Baltimore Activist Alert -- May 7 - 8, 2021

56] The federal death penalty – May 7

57] White House vigil – May 7

58] Moms will save the planet – May 7

59] Protest at the Embassy of El Salvador – May 7

60] Peace and justice vigil – May 7

61] Lloyd Austin is Secretary of the War Industry – May 7

62] Film False Alarm – May 7  

63] Free the Vaccine Town Hall – May 8

64] Medicare for All and expanding Medicaid in the Palmetto State – May 8

65] Demilitarize the Budget! – May 8

66] Food Pantry and Food Donation Center – May 8

67] Our Revolution Maryland John Lewis Day of Action – May 8

68] Baltimore Votercade – May 8

69] Indivisibles support John Lewis – May 8

70] National John Lewis Voting Rights act – May 8

71] Webinar To End All Wars – May 8

72] D.C. Labor Chorus concert – May 8

73] Study/Action Group on Authoritarianism and Right-wing Nationalism – May 8

74] International Workers Day – May 8

75] We Dream in Black Film Screening – May 1

76] Tell JHU no more weapons contracts

77] Beauty Fades /Stupid Lasts Forever and The Trial According to Alan Barysh 78] Read Dave Eberhardt’s book "For All the Saints- a Protest Primer"

79] Ted Glick has written a book

80] New Book: “Confessions of a Radical Academic”

81] Two Berrigan Books still in print

82] Contribute to the Lin Romano Peace and Justice Scholarship

83] Do you need a doctor?

84] Donate books, videos, DVDs and records

85] Do you need any book shelves?

86] Join the Global Zero campaign.

87] Peace Park Antinuclear Vigil

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56] – Rep. Ayanna Pressley's office indicated that there will be a major announcement on Friday regarding new support for HR262/SB582, the Federal Death Penalty Prohibition Act of 2021. Join a LIVE conversation with Voices of Experience on the Federal Death Penalty, via Zoom and also on a Facebook page starting at 11 AM EDT on May 7. Register at bit.ly/May7Voices to be in the live Zoom audience. Yes, the event will be recorded and available for viewing shortly after it concludes. Abe at Death Penalty Action can be reached at info@deathpenaltyaction.org.

57] – The Dorothy Day Catholic Worker will host a peace vigil at the White House, 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, WDC, on Fri., May 7 at noon.  Contact the Dorothy Day Catholic Worker: 202-882-9649 or artlaffin@hotmail.com.

58] – Tune in to Fire Drill Friday for a virtual rally on Fri., May 7 at 2 PM ET with guests Greenpeace USA Executive Director Annie Leonard; Climate Justice Liaison of Environmental Defense Fund and Senior Advisor of Moms Clean Air Heather McTeer Toney; Executive Director of the Asian Pacific Environmental Network Miya Yoshitani; professor, scientist, author Robin Wall Kimmerer; Executive Director of the Wallace Global Fund Ellen Dorsey; and musical guests Indigo Girls and Cheryl L'Hirondelle!  It’s understandable that mothers have been at the forefront of the fight to correct the imbalance because it’s the future of the planet’s children that is at stake. We’ve got to protect our planet for generations to come — we know this. The fossil fuel industry, however, either does not know this or they just choose to ignore it. So, before tuning in to our Fire Drill Friday livestream, tell your Members of Congress to sponsor the End Polluter Welfare Act to end fossil fuel subsidies!  Sign up at https://www.facebook.com/events/467072078065722?emci=3ea77ef3-89ae-eb11-85aa-0050f237abef&emdi=0602f9e5-9dae-eb11-85aa-0050f237abef&ceid=1705696.

59] – D.C. CISPES and CISPES Solidarity with El Salvador will protest at the Embassy of El Salvador, 1400 16th St. NW, WDC on Fri., May 7 at 3:30 PM ET. Join CISPES to denounce the coup in El Salvador.  Join in to denounce the illegal removal of all five judges from El Salvador’s Constitutional Court and of the El Salvador’s Attorney General by Bukele’s allies on their first day of the new legislative assembly in a move to concentrate absolute power over El Salvador. Bukele has proven his allegiance to corporate elite interests intent on economic policies of plunder that will destroy the environment and further impoverish El Salvador’s most almost marginalized communities. Register at https://www.facebook.com/events/252476699948013/?acontext=%7B%22source%22%3A%2229%22%2C%22ref_notif_type%22%3A%22event_calendar_create%22%2C%22action_history%22%3A%22null%22%7D&notif_id=1620275576300532&notif_t=event_calendar_create&ref=notif.

60] -- There is usually a Quaker Vigil for Racial Justice on Fridays, from 5 to 6 PM, hosted by the Baltimore Quaker Peace and Justice Committee (BQPJC) outside the Homewood Friends Meetinghouse, 3107 N. Charles St.  The next scheduled vigil is on April 30. Black Lives Matter. Stop the Killing. Physical distancing applies. Wear your face mask. Email homewoodfriends@gmail.com or call 410-235-4438. Quaker values call us to speak truth and to seek equality for all people. We aim to follow Bayard Rustin’s wisdom that “we need, in every community, a group of angelic troublemakers” and John Lewis’s call to “make good trouble.” See https://www.facebook.com/events/311508100243529/?event_time_id=311508113576861.3&akid=18263%2E3302379%2Ez6bJVQ.

61] – Lloyd Austin is the Secretary of the War Industry, and Jeremy Kuzmarov will investigate this matter on Fri., May 7 from 6 to 7 PM ET.  The head of the United States military, Secretary of War Lloyd Austin, has a major conflict of interest. Before he was confirmed by the US Senate he sat on the Board of Directors for Raytheon Technologies, one of the largest weapons manufacturers in the world. Though Austin stepped down from the Board and promised to recuse himself from decisions involving Raytheon, the Pentagon has already awarded 2.36 billion dollars in contacts during the first 3 and a half months of the Biden Administration. The revolving door between the Pentagon and the military-industrial complex has consequences. Never-ending wars aren’t in the interest of the American people but they’re very good for the bottom line of “defense” contractors. 

Jeremy Kuzmarov is Managing Editor of CovertAction Magazine, a publication founded in 1978 by critics of the CIA, including former agency officials. Kuzmarov is also the author of four books on U.S. foreign policy, including The Russians are Coming, Again: The First Cold War as Tragedy, the Second as Farce, with John Marciano (Monthly Review Press, 2018), Obama’s Unending Wars: Fronting the Foreign Policy of the Permanent Warfare State (Clarity Press, 2019) among other works.  Zoom in at http://masspeaceaction.org/venue/online-event/?emci=44d55c21-1bac-eb11-85aa-0050f237abef&emdi=ecb03088-1fac-eb11-85aa-0050f237abef&ceid=269591.

62] – Join in on Fri., May 7 at 8 PM EST for the world premiere of False Alarm by documentary filmmaker/director Nick Lyell. The screening will be followed by a Q&A with the director and other guests including Dr. Kalamaoka’aina Niheu, Co-founder of the Mauna Medic Healers Hui and the Standing Rock Medic Healer Council.  The film investigates the diverse reactions to the surreal and traumatic morning when families, soldiers, tourists, and every person in Hawaii was forced to confront an unthinkable reality—an incoming nuclear missile. The film offers a picture of the hope of resistance and tragedy of acceptance around militarism, colonialism, and nuclear weapons through the lens of the 2018 Hawai'i false missile alert.

Lyell Is a multimedia storyteller whose work often explores power relationships, utopian thinking, and moral inclusion, seeking to find the ways in which our relationships, language, and the stories we tell ourselves can limit or expand the scope of political possibility.

Beyond the Bomb is honored to host this screening and continue the conversation with Nick. The hosting of this screening includes a suggested donation for tickets, instead of charging an entry fee.  Donate what you can to support the work reducing the threat of nuclear war.

Sign in at https://secure.actblue.com/donate/falsealarm?link_id=1&refcodeEmailReferrer=email_1151148___subject_1531764&can_id=4b9d4061aec5469758759317ac0f5285&source=email-looking-for-friday-night-plans&email_referrer=email_1151148___subject_1531764&email_subject=looking-for-friday-night-plans.  Contact Yasmeen from Beyond the Bomb at team@beyondthebomb.org.

63] – Ben Levinson, Justice Is Global [info@peoplesaction.org] is promoting a Free the Vaccine Town Hall on Sat., May 8 at 10 AM ET. India is at the center of a world public health crisis. With over 400,000 new COVID-19 infections every day, Indian hospitals are overwhelmed, and people are dying in the streets. India is the world’s biggest producer of vaccines. Yet less than 10 percent of India's 1.4 billion people have received a COVID-19 shot. As cases rise, communities suffer. Tune in at https://www.crowdcast.io/e/free-the-vaccine-town/register?link_id=3&can_id=4b9d4061aec5469758759317ac0f5285&source=email-join-us-this-saturday-covid-19-crisis-in-india&email_referrer=email_1167527&email_subject=join-us-this-saturday-covid-19-crisis-in-india.

64] – On Sat., May 8 from 11 AM to noon ET, join Our Revolution South Carolina and renowned single-payer advocate Wendell Potter and Medical University of South Carolina student activist Ian O'Connor for a discussion on Medicare for All and expanding Medicaid in the Palmetto State! RSVP at https://www.mobilize.us/ourrevolution/event/386323/?akid=1500.8252965.Y9kTrv&rd=1&t=30. Also to be addressed is the South Carolina government's refusal to expand Medicaid and how this has negatively impacted on poor, struggling, and working South Carolinians - especially residents of color.

65] – Women's Action for New Directions [peace@wand.org] wants you to JOIN the Rally to Demilitarize the Budget on Sat., May 8 from noon to 3 PM. RSVP at  https://www.facebook.com/events/474698510510738/?emci=8c107679-cead-eb11-85aa-0050f237abef&emdi=e81ecdeb-7fae-eb11-85aa-0050f237abef&ceid=3107032.  Each year, about two-thirds of the United States' budget is spent on militarized responses to societal problems—including the Pentagon, abusive immigration enforcement, and violent policing. This money could be redistributed to have a transformative impact on things that would actually make our communities healthy, safe, and strong: like education, universal health care, or peacebuilding.  That’s why WAND is joining the Global Days of Action on Military Spending—to demand Congress put an end to destructive budgeting. Grab a friend, grab a mask, and head to the Washington Monument and join with WAND and friends to demand Congress “Move the Money” from the Pentagon and reinvest in human needs.

66] – On Sat., May 8 from noon to 2 PM EST, get over to the Food Pantry and Food Donation Center at First and Franklin Presbyterian Church, 210 W. Madison St., Baltimore. This Food Pantry is open every Saturday. Get a grocery bag – breakfast, jelly and peanut butter (a good source of protein) for lunch, the makings for a balanced dinner such as beans and rice, pasta and sauce, soup, vegetables, fruit, and a paper goods. Also added is a little fun food, such as popcorn or cookies, for everyone enjoys a treat.  Contributions of shelf stable foods can be brought to Reid Chapel every Saturday between noon and 2 PM. If shopping is difficult for you, monetary donations earmarked food pantry may be sent to the church.  How else can you help? Volunteers are needed to help collect and distribute food. Contact the church office to volunteer. You can also help by spreading the word to those you know who are facing food insecurity. See https://www.facebook.com/firstfranklinbaltimore.

67] – Our Revolution Maryland supports the John Lewis Day of Action for Voting Rights on Sat., May 8 from 2 to 4 PM ET. Click here to RSVP at https://www.mobilize.us/ourrevolution/event/387927/?link_id=0&can_id=4b9d4061aec5469758759317ac0f5285&source=email-john-lewis-day-of-action-for-voting-rights&email_referrer=email_1163705&email_subject=john-lewis-day-of-action-for-voting-rights.  Look for the nearest event on the list below: Our Revolution Anne Arundel County -- 1101 Smithville St., Annapolis (Wiley H. Bates Legacy Center); Our Revolution Baltimore -- 6205 Baltimore National Pike, Catonsville (Walmart Parking Lot) or 1537 McKean Ave., Baltimore (Easterwood/Sandtown Park and Playground; Our Revolution Howard County -- Sand Hill Road overpass at I-70; and Our Revolution Montgomery County -- 8900 Georgia Ave., Silver Spring.

68] – Get involved with the Baltimore Votercade on Sat., May 8 from 2 to 4 PM ET.  Sign up at https://www.mobilize.us/publiccitizen/event/385594/.  There is a rally at Easterwood/Sandtown “Doc Cheatham” Park and Playground, 1537 McKean Avenue, Baltimore 21217. The final planning meeting hosted by For the People Maryland is on Thurs., May 6 from 7:30 to 8:30 PM ET.  You can join the meeting by dialing 1 301 715 8592.  The meeting ID is 931 3066 2622, and the password is 173976.  Or you can join by Zoom at https://zoom.us/join.  The Meeting Agenda is to finalize details of the Baltimore metro event that will occur on May 8.

69] – On Saturday, across the country, Indivisibles will show up with their neighbors to honor the memory of Congressman John Lewis and his legacy of making good trouble for voting rights. Together, raise voices (In cars! On bikes! On foot!) to push forward critical structural democracy reforms to remake our democracy for the people.  RSVP at https://www.mobilize.us/publiccitizen/?utm_source=Indivisible.

70] – On Sat., May 8 there is a mobilization for the National John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Action Day. Amplify the critical need to pass HR1/S1: For The People Act, HR4: the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, and HR51/S51: the Washington DC Admissions Act (DC Statehood). Demand action to protect the freedom to vote. Speak out against voter suppression and make government officials hear our voices! Join the events with the For the People Act-Maryland Coalition in Washington, D.C. It will take place at the Temple of Praise, 700 Southern Ave. SE, WDC 20032. Go to https://www.mobilize.us/publiccitizen/event/384523/?emci=4df8a3c9-4eac-eb11-85aa-0050f237abef&emdi=7ef119af-50ac-eb11-85aa-0050f237abef&ceid=136680.

71] – Helena Service for Peace and Justice (SERPAJ) [helenaserpaj@gmail.com] is hosting a webinar To End All Wars with Kathy Kelly on The Wounds of War on Sat., May 8 at 7 PM ET. Sign in at https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81216467150 with the Passcode 094136.

72] – On Sat., May 8 at 7:30 PM ET, the DC Labor Chorus will hold its 23rd Annual Spring Sing-Along Concert. Their repertoire is diverse, with selections from the folk, gospel, protest, jazz, pop, and labor traditions. The group looks forward to singing “for all who labor.” Sing to organize. Sing for our lives! Join in at https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1af-Gm1fiMYhd1pWrW8uop0alRhUgLo-kRoMJLhZIaqU/viewform?edit_requested=true&emci=4df8a3c9-4eac-eb11-85aa-0050f237abef&emdi=7ef119af-50ac-eb11-85aa-0050f237abef&ceid=136680. Or livestream on Facebook at facebook.com/DCLaborChorus. It is a free concert, but donations are gratefully accepted. Call Paulette Saunders at 202-639-6204.

73] – Massachusetts Peace Action invites you to join the Study/Action Group on Authoritarianism and Right-wing Nationalism on Sat., May 8 from 2 to 3:30 PM ET.  The group meets the second Saturday of each month to study how progressives should deal with these issues. This Saturday discuss Anne Applebaum’s Twilight of Democracy: The Seductive Lure of Authoritarianism.

  An armed insurrection in Washington on January 6 threatened our democracy, with open encouragement from Donald Trump.  While Trump was defeated in November due to his bungling of the COVID pandemic and his general incompetence, he assaulted the rule of law, whipping up his reactionary, racist base with ever more explicit threats and falsehoods. Trump was defeated, but a portion of the electorate is refusing to accept his defeat.  Is the United States threatened by fascism and right-wing nationalism, and if so what should the peace and progressive movement do to answer the threat?   What are the international dimensions of the situation and what historical precedents are applicable? Register to attend: http://masspeaceaction.org/event/study-action-group-twilight-of-democracy/.

74] –This is A PLEA TO CONVINCE JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY TO OBEY INTERNATIONAL LAW. The world reached a historic milestone on January 22, 2021: The Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons [TPNW] entered into force and become binding international law -- https://www.icanw.org/the_treaty.

   Prevent Nuclear War/Maryland has called attention to the growing danger of nuclear war and the outrageous $1.7 trillion dollars we are spending to upgrade the nuclear arsenal. On July 18, 2017, Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, a U.S. Navy - affiliated research center received a seven-year, $92 million contract to continue its systems engineering and research-and-development services for the Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center. Help convince JHU to renounce nuclear weapons contracts. Contact the president, Ron Daniels, to urge him to reject all nuclear weapons contracts: Office of the President, 242 Garland Hall, The Johns Hopkins University, 3400 N. Charles St., Baltimore, Maryland 21218.  Call his office at (410) 516-8068 or email president@jhu.edu.

75] – Bad Attitude Publishers Announces the release of Beauty Fades /Stupid Lasts Forever and The Trial According to Alan Barysh. In light of the fascist/Q Annon/Truther/Alex Jones and Trump-inspired attack on the capital, Bad attitude Publications has released a photo essay by Alan Barysh. In the follow-up book to Sorry Truther, it was an OUTSIDE JOB Beauty Fades.... gives the reader an upfront look at the reactionary forces and the deadly beliefs these folks uphold. In pictures and texts, one gets a good look at the faces and ideas that pose a real threat to this country. The Trial According to Alan Barysh is a rewrite of the Kafka Classic The Trial. With pictures from the original movie, Alan Barysh rewrites this scathing satire with just a tad more cutting edge satire, and a different ending. The appendix to the book talks about the lonely uphill struggle of Tawanda Jones to get justice for her brother. This afterthought is included, because of the real Kafkesque struggle of the West Family to get justice for her brother. Both books can be purchased on Amazon.com. For every purchase of The Trial, Alan Barysh will give all of his royalties to the West Family. Just text a picture of the book to 443-239-5325.

76] – David Eberhardt was a member of the Baltimore Four with Father Philip Berrigan, Tom Lewis and Rev. James Mengel.  The group poured blood on draft files on October 27, 1967.  They would be convicted and sentenced to prison. Dave has written a book "For All the Saints- a Protest Primer"- documenting the Baltimore Four action and many others up to and including the most recent Plowshares action – Kings Bay Plowshares 7.  Phil Berrigan’s wife, Elizabeth McAlister, is a member of the Kings Bay Plowshares 7. 

 Dave just printed the 5^th edition of the book which is available for $25 by sending him a check: Dave Eberhardt, 4 Hadley Square North, Baltimore, MD 21218. You can contact him at mozela9@comcast.net. He prefers that you DO NOT order the book from Amazon. Image 1 of 2 for FOR ALL THE SAINTS: A PROTEST PRIMER. David Eberhardt; Image 2 of 2 for FOR ALL THE SAINTS: A PROTEST PRIMER; and FOR ALL THE SAINTS: A PROTEST PRIMER.  This is a self-published book printed in 2017 with updates.

The price is $25 for a Spiral Bound, and Signed. This edition being what the publisher calls “The 4th edition (or first edition 4th state?) of this books (with “final” additions) has been printed by the firm of FEDEX numbered 150-200, signed by the author, February 2017.”This is copy 187 and is numbered and signed by David Eberhardt on the title page.~~While the bibliographical information is a bit head-spinning, this is an engaging memoir by David Eberhardt recounting his involvement with the Brothers Berrigan in the protests against the Viet Nam war, and his subsequent time as an inmate at the Lewisburg Federal Prison. There is Near Fine binding: Item #291479.

77] –  Ted Glick has written a book about his years of active draft resistance during the Vietnam War, and published by PM Press! It’s entitled “Burglar for Peace: Lessons Learned in the Catholic Left’s Resistance to the Vietnam War. The book is part history, part autobiography and may be a valuable source of ideas and inspiration for today’s organizers against injustice, oppression, war, ecological devastation and the bad guys! Frida Berrigan has written a wonderful intro. The paperback book, all 220 or so pages, will cost $20, but if you order it now, you can get a 20% discount if you use the code “Burglar” when you do so.  Go to: https://www.pmpress.org/index.php?l=product_detail&p=1093 and click 'Add to Cart'. In the coupon code area be sure to put: Burglar to get the discount.

78] – Check out a New Book: “Confessions of a Radical Academic: A Memoir by Fred L. Pincus,” now available from Adelaide Books (https://adelaidebooks.org/collections/latest-releases/products/confessions-of-a-radical-academic) or from Amazon.  Fred taught sociology at UMBC for more than 40 years and is on the board of Research Associates Foundation.  His memoir details his struggles to have a successful career while keeping true to his radical principles and activism.  One major theme is his struggle with race and racism both on and off campus. Go to www.fredlpincus.com.

79] –Two books by Fred Wilcox are still in print.  The first one is “Fighting the Lamb's War Skirmishes with the American Empire” by Philip Berrigan and Fred A. Wilcox with a FOREWORD by Tripp York.  It can be purchased by Wipf and Stock: https://wipfandstock.com/fighting-the-lamb-s-war.html.  It is a Memoir in paperback/ISBN: 9781532660078/240 pages/republished 8/21/2018/ Retail Price: $26.00/and Web Price: $20.80.

  The second one is “Uncommon Martyrs The Berrigans, the Catholic Left, and the Plowshares Movement” by Fred Wilcox, who profiles members of this anti-war movement, who’s Christianity compels them to acts of civil disobedience against the military industrial complex.  The ISBN is 0201522314/$6.50 for a hardcover, and it can be purchased at Powell's Books.  See https://www.spiritualityandpractice.com/book-reviews/view/7094/uncommon-martyrs.

80] – Consider making a donation to a scholarship in her honor that would be most welcome.  Contributions to the Lin Romano Peace and Justice Scholarship can be made online via https://www.ndm.edu/lin-romano-peace-and-justice-scholarship or by check made out to Notre Dame of Maryland University (Memo line: Lin Romano Peace and Justice Scholarship) and mailed to Notre Dame of Maryland University, Office of Institutional Advancement, 4701 North Charles Street, Baltimore, MD 21210.

81] – Yousef Zarbalian [mailto:yzarbali@gmail.com] started his own medical practice in December before the pandemic hit. It is called East-West Medicine and Rheumatology, and its website is EastWestMD.com.  Yousef is licensed in Maryland and Virginia. He is doing primary care as well as rheumatologic care (focusing on joint problems and autoimmune diseases like rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, and sjogren's).  He is offering telemedicine visits, and he has very reasonable rates for uninsured individuals.  He makes use of herbs (which can be sent directly to patients from the herbal dispensary) as well as prescribing medications to their local pharmacy if needed.  

82] -- If you would like to get rid of books, videos, DVDs, records, tarps and table cloths, contact Max at 410-323-1607 or mobuszewski2001 at comcast.net.

83] -- Can you use any book shelves? Contact Max at 410-323-1607 or mobuszewski2001 at comcast.net.

84] -- Join an extraordinary global campaign for the elimination of nuclear weapons: http://www.globalzero.org/sign-declaration. A growing group of leaders around the world is calling for the elimination of nuclear weapons and a majority of the global public agrees.  This is an historic window of opportunity.  With momentum already building in favor of Zero, a major show of support from people around the world could tip the balance. When it comes to nuclear weapons, one is one too many.

85] – A Peace Park Antinuclear Vigil takes place every day in Lafayette Park, 1601 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, 24 hours a day, since June 3, 1981. Go to http://prop1.org; call 202-682-4282.

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/.

“One is called to live nonviolently, even if the change one works for seems impossible. It may or may not be possible to turn the US around through nonviolent revolution. But one thing favors such an attempt: the total inability of violence to change anything for the better" - Daniel Berrigan