Kateri Peace Conference 2018 - Geopolitical Imperatives

 

Fonda, NY; August 18, 2018

A Talk by Ann Wright and Ray McGovern

The Fierce Urgency of Now!

“We are now faced with the fact that tomorrow is today. We are confronted with the fierce urgency of now. In this unfolding conundrum of life and history there is such a thing as being too late.”

Martin Luther King Jr.

Every August for the past twenty summers, the National Kateri Shrine in Fonda, NY has played host to the Kateri Peace Conference. Year after year, this mid summer "meeting at the edge of the woods" has offered the Capital District an opportunity to explore and to find a way forward through the tangled and ever entwining paths of racism, militarism and excessive materialism to the noble and sustainable ground of peace and justice.

August after August, folks who care deeply about a just society have gathered to listen, to share and to learn in a day of personal reflection and commitment to fulfilling the dream of truth, justice and equality. Every meeting of this twenty year quest has been punctuated by a deep concern for the world, tempered by insight and inspiration for envisioning, walking and working towards what it could be. There has always been joy and celebration in finding companionship and community, a source of sustenance for the challenges on the road ahead.

Kateri 2018 promises to provide another milestone on this continuing journey. Anchored in the realities of the geopolitical moment, our conference will invite both presenters and participants to vision both greater clarity and purpose regarding " the now" in the " tides of the affairs of men”.

This year’s speakers are renowned for their courage in embracing the journey, seeking truth, and acting with compassion and an unbridled fierceness to stop the killing of the US war machine. We will continue this work seeking peace with justice, ending war, exploring nonviolent love in action and ways toward economic equality.

One of the constants of the Kateri Peace Conference is our willingness to embrace change and experiment with programming. Our hope has always been to reach out and engage the community as broadly and deeply as possible while providing a rich opportunity for feeding joy and a spirit of celebration.

https://kateripeaceconference.org/2018-conference/fierce-urgency-now

Rally to Ground the Drones and End the Wars

 

Speakers: Amelia Ramsey-Lefevre, Nick Mottern, Joe Lombardo, Debra Sweet, Sarah Ahmed, Bruce Gagnon, Marilyn Levin, Mark Johnson, Alicia Godsberg, Elliot Adams, Rae Kramer, Russell Brown, Colleen Kattau, Kevin Zeese, Ann Wright, Noor Mir, Barrie Gewanter (ACLU observer)

Press Release from the Syracuse Peace Council:

Activists Press Hancock Air Base to Obey International Law

275 People at Protest; 31 Arrested

April 28, 2013

Thirty one members of the “Upstate Coalition to Ground the Drones and End the Wars” were arrested today at Hancock Air Force Base protesting what is the illegal use of drones in Afghanistan,  Pakistan and other countries. Drones are flown from Hancock Field. Over 275 people marched in a solemn funeral procession to demand that Hancock Air National Guard Base cease drone strikes. People carrying banners and coffins identified countries where U.S. drone attacks have killed over a thousand innocent civilians. As they were arrested, some read the names of people who have died in the drone attacks.

People who participated in the demonstration, including some who were arrested, came from all over the country to raise an outcry against the proliferation of drone strikes abroad, including countries with whom the US is not at war. Drone use violates the US Constitution, Article 6, and International Law, which the U.S. has signed on to. Demonstrators also object to the militarization of the police and the growing domestic use of drones. The protesters raised the issue that drone use globally makes Americans unsafe because of the blow back effect.

Demonstrators attempted to deliver a war crimes indictment to the base. It reads:

We, the people, charge the US President, Barak Obama, and the full military chain of command, to Commander Colonel Greg Semmel, every drone crew, and service members at Hancock Air Base, with crimes against humanity, with violations of part of the Supreme Law of the Land, extrajudicial killings, violation of due process, wars of aggression, violation national sovereignty, and killing of innocent civilians.

The thirty one arrestees were arraigned in De Witt Town Court before Judges Benack, Gideon, and Jokl, who imposed bails ranging from $500 - $3500, totaling $34,000. Some of the defendants were released with appearance tickets. Others are refusing to post bail and will be held in jail until the next court date of May 7th & 8th. Donations may be sent to the Syracuse Peace Council, with checks made out to Syracuse Peace Council, note : Upstate Drone Action Bail Fund.  2013 E. Genessee St., Syracuse, NY 13210.

Those Arrested:

Beth Adams, Levertt, MA
John Amidon, Albany, NY
Cynthia Banas, Vernon, NY
Ellen Barfield, Baltimore, MD
Russell Brown, Buffalo, NY
Kate De Mott Grady, Ithaca, NY
Beatrice Dewing, New York City, NY
Max Farhi, Ithaca, NY
Sandra Fessler, Rochester, NY
Daniel Finley, Ithaca, NY
Bruce Gagnon, Brunswick, ME
Jack Gilroy, Binghamton, NY
Charlie Heyn, Damascus, PA
John Honeck, Hamlin, NY
Rae Kramer, Syracuse, NY
Joanne Lingle, Indianapolis, IN
Mary Loehr, Ithaca, NY
Bonnie Mahoney, Buffalo, NY
Harry Murray, Rochester, NY
Valerie Niederhoffer, Buffalo, NY
Julienne Oldfield, Syracuse, NY
Jules Orkin, Bergenfield, NJ
Elizabeth Pappalardo, Crystal Lake, DE
Joan Pleune, Brooklyn, NY
Beverly Rice
Grace Ritter, Ithaca, NY
Matthew Ryden
Andrew Schoerke, Shaftsbury, VT
Mary Snyder, Johnson City, NY
Eve Tetaz, Washington, DC
Patricia Wieland, Northampton, MA

Ann Wright on Gaza

 

Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Binghamton
May 5, 2009

With an Introduction by Tarik Abdelazim

From the Broome County Peace Action website:

Since 2003, Ann Wright has been writing and speaking out for peace. She has fasted for a month, picketed at Guantánamo, served as a juror in the impeachment hearings, and been arrested numerous times for peaceful, nonviolent protest of the war in Iraq.

Sponsors: Broome County Peace Action, Peace Action of New York State

Related Website: Viva Palestina