Tuesday, July 3, 2018

Baltimore Activist Alert - July 2 - 4, 2018


11] 1968: A Time of Uproar in Europe and the U.S. – July 2, 3 & 4
12] Affordable Water Now – July 2
13] Film “One Sings, the Other Doesn't” -- July 2
14] Film EATING ANIMALS – July 2
15] Food Rescue – July 3
16] Peace Vigil – July 3
17] No Drone Research DEMO – July 3
18] Interdependence Day at the NSA – July 4
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11] – On Mon., July 2, Tues., July 3 and Wed., July 4 at 10 AM see 1968: A Time of Uproar in Europe and the U.S., hosted by Goethe-Institut Washington, 1990 K St. NW (20th St. entrance), WDC 20006.  “Race riots“ in Washington, DC, violent protests in Berlin, a national strike in Paris, and the brutal end of the Prague Spring – the year of 1968 was shaped by protest movements and an atmosphere of massive change. On the 50th anniversary of the protests, the Goethe-Institut highlights these historic events with a photo exhibition, offering a view into the movements in these four major cities.

In the US, after the assassination of Martin Luther King in April 1968, the previously pacifistic civil rights movement erupted into violent confrontations throughout the whole country. DC was at the center of the protests with the so-called “race riots” destroying large parts of the inner city and with the Poor People’s March, in which thousands of people marched on the nation’s capital.

At the same time as these events in the US, many people in European countries were expressing their discontent with existing political and social systems. Many young people and student groups in addition to workers’ unions worked together to fight for change and a better future. The photographs in this exhibition do not only document the protests in these different countries, but also show the parallels of these movements and their calls for more freedom and democracy within these different societies. Additionally, the medium of photography is examined to understand its role in documenting such events in the past and the strong parallels to the protests of today’s era. The exhibit is presented in cooperation with the Alliance Française de Washington D.C.  View https://www.facebook.com/events/176982716469068/.

12] – On Mon., July 2 from 10:45 to 11:45 AM, attend No More Rate Hikes - Affordable Water Now! This rally is hosted by Jews United for Justice Baltimore and Food & Water Watch – Maryland the War Memorial Plaza, 100 Holliday St., Baltimore, d 21202. On Sun., July 1, water rates will increase ANOTHER 9.4 percent. This final rate increase is part of a three-year rate hike approved by the Board of Estimates in 2016. Once this rate hike goes into effect, more than half of Baltimoreans will be billed more than 3% of their household income for their water bills, above the United Nations standard of affordable water.  The current low-income assistance programs are wholly inadequate, and we cannot wait any longer for the City to act. With higher rates, more families will be unable to afford their water bills. This means more shutoffs and more tax sales. Access to safe, affordable water is a fundamental human right -- one that our city must affirm for all Baltimoreans. 

Call on the City to address our water affordability crisis NOW! We need a comprehensive affordability program to ensure that everyone in our city has access to water.  Go to https://www.facebook.com/events/1999388283724727/.

13] – On Mon., July 2 at 7 PM see “One Sings, the Other Doesn't,” hosted by The SNF Parkway / Maryland Film Festival, 5 West North Ave., Baltimore 21201.  Find tickets at mdfilmfest.com.  Visit https://www.facebook.com/events/266580337247267/?event_time_id=266580343913933.  Agnès Varda’s singular ONE SINGS, THE OTHER DOESN'T is a feminist musical about the bond of sisterhood, set against the progress of the women’s movement in which Agnes Varda was involved. Spanning more than a decade, it traces the intertwined lives of Pomme (Valérie Mairesse) and Suzanne (Thérèse Liotard) throughout years of changes and fraught relationships with men. They meet when Pomme helps Suzanne obtain an abortion, which she cannot afford. They lose contact but meet again ten years later. Even as their lives radically diverge, they remain steadfastly devoted to one another while finding ways to empower other women: one as a traveling feminist folk singer, the other as a reproductive rights activist.

14] – EATING ANIMALS is directed by Christopher Dillon Quinn, 2017, UK, India, Germany, China, USA, and narrated by Natalie Portman.  How much do you know about the food that’s on your plate?  Based on the bestselling book by Jonathan Safran Foer and narrated by co-producer Natalie Portman, “Eating Animals” is an urgent, eye-opening look at the environmental, economic, and public health consequences of factory farming. Tracing the history of food production in the United States, the film charts how farming has gone from local and sustainable to a corporate Frankenstein monster that offers cheap eggs, meat, and dairy at a steep cost: the exploitation of animals; the risky use of antibiotics and hormones; and the pollution of our air, soil, and water. Spotlighting farmers who have pushed backed against industrial agriculture with more humane practices, the film offers attainable, commonsense solutions to a growing crisis while making the case that ethical farming is not only an animal rights issue but one that affects every aspect of our lives.

15] – On Tues., July 3 from noon to 2 PM, get involved in Food Rescue at YO! Baltimore West, 1510 W. Lafayette Ave., Baltimore 21217-2131.  Go to https://www.facebook.com/events/1994272347506100/?event_time_id=1994272437506091.

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 July 3.  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 July 3 from 5:30  to 6:30 PM. Contact Max at mobuszewski2001 at Comcast dot net or 410-323-1607. 

18] –   Join us for the annual Interdependence Day visit to the National Security Agency, Fort Meade, Maryland at 11 AM on Wednesday, July 4.  Later that day, we will have a picnic.  Contact Max at 410-323-1607 or mobuszewski2001 at Comcast dot net for specific details.  We will remember Reality Winner who is facing a five-year prison sentence for revealing that the Russian government was trying to rig the 2016 presidential election.

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

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