19th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Celebration at the Yale Peabody Museum Jan. 18 and 19

by Josue Irizarry, Events Coordinator, Yale Peabody Museum

We are well into the planning of the Yale Peabody Museum’s celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Legacy of Environmental and Social Justice on Jan. 18 and 19, 2015.

As most of you know, a big and important part of this annual, two-day, free celebration are the activity areas set up all around the Museum, where organizations such as yours create and staff an educational activity for families, with a meaningful lesson about environmental, non-violence or social justice.

Applications to set up a table or display need to be received by Dec. 12. To receive an application, email [email protected].

Please fill out the form, make a copy for your records, and mail or email it back to us by Friday, Dec. 12, 2014.

NOTE: The activity you design must be interactive, and due to space limitations we can accept only the first 25 applications received by Friday, December 12, 2014. Applications will not be accepted after the deadline date.

If you have contributed in the past, please accept our gratitude for your generous support of this program, and we hope that you will choose to continue.  Thanks again for helping us make this one of New Haven’s, indeed one of Connecticut’s, finest tributes to Dr. King and his legacy.

Milada Marsalka’s Memoirs Now Available in New Haven

by PAR Planning Committee

Milada Marsalka, founding member of PAR (1993), long-time president of the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom, New Haven County Branch, and a fiery activist in countless struggles for peace, labor rights, equality and justice, had the foresight to write about her life. She died in 2000 at the age of 95, leaving a manuscript that could inform and inspire others.

Through the diligence of Milada’s nieces, Regina Stevenson and Catherine Nathan, Pursuing Peace:
Memoirs of Milada Marsalka has been published.

Thanks to New Haven/León Sister City Project, a box of books was shipped to New Haven. You can purchase your copy of Pursuing Peace from PAR for $15. Please call Paula at (203) 562-2798 to arrange your pick-up. This book makes a great gift! For a description of the book go to the publisher’s site: http://wordassociation.com/memoir%20book%20page/pursuingpeace.html.

Why the World Needs Cuba

by Augusta Girard, Program Director, Promoting Enduring Peace

On Nov. 13, PEP had Gail Walker of IFCO/Pastors for Peace come to New Haven to talk about her organization, her thoughts on Cuban American relations and Cuba’s role in the world. With over 15 years of involvement with IFCO, she staffed more than 15 caravans of humanitarian aid to Cuba and Central America and worked extensively with marginalized communities including the Garifuna in Honduras and Nicaragua. With 40 people in attendance, Ms. Walker spoke for an hour.

gail-walkerThe following are excerpts from her speech: “Cuba continues to be an example on so many different levels. An example of environ-mental sustainability is that successful Cuban models in areas of food, housing and health are now widely replicated throughout Latin America. Cuba also leads the world in hurricane planning and as an island nation is acutely aware and already researching climate change vulnerability of coastal zones. It’s also created an alternative model of development that places ecology and humanity at its core. So it’s become a world leader in ecological, organic farming and urban agriculture.”

“In short it is clear that there are changing attitudes around Cuba, whether it be in the Cuban American community where there’s been pole after pole, which have been quite fascinating… amongst more politically conservative politicians and mainstream media… It’s just the fact that there are one after another that are kind of really speaking out about this 50 plus year old antiquated outdated – fill in the blank – policy I think is impressive and hopefully significant and will mean things will change.”

“It does seem that Cuba is certainly more visible today than it’s been in the longest time and my hope is that we – collectively we – IFCO, Pastors for Peace – we as a network of people that are interested in peace and changing attitudes whether it be here in Connecticut or across the country will be the voices that will continue to rise up and speak out against the blockade and work to see it lifted once and for all.”
For the entire speech go to PEPeace.org (Homepage slider).

Tomas Young – 11 Sept 1979 – 10 Sept 2014

by Augusta Girard, Program Director, Promoting Enduring Peace

In November 2013, Promoting Enduring Peace presented TV personality and producer director Phil Donahue for its first Mark Shafer lecture. Mr Donahue presented his award-winning documentary about Tomas Young, “Body of War.” Young was the voice for all the thousands of injured and dead soldiers.

Young joined the army when he was 22, two days after the 9/11 attacks. He had been in Iraq less than a week when he and fellow soldiers came under sniper fire. He was paralyzed from the chest down after being hit by a bullet in his spine.

tomas-young“Body of War” follows Young as a 25-year-old as he deals with his disability and finds his voice speaking out against the Iraq war and became an active member of Iraq Veterans Against the War.

On the tenth anniversary of the Iraq War, Truthdig published “The Last Letter” by Tomas Young directed towards George W. Bush and Dick Cheney.

“I write this letter, my last letter, to you, Mr. Bush and Mr. Cheney. I write not because I think you grasp the terrible human and moral consequences of your lies, manipulation and thirst for wealth and power. I write this letter because, before my own death, I want to make it clear that I, and hundreds of thousands of my fellow veterans, along with millions of my fellow citizens, along with hundreds of millions more in Iraq and the Middle East, know fully who you are and what you have done. You may evade justice but in our eyes you are each guilty of egregious war crimes, of plunder and, finally, of murder, including the murder of thousands of young Americans-my fellow veterans-whose future you stole…

“I hope that before your time on earth ends, as mine is now ending, you will find the strength of character to stand before the American public and the world, and in particular the Iraqi people, and beg for forgiveness.”

Promoting Enduring Peace joins the world in mourning a young man who should not have lost his life fighting in a war that should never have been fought.

Karen Brandow 1954-2014


forwarded by Western Massachusetts Jobs With Justice

We are heartbroken…
www.legacy.com/obituaries/gazettenet/obituary.aspx?n=karen-brandow&pid=173000132

Karen Brandow, 60, passed away peacefully Sunday, Oct. 26, 2014, at home in Shelburne Falls.

She was born in Philadelphia, PA, in 1954 and spent most of her adult life in western Massachusetts and in Guatemala. She devoted her life to making this world a better place through her singing, counseling, and Spanish interpreting.

Karen was a loving partner to Charlie King, a devoted daughter, and a loyal friend whose calm presence was appreciated by her community and supported by her Buddhist practice. She was grateful for all of the blessings and privileges of her life which she attempted to use to be of service to others.

She died as she lived – making conscious choices about medical treatment based on her most deeply held values. She wishes to be remembered for adding in her “grain of sand” to the ongoing search for peace and justice in this world.

She asks that anyone wishing to honor her memory make a donation in her name to The Innocence Project in New York, 40 Worth St., Suite 701, New York, NY 10013, or to Chris-tian Peacemaker Teams, P.O. Box 6508, Chicago, IL 60680-6508. A memorial service will be held Dec. 20, at 2 p.m. at Trinity Church, 17 Severance St., Shelburne Falls, MA.

Rising Tide Member Found Not Guilty for May 27 Vermont Gas Protest

by Sara Sullivan, Rising Tide Vermont, Nov. 20

The trial of Henry Harris, charged with trespassing at Vermont Gas Systems’ (VGS) headquarters in South Burlington on May 27, ended today with a not guilty verdict. Harris and other members of Rising Tide Vermont blockaded the main entrance of VGS and dropped a massive banner from the roof, demanding the company immediately cancel its plans to build the fracked gas pipeline.

Harris, a volunteer organizer with Rising Tide Vermont, said, “Today, the court ruled in my favor because the jury recognized Vermont Gas and the state of Vermont had no basis in their charges against me. The state’s prosecutor, with pressure from VGS and the Shumlin administration, was attempting to stifle future protests against the fracked gas pipeline and Shumlin’s hypocritical climate and energy policies.”

Since the May 27 protest, hundreds of Vermonters have taken part in rallies, blockades, and an occupation of the Governor’s office to demand an end to the pipeline project. The 64 activists who were arrested at the occupation on Oct. 27 are also facing charges of trespass. “We asked the Governor to revoke his support of the fracked gas pipeline,” said Stuart Blood, 63, an organizer with Keystone XL Resistance from Thetford Center, “and to recognize the need to ban all new fossil fuel infrastructure, because new fossil fuels move us in the wrong direction.”

Read the article at: http://vtdigger.org/2014/11/20/rising-tide-member-found-guilty-may-27-vermont-gas-protest.

Drop All Charges Against Luis Anglero, Jr!

End Police Brutality from Hartford To Ferguson.

Demand justice on Wednesday, Dec. 10, 8 a.m. at the Hartford Courthouse, 101 Lafayette St.

Less than two weeks after the murder of Michael Brown by police in Ferguson MO., Hartford police officer Shawn Ware used a taser on Luis Anglero, Jr., in an unjustified use of force that was captured on video and shocked all who viewed it. Luis was injured from the resulting fall to the pavement, and was subsequently charged with “breach of Peace in the second degree” and “interfering with police.”  This was an attempt to turn the victim into the criminal.

On August 27, 2014, nearly 100 community members from Hartford and the surrounding towns rallied and marched to Hartford Police headquarters to present a People’s Manifesto with a list of demands. Chief among those demands were for an immediate dismissal of all charges against Luis Anglero, Jr., and for charges to be brought against Officer Shawn Ware. To date, neither of those demands has been met. Court proceedings have continued against Luis, with his next hearing now scheduled for Wednesday, December 10, 2014. We, the people will be there to demand that the charges be dropped. Join us! For information: [email protected] or [email protected].

‘Badhoneywell’ Makes Its Nationwide Debut | Truthout

The US government’s complicity in the Israeli siege of Gaza is no secret. Israel has the eleventh largest military in the world, which is in large part due to US military aid of over $3 billion annually. What remains in the shadows, however, is the alarming extent to which United States corporations profit from the Israeli war machine.

A prime example is Honeywell International Inc. The Coalition to Oppose the Arms Trade, a Canadian group, has documented a long-lasting and profitable economic relationship between Honeywell and the Israeli military, with many of their collaborations traceable directly to war crimes committed by the IDF. The 2010 attack in the waters outside Gaza against the “Freedom Flotilla,” in which nine activists were killed in an attempt to bring humanitarian aid to Gaza through the Israeli blockade, was perpetrated by a Sa’ar V Corvette, built by another US company, Northrop-Grumman. Yet that ship was armed by Honeywell-built torpedoes.

This relationship, in which Honeywell profits from some component of weapons production without appearing to be prominently involved, appears frequently.

via “Badhoneywell” Makes Its Nationwide Debut.

Darren Wilson not charged in shooting death of Michael Brown

As we go to press, the decision has just been announced by the grand jury in Ferguson, Missouri. Police officer Darren Wilson will not be charged in the shooting death of Michael Brown, the unarmed, eighteen-year-old African-American who was shot and killed on August 9, 2014.

The St. Louis Grand Jury refused to indict Police Officer Darren Wilson. This decision is a failure of the justice system — but President Obama and US Attorney General Holder can make sure justice is served by taking action. The Department of Justice has the power to prosecute Officer Wilson under federal criminal charges. Raise your voice today to ensure our national leaders step in where Missouri’s politicians have failed, and secure justice for Mike Brown immediately.

A Ferguson Solidarity rally and march has been planned for Nov. 25 in downtown New Haven. Check next month’s PAR newsletter for an update.

In New Haven contact: [email protected] or [email protected].

Israeli Journalist in New Haven, Wed., Oct. 29

by Stanley Heller, MECC

Ofra Yeshua-LythOfra Yeshua-Lyth is a veteran journalist and author. She was a correspondent for Israel’s second largest news-paper Maariv in Germany and in the US. She’s a member of the Committee for One Secular Democratic State in Palestine-Israel. Her book The Case for a Secular New Jeruslaem is subtitled: “A Memoir.” Her grandmothers came to Palestine in the early days of Zionist settlement and her book is rich in personal stories.

An article about her on Mondoweiss is available at mondoweiss.net/2014/10/ofra-yeshua-israeli
Come meet her in New Haven Wednesday, October 29, at 7 p.m. in the NH Public Library, 133 Elm St.

Sponsored by the Middle East Crisis Committee

“My Name is Rachel Corrie” Nov. 1, New Haven

by Shelly Altman, Jewish Voice for Peace

On Nov. 1, 8 p.m. at Southern Connecticut State University, Charles Garner Auditorium, Engleman Hall (C112), join us for the one-night only performance of “My Name is Rachel Corrie,” a one-woman play about the American peace activist Rachel Corrie who was killed in Gaza in 2003 at the height of the Second Intifada while working with the International Solidarity Movement to prevent home demolitions. The play was a hit in London and New York. It is based entirely on Rachel’s own diary entries and emails from her mid-adolescence through her coming of age, to her untimely death.

Read more

Exciting Sustainability Workshops Nov. 1 and Nov. 2, New Haven

by Maria Tupper, the New Haven Bioregional Group

On Nov. 1 and 2 the Bioregional Group, New Haven Land Trust, Food Policy Council, Common Ground, New Haven Farms and other groups from the New Haven community are co-sponsoring workshops by Jonathan Bates, Permaculturist. We are able to offer the event for free because of a grant we received from the New Haven Green Fund.

On Nov. 1, we will be at Barnard School, 170 Derby Avenue, 7- 9 p.m. and Nov. 2 at New Haven Friends Meeting House, 223 East Grand Avenue, 4:30 – 6:30 p.m. People can attend one or both events.

Jonathan Bates

Jonathan Bates

In “Edible Forest Gardening: Living Sustainably in the City,” Jonathan Bates, owner of Food Forest Farm and contributing author of “Paradise Lot: Two Plant Geeks, One-Tenth of an Acre, and the Making of an Edible Garden Oasis in the City,” will show you how he transformed a blighted urban yard into an edible paradise. By using permaculture design he’s created both beauty and abundance, meeting human needs while improving ecosystem health.

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