Baltimore Activist Alert – July 14 to July 15, 2019

Baltimore Activist Alert – July 14 to July 15, 2019

"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] Get involved with NCNR   

4] Buy an Anti-War Veteran hat  

5] Lawyers Against War

6] SUPPORT AMAZON WORKERS OF CONSCIENCE

7] Little Friends for Peace

8] Food Bank Drive – through July 31

9] Neighbors Without Walls – July 14

10] Money, Power, and Freedom – July 14

11] Canvass with Bill Henry – July 14

12] Feed the Homeless – July 14

13] ERA gathering – July 14

14] Black Lives Matter – July 14

15] Pentagon Protest – July 15

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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 U.S. wars.

To join the ORGANIZING List, please send your name, group affiliation, city and email address to mobuszewski2001 at Comcast dot net.  Different local chapters of a national organization are encouraged to subscribe.  

4] – Get a good-looking black hat which says Anti-War Veteran in the front and Viva House 50^th in the back.  The cost is $10. Contact Max at 410-323-1607 or mobuszewski2001 at Comcast dot net.

5] – Jeff Ross, an attorney in Maryland, is interested in gathering with other lawyers to discuss ways in which the legal profession and the law generally can be conceptualized as a peace-building and war-resisting institution and redirected to these ends. Areas to explore might include: 1) ways in which this group could support with legal analysis/writing those lawyers who are representing peace-builders/war-resisters in criminal prosecutions; 2) ways in which, from a more theoretical perspective, the law might be grounded in an ethic of non-violence; and 3) ways in which law students and young lawyers might be exposed to a non-violent vision of the law. All religious, philosophical, and critical perspectives on the law are welcome. The group might want to call itself Lawyers Against War. Jeff can be reached at 443-690-6872 and jross50@hotmail.com.

6] -- SUPPORT AMAZON WORKERS OF CONSCIENCE.  We are in a deep struggle to support conscience within the high tech community, which may be the only way to prevent a major leap into artificial intelligence warfare that we see the beginnings of in the expanding global U.S. drone war system.  This may be of particular interest to Johns Hopkins' Navy-funded researchers, some of whom have been working on swarming drone technology.

These are not major asks and can be a powerful reinforcement of conscience at an extremely critical moment.  Please consider circulating this link to your lists encouraging people to sign the linked RootsAction petition - https://www.knowdrones.com/blog/2019/3/6/support-amazon-workers-who-dont-want-to-work-for-war and leafletting Whole Foods in your areas. This is a link to the leaflet -- https://gallery.mailchimp.com/dd110b000ca250d868d4f419b/files/107fc695-8af9-4f7e-a523-ecd1d1dfd28f/Wholefoods_Leaflet.pdf. Should you have interest in circulating the links and possibly leafletting, contact Nick Mottern at  nickmottern at gmail.com.

7] -- Little Friends for Peace (LFFP - http://www.lffp.org/) has been conducting summer peace camps around the Metro DC area for well over 30 years.  For approximately the last ten years, LFFP has been offering free tuition to children of TASSC (Torture Abolition and Survivors Support Coalition - https://www.tassc.org/) members.  Recently they have also been welcoming children of refugees to their camps without regard for tuition payment. If you would like to assist with this undertaking, there are many ways you can including:

Driving - many of the TASSC and other refugee families want their children to attend camp but they do not have the ability to drive them there and back.  For the last 8 to 10 years, Helen Schietinger has been working with LFFP and TASSC to provide drivers for these children.  If you can drive some children even one way, on one day on any day during the following three weeks of peace camp this summer, it would be much appreciated.  Many drivers from past years have moved or "aged out" of feeling comfortable driving and we really need as many volunteer drivers as possible.  If you can possibly drive, please contact either Helen (202-344-5762 - h.schietinger@verizon.net ) or Bob Cooke (301-661-0449 or cookerh1251@gmail.com) regarding exactly when you can drive and from where you might be comfortable driving.  Most of the children live in PG County, D.C. or Montgomery County.

The weeks drivers are needed include: July 22 - camp is in Cheverly, MD; August 5 - camp is in Colesville/Silver Spring, MD and August 19 - camp is in Mt. Rainier, MD.  Share this information.

Donate for Scholarships. In order to help as many scholarship asylee, refugee (and other) children attend camp, LFFP (http://www.lffp.org/donate.html) can use as much scholarship money donations as possible.  No amount of scholarship money is too little.  

8] – St. Ursula / St. Vincent de Paul Food Bank Food Drive will take place at Boscov's (White Marsh, MD), 8200 Perry Hall Blvd., Baltimore 21236 from Sun., July 14 through the month of July 30 from 10 AM to 9 PM. Boscov's is celebrating Christmas in July by giving back to those in need in our community. Join in spreading Christmas cheer during the month of July.  Boscov’s White Marsh has partnered with St. Ursula/ St. Vincent de Paul Food Bank to stock up their food bank for the summer season. Donations of non-perishable items are welcome and can be dropped off at your local Boscov’s store now through July 31st. Go to https://www.facebook.com/events/604073376781185/?event_time_id=604073383447851.

9] – On Sun., July 14 [and Aug. 11 & Sept. 11] from 10 AM to noon, Neighbors Without Walls:  Feeding the Homeless & Hungry at the Terra Cafe Bmore, 25^th and St. Paul Sts., Baltimore. Homelessness is by far one of the largest issues that plague our city and there is something, no matter how small, we all can do to about it. Terra Cafe is the proud sponsor of Neighbors Without Walls. On the 2nd Sunday of each month at 10 AM Terra Cafe and a group of volunteers, prep, package and distribute meals, water, clothing and care packages to homeless residents of Baltimore City. Our "Neighbors" come to expect our giving and support. Terra Cafe is grateful to be in our 10th year of giving back to our Community! Thanks everyone, for your generous support. Together, we really can make a difference. Love offerings and donations are welcome. See https://www.facebook.com/events/447127372744434/?event_time_id=447127376077767.

10] – Usually, the Baltimore Ethical Society, 2521 St. Paul St., Baltimore 21218, meets on Sundays, and generally there is a speaker and discussion at 10:30 AM.  On Sun., July 14, the platform address is Money, Power, and Freedom: Meditations on Ethics and Political Economy.  Why does the federal government always seem to have funds available for weapons of war and big bank bailouts, while supposedly lacking the money for progressive programs like universal healthcare and a Green New Deal? The National Debt is wielded selectively by the Washington establishment as a cudgel to curtail social spending, but we can fight back by removing the ideological veil from money and understanding how it actually works. This talk will explore these issues and others in an examination of some of the ethical dimensions of our capitalist economy.

Dom Eggert is an author and editor, currently working for a major test prep company in a managerial role. He studied philosophy for nearly a decade at Pennsylvania State University and Vanderbilt University. Call 410-581-2322 or email ask@bmorethical.org. 

11] – Canvass with Bill in Reservoir Hill Part 2! This is organized by Friends of Bill Henry on Sun., July 14 at noon and at 2 PM.  It will start at 930 Whitelock St., Baltimore 21217-3944. Tickets are at secure.ngpvan.com.  Sign up here to knock on doors with Bill in Reservoir Hill -- ─> https://bit.ly/2KCmxCP. An independent voice in City government is needed to promote accountability and transparency from top to bottom.  You will be given all the training you need to be successful and have fun. If you don't want to canvass alone, please feel free to bring a friend! Visit https://www.facebook.com/events/2756159634412487/?event_time_id=2756159647745819.

12] – On Sun., July 14 from noon to 2 PM, get with Feed the Homeless, hosted by Food Dude USA in Franklin Square, 1300 I St NW, WDC 21223.  Bring anything you want to give or just come and hang with the awesome people that will be there!  Go to https://www.facebook.com/events/839416899770045/.

13] – On Sun., July 7 from 4 to 5 PM, get on The CALL - ERA Education Program at Katrina's Dream, PO Box 32003, WDC 20007.  Tickets are at www.katrinasdream.org.  Please come each Sunday and help build the groundswell. The collaboration of grassroots organizers, lobbyists, and professionals is dedicated to promoting and educating folks across the United States of America to empowering women around the world.

The CALL IN NUMBER is 563.999.2090, the CONFERENCE NO: 898879#.  Visit https://www.facebook.com/events/1710130249022424/?event_time_id=1710130255689090.

14] -- On Sun., July 14 from noon to 1 PM, join the Black Lives Matter Vigil at Governor Warfield Pkwy and Windstream Drive, Columbia.  On the second Sunday of each month, gather to give public witness to the problem of anti-Black racism in our neighborhood, our nation, and our world. Join us to show that all lives WILL matter when Black Lives Matter. Look at https://www.facebook.com/events/360549541311148/?event_time_id=360549551311147.

15] – 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 July 15, 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.

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