NewPeople March 2016

Thomas Merton Center Pittsburgh’s Peace and Social Justice Center

PITTSBURGH’S PEACE & JUSTICE NEWSPAPER VOL. 46 No. 3 March 2016

Our Toxic Prison- Who is to Blame?

SCI Fayette to the left and LaBelle refuse waste dump site to the right. Photo courtesy of the Abolitionist Law Center.

In the small town of LaBelle in Fayette County, inhabitants report that nine in every eighteen homes has a resident diagnosed with cancer. This is a result of the residue from the nearby coal ash refuse site, residue that wafts into the air and seeps into the ground water. The area of the coal ash dump is uninhabitable, yet the outskirts of it are not; at least in the opinion of the government. The land surrounding the coal ash dump was purchased by the government and a prison has since been built upon it.

The biggest industries in LaBelle are in the vicinity of the coal dump, including the prison. The area is economically depressed, and new businesses will not come into the town due to the pollution. The local community is small, overlooked and essentially without political representation.

The town of LaBelle may be small, but its problems are not: the area is being slowly poisoned and irrevocably contaminated.

In taking a

Ferlo’s Fix on State Government

By Jordan Malloy

tour of LaBelle, or in reading the numerous letters sent to local government, the detrimental effects of the coal dump on local citizens and incarcerated individuals are stark and clear. Petitions and letters are sadly not enough to make the plight of citizens heard. The Citizens Coal Council (CCC) performed tests to convey the gravity of the local water pollution. The CCC stated, “Samples were taken at streams, wells, and drainage pipes which tested at levels of dissolved iron over 60 times greater than the Pennsylvania standard, more than five times the Pennsylvania standard for manganese, and 10 times the standard for sulfate.”

The community members of LaBelle, Fayette County are in danger due to the pollution and the incarcerated of the Fayette County prison receive the worst of it. The prison was built by the PJ Dick Construction Company on the cusp of the coal ash dump, and ailments of (continued on p. 7)

In This Issue Fossil Fuel Divestment…

Page 4

By Neil Cosgrove

As Pennsylvania’s state government completed its seventh month without a full working budget, The New People thought it valuable to seek the observations of a long-time progressive voice in our state and city politics, Jim Ferlo. Ferlo spent 12 years as a state senator and 14 years before that on the Pittsburgh city council, including four years as council president. His answers to our questions reflect his deep knowledge and extensive experience, particularly regarding state government.

Q: How do you explain the 2014 statewide elections, when Tom Wolf, pushing for higher state spending on education and increased taxes to pay for it, beat his opponent by 10 points while anti-tax, anti-spending Republicans increased their majorities in both houses of the Pennsylvania legislature?

A: The 2014 state-wide political reality was not unlike the second Obama election. Congressional reapportionment and its trickle down to state government re-districting gave the advantage to Republicans, creating optimum districts for their voting base. For example, minority communities were split up to weaken a more Democratic or progressive voting base. In Pennsylvania, a few Democratic Congress members, working in their best interests, carved out their best voting districts and allowed the Republicans to have most of the Congressional

districts, disproportionate to Summit Against Racism… the number of registered Democrats vs. Republicans. I didn't run for re-election be- Occupy Pittsburgh Insert… cause I was basically gerrymandered out of the City of Opposing the Occupation…

Pittsburgh and the threecounty area I represented.

Home-field advantage was given to Sen. Vulakovich (R) filling the new 38th District, which to a large extent was Jane Orie’s former Republican district. The 38th District had lost the most population, making it an easy target for the Republican majority, ridding themselves of my more progressive tenure.

After the debacle of Corbett’s term, along came Tom Wolf, a "fresh" business guy with no political baggage to Late in January the Bulletin of speak of, with a good, warm backAtomic Scientists, announced that ground story and early money to gain The Doomsday Clock remains at hegemony through purchased media. three minutes to midnight, which Wolf appealed to the majority of conveys how close we are to destatewide voters on the need to restore stroying our civilization with danpublic education funds, to reduce propgerous technologies of our own erty taxes and tax what most people feel making: are the outrages of the Marcellus Shale “First and foremost among oil and gas industry. That's the majority these are nuclear weapons, but the of voters statewide, especially where dangers include climate-changing there is not active Marcellus Shale drilltechnologies, emerging biotechnoling. In the Marcellus Shale areas, the ogies, and cybertechnology that industry may have been the first sign of could inflict irrevocable harm, life for job seekers and for local governwhether by intention, miscalculaments in need of taxes and infrastruction, or by accident, to our way of ture. They see Pittsburgh and Philly life and to the planet.” getting (continued on p.14)

Page 6 Pages 9- 12 Page 16

DOOMSDAY CLOCK: We’re Three Minutes from Midnight

By Molly Rush

Back in 1982, over a million people marched at UN Headquarters in New York City to protest the extreme danger of nuclear war posed by the U.S. and Soviet nuclear bombs ready to be launched in minutes.

The Struggle for Disarmament NOW The U.S. and Russia continue to maintain 800 warheads on high alert, ready to launch a deliberate attack, while the possibility exists “of an accidental, unauthorized or inadvertent nuclear exchange.”

The U.S., Russia, France and (continued on p.16)

The Thomas Merton Center 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.

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March 2016

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Office Phone: 412-361-3022 — Fax: 412-361-0540 Website: www.thomasmertoncenter.org

The NewPeople Editorial Collective

Neil Cosgrove, Ginny Cunningham, Michael Drohan, Russ Fedorka, Marni Fritz, Nijah Glenn, Erin, Ludlow, Jim McCarville, Bette McDevitt, Thomas Mulholland, Joyce Rothermel, Molly Rush, Paola Corso, Jo Tavener

TMC Staff, Volunteers & Interns

Executive Director: Antonio Lodico Finance Director / Project Liaison: Roslyn Maholland Administrative Assistant: Marni Fritz Support Staff: Sr. Mary Clare Donnelly, Meagan McGill Office Volunteers: Monique Dietz, Nancy Gippert, Lois Goldstein, Barbara Irons, Joyce Rothermel, Judy Starr, Tyger New People Coordinators: Marni Fritz & Tom Mulholland East End Community Thrift Store Managers: Shirley Gleditsch, Shawna Hammond, & Sr. Mary Clare Donnelly TMC Organizer/ Internship Coordinator: Gabriel McMorland

Thomas Merton Center Interns: Imaz Athar, Joy Cannon, Raphael

Cardamone, Alexandra Clarke, Lamar Clark, Nijah Glenn, Erin Ludlow, Jordan Malloy, Kathleen Mannard, Meagan McGill, Earl Pearson, Matthew Petras, Deepti Ramadoss, Miriam Reichman, Olivia Smith, Vivian Tan, Kamaria Tucker, Kimberly Webb, Brett Wilson, Andrew Woomer

2016 TMC Board of Directors

Thom Baggerman, Ed Brett, Michelle Burton-Brown, Rob Conroy (President), Neil Cosgrove, Mark Dixon, Michael Drohan, Patrick Fenton, Mary Jo Guercio, Wanda Guthrie, anupama jain, Ken Joseph, Anne Kuhn, Jonah McAllister-Erickson, Jim McCarville, Joyce Rothermel, Molly Rush (co-founder), Tyrone Scales, Evan Schindler, M. Shernell Smith.

The East End Community Thrift (Thrifty) is an all volunteer-run thrift shop which provides quality, low-cost, used clothing and household goods to the surrounding community. Thrifty needs volunteers and shoppers! Please contact us at (412) 361-6010 and ask for Shirley or Shawna, or stop in at 5123 Penn Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15224. Email shawnapgh@aol.com.

TMC Projects

TMC Affiliates

(TMC projects follow TMC guidelines and receive financial and ongoing resources and support from the Thomas Merton Center.)

(Affiliates are independent partner organizations who support the nonviolent peace and justice mission of TMC. - Articles may not necessarily represent the views of Affiliates)

Anti-War Committee awc@thomasmertoncenter.org Book‘Em: Books to Prisoners Project bookempgh@gmail.com www.bookempgh.org Capital’s End 724-388-6258, iamholtz@iup.edu CodePink: Women for Peace francineporter@aol.com, 412-389-3216 www.codepink4peace.org East End Community Thrift Shop 412-361-6010, shawnapgh@aol.com Economic Justice Committee drohanmichael@yahoo.com Environmental Justice Committee

environmentaljustice@thomasmertoncenter.org

Fight for Lifers West Greater Pittsburgh Interfaith Coalition Anne Wirth 412-716-9750 Harambee Ujima/Diversity Footprint Twitter @HomewoodNation

Human Rights Coalition / Fed Up (prisoner support and advocacy) 412-802-8575, hrcfedup@gmail.com www.prisonerstories.blogspot.com Marcellus Shale Protest Group melpacker@aol.com 412-243-4545 marcellusprotest.org New Economy Campaign gabriel@thomasmertoncenter.com Pittsburgh 350 350pittsburgh@gmail.com World.350.org/pittsburgh Pittsburgh Anti-Sweatshop Community Alliance Pittsburgh Campaign for Democracy NOW! 412-422-5377, sleator@cs.cmu.edu www.pcdn.org Pittsburgh Darfur Emergency Coalition jumphook@gmail.com; www.pittsburghdarfur.org Pittsburghers for Public Transit 412-216-9659 info@pittsburghforpublictransit.org Progressive Pittsburgh Notebook 412-363-7472 tvnotebook@gmail.com

Publish in The New People The New People is distributed to 3,000 people who belong to diverse organizations, businesses and groups each month. The deadline for all submissions is the 13th of the month for the following month’s issue.

School of the Americas Watch W. PA 412-271-8414 drohanmichael@yahoo.com Shalefield Stories (Friends of the Harmed) 412-422-0272 brigetshields@gmail.com

To Submit Articles, Photos, or Poems: Visit www.thomasmertoncenter.org/newpeople/submit.

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For more information: Call 412-361-3022 or email newpeople@thomasmertoncenter.org.

Stop Sexual Abuse in the Military 412-361-3022 hildebrew@aol.com Westmoreland Marcellus Citizens Group 724-837-0540 lfpochet@verizon.net

Table of Contents 

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Page 1 Our Toxic Prison - Who is to Blame?

Ferlo on State Government DOOMSDAY CLOCK: We’re Three Minutes to Midnight Page3 A New Board Member: Michelle Burton-Brown The Glory of the World Review 2016 Elections Calendar Page 4 Divest Now, Pittsburgh Personal Divestment and 401k Retirement Funds Page 5 Potable Water only for the Privileged: Environmental Racism Page 6 Summit Against Racism– A First Time Participant White Roles Where Blacks Lead 2 - NEWPEOPLE

March 2016

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Page 7 Slow Death Row Our Toxic Prison Continued Legacy of Amherst’s Namesake Page 8 Ujamaa Collective - Ageless Innovation At Work Under Pressure: It’s 2k16 and Millennials are Over Higher Education Page 9-12 Occupy Pittsburgh Now Page 13 Overcoming Mental Health Stigma in the Muslim Community Safe Space for Pittsburgh LGBTQ Youth Page 14 Reflections on the Bernie Sanders Campaign The President’s War Budget Ferlo On State Government Continued Page15 Presidential Campaign Stumps Beltway

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Amnesty International info@amnestypgh.org - www.amnestypgh.org Association of Pittsburgh Priests Sr. Barbara Finch 412-716-9750 B.a.finch@att.net Battle of Homestead Foundation

412-848-3079

The Big Idea Bookstore 412-OUR-HEAD www.thebigideapgh.org The Black Political Empowerment Project Tim Stevens 412-758-7898 CeaseFire PA www.ceasefirepa.org—info@ceasefirepa.org Citizens for Social Responsibility of Greater Johnstown Larry Blalock, evolve@atlanticbb.net Global Solutions Pittsburgh 412-471-7852 dan@globalsolutionspgh.org www.globalsolutionspgh.org

North Hills Anti-Racism Coalition 412-369-3961 email: info@arc.northpgh.org www.arc.northpgh.org PA United for Single-Payer Health Care www.healthcare4allPA.org www.PUSH-HC4allPa.blogspot.com 412-421-4242 Pittsburgh Area Pax Christi 412-761-4319 Pittsburgh Cuba Coalition 412-303-1247 lisacubasi@aol.com Pittsburgh North People for Peace 412-760-9390 info@pnpp.northpgh.org www.pnpp.northpgh.org

412-512-1709

We are mission driven volunteers who look to build love and community by serving others in times of need.

Abolitionist Law Center 412-654-9070 abolitionistlawcenter.org

Pittsburgh Palestine Solidarity Committee info@pittsburgh-psc.org www.pittsburgh-psc.org Raging Grannies 412-963-7163 eva.havlicsek@gmail.com www.pittsburghraginggrannies.homestead.com

Religion and Labor Coalition 412-361-4793 ojomal@aol.com

SWPA Bread for the World Joyce Rothermel 412-780-5118 United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America (UE) 412-471-8919 www.ueunion.org Veterans for Peace kevinbharless@yahoo.com 252-646-4810 Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) Eva 412-963-7163 edith.bell4@verizon.net

TMC is a Member of Pennsylvania Interfaith Impact Network 412-621-9230 office@piin.org Pennsylvanians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty Martha Connelly 412-361-7872, osterdm@earthlink.net TMC supports these organizations missions.

Bloviators Culture Watch: Follies and Foibles on the Democratic Campaign Trail Page16 Stirrings in Regard to Occupation of Palestine DOOMSDAY CLOCK Continued SOA Watch: Spring Days of Action Page17 Darfur Still Isn’t Saved (and Neither is South Sudan) Imperialism in the South China Sea World’s Richest 62 Equals Half the World’s People Page18 Pigeon Joe We Remember Concepcion Picciotto Bread for the World Focus for 2016 Keeping Pittsburgh’s History in Front of Us Page19 March Calendar

Merton Center News A New Board Member: Michelle Burton-Brown

By Joyce Rothermel

One of the four new Thomas Merton Center board members is Michelle Burton-Brown. Many of our readers may remember Michelle from her past leadership roles at the Merton Center, especially as the Development Director in 2009 when the Center honored Professor Angela Davis with its annual Thomas Merton Award.

Michelle recalls the roots of her peace and social justice values in her upbringing. Her mother Juanda Burton put into action the works of mercy fostered by her Catholic faith especially in her advocacy for people imprisoned.

When Michelle moved from the suburbs to the Garfield section of Pittsburgh in 2006, she became a volunteer at the Center. At that time, Tim Vining, was the Center’s director. Energy was high and the

Center attracted an array of passionate and talented activists. Initially, Michelle got involved in the fight against the employment in law enforcement of people who were poorly trained and overly zealous. She joined the Anti-War Committee protesting U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East. This led to involvement in several TMC projects: Book’em, Pittsburgh Organizing Group, Save Our Transit, Fight for Lifers West, the Africa Project, and an Anti-Sweat Shop initiative. Michelle then began her first term on the TMC Board. There, she helped establish the development committee and chaired the 2009 Merton Award Dinner Committee honoring Angela Davis.

Michelle is now returning to the Merton Center board. When asked why she is choosing this commitment at this time, Michelle says, “Despite amazing advances in technology and greater access to information, Americans continue to act in ways that are unjust and inhumane. For example, some American politicians are fighting to prevent Syrian refugees from seeking refuge in the U.S. Flint, Michigan is a transparent example of environmental and economic injustice in an American city. Officials continue to blame unarmed civilians when they are over -killed by law enforcement. Eric Garner was choked to death on a NYC street by police officers. Oscar Grant was killed on the West Coast by transit police.

Jonny Gammage was murdered by the police right here in Pittsburgh. As long as injustice exists in the world, peace and justice loving people like myself will need organizations like the TMC.” Michelle believes that the biggest challenges facing the Center at this time are attracting enough volunteers and members to assist in and support the Center’s efforts to advance civil and human rights Michelle Burton-Brown with grandson Andre Johnson at locally and globally and to eliminate social systems the Kelly Strayhorn Theater celebrating MLK day. that dehumanize and oppress the people. Michelle

shares, “I’m a college educated, African/Native woman who has first-hand experience with oppressive systems. I’ve lived in a white supremacist country my entire life. I’ve experienced racism, sexism and now, ageism. I am bringing my personal experiences and my graduate training in conflict resolution to the Board. I also bring intellect, energy and my love for the people.”

When asked what gives her hope, Michelle says that one of the most hopeful moments in her lifetime was at the time of the election of an African American to the presidency of the U.S. “If a nation founded upon the principles of white supremacy can do something as radical as elect a black president, then I believe anything is possible, even a peaceful and just world is imaginable.”

In addition to her board membership at the Merton Center, Michelle is currently involved with the Innocence Project to secure the release of her brother Shawn L. Burton from prison. She believes that Shawn was wrongly convicted for a crime he did not commit. She invites you to read about his 20year fight for justice at the Pittsburgh City Paper website.

We welcome Michelle’s return to the TMC Board and her passion and commitment to the Center’s mission.

Joyce Rothermel is a member of the board of the Thomas Merton Center.

The Glory of the World Review

By: John Rogers

The Glory of the World is a commissioned work about the life of Thomas Merton, not exactly in celebration of his just celebrated 100th birthday (although that is the setting) but because an Episcopalian monk, Roy Cockrum, a couple of years ago bought a "Powerball" ticket in Cambridge, Mass., and won $259 million. This is only the first of several "co-incidences" here that seems to illustrate the old rabbinic dictum (later adopted by Aquinas) that "There are no accidents."

Like many of us who bargain with Le Bon Dieu, Cockrum had pre-decided that if he ever had a mega-score that he was to use at least some of the proceeds to support regional theatre. So a portion of his winnings went to the Actors Theatre of Louisville. [Most subscribers to this periodical know that Merton after his conversion emigrated to the nearby Trappist monastery at Gethsemani and had one of his great spiritual experiences at a street corner in Louisville. The City has marked this event with a plaque.]

Les Walters, the director of Actors Theatre, commissioned the play to Charles Mee, who had much more than a passing interest in Merton. The play opened last year in Louisville to what might be

The cast of The Glory of the World . Photo by Bill Brymer.

called tepid reviews. According to a story in the NY Times, Louisville's chief daily said it was "perplexing but fascinating"; while a countercultural publication reported "a collective sense of confused delight". The author and the director had earlier collaborations staged at the Brooklyn Academy of Music; thus Thomas Merton's 100th birthday party (the ma- The cast of The Glory of the World by Chuck Mee, part of the 2015 Humana Festival of trix of Mee's play) New American Plays at Actors Theatre of Louisville. Photo by Bill Brymer. opened in the Big Apple (or, at least, nearby) on Jan. 16th. It closed on Feb. out!) This is after the men were dancing, "making 6th. In its "Arts & Leisure" section on Jan.10th, the out" [these words come from the review in the New New York Times gave the play an enormous sendYork Post], and flexing their muscles during a sunoff. However, other than a couple of short notices in bathing session before brawling.

Brooklyn publications, the play didn't seem to reThe director, Les Walters, has cast himself as ceive much notice in Gothham and its environs.

Merton. However, lest the reader see him as an OrSo what's the play about? As mentioned earli- son Welles wannabe, Walters does not recite any of er, the setting is Merton's 100th birthday party where Merton's words. They are shown on a large screen, 17 male celebrants dressed in party hats quarrel over which to my thinking was quite effective. Also, in how to describe Merton. I don't know if Mee's mod- homage to Merton's vocation, there are long periods el was the story of the six blind Hindus describing of silence in the play, which seemed to make some an elephant but that is the affect. [The Hindu who members of the audience quite uneasy. touches the elephant's side says "An elephant is like Because of the large male cast, it is problema wall", etc.] Merton was, of course, an emotional atic as to whether the play will have much of an afwriter, a theological thinker, a pacifist, and a real terlife. Also, if one wasn't a devotee before seeing mensch! And this is just for openers. He died after The Glory of the World, I don't think that this play what some called a near-embrace of Buddhism. My would convert you. For people responding to Pope reading of his end is that because of their similar life Francis' Merton plug in Philadelphia ["a source of styles, he realized than he had more in common with spiritual inspiration and a guide for many people"], I a Buddhist monk than most other Christians. would commend the book rather than the play.

And, Oh, yes. A world class mystic!

After "defining" Merton (and some other frol- John Rogers is a retired lawyer, an Episcopalian, and a member of the Franciscan Order of Divine ics), the 17 characters engage in a long physical brawl (a little like the joke about how one went to a Compassion. professional fight and the hockey game broke March 2016

NEWPEOPLE - 3

Fossil Fuel Divestment Divest Now, Pittsburgh

By Gabriel McMorland

The Divest Pittsburgh campaign of the Thomas Merton Center is calling on the Mayor, City Council, and the Pension Board to divest city funds from fossil fuels. Strong moral and financial reasons support divesting from the 200 companies holding the largest amount of unburned carbon in their fossil fuel reserves.

The campaign sees divestment as part of transitioning to a healthy, clean energy future, and opposes the fossil fuel industry’s business plan that fuels dangerous climate change, toxic pollution at home, and political lobbying to dismantle protections for working people and public health.

Pittsburgh is home to multiple fossil fuel divestment campaigns focused on Pitt, Chatham, CMU, and the city government. Oakland’s Phipps Conservatory recently divested from fossil fuels, joining hundreds of other institutions worldwide.

The Divest Pittsburgh campaign agrees that protecting the retirement security of our city workers should be the top priority for the pension fund. We believe that fossil fuel divestment is good for the long term financial security of the pension because real action on climate change will require these companies to leave most of their fossil fuel reserves unburned and underground. If we’re going to have a future, our future’s not going to use fossil fuels!

Divest Pittsburgh proposes that the city immediately freeze any new investments in fossil fuels and, over the next five years, sell off all investments that include fossil fuels.

Divest Pittsburgh activists gathered more than 500 petition signatures, as well as letters of endorse-

ment from the Allegheny Group of the Sierra Club, Clean Water Action, Fossil Free Pitt Coalition, GASP, and Pittsburgh 350. Throughout 2015, activists met with City leaders to make sure they had the information needed to make the right decision. The campaign also recently shared draft legislation with City Council and sent members of the pension board a white paper outlining the financial case for fossil fuel divestment.

What will the Mayor do? In December of 2015, Mayor Peduto issued a press release announcing his intention to “develop a fossil fuel divestment strategy for City of Pittsburgh funds”. It’s time for him to step up as a leader on climate action and support divestment more publicly. Supporters can call the Mayor’s office at 412.255.2626 and leave a message saying you support the City of Pittsburgh divesting from coal, fracked gas, and oil. City residents can add their name to the petition at divestpittsburgh.com.

Gabriel McMorland is a staff organizer at the Thomas Merton Center.

Get involved with Divest Pittsburgh by contacting him at gabriel@thomasmertoncenter.org

Personal Divestment and 401k Retirement Funds

By Kathleen Mannard

“Divesting from fossil fuels” is a growing movement of individuals, universities, philanthropic organizations, faith groups, health organizations, municipalities and pension funds.

These are people and institutions making ethical decisions not to profit from harm-causing fossil fuel industries. More importantly, there are ways you can join them.

First some background Fossil fuels created “nearly three-fourths of human-caused emissions” in the past 20 years (Energy.gov). Those emissions will threaten human health over generations and drastically alter our ecosystem at an increased speed. Such alterations, the World Bank reported in 2015, “hits the poorest people the hardest, those living in vulnerable areas with the fewest resources to help them adapt or recover quickly from shocks.”

A global need for recognition of divestment was discussed this past December 2015 in Paris

at the COP 21 (Conference of Parties 21). The fossil fuel divestment campaign, coordinated by 350.org, announced at the summit that, “more than 500 institutions representing over $3.4 trillion in assets have made some form of divestment commitment” (350. org). The movement for divestment has been accelerating rapidly over the last few years, especially with the longterm investing of pension funds for future generations.

In January of 2016, Pittsburgh City Council President Bruce Kraus proposed a bill to direct Pittsburgh’s pension fund to divest from fossilfuel industries. The motives behind the legislation touch on both ethical and financial reasons.

If the damage to the planet continues at the same rate, the global impact on generations to come will be staggering and irreversible. As a long-term investment, divesting from fossil fuels companies is a good financial move because holding devalued carbon assets in the future will harm your financial return.

Meet and Hear Author and Theologian Ilia Delio - March 6

divesting from fossil fuel companies may have.

In her personal story, de Barbaro applied for a Self-Brokerage Account within her employer retirement fund. Upon approval, she transferred her 401k savings into its money market reserve, allowing her to directly influence where her money went. To avoid the monthly fee of transfer, she made the decision to accumulate several monthly deposits into the original account and transfer her money to Brokerage Link once a year. Every person’s employer is different, however, and vocally requesting a Brokerage Link may be the first step.

In 2007, de Barbaro invested her money in socially responsible funds. She investigated the funds through several sources. The website http://charts.ussif.org/mfpc/ lists criteria used by fund managers to select companies to invest in.

Upon deciding on criteria, she further reviewed the Morningstar ratings and performance of these selected funds before deciding which funds to buy. Her choices provided a respectable return rate. However, she mentions that the past performance does not guarantee good future outcomes.

Since she first invested, there are more fossil-fuel-free funds and options, and the sizable portion of her retirement is now entirely fossilfree. When managing funds, de Barbaro highly suggests to pay attention to fees, both load and management fees. and hopefully choose a good time to make your investment in renewable energy sources.

De Barbaro’s story is an excellent example of divestment on a personal level. There are multiple methods of divesting depending on the employer, the fees, and the amount of retirement funds you have to invest in either fossil-fuel free or renewable energy. Gofossilfree.org shares similar steps to those taken by de Barbaro and provides their own “roadmap to divestment” on how to start this worthwhile plan of personal action for the economy and the environment.

What can an individual do?

As divestment accelerates globally and nationally, it is important for people to Valuing all of creation is at the heart of the environmental realize that divestment is possible on an movement. There are insights awaiting all of us interested individual level. Divesting allows indiin the current climate crises from Sr. Ilia Delio on Sunday, viduals to align values with investments and reallocate funds that aid in the transiMarch 6 from 2 – 4 PM at the Kearns Spirituality Center, 9000 Babcock Blvd. in Allison Park. Her topic, “Cotion to a sustainable economy, one that Creating an Unfinished Universe: Challenges and New Di- does not rely on toxic emissions for enerrections” flows from her teaching and writings in the area gy. One possible way individuals can diof science and religion and her special interests in evoluvest is through retirement funds. tion, physics and neuroscience and their importance for Lucyna de Barbaro, resident of Squirrel theology.

Hill and volunteer for 350.org, coordinates the personal divestment campaign Invited to speak by the Association of Pittsburgh Priests, Ilia Delio is a Franciscan Sister from Washington, DC cur- for 350.org since its inception almost two years ago. In her article, “One Person’s rently teaching in the Theology Department at Villanova Journey Through the 401k/403b RetireUniversity. She has authored 17 books, written numerous articles and is a sought after speaker throughout the coun- ment Fund Divestment from Fossil try. Her books include, Care for Creation, The Unbearable Fuels” (available at http://world.350.org/ Wholeness of Being, and Making All Things New. pittsburgh/), de Barbaro shares the information about new tools, like fossilfreePlan to come to hear Ilia Delio in person. Cost for the talk funds.org which find the fossil fuels hid- Kathleen Mannard is a third year student at is $20. Reservations can be made in advance but are not den within the mutual funds, and address- the University of Pittsburgh and a writing inrequired by calling Sr. Mary Joan Coultas at 412-366-1124. tern for the Thomas Merton Center. es major questions anyone considering 4 - NEWPEOPLE

March 2016

Challenging Environmental Racism Potable Water only for the Privileged: Environmental Racism Loren D. Edwards-Thompson

By now, the water crisis in Flint, Michigan is on every one's radar. For nearly two years the city has been obtaining water from the Flint River after the city switched its water source from Lake Huron, yet people are still arguing over whom is to blame.

The negligence of Governor Rick Snyder allowed this public health disaster to happen; the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency also did not take action to inform the residents of the lack of corrosion controls that put them at risk for lead contamination.

This issue is not unique to Flint, or even Michigan; it goes far beyond the environmental disasters humans breed. It is a societal matter, with roots deeply embedded in the inhumane treatment of underprivileged, poor, or racialized groups in America.

Human rights activist Stephanie Gilley tweeted, “When rich white men purposely poison thousands of Americans and it's treated like a natural disaster instead of terrorism...that's white male privilege.”

Robert D. Bullard, Dean of the School of Public Af-

fairs, Texas Southern University, stated that this crisis is, “a blatant example of environmental injustice...the more information comes out, the clearer it is that this community was not treated according to the usual protocols.”

Not only is the crisis in Flint a crime of fraud in covering up the polluting of water but also of environmental racism and structural oppression. The acts are justified through racism that persists in the U.S. today. Historically, socially marginalized groups were limited in occupations and often took labor jobs that required them to perform difficult and/or messy occupational duties. The idea of ethnic “purity” is tied to cleanliness and hygiene, which has become a central aspect of white identity, justifying the unjust treatment of human beings. Today, the bigoted idea remains deeply ingrained in the national psyche and continues to shape social and environmental inequalities. This bigotry is perpetuated by powerful corporations and politicians, spreading the practice of exploiting politically vulnerable communities. Environmental racism refers to the tendency to burden marginalized groups with environmental problems.

African Americans in Flint who are Where: Meet at Gr ace United Methodist Chur ch on State subjected to lead-contaminated water are Street in Harrisburg, then March to the Capitol Rotunda. not alone; the Navajo people are being poisoned by abandoned uranium mines When: Mar ch 21, 2016 that are leaching into wells. The trauma Time: Gather at 9:45 at Gr ace UM; Rally in the Capitol at and injustice those citizens are experi11:00 am

MORALtorium: Spring Forward and Leave Fracking Behind Rally

Why: As people of faith, we ar e seeking: * A MORALtorium on any new wells that involve hydraulic fracturing. * Full funding for the examination of existing PA wells to monitor for methane leaks polluting the air and gas leaks polluting the water. * Full funding for the cleanup of contaminated wells which cause health and safety problems for Pennsylvanians. * Support for the renewable energy jobs. * Retraining workers who are displaced from fossil fuel-related jobs for the emerging renewable energy sector.

Join us: Meet with Legislative Leaders. Pennsylvania’s energy policy is a moral issue.

Please contact Wanda Guthrie, GreenFaith Fellow, environment@thomasmertoncenter.org or call 412-661-1529 or 412-596-0066 This event is endorsed by the Thomas Merton Center and GreenFaith

encing should not only outrage Pennsylvanians but lead us to examine our own water quality. Lowincome residents and people of color in Pennsylvania are living near chemical dangers. The Center for Effective Government graded states based on the dangers faced by people of color and residents with incomes below the poverty line living within one mile of dangerous facilities, compared to white and non-poor people in these areas. Pennsylvania scored poorly, with a “D” grade. Pennsylvania alone contains 354 high-risk facilities that are scattered across the state with the highest concentrations around the state’s major cities of Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Allentown.

Key findings from the report More than 1.1 million Pennsylvanians (nearly one in 10) live within one mile of a facility storing large amounts of extremely hazardous chemicals.

These “fenceline communities” face potential chemical leaks and explosions on a daily basis Children of color under age 12 are twice as likely to live in the shadow of a hazardous chemical facility compared to white children. Poor American Indian children are nearly four times more likely to live near facilities than white children not in poverty.

This author is a Chatham University Senior and a Thomas Merton Center Intern working with the Environmental Justice Committee project.

Environmental Racism: Biological Civil Warfare

By Wanda Guthrie

Flint and Pittsburgh share an economic history that is heavily industry-based; today two factors are in play. First, deindustrialization that has led to urban decay and environmental contamination, and second, a long standing racial and economic inequality. This is biological civil warfare. Flint native, Michael Moore points out the atrocity, “…you cannot reverse the irreversible brain damage that has been inflicted upon every single child in Flint. The damage is permanent. There is no medicine you can send, no doctor or scientist who has any way to undo the harm done to thousands of babies, toddlers and children (not to mention their parents). They are ruined for life.”

A reading from The Rev. Dr. William J. Barber II - Author of The Third Reconstruction: Moral Mondays, Fusion Politics, and the Rise of a New Justice Movement: “Frederick Douglass taught us back in the 19th century that power concedes nothing without a demand. Because power blinds broken human beings to injustice, the most powerful among us will always ignore and laugh at the cries of those who suffer. But when the balance of power tips far enough to threaten those who think that they are in control...then those in power fight back.

Their resistance is our confirmation that we are gaining ground. When they stop laughing and start fighting, you can be sure they are worried that you are winning.”

To combat these discriminatory practices will require an environmental justice movement which is

just as much social as it is environmental.

There is a potential for great power in this movement.

Fusion history teaches us to see strength in coalition. Much like the First and Second Reconstructions, the forces fighting us on voting rights, educational equality, and racial disparities in the criminal-justice system are the same ones behind the attacks on LGBTQ rights. The advocates of huge tax cuts for the wealthy and greater burdens on everyone else are the same ones pursuing a new Jim Crow through voter-suppression bills and race-based redistricting. They are the forces who refuse to expand Medicaid and are driving the resegregation of our public schools.

If these extremists are cagey enough to work together, we should be shrewd enough to unite against them. None of us can wait until our special issue is under fire and then try to rally the people.

Wanda Guthrie is Chair of the Environmental Justice Committee Project and a GreenFaith Fellow.

Infographic taken from The Nation at thenation.com

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Learning to Overcome Racism Summit Against Racism - A First Time Participant On January 23rd 2016 I attended, for the first time, the 18th annual Summit Against Racism, hosted by the Black and White Reunion. Participants could discuss the issues in three sessions, focused on different topics. Some topics were “Islam from the Muslim perspective,” “Allyship vs Co-Conspirator,” and “Violence against Women, Girls and the LGBTQ Community.” Each session included remarks from the sponsoring organization, and an open discussion with the attendees.

Summit Against Racism occurs annually on the Saturday after Martin Luther King Day. This event first started in 1998 in response to the tragic death of Jonny Gammage, a Pittsburgher murdered by five police officers.

Common themes throughout the event included: how can people join together to end racism?

What steps are people able to take to do so? What does it mean to fight against racism?

The Summit Against Racism was an eyeopening experience. Being a woman who comes from a mixed ethnicity of Latina and White culture, and having experienced both moments of racism and white privilege in my life, I learned how to improve my efforts towards racial justice.

In each session, flyers were given to the attendees, suggesting how to answer these questions; teaching people how to grasp the opportunity to work towards racial justice, and how to be a supporter for racial justice. Some of the advice given was the following: · Expand your definition of racism: Racism is not only about the KKK, but other forms of discrimination present in our society. Current discussions of racism focus on institutional racism, and microaggressions—old societal systems and language that reinforce racist behaviors. Racism often occurs

unconsciously. We must acknowledge the day-today racism of people of all color; if we fail to do so we are guilty of invalidating the experience of people of color, therefore missing the opportunity to change others and ourselves. · Educate yourself and teach others: We cannot depend on the oppressed to be the only voices who educate others and ourselves about racism. Educate yourself. Read books, blogs, articles, and stories of those who have faced racism —anything about racial injustice. Learn as much as you can. Once you feel as though you have learned a reasonable amount, teach others. Education is power, create well-informed individuals who then are able to teach others. · Recognize that Racism has molded you: J ust as your environment influences your being, racism has too. Acts of racism, whether directed towards you or others, have influenced our thinking and actions.

Once we recognize this, we can start exploring what contributes to racism, and how to stop it. · This is not only a Black and White issue: If we only think this way, then we are guilty of oppressing other minorities who have been objectified by racism. Recognize this truth, and listen to all stories of racism from all races. Understand that there are different forms of racism that take place in different minorities. · Check your privilege at the door. Don’t take it personally: The concept of white pr ivilege is a hot topic recently when discussing racism. This concept is often seen in a negative light—white people often assume that people of color are claiming that being white means they have never experienced any struggles. This is not true. White privilege means that because you are white, you will not experience some forms of oppression throughout your

By Erin Ludlow

life that people of color often endure. If you are a white person fighting towards racial justice understand that at one point or another you will hear things about yourself, and white people generally, that are unflattering. Do not take it personally— understand such observations are not about you, but about the bigger underlying picture. If you stop listening, you stop being an advocate for racial justice. · Listen: When you ar e pr esented with someone of color’s experiences with racism, listen to them.

Do not belittle their experiences; accept that this is their truth, and believe them. Ask questions. Accept that you may not be able to relate to their experience; simply be an active listener and value them for sharing their experience and helping your views on racism change. · Act: Being a bystander is just as wrong as participating in racism. If you truly want to be an activist towards racial justice, then speak up. Speaking up and speaking out against racism means sometimes being uncomfortable and unpopular—people might get defensive, and try to disagree with you. Remember, the hardest but also the most useful part is starting the conversation.

I suggest any person who has a passion towards racial justice to attend this event next year, and get involved with the different organizations that helped run the event. The more people join the conversation, the better our ability to create change.

Erin Ludlow is currently the editorial collective intern at the Thomas Merton Center. She is a junior at the University of Pittsburgh, majoring in creative nonfiction writing, professional writing, and digital media.

White Roles Where Blacks Lead

By Scilla and Paul Wahrhaftig

“We are living in a historic moment. A new Black Liberation movement has been rising in this country and uniting under the banner of ‘Black Lives Matter.’” Spurred by police and vigilante murders of Black people and racist responses to protest over the treatment of these deaths, this movement is led by a new generation of Black organizers, artists, activists, and media producers who are inspiring people of all races to dream of a world that realizes liberation for all people: The Movement for Black Lives.

These words could almost have been written in the 60’s by organizations such as SNCC, Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, when referring to the Black Power movement in that period.

Stokely Carmichael, one of the leaders of SNCC, summarized the Black Power philosophy as: “It is a call for black people in this country to unite, to recognize their heritage, to build a sense of community. It is a call for black people to define their own goals, to lead their own organizations.”

In the Civil Rights movement of Martin Luther King, there was a role for white people. They worked and protested along with their black brothers and sisters, feeling very much a part of the movement for change. However, as a new movement of young black leaders began to emerge, so did the need for these black and brown communities to look to themselves for leadership and direction. It was a time for black people to celebrate their blackness and to take power into their own hands. They believed that the presence of whites at their events and meetings stifled and intimidated and they saw a different role for the whites in their midst.

“It must be offered that white people who desire change in this country should go where that problem (racism) is most manifest. The problem is not in the black community. The white people should go into white communities where the whites have created power for the express purpose of denying blacks human dignity and self-determination.”

Nonviolent Coordinating Committee Position Paper This was very challenging for many white people who had dedicated their lives to the struggle for civil rights, and now felt a sense of accomplishment as barriers to desegregation came down with them as 6 - NEWPEOPLE

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partners in the fight. Not only did many feel rejected, but for some, the more militant stance of groups such as the Black Panthers and SNCC was threatening.

Today, we see new movements emerging to address racism in our society led by communities of color. In this new exciting era, where people are standing up and calling for an end to racism and discrimination in all areas of society, the role for white allies is again changing.

"In this amazing moment, there is a clear and critical role for white people who want to be involved: challenge racism in our own actions and thoughts, and bring other white people in to do this work together- to join this broad and deep movement."

The Movement for Black Lives There is a difference between the two movements. Messages like Stokely Carmichael’s ended up excluding and alienating potential allies who might have contributed to the change it was seeking. This may have been necessary for the then newly emerging black leadership to establish and prove itself.

However, the Black Lives Matter movement of today is saying something different. It is not excluding allies, but calling on them to step back and acknowledge that the leadership in this struggle has to come from those most impacted. There is a clear role for white allies: first, to recognize our own racism and the part that white privilege plays in our lives and those of the black community. Not for us to be weighed down by guilt, but in order for us to find ways to use our white privilege to be allies for change.

Scilla and Paul were part of the civil rights movement in the 60's in Atlanta. Responding to the call for whites to work in their own communities Paul took a job with the Anti Defamation League.

Prisons Perpetuating Injustice Slow Death Row

By Martha Conley

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania has more youthful offenders (juveniles under 18 years old) serving life sentences without parole (LWOP) than any other state in the union and any other country in the world. Our legislature decided that sentencing juveniles to LWOP was a good idea based on the theory in the 1980’s that a generation of “superpredators” was emerging. Most of these superpredators were black, of course.

The sociologists have since repudiated the theory, admitting that they were wrong, but approximately 524 people who were sentenced as juveniles are still rotting on life row. The Commonwealth claims there are 500 juvenile lifers, 300 sentenced in Philadelphia County. Joseph Heckle, a member of the organization, Fight for Lifers, and longtime advocate for juvenile lifers has identified 524. Pennsylvania is one of the few states with no minimum age for LWOP. Many of these kids, some as young as 14 when sent to adult prisons among sexual predators, were sentenced under the felony murder rule which required a mandatory LWOP sentence when a person is involved in the commission of a felony where someone dies, whether they actually killed the victim or not. “Involved” in this context can mean you were sitting in a car when your adult friend or cousin or uncle went into a store and killed someone unbeknownst to you. Involved can also mean an accident. Trina Garnett was 14 when she accidentally caused a fire, which killed two children, and she received a mandatory LWOP sentence for arson murder. She is now 54 years old and, of

course, still on slow death row going on 40 years. For women in Pennsylvania a LWOP sentence can result from defending yourself from an abusive husband or sexual predator.

Now the good news…The United States Supreme Court in 2012 found in the case of Miller v.

Alabama mandatory LWOP sentences for juveniles to be cruel and unusual and thus, unconstitutional. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court, not known for its compassion, especially when it comes to black people, as revealed by recent racist emails, decided that the decision was not retroactive. Also, since then, some juveniles in Pennsylvania have been sentenced to 60 years in prison. Let’s see, 60 plus 14 is 74.

Lucky for PA juveniles, the U.S. Supreme Court came to the rescue again in Montgomery v.

Louisiana and issued a decision on January 25, 2016 that its earlier decision was indeed retroactive.

The 524 people on life row in Pennsylvania now will have the opportunity to be resentenced and/or considered for parole. The Pennsylvania Board of Probation and Parole has taken the position that it is unable to grant parole to persons sentenced to life, suggesting a two-step process likely involving resentencing and then possibly parole. Let’s hope they are not resentenced to 60 years. This is especially the case for juveniles who were sentenced under the felony murder rule and who did not kill anyone. Some Pennsylvania legislators and judges appear more concerned about being re-elected than being fair. The desire to seem “tough on crime”

seems to have reached a tipping point. Hopefully, it will not be a death knell to a political campaign to show compassion to people, many of whom have been damaged by our society. In this process we may find that we have far fewer victims of violent crime. The money we spend incarcerating people for life would be better spent compensating victims of violent crime and providing decent lives for the homeless.

If all 524 people sentenced as juveniles ended up spending at least 60 years in prison, before dying, the Commonwealth would spend almost a billion dollars incarcerating them at a cost of $30, 000 per inmate, per year. Including the 524 people sentenced as juveniles, there are roughly 5000 people in total serving life sentences in Pennsylvania. “Life” in Pennsylvania is life without parole. There are undoubtedly some inmates who should remain incarcerated for the rest of their lives. However, since Miller v. Alabama, judges are no longer required to sentence juveniles to LWOP for felony murder. They now have the discretion to consider each case based on the facts uncovered at trial. Judges should consider the age of the accused at the time of the crime, the circumstances surrounding the crime, and his or her potential for rehabilitation.

Martha Conley is an attorney in Pittsburgh, an Official Visitor of the PA Prison Society and CoChair of Pennsylvanians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty

Our Toxic Prison- Who Is to Blame? Cont’d the prisoners caused by its proximity are horrendous. The Center for Coalfield Justice, the Human Rights Coalition, and the Abolitionist Rights Coalition sent out 162 surveys to the prisoners, to which 63 have responded. There are four separate prisoners who were interviewed personally. 81% of the prisoners who returned the survey reported issues which the coalition groups categorized as “respiratory, throat, and sinus conditions; skin irritation, rashes, and hives; gastrointestinal problems; and cancers.” Despite the clear lack of concern for the environment and residents of the area, the PJ Dick Company states, “The drive toward sustainable building in an era of energy conservation awareness has become a nationwide effort--often referred to as the “green building” movement. The PJ Dick, Trumbull, and Lindy Paving Companies support this movement and have been leaders in sustainable construction techniques since the mid 1980’s.”

Citizens are suffering, prisoners are exposed to cruel and unusual treatment, and the government benefits. Coal is left in the fields to continue a cycle

of pollution, and there is no end in sight. Sadly, there are plans to increase the amount of coal ash disposed in LaBelle with Alpha building a new coal terminal in the area. Additionally, the Department of Environmental Protection is increasing the amount of coal refuse permitted to 10,000,000 tons a year.

The coal refuse haunts the lungs of citizens and prisoners alike and comes in many different forms.

It sweeps through the air, staining white houses grey with a persistence which has caused locals to stop painting over it. The refuse seeps into the ground as a liquid, streaming through the groundwater into the pipes of homes and jail showers alike. The proximity of the prison to the source of the contamination leaves prisoners with severe health effects, burning skin and bleeding noses as some of the side effects.

This pollution manifests itself most ominously as slurry ponds, or ponds filled with the liquefied refuse of coal. The slurry ponds are recognized as a legitimate threat to human life. The operator of the dump, Matt Canestrale Contracting, has a prevention plan in accordance to this threat to health. This prevention plan involves covering the ground in

By Jordan Malloy

sludge to prevent “rainwater from leaching chemicals into soil, surface water, and groundwater.” This has proven to not be enough.

The Center for Coalfield Justice has been actively organizing citizens and the families of those incarcerated in the Fayette County Prison to protest and rally against the coal companies. The problems that affect this town are not far from any of us. The same company headed by PJ Dick that constructed the prison is now constructing the apartments in Bakery Square, increasing the gentrification of East Liberty. Pollution, no matter where it happens, affects the world around us. It reaches out for all lungs; as Martin Luther King said, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” We must stand with the people of Fayette and end this injustice, or eventually we will become poisoned ourselves.

Jordan Malloy is a Thomas Merton Center Intern who works with the Fight for Lifers Group.

The Legacy of Amherst’s Namesake

By Kenneth Miller

When I was a student at UMASS Amherst, the Maoist Internationalist Movement helped organize Prison Awareness Week, led reading groups, and distributed a t-shirt that read, “Naming a day after Columbus is like naming a town after Amherst.”

Lord Jeffery Amherst, namesake of the town, the College, and the University, is famous for murdering Indians on the Allegheny River’s North Shore with smallpox infested blankets and then doing the same thing in Western Massachusetts where, in appreciation, they named a town after him. Indeed, naming a day after Columbus is a lot like naming a town after Amherst.

The New Y ork Times reports that Amherst College is keeping its name because “it is named after the town, not the person,” but has finally dropped Jeffery Amherst as an “unofficial mascot;” they are also going to change the name of their hotel from the “Lord Jeffery Inn” to something less racist.

Good thinking. Emily Dickinson lived nearby. Maybe they will name it after her.

The UMASS Amherst mascot is a Minuteman.

Sometimes lauded in American History as patriotic revolutionaries, these Minutemen were really colonialist gangs that had been organized to exterminate Indians. We recognized how terrible the Minuteman mascot was in the late 90’s, and earlier, so I was unpleasantly surprised when I visited UMASS again in 2006 and saw a huge Minuteman statue erected next to the campus pond. While other universities, like Amherst College, are trying to clean up their symbols that are tinged with genocide and hate, I have no idea why UMASS is digging in with this huge ugly Minuteman statue next to our pond.

As an alumni of the UMASS Amherst and its Radical Student Union, I guess the answer is to change the name of the town.

Kenneth Miller attended the 18th Annual Summit Against Racism in Pittsburgh, PA.

The UMass Amherst Minuteman in winter. He stands looking out over our pond. Patriotism and racism often get intertwined at American colleges.

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Seeking a New Economy Ujamaa Collective – Ageless Innovation at Work

By Ron Gaydos

The Ujamaa Collective, with roots in the distant past of African culture, is bringing economic progress for local African women.

I stood in Ujamaa’s store, surrounded by the products of their hard work, as Executive Director Lakeisha Wolf traced Ujamaa’s history. “Celeta Hickman, local community leader, library assistant, curator, performer, and jewelry maker, began to study Africana to gain insights for community economic empowerment around 2007.”

Planning for a possible casino on the Hill was underway. “There was a lot of strife concerning what was best for the community. Conversations often included the many women who made handmade crafts and the economic opportunity that gave them.”

Ms. Hickman recalled African women’s traditional role in governing the marketplace. The keystone of the marketplace is the Esusu: a rotating credit circle (also called Isusu or Susu in various languages around Nigeria). Members decided who

participated and whose turn it was to use the Esusu for their business needs. Trust and mutual support were the foundation of the Esusu. Living up to ujamaa, cooperative economics in Swahili, was very important to the group.

Ms. Hickman started an Esusu for women of the African diaspora in the Hill District and the Ujamaa Collective was born. Members meet bi-weekly, and those who have used the fund pay back into the Esusu. Contributions began at $5 per member, then $10, and are now $20. That level of financial commitment is set to be affordable and still be an effective resource.

“They go beyond just checking in when it’s their turn to use the Esusu funds; they do what they can to ensure each member’s success,” affirmed Ms. Wolf.

Members of the Ujamaa Collective began to hold events, attend activities together, and then started an open air market on Centre Avenue on an old basketball court. The next goal was a retail space for selling members’ products, with a longer term goal to establish a production space. They now have a small crafts workspace in their store and office at 1901 Centre Avenue in the Hill District, and are on their way towards reaching the goal of a production space.

Ujamaa’s mission is “to create spaces, opportunities, networks, education and support for women of African descent to grow as entrepreneurs, artisans, and servantleaders so that we may ‘lift as we climb’.” The four staff members work in business development, community engagement, and an urban agriculture incubator program. Balancing business and community affairs Members of the Ujamaa Collective. Group shot photo by Ujamaa Collective swings back and forth, but the group is resilient.

“When you’ve been the commodity in the economy, a psychology develops that’s selfdefeating. Let’s commit together to do what we have to do despite all the pressures in our lives,” said Ms. Wolf, “We need to value ourselves. It’s difficult to value your own work.” The Collective must overcome barriers resulting from white supremacy and neighborhood disinvestment.

Ujamaa members reach into their history and culture, and community resources to succeed. Facing problems and tasks, Ms. Wolf says, “We always think ‘Shoot! Someone’s done this before!’ when we’re looking for how to do something.” They then use that example as a model for action. On the need to assert their vital place in the economy, Ms. Wolf says, “women are the number one consumer group but we too often undervalue our work.”

Looking to the future, shared sales space, development of worker cooperatives, joint supply purchases, food and catering for many events in the community are priorities.

Ujamaa is beginning an ambitious youth program to teach kids to become designers and makers, to plan financing and launching their own enterprises, and to work through challenges they may face. A pilot with 8-10 girls is planned for after the end of the school year. Ms. Wolf said they especially want to impart Ujamaa’s approach to the girls, creating shared value for the participants, the community, and the earth that sustains everything.

The pilot will offer new skills, opportunities to use them, and a sense of value in their work as well as find partners. The goal is to develop competent cooperatives, graduate new business people, and give the girls a sense of satisfaction from taking their ideas to fruition.

Looking forward, Ms Wolf declared “anything that can create shared value, we’re going to do!” http://www.ujamaacollective.org 1901 Centre Avenue Pittsburgh 15219.

Ron Gaydos is a consultant in inclusive economic development, entrepreneurship, and organizational strategy. He is a member of the Thomas Merton Center’s New Economy Campaign, and Co -Founder of the Pittsburgh Chamber of Cooperatives. (www.PittsburghChamber.coop)

Under Pressure: It's 2k16 and Millennials are Over Higher Education

By Nijah Glenn

From the time we are children, we are conditioned toward higher education whether we desire it or not. As a child, my interests in the natural world and science were fostered; I am lucky enough to have been encouraged into higher education without being forced into it. Perhaps this can be attributed to the frequency with which members of my family have been highly educated; perhaps it can be attributed to sheer luck, or an understanding environment. In any case, many my age are not as lucky.

As Millennials, we exist in a very interesting position in terms of society and values. Our education and childhood from the 1990s and 2000s instilled in us values from a time before our childhood, filling us with standards and cultural mores which we attempt to live up to. However, these values have not served us well. Our ideals are not built for us; specifically, unlike the next generation, which has grown up in the shadow of the recession, we did not. For a significant portion of our lives, we were raised with the belief that our education and hard work would create a comfortable life for us.

The economic crisis of 2008 shattered the new MTV generation's ability to fulfill these goals. Unlike the children born in the 2000s, we were not raised with the disappointment of knowing that our education may very well be obsolete by the time we graduate or that our parents will live a better life than we will.

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and smart technology, that is not enough to replace opportunity. Our upbringing has placed us in a precarious situation: choose not to pursue an education due to uncertainty, or pursue an education, putting oneself in emotional and economic duress pursuing a position we may not gain.

Millennials currently pay a high price for tuition, with many students taking on debt in order to finance their possible social mobility or success.

According to the W all Street Journal, nearly 71% of those who graduate with a bachelor's degree will have taken out student loans. If that isn't alarming, the Huffington Post reports that collectively, student -held debt is at a high of $1.5 trillion. Contrast my former English teacher in high school, who graduated in the 1980s and, unable to find a teaching position, found a fast food position and still paid her student loans within a few years, to many of my friends who will graduate with over $100,000 of student loans to pay room and board and their tuition. Add impending debt to the scarcity of success in the job market, and you have a recipe for disaster. Many of my peers are disillusioned; many times, I've heard friends and other students talk about how scared they are to graduate because they "do not have any money, and will not be able to pay [their] loans back even with a job.” That's frightening, but we are almost obligated to attend school. Despite the long standing proclamation in which we state we view all

with respect, regardless of situation, we do not. The Millennial education crisis is actually a brilliant display of insidious classism: while taught that even janitors deserve respect, how often do we scold children who wish to become janitors? When did we last hear a child tell a parent of their desire to become a bus driver or a mechanic and not automatically think of a classist notion?

In truth, Millennials are becoming drained due to lack of opportunity despite education. Additionally, we are drained due to the inescapable verbal abuse we would receive if Millennials pursued their true passions, which may not include higher education. There are plenty of engineering students who may want to become electricians, but pursue the former path due to societal conditioning to believe that while essential, the latter is less meaningful. Rather than see Millennial frustration as apathy, we as a nation need to open our eyes and realize that perhaps we were not fully equipped to deal with the challenges before us; instead, we must be treated as human beings who were molded into something we cannot be and are unhappy.

Nijah Glenn is a third year biology major, a TMC intern, and a member of the NewPeople Editorial Collective.

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Building Acceptance Overcoming Mental Health Stigma in the Muslim Community

By Imaz Athar

Mental health in the Muslim community has recently become an even more pressing issue. Islamophobic attitudes, previously dormant in the minds of many, have become active—Islamophobic voices have become louder. Discrimination, in its overt and subtle forms, has a negative impact on the mental health of Muslim-Americans. This claim has been backed by research. For example, a study by the Boston University School of Medicine found that the daily harassment that some Muslims face “can increase their risk of common mental disorders,” such as anxiety and depression.

Islamophobia is just one part of the mental health discussion in the Muslim community. While outer societal forces, such as Islamophobia, can affect Muslim-Americans’ mental health, stigma—a force within the Muslim community—also greatly impacts mental health. The American Muslim Health Professionals have recognized mental health literacy as the number one public health concern within the Muslim-American community, and that stigma is a big reason behind it. Stigma prevents many Muslim-Americans from discussing their mental health issues with others, and even accessing mental health resources. In some cases, stigma may potentially make mental health issues worse, or even prevent individuals from realizing their issues to begin with.

Stigma within the Muslim-American community is rooted in culture and religion, just like many other forms of stigma. As explained in the journal article “Mental Health Stigma in the Muslim Community,” some Muslims have associated mental illness with punishment or evil. Some feel that God, Allah, is in control of everything, including illnesses. Therefore, problems with mental health are perceived as a disconnection or punishment from God. Furthermore, some Muslims may feel that mental illness is actually the result of being possessed by evil spirits, or jinns. Punishment from God or possession by jinns isn’t necessarily something that Muslims want to disclose to family or community

members. It’s shameful to talk about and certainly shameful to seek help for.

Not all Muslims associate mental illness with possession by jinns or disconnection with God. Some Muslims have a more positive view of mental health treatment. However, despite this, social stigma remains closely tied to mental illness, and a negative view of mental health issues remains. Research has found that some feel hesitant to discuss their mental health issues, as they’re concerned for their family’s social standing. For instance, a study on Muslim families found that 75% of them felt stigmatized by others because they had a relative with a mental illness. Meanwhile, close to 40% of these families said they would not marry into a family that had a relative with mental illness. Another study has found that some Muslim-Americans have internalized negative views of mental illness and selfstigmatize—as a result, they report more self-shame when it comes to utilizing mental health services.

Stigma within the Muslim community prevents many from accepting and seeking help for their mental health issues. But a number of organizations have been working to foster an environment where it’s easier for Muslims to talk about mental health.

MentalHealth4Muslims, founded by Muslims Dr. Nafisa Sekandari and Sr. Hosai Mojaddidi, provides an open forum for Muslims to talk about their own struggles with mental health and educate others on how to address mental health issues. A recent post on MentalHealth4Muslims entitled “Are You Making These Mistakes When Treating Mental Illness” was written by a Muslim with bipolar disorder. In the post, the author emphasizes to readers that having a mental illness isn’t the individual’s fault; so, there’s no reason to self-stigmatize. The author also urges readers to seek professional help from mental health professionals. One of the major takeaways from the post is that the author makes a number of references to having trust in God, Allah, when dealing with mental illness. Incorporating faith and spirituality into the discussion makes it easier for many

Muslims to accept mental illness. In fact, a study entitled “Factors Affecting Attitudes Toward Seeking and Using Formal Mental Health and Psychological Services Among Arab Muslim Populations” showed that Muslims would feel more comfortable discussing with a religious leader. With that said, organizations such as the Muslim Wellness Foundation and The Institute of Muslim Mental Health offer mental health courses for religious leaders, such as Imams and Islamic chaplains, so that they are better able to understand mental illness, provide counseling, and connect individuals to the appropriate health professionals.

While much of my discussion has centered around stigma within the Muslim community, research by Youssef and Deane (2006) has also shown that Muslims don’t feel comfortable sharing their mental health issues with outsiders. In order to better understand mental health within the Muslim community, it is extremely important for non-Muslims to check out websites like MentalHealth4Muslims.

This way, non-Muslim health providers will be more culturally competent on issues unique to Muslims, and may be better able to treat Muslim patients. In turn, Muslims have to feel more comfortable discussing their issues with non-Muslim mental health professionals, without the incredible burden that stigma provides.

Imaz Athar is an undergraduate student at the University of Pittsburgh, studying Neuroscience and Sociology. Imaz discovered the art of writing at a young age, and he continues to pursue his passion today. Although he ultimately hopes to become a physician, he aspires to share stories on scientific and social issues and give a voice to the unheard.

Safe Space for Pittsburgh LGBTQ Youth

By Matthew Petras

Three teenagers, all in high school, showed up separately one night at the LGBTQ organization GLCC. of Pittsburgh (not an acronym). Throughout the night they went from undecided newcomers to laughing, smiling kids, happy to be solving a puzzle or playing Jenga among newfound friends.

“Until tonight I didn’t have any friends who aren’t straight or cis,” said one of them, named Makayla. “Cis” refers to“Cisgender,” a term regarding those who identify as the sex assigned at birth.

Located in the basement of 210 Grant Street in

Downtown Pittsburgh, the GLCC hosts Youth Nights, providing LGBTQ kids a space for safe conversation, games, and forming friendships. The age ranges loosely from 13-18, but all ages are welcomed.The GLCC used to be called the Gay and Lesbian Center, but the group decided to change their name to welcome people who do not identify as gay or lesbian, like transgender people.

“Trans issues are first in line at the GLCC,” Point Park University junior and trans person Heather Leasure said.

The lack of inclusion for trans people in the old name is not evident in the organization’s operations, according to Leasure.

While there are other volunteers who help, Lindsey Sickler is at the head of the Youth Nights. She has volunteered at GLCC for 10 years, has served as the GLCC Chair for three years, and has been on the board for a year longer, she said.

Some of the people who attend the Youth Nights, like Leasure, have been showing up for years. In high school, Leasure’s counselor recommended the GLCC Youth Nights to help her with identity issues, she said. “I just love Heather Leasure, a young woman who has been attending the Youth Night meeting new people,” Leasfor years. Photo by Matt Petras ure said. “It’s important to

be a part of the LGBTQ community as much as possible.”

Leasure was assigned a male name at birth.

Around 14 or 15 years old, Leasure came out and identified as a gay male. In Leasure’s sophomore year at Point Park, she came out as genderfluid, preferring feminine identification. It was then that she took on the first name Heather.

That same year, Leasure founded The Rainbow Club at her University, which still operates, but under a new moderator. The club’s goal is to create solidarity among LGBTQ students, whether it be non-straight or non-cisgender people. “There are certain things LGBTQ people understand that straight people don’t,” Leasure said. “We know what it’s like to walk down the street and be looked at because we’re different.”

People of all ages volunteer their time to GLCC, and some help with the Youth Nights. Mark Hupkovicz, 25 years old, has been volunteering at the GLCC since September of 2009 and regularly helps with the Youth Nights. An average day for Hupkovicz involves waking up around 5:00 am, working until around 2:00 pm, and then helping out at the GLCC until seven or later. “It’s exhausting,” he said. And yet, he keeps coming back.

“A place exists where people can be themselves.”

GLCC provides additional services to the community, such as mental health counseling and bingo nights. For more information go to http:// www.glccpgh.org/

Matt Petras is an intern for The NewPeople covering LGBTQ issues and local activism. He is a Point Park Class of 2018 Journalism major.

March 2016

NEWPEOPLE - 13

Seeking Political Change Reflections on the Bernie Sanders Campaign In an interesting recent article, reproduced on the Portside website, Tom Hayden makes an extremely important point: “There is no doubt that the Bernie generation is our political future, joining with groups demanding living wages or $15/hr, Black Lives Matter, the Dreamers, and 350.org. With their roots in the Occupy movement, they are viscerally mad at the rigged economy based on McJobs and the monopoly power of the plutocrats. They want a lifting of student debt and lowering of tuition, the expansion of health care. Eighty percent of millennials demand a transition to clean energy and renewables by 2030.

Eighty-two percent want background checks on all gun purchases. They want Citizens United repealed and secret money unmasked. Bernie has raised an astounding $41 million dollars, 74% in small individual contributions.”

I find the rest of the article highly problematic, but this paragraph is luminous. It highlights the role that the Sanders campaign has played in helping to draw millions of people toward what is basically a socialist agenda, clarifying key class issues underlying that agenda, and mobilizing many of those millions to try to do something about it, reinforcing an activist mindset and nurturing a socialist consciousness among many who may not have been quite at that place before.

Of course, Sanders himself is hardly a revolutionary socialist, and some of his positions reflect that. It is unfortunate that sometimes when defining

his “democratic socialism” Sanders has not emphasized that socialism means rule by the people over the economy (what Eugene V. Debs explained as an economy owned by society and democratically controlled to guarantee a decent life for all, a society of the free and the equal). Instead he has described it as being similar to Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal policies and Scandinavia’s welfare-state capitalism.

Despite this limitation, the vocabulary and logic of the Sanders campaign has had the profound impact that Hayden points to.

Hayden was a founder of Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), key author of the eloquent “Port Huron Statement” (1962), a participant and sometimes a central organizer in a number of struggles for peace, justice, and social change. For most of his life he has also been a steadfast partisan of left -wing activists working inside the Democratic Party and voting -- whenever “necessary” -- for the lesserevil.

In this particular article, Hayden’s main concern is that the primary fight between Sanders and Clinton – in which Clinton openly defends capitalism and trashes Sanders in the all-important struggle for the Presidential nomination -- not be allowed to alienate this crucial and massive element of Sanders’s base from helping to elect Clinton in November.

Some of the supporters of the Sanders campaign, although they genuinely desire the political revolution that Sanders has talked about, may well

The President’s War Budget The President’s 2017 Defense Budget addresses new challenges but exposes us to risks of new engagements around the world. It would place one entire armed regiment permanently in Europe (confronting Russia); it would invest in bomb guidance technologies, swarming drones and in arsenal planes to launch conventional weapons; and it would create a $200 million “wartime spending account” for Africa.

The Africa initiative is in the Pentagon‘s Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO). According to Mike McCord, Defense Undersecretary (Comptroller), the OCO is the “wartime spending account” of the Pentagon to provide “more robust resources for a wide swath across the (African) continent,” General Paul Selva, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said it would counter threats including “Al Shabab in east Africa, Boko Haram in west Africa, and ISIL in Libya in north Africa.” Rob Work, Deputy Defense Secretary, added, “We ap-

be persuaded by Hayden and others to end up campaigning for Clinton. She represents the “liberal” wing of the political counter-revolution. Electing such people never solves the terrible problems and underlying crises that afflict our society – and as people become hurt and angry and fearful, they turn elsewhere for solutions. If there is no strong, uncompromising pole of genuine democracy and socialism, the pathway is increasingly cleared for a turn to representatives of the reactionary wing of the political counter-revolution.

Some Sanders supporters will not do what Hayden urges. They are the hope of our future – particularly those who do not despair, who do not give up, who continue to struggle for the various interrelated goals that are part of the socialist agenda. If it will take an actual revolution to bring about this agenda – if it will mean that the power of the 1% over our economy and politics must be broken and replaced by the power of the 99% -- this saving remnant (hopefully very substantial in numbers and energy and commitment) will become a force to help make this so.

Paul LeBlanc is a Professor of History at La Roche College and an activist in Pittsburghers for Public Transit. Among his books are Choice Award Winner A Freedom Budget for All Americans and A Short History of the U.S. Working Class (a new edition is being published by Haymarket Books in April).

By James McCarville

proach this as a trans-regional problem, from eastern Africa through Afghanistan and potentially to southeast Asia.”

The OCO account also includes $1.2 billion for counterterrorism drones, $6.7 billion for cyber defense and $7.5 billion to fight ISIS (a 50% increase over the previous anti-ISIS funding). It provides less for Blackhawk helicopters and B-52s, but would deploy one entire armed regiment to Europe and the pre-position equipment for another regiment, if needed.

The total defense budget is $622.6 billion, 54% of all discretionary spending. It includes the Pentagon’s $523.9 billion “base budget”; $58.9 billion in the OCO war-making account; and $25 million in the Energy Department’s Nuclear Weapons Program.

The defense budget, according to Work, is driven by “the return of great power competition from Russia and China; North Korea’s development of Long Range Ballistic Missile capability; Iran’s

Ferlo on State Government Cont’d millions over the years in economic development dollars and now they have an opportunity to bring jobs and income to their smaller communities. So it’s easy to understand their support for Republican candidates and some Democrats---and the environmental downsides moved to the rear of their concerns.

By Paul LeBlanc

emergence as a regional power (and its destabilizing effect on our allies including Israel); and our need to degrade terrorist networks.”

While the President proposes a budget, it is little more than a starting point. Congress formulates the actual budget and passes appropriation bills to spend it. While Republican candidates have largely criticized our military as being “gutted,” US military spending remains greater than that of the next ten national armies combined.

In addition to exposure to risks of new military engagements around the world, it leaves little discretionary funding to address the problems of Education, Medicare, Health, Veteran’s Benefits, Housing and Community Development, Small Business Administration, International Affairs, Energy and Environment, Science, Transportation, and Food and Agriculture issues closer to home.

James McCarville is a member of the Thomas Merton Center Board and Editorial Collective

By Neil Cosgrove

term of one member of Congress or local official.

The Tea Party movement captured a dumbeddown electorate’s A:The Governor needs to be stronger. He should frustrations and Q:Separate plans to reduce the size of the state leg- have demanded that all legislators not be paid past managed to elect June 30th until we have an approved budgislature have passed the state Senate and enough members et! Without feeling any immediate pain they had House. What do you think would be a workable, of Congress to affordable size for the legislature? Would a smaller time to play it out. The harsh reality is that most turn the electoral voters want to get to heaven without dying, meaning process far to the legislature accomplish more? they want more dollars for education but don't want right and, even A:I have always voted for decreasing the number of to pay more taxes. The House Members of both par- more, to underHouse and Senate positions. Progressive Senator ties are all now running, as are many Senators, and mine the Obama Daylon Leech argues otherwise, raising issues of are not likely to take a tax vote in the middle of their Presidency.

Jim Ferlo (above) spent 12 years as democracy and reduced access to elected offinominating petition process and upcoming reRegarding a state senator and 14 years before cials. Given my experience, I believe a lesser num- election. The Republican majority in both the someone support- that on the Pittsburgh city council, ber of legislators will not necessarily reduce their House and Senate worked to sandbag our Governor ing a local Repub- including four years as council budgets or operating expenses but will create more from day one of his term. lican, the racist president. staff efficiency, improve access of physical locaand xenophobic Q:What do you say to the many progressives tions, and possibly create an environment where legState Rep. Metcalfe only won his last primary by who have become discouraged with the electoral islators could more likely reach the bottom line 200 votes. A more moderate and relevant Republiprocess, and fail to vote, especially in years when while negotiating the budget. And their respective can running in that Republican Butler County disdistricts may not be so parochial and of one mind on there is no presidential election? trict on the actual ballot and not as a write-in would issues. Sen. Leech argues that a smaller Legislature be a marked improvement and have sent a stunning means the non-elected staff will run the show more. A: Look, people need to register and vote either message to many Republicans on their right wing Democrat (or in some rare cases, Republican) and Quite honestly, that has always been the case and advances. also to respect and support independent third-party given some of the folks elected, it’s a good thing efforts where and when possible. Let me make one Neil Cosgrove is a member of the NewPeople edithat executive’s more permanent staff have some power, influence, and institutional knowledge when observation: the Occupy "movement" created some torial collective. political agitation but it didn't elect or change the advising on budgets and policy.

14 - NEWPEOPLE March 2016 Q:Harrisburg now seems in some ways more dysfunctional than Washington, given that we have no budget more than seven months after one was due. What do you think needs to happen to increase our state government’s effectiveness?

Campaign Follies Presidential Campaign Stumps Beltway Bloviators

By Neil Cosgrove

“Without standardization, without stereotypes, with- the likes of Fox News, CNN, and MSNBC. out routine judgments, without a fairly ruthless disThis election cycle has been particularly trying regard of subtlety, the editor would die of excitefor those the late British Prime Minister Margaret ment.” Walter Lippmann, Public Opinion Thatcher once characterized as the chattering classes. The campaign narrative has shifted so quickWalter Lippmann was referring to newspaper edi- ly and significantly that the punditry scrambles with tors when he made the above observation in 1922, growing futility to keep up. The party establishbut he could just as well have been summarizing the ments ar en’t just stymied, as many would have it, attitudes of television producers and commentators, but appear to be disappearing with the same rapidity web editors, and press journalists as they parrot each as the American middle class. The establishment is others’ superficial descriptions of the 2016 presiden- not peopled by the middle class, of course, but by tial primary, descriptions that could cause those who the donor class, a group of power brokers that, given closely watch politics to die of boredom. We are the struggles of favored candidates such as Jeb awash in conventional language and repetitive Bush, Marco Rubio, and Hillary Clinton, have tropes, often intended to “manufacture conthrown up their collective hands at the antics of an sent” (another of Lippmann’s signature terms) rather angry and frustrated electorate. than reflect actual political deliberations, as I hope The above candidates, you see, have electabilto illustrate in the following paragraphs. ity, pr imar ily because they ar e centrist or moderThe pressure to produce content has always ate, r ather than fringe or renegade, too conservabeen present among what used to be known as ink- tive or too liberal, with appeal only to the base, stained wretches. However , the explosion of digi- unable to garner the independents and cross-overs tal media outlets and television channels dedicated needed for success in the general election. As the to political commentary has increased that pressure shower of hackneyed terms that clutter the precedexponentially, even while the number of print outing sentence might suggest, this is the point at which lets shrink, forcing journalists to call upon comforta- the narrative really slides into utter confusion, at ble, previously vetted narratives, or on recently least in the minds of readers and viewers who might promulgated and therefore relatively fresh ones, be paying a modicum of attention, or who might be when churning out the ever-needed product. Even prone to what educators fond of buzz-words like to those few, those fortunate few, who still have good call critical thinking. jobs in print, who you would think might have at The challenge created by these terms is that least a few hours each day to gather information and they begin to move what poses as analysis into the to actually ponder what that information might realm of policy choices, as opposed to horse-race mean, must blog and tweet when not composing the coverage. Policy discussions demand both comstuff that will actually appear in their employer’s plex expression and greater concentration than eiflagship outlet. The mor e allegedly successful ther the pundit or the focus group member appears among them may also spend their evenings adding able to muster. How do you define these terms, and to the cacophony of commentary offered up daily by their relevance to what particular candidates might

actually do if elected to office? How far out does the spectrum of American political thinking extend? If its extent is wider than the common experience of the Washington power-brokers, chatterers, and bloviators, then just how qualified ar e those folks when asked to determine who is centrist or moderate?

Donald Trump is not a true conservative, his opponents claim. Well, maybe that doesn’t matter if those who vote for him are even less clear on what a conservative ought to be or ought to do than those opponents are. Can a self-proclaimed social democrat win a Democr atic primary, much less a general election? Ber nie Sander s takes the time to explain he favors a form of governance similar to that found in some prosperous European democracies, and his poll numbers rise. Will Americans accept the higher taxes that must accompany a singlepayer health system or a free college education?

Bernie Sanders points to the thousands upon thousands of dollars Americans now pay in tuition and insurance premiums. Details, details. Will the electorate attend to his ar gument? Stay tuned.

But do remember than the establishments thought Richard Nixon unelectable in the mid-‘60s, and Ronald Reagan too much of a Goldwater Republican in the mid-‘70s, and Barack Obama an outsider launching a quixotic campaign in the winter of 2007. Don’t lean on those well-paid but clearly overtaxed pundits and their default modes of expression when deciding how to vote. And we’ll argue about what narrative actually unfolded after the election.

Neil Cosgrove is co-chair of the New People editorial collective and a member of the Merton Center Board.

Culture Watch: Follies and Foibles on the Democratic Campaign Trail

By Jo Tavener

Unfortunately my knowledge of politics hasn’t helped me see through a glass clearly. A few days ago, I was reminded of this when the presence of superdelegates tied the New Hampshire Democratic primary. The possibility of Hillary winning the nomination without a majority of the popular vote turned my view of party politics on its head. I knew that political parties had agendas and bowed to donor class wishes, but I had not conceived of them as institutions that cared more about their own survival than representing their membership. I knew the two party system was kept in place by the Electoral College, but I didn’t realize how much the parties had to lose if the field opened up. Their power over legitimating contestants, their ability to throw their weight behind one candidate by debate scheduling, their use of super delegates, especially among Democrats, to maintain party control -- all became clear. The twoparty system is so interwoven with how American politics works that I am at a loss to see how true structural reform is possible by electoral means.

Such thoughts changed my understanding of endorsements as well. It appears that the reason for the Hillary endorsement by so many politicians has as much to do with keeping the Party (to which they owe their status and power) in the driver’s seat as to the power of the Clinton machine and her personal attributes. Bernie Sanders’ populist campaign threatens to overwhelm the Democratic status quo and undo Bill Clinton’s actions, which moved it to the right. (Following the years of Reagan and Bush, the need to partially undo the legacies of FDR and LBJ was good for the Party if not the American people, as we see now with the Crime Act of 1994 or the repeal of Glass-Steagall.) Why else would someone as upstanding as Rep. John Lewis attack Bernie Sanders’ civil rights record in the way he did? Simple: it was an attack on Sanders’ character and credibility.

I do not accept Howard Dean’s dismissive excuse of the Hillary campaign excesses with the remark that much ‘is on the line as the race tightens up’.

Values only count under pressure; it is the only time they are tested. It behooves us to uncompromisingly hold both candidates to the values they claim for

themselves through their actions, or we must accept that politics are a contact sport not to be trusted. We lose more by espousing the latter rather than the former.

I’ve noticed on MSNBC (tied in many ways to the Democratic Party) surrogates from each campaign are given equal time, and are also included in discussions with NBC pundits. Not only do such conversations provide cover for the agendas of the Party as well as the candidates, they also keep the discussion within acceptable perimeters by always providing partisan points of view. Only once have I seen such surrogate positions dismissed out of hand. Not surprisingly, it was on “Morning Joe” when Howard Dean dismissed the talk of disarray in the Hillary campaign as “just Washington talk” and a former Republican operative -turned- journalist tried to dismiss the power of Sanders’ message by suggesting that ‘revolution’ is always an easier sell than reform. Joe Scarborough shot them both down. Then again, he is an avowed conservative with little skin in the game regarding the future of Democratic Party.

I am continually amazed by how intelligent, farthinking men and women betray their values when they enter the political arena. I have always respected Gloria Steinem for her feminist activism and Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright for her ability to rise so far in a patriarchal world. However, to put their feminism at the service of a political campaign betrays the principles that are central to the struggle; namely respect for the choices women have made to survive and grow in a man’s world. I understand why Hillary cannot stop talking about herself and her credentials given the vicious attacks against her, especially those when she was First Lady. I also understand why in the current conjuncture, young women are able to believe in the feminist

strain of the Sanders’ campaign. To hold up one person as the ‘true’ feminist because she is a woman is to take identity politics to a place that turns it toxic.

Finally, there is the ‘war of the narratives.’ While Democrats congratulate themselves on civility (unlike the Republicans, who seem to enjoy knockdown fights and battles at the OK Corral), the controversies over who is progressive or establishment, who can change the system in the face of Republican opposition -- both important issues -- has resulted in mischaracterizations, and actual falsehoods. Oddly, it has turned Sanders into Obama. Sticking to issues, Sanders refuses to respond personally to Clinton’s mischaracterizations regarding healthcare, guns and compromise. It reminds me of President Obama during his first term, when he kept on giving into Republicans to arrive at consensus. It never worked; he learned his lesson. Though Hillary wraps her arms around Obama, it is Sanders who may end paying Obama’s price for his stance.

Jo Tavener is a member of the Editorial Collective. A founder of New York Radical Feminists in the 1960s, she went on to teach film and then critical media and cultural studies at various universities before retiring.

March 2016

NEWPEOPLE - 15

Protesting For Peace Opposition to Palestine Occupation More Vocal It was perhaps the strongest condemnation of the occupation ever delivered by the head of the United Nations or indeed by any national leader.

“Palestinian frustration is growing under the weight of a half-century of occupation and the paralysis of the peace process,” Ban Ki-Moon told the Security Council of the UN. He then went on to link the violence in the West Bank to the occupation when he stated “Security measures alone will not stop the violence.

They cannot address the profound sense of alienation and despair driving some Palestinians – especially young people.”

Ban Ki-Moon was, however, careful by condemning the violence but at the same time pointing out that its cause is the originating violence of the occupation and repression of the Palestinian people. “It is human nature to react to occupation, which often serves as a potent incubator of hate and extremism,” said the Secretary General. The remarks of the Secretary General were all the more poignant in that Israel recently announced that it would appropriate a large tract of land in the West Bank near the border with Jordan. It also announced the building of 150 new settlements buildings.

In reaction to the announcement by Ban KiMoon, the US Ambassador to the UN, Samantha Powers, said that the US also strongly opposed settlement activity. She told the Council, “Steps aimed at advancing the Israeli settlement program…. are fundamentally incompatible with the two-state solution and raise legitimate questions about Israel’s long-term intentions.”

Seldom has a US official in such a high position been more blunt in its condemnation of the continuing occupation.

The reaction of Israeli authorities, however, were nothing short of hostile. Prime Minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu declared that the words of Ban KiMoon were giving a “tailwind to terror”. He stated in response: “The Secretary General’s remarks provide a tailwind for terror. There is no justification for terror.

Those Palestinians who murder do not want to build a state, they want to destroy a state and they say this openly”.

To add to Netanyahu’s woes, the European Union had unanimously adopted a tough resolution prior to Ban Ki-Moon’s foray, criticizing Israeli settlement activity in the occupied territories. It did this despite Israeli attempts to get some members of the EU to block it. Yet another surprising development in the present fracas over the occupation was the statements of the US Ambassador to Israel, Dan Shapiro. Shapiro condemned Israel for applying law differently for Israelis and Palestinians in the West Bank. While the statement of Shapiro was supported by the State Department, he was attacked pretty viciously by Netanyahu and Israeli television, which referred to him as a “yehudon,” a disparaging term applied to those in the diaspora who are considered not to be sufficiently proIsrael.

Shortly after the UN developments, a group of mainly young Jewish activists called Jewish Voices for Peace and a group of progressive Jews in New York City called “Jews Say No” produced a bogus copy of The New York Times on Feb 4, 2016. They printed and distributed 10,000 copies of this bogus edition, which carried articles such as “Congress debates aid to Israel,” “In the Footsteps of Mandela and King: A Nonviolent Movement Gains Ground Ten Years

By Michael Drohan

On.” “IDF Generals blames Israeli Government for Recent Violence.” “Senator Schumer calls for End of US Aid to Israel.” “Mayor De Blasio Confronts Islamophobia following trip to Israel” and a faux editorial entitled “Our New Editorial Policy: Rethinking IsraelPalestine.”

This latter development suggests that a profound change is taking place in the American Jewish community in regard to the occupation of Palestinian lands by Israel and the repression overall of the Palestinian people. These developments have to be taken in conjunction with the growing Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions(BDS) movement in many different parts of the developed world, especially North America and Europe. Israel cannot with impunity continue what it is doing to the Palestinian people any more.

Netanyahu may have hoped a while back that by giving lip service to a two state solution while implanting settlements at an ever increasing rate in the West Bank and Jerusalem that the Palestinians would cede total control of their homeland territory with the acquiescence of the rest of the world. But that dream may be coming to an end. Netanyahu was defeated in his efforts to achieve a military invasion of Iran and the destruction of this supposed threat and now he is faced with opposition on multiple fronts in regard to the occupation and the brutalization of Gaza and the West Bank. Certainly the times they are a-changing.

This author is a member of the Board of the Merton Center and Co-Chair of the Editorial Collective

DOOMSDAY CLOCK: We’re Three Minutes from Midnight Cont’d

By Molly Rush

Britain “continue to modernize their nuclear arsenals with seemingly little effort to relinquish these weapons… “…The materials used to construct nuclear bombs can be found in 144 sites around the world [which] increases the chances that terrorist groups could get hold of enough highly enriched uranium or plutonium to use in a bomb.”

Additionally, now “the dangers include climatechanging technologies, emerging biotechnologies, and cyber technology that could inflict irrevocable harm whether by intention, miscalculation or by accident, to our way of life and to the planet.”

The visible results of global warming are beginning to receive wide attention despite the skeptics.

That attention is growing as more and more are affected by widespread weather patterns, including long-lasting droughts, outsized storms, increased flooding of coastal cities, lack of fresh water, and other disasters.

Much attention has focused on the real danger posed by ISIS and other terrorists. However little attention has been paid to the interlocking threats posed above. That is why the Bulletin of A tomic Scientists’ linkage of these issues with the nuclear weapons threat deserves wide distribution and acceptance.

Broken Arrows There were 32 known” Broken Arrows,” that is, serious nuclear weapons accidents between 1950 and 2000. These involved accidental launching, firing, detonating, theft or loss of the weapons. Six were lost and never recovered. It’s really a miracle that the bombs haven’t detonated.

The Titan II Launch Complex 374-7 in Damascus, Kansas was the site of a disaster on September 18, 1980, ten days after the Plowshares Eight action.

A worker dropped a wrench into a Titan II missile silo. It punctured a pressurized fuel tank, which leaked for eight hours, then exploded and nearly incinerated the warhead. An Air Force airman was killed and 21 were injured.

Swords into Plowshares Since 1980 hundreds of peace activists have taken part in about 100 actions at nuclear weapons facilities, facing arrest and prison terms.

In 2012, for example, members of “Transform Now Plowshares” were jailed for cutting four fences to gain entry to Y-12, the “Fort Knox of Uranium,” the most secure bomb facility in the U.S. Every U.S. warhead contains uranium from Y-12.

Action Proposals The Federation of American Scientists is pro-

School of the Americas Watch: Spring Days of Action

By Joyce Rothermel

Next month, supporters of the School of the America’s Watch (SOAW) will gather in Washington, DC, April 14-18 for the annual Spring Days of Action. A delegation is forming in Pittsburgh and you can join! The days include advocacy training, lobbying, direct action, a concert, and more, including the next step in the SOA Watch campaign to pressure Vice President Biden for an Executive Order to close the SOA. The refugee crisis, forced migration, mass incarceration, police brutality and militarization at home and abroad, enforced disappearances, and so many of the most pressing issues of our time are fueled by the Drug War, yet the challenge to build coalitions to help bring an end to these devastating policies is largely failing. The Central American refugee crisis and the disappearances in 16 - NEWPEOPLE March 2016

Ayotzinapa cannot be fully understood or addressed without addressing the Drug War. Over the last 18 months, the SOA Watch has increased its agitation against the Drug War through protest, popular education and lobbying efforts. This activism will continue during the Spring Days of Action. Given the stepped up militarization of U.S. borders and the recent raids on refugee families inside the U.S., it is an important time to collectively respond against these injustices.

Please consider participating in the upcoming Spring Days of Action. To find out more about those planning to go to D.C. from the Pittsburgh area, contact Michael Drohan from the SW PA School of the Americas Watch at 412-818-2131 or by emailing him at drohanmichael@yahoo.com.

moting the following proposals for action: 1.Cut spending on modernization of nuclear weapons. [Total cost over thirty years is estimated at one trillion dollars.]

2.Re-energize the campaign for disarmament.

3.Follow up on the Paris Accords regarding greenhouse gases.

4.Deal now with nuclear waste. (Three-quarters of radioactive monitoring stations are turned off or don’t work –Wall St. Journal) 5.Create institutions specifically to explore and address potentially catastrophic misuses of new technologies.

The Doomsday Clock is Ticking Will the environmental and peace movements begin to join together in addressing the issues that threaten the planet? We can begin by educating the public, challenging the media to address them, joining together in public forums and protests, gaining the support of the many groups that are already active in these issues and demanding action from public officials.

The time is now!

Molly Rush is a member of the TMC board and New People editorial collective

Every Monday at 9:00 pm

MARK DIXON'S TV REPORT ON CLIMATE CHANGE SUMMIT Airs within city limits: Comcast Channel 21 & Verizon FiOS Channel 47 March Progressive PGH Notebook TV Series PCTV 21 - Public Access TV Producer: C.S. Rhoten (412) 363-7472 tvnotebook@gmail.com

Worrying Areas of Conflict Darfur Still Isn’t Saved (and Neither is South Sudan)

By Mary Dawn Edwards

As other world crises, especially in Syria, command the attention of world leaders and human rights advocates, the government of Sudan is increasing its ongoing atrocities against the civilians of the Darfur, Blue Nile and South Kordofan regions of the country.

The attacks began in Darfur in 2003, when the government tried to put down a rebellion with aerial bombings of non-Arab villages, followed by incursions of ground troops and allied “Janjaweed” militias, who engaged in further burning of buildings, looting, killing, and rape. When these atrocities were brought to outside attention and condemned and sanctioned by the world community amid grassroots petitions, protests and sanctions, the attacks slowed.

A hybrid peace-keeping force, composed of United Nations and African Union troops (UNAMID) was reluctantly admitted to Darfur.

During the ensuing years, the government of president Omar al-Bashir has obstructed the access of independent observers, UNAMID peacekeepers, and humanitarian aid groups to the affected areas and is now lobbying for the removal of UNAMID troops and the lifting of sanctions, even as reports of increased raids on villages and displaced persons’ camps by government troops and the newly named

“Rapid Support Force” militias have emerged. Indeed, Dr. Mukesh Kapila, the former UN humanitarian coordinator in Sudan, has criticized the ineffectiveness of the UNAMID troops in protecting civilians.

Meanwhile, in South Sudan, which became independent in 2011, a deadly civil war has raged for two years between the government of President Kiir and rebels supporting the deposed Vice President Machar, with massive displacement of civilians (offered some protection by UN troops), killings and threat of famine.

In the USA, the presidential administration that includes prominent human rights advocates (National Security Council adviser Susan Rice and UN ambassador Samantha Power), at first spoke out forcefully against the Bashir government’s actions, and appointed a special envoy to negotiate peaceful solutions in Sudan and South Sudan, but is now mostly silent on this topic. Some Congressional hearings have been held but have shown few tangible results. Nationwide activist groups such as Save Darfur that played a prominent role in calling attention to the onset of the Darfur atrocities have merged and divided their attention among several humanitarian crises (in Burma and Syria as well as Sudan).

Imperialism in the South China Sea We are very unlikely to hear about the Spratly Islands or the South China Sea in the presidential debates for the very simple reason that the candidates most likely never heard of them. Nor does the public know of them, as they are seldom, if ever, featured on TV or in print; they do not generate sensational news that captivates eyeballs. And yet, this is where China and the US are engaged in a gigantic struggle for imperial control of the world..

The US involvement in a half dozen disastrous wars in the Middle East, specifically Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Syria, the Yemen ( with Saudi Arabia as proxy), and Bahrain (also by Saudi proxy) absorbs much of US military might and media attention. Preoccupied with the blight of ISIS in many of these countries, little attention is being given to the South China Sea. Meanwhile, China is building alliances in Africa and South America of a different nature, which are strengthening its economic, diplomatic and trade roles at the expense of a US bogged down in military exploits. Already China is clearly the strongest economic power in the world, although not the largest, leaving the US only the military domain for international dominance and hegemony. This does not augur well for the American empire, as Britain learned at an earlier period as the previous hegemonic empire of the world.

Now enter China’s foray into the South China Sea, heightening the US’s troubles. The Spratly Islands in the South China Sea are named for a British whaler named Richard Spratly who passed by the area in 1843. There are about 750 such islands, reefs, cays, atolls and islets in the archipelago, covering a nautical area of 164,000 sq. miles while having a

land area of merely 1.5 sq. miles. Their only economic value is their possible oil and gas reserves, estimated to be in the billions of barrels. Their strategic importance is that they are in key shipping lanes in these seas. They, however, are also contested terrain claimed variously by Vietnam, the Philippines and Malaysia. Over the past few years, China has been building artificial islands on some of these rocky outcrops through dredging sand and rock from the surroundings seas. Concerned with the rise of China as a challenge to US military and navy hegemony, the US is in the midst of forming and strengthening alliances with all the countries mentioned but especially with Japan.

In 2011, President Obama announced a ‘pivot towards Asia’ providing an extension and diversification of US military presence in the area. Perhaps the most important of the elements in this military expansion is the move to get Japan to change its constitution, which forbad it from involvement in military adventures of any kind. Article 9 –drafted at US instigation in 1947- declared that the Japanese people “forever renounce war as a sovereign right of the nation and the threat or use of force as a means of settling international disputes”. Now under a neoconservative Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe, Japan’s Parliament passed a bill in September 2015 that authorizes the country’s military to engage in overseas combat missions. By its silence, the US favors Japan’s growing militarism as part of the alliance to rein in China.

There are many other elements in the escalating militarization of these seas. The US is seeking or has secured the use of military facilities in the Philip-

Act for Sudan is a group of US grassroots organizations that continues to advocate for Sudanese victims.

The Pittsburgh Darfur Emergency Coalition (PDEC) continues to advocate for the people of Sudan and South Sudan. We will be holding our Fourth Annual Luncheon and Forum on the Problems of Sudan and South Sudan on Sunday, April 24, at East Liberty Presbyterian Church, 2-5 p.m., in the small dining room. A luncheon starting at 2 p.m., prepared by members of the local Sudanese community, will precede the discussion. The event is free and open to the public, but reservations are required. Our guests will include a representative from the office of the US Special Envoy to Sudan and South Sudan, Rep. Mike Doyle (a member of the Congressional Sudan Caucus) and Hawa Abdullah (a refugee from Darfur who was imprisoned and tortured because of her activism). For further information and to make reservations, please contact our coordinator, Dr. David Rosenberg at (412) 992-0102 or at jumphook@gmail.com. PDEC is on Facebook at facebook/pittsburghdarfur.

Mary Dawn Edwards is a member of the Pittsburgh Darfur Emergency coalition.

By Michael Drohan

pines, Malaysia, Pulau and the Marianna Islands.

The US Navy is also seeking funds to equip its ships with anti-ship missiles. The campaign by the Obama administration to pass the Trans-Pacific Partnership is yet another effort to isolate China economically and threaten it militarily. The Alliance of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN), which excludes China once more, is a US-supported effort to weaken China’s growing alliances and interests.

The anti-China campaign is full of contradictions. To begin with, the US economy would virtually collapse without China. Most of US manufacturing capability has moved to China, making it semidependent on the cheap labor of its manufactured products. No amount of military alliances will change that equation.

With such heavy US military involvement in the Middle East since 2003, the country is suffering from military exhaustion and fatigue. There is popular exhaustion with the military exploits to boot. But in the history of empires this looks like par for the course as the empire declines. Britain had virtually lost its hegemony in 1900 but that did not prevent it from more audacious military exploits for the next 45 years. Empires are at their most dangerous when in decline. The only force that has the capacity to curtail or reverse this trend is popular education into the reality of our involvement in the area and a mobilization of resistance against imperialism both of the US and the Chinese brand.

Michael Drohan is a member of the Editorial Collective and of the Board of the Thomas Merton Center

World’s Richest 62 Equal World’s Poorest Half

By Molly Rush

The wealth of the world’s richest 62 people’s equals that of half the world’s people, according to a new study by OXFAM, released this past January at the World Economic Forum.

The Walton family, owners of Walmart, have a total of $119.7 billion in wealth, including Alice’s $37.4 billion, making them the richest family in the U.S, Walmart has finally raised its workers minimum wage in response to workers’ protests. CEO Doug McMillon has acknowledged that the company had sacrificed customer loyalty due to its pay practices.

OXFAM made the following statement: Extreme inequality is the defining challenge of our time, but it is not inevitable, and can be tackled.

Much can be done to even it up, and make the world a fairer place.

Together we must call on governments to commit to: · Ensuring tax systems are fair and free of loop-

holes so that the richest pay their fair share. · Investing in vital public services – like univer- Member TMC board, editorial collective and HealthCare4AllPA sal healthcare and education – so everyone has a fighting chance. · Making sure everyone has decent jobs with Among the ten richest people in the world are fair pay. five Americans: · Ensuring economic policies work to close the gap between women and men. # 1 Bill Gates, $79.2 billion; · Working for their citizens, first. The interests #3 Warren Buffett $72.7 billion of the richest can no longer be put ahead of those of the rest of us. #5 Larry Ellison $54.3 billion That will happen only when we the people come together to organize, protest, and vote for poli- #6 David Koch $42.9 billion ticians who protect the common good.

You can find the voting records and positions #8 Christy Walton $41.7 billion of presidential candidates, your senators and repre#9 Jim Walton $40.6 billion sentative at websites such as Vote Smart.

OXFAM is an international confederation of 17 ------------------------------------------------organisations working in approximately 94 countries worldwide to find solutions to poverty and what it TOTAL $331.4 billion considers injustice around the world.

March 2016 NEWPEOPLE - 17

Feeding the Hungry Pigeon Joe

By Brother Umberto

"I invented homelessness", Joe said to me during a Sunday morning conversation in the Men's Room at a large downtown church. Joe comes in to do his ablutions and me, a diabetic, have to make at least one trip during the service to micturate. Like Coleridge's "Ancient Mariner", Joe fixes me with his "glittering eye" and fearsomely launches into his current obsession that may range from the church's elevator; to syndicated nature writer Scott Shalaway; to the necessity of providing winter sustenance to city pigeons.

A friendly priest once told me that Joe was arrested once for feeding the pigeons, hence the nickname (employed only behind his back) "Pigeon Joe.” I have no way of knowing whether this story is true, just as with the story told to me that Joe's former hovel on the North Side was once featured on local TV. This story came to me via the custodian, who is no fan of Joe's since one of his tasks is cleaning the restrooms.

Christianity has had a difficult time fulfilling Jesus' mandate to "Feed my sheep." The Salvation Army probably does the best job tending to people in need but the message provided there is indeed hard nosed. I was at a service on Father's Day once at the "Sallie" (nickname of the Salvation Army) on the South Side when the resident Captain extolled the virtues of fatherhood. He ended by asking the fathers in the room to stand for a round of applause. The several men I knew there had sundered ties with their children long ago, and I felt like this gesture was the proverbial rubbing salt into their wounds.

We Remember Concepcion Picciotto

By Joyce Rothermel

Concepcion Picciotto in 2013. Photo Credit:

Charles Dharapak/Associated Press

Last month, just a few days after ending her peace vigil encampment behind the White House, Concepcion Picciotto passed away. She was about 80 years of age and was suffering from declining health. She had occupied her encampment for more than 30 years, likely the longest political protest in American history. To continue her vigil over the years, Ms. Picciotto, played a cat-and-mouse game with the United States Park Police, which prohibits demonstrators from sleeping on its property or leaving a protest site unattended. When she left to rest, volunteers would relieve her.

Ms Picciotto’s encampment was on a red brick sidewalk under a plastic tarp and was a familiar sight to those who passed by regularly. She denounced nuclear weapons. Her hand-lettered signs declared “Read My Lips, No New Wars” and “Live by the Bomb, Die by the Bomb.” Her protest ran through five presidencies.

“Not a single president ever walked across the street from the White House to meet her or to recognize her quest for peace and justice,” Ralph Nader, an admirer of hers, noted. Another admirer was Eleanor Holmes Norton, Washington’s nonvoting delegate to the House of Representatives. “During Picciotto’s more than 30 years of vigilance for nuclear proliferation and peace, many of her goals were achieved,” Ms. Norton, a Democrat, said in a statement, citing “a measured reduction” in atomic weapon proliferation, including the Obama administration’s recent accord with Iran.

Joyce Rothermel is a member of the TMC AntiWar Committee.

18 - NEWPEOPLE March 2016

I would guess that Joe is in his late 50s, but it's hard to tell the age of someone who has been on the streets for a long time. A study done in the 1960s

by New York's Bellevue Hospital found that most people who had hit the streets actually died in a few years, their physical plight being compounded by malnutrition. Based on things that Joe has said during our conversations, I would guess that he has spent something like 25 years on the streets. For the current population, Joe may have indeed invented homelessness.

Joe's appearance is such that he might frighten small children; a big man, over 6 feet, with the hirsute look of a woodsman who abandoned civilization decades earlier. A shaggy head of hair, resembling a lion's mane; a six inch beard with a long braid in the center surround small, pinpoint eyes.

I've thought about asking Joe if I could follow him around but I feel confident that he would turn me down. Early on, I gave a priest a few dollars to give to Joe and he said that Joe doesn't take money. The only good book about being what used to be called a bum is George Orwell's Down and Out in London and Paris. However, I came to realize that one can't enter that life as a voyeur. It would be obscene to trail Joe and his peers around with notebook and camera in hand.

The church custodian shared that Joe only comes to the church Sunday mornings "and I thank God for that", he smiled. He went on to talk about how disgusting it was to clean up after Joe's sponge bath. Another parishioner (who like me enjoys the diversity that the proles bring to the church) expressed her fear to me that the custodian would pre-

vail upon the new priest to close the door to Pigeon Joe "because he frightens little children." Few children attend the church and I have never seen one on the lower level.

In the gospels, Jesus brushes off a complaint about money spent on his anointing by saying, "The poor you will have with you always." The people who criticize our welfare system seem as a rule to oppose panhandling in front of the churches on Sunday mornings. There is a public bath on the South Side; maybe Joe should go there. (Unfortunately, I think it's closed.)

Clearly the three Abrahamic religions give tending to the less fortunate a high ethical priority. How this is done--from alms-giving to the welfare state-- is another question; the answers being nearly as disparate as the human species. As far as I can determine there is only one Christian thinker who tried to view the question from Joe's perspective. The ancient Greeks thought that one of the chief arguments for private as opposed to public charity is the opportunity that the former afforded for virtuous action Christian conservatives like Bill Buckley and Barry Goldwater adopted this argument.

But how do we handle Joe and his peers? St. Francis de Sales, a Roman bishop and the Co-Founder of the Order of Visitation, told the sisters before they began their ministrations that they should first ask the poor for forgiveness. This is because for the nuns to be charitable God had to first create the disadvantaged to be objects of their Order's charitable impulses.

Forgive me, Pigeon Joe. Brother Umberto is a retired lawyer and a member of the Franciscan Order of Divine Compassion.

Bread for the World Focus for 2016

By Joyce Rothermel

For over 40 years, letters to Congress have helped drive the progress we've made against hunger domestically and internationally. This year’s Bread for the World Offering of Letters to Congress will focus on the nutrition and health of mothers and children. We are asking Congress to support robust funding in this year's appropriations bill for nutrition and health for mothers, newborns, and young children.

As Congress begins determining next year's funding priorities, it is important for your members of Congress to hear from us with letters early in the year. The world has made tremendous progress against hunger, but when the scourge of malnutrition takes too many precious lives or saps potential, it is clear that we have

more work to do. Asking our government to be a leader in global nutrition means we are helping to bring about the vision of a world without hunger. Learn more at www.bread.org While it is advantageous to write our letters as individuals, it can make an even greater impact when we gather to write our letters and multiply the message.

This year, the SW PA Bread for the World Team is again organizing a workshop to assist us in the effort. We invite you to join us on Saturday, April 2, 2016 for this year’s Bread for the World Regional Workshop. It will be held again this year at Christ United Methodist Church, 44 Highland Road in Bethel Park. Beginning at 9 AM the Workshop will start with a morning session on the

Keeping Pittsburgh's History in Front of Us

By Patricia DeMarco

On April 21, 2016 a new marker commemorating The Battle of Homestead of 1892 will be ceremoniously unveiled at The Pump House.

The event will be celebrated with a new interpretive plaque describing the confrontation between the Homestead steelworkers and the Pinkertons, noting the historic significance of this battle for labor and workers everywhere. The ceremony from 1:00 PM to 2:00 PM will include music and readings by students of Steel Valley High School, as well as

presentations from local dignitaries. A reception and screening of the film "The River Ran Red" will follow.

The celebration is presented

by The Battle of Homestead Foundation. The event is free and open to the public.

The Pump House is located at The Waterfront in Homestead.

Patricia DeMarco is on the board of directors of the Battle of Homestead Foundation .

theme of the 2016 Annual Bread for the World Offering of Letters and be followed by a box lunch.

(The cost of the box lunch is $8 when requested in pre-workshop registration.) The workshop will continue with an optional afternoon session on the topic of immigration and its relationship to domestic and international hunger and how to get involved. Barbara Bower, a Pittsburgh immigration attorney, will lead the session scheduled to conclude at 2:30 PM. To find out more about the workshop and the SW PA Bread for the World Team, call JeannaMar Simmons at 412-835-6621 x109.

Joyce Rothermel is a Co-Chair of the SW PA Bread Team.

Offering of Letters Training & Immigration, Hunger, and Poverty Workshop Saturday, April 2

9:00 AM – 2:30 PM Christian Life Center Christ United Methodist Church 44 Highland Road Bethel Park, PA 15102

Registration will begin at 8:30 AM with a continental breakfast Box lunches available with pre-registration - $8.00 RSVP requested by March 29th Contact Jeanna-Mar Simmons with any questions 412-835-6621 ext. 109 or jmsimmons@christumc.net

March 2016

NEWPEOPLE - 19

Sunday

Monday

Tuesday

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Wednesday

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“A Lesson Before Dying” 2:30

Meet and Hear Author and Theologian Ilia Delio- 2 – 4 PM Kearns Spirituality Center, 9000 Babcock Blvd.

Allison Park

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1860 6,000 shoemakers joined by 20,000 other workers in strike in Lynn, Mass.

Clothing Swap– 2-5 PM– TechShop192 Bakery Square Blvd,

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“A Lesson Before Dying” 2:30 Daylight Savings begins– Spring forward an hour

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Empty Bowls Dinner– 1:306:30PM– Rodef Shalom 4905 5th Ave– RSVP https:// www.showclix.c om/event/ emptybowls2016

MORALtorium: Spring Forward and Leave Fracking Behind Rally- 9:45 AMGrace United Methodist Church on State Street in Harrisburg

International Women’s Day Port Authority Public Hearing for Proposed Fare Policy– 3:00—7:00 PM - Alumni Hall in Connolly Ballroom, 4227 Fifth Ave

Friday

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March 2016

Saturday

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Regular Meetings

“How to Be A Bus to Detroit to “A Lesson Before Muslim Ally” protest Republican Dying” - 8:00Diversity Debate– For more New Hazlett Training– 5:00 – information email Theater 6 alex@pittsburghun 7:00– Islamic Allegheny Sq ited.org Center of www.primestage.

Pittsburgh 4100 Food Stamps Time com Bigelow Blvd.

Limits Community RSVP Required Meeting- 12:00—

MAESTRA: A Year without Sundays: Documentary about the Revolutionary Literacy Campaign in Cuba with filmmaker Catherine Murphy– 7:00 PM- Penn State Center Pittsburgh 1435 Bedford Ave. Ste. A

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Thursday

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5:00 PM — 6022 Broad Street, Repair the World

Beehive Collective at Unblurred– 6:00PM– TMC Annex 5119 Penn Ave

“A Lesson Before Dying” 8:00

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2004 Protestors shut down CocaCola plant in Kerala, India for sucking up the ground water

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Strange Beauty: Autoradiograph y from Fukushima– 5:00– 7:30 PM – University Art Gallery, Frick Fine Arts Building

Black and White Reunion– 6:30 PM– Pittsburgh Theological Seminary, Long Hall 2nd Floor

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Sundays: Book’Em: Books to Prisoners Project First three Sundays of the month at TMC, 46pm Contact: bookempgh@gmail.com Anti-War and Anti-Drone Warfare Coalition 3rd Sunday at 11:30 am at TMC, 5129 Penn Ave., Garfield, PA 15224

Mondays: SW Healthcare 4 All PA /PUSH Meeting 1st Monday, 7:30 —9 pm Association of Pittsburgh Priests 2nd Monday, 7—9 pm, Prince of Peace Rectory 162 South 15th, Southside, Pgh. PA 15203 Amnesty International #39 2nd Monday, 7—9 pm First Unitarian Church, Morewood Ave. 15219

“A Lesson Before “A Lesson Before Dying” Dying” 8:00 8:00 1930 Gandhi begins 200 mile salt tax protest march

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Wednesdays: Human Rights Coalition: Fed-Up! Every Wednesday at 7p.m. Write letters for prisoners’ rights at the Thomas Merton Center Darfur Coalition Meeting 1st and 3rd Wednesdays, 5:30 – 7:00 pm, Meeting Room C Carnegie Library, Squirrel Hill 412-784-0256 Pennsylvanians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty (PADP) 1st Wednesdays, 7-8pm, First Unitarian Church, Ellsworth & Morewood Avenues, Shadyside Pittsburghers for Public Transit 2nd Wednesday, 7pm, 1 Smithfield St., lower level

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Port Authority Board Meeting– 9:30 AM– 345 6th Ave

Thursdays: International Socialist Organization Every Thursday, 7:30-9:30 pm at the Thomas Merton Center Global Pittsburgh Happy Hour 1st Thursday, 5:30 to 8 pm, Roland's Seafood Grill, 1904 Penn Ave, Strip District Green Party Meeting 1st Thursday, 7 to 9 pm, 2121 Murray, 2nd floor, Squirrel Hill Black Political Empowerment Project 2nd Thursday, 6 pm: Planning Council Meeting, Hill House, Conference Room B

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1911 Triangle Shirtwaist fire kills 147 workers locken in by NYC employer

You Wouldn’t Expect Play– 2:00 & 8:00– August Wilson Center 980 Liberty Ave

Fridays: Unblurred Gallery Crawl 1st Friday after 6 pm, Penn Avenue Arts District, 4800-5500 Penn Ave., Friendship and Garfield 15224 Hill District Consensus Group 2nd Friday, 10 am — 12 pm, Elsie Hillman Auditorium, Kaufmann Center 1825 Centre Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15219 People of Prisoners in Need of Support 3rd Friday, 7:00pm New Hope Methodist Church, 114 W. North Ave, Pittsburgh 15212

Saturdays:

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Project to End Human Trafficking 2nd Sat., Carlow University, Antonian Room #502 Fight for Lifers West 3rd Saturday, 10 a.m. to 12:30 pm, Thomas Merton Center

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Last day to register to vote

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