressive Maryland, known as Take Action AAC, is devoting its monthly meeting to addressing the County Council that night. Councilman Peroutka's recent sexist and racist comments must be addressed. Meet in the back room of 49 West in Annapolis. After the meeting, walk to the County Council meeting around the corner. Visit https://www.facebook.com/events/290646684753721/?ti=icl.

13] – Donny Williams, Halt the Harm Network [mailto:donny@wearecovepoint.org] wants us to know that polluting industries shouldn't be placed in neighborhoods where families live, work and play. They shouldn't be placed in places like the Cove Point neighborhood in Calvert County, adjacent to Calvert Cliffs State Park, on the Chesapeake Bay, across from the Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge and just north of Solomon's Island. It was bad enough when Dominion Energy received a permit to build its dirty fracked gas refinery, power plant and export terminal.

  This infrastructure would emit over 20 tons of cancer and other disease-causing chemicals into the air each year, including 2.5 tons of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). HOWEVER: Dominion Energy is saying that it miscalculated the number of components that would leak by over 1,000 percent and that it will actually emit as much as 20 tons of VOCs each year. Please show up to testify and submit comments on Mon., Oct. 2 at 6 PM at Patuxent High School, 12485 Southern Connector Blvd., Lusby, Maryland 20657.  Cove Point and Southern Maryland Sierra Club has an informational web site at http://www.wearecovepoint.org/info-on-oct-2-psc-hearing-for-dominion-cove-point/.

14] – On Mon., Oct. 2 at 7:30 PM come for a conversation Palestine to Diaspora: The Movement for Palestinian Liberation at Busboys and Poets, 5th & K Sts., WDC.  Palestinian human rights defender Issa Amro and Executive Director of the US Campaign for Palestinian Rights, Yousef Munayyer, will explain Palestinian approaches to the liberation from Palestine to diaspora. Amro and Munayyer will outline the situation on the ground in Palestine, the impact of US foreign policy, resistance in Palestine and the US, and how to build a global intersectional movement. Amro is a human rights defender from the West Bank city of Hebron, where violent and extreme settlers have occupied the heart of the Palestinian city since 1967. He is currently facing 18 charges in Israeli military court for his nonviolent activism against the Israeli occupation, and faces years in Israeli prison. In June 2017, over 30 Members of Congress wrote letters calling on Israel to end its persecution of Amro. Munayyer is a political analyst, writer, and Executive Director of the US Campaign for Palestinian Rights.

15] -- On Oct. 3 at 9:30 AM join the RALLY TO END GERRYMANDERING at the Supreme Court of the United States, 1 First St. NE, WDC 20543.  The Supreme Court will hear the biggest anti-corruption case in years. The decision could end gerrymandering. More than 25,000 of us signed onto an Amicus brief and delivered it to the court. Now we need to take it to the next level to show massive public support for ending partisan gerrymandering.

No matter which political party you support, partisan gerrymandering can deny you your right to fair representation. It helps politicians all but guarantee their re-election, making government less accountable to the people. Gather outside the Supreme Court with huge signs and special guests from the movement while justices are hearing the Gill v. Whitford case.  RSVP at http://volunteer.represent.us/supremecourt_rally?akid=14974.32068.K1nstG&rd=1&t=10.

16] –  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 Oct. 1.  Call 215-426-0364.

17] – Vigil to say "No Drone Research at JHU" each Tuesday at 33rd & North Charles Sts. join this ongoing vigil on Oct. 1 from 5:30  to 6:30 PM. Call Max at 410-323-1607.   

18] – On Tues., Oct. 3 at 7 PM, go to Talking About Race: A Conversation with Paul Butler at University of Baltimore School of Law (Official).  As part of OSI-Baltimore’s Talking About Race series, OSI Criminal and Juvenile Justice Director Tara Huffman hosts a conversation with Georgetown Law Professor and former federal prosecutor Paul Butler, author of the new book, “Chokehold: Policing Black Men.” The New York Times describes “Chokehold” as “the most readable and provocative account of the consequences of the war on drugs since Michelle Alexander’s ‘The New Jim Crow.’” Butler suggests that the criminal justice system, in targeting black men, is not malfunctioning but performing exactly as designed. “Cops routinely hurt and humiliate black people because that is what they are paid to do,” he writes. “The police, as policy, treat African-Americans with contempt.” Ultimately, changing the status quo requires not just “reform” of the current system, he claims, but a wholesale reinvention. This free event is in the Moot Court Room. Register at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/policing-black-men-a-conversation-with-paul-butler-tickets-37252642657.

19] – On Tues., Oct. 3 at 7 PM, Baltimore County Discusses  Immigration at the Cockeysville Branch Library, 9833 Greenside Dr,, Cockeysville 21030 and on Wed., Oct. 18 at 7 PM at the Catonsville Branch,  1100 Frederick Road,  Catonsville 21228. The USA has long claimed to be a "nation of immigrants." Is it still good for this country? Join the League of Women Voters of Baltimore County and the Library in exploring immigration with experts in the field. Call the Cockeysville Branch at 410-887-7750 and the Catonsville Branch at 410-887-0951.

20] – On Tues., Oct. 3 at 7:30 PM at Red Emma's Bookstore Coffeehouse, 30 W. North Ave., Baltimore 21201, catch a book talk on MEHRSA BARADARAN PRESENTS THE COLOR OF MONEY: BLACK BANKS AND THE RACIAL WEALTH GAP. When the Emancipation Proclamation was signed in 1863, the black community owned less than one percent of the United States’ total wealth. More than 150 years later, that number has barely budged. The Color of Money pursues the persistence of this racial wealth gap by focusing on the generators of wealth in the black community: black banks. Studying these institutions over time, Baradaran challenges the myth that black communities could ever accumulate wealth in a segregated economy. Instead, housing segregation, racism, and Jim Crow credit policies created an inescapable, but hard to detect, economic trap for black communities and their banks.

Baradaran challenges the long-standing notion that black banking and community self-help is the solution to the racial wealth gap. These initiatives have functioned as a potent political decoy to avoid more fundamental reforms and racial redress. Examining the fruits of past policies and the operation of banking in a segregated economy, she makes clear that only bolder, more realistic views of banking’s relation to black communities will end the cycle of poverty and promote black wealth. 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: mobuszewski2001 [at] comcast.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