New People February 2013

February 2013 NEWPEOPLE - 1

THOMAS MERTON CENTER, 5129 PENN AVE.

PITTSBURGH, PA 15224 NON-PROFIT ORG.

U.S. POSTAGE

PAID

PITTSBURGH, PA

PERMIT NO. 458

TMC works to build a consciousness of values and to

raise the moral questions involved in the issues of war,

poverty, racism, classism, economic justice, oppression

and environmental justice.

TMC engages people of diverse philosophies and faiths

who find common ground in the nonviolent struggle to

bring about a more peaceful and just world.

PITTSBURGH’S PEACE & JUSTICE NEWSPAPER Published by the Thomas Merton Center VOL. 43 No. 2, February 2013

IN THIS ISSUEIN THIS ISSUE

One Billion Rising One Billion Rising Locally Locally -- Page 8Page 8

Unmarked Police Unmarked Police Cars Cars -- Page 9Page 9

Ending Gun Ending Gun Violence Now Violence Now -- 2Page 12

New Economy Group to Visit Boggs Center

Multiple Emmy and

Golden Globe Award

winner Martin Sheen, one

of America's most

accomplished and

celebrated actors, will be

accepting the Thomas

Merton Award on

Saturday, April 13 from 5-

8 pm at Soldiers and

Sailors Museum. We hope

you will be there to

celebrate with us! Sheen has taken part in

protests against racism, nuclear arms, war and

homelessness, often at considerable personal

cost. Actor Martin Sheen is also a regular

protester at the School of the America’s Watch

(SOAW) gathering in Fort Benning, Georgia.

When asked why he is committed to social

justice, Sheen has replied, “I've protested to call

attention to my country's dark spots, because I

love America so much. I learned that, to keep

your life from becoming self-contained and

useless, you have to feel other people's pain and

act to help them. That is what faith and love are

about.” Register by calling (412) 361-3022 or

at ww.thomasmertoncenter.org.

Martin Sheen, Activist and Celebrity

One Billion Rising in Pittsburgh

OCCUPY PITTSBURGH INSERT Published by Occupy Pittsburgh VOL. 2 No. 2, February/March 2013

The Thomas Merton Center’s New

Economy Working Group is making leaps and

strides in learning how we can live together,

free and healthy, without the deleterious

impact of capitalism.

This March 15-17 community leaders will

be traveling to Detroit, led by Molly Rush, co-

founder of the Thomas Merton Center and

organizer of the New Economy Working

Group. Their goal. To learn more about how

Grace Boggs has organized inner city

neighborhoods successfully. Learn more about

what our local Pittsburgh group is planning to

do by reading about their efforts on page 3.

Will you join in an energetic, colorful,

dancing demonstration to celebrate women’s

right for peace, dignity and lives

free from violence?

February 14, 2013 12pm—2pm

Market Square, Pittsburgh

ONE IN THREE WOMEN ON THE

PLANET WILL BE RAPED OR BEATEN

IN HER LIFETIME.

ONE BILLION WOMEN VIOLATED

IS AN ATROCITY.

ONE BILLION WOMEN DANCING IS

A REVOLUTION.

Read more about it on page 8.

Martin Sheen , from SOAW

Activists with CeaseFirePa participate in a rally in the Pennsylvania Capitol building

Wednesday, Jan. 23, 2013, in Harrisburg. Associated Press (more on page 5)

Grace Boggs, Courtesy of Creative Commons

2 - NEWPEOPLE February 2013

IS PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY THE THOMAS MERTON CENTER

5129 PENN AVE., PITTSBURGH, PA 15224 Office Phone: 412-361-3022 — Fax: 412-361-0540

Website: www.thomasmertoncenter.org

TMC Editorial Collective Robin Clarke, Rob Conroy, Ginny Cunningham, Michael Drohan, Jona Dudley, Russ

Fedorka, Martha Garvey, Carol Gonzalez, John Haer, Lilly Joynes, Xinpei He, Shahid Khan,

Bette McDevitt, Charlie McCollester, Diane McMahon, Kenneth Miller, Jonathan Reyes,

Mike Rosenberg, Joyce Rothermel, Molly Rush, Marcia Snowden,

K. Briar Somerville, Jo Tavener

TMC Staff, Volunteers and Interns Diane McMahon, Managing Director

Marcia Snowden, Office Coordinator

Office Volunteers: Kathy Cunningham, Monique Dietz,

and Mary Clare Donnelly, RSM,

Roslyn Maholland, Finance Manager,

Mig Cole, Assistant Bookkeeper

Shirley Gleditsch, Manager, East End Community Thrift Store

Shawna Hammond, Manager, East End Community Thrift Store

Dolly Mason, Furniture Store Manager, East End Community Thrift Store

Interns from Pitt Social Work Program:

Michael Rosenberg, Shahid Khan, Minghua He, and Xinpei He

Interns from other University of Pittsburgh Departments:

Mike Deckenbach, Russell Noble, Stephanie Maben, and Briar Somerville

2013 TMC Board of Directors Ed Brett, Rob Conroy, Kitoko Chargois, Kathy Cunningham, Michael Drohan, Patrick

Fenton, Carol Gonzalez, Mary Jo Guercio (President), Wanda Guthrie, Shawna Hammond,

Ken Joseph, Edward Kinley, Chris Mason, Jonah McAllister-Erickson, Francine Porter,

Joyce Rothermel, Molly Rush, Tyrone Scales, M. Shernell Smith

TMC Standing Committees

Board Development Committee

Recruits board members, conducts board elections

Building Committee

Oversees maintenance of 5123-5129 Penn Ave. sites

Development Committee

Guides the strategic growth and expansion of the Center.

Membership Committee

Coordinates membership goals, activities, appeals, and communications

Editorial Collective Plans, produces and distributes The NewPeople newspaper

Finance Committee

Ensures financial stability and accountability of TMC

Personnel Committee Oversees staff needs, evaluation, and policies

Project Committee

Oversees project applications, guidelines, and policies

Special Event Committees

Plans and oversees TMC fundraising events with members and friends

Youth and Student Outreach Committee

Coordinates outreach efforts with younger members of TMC

Anti-War Committee [email protected]

www.pittsburghendthewar.org

Book‘Em

(Books to Prisoners Project)

[email protected]

www.thomasmertoncenter.org/bookem

CodePink

(Women for Peace)

[email protected], 412-389-3216

www.codepink4peace.org

East End Community Thrift Shop

412-361-6010, [email protected]

Economic Justice Committee

[email protected]

Environmental Justice Committee

environmentaljus-

[email protected]

Fight for Lifers West

412-361-3022 to leave a message

[email protected]

http://fightforliferswest.mysite.com

Human Rights Coalition / Fed Up

(prisoner support and advocacy)


www.thomasmertoncenter.org/fedup

Marcellus Shale Protest Group

[email protected] (412) 243-4545

marcellusprotest.org

New Economy Initiative

[email protected]

Pittsburgh Anti-Sweatshop

Community Alliance

412-867-9213

Pittsburgh Campaign for

Democracy NOW!


www.pcdn.org

Roots of Promise

724-327-2767, 412-596-0066

[email protected]

[email protected]

Pittsburgh Darfur Emergency Coalition

[email protected];

www.pittsburghdarfur.org

Urban Arts Project

[email protected]

Progressive Pittsburgh Notebook

Call 412-363-7472

[email protected]

www.progressivepghnotebook.blip.tv

Westmoreland Marcellus Citizens

Group/ Roots of Promise

724-327-2767

[email protected]

The Pittsburgh Totebag Project

P.O. Box 99204, Pittsburgh, PA 15233

www.tote4pgh.org

Whose Your Brother?

412-928-3947

www.whoseyourbrother.com

Allegheny Defense Project, Pgh Office 412-559-1364 www.alleghenydefense.org

Association of Pittsburgh Priests Sr. Barbara Finch 412-716-9750

[email protected]

Amnesty International [email protected] www.amnestypgh.org

The Big Idea Bookstore

412-OUR-HEAD www.thebigideapgh.org

Black Voices for Peace

Gail Austin 412-606-1408

CeaseFirePA

www.ceasefirepa.org

[email protected]

Global Solutions Pittsburgh

412-471-7852 [email protected] www.globalsolutionspgh.org

Citizens for Social Responsibility

of Greater Johnstown Larry Blalock, [email protected]

Haiti Solidarity Committee

[email protected] 412-780-5118

www.thomasmertoncenter.org/hs

PA United for a Single-Payer

Health Care www.healthcare4allPA.org

www.PUSH-HC4allPa.blogspot.com 2102 Murray Avenue Pgh, Pa 15217

412-421-4242

Pittsburgh Area Pax Christi

412-761-4319

Pittsburgh Committee to Free Mumia 412-361-3022, [email protected]

Pittsburgh Cuba Coalition 412-563-1519 [email protected]

Pittsburgh Independent Media Center

[email protected] www.indypgh.org

North Hills Anti-Racism Coalition

412-369-3961 www.northhillscoalition.com

Pittsburgh North People for Peace

412-367-0383 [email protected]

Pittsburgh Palestine Solidarity Committee

[email protected] www.pittsburgh-psc.org

Raging Grannies

412-963-7163, [email protected] www.pittsburghraginggrannies.homestead.com

Religion and Labor Coalition 412-361-4793 [email protected]

School of the Americas Watch W. PA

267-980-4878 [email protected]

SW PA Bread for the World Donna Hansen 412-812-1553

United Electrical, Radio and Machine

Workers of America (UE) 412-471-8919 www.ueunion.org

Urban Bikers

[email protected]

Veterans for Peace

[email protected]

Women’s International League for

Peace and Freedom (WILPF) Eva 412-963-7163

[email protected]

TMC AFFILIATES

2013 HOURS of OPERATION! Thomas Merton Center

Monday—Friday

10 am to 4 pm

Saturday- Noon to 4 pm

East End Community Thrift Tuesday—Friday:

10 am to 4 pm

Saturday: Noon to 4 pm

For information, or to submit an article or calendar items use links below

General information….........…………..www.thomasmertoncenter.org

Article Submissions……..thomasmertoncenter.org/newpeople/submit-article

Events & Calendar Submissions…thomasmertoncenter.org/calendar/submit-event

TMC COMMITTEES & PROJECTS

This year our Thrift Store is celebrating twenty years of service in the

community! Led by Shirley Gleditsch, Shawna Hammond, and a troupe of

dedicated volunteers—

the store has served

thousands of people

over the last two

decades! Stop by to say

happy birthday and

shop, volunteer, or

donate from Tuesday to

Friday 10-4, or

Saturday from 12-4.

Help us spread the love

around at the East End

Community Thrift

Store! 412-361-3022.

Pennsylvanians for Alternatives to the

Death Penalty

Martha Connelly (412) 361-7872

[email protected]

Pennsylvania Interfaith Impact Network

412-621-9230

[email protected]

TMC IS A MEMBER OF

East End Community Thrift Celebrating Twenty Years!

courtesy Kenneth Miller


Photo credit Ken Boas: graffiti in Palestine

Every person wants

to provide for their

family, but as a

worker with the

largest private employer in the state, providing for my

family is next to impossible. I want to explain to you about

what it is like to work full time at UPMC and still need

public assistance. And I want to tell you about the movement

we’re building to make UPMC pay living wages, respect

workers’ rights, and invest in our community.

I am James Staus, and I have worked at UPMC for seven

years, making sure nurses have the supplies they need to

care for you.

I work hard every day at UPMC, but I am among many

UPMC workers with an untold personal story about barely

getting by. My family relies on food stamps and a food

pantry so we can have food on the table every month. Do

you know what it’s like to stand in line and see the stares

people give us? Needing this helps leaves me feeling sad and

inadequate, yet, I’m not sure what my family would do if

those resources weren’t available.

Many families shop at Walmart because they can’t afford

to shop elsewhere. If only I could afford Walmart – we buy

our clothes, shoes and household items at local thrift stores.

Can you imagine how my 11-year-old daughter feels going

to school every day and not having the things other children

do? I wish she didn’t have to know what it’s like to struggle,

if I could only give her the things other girls her age have.

The holidays just passed. It is always a stressful time of

year for me and my family. We rely on the Brashear

Association to help with gifts for our daughter. But buying

my wife a Christmas present is a luxury we can’t afford. I

honestly can’t remember the last year that I was able to buy

my wife a gift. It would be nice to be able to buy her a pair

of earrings or a watch to show her how much I love and

appreciate her. Sadly, I don’t see that anywhere in our near

future.

We are thankful to have a roof over our heads, even

though it leaks. If it weren’t for energy assistance and CAPP

we wouldn’t be able to keep the lights on or heat our home.

We live in fear of losing our home too. Last year we applied

for hardship assistance with the County because we couldn’t

afford to pay our property taxes.

This is why UPMC workers are coming together to form

a union. As you can imagine, UPMC does not want us to

have a Union. They have waged an expensive and illegal

campaign of harassment and intimidation to try and stop us.

The National Labor Relations Board charged UPMC with

over 80 violations of federal labor law for intimidating,

harassing, coercing, and even firing workers for exercising

their rights at work. What kind of a charity spends our public

health care dollars to violate workers’ rights?

We believe that UPMC isn’t acting like a real charity.

UPMC pays its CEO millions while its full-time employees

are the third-most frequent users of public assistance in the

state—right after Wal-Mart and McDonalds. UPMC tried to

lock out two million Highmark subscribes from using its

hospitals. UPMC closed a community hospital in Braddock

while opening overseas hospitals in Italy and Qatar.

We think that UPMC needs to do better. It’s time that

UPMC pay workers a living wage, respect workers’ rights,

help fund our buses and schools, and invest in community

health.

That’s why we have been out talking with our neighbors,

faith leaders, elected officials, and organizations throughout

the City about what a true charity’s responsibilities are. We

want UPMC to do its part in building healthy communities,

to deliver middle-class jobs, and to support vital services

like education and transit.

Our struggle is your struggle. We are bus riders, parents,

tax payers, homeowners, and patients. And we’re making it

our UPMC.

Want to get more involved? Contact: MAKE IT OUR

UPMC at (814) 470-7017 www.makeitourUPMC.org

www.facebook.com/makeitourupmc.

Submitted by the coalition of UPMC workers, faith leaders,

and community organizations looking for just working

conditions.

Make it Our UPMC

by Mary Sheehan

Come hear a rousing talk by David

Cobb of Move to Amend who is coming

to Pittsburgh on February

4th as part of a speaking

tour. Move to Amend is a

coalition of hundreds of

organizations and tens of

thousands of individuals

calling for an amendment

to the U.S. Constitution to

unequivocally state that inalienable

rights belong to human beings only, and

that money is not a form of protected

free speech under the First Amendment

and can be regulated in political cam-

paigns. David Cobb will speak on Mon-

day, February 4th at 4:00 p.m. in the

Ryan Room of the Zappala

Student Center at La Roche

College, 9000 Babcock Blvd.,

in the North Hills. The event is

being sponsored by the Pitts-

burgh North People for Peace.

For more information, call 412

-367-0383 or email:

[email protected].

Mary Sheehan is the Coordinator of

Pittsburgh North People for Peace.

Move to Amend on February 4

by Molly Rush

Neighborhood leaders from

Pittsburgh will join with the Merton

Center New Economy Working Group

members for a tour of Detroit, including

the Packard Plant (built in 1905),

Poletown, Community Gardens, Hope

District, Heidelberg Art Street and the

Urban Network. There is room for a few

more interested people.

The Hope District, a neighborhood

effort, works to provide jobs and

affordable housing for everyone and

seeks to “provide a friendly

environment, a pleasant experience for

volunteers; work readiness and skill

training using technology; business

opportunity in construction and

technology; housing assistance and jobs

to recent immigrants and relevant

community resources and assistance,”

according to their literature.

We will meet with members of

the James and Grace Lee Boggs Center

to Nurture Community Leadership,

www.boggscenter.org which is rooted in

Detroit neighborhoods and committed to

creating “a national network for

visionary organizing in 2013. They

support and work with artists and

activists, urban gardeners and family/

community farmers, the Coalition

Against Brutality [committed to Peace

Zones for Life], the Allied Media

Conference and Allied Media Project,

Disability Activists and thinkers,

educators, with a school set to open in

September, and place-based churches.

“They promise a week-end that

provides the opportunity to engage with

and dialogue with individuals and

projects that are committed to movement

building.” Space is limited. Housing and

food will be provided. For more details,

contact Mike Stout at

[email protected]

or [email protected].

Molly Rush is the chair of the New

Economy Working Group at TMC.

Pittsburgh New Economy Neighborhood

Activists to Tour Detroit March 15-17

JOIN THE FIGHT TO SAVE OUR

PUBLIC TRANSIT LIFELINES!

· RALLY IN HARRISBURG STATE CAPITOL

ROTUNDA AGAINST TRANSIT CUTS

· MONDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 2:OO P.M. · FREE BUSES & LUNCHES FOR ROUND TRIP

· JOIN PEOPLE FROM ACROSS THE STATE TO

BACK THE TRANSIT BILL OF RIGHTS

We will speak out strongly FOR a transportation bill

which dedicates long-term, sufficient funding to sustain

public mass transit and AGAINST corrupt corporate

privateering of crucial transportation infrastructure that would reduce quality of

service and working conditions.

Port Authority buses will pick up rally participants at Freedom Corner at 7:30 am

on February 11th at the intersection of Crawford and Centre. Box lunches will be

provided at no charge, and we will be back that same evening.

To sign up by email for free transportation:

[email protected] or to

register by phone, call PPT Community Organizer

Helen Gerhardt at 412-518-7387.

And, a standing invitation to:

Join one of our working groups devoted to media,

community outreach, direct organizing, and the

legislative campaign for dedicated funding. Attend a meeting! General

membership meetings are held the third Saturday of every month at 10:00 am at

the Thomas Merton Center, 5129 Penn Avenue 15224.

Save Public Transit

Pittsburgh Activism

http://www.boggscenter.org/

http://www.boggscenter.org/

mailto:[email protected]


by Bob Mason

For the past six years Health

Care 4 All PA, a statewide,

grassroots, all volunteer

organization, has promoted the

“single payer solution” for

Pennsylvania. Single payer simply

means that the government gathers

revenue from taxpayers that is

dedicated to health care and

utilizes it to pay independent health

care providers, much as Medicare

has been doing very efficiently and

economically for several decades.

So, what does “single payer”

healthcare solve?

1. It solves the death and

misery that accompany the lack of

health insurance and under-

insurance (exorbitant deductibles

and co-pays). At least 45,000

deaths each year in the United

States can be attributed to the lack

of health insurance. Despite the

advances of the landmark

Affordable Care Act (ACA), health

insurance will remain expensive

for many, and at least 23 million

will still be uninsured. In contrast,

a single payer plan provides

coverage for everyone and takes

advantage of the ACA’s

encouragement of state innovation.

2. It eliminates the specter of

medical bankruptcy.

3. It eliminates the current

waste in overhead. Thirty to forty

cents of every health

insurance dollar is spent on items

other than health care. The Family

and Business Health Security Act,

SB 400 and HB 2551 in 2011-2012

legislative session, advocated by

Health Care 4 All PA caps

administrative expenses at five

cents of every dollar.

4. It reduces the medical

benefit costs for businesses and

renders them more competitive

with businesses in other countries.

5. It reduces the medical

benefit costs for all levels of

government and, therefore, saves

taxpayers or allows us to spend

more on education and

infrastructure (mass transit, roads,

bridges, etc.).

6. It may even stimulate more

employment in the delivery of

health care as 1.2 million more

Pennsylvanians gain coverage.

7. It is actually a centrist and

non-partisan model. It appeals to

fiscal conservatives because of the

savings and efficiency noted

above. It appeals to people who

believe in a competitive free

market because we can choose any

licensed health care provider. It

appeals to people who may view

themselves as liberals,

progressives, or leftists because

everyone gets the same

comprehensive, quality health care.

Executive Director Chuck

Pennacchio, Ph. D., of Health Care

4 All PA often refers to single

payer as “civilized” health care.

The President of Health Care 4 All

PA, retired Republican State

Representative and small

businessman, Dave Steil, often

notes that single payer just makes

good economic sense.

8. The object of the plan is to

provide health protection for all

Pennsylvanians, without

restriction, while ensuring that

everyone is responsible for

financial support.

For many years Health Care 4

All PA has made the bold claim

that a Pennsylvania single payer

plan can cover everyone from

conception to death and include

dental, vision, and long term care,

in addition to more traditional

benefits, and still save significant

money. These claims have been

based on studies conducted in a

number of other states, including

California and Maryland. It is also

based on a preliminary study the

organization conducted in 2009

that demonstrated a $2.3 billion

saving for all levels of government

in Pennsylvania.

In 2012 Health Care 4 All PA

invested in the first Economic

Impact Study of single payer for

the Commonwealth. The final

report will be released in the next

few weeks, but preliminary data

indicates that all of the claims

made for the benefits of single

payer are overwhelmingly

supported.

So, stay tuned for press

conferences and releases with the

exciting news. And please help

with the campaign for just,

compassionate, sustainable, and

“civilized” health care for all

Pennsylvania. Go to

www.healthcare4allpa.org to find

out how you can become involved.

And go to the local blog

www.PUSH-hc4allpa.blogspot.com.

Bob Mason is

Vice President

of Health Care

4 All PA.

Single Payer Health Care—Benefitting All of Us!

Helping People With Complex

Intellectual Disabilities

by Daniel Marston

In the December 23,

2012, edition of the Pittsburgh Post-

Gazette there was an editorial by

New York Times op-ed columnist

Nicholas Kristof entitled “Too Small

To Fail” in which he addresses the

issue of Social Security Disability. In

the editorial he makes the statement

“But now 55 percent of the

disabilities it (Social Security) covers

are fuzzier intellectual disabilities,

short of mental retardation, where the

diagnosis is less clear-cut.”

This article is a clear illustration

of the difficulties faced by people

who have intellectual disabilities.

Because he is clearly referring to the

category of Borderline Intellectual

Functioning. This is the category of

intellectual disability that is above

the formal diagnosis of Mental

Retardation, a term still used in the

areas of disabilities and health care

but likely to change within the next

year or so, and below the lower end

of Average Intellectual Functioning.

Technically, it involves IQ scores

between 70 and 85.

Despite Mr. Kristof’s rather

flippant brush-off, Borderline

Intellectual Functioning is a clear

diagnosis that covers a large range of

functioning. And determining the

extent of disability associated with a

person’s functioning can be complex

with Borderline Intellectual

Functioning given that large range.

Mr. Kristof, like many in the

educational and legal communities,

seems to confuse complex with “less

clear-cut” and “fuzzy.”

Borderline Intellectual

Functioning often involves

significant difficulties in

comprehension, decision-making,

adaptive skills and/or communication

skills. There is also a host of other

areas of cognitive functioning that

are impacted significantly when a

person’s intellectual abilities are in

the range of Borderline Intellectual

Functioning. And it serves as an

example of the complexities that can

be associated with understanding

disabilities and the extraordinary

demands placed on people with

disabilities.

But policy makers often want

things to be easy. And they are often

looking for excuses to not provide

people with the help they need. If

they cannot understand the

complexities of a person’s situation

they will just brush it off as being too

“fuzzy” or not “clear cut” enough

and therefore not worthy of

consideration. If policy makers

continue to look at disabilities

through the lens presented by people

like Mr. Kristof there will be many,

many people with disabilities whose

needs will not be met.

Daniel Marston is a psychologist

who specializes in disabilities and

neurobehavioral disorders.

Healthcare Activism

HEALTHY ARTISTS

Congratulations to

Julie Sokolow on the

successful Healthy

Artists Poster Exhibit

that occurred in

January 2013 at

Modern Formations

Gallery on Penn Ave.

To see more photos

visit tinyurl.com/

a426b555. Courtesy of Julie Sokolow.

http://www.healthcare4allpa.org/

http://www.healthcare4allpa.org/


In 2013, will we

connect the dots?

by Ginny Cunningham

This year, 2013, we will mark the

50th anniversary of J. F. Kennedy’s

assassination. As I reflect on this

event and its anniversary, I’m

reminded of my heritage. When I

was a kid, I found, among my

mother’s old letters and photos, a

yellowed immigration document

that listed her grandmother and

grandfather’s birth names and

birthplaces: Balnitza and Solinka,

Poland, respectively.

My mother raised us as

Ukrainian. I never questioned the

discrepancy between the facts and

my mother’s version of family

history. Truth hadn’t a prayer

against the myth that she established

and perpetuated and that I passed on

to my own children. But decades

later, I found the document again. I

saw what it said, got over my

consternation and accepted. I’m

Polish.

Now I wonder if I can also see

and accept a larger truth about the

murders of JFK (November 1963)

Martin Luther King (April 1968)

and Robert F. Kennedy (June

1968), each of which was attributed

to a crazed lone gunman. And how

those events in the 1960s are linked

to our post-9/11 national security

state.

There are patterns in documents

that have been declassified, in White

House tapes that have been

transcribed and released, and in the

extensive research of writers far

better than I. But what is gained by

linking events of the 1960s to

generations who hadn’t even been

born then and are now fighting in

Iraq and Afghanistan?

I don’t know. What is the half life

of a lie? When does a person killed

in a cover up rise again?

Consider: After JFK’s

assassination, autopsy notes were

burned, the presidential limousine

was cleaned and refitted thus

eliminating vital forensic evidence,

and photos and X-rays of the body

were counterfeited. What mafia don

or lone nut had the authority and

oversight to execute these tasks?

The coroner who conducted the

most thorough autopsy of his career

on Robert Kennedy concluded that

Kennedy had been shot dead from

behind by a gun held one inch from

the edge of his right ear, three inches

behind the head. Why then am I to

believe that Sirhan Sirhan, standing

several feet in front of Kennedy,

fired the gun that killed him. Who

decided that?

In 1999, the King family brought

a civil “wrongful death” action. A

jury returned a finding of conspiracy

in Martin Luther King’s death that

involved military

intelligence, local law

enforcement, FBI, and a

successful murderous cover

up. Who had the influence

to deter any U.S. journalist

from covering a trial whose

published transcript

essentially absolves James

Earl Ray and confirms a

broad conspiracy that

“reached into the higher

levels of the government of the

United States. . .”

Of what use is this information

today? As William Pepper, attorney

for the plaintiffs said in his closing

argument, “[MLK’s] opposition to

war had little to do with ideology,

with capitalism, with democracy. It

had to do with . . huge amounts of

money that [the Vietnam war] was

generating to large multinational

corporations . . . [King] was

threatening the bottom lines of some

of the largest defense contractors in

the country . . . one of which had the

major construction contracts at Cam

Ran Bay in Vietnam.”

What is the profit factor today?

As Washington Post opinion

writer Fareed Zakaria says in a

recent essay, the United States has

been operating under emergency

wartime powers for a “longer period

than the country spent fighting the

Civil War, World War I and World

War II combined. . ..”

The Post also informs us that the

U.S. government “has built 33 new

complexes for the intelligence

bureaucracies alone. The

Department of Homeland Security

employs 230,000 people.” And

counting.

Two trillion dollars. For war. Plus

whatever all that ‘security’ costs.

In his “Letter to the American

People,” James Douglass, author of

JFK and the Unspeakable, Why He

Died and Why It Matters, says, “Our

resurrection can’t begin until we

acknowledge the truth of our own

death.”

The “unspeakable,” which

embedded itself in my world with

JFK’s assassination has attained a

magnitude “beyond experience,” as

Douglass notes, and “sits there

silently in the darkness . . . .”

At the conclusion of the Wizard

of Oz, Toto the dog tips over a

screen to reveal a little old man with

a bald head and a wrinkled face.

Toto exposes the wizard who may

be evil, but, unmasked, he can be

made vulnerable and powerless,

even worthy of compassion.

Ginny Cunningham is a member of

the editorial collective.

The myths of JFK, RFK, MLK and crazed lone gunmen...

Creative Commons

The Fiscal Cliff and Other Economic Follies by Michael Drohan

In 2012, Congress built a fiscal

cliff for itself to fall over if it did not

reach an agreement on deficit

reductions that would ensure it

would never achieve in subsequent

faux negotiations. In such manner,

the people supposedly elected to lay

the legal structure for the economy

to work efficiently endangered the

entire social and economic fabric of

society. This is the medievalesque

nature of the U.S. Congress that

presently rules the country.

Just in the nick of time, so to

speak, Congress passed a deal on

New Year’s Day with a margin of

257 to 167 in the House and 89 to 8

in the Senate. The deal made and

subsequently signed by the President

is a bittersweet one which only

postpones to a later date the

continuation of the process of

undermining the prospects of a

healthy economy. The next extortion

round will take place in only two

months when once more the

Republican zealots with some

Democratic supporters will attempt

to disembody the social programs of

Social Security, Medicare and

Medicaid.

The climate in which all this is

taking place is that the U.S. economy

is at best only spluttering along with

high unemployment (7.8% in

December 2012) and slow economic

growth. Under such conditions, a

policy of reduction of government

spending and entitlements is

considered by all economists with

the exception of right wing zealots to

be crazy. The usual

fiscal measures

recommended under the

present circumstances

of the economy are

increased government

spending on

infrastructure, subsidies

to key industries and

social programs.

Anything that will put

money in the pockets of consumers

and increase demand for goods and

services is what is needed. Spending

on infrastructure and industry

subsidies is also needed to increase

job opportunities and put people

back to work.

Under present economic

conditions concentration on debt and

deficit reduction makes little sense

and the Republican obsession with

the deficit at this moment is absurd.

Their so-called concern with the

deficit is insincere to say the least.

During the Reagan and Bush years

when astronomical deficits and debts

were racked up, Republican

lawmakers were totally mute on the

matter. The truth is that the fiscal

cliff and the deficit hysteria are

merely a Trojan horse through which

the social programs of social security

and medicare can be weakened,

undermined and eventually

privatized or abolished.

In the negotiations on

the fiscal cliff, President

Obama staked the

position that the Bush

tax cuts be continued for

all those earning up to

$250,000 a year. For

those with incomes

above this level the

marginal income tax

would go up by 2

percent. It would seem that he had a

strong position from which to

negotiate in that most of the

population believed this was a fair

proposal. In addition, it seemed

obvious to most of the population

that the Republican House was

holding the country hostage for the

sake of the welfare of the top 1.5

percent of the population (the

percentage whose income is above

$250,000). Republicans seemed to

be governing for the interests of only

the truly wealthy, and they would

sink the economy on their behalf.

However, in the negotiations,

Obama caved in to the Republican

zealots and agreed to compromise on

a tax increase for only those

individuals with income above

$400,000 and families with income

above $450,000. This has very

serious forebodings for the next four

years of Obama rule, as it seems he

is ready to compromise and cave in

even when he is in a strong

negotiating position. Rather than

winning over moderate Republicans

who might be attracted to Obama’s

openness to compromise, the likely

effect will be that Republicans,

sensing his weakness to cave in, will

make more and more attacks on

social programs.

Once more Republicans have

learned that obstruction works and

that the President will always blink.

For progressive social activists we

should have also learned that there is

little to be hoped for by just relying

on Obama and the Democratic Party

to defend social programs, end wars

and preserve civil rights. If these

objectives are to be achieved in the

next four years, it can only be by our

counter-efforts, organizing and

pressure from below. It is clearer

than ever that nothing is ceded by

power without relentless pressure

from the people below.

Michael Drohan is a member of the

TMC Economic Committee and the

Board of the Directors.

Creative Commons

National Commentary


(Continued from PART I in January)

by Nima

Finally, I came to this Freeland and

achieved my American dream since my

high school. A new American

adventure began.

Adventure stop one: Two months

after enrollment to the Master’s

program of Carnegie Mellon

University, I switched from inform-

ation technology to public policy. To

the outside world, that must be a

difficult decision when you run away

from money. To my world, it’s just that

simple. Listen to my inner voice, and

choose what I belong to. I can’t live

someone else’s life, I said this to

myself. Carnegie Mellon gave me a

tough time; I was never able to go to

sleep before 2:00 am in the first year,

no exaggeration, but being able to talk

face-to-face with some of the world’s

influential people made me spirited:

Henry Kissinger (Oh my gosh! I

was shooting questions to a man who

shook hands with Mao and helped

define US-China relations.)

Paul O’Neill (Like an ordinary man

on the street, he walked out, paid the

parking fee and drove away, without a

guard or aide. I told this former U.S.

Treasury Secretary that this kind of

equality was unimaginable in my

country.)

Barbara Barrett (Trained as an

astronaut and once the U.S.

Ambassador to Finland, she was the

first civilian woman to land an F/A-18

Hornet on an aircraft carrier. She and

her husband, Craig Barrett, retired Intel

CEO, had visited my hometown

Chengdu several times.)

After graduation I ended up

working in an international college

preparatory program where I had deep

exposure to a group of 60 Chinese

teens, many from wealthy and/or

politically powerful families. My

interaction with most of them and their

parents with vested interests proved the

heartbreaking truth:

The lethal tumors nourished by

atheism, communism, materialism,

consumerism, and kidnapped

nationalism remain malignant. This

truth provokes an unavoidable question:

If they represent the so-called elite class

in China today, where is hope from this

class to push for something bigger?

So instead of drowning myself in

this hopelessness, I decided to do

something. Working with a US-based

talent team, I drafted a Chinese version

of Guidestar/CharityNavigator (two

leading rating sites for nonprofits

transparency and accountability),

benefiting the 300,000 grassroots

nonprofits in China, marginalized by

government and foundations mostly for

their registration difficulty. While

recruiting student volunteers in Chinese

universities, the notorious censorship

system poked the nerve of public

securities, who interrogated a scholar

who helped me put up recruiting

messages online. Later, they tried to

bribe the scholar for stealing

intelligence because they knew he

would be a visiting professor at

Carnegie Mellon (he told me that he

declined the bribery). For everyone’s

security, I had to halt the project and

delete some communications on Gmail.

(Google exited the China market

because it was not willing to comply

with censorship requirements; Yahoo,

siding with the evil, released private

accounts to the authority, resulting in an

outspoken Chinese journalist, Shi Tao,

being sentenced to five years in

prison.) Keywords that triggered the

regime’s alarm are simply:

USA+NGO+Civil Society.

Unbelievable?

Ok, enough is enough. Now I

don’t even feel safe outside the Great

Wall and firewall. Any solution?

Apparently no single one can remove

the threat once and for all. The

emerging grassroots movement (e.g.,

rights defense cases, citizen

investigation, etc.), however, bears

profound meaning in testing and

shaping essential elements of China’s

civil society: citizen rights, rule of law,

public intellectuals, judiciary/media

independence, social justice, religious

freedom, social organizations, and

more. Ai Weiwei and altruistic pioneers

and awakening citizens, are the heroic,

iconic figures yet among the most

dangerous in the authority

eyes. Bottom line: China’s transfor-

mation from the top down can hardly

gain momentum without correspond-

ding force from the bottom up.

Joining this force across the ocean,

I turned more proactive in my actions

(Project Revelation), including: (1)

interacting with the audience on Ai

Weiwei film: Never Sorry screenings,

attended by leaders of rights groups

and a city councilperson by my

invitation; (2) supporting the launch of

China issue discussion groups at Penn

State and in Pittsburgh, aiming to

awaken minds and counter brainwash;

(3) contributing articles on civil society

to Chinese media; and (4) speaking to

youth/civic/church groups to raise

awareness and build a coalition of

supports. These advocacy efforts

couldn’t be more common for a

westerner. Yet for me they are fairly

new, risky and challenging, not only

because of the stubborn Chinese

regime, but the fact that I am just a

newly arrived alien who has inherent

barriers to mobilize resources, that few

of the silent majority choose to step out

of their comfort zone, and that, not

unlikely, my every word or action is

being spied on by someone right behind

me. This is why I am in a great

dilemma as to whether to promote these

initiatives in Chinese community. (I

was often asked, Did you find other

Chinese to work with you? Yes, but

few. Here is the logic: Statistically,

how many U.S.-based Chinese keep

updated with political/social issues of

China? Among those who do, how

many pay special interest to human

rights? Among those who do, how

many are pro-democracy/liberal/

reformist? Among those who are, how

many dare to step up and act? Among

those who dare, how many are not

spies? Possibility shrinks

exponentially.)

Must remember: The conscience of

China.

Nima now lives in the United

States and can be contacted at

[email protected]. PART III to be

published in the March New People.

Speak Out, Never Sorry—PART II

Activism for China

by Jianyu Hou

The film Back to 1942 directed

by Feng Xiaogang, starring

Adrien Brody, has been on the

screen for two months and still

claims second place box office

billing in China. This movie

aroused discussion among many

political commentators—the

message: it's time to change.

The film is based on Liu

Zhenyun's novel Remembering

1942 focusing on the major

famine that occurred in Henan,

China during WWII. 18 years

ago this movie would have faced

the risk of censorship by The

State Administration of Radio

Film and Television (SARFT) in

China, due to government

corruption.

During the famine in 1942,

mothers faced the grim horror of

cooking their own babies for

food and husbands sold their

wives for just one meal.

However, this was not the reality

that shocked the audience the

most. It was the fact that the local

government forced victims to

turn in 13 of the 15 grains that

they harvested that shocked them

the most.

Jiang Jieshi, the President of

China at that time, sat in his

office located in Chongqing with

little knowledge about the

famine.

At the same time, a Time

magazine correspondent from

America, Theodore. H. White

(played by Adrien Brody), come

to Henan, to find out that human

was eating human. It took White

a long time to put the photos on

Jiang's desk. Afraid of being

fired, local government officials

suppressed the severity of the

famine, and claimed that not

many people died.

Officials around President

Jiang deprived White of the

opportunity to get in touch with

Jiang. But luckily enough, White

finally consulted someone who

did apprise Jiang of the

catastrophe and he delivered aid

to the victims.

The story in 1942 aroused a

series of questions in my own

mind. My question is not why

White was so kind, or why God

put such a disaster to Henan

peasants.

My question instead is, why

didn’t the Henan peasants protest

against the local government, or

select several people to find a

way to inform Jiang of the

starvation that was occurring?

And why did the local

government conceal the truth?

Perhaps my question can be

synthesized into one question.

Why did victims get aid from

an American rather than their

own compatriots?

If traced to the human rights

history of China, both the past

and the present, we can see that

many Chinese don't trust national

authorities.

Instead they find a way to

inform the world outside to

communicate what's happening

in China. In turn worldwide

concern pressures national

authorities to change. This

includes the violent abortions

that result from the “one child”

policy and extends to democratic

reformation.

China has the world's largest

government, with many brilliant

people working for it, but its

democratic progress has not been

improved over the last several

decades.

Why?

Consider what happened to the

blind lawyer Chen Guangcheng.

Guangcheng raised objections

about violent abortions in

Shandong Province, and chose to

help the victims.

As a result he was incarcerated

for his righteous deeds for

several years, and his family

were physically tortured.

The same is true for people in

the government.

One reason is that these acts

can cause local officials to be

fired. So, “politically right” does

not always mean creating good

ideas for change or revealing

social problems to cope with

them.

To earn the accolades of their

superiors local leaders often

suppress the black side, this

preserves their position in the

government.

Sociologists call this “adverse

selection” with the most

righteous people filtered out first.

Those who are good at flattery

will ensure their position and

gain promotion.

Imagine if White were

Chinese.

Without the protection of his

U.S. nationality, what would

have happened to him?

This is why, for personal

safety, many Chinese political

dissents and patriots abandon

their original nationality, and

choose to stay in the U.S.,

advocating for democracy, and

human rights for their

compatriots in China.

At the same time, these patriots

are labeled as betrayers,

conspiring with Americans

against the Chinese government.

It is not always feasible for

China to conduct its reformation

through its international visitors.

Instead China should work to

ensure the “survival of the most

righteous,” where those who

really care about their country

don’t need to become foreigners

to care for and love it’s citizens.

Jianyu Hou, a former TMC

intern, is now a religious affairs

policy analyst in a city

administration department for

religious affairs.

Looking Inward and Back to 1942


by Ken Boas

This is part two of Ken Boaz’s observations

on the transformative experience of his 12-day

educational tour of the West Bank and East

Jerusalem and Palestinian Israel (the

Galilee), sponsored by the Israeli Committee

Against House Demolitions (ICAHD). Part

one was published in the January issue of The

New People.

In part two, I have

written about what I

saw as Israel’s

intentions: what they

want and what they

are doing to achieve

their goals. But I

learned from the

Palestinian people I

met that Israel is not

the enemy. That

deeper forces are at

work, and that

peace will come only when all parties re-

frame the currently futile and

counterproductive dynamic of struggle. There

is much more to be said, and even more to be

done.

On the tour we spent a lot of time trying to

place the Gaza war happening a few miles

from us within an overall understanding of

Israeli intentionality. The inciting cause of the

latest confrontation between Israel and Hamas

has little to do with the firing of rockets,

whether by Hamas or the other Palestinian

factions. The conflict predates the rockets –

and even the creation of Hamas – by decades.

It is the legacy of Israel’s dispossession of the

Palestinians in 1948, forcing many of them

from their homes in what is now Israel into

the tiny Gaza Strip. That original injustice has

been compounded by the occupation Israel

has not only failed to end but has actually

intensified in recent years with its relentless

siege of the small strip of territory.

Jeff Halper, chair of ICAHD, has written of

the UN‘s recognition of the state of Palestine:

“On one level, the General Assembly’s

overwhelming vote to recognize the state of

Palestine represented a significant

achievement for the PLO/Palestinian

Authority. It reaffirmed international support

for Palestinian self-determination and

demonstrated just how isolated Israel and the

U.S. are on this issue. The significance of the

vote went beyond the merely ‘symbolic.’

Unlike previous attempts, some even

supported by Israel, to recognize a ‘Palestine’

but without borders, the UN resolution

explicitly recognizes ‘the State of Palestine on

the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967’.

“On paper, then, the UN’s recognition of a

Palestinian state, the enhanced ability it gives

the Palestinians to effectively pursue

diplomatic and legal channels in their quest

for self-determination and the legal and

political inadmissibility of Israel’s actions on

the ground, including house demolitions, all

give new life to the two-state solution.

Logistically it is also possible; after all, around

90% of the ‘settlers’ live in the occupied

Palestine Territory for economic and not

ideological reasons, and would be willing to

move if their standard of living was not

compromised. But this is all on paper. The

complete lack of will on the part of the

international community to pressure Israel

into actually leaving the Occupied Territory,

including enough of East Jerusalem that a

coherent Palestinian city can once more be

established, is nil.”

There is a minor Jewish holiday called Tu

Bishvat, which dates back to the Torah and is

now known to secular Jews as Israel’s Arbor

Day. When I was growing up in the

Pittsburgh Jewish community, each year our

Temple would hold a fundraising campaign to

plant trees in Israel, then just a newly founded

state. Every little Jewish kid was proud to see

his or her name on a list of people who

planted a tree in Israel. And now there are

great forests in Israel thanks to our efforts.

And they are celebrated.

The second day of our trip, we drove

through Ma’aleh Adumin, a settlement in East

Jerusalem of more than 40,000 Jewish settlers,

with plans for at least 30,000 more, and in

control of land that stretches for miles into the

West Bank. At each major intersection there is

a traffic circle with a water sculpture. Above

each sculpture, there sits an ancient and

breathtakingly beautiful olive tree. These

singular olive trees seem to reach out to the

passersby and welcome them to their

homeland with their regal beauty. There is just

one problem.

This isn’t their homeland. These trees were

part of an ancient Palestinian olive grove that

grew on the land the 40-year old illegal

settlement now occupies. The olive grove and

the adjacent Palestinian villages were

destroyed by Caterpillar bulldozers after the

’67 war, but a few of the most regal trees were

saved and transplanted to these traffic circles

after the settlement was built. And now here

they sit, in a Jewish only settlement,

overlooking scattered surviving Palestinian

villages withering away without water. It is a

humiliating slap in the face of the Palestinian

people. And I can’t help but feel that is the

intention: to humiliate and break the spirit.

I am heartbroken that in the name of

Judaism and the Jewish State, this beautiful

land has become a Kafkaesque nightmare for

half its people. The olive tree has become the

tragic symbol of Israel’s attempt to disappear

the Palestinian people and their culture. Yet

these ancient olive trees in this Jewish only

settlement also become an equally tragic

symbol of what Israel is doing to itself, and

that realization is slowly taking its toll on the

“occupied minds,” as author Arthur Neslen

calls them, of the Israeli people.

Israel is not the enemy. If we continue to

frame the struggle in this way, we will

continue to go nowhere except further into

darkness. Fear, racism, privilege and the

wrong stories are the enemies. It is time to

start telling the right stories. The right stories

and the spirit of calm determination I found in

the Palestinian people are all that we have to

begin to breakdown the myths and fears and

unproductive anger that have allowed this

horrendous situation to continue. I am

eternally grateful for the gift of this spirit I

received as I listened to the people on the

West Bank and East Jerusalem.

The olive tree is the symbol of life on this

land, for both peoples. Once they have been

bulldozed out of the ground, they will not

grow again. We must not stop loving the olive

tree. We must plant new olive trees and olive

groves, and cultivate and water them and

harvest their fruit.

Ken Boas is a member of the English

faculty at the University of Pittsburgh and a

former president of the board of the

Thomas Merton Center.

Planting Olive Trees in Our Hearts Garment Workers

Rally for Saftey

by Amirul Haque Amin

Every year, on December 27,

trade union organizations in

Bangladesh observe Garment

Workers Safety Day, in memory

of the 27 garment workers killed

in a fire at the Saraka Garment

Factory at Mirpur in Dhaka City

on December 27, 1990. In late

2012 members of the National

Garment Workers Federation

(NGWF) extended activities

over several days in order to

address the need for action and

reforms following the deaths of

112 workers in a fire at Tazreen

Fashion on November 24.

A Home Ministry enquiry report

has recommended punishment

under the Bangladesh Penal

Code of those responsible for the

fire. At a procession and rally on

December 21 NGWF speakers

alleged that none among the

culprits had been arrested and

brought to book. Speakers also

demanded that a correct list of

dead and injured workers be

prepared and that compensation

payments be made publicly for

the sake of the image of the

Bangladesh garment

industry. In order to assure

transparency, a committee

should be formed comprising

representatives of government,

owners and workers and a joint

initiative of government, the

Bangladesh Garment

Manufacturers and Exporters

Association, buyers and trade

unions be formed to establish a

“Safe Workplace” at garment

factories in Bangladesh,

NGWF President Amirul Haque

Amin presided over the rally,

which was addressed by General

Secretary Safia Parveen, Sultana

Akter and Kabir

Hossain. Coordinator of

Bangladesh Garment Workers

Unity Council Delwar Hossain

spoke at the rally expressing

solidarity with the workers.

“Garment Workers Safety Day-

2012,” under the auspices of the

NGWF, saw garment workers

forming a human chain and

demanding health-safety and

trade union rights. Speakers at

the program said that from the

Saraka Garment fire in 1990 to

the Tazreen Fashion fire in

November 2012, 566 garment

workers had died in 55 major

factory fires. In addition to these

566, another 64 workers died in

the collapse of a building at the

Spectrum Garment

Factory. There were serious

injuries to 3,610 workers in these

incidents, yet the issue of health,

safety and security of garment

workers has not been

addressed. Once again, speakers

demanded that the garment

industry be made a “Safe

Workplace” and stressed the

need for a joint initiative of

owners, government, buyers and

trade union organizations.

At a December 31 action

program organized by NGWF,

garment workers cited Walmart

for its anti-worker anti-

industrialization policy and

urged the company to participate

in compensation of dead and

injured workers of Tazreen

Fashion and to sign a

memorandum of understanding

for ensuring a safe

workplace. NGWF leaders

claimed “Walmart is the biggest

sourcing company of

Bangladeshi garment

products. Naturally they reap

the highest profit from

Bangladesh. But they are not

taking any responsibility for the

garment workers.” Walmart

decided to stop business with

Tazreen Fashion but not to

participate in a compensation

program. NGWF leaders said,

“Businesses stopping or cutting

and running is not the

solution. Ensure fair trade,

transparency and

responsibility.” They also

demanded that Walmart sign a

health-safety memorandum

immediately to ensure a safe

workplace for garment workers.

Amirul Haque Amin is the

president of the National

Garment Workers Federation.

Report from Bangladesh

International Activism

drawing by Amanda Dell'Aringa

Credit Amirul Haque Amin


Thursday, February 14

Market Square from Noon to 2:00 pm

Protest violence against women

throughout the world!

by Jona Dudley and Edith Bell

“You may write me down in history

with your bitter, twisted lies, you may trod

me in the very dirt but still, like dust I’ll

rise.” The legendary Maya Angelou

explains it best in her epic poem “Still I

Rise” — that no matter what you endure,

you can still lift yourself up to overcome

obstacles and

abuse. This is the

idea that organizer

Eve Ensler wants

people to embrace

at the February 14

global event One

Billion Rising,

which Pittsburgh

will celebrate at

Market Square as

“Pittsburgh

Rising.”

Statistics show

that one in three

women will be

raped or beaten in

their lifetime: 324,000 women total in a

year. We must ask ourselves as a

community what can we do to support

these many women, how we can help

stand up for them. Together, we must say

No not only to domestic violence, but

also to other forms of dehumanization,

discrimination, abuse, and rape.

We must stand for victims like

Ka’Sandra Wade of Larimer, who was

murdered on

January 2.

Ka’Sandra had to

leave behind a 10-

year-old son when the child’s father sadly

ended her life. The local February 14

event, Pittsburgh Rising, is dedicated to

Ka’Sandra’s memory.

We must stand against corrupt,

conspiratorial rapists like the football

players of Steubenville, Ohio, who

allegedly raped and urinated on an

underage female last August during a

party. These rapists then received help

not only from their football coach but

from other members of Steubenville

society to cover up this horrible act of

violence. We as a

community need to

stand up and let

everyone know this is

unacceptable.

We must stand up to

politicians who do not

share our values. The

Violence Against

Women Protection Act

(VAWA) was typically

reauthorized by

Congress with broad

support, but the

legislation expired last

year for the first time

since its 1994 inception.

The Senate passed a bipartisan bill with

new protections for the LGBT

community, Native Americans, and

immigrants, but House Republican

leaders refused to bring it up for a vote,

charging that it was politically

driven. The Convention

on the Elimination of All

Forms of Discrimination

Against Women

(CEDAW) treaty signed by the United

Nations General Assembly in 1979

was never ratified by the U.S. Senate.

So we ask that on February 14,

2013, you join us in saying “Enough is

enough.” It is time for us to say No to

the violence, say No to the abuse, No

to the rape and the dehumanization that

is taking place in today’s world.

On February 14 we ask that you join

the revolution so that we can get ONE

BILLION people to rise above and

join us by dancing, walking out, letting

your voice be heard. The members of

Pittsburgh Rising would like to see

signs, costumes, and colors. They want

to see organizations, groups, and

individuals raising awareness about

what they are working on that will

affect the women of Pittsburgh and

help convey our anti-violence

message. They want to hear music,

poems, and drums, voices yelling in

support of the women of the world,

letting them know they do not have to

accept such brutality.

On February 14, 2013, Rise with

Pittsburgh, make a statement, and

RAISE YOUR VOICE. For a short

film and more information about

Pittsburgh Rising, go to

onebillionrisingpgh.wordpress.com

Jona Dudley is studying psychology,

is an administrator for the Social

Justice Group in Braddock, PA, and

is part of the editorial collective.

Edith Bell belongs to the Women's

International League for Peace and

Freedom.

PITTSBURGH RISES SUPPORTED BY

-New Voices Pittsburgh: Women of Color for Reproductive Justice

-Women Against Street Harassment -WWhat’s Up!? (Whites Working and

Hoping to Abolish Total Supremacy Undermining Privilege)

-Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom

-ACTION United Women -Neighborhood Print Shop at the Braddock Carnegie Library -Athena’s Fire -Fight Back Pittsburgh -POORLAW -Summit Against Racism

Pittsburgh Rising

Prosecute the culture of taking

what doesn’t belong

in toxic water gambling on

children with downs

syndromes of misogyny

ask me again

what gender I am

in this war uniform

pinned together with

a crucifix

inhabiting one savior

or another Big Ben

casting the shadow

of the stadium

over the mouth

of the women

incoherent or speaking

in tongues

with a girl

my student says

one Yes trumps

seven No’s

Dear Steubenville —R/B Mertz

R/B Mertz teaches writing and also

publishes poems on

lifeandpoems.tumblr.com.

Ending the Violence

bring yr self home to yr self, enter the garden

the guy at the gate w/ the flaming sword is yrself

—Diane di Prima, Revolutionary Letter #75

She is at the gate w/ the flaming sword

slaying the beast of delay

casting innumerable spells of power / danger / pleasure

She escapes the enclosures on her outlaw body

in solidarity w/ All who have reached the gate

rising

She comes in waves

eventually turning to spirals

She is you in the raw

bring yourself

reveal your carnal core

She is awake and always listening

She rides w/ Comanche technique

if She falls

the root She worked will replenish her

& She will pour again

always bringing a cooling effect

to the burn

(good luck drying off)

Raith —Danielle Maggio

Danielle Maggio works with the Book 'Em committee,

teaches pre-school and makes sauce, not war.


Citizen Investigation into Unmarked Police

Cars - the kind of police unit that Jordan

Miles encountered.

by Craig Stevens

Pittsburgh’s Citizen Police Review

Board (CPRB) held a public hearing

December 12, 2012, on the Pittsburgh

Bureau of Police (PBP) use of plainclothes

officers in unmarked cars, also known as “99

cars.” The hearing was prompted by ongoing

complaints and questions about the conduct

of these units, particularly in predominantly

African American communities, including

the case of Homewood teen Jordan Miles,

who was brutally beaten and arrested in

January 2010 by three officers in a 99 unit.

Police spokespersons included Deputy

Police Chief Paul Donaldson, Assistant

Chief of Investigations Maurita Bryant, and

Immediate Past President of the Fraternal

Order of Police Dan O’Hara. Speakers on

police accountability included Tim Stevens,

chair of the Black Political Empowerment

Project (BPEP), and Brandi Fisher, chair of

the Alliance for Police Accountability

(APA).

CPRB Director Elizabeth Pittinger read

into the record a memo from David Harris,

University of Pittsburgh law professor and

expert in racial profiling and law

enforcement, who was unable to attend.

Stating that “much is not known about how

the PBP uses this tactic,” Harris listed

questions concerning the extent of use of 99

cars; their mission, staffing, training, and

oversight; data on frequency of “jump out”

activity, seizures of weapons and narcotics,

civilian stops, frisks, and arrests; and

measurement of success.

Deputy Chief Donaldson said they did

not come with a prepared statement nor

could he respond to all the points raised in

Harris’s memo but that they would be

willing to do so. He said the PBP’s

relationship with the public is a priority

concern and that he is aware that a negative

encounter with the public carries more

weight than positive encounters. He said a

low number of encounters with the public

involve the use of force: out of 15,000

arrests last year, 740, or 5.5% of all arrests

involve the use of force.

Donaldson did not provide specific data

on the operations of the 99 cars nor on their

effectiveness. The primary value of the units

emphasized by all three police

representatives was the units’ ability to carry

out proactive policing, suppressing or

intervening in crimes as they occur, and

“keeping a pulse of the community.”

Otherwise, Donaldson said, the vast majority

of police time and resources are spent

responding to calls and investigating crimes

that have already occurred. Donaldson did

say that the 99 units, like all PBP officers,

will be required to file reports on all ‘stop

and frisk’ encounters, as required by bills

passed by City Council in 2011.

Assistant Chief Bryant, who previously

oversaw 99 units as Zone 5 commander,

said, “If all we did

was respond to 911 calls, the level

of criminal activity would be off the charts.

These officers aren’t loose cannons. We

hold them accountable. There are all sorts of

checks and balances.”

When board member Thomas Waters

asked how the PBP knows crime would

increase without the 99 units, Donaldson

replied that drug crimes would flourish if

dealers could operate with impunity.

Ralph Norman, CPRB Acting Chair,

asked about placing video cameras in the

cars, to which Donaldson replied that there

is no funding for that and that cameras

would make 99 cars more identifiable as

police cars.

In an overview, Donaldson and Bryant

stated that there is one 99 unit in each of the

six police zones, with at least three officers

per unit to ensure that at least two are

deployed together per shift. Zone

Commanders select and supervise 99 unit

officers, who must have at least four years of

experience. There is no special training for

this duty.

In their comments, both Stevens and

Fisher emphasized the importance of

intensive cultural sensitivity training for

officers placed in these controversial units.

Stevens spoke of the “awesome power”

given police, power which can be abused,

and noted that African American males

believe the police are out to get them.

Ms. Fisher stated that the disrespect

civilians experience from police has broken

the trust between communities and the

police. She also spoke of the ‘Catch 22’ of

99 unit officers jumping out of their cars,

scaring the person they have targeted into

running, and then escalating force in

response.

Several police accountability and civil

rights advocates spoke during the public

comment period. One pointed out that the

police left before Stevens, Fisher and the

public spoke.

MORE ABOUT CPRB:

The Citizen Police Review Board

(CPRB) is an independent agency in

the City of Pittsburgh setup to

investigate citizen complaints about

improper conduct by the Pittsburgh

Bureau of Police. For more

information, including how to file a

complaint concerning police

misconduct, see the CPRB’s web site

at: cprbpgh.org or call the CPRB at:

(412) 765-8023 or the CPRB

Confidential Tip Line: 412-255-

CPRB. For information on Jordan

Miles’ ongoing case:

justiceforjordanmiles.com.

For more information on The Black

and White Reunion, see:

blackandwhitereunion.org or call 412-

322-9275.

Craig Stevens is a member of the

Black and White Reunion.

Concern Over Unmarked Police Cars

Citizens for Justice

PERFORMANCE

SCHEDULE: Wednesday, February 27: 7pm

Thursday, February 28: 8pm

Friday, March 1:

10am & 8pm

Saturday, March 2:

2pm & 8pm

by Kenneth Miller and Charles

McCollester

Martin Delany was

empowered by publishing and

journalism. Among the best

journalists of the era, he

published The Mystery, his anti-

slavery newspaper, from

Pittsburgh and later served as co

-editor of The North Star with

Frederick Douglass.

He wrote numerous

important works including a

novel about a mass slave

uprising, Blake or the Huts of

America. He is best known for

his manifesto, considered a

founding document of Black

Nationalism: The Condition,

Elevation, Emigration, and

Destiny of the Colored People

of the United States, Politically

Considered.

Martin Delany was a leader

of Pittsburgh’s struggle against

the Fugitive Slave Law, but left

for Canada with his family after

the Dred Scott decision. He

conferred with John Brown in

Canada during the planning

phase of the Harper’s Ferry

Raid. Incredibly, in 1859, he

traveled to West Africa, looking

for a place to settle a colony of

African Americans and made

several forays on foot into

Liberia and up the Niger River

to Abeokuta (Nigeria).

He reported on this voyage

to a prestigious international

conference in London and

when challenged for his

credentials by the American

delegation, he stated: “I am a

man.” This assertion became

the battle cry of the Memphis

Sanitation Workers’ strike a

century later.

With the Civil War engaged,

Delany returned to the United

States where he recruited and

agitated for the acceptance of

black troops including a

demand for black officers. After

a face-to-face meeting in early

1865 with Abraham Lincoln, he

was commissioned by

presidential order as a major in

the U.S. Army, its highest-

ranking black officer.

For a time after the war he

was the military governor for

South Carolina’s coast south of

Charleston. He represented

black soldiers at the flag-raising

at Fort Sumter on April 14,

1865, the fourth anniversary of

its surrender to the secessionist

South. Call to order tickets or

arrange for students to

attend. 412-867-9213.

Kenneth Miller and Charles

McCollester are members of

the editorial collective.

Martin Delany,

Pittsburgh Writer

Wali Jamal’s Third

Martin Delany

production to end

Black History Month

February 27 –

March 2, 2013

Elsie H. Hillman

Auditorium at

Kaufmann Center (Next to the Hill House

Center, 1825 Centre

Avenue, Pgh., PA 15219)

Creative Commons

http://cprbpgh.org/


by Anne E. Lynch

In 2009, the United

Nations chose February 20th,

to be the first World Day of

Social Justice, to promote

efforts to tackle issues such

as poverty, exclusion and

unemployment. It advocates

creating a “society for all,”

calling on governments to

make a commitment to

creating a framework for

action at all levels (local,

state, and national). The day

calls for “greater access to

resources through equity and

equality and opportunity for

all.” The society for all must

be based on justice and

respect for all human rights

and fundamental freedoms.

It’s a non-binding, purely

ideological UN resolution. So

we should all just ignore it,

right? Wrong!

While we may not be able

to convince our governments

of the importance of justice,

we can demonstrate equality

and equity in our own lives!

Community gardens are

popping up all over the City

of Pittsburgh. Join one, and

help out – when the harvest

comes in, share with your

neighbors. Or, if the

community garden is

growing flowers rather than

edible produce, brighten

people’s days by spreading

the blooms around!

If gardening is not your

forte, think about what you

can offer to your community

(as broadly or as narrowly as

you define it).

Are you able to

shovel snow from walks or

mow grass? Are there

members of your community

who aren’t able to do so?

Offer your services to them.

Perhaps you can share that

batch of muffins. Share the

extras. Turn off your cell

phone and actually listen to a

friend who needs to talk. We

all have unique talents – use

yours to the best of your

ability!

Of course, most of this

comes naturally to the people

reading this article. These are

just friendly, neighborly

things that one should do.

How is that creating social

justice? The acts themselves

are not social justice.

However, as you get to know

your neighbors and your

community, you start to see

needs that go beyond one or

two people. Maybe there’s an

industrial practice moving in

that some of you aren’t sure

of. Or perhaps some people

who are perceived as

different are being bullied or

harassed. Or there’s been a

breakdown in police-

community relations.

Whatever the problem is, you

are now in a position to bring

the community together to

take action. You learn about

the issue, listen to as many

sides as you can, and then,

together, ACT. Actions can

have small, medium or large

results. That you’ve just

gotten two families on the

same block to stop feuding

may seem small in the grand

scheme of things, but it helps

build community. Ultimately,

when it comes to social

justice, there is no such thing

as a “small” act.

It’s so easy to say that

someone else will do it or

that you just don’t have time.

But if each of us just sat

outside our residences for an

hour a week, saying hello to

everyone who passes and

asking how they are, we

could create true change over

time. Stronger communities

feel more empowered to take

on larger tasks, even

challenging governments and

entire societies. A gentle

smile and a helping hand

could sow the seeds of social

justice.

Anne E. Lynch is Manager

of Operations at Three

Rivers Community

Foundation.

World Day of Social Justice—Feb. 20

by Jennifer Lawer

A regional workshop for

Bread for the World will take

place on Sunday, March 3, from

2:00 pm – 5:00 pm at The Good

Shepherd Lutheran Church, 4503

Old William Penn Highway in

Monroeville. The conference

will include a presentation on the

2013 policy goals by Larry

Hollar, regional coordinator for

Bread for the World. A

representative for Senator Bob

Casey’s office has been invited

to share policy perspectives on

food security and budget issues.

Breakout groups will hear

presentations on topics such as

letter writing, state food security

issues, and possibly immigration.

Please contact Donna Hansen at

home at (712) 731-2460 or via

cell at (412) 812-1553 for more

information. All who are

interested are welcome to attend.

“Bread for the World” is a

Christian-based group that is

committed to ending hunger at

home and abroad. The group is

dedicated to providing food for

those in need through group

organization and governmental

support. The group believes that

everyone can make a difference;

individual efforts and

government leaders can all work

together to overcome global

hunger.

All are also welcome to join

the Regional Bread for the

World Team. Their next meeting

will be held on Wednesday,

February 20, at 10:00 am on the

second floor of Christian

Associates, located at the corner

of Butler Street and 37th Street

in Lawrenceville.

Learn more about “Bread for

the World” at www.bread.org.

Jennifer Lawer is an intern

working on food security issues

at the Thomas Merton Center.

Bread for the World Regional Workshop

Join Us in Our Work to End Hunger

by Joyce Rothermel

The American Taxpayer Relief Act

that passed before the end of the last

Congress included the extension of

two tax credits that favorably impact

many poor families: the Earned

Income Tax Credit (EITC) and Child

Tax Credit (CTC). Both of them are a

great help to families that struggle

with basic human needs. Also of note

is its protection of the Supplemental

Food Assistance Program (SNAP --

formerly the Food Stamp Program),

Medicaid and international food aid.

While the past Congress did not

enact a new Farm Bill, they did extend

the current one through September of

this year. The Farm Bill includes

funding and policies for SNAP, The

Emergency Food Assistance Program

(TEFAP), the Commodity

Supplemental Food Program (CSFP),

and the Farmers Market Nutrition

Program (FMNP). All of these

programs are important for people

who are food insecure and often find it

hard to get the food they need for their

families.

What lies ahead is the completion

of the 2013 budget, sequestration, and

the question of raising the debt ceiling

-- these were delayed for only a few

months, leaving them for the new

Congress to address. Anti-hunger

advocates ask for hungry and poor

people to be a priority through these

considerations. We seek adequate

funding (which will require additional

funding) to ensure food security for

our people. Sequestration calls for

across the board cuts which we

oppose. Across-the-board cuts would

mean that programs like the Women,

Infants and Children (WIC) Program

would be cut to balance the budget.

We call for a "Circle of Protection"

around all the domestic and

international food programs

throughout the budget and

sequestration negotiations.

To learn more about what you

can do, please see the information at

right on the upcoming Bread for the

World Workshop.

Joyce Rothermel is Co-Chair of the

SW PA Food Security Partnership.

The American Taxpayer Relief Act:

Impact on the Hungry and Poor

Social Justice Activism

CAPITAL’S END

New Location, New Time

3:30 PM at the AVA Lounge

126 S. Highland Ave. 15206

A social space for those working for social change.

February Programs: Feb. 3 – “Anarchy”

Feb. 10 – “Palestine:” BDS

Feb. 17 – “Amend:” Corporate Personhood

Feb. 24 – “Changemakers”

Live local music, poetry, talk, collective

karaoke, open mike, display/sale of art, a

“call to arms” and an opportunity to

build friendships, community & solidarity.

Further information: [email protected]

or 724-388-6258

18th Annual Empty Bowls

Benefits Greater Pittsburgh

Community Food Bank

and Just Harvest

Please come and help spread the word

about this year's Empty Bowls Dinner

being held at Rodef Shalom Congregation

at Fifth and Morewood Avenues in

Oakland on Sunday, March 10, 2 - 6 pm.

The event features fabulous soups from

restaurants across the region, family-

friendly entertainment, a silent auction of

ceramic art and celebrity-autographed

bowls, and an incredible assortment of

handmade ceramic bowls donated by

dozens of artists, schools and art centers.

Tickets are $20 which include a modest

meal of soup and bread and your choice

of a handmade bowl as a lasting reminder

of those whose bowls are empty. For

more information and to order tickets on

line, go to www.pittsburghfoodbank.org.

Duquesne University Professor

Aimee Light to Speak at

February 17 Conference

All are invited to attend a

conference on Roman

Catholic Feminist

Theology featuring

Aimee Light from the

Theology Department at

Duquesne University on

Sunday, February 17 from 1:30 - 4:30 pm.

The conference will be held at Epiphany

Administrative Center, 164 Washington

Place next to the Consol Energy Center.

Suggested donation is $20.

Students are admitted at no charge.

Register by emailing:

[email protected] and pay at

door, or send payment to

Association of Pittsburgh Priests (APP),

P.O. Box 2106,

Pittsburgh, PA 15230.

http://www.bread.org/

mailto:[email protected]


No, we’re not there yet...

by Wanda Guthrie

All who saw the movie Promised

Land recognized our lovely Western

Pennsylvania landscape. Sadly, the

ability of the community to choose

their future was pure fiction. We

know that “12.5 million

Pennsylvanians are denied the right

to make governing decisions in our

communities of the sort that frames

Matt Damon's fictional film. State

"preemption" forbids Township

Supervisors from adopting municipal

laws that protect community health,

safety and welfare, even though they

take an oath obliging them to do so.

But to live up to their oaths, they'd

have to violate state law that places

corporate interests above the rights

of the people -- including the right to

local self-government on issues with

direct impact on their lives. And the

people are forbidden to vote

democratically on such questions,

regardless of what the film

fictitiously portrays,” states Ben

Price, Projects Director, Community

Environmental Legal Defense Fund.

Ben goes on to say, “We all fight

our individual and collective battles -

against fracking, toxic waste

facilities, factory farms, compressor

stations, pipelines, coal mines,

industrial windmills, GMOs - all

within the same concrete box (or

coffin). We win small battles at

home while not actually changing the

system that perpetuates the ability for

others to endanger us all over again

later. This ‘box’ is our system of law,

which creates regulatory funnels at

the end of which we all have no real

power to create sustainable

communities. We may win a battle

here and there, but someday someone

else can still endanger us, and we’ll

have to jump through the same old

hoops, stressing our bodies, minds,

hearts, and bank accounts all over

again.”

At a recent Community Rights

Workshop, community activist

learned how

community-

based control

was taken

from the

people of

Pennsylvania

with the

rewriting of

our original

Articles of

Confederation

(the original US Constitution) by

those with accumulated property who

wanted to “tame” democracy into

what we have now – a limited

monarchy ruled by central offices of

government instead of a king.

Last month we told you that we

would be beginning a campaign to

include our Community Bill of

Rights in Pittsburgh’s Home Rule

Charter. As the direction and work of

the campaign unfolds we look to our

history and how direct democracy

through citizen initiatives has been

and can again be an effective, non-

violent form of civil disobedience to

confront the 21st century partnership

of state and corporate power. When

that power is used to violate the civil

rights of people

and of nature,

and when

consent of the

governed is no

longer

considered

necessary by

government, we

must take back

direct

democracy!

The Environmental Justice

Committee and community partners

have resolved to continue to meet

together and grow! We need you, we

need to hear your community vision.

We can work to be We the People

once again as we launch and

participate in a successful campaign

to amend our Home Rule Charter

with a permanent Citizens Bill of

Rights; an amendment that will

include obligations and limitations to

our right to pure water, clean air,

chemical trespass, peaceful

enjoyment of our homes, natural

communities, a sustainable energy

future, self-government, and

recognition of people as sovereign,

and recipients of all rights afforded

to us in the Pennsylvania Declaration

of Rights.

How will we do it?

-Partnering with all Pittsburgh

communities to petition for a

referendum question on the

November ballot to amend the City

Charter to include a Community Bill

of Rights and

-Asking citizens to

envision, participate and

spread the word about

the importance of this

campaign.

- Working together not

only collect signatures

on petitions but to create

strategies for a winning

campaign in Pittsburgh

in their neighborhoods.

- Gathering to keep each other going,

growing, and learning!

Wanda Guthrie is the Chair of the

Environmental Justice, and

Education and Outreach Committee

and TMC Board Member.

Fiction to Fact: Promised Land?

Environmental Activism

Recent Community Rights Workshop

Community Bill of Rights in Pittsburgh communitybillofrightspittsburgh.wordpress.com Join our email/contact list by emailing [email protected]. Wednesday, February 6, 2013 6:30 to 8:30 pm at Freedom Unlimited (Alma Speed Fox Center) 2201 Wylie Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15219 (next to the NAACP office) Call 412-596-0066 for directions. Getting the Conversation Started: How do we talk about community rights -- gearing up for the July push for 10,000 signatures.

Climate Rally Feb. 17! Join Us! At Noon on Sunday, February 17, thousands of Americans will head to Washington,

D.C. to make Forward on Climate the largest climate rally in history. Make your

voice heard and help the president start his second term with strong climate action.

When: February 17th, Noon

Where: The National Mall, Washington D.C.

Who: 350.org, Sierra Club & Hip-Hop Caucus

Why: To tell Barack Obama it's time to lead in the fight against climate change,

beginning with the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline.

You can find or offer a carpool to D.C. by joining the

Forward on Climate group at Ridebuzz.org.

The Nature and Spirit of our Work: Deep Democracy

(DeepDemocracyPittsburgh.wordpress.com) practiced in circles of trust that open the

political door wide and help people walk through it. This is sponsored by the

Environmental Justice Committee of the Thomas Merton Center. We will be meeting

on Sunday, February 10, from1 to 4 pm, at Pat Buddemeyer’s house, 5808 Black

Street (between North Euclid and North Beatty), East Liberty. Call412-860-9524 for

directions.

Focusing on: beginning a study of Parker Palmer’s book Healing the Heart of

Democracy, examples of mass movements, and a lesson from the Pennsylvania

Community Rights Cook Book. Bring snacks to share.

Global Warming: Changing C02urse

-4 SESSION DISCUSSION GUIDE FOR WORKPLACE,

COMMUNITY CENTER OR HOME.

PARTICIPANTS WILL: Explore personal values and habits as they relate to

climate change, Deepen an understanding of the history and science of global

warming, and Consider both individual and community level actions to curb global

warming.

2013 RESOLUTION: ADOPT A LOW-CARB DIET!

Thomas Merton Center’s Environmental Justice Committee & The Stillworkers

Network of Engaged Buddhists are partnering to offer this 4-session Discussion

Course. JOIN US!

Initial Planning Meeting: Feb.17, 2013 2:00-4:00 pm

Where: East Liberty Presbyterian Church

116 South Highland Avenue, Pittsburgh 15206

CONTACT KATE AT: pghstillworkers@gmail.

107 SE Washington Suite 235 Portland, OR 97214

Phone: 503.227.2807 The Thomas Merton Center is a proud consumer of TriEagle Energy.

http://communitybillofrightspittsburgh.wordpress.com/

http://350.org/

http://deepdemocracypittsburgh.wordpress.com/


by Rob Conroy

Columbine.

Virginia Tech.

Western Psych.

Aurora.

Wisconsin.

Portland.

Sandy Hook.

Hollidaysburg.

Webster.

Taft.

The list goes on...

As record numbers of citizens

rush to their local sporting goods

stores, gun shows or gun shops (as

this article is being written, I’m

listening to recaps from the first

national Gun Appreciation Day) to

purchase record numbers of firearms,

what feels like record numbers of

bodies are piling up. If there is one

silver lining to be pulled from this

horrifying trend, it seems that some

state and national politicians—not

least our President and Senator

Robert Casey—may finally be

listening to points that many of us in

the nonviolence movement have

been raising for years.

We at CeaseFirePA continue to

stand by the families and friends of

those who have lost loved ones to

tragic bullets from largely illegally

acquired firearms. We will continue

to fight to end gun violence in

Pennsylvania, particularly that

caused by illegal guns, and we will

continue to partner with other local,

state and national organizations like

the Thomas Merton Center to make

Pennsylvania neighborhoods (and

every other American neighborhood)

safe. Many communities in

Pittsburgh deal with the effects of

gun violence every single day and

this simply cannot stand. We fully

support the President and Vice

President’s gun violence reduction

agenda, to which we were honored to

have contributed at a meeting on

January 9, and vow to continue our

long-standing goals of ending gun

violence, promoting responsible gun

ownership and keeping guns out of

the “wrong” hands, particularly by

encouraging our state and national

legislators to enact the following

reforms:

1. Require comprehensive

background checks on all sales of

guns (and, in an ideal world,

ammunition) in Pennsylvania.

Currently, such checks are required

for all sales of handguns and any gun

sale by a federally licensed dealer.

But this exempts the sale of many

long guns, including the very

weapon used to kill the victims in

Connecticut, when said weapon is

not sold by a federally licensed

dealer. This means that any private

sale between two individuals and

many sales by non-dealers at gun

shows (or many transfers at

community “gun bashes”) do not

require a background check. Current

law also exempts ammunition sales.

2. Require Pennsylvania gun

owners to file police reports if their

guns are lost or stolen.

This would enable police to find

missing guns before they become

crime guns, save time during

criminal investigations when police

need to track the ownership history

of a gun, and help police identify

straw purchasers who buy guns and

then transfer them illegally to people

who cannot legally buy guns

themselves.

3. Ensure that Pennsylvania

continues to forward all relevant

data to the national criminal

background check system. Until

mid-January of this year, more than

600,000 mental health records that

could bar someone from purchasing

a gun were available in the

Pennsylvania database (PICS) but

only one of those records had been

shared with the federal system

(NICS). Unfortunately, this means

someone who could not legally buy a

gun here might have been able to

cross state lines and purchase one in

a state that only had access to the

records in the federal system.

Although the state police have

temporarily rectified this situation,

they simply cannot be allowed to let

such records transfers lapse in the

future, particularly as there is

currently a bill circulating in the

Pennsylvania state House of

Representatives (HB 2127) that is

proposing elimination of PICS.

4. Close the loophole that makes it

possible for a gun owner to use a

concealed carry permit from

another state when he might not be

eligible to get one in Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania recognizes

concealed carry permits from several

other states, even when some of

those states grant such permits to

people who would not meet

Pennsylvania’s eligibility

requirements. Pennsylvania should

grant reciprocal recognition only to

those states that employ permitting

standards equivalent to ours.

5. Working in tandem with

reforms at the federal level,

remove all assault weapons from

the stream of commerce in

Pennsylvania.

Semi-automatic assault weapons

(firearms designed for military use

that have no place or purpose for

civilian use), along with high-

capacity ammunition magazines,

should be banned from distribution,

manufacture, sale or ownership in

the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

None of these solutions will

happen overnight, but every single

one of them is worth fighting for. We

believe that ordinary Pennsylvanians

are demanding meaningful reforms.

NOW IS THE TIME

Together—and only together—we

can take a stand against gun violence

and make a difference.

Together we can put an end to gun

violence in Pittsburgh, in

Pennsylvania and in the United

States.

Rob Conroy is a TMC board

member and the Western PA

Coordinator for CeaseFirePA.

How To End Gun Violence

Activists on Guns

by Lilly Joynes

About three years ago, I learned

the truly horrifying consequences of

Americans’ devout desire to own

guns. On a normal Friday night in

November 2009, I read the most

recent text on my phone - sent in all

capital letters - and stared in

disbelief: “OMG ERIC F---ING

SHOT HIMSELF!!!” Eric, the

goofy, always-smiling boy clad in

overalls and sweaters that I had

come to know and love was dead -

and by his own choice.

I tried to think of any moment in

the last several years that could have

hinted at this impending tragedy. All

I saw in my head over and over

again was Eric at 7:30 am outside of

school, holding the door and offering

fist bumps and words of

encouragement to all the students

dragging themselves inside - “Happy

Monday! Welcome to school! Party

on!” Guns can cause unexpected

destruction at the hands of

unexpected people.

No one knows what caused the

emotional pain inside Eric’s head

that made him feel like he didn’t

want to live anymore. What I do

know is that Eric had dozens of

friends who would have done

anything for the opportunity to stop

him. Instead, Eric went quietly into

the basement of his home, got a

shotgun from his dad’s hunting

cabinet, and within the same instant

he pulled the trigger he was dead. I

wish it had been just a little bit

harder for him to go through with

this irreversible decision. I wish he

had had just one more second to

realize he was not alone.

One thing is undeniable from

stories like Eric’s and tragedies like

the recent shootings in Newtown,

Connecticut or Aurora, Colorado:

guns are not safe in the hands of

emotionally unstable people (sad,

angry, or otherwise). Unfortunately,

about 25% of the U.S. falls into this

category, meaning one in four people

has some sort of diagnosable mental

disorder. The National Institute of

Mental Health (NIMH) presents this

statistic comprehensively, including

even mild mood disorders and eating

disorders. However, I still think it is

an important factor in the discussion

of what America’s policies on gun

control should be.

When it comes to shooting

tragedies, Americans surveyed in a

January 2011 Gallup Poll believed

the two most important things that

could be done to prevent “mass

shootings” are 1) stricter gun control

laws (24%) and better mental health

screening/support (15%). However,

as our nation tends to divide down

the middle on many issues, the

results of another Gallup Poll from

January 2012 show 50% of the

nation as “satisfied” with the

nation’s laws or policies on guns,

while 42% are dissatisfied.

Most people don’t think about

suicide when they think about gun

control, but stricter laws could help

save many struggling souls.

According to the National Institute

of Mental Health, there were nearly

40,000 suicides in 2009. However,

NIMH emphasizes that for every

successful suicide, there were eleven

more attempted suicides. In the case

of people like Eric who have access

to a gun - it’s almost guaranteed

which statistic they will be a part of.

Research on the NIMH website

shows that males choose a firearm

most frequently as the means to end

their own lives. Boys are exposed to

guns in many ways while growing

up: hunting with Dad, video games,

paintball, and even pretend games

like “cops and robbers” or “cowboys

and Indians.” It’s no wonder boys

are more comfortable with firearms -

we told them it was okay to play

with guns!

Now factor in the other attitudes

we have about guns in America, and

disaster is certain. In a Gallup Poll

conducted 12/18/12, Americans’ top

responses for how to prevent future

school shootings shifted away from

changing laws. The responses were:

“increased police presence at

schools, more government spending

on mental health screening and

treatment, and a focus on reducing

media and video game emphasis on

gun violence.” Where is the

responsibility placed? Not on the

parents, and not on the individual.

Pro-gun Americans are worried

about losing their rights, but what

we’re losing now with our current

policy is lives. I urge Americans

concerned about their self-defense to

first consider pepper spray, martial

arts classes, or other non-lethal

alternatives. Regardless of your

political dogma, I beg you to please

reconsider the power of a gun and

the consequences of having access to

one so easily.

Lilly Joynes is a sophomore at the

University of Pittsburgh majoring

in Communication Studies.

Gun attitudes cost innocent lives


by Scilla Wahrhaftig

January 11th was the 11th

anniversary of the opening of

Guantanamo Bay Detention Camp

which has become a symbol of our

country’s torture policy. It was also the

day that the new movie about the

capture of Osama Bin Laden, Zero Dark

Thirty, opened in movie theatres around

the country. While the use of torture was

not a contributing part of the capture,

many are seeing the movie as a

vindication of our torture policy.

The movie has sparked a huge

amount of attention and has opened up a

major debate about the use of torture.

Did it work? Didn’t it work? Is it

necessary for the capture of terrorists, as

47 percent of people in the U.S. believe?

What has gotten lost in the debate is the

impact of the use of torture on our

credibility as a country.

Chuck Fager, writer and former

Director of Quaker House in

Fayetteville NC, writes:

“The loss of credibility may still be

easy for many of us to ignore, but

consider: today, what tyrants will do

other than smirk and snicker at U.S.

State Department reports tut-tutting

about their lousy human

rights records? Not that

our hands were ever

entirely clean; but the

years of Maya's (the

heroine in Zero Dark

Thirty) obsession were

also when the U.S. sank

to unprecedented lows.

At home, those years

similarly yielded steadily

increasing domestic

repression, from

wiretapping to the

coordinated crackdowns

on Occupy Wall

Street and now the growing shadows of

domestic drones circling above our

homes and streets.”

Yet credibility is not a strong enough

term for this loss. Honor helps. But

"soul" is better. Dr. Martin Luther King's

motto for his civil rights career was,

"Saving the Soul of America." The

crusade by Maya, the CIA and their

White House masters to find and kill

Osama Bin Laden succeeded, but along

the way America lost much, perhaps

most, of its "soul."

With the attention on

torture we have an

opportunity to have

some impact. A number

of us handed out flyers

outside the movie

theatre when Zero Dark

Thirty opened and were

encouraged by the

number of people who

took our flyers and went

into the movie to

consider it critically.

Last month the Senate

Intelligence Committee

approved a 6,000- page report of the

CIA’s interrogation practices during the

Bush era. "The report uncovers startling

details about the CIA detention and

interrogation program and raises critical

questions about intelligence operations

and oversight," said Senator Dianne

Feinstein, after the vote.

The release of this report is vital and,

as Dixon Osborn of Human Rights First

said, "Telling the American people the

truth about torture isn't a task that should

be left up to speculative reporting,

Hollywood filmmakers, or publishing

houses. It should be based on the facts.

Thankfully, that report already exists.

Now it should be made public."

The release of this report is essential

in light of the nomination of John

Brennan as head of CIA. Brennan is

known to have favored rendition and the

use of torture. It is vital that we know his

role in the use of torture and his

participation in Obama's secretive,

unaccountable drone war.

We can all contact our senators calling

on them to authorize the release of the

Senate Intelligence Report on

Interrogations. We have a right to see

what our government did in our name.

Not till we face up to our past can we as

a country start to regain our standing in

the world and start the process of

“Saving Our Soul.”

Scilla Wahrhaftig is the Program

Director of the American Friends

Service Committee PA.

Torture and America’s SOUL

Faith and Activism

A Liberation Priest Calls for the

U.S. to Stop the Repression

by Daniel Kovalik

On February 17, 1980,

Archbishop Oscar Romero of San

Salvador sent a letter to U.S.

President Jimmy Carter in which he

implored Carter not to support the

repressive forces in El Salvador with

lethal aid. Romero implored

President Carter “to forbid that

military aid be given to the

Salvadoran government.” Sadly,

Carter did not heed the good

Archbishop’s pleas, and, on March

20, 1980, U.S.-backed assailants shot

and killed Oscar Romero while he

was saying mass.

Since that time, scores of priests

have been killed throughout Latin

America by U.S.-backed forces. In

Colombia alone, 79 Catholic priests

have been killed since 1984. This

type of violence and repression has

virtually wiped out the liberation

Church which Romero described to

Carter in his letter. And indeed, as

Noam Chomsky has pointed out, the

U.S. School of the Americas has

bragged about how it helped

“destroy liberation theology.”

Nonetheless, a small number of

brave priests and religious have

continued on with the liberation

struggle. Most notable of these is

Father Javier Giraldo, a Jesuit priest

from Colombia. Reminiscent of

Romero’s letter to Carter, Father

Giraldo sent a letter in September of

2011 to the U.S. Ambassador to

Colombia, P. Michael McKinley,

imploring him to prevail upon

President Obama not to go ahead

with his decision to release $20

million in military aid to Colombia

which had been suspended on

human rights grounds. And, as was

the case with Jimmy Carter more

than 30 years ago, President Obama

did not heed Father Giraldo’s pleas.

In his letter, Father Giraldo sets

forth profound truths about

Colombia which few ever hear

outside that country. Thus, he

describes the fact that the very

paramilitary (a.k.a., “death squad”)

strategy which continues to plague

Colombia to this day was formulated

pursuant to a recommendation “by

the government of the United States

in the [General William P.]

Yarborough mission in February of

1962.”

According to Father Giraldo, the

paramilitary groups, as before,

continue to work “in close harmony

with the Army and Police” to carry

out crimes against humanity. And,

he places the responsibility for these

continued abuses firmly at the feet of

the U.S. Thus, Father Giraldo

informs the U.S. Ambassador that

“[t]he current commanders take part

in the same immunity and impunity

and the assistance from your

government only reinforces their

criminal activity” --

criminal activity

which includes “the

systematic crime of

forced disappearance

of persons, which

according to national

and international

agencies now affects

more than 50,000

families.”

Father Giraldo explains that the

Obama Administration’s

“certification and release of military

assistance funds takes place in a

moment in which the economic

policy of this government is showing

alarming signs of failure to recognize

the most fundamental collective

rights of the most vulnerable

populations.” Of course, the

“economic policy” referred to here is

a joint U.S./Colombia policy which

is spurred on by the U.S.-Colombia

Free Trade Act (FTA) signed into

law by Obama one month after this

letter. Father Giraldo explains that,

pursuant to the economic policy,

Afro-Colombian, indigenous and

peasant communities are being

destroyed by paramilitaries clearing

their land for use by multi-national

companies.

Father Giraldo also decries the

violence in Buenaventura which is

being spurred on by the struggle for

control of the expanding ports there

– ports which are critical to the

growing trade under the FTA.

Specifically, Father Giraldo

refers to “the permanent genocide

that is being carried out in

Buenaventura, where the

neighborhoods and the Community

Councils around the port are being

invaded by paramilitaries supported

or tolerated by the armed forces.

They cut people in pieces with

horrifying cruelty throwing the body

parts into the sea, if any of them dare

to resist the megaproject for the new

port.”

Just as Jimmy Carter turned a deaf

ear to Archbishop Romero’s pleas

for justice, President Obama has

ignored the pleas of Father Javier

Giraldo whose voice remains a

“voice in the wilderness”—a term

Father Giraldo himself uses in his

letter to describe the victims of U.S.

foreign policy in Colombia. Still,

Father Giraldo remains a prophetic

voice in Colombia and in the world,

defending the “preferential treatment

of the poor” which the U.S. has tried

to stamp out in Colombia and in

Latin America since the Kennedy

Administration.

Daniel Kovalik is a labor and

human rights lawyer living in

Pittsburgh. He teaches

International Human Rights at the

University of Pittsburgh School of

Law.

A Voice in the Wilderness

Scilla Wahrhaftig and Wanda

Guthrie outside of the theater

distributing information.

Hoped for Fruits of Vatican Council II

Principles WE ARE CHURCH, an international movement, were founded on in November 1996:

Community of Brothers and Sisters

With the full participation of women in all aspects

of church life

Without obligatory clerical celibacy

With a positive evaluation of sexuality and

conscience, and a message of joy and inclusivity

More than 2.5 million people throughout Europe signed a document calling for a Church that witnesses these principles.


Buying Local?

Marcellus Outreach Butler Reports

by Colleen Donovan and G. Smith

Progressive activists from all over

the country are raising their voices

ever more loudly in unison against

the rise of political, economic,

environmental and social justice

issues that undermine our democracy.

From fracking to incarceration rates

to clean air and water, to social justice

and gun control as well as access to

health care, activists voice their

increasing desire to form a united

front against the onslaught. To

achieve these ends, activists from

Southwestern Pennsylvania find

strength in numbers as we march in

unison over the hills and valleys and

the streets of our urban centers.

The geography of our region

ensures that all the creeks and rivers

eventually flow towards the Golden

Triangle in Pittsburgh, and for this

region’s activists, that leads us to the

Thomas Merton Center. Members of

the Indiana County Center for

Community Growth (CCG) are happy

to establish vital connections with the

Thomas Merton Center because our

organizations share so many common

goals.

The Building Change Conference

by the Three Rivers Community

Foundation represented another

important local influence in the

development of this new progressive

alliance. A group of Indiana County

community leaders who attended the

Building Change Conference were

inspired by the discussion to

reorganize. As a result, in the spring

of 2012, the Center brought together

social service and community

organizations to identify ways to

increase civic participation of low-

income county residents. This led to a

summer voter education and

registration campaign in collaboration

with the county food banks.

Finally, the Indiana County

“Center” (CCG) currently has

members who were part of the

original Indiana County Progressive

Alliance that was active in the ‘90s.

So, the newly-formed “Center,”

according to its Facebook page, aims

to stimulate activism based on

“democratic principles, non-violence,

civic engagement and ...

to work on those issues locally,

regionally and globally,” goals

similar to those of members and

affiliates of the Thomas Merton

Center and other social justice

organizations. Hopefully, the echoes

from this organization and all its

affiliates will reverberate throughout

our region.

In order to achieve these ends, the

CCG is launching a progressive film

series starting this February. This six-

month documentary series focuses on

new ideas to build a vibrant and just

regional economy. The series starts

February 22 with The Economics of

Happiness, at the historic downtown

Indiana Theater. Other films being

considered include The Corporation,

a film based on the book The

Corporation: The Pathological

Pursuit of Profit and Power by Joel

Bakan, and Antonino D’Ambrosio’s

Let Fury Have the Hour. The Center

also hopes to show the environmental

film YERT by Pittsburgh filmmaker

Mark Dixon.

The series is designed to stimulate

discussion and action in supporting a

new local economy, as well as

supporting local establishments such

as the Indiana Theater and the Artists

Hand Coffee House. Organizers look

to establish ties with these businesses

and other locales to create

an environment where the culture of

progressivism can work towards a

New Economy based on both local

values and global thinking.

We hope that individuals from all

over the region will join us in our

local and regional united front for

activism, and come out to the movies.

For more information about The

Center, you can check our website:

theindianacenter.wordpress.com, or

email [email protected],

or “like” us on Facebook, or follow

us on Twitter @theindianacenter, or

just call us at (724) 471-6298.

By making these connections, we

can strengthen bonds that will enable

us to work together to influence the

resolution of issues at the regional,

state, national and global levels. Let

the waters of our three-rivers -- the

Monongahela, the Allegheny, and the

Ohio -- nourish us all and permit the

flow towards larger streams of

consciousness, awareness, and action.

Let us all persuade our friends and

neighbors to take a stand for those

democratic principles that ensure

conditions that enable all citizens to

ultimate health, spirit, and rights.

This includes the people and

future generations of this region and

its natural resources as well as all

global counterparts.

Colleen Donovan and G. Smith are

activists from Indiana County with

the Indiana County Center for

Community Growth (CCG).

Indiana County Activists

Reach Out to Pittsburgh

Regional Activist Community

by Jason Bell

Theodora Colborn, a professor

emerita at the University of

Florida and president of the

Endocrine Disruption Exchange,

has identified 632 chemicals used

in natural gas production. She

reported her findings in a 2011

article, “Natural Gas Operations

from a Public Health Perspective,”

which outlined the potential health

risks of more than half of the

proprietary fracking fluids.

Colburn wrote, “Many

chemicals used during the

fracturing and drilling stages of

gas operations may have long-

term health effects that are not

immediately expressed.”

While 75 percent of the

chemicals affect the skin, eyes,

respiratory and gastrointestinal

systems, an alarming 50 percent

affect the brain, nervous system,

immune and cardiovascular

systems, and 25 percent could

cause cancer and mutations.

How much proof is enough to

keep the frack off the farm?

Full steam ahead!!!! This seems

to be what Governor Corbett and

the Department of Environmental

Protection (DEP) are saying about

fracking in Pennsylvania

communities. While New York

and Maryland are waiting for long

-term health studies before they

allow toxic fracking to drill its

claws in their neighborhoods,

Pennsylvania (with the exception

of the wealthy Montgomery and

Bucks counties) has been

designated as a sacrifice zone for a

fracking free-for-all. Despite an

outcry from medical professionals,

at the eleventh hour lawmakers

stripped all funding for medical

studies from Act 13. There is also

a shameful effort at the federal

level to shutdown research to

study the public health dangers of

fracking. In a letter to Health and

Human Services Secretary

Kathleen Sebelius, GOP leaders

on the House Energy and

Commerce Committee accused

officials at the Centers for Disease

Control and Prevention of

harboring "preconceived notions"

about the possible health effects of

gas drilling and hydraulic

fracturing, or fracking.

But because of the hard work of

many dedicated people we are

starting to see a picture of the real

public health perils presented by

fracking, and the picture is

alarming. In their report, Impacts

of Gas Drilling on Human and

Animal Health, Bamberger and

Oswald write, “Because animals

are exposed continually to air, soil

and groundwater and have more

frequent reproductive cycles,

animals can be used as sentinels to

monitor impacts on human

health.”

December saw the flaring of the

Marburger Farm Dairy well along

Mars-Evans City Road. Several

nearby homeowners and witnesses

reported noxious smells and

noises loud enough to drown out

the music from a Christmas

display. Although flaring is

temporary, it

has renewed

questions

about the long

-term effects

on the health

of livestock

and the safety

of milk.

Studies are

still ongoing

but fracking

the foodshed has raised serious

concerns.

Lastly, Marcellus Outreach

Butler (MOB) thanks everyone

who supports our efforts to raise

money for the 25 families that are

now living without safe water in

the Woodlands community. MOB

presented $4,300 to White Oaks

Springs Church on January 7th to

help with the effort. Tax

deductible donations can be made

at https://sites.google.com/site/

waterforwoodlands.

Jason Bell is a member of

Marcellus Outreach Butler

and Tour de Frack.

Marburger’s

Milk

Company in

Evans City.

by Mary Sheehan

The Pittsburgh North People

for Peace has just celebrated 30

years of peace and justice work in

the North Hills! Over those 30

years, issues have been brought to

the public eye through peace fo-

rums, peace festivals, school essay

contests, an 8-year vigil against the

war in Iraq, the International Day

of Peace, and Martin Luther King,

Jr. Day events, and by starting an

anti-racism coalition. We have of-

ten called ourselves, "small but

mighty."

Now, as we begin the next 30

years, our goal is to grow and be-

come "mightier." We want to pro-

vide an avenue for more people to

thoughtfully discuss, learn, and act

to make a difference in our com-

munity, our nation, and our world.

Thanks to support from the Thomas

Merton Center, this work is already

underway. If you are looking to

connect with a group of people

where you can share and work on

issues to bring about a vision of

peace and justice, give me a call

(412-367-0383) or send us an email

at [email protected]

You are welcome to come to one of

our February events:

Move to Amend Event: Monday,

February 4th, 4:00 p.m. at La

Roche College

Peace Forum: Sunday, February

24th, 3:00 p.m. at Kearns Spiritual-

ity Center

Mary Sheehan is the chair of

Pittsburgh North People for

Peace.

Peace and Justice in the North Hills

Alive and Well...and Growing!

Submitted by

Wanda Guthrie


TMC State of the Union

by Molly Rush

"“I feel guilty because what it costs

me to be in the hospital for one day

could keep a Guatemalan village

alive for one year. There's always

that sense of why am I alive? … As a

result, I feel I have to do something

about that, otherwise I would be just

sick and stay at home." –Indiana

Gazette

The gift of being around the

Merton Center is getting to know

some pretty extraordinary people.

Chris Catalfamo, who died at 59 on

January 15, 2013, was that and more.

Nothing stopped her, not hearing

loss, nor years on dialysis from renal

failure, caused by scleroderma, an

auto-immune disease. Despite

having to retire early from teaching

history at St. Vincent College, she

lived an incredibly full life.

History was her passion. An

expert on abolitionist movements in

Indiana County and the area's role in

the Underground Railroad, she

enthusiastically promoted that

history, writing articles in the

Indiana NAACP newsletter and the

Indiana Gazette, getting historical

markers at key sites and taking part

in Civil War re-enactments. Her last

article appeared in the Gazette in

December.

Her other major passion was for

social justice. As a board member of

the Indiana NAACP she worked for

prisoners rights and for single payer

health care. I don’t think there was a

movement for justice in which she

did not play a leading or supporting

role.

Her enthusiasm and spirit

inspired others.

She spoke matter-of-factly about

her illness, but she was excited when

she emailed me last month that she

was to have surgery to restore some

of her hearing. Then I learned she’d

been life-flighted to Pittsburgh for a

heart attack. When I called

Presbyterian Hospital’s ICU unit she

was unconscious.

She may

have left her

family and

friends but

her spirit and

her loving

ways will

remain with

us.

Molly Rush is the co-chair of the

editorial collective, co-founder of

TMC, board member, and friend of

Chris’s.

Chris Catalfamo, Extraordinary Woman, RIP

by Joyce Rothermel

Believing that each of us has a

calling to become an everyday

hero, Shernell Smith has joined the

board of the Thomas Merton

Center for her first two-year term.

Shernell serves in the Division

of Student Affairs at Carnegie

Mellon University, coordinating

multi-cultural and diversity

initiatives. She is also involved in

a variety of aspects of student life

and oversees sustainability

initiatives.

Shernell was attracted to the

Merton Center by individuals who

are engaged in the mission of the

Center. When she first came to

Pittsburgh through service learning

activities at CMU, Shernell came

to know managing director Diane

McMahon and Wanda Guthrie,

TMC board member.

Wanda was at that time involved

in the Remembering Hiroshima,

Imaging Peace Project. Shernell

also worked with Diane and other

members on the 2011 Merton

Award Event honoring Vandana

Shiva, arranging for her to speak

on campus. She also engaged some

students in the award ceremony.

Shernell hopes to learn more

about the Center’s history,

listening to members’ diverse

voices, then identifying ideas for

greater engagement with young

people.

Understanding the importance

of sustainable financial support for

the Center, she also agreed to chair

the newly formed Development

Committee and help with the

Center's messaging to the broader

community.

Upgrading the Center’s

technology and improving its uses

is also on her radar screen. These

tools help to bridge the wisdom of

the lived experiences of the Center

with newer members as we look to

the future. Please join us in

welcoming Shernell Smith to the

Board!

Joyce Rothermel chairs the

Membership Committee of the


by Diane McMahon

In 2012 the Thomas Merton

Center had many things to celebrate!

For one, we were 40 years old! And

forty years of peace and justice work

was the central unifying theme that

helped draw together old and new

friends committed to the important

goal of creating a more peaceful and

just world!

Through reconnecting to our

friends and supporters we discovered

that, now, at this point in history, the

work of the Center is just as vital to

raising the moral issues that speak to

the unjust treatment of oppressed

people , the 99% of us, as it was forty

years ago.

This past year TMC experienced

a growth in membership, a doubling

from the year before - with 450

active members by year’s end. This

was made possible by a dedicated

and committed group of members,

led by Joyce Rothermel and Michael

Drohan, who worked tirelessly to

bring the community together at

potluck dinners, awards ceremonies,

a summer picnic, and in organizing

efforts like the trip to protest the

School of the Americas in Fort

Benning in the fall of 2012.

New energy was brought into the

center with an increased number of

interns and volunteers. We benefited

from the expertise of committed

advocates, many who came from Pitt,

CMU, and Chatham. A group of

younger leaders formed the Youth

Outreach Committee, and we will be

supporting their efforts with the help

of board member Ed Brett (a retired

La Roche College professor) in the

year ahead. Additionally, more than

20 talented, creative and committed

interns worked at the Center this last

year.

We also benefited from the help

of current and returning members on

a weekly basis. As you might

imagine, at TMC there are many

tasks that need to be completed. They

range from answering the phone, to

engaging members in community

organizing activities, completing

mailings, to editing and distributing

the New People, to name only a few!

We are thankful for the dozens of

committed volunteers who worked in

this capacity and know that the center

would not be so strong as it is

without their efforts and passion.

With renewed commitment to

our mission and purpose, and much

hard work and volunteer efforts by

the board, volunteers, members and

interns, the Center was able to end

the year with a positive fund balance.

This is in no small part due to the

strategic plan that was formulated by

our Board of Directors in 2012 which

will guide the work of the center until

2017.

Going forward we will be

working towards moving the Center

into a more stable position so that the

work of our sustainers, members and

projects will be supported for

generations to come.

We invite you to become a part

of this effort by choosing to donate to

the Molly Rush Legacy Fund,

launching your own TMC centered

initiative or project, or joining with

us in the many community

organizing activities that are being

facilitated through the Center.

One thing remains clear, the

Center is only as strong as its

members are committed to building a

community of peace and justice

advocates. The board, staff,

volunteers, and interns thank you

for your relentless commitment to

making this so!

Diane McMahon is a member of

the editorial collective and the

managing director of the


Meet New Board Member Shernell Smith

M. Shernell Smith

Awards Dinner

5%

New Person Awards

5% Pottlucks, Community

Events

5%

Thrifty Store Support

5%

Community Oganizing

(ie.School of

Americas)15%

New People Publication

15%

Administration and

Accountability25%

Projects Support

25%

Thomas Merton Center 2012 Expense Allocation

Special thanks to Xinpei He for

producing the charts in this report.

Local Activist Community

In Memoriam,

Marcella Raynak

This past fall

Marcella Raynak,

Thomas Merton

Center (TMC)

member and

activist, died at the

age of 93.

She had been an active

member of the TMC Mon

Valley Cluster and faithful

supporter. We are grateful to

Marcella for remembering the

TMC in her will. Even in her

passing, Marcella is a witness

for peace and justice.

Submitted by Joyce Rothermel,

Chair of the TMC Membership

Committee.


Sunday Monday

Tuesday Thursday Friday 1 Wednesday Saturday 2

Harris

Interfaith

Lecture:

Gershon

Baskin, Ph.D

Rodef Shalom

Synagogue,

4905 5th Ave

11am-2pm

Pittsburgh Area

Strategic Peace

Planning

Friends

Meeting

House, 4836

Ellsworth Ave,

Pittsburgh, PA

2:30-5pm

Capital’s End:

Anarchism

AVA Lounge

126 S.

Highland.,

East Liberty

3:30pm-7:00pm

3 4

“If we treated everyone we meet with the same affection we bestow upon our favorite cat, they, too, would purr.” —Martin Delany

5 7 8 6 9

Community Bill

of Right

Pittsburgh

Freedom

Unlimited

(Alma Speed

Fox Center) 201

Wylie Ave.

6:30pm-8:30pm

Hearing on

Fracking at

Allegheny

Airport

RMU, Sewall

Center, 119

Campus Dr.

6:00pm-8:00pm

"Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave, I am the dream and the hope of the slave. I rise. I rise. I rise." —Maya Angelou

Move to

Amend

La Roche

College, Ryan

Room, 900

Babcock Blvd.

4:00 pm-

6:00pm

Capital’s End

AVA Lounge,

126 S.

Highland.,

East Liberty

3:30pm-7:00pm

(ALSO the 17th

–see pg. 10 ad)

10 11

12 14 15 13 16

PUSH

Meeting Health Care 4

All PA office,

2101 Murray

Ave.

6:15-8pm

One Billion

Rising

Market Square,

Downtown,

Pittsburgh

12:00pm-2:00pm

Susan B.

Anthony Day

“Organize,

agitate, educate,

must be our war

cry.”

—Susan B.

Anthony

The 2nd Annual

Food Pantry

Brunch

Challenge

New Hazlett

Theater,

Allegheny

Square East

11:00am-1:00pm

“You have to do your own growing no matter how tall your grandfather was” —Abraham Lincoln

Climate Rally

DC (See eblast)

What’s With

This Weather?

ELPC 2:00-4:00 Roman Catholic

Feminist (APP)

Theology

1:30-4:30 pm

Epiphany Center

164 Washington Pl.

Pgh., PA 15219

17 18

19 21 22 20 23

SW PA Bread

for the World

Meeting

Christian

Associates,

37th & Butler St,

Lawrenceville

10:00am-

12:00pm

Human Rights

Film Series:

Poetry of

Resilience

Duquesne

University, 105

College Hall

7:00-9:30pm

Pitt Center on

Race & Social

Problems Speaker

Series: Gerald

Early "Is Black

Music Criminal?"

2017 Cathedral of Learning, Pitt

Oakland

12:00pm-1:30pm

Pittsburgh

Haiti Solidarity

Committee

Thomas Merton

Center, 5129

Penn Ave.

11:00am-1:00pm

TMC Board

Meeting 7 pm

Happy

President’s

Day!

Capital’s End

AVA Lounge

126 S.

Highland.,

East Liberty

3:30pm-7:00pm

24 25

“Just like you can buy grades of silk, you can buy grades of justice” —Ray Charles

26 28 27 New Economy

Potluck

Dinner

Thomas

Merton Center,

6:30pm-

8:30pm

“I had no idea that history was being made. I was just tired of giving up” —Rosa Parks

February Activist Events

Become a Member of TMC!

__$15: Low Income/Student Membership

__$50: Individual Membership

__$100: Family Membership

__$75: Organization (below 25 members)

__$125: Organization (above 25 members)

Join at thomasmertoncenter.org/join-donate

or fill out the box and mail it in.

ONCE YOU BECOME A MEMBER,

YOU WILL RECEIVE THE NEW PEOPLE

IN THE MAIL!

TMC membership benefits include monthly

mailings of The New People to your home

or email account, weekly eblasts focusing

on peace and justice events in Pittsburgh,

and special invitations to membership activities.

You will be an active member of our community!

Name(s):

________________________________________

Organization (if applicable):__________________________

Address:________________________________

City: __________________ State: __________

Zip Code:_______________________________

Home Phone:____________________________

Cell Phone: _____________________________

Email:_________________________________

Be sure to choose your membership level.

Mail to: Thomas Merton Center, 5129 Penn Ave.,

Pittsburgh, PA 15224. You can also join online at

www.thomasmertoncenter.org.

Weekly Meetings

Monday Looking for a place to do your internship? Contact

[email protected].

Tuesday

International Socialist Organization Meetings

-meeting weekly at the Thomas Merton Ctr.

730-9:30 PM

Wednesday

Fed-Up!

Write on-Letters for Prisoner Rights

7:00 PM—Thomas Merton Center

Thursday TMC schedules potlucks on this evening. Interest-

ed in having one on an issue that’s important to

you? Email [email protected]

Friday Looking for a place to volunteer on a regular basis.

Email [email protected].

Saturday

Black Voices for Peace—Vigil to End War

1:00 pm—Corner of Penn & Highland Ave.

East Liberty

Sunday

Anti-War Committee Mtg. every other week.

Economic Justice Committee - varies

Environmental Justice Committee - see pg. 8.

Monthly Recurring Meetings

First Wednesdays

Darfur Coalition Meeting

7:00—9:00 pm—2121 Murray Avenue

Second Floor—Squirrel Hill

Contact: (412) 784-0256

Pennsylvanians Against the Death Penalty

Visit PADP.org for more information.

Second Wednesdays

PUSH Meeting

6:15—8:00 pm—2101 Murray Avenue

First Floor—Squirrel Hill

Contact: [email protected]

First Thursdays

Green Party Meeting

5:00—7:30 pm—Room C

Carnegie Library—Squirrel Hill

Third Sundays

Fight for Lifers West

10 am to Noon—Crossroads Church

325 N. Highland Ave—East Liberty

Coming Soon!

Thomas Merton Award

April 13, 2013—Saturday

Soldiers & Sailors Museum

Awardee: Martin Sheen

Dear TMC Members,

Thanks to all of you who attended the annual

membership meeting on Dec. 8, 2012! Your feedback

and input for this current year's strategic plan is greatly

valued. Please take this opportunity to renew your 2013

membership if you have not already responded to your

renewal notice. See the form below, complete it and

mail it in or go to www.thomasmertoncenter.org.

If you are interested in becoming a part of the TMC

Membership Committee or helping to plan the TMC

Award events this year, please contact me at

[email protected] or by phone at 412-780-5118.

Remember, this is YOUR Thomas Merton Center! We

need your active engagement and involvement to create

a more peaceful and just world. Thanks for caring!

Joyce Rothermel, Chair

TMC Membership Committee

(Please cut the form out and mail to the address listed.)

What to share your thoughts

about The New People?

Have a comment or a

suggestion about the

newspaper?

Please take a moment and fill out

a New People Readership

Survey. Online go to:

http://tiny.cc/newpeople

Or to take the survey over the

phone, call (412-361-3022)

We hope you will take a moment

to share this information with us

so that we can improve our

publication for you!

http://tiny.cc/newpeople

New People February 2013

Documents

Transcript of New People February 2013