Thirty-six years and counting by Max Obuszewski

 Thirty-six years and counting by Max Obuszewski

   In 1977, our Peace Corps volunteers group landed in Johannesburg, apartheid South Africa.  Ten days earlier, the renowned Black Consciousness leader Steve Biko was killed by security agents, and the military had control of the airport. These soldiers were looking through our luggage for porno magazines.  They had the wrong group, though I had with me with Chinua Achebe’s classic novel THINGS FALL APART.

 When we arrived in Gaborone, Botswana, this would be my home until 1981.  I was living between South Africa and Rhodesia, both controlled by white-minority governments.

 My job was to assist in building small businesses in this arid country about the size of France.  In the International Herald Tribune in May 1980, I read an article about “Plowshares” activists, including Philip and Dan Berrigan, engaged in a disarmament action at a General Electric plant in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania.

 As part of a journey to freedom, many South Africans fled into Botswana.  One of them was a remarkable anti-apartheid nurse who fled after a time in solitary confinement. 

 Arriving in Baltimore in 1983, I became involved in anti-apartheid activities and met that nurse, Mankekolo Mahlangu-Ngcobo.  The Reagan administration tried to deport her to Botswana.  But we were able to convince an immigration judge that she would be in danger in Botswana, as the South African Defense [sic] Force on occasion came into Botswana. And letter bombs were sent to people who fled to Botswana.  After keeping Mankekolo from being deported, we were able to convince the Baltimore City Council to pass South African divestment legislation.

 I also got involved in the anti-nuclear movement, and worked for Nuclear Free America, an organization promoting Nuclear Free Zones.  The Jonah House, founded by Elizabeth McAlister, recently sentenced for a Plowshares action in Georgia, and her husband Philip Berrigan, was the center of activity.  Besides working with Phil in the Plowshares movement, I got involved in challenging Johns Hopkins University’s weapons contracts.  Our group began an annual Hiroshima-Nagasaki commemoration in August usually on August 6 when Hiroshima was attacked and August 9, when Nagasaki was obliterated.

   Remarkably, on the 75th anniversary of the atomic bombings, the Hiroshima-Nagasaki Commemoration Committee will hold events for the 36th year.  Because of the pandemic, participants at the outdoor events will practice social distancing and will wear masks.  We will also host a Zoom conference with Dr. Vince Intondi entitled "A Discussion on the Connections Between Black Lives Matter and the Atomic Bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki."       

   Today, there are some 14,000 nuclear weapons around the world, and nearly 5,000 are in the US arsenal. Our government plans to spend more than a trillion dollars on upgrading the nuclear arsenal.  Why waste these tax dollars when our country lacks healthcare for all amidst a pandemic, and today’s depression rivals the one in the 1930s.

   Sadly, the Trump administration has abrogated all nuclear treaties or agreements. It is terrifying to think that a president can launch a nuclear attack without Congressional approval.  And it is even more terrifying that Trump controls the nuclear football.

    We lobby our federal officials on a regular basis about the nuclear arsenal.  We were able to work with Bill Henry and Mary Pat Clarke, as the City Council on August 6, 2018 passed a Back from the Brink resolution.  These are five common-sense steps to prevent a nuclear holocaust.

 I was moved to join the Peace Corps, and fortunately I was sent to Botswana, one of the few functioning democracies at the time in Africa.  See Amma Asante’s film A UNITED KINGDOM to learn more about its history.

 The Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons was adopted by the United Nations as 122 States voted in favor on July 7, 2017. It will enter into force 90 days after the fiftieth state  ratifies the Treaty. And recently, Botswana was the fortieth country to say no more nuclear weapons.

 It was not easy to end my Peace Corps service, but I brought home many fascinating memories.  For example, a person I worked with, Swift Mpoloka, gave me a bootleg cassette of Nelson Mandela testifying during the Rivonia trial.  It was chilling to hear that voice.  And in Baltimore, I worked closely with Mankekolo Mahlangu-Ngcobo and Philip Berrigan, both of whom who were dedicated to the struggles.  They are both deceased, but there are the memories.  Donald Trump you will not get me down.

 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