Baltimore Activist Alert -- February 19 - 21, 2024

19] Climate Lobby Night – Feb. 19

20] No Money for Massacres phone bank – Feb. 19

21] Pilgrimage for Peace – through Feb. 21

22] Rally for a ceasefire – Feb. 19

23] Film Invented before You Were Born -- Feb. 19

24] The Dissenters – Feb. 19

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19] –  The CCAN Action Fund [info@ccanactionfund.org] is holding on Mon., Feb. 19 at 5:30 PM ET a Climate Lobby Night starting at Asbury United Methodist Church, 87 West St., Annapolis 21401.‌ Speaking face-to-face with our legislators is, by far, the most effective method of advocacy we can engage in as environmental activists in Maryland. We have many state senators and delegates who really want to do the right thing on climate and they just need to hear from you, their constituents, to understand how important climate issues are to Marylanders. RSVP at https://act.ccanactionfund.org/page/60370/data/1?utm_medium=email&utm_source=engagingnetworks&utm_campaign=UTM_maryland&utm_content=MD-CE-Lobby+night+invite+SINGLE-0124-c4&ea.url.id=2306961

20] – DSA No Money for Massacres [nec@dsacommittees.org] wants you to join a phone bank on Mon., Feb. 19 at 5:30 PM ET.  Join a phone bank to tell Michigan Voters, Vote Uncommitted for a Ceasefire. Call on Michigan Democrats and encourage them to vote "uncommitted" in the presidential primary to send a message to Joe Biden: Ceasefire NOW!  DSA is proud to endorse Listen to Michigan's "Vote Uncommitted" campaign--an effort to encourage Michigan voters who support a ceasefire to vote "Uncommitted" in the state's February 27th Democratic presidential primary. Show Joe Biden and the Democratic establishment how many Democratic voters in a key swing state are willing to withhold their votes from Biden until there's a permanent ceasefire to end Israel's genocidal war on the people of Gaza. Sign up for the DSA phone at https://actionnetwork.org/events/dsa-listen-to-michigan-phonebank-for-vote-uncommitted-3/?link_id=2&can_id=4b9d4061aec5469758759317ac0f5285&source=email-urgent-emergency-phonebank-to-stop-military-aid-to-israel&email_referrer=email_2211060&email_subject=urgent-join-a-phonebank-to-tell-michigan-voters-vote-uncommitted-for-a-ceasefire

21] – The Pilgrimage for Peace will be arriving in Baltimore on Mon., Feb. 19, and there will be a rally at Payne Memorial AME Church, 1714 Madison Ave., Baltimore 21217 at 7 PM. IfNotNow Baltimore will be joining local organizations, congregations, and faith leaders in welcoming the marchers. RSVP at https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeAewoCw-3u0iqPV1WtWxPKqeBMgVR-Djrw64pFv539GaOvhA/viewform?sourceid=1051385&emci=f17e2141-a1cd-ee11-85f9-002248223794&emdi=87190c77-eccd-ee11-85f9-002248223794&ceid=30868439

Faith leaders, activists, artists, and others are currently marching from Independence Hall in Philadelphia, PA to arrive at the White House in Washington, DC on Wed., Feb. 21to demand that President Biden and other leaders call for an immediate ceasefire. Below is a statement from the Pilgrimage for Peace website: 

"Moved by our conscience, we stand united to address the ongoing tragedy in Gaza, where the death toll has reached over 24,000, the daily death rate in Gaza higher than any other major 21st Century conflict. As we continue to mourn the loss of innocent Israeli lives on October 7, we firmly believe that responding to violence with more violence is not the solution. We urge President Biden and Congress to halt weapons funding to Israel and, instead, channel efforts towards increasing humanitarian aid to Palestine. It is our collective responsibility to advocate for a peaceful resolution and uphold the principles of justice and compassion.”

22] – Youth are leading a day of action in Annapolis to push the Maryland General Assembly to call for a ceasefire in Gaza. The rally, occurring on Mon., Feb. 19 from 6 to 8 PM ET at Lawyer’s Mall in Annapolis, will be held at the Maryland legislature in support of HJ 2, which calls for a ceasefire in Gaza. The bill is sponsored by Metro DC DSA member Del. Gabriel Acevero, who is an elected rep in Montgomery County, and co-sponsored by several other allied Maryland legislators, and it demands the General Assembly express their support for a ceasefire.

23] – Susan Barnett [reelandmealatnewdealcafe@gmail.com] indicates that on Mon., Feb0. 19 at 7 PM ET, Reel and Meal will present in person and online via ZOOM “Invented before You Were Born.”  Arrive/Log on by 6:45 PM, as the program starts promptly at 7 PM. Please come to the New Deal Café at 113 Centerway (Roosevelt Center) in Greenbelt, MD. Enjoy the wide-screen film projection system. Masks are encouraged.  Registration is required: http://tinyurl.com/ReelnMealFeb2024 <http://tinyurl.com/ReelnMealFeb2024

 A plant-based meal is encouraged to support the mission focused on environmental, social justice and animal rights issues. NDC Management asks that outside food not be brought into NDC.

  In 1839, well before the Civil War, the will of Major Richard Bibb freed 65 enslaved people in Russellville, Kentucky. The film, “Invented before You Were Born” takes a close look at this story.  It first examines the lives of the Bibb Freedmen and the motivations of Major Bibb and then shifts focus to the modern-day descendants of the freedmen, particularly Michael Morrow, who has turned the Bibb mansion into a local museum. The film ends with a poignant family reunion in Kentucky that brings together descendants of both the enslaver and the enslaved, prompting candid discussions about race, slavery, and privilege.

 The Reel and Meal at the New Deal is a monthly film series focused on environmental, social justice and animal rights issues, presented by Utopia Film Festival, the Prince George’s County Peace and Justice Coalition and Beaverdam Creek Watershed Watch Group.  For more information, visit www.facebook.com/reelandmealNDC

24] – Massachusetts Peace Action [info@masspeaceaction.org] is inviting you to a War Industry Resisters Network webinar - Dissenters: Students Say No to the Military-Industrial Complex on Mon., Feb. 19 at 8 PM ET. Register at https://secure.everyaction.com/pQVTp2pAx06Wjt5oI0ioEg2

 Dissenters is a coalition of college students on 25 different campuses around the country that is actively engaged in “turning the tide against endless war.” It is an intersectional movement that connects the dots from racism to militarism to poverty and organizes against political and corporate elites in order to create a safer, more just, more livable world.  Recently the Dissenters chapter at UMass Amherst organized to get Raytheon and other war profiteers off campus. Among their demands were to end Raytheon’s campus recruitment, research, collaboration on curriculum, joint faculty appointments, and partnerships. This webinar will describe the approach of Dissenters across the country as well as the specific student efforts at UMass Amherst.

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