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PEACE CENTER ACTIVIST ALERT
Week of February 10th
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TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 11th, 4 PM*
Club Room at Creekside - Rossmoor
1010 Stanley Dollar Drive
WALNUT CREEK
Voices for Justice in Palestine -
presents:
Eye Witness Report from the West Bank
Rev. Michael Yoshii (retired pastor from Buena Vista Methodist Church, Alameda), has just returned from a visit to the Palestinian village of Wadi Foquin in the West Bank near Bethlehem.
Yoshii will give a report with photos of what his team observed just a few weeks ago. He and his co-travelers were there to provide a "protective presence" for the village, which is currently under threat from a nearby settlement.
He will describe the situation now in Wadi Foquin and more generally in the West Bank. For more information on this effort and on the village of Wadi Foquin go to https://www.friendsofwadifoquin.com/
For more information about this event
contact VJP co-chair Donna at 925-945-6905
and/or
If you are not a resident of Rossmoor and need gate access,
please contact Rick Sterling at rsterling1@gmail.com sufficiently in advance.
- if you are unable to make this event, note that Rev. Yoshii will also be making a presentation on Monday February 17th, in Pleasanton, see below
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SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 15th,
10 AM - ZOOM MEETING
POOR PEOPLE'S CAMPAIGN -
BAY AREA REGIONAL MEETING
REGISTER HERE
Hear:
- Reports from the recent local and statewide actions/events;
- Plans for upcoming local and statewide actions; and,
- Announcements of upcoming meetings/events.
Forward together!
CAPPC Coordinating Committee members of the Bay Area
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SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 15th, 2 - 5 PM
FUNDRAISER - TO FALASTEEN, WITH LOVE
LA PENA - 3105 SHATTUCK AVE., BERKELEY
Proceeds to Heal Palestine and Prosthetics for Palestine
Organized by Healthcare Workers for Palestine - Bay Area
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MONDAY, FEBRUARY 17th, 6 PM
MCC - EAST BAY - CONFERENCE ROOM
5724 W. LAS POSITAS BLVD. PLEASANTON
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SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 22nd, 12 - 6 PM
5724 W. Las Positas Blvd., #300, Pleasanton
Pre-Ramadan Fundraiser/Bazaar
GATHER FOR GAZA
Join us for a Fundraising Festival in support of Gaza, featuring MCC’s annual pre-Ramadan Bazaar.
Our family-friendly and free festival will include storytime, rock painting, crafts for children, face painting, henna, spoken word, dabke performances and more.
We will have a diverse array of vendors present. You can purchase food, drinks, apartheid-free cola, hijabs, abayas, products from Palestine, bukhoor, artwork, apartheid-free dates, desi clothes, jewelry and more.
MORE INFO CLICK HERE
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SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 23rd
CLICK HERE FOR INFORMATION ON LOCAL ACTION
MAIN GATE AT TRAVIS AFB - FAIRFIELD CA,
SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 23rd, 2 PM
Imagine if on one day people on all continents and in all countries turned out to rally against and demand the closure of all military bases.
Don't just imagine it!
Find the event nearest you or let us help you create one and add it to the map!
The Earth is coated in military bases, spreading like a pandemic: foreign ones, domestic ones, famous ones, secret ones — part of a growing and disastrous global increase in spending on wars and preparations for wars that make wars more, not less, likely. And prime targets in wars are bases and anything near them.
Bases are many of the worst environmental disaster sites, polluting air, soil, and water, and generating horrific noise pollution.
Foreign bases are often mini-apartheid states with second-class status for locals and criminal immunity for militaries — a situation that can often be traced back to stolen land and other injustices.
Check out and share the new video at DayToCloseBases.org.
Through public pressure, bases have been closed, plans for bases have been blocked, and bases have been converted to other purposes, superior environmentally, economically, and in terms of achieving peace.
On February 23 people will be protesting bases with nonviolent actions around the world: rallies, vigils, peace festivals, protests, lobby visits, demonstrations, flyering at gates, teach-ins, and celebrations where bases have been prevented or closed and converted into something useful.
Find an event near you or see how easy it is to create one at DayToCloseBases.org.
Some of the many organizations involved are:
We held two planning Zoom calls last week and you can watch the videos.
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Suggested readings/videos/podcasts:
DEMOCRACY NOW - AMY GOODMAN INTERVIEWS PETER BEINHART ON HIS NEW BOOK, "BEING JEWISH AFTER THE DESTRUCTION OF GAZA, A RECKONING"
"...which is “addressed to my fellow Jews” and criticizes what he characterizes as the increasing privileging of Zionism as a part of Jewish identity. “The Jewish community is structured to basically make the existence of a Jewish state, a state that privileges Jews over Palestinians, sacred, … elevat[ing] ethnonationalism — a Jewish state — over Judaism itself,” Beinart says. In response, he challenges the erasure of Zionism’s explicitly colonial roots and political myths about majoritarian rule, arguing for the acceptance of more critical stances toward the state of Israel within Jewish communities."
"Grinning like the cat that ate the canary, Hague fugitive Benjamin Netanyahu sat beside Donald Trump as the U.S. president unequivocally told the press on Tuesday that the plan for Gaza is to permanently remove all Palestinians from the enclave.
“I don’t think people should be going back to Gaza,” Trump said. “I think that Gaza has been very unlucky for them. They’ve lived like hell.”
Asked for clarification on whether the Palestinians would have a right to return to Gaza after its reconstruction, Trump said the plan is to build them housing in other countries that’s so nice they won’t want to return."
"This week, as I watched the press conference with President Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu, I was tempted to slip into total denial. At one level, the proposal to take over the Gaza Strip (by American troops), to “own” and transform it into “the Riviera of the Middle East” while sending its hapless residents to an unknown “better place,” was so bizarre and unrealistic on so many levels that I could not help believing it was mere talk. Akin to the notion of turning Canada into the 51st state, how could it be taken seriously?"
From last week:
JEREMY APPEL: Canada's Nazi Problem
MAX BLUMENTHAL: The Christian Zionist Leading the ICJ
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IT WAS A BUSY YEAR!
Thanks to the regular support of our members, other donors and fundraising events, we've managed to initiate and/or assist in the organization of a good number of important events and impactful programming.
PEACE CENTER EVENTS FROM 2024 THAT MADE A DIFFERENCE!
Now, more than ever, we must coordinate our community efforts towards making the world a more peaceful and safer place to live.
WOULD YOU CONSIDER MAKING A
DONATION TO THE CENTER?
WE THANK YOU!
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As a small non-profit, we rely heavily on donations to keep our doors open!
Use the QR code below or access the donation link on our website: https://ourpeacecenter.org/donate/
To send checks directly to the Center -
Make payable to: Mt. Diablo Peace & Justice Center
and mail to our address at 1035 Carol Lane - Lafayette, CA 94549.
The Mt. Diablo Peace & Justice Center is a tax-deductible 501 (c)(3) non-profit.
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ADDITIONAL ONLINE SOURCES FOR ACTIONS and INFORMATION ON PALESTINE/GAZA | |
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World BEYOND War has
a DIVESTMENT campaign!
About the Campaign
Grassroots-led war divestment campaigns are springing up all over the world, from students organizing to divest university endowments, to municipalities and states coming together to divest public pension funds. Divestment means organizing to remove public and private assets from weapons manufacturers, military contractors, and war profiteers.
Public pension and retirement funds especially are often invested, directly and indirectly, in weapons companies. Teachers and other public servants whose interests lie with promoting human needs have their retirement security tied up with maintaining or enlarging the war industry. Every dollar currently invested in weapons and war is a dollar that could be better spent on job creation, education, housing, healthcare, food security, and so much more.
War profiteering is largely normalized today. We’re working to stigmatize the war machine. World BEYOND War assists divestment campaigns led by our chapters, affiliates, other coalitions, and individuals around the world.
FIND OUT MORE ABOUT THE CAMPAIGN HERE
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NOW WHAT????
The Frontlines event on May 4th was very powerful and emotional.
FRONTLINE EVENT WAS REPORTED ON LOCAL NEWS!
We heard from several attendees that they felt compelled to act in a meaningful way. Sometimes it feels a bit overwhelming... where do we start?
In terms of direct aid going to Gaza specifically, we recommend Baitulmaal, who have been able to get aid in.
The other organization we recommend is HEAL Palestine which is focused on rebuilding and rehabilitating Gaza. Its founders are the same founders of PCRF.
There is also Palestine Children's Relief Fund (PCRF) which evacuates children who are in need of medical treatment abroad and Medical Aid for Palestinians which offers medical services to Palestinians in Palestine and Palestinian refugees in neighboring countries.
For a full list of resources, you can access the document we put together: tinyurl.com/FrontlinesResources
One thing we are asked to do, again and again, from the people in Gaza is to raise awareness about their situation. Talk to your nearest and dearest about the ongoing genocide.
Remember, we all have a role to play and collectively, our small actions add up. Don't give up, keep raising awareness, keep boycotting, keep donating, keep advocating, KEEP CALLING YOUR LOCAL REPS!
If you have any questions, feel free to reach out.
- From the Frontlines Organization Team
MORE UPDATES COMING SOON! WATCH THIS SPACE!
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This website provides comprehensive information including events & campaigns
CHECK HERE FOR LINKS TO REACH OUT TO YOUR REPRESENTATIVES!
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Includes a frequently updated
calendar of local events
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Peace work in the Quaker tradition
American Friends Service Committee
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BOYCOTT
DIVESTMENT and SANCTIONS!
CHECK OUT THIS HANDY APP!
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Peace is Possible!
Mt. Diablo Peace and Justice Center
at Creekside Commons
1035 Carol Lane
Lafayette, CA 94549
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