Upcoming Events in the Phila Area

Summer 2009 Events from the Brandywine Peace Community

Friday, July 3, Noon — Independence Day eve, join with peace and anti-war activists, anti-violence and gun control advocates, justice seekers, community and earth partners, celebrating our freedom and independence, by making a declaration for justice and peace for today. "And Now, DECLARE PEACE!" Demonstration with speakers, music, and public declaration at Independence Mall, Market Street, between 5th & 6th Streets, followed by bell-tolling vigil to stop the wars and end the violence, handgun to H-Bomb.

Memory, Hope, Nonviolent Action at Lockheed Martin, and Peace...August 6 - 9, 2009, Anniversary of the Atomic Bombings of Hiroshima & Nagasaki (August 6 - 9, 1945).

Thursday, August 6, Hiroshima Day —- Lockheed Martin, Mall & Goddard Boulevards, Valley Forge, PA (behind the King of Prussia Mall).
8a.m. - Noon, Vigil for Peace;
Noon - Hiroshima Day Ceremony and Nonviolent Action, including civil disobedience. Those interested in participating in the civil disobedience, call the Brandywine Peace Community by July 25 for preparation and planning information.

Sunday, August 9 — Nagasaki Day, 7:30p.m. Candlelight Peace Dedication in front of SS Peter & Paul Roman Catholic Cathedral, 18th & Benjamin Franklin Parkway, in memory of the Urakami Cathedral, ground zero of the Nagasaki bombing. Co-sponsored by Phila. Catholic Peace Fellowship.

In its 3rd decade...Join Us at the area's longest running on-going gathering for peace and justice, the Brandywine Peace Community Monthly Supper/Program, 4:30PM, 2nd Sunday of the month (except August), University Lutheran Church, 3637 Chestnut Street, Phila., PA (bring main dish, salad, or dessert to share). Programs begin at 5:30PM.

July 12 — Special showing of "The Day After Trinity: J. Robert Oppenheimer and the Atomic Bomb (1980), the acclaimed and Oscar-nominated film documentary about Oppenheimer, the scientific head of the Manhattan Project and the first steps into the nuclear age.

First Fridays, 7 p.m., at the Peace Center of Delaware County/Springfield Friends Meetinghouse, 1001 Old Sproul Road, Springfield, Delaware County, with light refreshments and after-film discussion. Co-sponsored by the Brandywine Peace Community. For more information or directions, www.delcopeacecenter.org, or call 610.544.1818

Skip the Independence Day blockbuster and spend an evening at the Peace Center of Delaware County with "THE VISITOR".

JULY 3 — "THE VISITOR", 103 minutes, rated PG - 13 for some profanity, Directed by Thomas McCarthy ("The Station Agent" ) and starring Richard Jenkins in his Best Actor Oscar nominate role, and Hiam Abbass.

"THE VISITOR" is a simple drama, both poignant and compellingly subtle, that focuses on a lonely man in late middle age whose life changes when he is forced to face issues relating to identity, immigration, and cross-cultural communication in post-9/11 New York City

(5p.m - Cook-out at the Peace Center of Delaware County, prior to the screening of The Visitor. RSVP by calling Brandywine Peace Community, 610-544-1818.)

As the world remembers the anniversaries of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, August 6 and 9, come to the Peace Center of Delaware County on August 7 to see where and how it all began.

AUGUST 7 — "FAT MAN AND LITTLE BOY" (1989), 127 minutes, directed by Roland Joffee (The Killing Fields, The Mission). Starring Paul Newman as General Leslie R. Groves and Dwight Schultz as J.Robert Oppenheimer, with John Cusak, Laura Dern, and Natasshia Richardson. Rated PG -13

"FAT MAN AND LITTLE BOY" dramatically and with precise historical detail tells the story of the Manhattan Project, which developed and built the world's first atomic bombs. In thematic narrative, the film introduces us to the project and people which developed the horror of nuclear weapons, from the inception of the Manhattan Project to the "Trinity" test blast. We are left to imagine at film's end the horror of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings and the world of threatened nuclear annihilation in which we still live.

6pm, large pictorial display from Japan of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings, their after-effects, and the continuing threat posed by nuclear weaponry.

Brandywine Peace Community
P.O. Box 81, Swarthmore, PA 19081
(610) 544-1818
brandywine@juno.com
www.brandywinepeace.com

From Jewish Voices for Peace

Every so often someone comes along who is so brave and so inspiring that you just can't sit by and remain silent when you learn they need your help.

We're writing to you today about one of these rare people.

His name is Ezra Nawi.

You've probably never heard of him, but because you may know our names, now you will know his name.

Ezra Nawi is one of Israel's most courageous human rights activists and without your help, he will likely go to jail in less than 30 days.

His crime? He tried to stop a military bulldozer from destroying the homes of Palestinian Bedouins in the South Hebron region. These homes and the families who live in them have been under Israeli occupation for 42 years. They still live without electricity, running water and other basic services. They are continuously harassed by Jewish settlers and the military.

Nawi's friends have launched a campaign to generate tens of thousands of letters to Israeli embassies all over the world before he is due to be sentenced in July. They've asked for your help.


His name is Ezra Nawi

His name is Ezra Nawi.

We keep saying his name because we believe that the more people know him and know his name, the harder it will be for the Israeli military to send him quietly to jail.

And Ezra Nawi is anything but quiet.

He is a Jewish Israeli of Iraqi descent who speaks fluent Arabic.

He is a gay man in his fifties and a plumber by trade.

He has dedicated his life to helping those who are trampled on. He has stood by Jewish single mothers who pitched tents in front of the Knesset while struggling for a living wage, and by Palestinians threatened with expulsion from their homes.

He is loved by those with little power, to whom he dedicates his life, and hated by the Jewish settlers, military and police.

Now that you know Ezra, you have a chance to stand up for him, and for everything that he represents. Especially now, as Israel escalates its crackdown on human rights and pro-democracy activists.

He needs you. His friends need you. Those he helps every day need you. So please send a letter to the Consulate, to the media, to your family and friends.

Take just a moment to write your letter. Do it now. And then share his name with a friend. Do it for Ezra Nawi.


Noam Chomsky, Naomi Klein, and Neve Gordon

Obama's first television interview in office

Obama said, among other things:

"[Peace between Israel & Palestine is] going to be difficult, it's going to take time. I don't want to prejudge many of these issues, and I want to make sure that expectations are not raised so that we think that this is going to be resolved in a few months. But if we start the steady progress on these issues, I'm absolutely confident that the United States -- working in tandem with the European Union, with Russia, with all the Arab states in the region -- I'm absolutely certain that we can make significant progress.going to be difficult, it's going to take time. I don't want to prejudge many of these issues, and I want to make sure that expectations are not raised so that we think that this is going to be resolved in a few months. But if we start the steady progress on these issues, I'm absolutely confident that the United States -- working in tandem with the European Union, with Russia, with all the Arab states in the region -- I'm absolutely certain that we can make significant progress."

He also said,

"Now, Israel is a strong ally of the United States. They will not stop being a strong ally of the United States. And I will continue to believe that Israel's security is paramount. But I also believe that there are Israelis who recognize that it is important to achieve peace. They will be willing to make sacrifices if the time is appropriate and if there is serious partnership on the other side."

[...]

"I think it is possible for us to see a Palestinian state -- I'm not going to put a time frame on it -- that is contiguous, that allows freedom of movement for its people, that allows for trade with other countries, that allows the creation of businesses and commerce so that people have a better life."