Friends,
Below is a report sent to CODEPINK’s Angela
Simmons. CODEPINK organized Peace Caravans around the country, and
Baltimore’s peace and justice community joined in.
CODEPINK is now organizing Peace
Caravans for July 4th - a call for Independence from Wars! I plan to
sign up, and of course you are welcome to join us. On July 4, we annually
go out to the National Security Agency. So this year, we will organize a
caravan to Fort Meade. Be safe.
Kagiso, Max
Angela,
We had at least twelve vehicles participate in Baltimore’s
Peace Caravan, which traveled through Charles Village, a progressive
neighborhood in Baltimore. The vehicles were covered with many signs, and
of course we used the very eye-catching Healthcare Not Warfare posters from
CODEPINK. Besides the caravan some ten activists gathered at 33rd and North
Charles Sts. with signs. This location is right across the street from
Johns Hopkins University, the leading nuclear weapons contractor among
colleges. Charles Street is Baltimore’s main street.
Of course, many people gave us a peace sign and applauded as we
traveled through the neighborhood. The highlight for me came when a
gentleman approached my van and said thank you. He remarked that a former
football teammate of his was killed I think he said in Iraq.
While we had two TV stations videotaping us, neither station aired
the footage. The stations led the news with Trump’s visit to Fort
McHenry. I have included a YouTube report on our concluding event at the
Episcopal Cathedral where we gathered in a circle. You will notice some
of the vehicles and some of the participants: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UUo8B7n3mJw&feature=youtu.be.
Finally, I wrote a letter to THE BALTIMORE SUN about Trump’s visit
to Baltimore, and I included that we did a Peace Caravan to counter the
bloviation which took place at Fort McHenry. The letter was published, and you
can see it below. Thanks for organizing the peace caravans.
Kagiso, Max
Trump thumbed his
nose at Baltimore again | READER COMMENTARY
FOR THE BALTIMORE SUN |
MAY 27, 2020 | 12:33 PM
President
Donald Trump, accompanied by first lady Melania Trump, smiles while walking as
they return on Marine One on the South Lawn of the White House on Monday, May
25, 2020, in Washington. Trump is returning from Fort McHenry National Monument
and Historic Shrine, in Baltimore, for a Memorial Day ceremony.(Alex Brandon /
AP)
I was
at my high school reunion in Erie, Pennsylvania, last July when President
Donald Trump slandered the people of Baltimore by fuming that the city was “rat
and rodent-infested.” President Trump’s real target was Rep. Elijah Cummings.
Our hapless president did not know that Mr. Cummings’ District 7 also included
parts of Howard County.
And now again
Mr. Trump stuck his thumb in Baltimore’s eye by holding a campaign rally at
Fort McHenry despite Mayor Bernard C. “Jack” Young pleading with him not to
come while the city is under quarantine (“Trump in city to honor fallen," May 26).
Baltimore’s
peace and justice community decided to ignore Mr. Trump’s visit on Memorial
Day. On May 24, there was a funeral procession to Fort McHenry to condemn his
policies against the working poor and in favor of the filthy rich.
And on
Memorial Day, we had a peace caravan through Charles Village promoting
“Healthcare Not Warfare.”
At Fort
McHenry, President Trump and first lady Melania Trump appeared without face
masks. As the scientists have informed us, one wears a mask to protect others.
It was
humorous to read that Rep. Andy Harris, who came to honor President Trump, used
a vulgarity against the advance team. Was he upset that his seat wasn’t close
enough to Donald’s? More importantly, I read that two health care workers were
there holding a sign, “My life is not your publicity stunt. 100,000 dead on
your watch.” The lingering question remains: How many more will die under
President Trump’s watch?
Max Obuszewski, Baltimore
Donations can be sent
to Max Obuszewski, Baltimore Nonviolence Center, 431 Notre Dame Lane, Apt. 206,
Baltimore, MD 21212. 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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