Baltimore Activist Alert -- May 5, 2021

32] Michael Beer's book‌ Civil Resistance Tactics in the 21st Century – May 5

33] US Military Spending and National Priorities – May 5  

34] CLIMATE SAFE NEIGHBORHOODS PARTNERSHIP – May 5

35] Keeping Transgender Youth Safe – May 5

36] Join Free the Vaccine – May 5

37] Coffee and a Column — May 5

38] A Marshall Plan for Moms – May 5

39] Tax and Budget Working Group Meeting – May 5

40] Pentagon spending, police militarization, and Congress – May 5

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32] – Mubarak Awad [info@nonviolenceinternational.net] wants you to celebrate Michael Beer's book‌ Civil Resistance Tactics in the 21st Century on Wed., May 5 from 10:30 AM to noon ET.  Register at https://www.nonviolenceinternational.net/webinar_registration_nv_tactics_1.  Beer is the director of Nonviolence International, and during this celebration there will be the launch of the Nonviolent Tactics Database. Building on the foundational work of Gene Sharp, NVI has collected 350 tactics of nonviolent action and Michael has written a book that provides an updated survey of this global phenomenon. Also participating will be Jamila Raqib, Executive Director of the Einstein Institution, and Veronique Dudouet of the Berghof Foundation, who will share their enthusiasm for the many contributions of the book. NVI is working to make sure that this book and the related interactive database will be widely used in classrooms and by activists around the world.

  This webinar will be the first in a series that focuses on understanding nonviolent tactics around the world in the 21st century. Download Michael’s free book at https://www.nonviolenceinternational.net/nv_tactics_book, and visit the Nonviolent Tactics Database at https://www.tactics.nonviolenceinternational.net/.  See Nonviolence International’s website at http://www.nonviolenceinternational.net/.

33] – US Military Spending and National Priorities will be discussed on Wed., May 5 from noon to 1 PM ET.  In 2019, the US allocated $732 Billion dollars for military spending. The next “Top Ten” ((China, India, Russia, SA, France, Germany, UK, Japan, South Korea and Brazil) spent $726 Billion; the rest of the world (139 countries) spent a total of $460 Billion. What are our national priorities? How does the U.S. military budget compare to federal spending on other programs?  With the looming crisis of climate change, the crushing force of the pandemic, and the existence of vast inequality, what exactly does “national security” mean?  Join an informative and compelling conversation with Dr. Heidi Peltier on national priorities and US military spending. Discuss possible solutions to unwind the complicated web of the military-industrial complex and create a more sustainable and equitable society. Peltier is a Research Fellow at the Pardee Center for the Study of the Longer-Range Future and Director of the “20 Years of War” Project at Boston University. Register at https://radius.mit.edu/programs/wait%E2%80%A6what-how-much-us-military-spending-and-national-priorities%E2%80%8B.

34] – The Nation [emails@emails.thenation.com] is reminding you about This Week's Nation Conversation: Keeping Transgender Youth Safe with Chase Strangio and Raquel Willis on Wed., May 5 at noon ET.  Get involved in conversation with the ACLU’s Deputy Director for Transgender Justice Chase Strangio and author and activist Raquel Willis. More than 100 state bills targeting and directly harming Trans people have recently been introduced coast to coast. And, as Strangio and Willis wrote in recent Nation article, “The politicians pushing anti-trans legislation are preying on the ignorance of the general public.”  Learn where these bills are coming from and how you can help counter uninformed intolerance and support transgender people under attack. You won’t want to miss this critical conversation, hosted by Katrina vanden Heuvel. Tickets are $10, and all proceeds go directly to supporting The Nation’s journalism. Email events@thenation.com.  Sign up at https://www.thenation.com/events/transgender-youth-raquel-willis-chase-strangio/?utm_medium=email&utm_source=Sailthru&utm_campaign=nation-events-strangio&sourceid=1065885&ms=EMM050320212A&utm_content=EMM050320212A&utm_term=master_promotions.

35] – THE EPA ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE AND SYSTEMIC RACISM SERIES FEATURES THE CLIMATE SAFE NEIGHBORHOODS PARTNERSHIP on Wed., May 5 from noon to 1 PM ET. Redlining data was key to Groundwork Trusts’ community organizing efforts to secure climate provisions in Richmond, Virginia’s master plan, green infrastructure in Elizabeth, NJ, and other public policy advances. Linking evidence of structural racism to current environmental conditions provides a powerful tool for communities working for transformative change. Learn about the Climate Safe Neighborhoods Partnership and how youth in two of Groundwork’s Trusts, Groundwork Hudson Valley, and Groundwork Richmond, VA, and other places are leading the way in working closely with residents and stakeholders to organize, mobilize, and effect systems change to make communities more resilient to extreme heat and flooding.  Sign up at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/climate-safe-neighborhoods-partnership-tickets-148489944421?utm_source=eventbrite&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=newsletter_editorial&utm_content=loc.85949461.r2021_17&utm_term=ebemnsuserinsight&ref=ebemnsuserinsight&afu=219117122755&rank=0&recommended_events_quantity=15&aff=ebemnsuserinsight.

36] – Governments can do much more to end the global pandemic, including sharing vaccine recipes and helping the world make billions more doses. Join Free the Vaccine on Wed., May 5 from 2 to 4 PM ET in Washington, D.C. for a Rally for a People’s Vaccine and to call on the Biden administration to ensure urgent access to safe and effective COVID-19 treatments and vaccines for everyone, everywhere. Gather at 4th and Madison Sts. SW, National Mall.  RSVP at https://freethevaccine.org/2021/04/19/dc-rally-for-a-peoples-vaccine/?emci=4df8a3c9-4eac-eb11-85aa-0050f237abef&emdi=7ef119af-50ac-eb11-85aa-0050f237abef&ceid=136680.

37] – Jim Zogby [jzogby@aaiusa.org] is doing another Coffee and a Column on Wed., May 5 at 2:15 PM ET.  Jim will speak with Farah Nabulsi, director of the Academy Award-nominated short film, The Present. Register at https:bit.ly/3gWZr9m. Here's a link to his column, "Acknowledging Genocide:" https://jameszogby.com/washingtonwatch/acknowledging-genocidenbsp?emci=8ef7dd51-dbac-eb11-85aa-0050f237abef&emdi=e22993ea-f5ac-eb11-85aa-0050f237abef&ceid=389907. After you register, you will automatically get the dial-in information for the call.

38] – Women's March [info@womensmarch.com] wants you to be onboard for a webinar featuring Rep. Grace Meng and Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner of MomsRising on Wed., May 5 at 4:30 PM ET.  For Mother’s Day, take action for a Marshall Plan for Moms. Learn what you can do to help get it done. Join by Zoom by registering at bit.ly/may5RSVP. Check out https://act.womensmarch.com/signup/marshall-plan-for-moms-webinar/?source=em20210501&t=5&akid=2407%2E508952%2E8M2kxl.

39] – On Wed. May 5 from 6:15 to 7:45 PM ET, join the D.C. Jews United for Justice at a  Tax and Budget Working Group Meeting. Learn more about how to leverage collective power to create a more equitable budget and make sure everyone is paying their fair share. You will receive call-in instructions via email after you RSVP at https://jufj.org/event/dc-tab-may-05-21/?emci=b9b9ca44-7aa4-eb11-85aa-0050f237abef&emdi=27f79fbc-90a6-eb11-85aa-0050f237abef&ceid=3403859.

40] – Learn about Pentagon spending, police militarization, and Congress on Wed., May 5 from 7 to 8 PM ET.  This is an Online Event, and you can register at https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJArc-6tqz0sHd0R2jZmkernb8DMbdFcoMLA.  Stephen Semler is founder of the Security Policy Reform Institute (SPRI), a grassroots-funded, US foreign policy think tank.  SPRI provides an infrastructure for the development of progressive US foreign policy and national security ideas that break with the ideology of the existing think tank community. In the past year, Semler’s prolific work has examined the correlation between military-industry complex campaign contributions and Congressional votes on the Pentagon budget; Biden’s FY 2020 Pentagon budget increase; and the Biden administration’s continued militarization of US local police forces by sending military-grade equipment to them for free. SPRI proposes a practical, non-ideological five-point program for a new U.S. security policy.

To be continued.

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