Thomas Merton Center Pittsburgh’s Peace and Social Justice Center
PITTSBURGH’S PEACE & JUSTICE NEWSPAPER VOL. 47 No. 6 September 2017
Nuclear Weapons Abolition: Nearer Than You Think
Letter from the Director: On Charlottesville
By Michael Drohan
By Gabriel McMorland
In this month’s letter, I want to speak directly to other white progressives in the immediate aftermath of the white power terror riot in Charlottesville, North Carolina. We must challenge ourselves to address the problems of white supremacy and patriarchy in our own minds, in our communities, and in activist spaces. White people must commit to action and to an honest accounting of reality, not simply to vague calls for unity and peace. Peace, after all, requires justice. Let’s recognize that the violence in Charlottesville is as American as apple pie. We know this country was founded on the violence of colonial genocide and slavery. Since reconstruction, we’ve seen an unbroken tradition of racist vigilantes, often operating with the active complicity of local police forces. The white nationalist militia movement did not demonstrate after the Continued on Page 3...
Black Brilliance March through Homewood, Aug. 19 in opposition to violent white supremacist demonstrations in Charlottesville, VA (Photo credit: Sueño Viveros)
In This Issue: PA Budgets
page 6
A Right to Redemption
page 7
Prosecute U.S. Criminals
page 8
Casa San Jose
page 9
In 2015 in the New People I wrote an article entitled “Nuclear Abolition: Humanitarian Consequences Initiative,” which outlined the initiative of the non-nuclear nations to have the possession and/or use of nuclear weapons banned. The approach of these non-nuclear nations (NNN) was to emphasise the unacceptable humanitarian consequences of the use of even one nuclear weapon on millions of human beings. Prior to this initiative, the debate on the abolition of nuclear weapons was under the control of the nuclear weapons states. Three of the nuclear weapons states brought into existence the Treaty for the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) in 1970. Among its provisions was Article 6, in which the US, UK, France, USSR and China (the then nuclear weapons states) committed to negotiate the elimination of their nuclear weapons. Through the NPT the nuclear states (now nine in number) have monopolized the nuclear abolition debate, with relatively little to show from their commitment to Article 6. Nuclear weapons were considered to be a national security issue by the nuclear states and deterrence of each other from ever using them was the key issue. Continued on Page 8...
Statement of TMC’s Anti-War Committee on the US-North Korea Conflict The statement of President Trump, made on August 7, 2017, that any threats from North Korea (Democratic People’s Republic of Korea) to the United States “will be met by fire and fury like the world has never seen” leaves little to the imagination in his readiness to unleash an orgy of violence and destruction on the world. There can be little doubt that he seems ready to release nuclear Armageddon on North Korea and the planet. We find this statement to be reckless and against all the principles, laws and morality in the conduct of nations. The statements of the President regarding the conflict between the US and North Korea are very troubling because of 1) the characterization of the nature of the problem between North Korea and the US and 2) the stance that brute force and military operations are the solution to the problems. In regard to the nature of the conflict between the US and North Korea, the reality is that North Korea has been under threat from the United States since the end of World War II. The militarization of South Korea and the installation of THAAD missile defense systems by the US are all aimed at North Korea. South Korea has 38,000 US troops on its land ready to invade its northern neighbors. In addition, the US 7th Fleet is sitting off North Korea’s west coast. It is not unreasonable for North Korea to feel that they may be next in line for regime change such as happened in Libya and Iraq. Its development of nuclear missiles in that context has to be understood as a deterrent against the overthrow of its government. The real threat to peace in the world is the thousands of nuclear weapons possessed by the US and the other nuclear powers. The Trump regime and indeed its predecessors since World War II have been in denial of the threat that the US poses to North Korea. It also needs to be noted that North Korea has never attacked or bombed any country thus making the US threat an act of aggression against a peaceful country. Regarding the solutions to the problems between the US and North Korea, peaceful solutions are available, but there is no acknowledgement of such by the US. The sanctions imposed by the UN at the behest of the US are an aggressive and belligerent measure, an act of war by other means. Their aim is to cripple the North Korean economy. Such measures are counterproductive and can only exacerbate the situation. The recent threat of nuclear annihilation of North Korea borders on insanity as an approach to resolve the problem. We demand that President Trump and the United States Congress withdraw these threats and renounce all violent measures to resolve the conflict. There is a peaceful solution to the Korean problem at hand but it has never been tried since 1953. That solution is for the US to promise to end its threatening stance toward North Korea and promise to withdraw its military machine from South Korea which is aimed at the destruction of the North Korean regime. Secondly, instead of aggressive sanctions the US should initiate the normalization of trade relations, the end of sanctions and the initiation of aid to the suffering people of North Korea. In conclusion, peace is possible. We must all work toward another world where the insanity of military aggression and nuclear threats is rejected and committed to the dustbin of history. 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.
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Human Rights IS PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY THE THOMAS MERTON CENTER 5129 PENN AVENUE, PITTSBURGH, PA 15224
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Office Phone: 412-361-3022 — Fax: 412-361-0540 Website: www.thomasmertoncenter.org The NewPeople Editorial Collective
Neil Cosgrove, Michael Drohan, Russ Fedorka, Ishita Madan, FaBette McDevitt, Calvin Pollack, Joyce Rothermel, Molly Rush, and Jo Tavener.
TMC Staff, Volunteers & Interns
Executive Director: Gabriel McMorland Finance Director / Project Liaison: Roslyn Maholland Support Staff: Sr. Mary Clare Donnelly Activist & Office Volunteers: Christina Castillo, Monique Dietz, Nancy Gippert, Lois Goldstein, Jordan Malloy, Joyce Rothermel, Judy Starr NewPeople Coordinator: Kim Dinh Community Organizer: Krystle Knight East End Community Thrift Store Managers: Shirley Gleditsch, Shawna Hammond, & Sr. Mary Clare Donnelly
2017 TMC Board of Directors
Ed Brett, Rob Conroy (President), Neil Cosgrove, Bill Chrisner, Mark Dixon, Antonia Dominga, Michael Drohan, Patrick Fenton, Nijah Glenn, Wanda Guthrie, anupama jain, Ken Joseph, Anne Kuhn, Jonah McAllister-Erickson, Jim McCarville, Jordan Malloy, Joyce Rothermel, Molly Rush (co-founder), Tyrone Scales, M. Shernell Smith.
Book‘Em: Books to Prisoners Project bookempgh@gmail.com www.bookempgh.org Cities for CEDAW
School of the Americas Watch W. PA 412-271-8414 rothermeljoyce@gmail.com
Fight for Lifers West fightforliferswest@gmail.com 412-607-1804 Fightforliferswest.org
Environmental Justice
Greater Pittsburgh Interfaith Coalition Anne Wirth 412-716-9750 Human Rights Coalition / Fed Up (prisoner support and advocacy) 412-802-8575, hrcfedup@gmail.com www.prisonerstories.blogspot.com Pittsburghers for Public Transit 412-216-9659 info@pittsburghforpublictransit.org Steel Smiling info@steelsmilingpgh.org Www.steelsmilingpgh.org 412-251-7793 Stop Sexual Assault in the Military 412-361-3022 hildebrew@aol.com
Anti-War/Anti-Imperialism 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. We are mission driven volunteers who look to build love and community by serving others in times of need. Follow @getthriftypgh on Instagram
Anti-War Committee awc@thomasmertoncenter.org
The New People is distributed each month to 3,000 people who belong to diverse organizations, businesses and groups. The deadline for all submissions is the 13th of the month for the following month’s issue. To Submit Articles, Photos, or Poems: Visit www.thomasmertoncenter.org/ newpeople/submit. To Submit an Event to the TMC Calendar: Visit www.thomasmertoncenter.org/calendar/submit-event To Advertise: Visit www.thomasmertoncenter.org/newpeople/ad Advertising prices range from $15 for a business card size to $250 for a full page. There is a 10% discount when purchasing 6 months of ad space at a time, and a 20% discount when purchasing a year of ad space at a time. An additional 10% discount is available for non-profit organizations and faith-based groups. For more information: Call 412-361-3022 or email newpeople@thomasmertoncenter.org.
Table of Contents
TMC Partners (Affiliates are independent partner organizations who support the nonviolent peace and justice mission of TMC. - Articles may not necessarily represent the views of Affiliates) Abolitionist Law Center 412-654-9070 abolitionistlawcenter.org Amnesty International info@amnestypgh.org - www.amnestypgh.org
www.associationofpittsburghpriests.com 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
Page 1 Page 6 Nuclear Weapons Abolition: Nearer Than You Think PA Budgets Spare Rich; Gouge All Others Letter from the Director: On Charlottesville End the Sentence, Period. - A trip to D.C. Statement of TMC’s Anti-War Committee on the USPage 7 North Korea Conflict Karen Clifton to Speak in Pittsburgh: Page 3 “Ending the Death Penalty; Promoting Restorative JusThomas Merton, a Spiritual Guide in a Troubled World tice”, Monday, September 11, 2017 Letter from the Director: On Charlottesville (Cont’d) End the Sentence, Period. - A trip to D.C. (Cont’d) Now Is a Good Time to Donate A Right to Redemption Page 4 Page 8 Dick Gregory Memorial Prosecute U.S. War Criminals Transitions Nuclear Weapons Abolition: Nearer Than You Think Become a member today! Page 9 Page 5 Prosecute U.S. War Criminals Peace Like a River: A Three Rivers Celebration of the Nuclear Weapons Abolition: Nearer Than You Think International Day of Peace Page 10 Nominations Open for TMC Board Local Sustainability Leader and Convener: Maren Cooke An Invitation to All Members of the Thomas Merton Cen- Founding Member Father Jack O'Malley Recognized by St. ter Francis UniversityPage 11 2 - NEWPEOPLE
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Marcellus Shale Protest Group melpacker@aol.com 412-243-4545 marcellusprotest.org Pittsburgh 350 350pittsburgh@gmail.com World.350.org/Pittsburgh Shalefield Stories (Friends of the Harmed) 412-422-0272 brigetshields@gmail.com Westmoreland Marcellus Citizens Group 724-837-0540 lfpochet@verizon.net
Economic Justice Harambee Ujima/Diversity Footprint Twitter @HomewoodNation Pittsburgh Anti-Sweatshop Community Alliance 412-512-1709
Pittsburgh Darfur Emergency Coalition
Association of Pittsburgh Priests Sr. Barbara Finch 412-716-9750
Publish in The NewPeople
jumphook@gmail.com; www.pittsburghdarfur.org
Pittsburgh Area Pax Christi 412-761-4319 Pittsburgh Cuba Coalition 412-303-1247 lisacubasi@aol.com Pittsburgh BDS Coalition bdspittsburgh@gmail.com Pittsburgh North People for Peace 412-760-9390 info@pnpp.northpgh.org www.pnpp.northpgh.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 rothermeljoyce@gmail.com United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America (UE) 412-471-8919 www.ueunion.org Veterans for Peace Paul Dordal 412-999-6913 vfp47wp@yahoo.com Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) Edith Bell 412-661-7149 granbell412@gmail.com
TMC is a Member of Pennsylvania Interfaith Impact Network 412-621-9230 office@piin.org Pennsylvanians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty Martha Conley 412-361-7872, osterdm@earthlink.net TMC supports these organizations’ missions.
Remembering Fr. Miguel D'Escoto Steve Biko: Anti-Apartheid LeaderPage 12 Whatever It Was, It Wasn't "Trumpcare" OOPS! Problem with First Truckload of Dangerous Nuclear Bomb Waste Page 13 Jesus Tells All About Injustice “Prison Gang” Peace Delegation to Germany July 12-18 Comic by Russell Fedorka Page 14 The Plot to Scapegoat Russia: A Must Read – For Everyone The Sun Is Going Down on the Sacred CowPage 15 Saudi Arabia and the US: Not so Strange Bedfellows Democracy’s Daughter: Election 2016
Merton Center News Letter from the Director: On Charlottesville (Cont’d) By Gabriel McMorland
1995 bombing of the Oklahoma City Federal Building, and their paranoid ranks swelled after the inauguration of the first black president. Both political parties compete to champion the law and order politics of mass incarceration while police continue to murder black and brown children with impunity. White Christian men commit the majority of domestic terror attacks. When people say the alt-right does not represent American values, how does that obscure these truths? Also, let’s agree that condemning neo-nazi terrorists is a pretty low bar for our own behavior. Yes, we’re seeing the ascendancy of right-wing movements, the culmination of decades of political strategy, and a cultural backlash against the self-determination of marginalized people. The shocking images in our daily news are really only symptoms of a deeper cancer, a disease rotting outward from the core of white-dominated society. All of this relies on the tacit approval of a vast “silent majority” of people accepting the assumptions and institutions of white supremacy. What should we do about this? Honestly, I do not know. We can put our bodies on the line to shut down the terroristic spectacle of white nationalists, and we can organize towards the political goals of dismantling our broken institutions. Above all, though, we must uphold the basic human dignity of the people around us, and examine our own power and privilege. A lifetime of activism against racist institutions does not somehow replace the need to create welcoming, inclusive spaces today. The impact of our words and actions matters far more than our intentions. We can only offer respect to the people around us by trusting when they speak from their own experience, and by reflecting on our own identity, power, and privilege. Fighting fascists does not give any of us a free pass on our own behavior. Gabriel is the Director of the Thomas Merton Center. Contact him at: gabriel@thomasmertoncenter.org.
Thomas Merton, a Spiritual Guide in a Troubled World This fall, Thomas Merton will again be featured in the fall course offerings of the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Carnegie Mellon University. The course, “Thomas Merton, a Spiritual Guide in a Troubled World” will be presented by Merton Center members Carol Gonzalez and Joyce Rothermel. First offered in the spring of 2016, the year after the 100th anniversary of Thomas Merton’s birth, the opportunity was presented to make the course available again to interested participants.
faith dialogue, and his spiritual journey in his last year (1968). The classes will reveal the reason why Merton continues to be read and to inspire the lives of people in the 21st century, as a promoter of peace between peoples and religions. They will also include the mission and history of the Thomas Merton Center.
The classes will be held on Thursdays from Nov. 2 to December 14 (excluding Thanksgiving) from 11:15 AM to 12:45 PM in room 4707 in Wean Hall at Carnegie Mellon University. If The six-week class will provide an inspiring you are interested in the classes and would like exploration into the life, relationships, writings more information, call the Osher Office at 412and contemplative practices of Thomas Merton. 268-7489 at CMU. To learn more about the In addition to the biographical information Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, go to about Merton’s life, classes will focus on his www.cmu.edu/osher published writings, correspondence with many of his contemporaries around the world, inter(Photo: merton.org)
Now Is a Good Time to Donate The summer is with us; the work of the Merton Center continues and so must our support. Hopefully you received our summer appeal and are considering a gift to support the mission of the TMC through these months when donations are often too few, while expenses continue at their usual rate. Please consider becoming a sustaining member by becoming a Monthly Peacemaker. You can become a Peacemaker on the TMC website, and your monthly giving will bring a greater stability to the Center’s financing. Another idea is to make a gift to honor or remember someone who inspires or has inspired you by making our world more peaceful and more just. Molly Rush has offered a few people to consider: Dr. Dan Fine, Neil McCaulley, Don Fisher, Sr Elizabeth Carroll, Rev. Leroy Patrick, Warren Metzler, Edith Wilson, Cary Lund, Ursula Yeager, Jerry Starr, Don Mcllvane, Ellen Berliner and Anne Steytler. I would add Miguel D’Escoto, a past Merton Award winner who passed away earlier this year (See the article about him in this issue.), Daniel and Phil Berrigan, and our own Molly Rush, who continues her commitment to peace and justice in so many ways. You can send a check to the Merton Center at 5129 Penn Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15224, noting the person in whose honor or memory you are making your gift in the memo section, or donate on line at www.thomasmertoncenter.org. Other ways to support the Center include: • • •
Gift memberships – introduce others to the Merton Center through a subscription to The NewPeople. Become a Cornerstone Sustainer with a gift(s) of $500 or more annually. Remember the Merton Center in your will. Learn more about the Molly Rush Legacy Fund at the TMC website.
Whatever way you choose to support the Center financially is most welcome. Recent events locally, in several parts of the country, and internationally remind us over and over again why the Merton Center is so important to us and to our community. P.S. If your membership has expired or you are not yet a member, please renew or become a member today. (See form included on the next page)
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More Merton Center Transitions The Thomas Merton Center is going through several transitions this summer.: TMC ED Search: At the end of June, Gabriel McMorland became the new Executive Director of the Thomas Merton Center, leaving his role as TMC Organizer. PPT Directors: Pittsburghers for Public Transit, a project of TMC, has also gained new leadership in June. Molly Nichols left her position and is moving from Pittsburgh after 11 years of advocacy and organizing. The new Executive Director of PPT is Laura Weins, who has been a longtime member of PPT’s Coordinating Committee. Dick Gregory speaks at Just Harvest Annual Dinner, October 2002 (Photo credit: Just Harvest)
Dick Gregory was an activist during the civil rights movement in the 1960s. He died August 19, 2017 at the age of 84. Mr. Gregory used humor and satire to address racial tensions and segregation. He was one of the first black comedians to perform at white clubs. Mr. Gregory devoted his life to protest for social justice, and was arrested several times for participating in civil rights rallies. In 1974, he received the Merton Center Award for his work.
Technology & Operations: Stepping into the new role of Technology and Operations Coordinator is Kim Dinh, new full-time staff person. Community Organizer: TMC has also brought on a full -time Community Organizer, Krystle Knight.
An Invitation to All Members of the Thomas Merton Center By Joyce Rothermel
How does an organization like the Thomas Merton Center manage to fulfill its mission for forty-five years in the Pittsburgh area? The answer is very simple: its members. With the commitment of time, the sharing of talents, and the on-going financial support of its members, the Thomas Merton Center continues to faithfully serve as Pittsburgh’s Peace and Social Justice Center. All Merton Center members are invited to participate in the 2017 Annual Membership Meeting on Saturday, September 30 from 2 to-4 pm in the Arcade Room at the Motherhouse of the Sisters of Mercy, 3333 Fifth Ave. behind Carlow University in Oakland. (Also accessible from Terrace Street behind the convent.)
This year’s special guest is Carl Redwood, the 2017 recipient of the New Person Award. Carl will speak in greater detail about a collective strategy that has been developed locally to address the crises all of us are now facing in the current political environment (he began to tell us about it at the New Person Award event in June.) All TMC projects have been invited to table the event. The event will include TMC updates from new Executive Director, Gabriel McMorland. He will be seeking input, comments, and questions from TMC members on direction of the Center. Nominees for 2017 awards and board nominees are welcomed. Volunteer opportunities will be available for those interested in greater involvement. A door prize of a $100 Giant Eagle gift card will be offered.
This is also a good time to introduce the Merton Center to a friend, someone new to the city, or a person who is ready to get more active in the struggle and may be interested in learning more about the Center, its activities and its projects. For more information, call the Center at 412-361-3022. Plan to attend; you won’t want to miss it! Joyce Rothermel is the Chair of the Membership Committee of the Thomas Merton Center.
Become A Member Today! Subscribe to The NewPeople by becoming a member of the Thomas Merton Center today! As a member, The NewPeople newspaper will be mailed to your home or sent to your email account. You will also receive weekly e-blasts focusing on peace and justice events in Pittsburgh, and special invitations to membership activities. Now is the time to stand for peace and justice!
Join online at www.thomasmertoncenter.org/ join-donate or fill out this form, cut out, and mail in. Select your membership level:
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Mail to TMC, 5129 Penn Ave. Pgh. PA 15224 Call (412) 361-3022 for more information.
Flowing Like A River Peace Like a River: A Three Rivers Celebration of the International Day of Peace
Nominations Open for TMC Board
By Rev. Rebecca Cartus
I’ve got peace like a river . . . I’ve got peace like a river . . . I’ve got peace like a river in my soul. How comforting the song’s lyrics sound to the individual heart. Everyone of us needs a steady stream of such heartsease harmony, especially during the flood-prone, saber-rattling times in which we live. But as members of the larger collective, we thirst for the rolling waters of universal peace as well. We know the life sustaining qualities that peace brings to a family, a community, a country - the nourishment of love, the refreshment of joy, the energy of hope. And we also know that peace-work requires a coming together, a co-mingling of the waters of diversity, and a concerted effort to make peace a reality in the world. To that end, we invite you to a commemoration of the International Day of Peace on Thursday, September 21, 2017. The program, “Peace Like a River: A Three Rivers Celebration of the International Day of Peace”, will be held at St. Mary on the Mount Roman Catholic Church, Grandview Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA beginning at 7 p.m.
Thomas Merton Center members who have an interest in serving a three year term on the Board of the TMC are invited to send their resumes to Ken Joseph, Chair of the Board Development Committee, at kjoseph15216@gmail.com by September 30. Nominations will also be accepted at the annual TMC membership meeting on Sept. 30 at the Mercy Sisters Motherhouse in Oakland (behind Carlow University).
Symbolically located above the Golden Triangle, a public space formed by Pittsburgh’s three rivers, the peace event invites a gathering together of the wonderfully diverse members of our regional, international, and interfaith communities. Together we hope to continue the peace process by learning more effective ways of beating our swords into plough shares. Above all we plan to celebrate the ways to drink deeply from the cup of peace to our good and the good of all the world. I’ve got peace like a river . . . I’ve got joy like a fountain . . . I’ve got love like an ocean in my soul. The inspiring song continues. But as the song insists - it all begins with peace. Peace Like a River: A Three Rivers Celebration of the International Day of Peace Thursday, September 21, 2017 St. Mary on the Mount Roman Catholic Church Grandview Avenue Pittsburgh, PA 7:00 p.m. Rev. Rebecca Cartus is a member of the planning committee for the 2017 Pittsburgh International Day of Peace.
Peace Dove during Anti-War March (Photo: Facebook)
Peace and Racial Justice rally at the City-County Building, Aug. 18 (Photo: Joyce Rothermel)
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Challenging the Status Quo PA Budgets Spare Rich; Gouge All Others In 2015, the June 30th Pennsylvania state budget deadline came and went without a budget agreement. Nine months later, the state finally got a 2015-16 fiscal plan. In 2016, the deadline came and went, and Governor Tom Wolf allowed an appropriations bill to become law without his signature. A short time later the legislature actually produced a revenue bill, and the 2016-17 budget was allegedly balanced. “Allegedly” because that revenue bill supposedly made up for a shortfall in established taxes with what the Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center called “dubious sources.” Skeptics concluded that the legislature had failed to produce a balanced budget, and they were right. In 2017, our lawmakers are confronted with a $1.5 billion deficit in the 2016-17 budget, and a $700 million deficit for the 2017-18 fiscal year. You would think such numbers, like the prospect of hanging, would get the Pennsylvania legislators’ attention. But apparently election years are the only looming events that force these folks to sit upright. Following the 2017 deadline they again passed an appropriations bill, which Wolf again allowed to become law without a signature. As of this writing, the state still does not have a revenue bill that will ensure the spending is paid for. In 2015 and 2016 it appeared the Republican-controlled legisla-
By Neil Cosgrove
ture’s main goal was to stifle a “tax and spend” Democratic governor. This year the central conflict is between a Republican Senate and a Republican House, with Wolf appearing to stand on the sidelines to avoid becoming the whipping boy both bodies can blame. Moreover, both bodies seem to agree that new taxes are necessary, and that they can’t completely “starve the beast” of government of which they are an integral part. Now the question is: which taxes can they tolerate? In 2016, legislators agreed to raise taxes on smokers, gamblers, and users of electronically delivered material. This year the Senate finally decided at the end of July they would slap a two percent severance tax on Marcellus Shale production, far less than the 6.5% proposed by Wolf in 2016, or the five percent he suggested in 2017. The Senate’s levy would only generate an estimated $80 million in revenue, a drop in the deficit bucket. Nevertheless, seemingly wracked by guilt over the pain they were about to inflict on the oil and gas industry, the Senate softened the blow by easing environmental permitting rules for Shale drillers. Groups dedicated to protecting the state’s environment are rightfully upset by these concessions, while energy lobbyists aren’t satisfied because they expect the environmentalists will take the Senate’s rules to court and succeed in having them revoked.
The Senate proposal also includes a 5.7% tax on natural gas bills, a half-percent increase on the tax on electric bills, and a one percent increase on phone bills. The state sales tax would be extended to websites like eBay that assist third -party purchases. All of these taxes, just like last year’s on smokers, gamblers, and internet streamers, fall most heavily on low-to-middle income citizens. Legislators refuse to seek revenues where money is most abundant, among corporations and the most affluent. When school districts are starved of state funds, property taxes necessarily rise. Because Pennsylvania ranks among the bottom five states in support of higher education, our public universities, the ones that supposedly exist to aid citizens with modest incomes, charge the country’s highest tuitions and fees. The State House, under the leadership of Speaker Mike Turzai, has balked at the Senate revenue package. The House leans towards expanded gambling, further privatization of alcohol sales (Turzai’s pet project), and borrowing. The borrowing is becoming more problematic, as Standard & Poor’s has warned Pennsylvania of a possible credit downgrade. State Treasurer Joe Torsella signed off on a $750 million line of credit in early August, while commenting that “cash-flow borrowing this early and of this magnitude has not happened in the last 25 years.” Torsella has also warned that cash
shortages could force the governor to make service cuts before the summer ends. Since our representatives have already admitted that tax increases are necessary to balance budgets and provide needed services, it’s time citizens insist they stop nickel-and-diming those with the least means and start looking towards those who will least feel a further tax bite. For instance, taxing income on dividends, capital gains, and business profits at a slightly higher rate than for earned income, doable without amending the state’s constitution, could bring in an additional $800 million. Closing loopholes that allow “70% of multi-state corporations in PA…to pay little or nothing in state corporate taxes,” according to Marc Stier of the Budget and Policy Center, could yield close to $500 million. Democratic Senator Art Haywood has argued that he can’t support the tax increases “on everyday people” without an increase in the minimum wage to help them out. Makes sense. And conservative estimates indicate that an increase from $7.25 to $10.10 an hour would give the state at least $60 million in additional revenue. Neil Cosgrove is a member of The NewPeople Editorial Collective and the Merton Center Board.
End the Sentence, Period. - A Trip to D.C. By Jordan Malloy Fight for Lifers West is an incarceration rights group with a focus on ending the life sentence in Pennsylvania. It has been decided by the state that sentencing juveniles to Death by Incarceration is unconstitutional; in this case our justice system is making attempts at correcting itself, though the paradox of their tolerance for unconstitutional acts of the state prove to be consistently evident. Recently, Fight for Lifers West went to Philadelphia to witness the sentencing of Ghani Songster, a man sentenced to Death By Incarceration as a juvenile at the age of 16 for the murder of Anjo Pryce. One important part of confronting injustice is to call it out by name. It is vitally important to notice the semantics that normalize that the sentence to life without a chance of parole is in fact a sentence damning individuals to depreciate in a cell until death comes. Ghani is now up for parole in September; this is not the justice system at work, but the work of Ghani’s family, the community and Anjo’s Sister and Father, who testified on Ghani’s behalf. A week after, I attended the hearing of a Pittsburgh Juvenile Lifer; the outcome of that hearing was grim. The judge was made aware that during his sentence, Anthony Johnson had never engaged in any physical altercations; he earned his GED and earned many other certificates. Despite what he had accomplished, Judge Jill Rangos cited that Anthony at the age of 16 denied he had any involvement with the murder and based her ruling off of a decision made by a teenager. Continued on Page 7... 6 - NEWPEOPLE
September 2017
Respecting Prisoners’ Lives A Right to Redemption
Karen Clifton to Speak in Pittsburgh: “Ending the Death Penalty; Promoting Restorative Justice”, Monday, September 11, 2017 By Joyce Rothermel
Karen Clifton, the Executive Director of the Catholic Mobilizing Network, will be the first of four speakers in this fall’s speakers’ series of the Association of Pittsburgh Priests. The title of her talk is “Ending the Death Penalthy; Promoting Restorative Justice.”. She will update us on efforts to end the death penalty in Pennsylvania. She will also address the concept of restorative justice, a person-centered approach which views crime as a violation of people harmed by criminal acts, rather than crime as simply a violation of the law. Ms. Clifton’s perspectives are enhanced by a wide breadth of experience: advocacy for the Catholic Worker, Campaign for Human Development, and AIDS ministry, as well as by coordinating the Ignatian Spirituality Project. “Do not miss this challenging opportunity to deepen your Christian understanding of restorative justice and how to act on your faith on this critical issue right here in the Pittsburgh area.” urges Fr. John Oesterle, spokesperson for the Association of Pittsburgh Priests. Karen Clifton will speak at the Kearns Spirituality Center on Monday, September 11, 2017 at 7 PM. The Center is located at 9000 Babcock Blvd. in Allison Park beside LaRoche College and behind the Motherhouse of the Sisters of Divine Providence. The fee for the upcoming talk is $20. Participants can register at the door the evening of the talk. For more information and questions, contact Fr. John Oesterle at 412232-7512 or johnoesterle2@gmail.com You are also invited to visit www.associationofpittsburghpriests.com
(Photo: Catholic Mobilizing Network)
Pre-registrations can be made to the Association of Pittsburgh Priests, P.O. Box 2106, Pittsburgh, PA 15230. The series will continue on Thursday, Oct. 27 with: “Evolution and Faith: What is at Stake?” by John Haught. The third in the series will be on Monday, November 7th: “Faith and Violence: Is Religion Killing Us?” by Jack Nelson-Pallmeyer. The final talk will be on Monday, December 5th: “Nonviolence or Nonexistence: Christian Moral Relevance Today” by Bishop John Michael Botean. Cost for the complete series is $65. The Association of Pittsburgh Priests is a diocesan-wide organization of ordained and non-ordained women and men who act on their baptismal call to be priests and prophets. Its mission, rooted in the Gospel and the Spirit of Vatican Council II, is to carry out a ministry of justice and renewal in ourselves, the Church and the world. Joyce Rothermel serves as Chair of the Church Renewal Committee of the Association of Pittsburgh Priests. (Correction to article in the July-August issue of the New People: some of the days and dates for the fall speakers series were inaccurate. Correct days and dates are included in this month's article above. )
End the Sentence, Period. - A trip to D.C. (Cont’d) Judge Rangos sentenced Anthony to serve three more years to prove that he could be a productive member of society. Additionally, she mentioned that he could’ve been given a lighter sentence but his IQ wasn’t low enough. This speaks to the nature of our local justice system. Pennsylvania’s correctional institutions are canceling all programs offered to lifers in mass, yet Judge Rangos has justified this sentencing due to him not having enough credentials. Despite somehow staying out of altercations in an exploitative, volatile, oppressive environment, this judge has used the situation of a verbal altercation with a security guard to kill hope. In a city where 80% of the inmates in the jail haven’t been convicted but are awaiting trial and/or haven’t met bail, Judge Rangos sentenced An-
thony to three more years. Though many perceive Pittsburgh to be a left-leaning city, these are the cases passing through our courtrooms. In the same city where a man was sentenced to an additional three years, after 32 years served since the age of sixteen, was the district attorney who ignored the family of Martin Esquivel, despite the efforts of a state -wide campaign, and contributed to Martin’s deportation. These are the injustices we cannot close our eyes to; these are the failures of our constitution, a constitution which states "Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction." - The Thirteenth
By Vera Fisk
This past July, members of Fight For Lifers West and Let’s Get Free made their way to Philadelphia for a two-day event centered around the resentencing of juvenile lifer, Kempis Ghani Songster. Due to the two recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions that juvenile life sentences without parole are unconstitutional, many juvenile lifers are being given a second chance. Songster is one of them. During his 29 years of incarceration Songster, commonly known as “Ghani”, created the Redemption Project, which (according to its website) “investigates, documents and shares the stories of lifers, men and women sentenced to life in prison.” Songster, along with many others, feel that a mistake one makes when there are as young as 15 should not define the rest of their lives and they deserve a second chance. Songster collaborated with the Coalition to Abolish Death By Incarceration (CADBI) to organize a community resentencing event which was held on July 20th at Arch Street Methodist Church in Philadelphia. There were over 150 attendees who gathered to discuss what they wanted from juvenile lifers, by way of restitution, instead of jail time. Many options were discussed, such as mentoring youth and supporting others who are returning from prison. The second event was July 21st, the day of Songster’s resentencing hearing. Members of CADBI, as well as family and friends of Songster, packed the courtroom. Those who could not fit waited in the hall outside of the courtroom or out front of the building. After hours of waiting, a decision was reached by the judge. Songster’s new sentence is 30 years to life. He will have served 30 years in September, making him eligible for parole, which will most likely be approved by the parole board. Songster’s family, friends, and supporters hope to see him free very soon. There will be a number of juvenile lifers who will be resentenced in the next few months in Pittsburgh. Please stay tuned for information on when the hearings will take place and how you can show support for the juvenile lifers. Vera Fisk is a high school senior at Obama Academy and an intern for Fight For Lifers West. She attended the events surrounding the resentencing of Kempis Songster.
By Jordan Malloy
Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. The system which brought us the violent, terroristic acts of white supremacists in Charlottesville is the same system built upon empty courtrooms, where 16-year-olds are sentenced. Be it a sentence to life, or a sentence to time at private prisons or institutions such as Western PA Child Care, which profit off of the labor of the incarcerated adults and youth. From August 18th to 20th Fight for Lifers West, along with HRC Fed Up, the ACJ Health Justice Project, and Let’s Get Free attended the nationwide Millions March for Prisoners’ Human Rights. We must unify in the fight for hope and human rights for those on the inside; we must call out these injustices by name, and let those on
the inside like Anthony Johnson know that the community is fighting for them. Be it marches, courtrooms, policing the police on the street or through legislation, we must dismantle oppressive institutions, and fight against the normalization of violence against the black and brown; we hope to see more of the community learning how to fight beyond words and into action for those brave enough to have hope on the inside. Contact Jordan Malloy of Fight for Lifers West to see how you can be involved in advocating for lifers and all incarcerated people. Jordan Malloy is an organizer of Fight for Lifers West and a board member of the Thomas Merton Center.
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Enforcing War’s Limits Prosecute U.S. War Criminals Traditionally, U.S. officials are never prosecuted for their war crimes. Andrew Jackson’s brutalization of indigenous people, William Sherman’s Scorched Earth strategy in the Civil War, and the invasion of the Philippines under William McKinley are notable examples in the 19th century. The carpet bombing of cities like Dresden in Europe under FDR, the use of atomic bombs on Japan under Truman, and Nixon’s carpet bombing of Cambodia are some of the atrocities of the 20th century. While these war crimes had little chance of seeing justice in their respective eras, today there is a legal framework that criminalizes such behavior by U.S. citizens against foreign populations. The U.S. has signed both the Geneva and Hague Conventions which are international human rights treaties that speak on the rules of war. The Geneva Conventions regulate the treatment of detainees, the targeting of sick or wounded soldiers, and the killing of civilians. The Hague Conventions prohibit the use of certain munitions and bombardment techniques, along with regulating how wars should begin and end. Parts of these international treaties are codified into U.S. law by the War Crimes Act of 1996 and are punishable with prison time. Depend-
By Ron Read
ing on the case and situation, this legal framework can and should be used to prosecute U.S. officials who have committed war crimes. Here are some recent examples worth looking into: In 1998, Bill Clinton ordered air strikes on a pharmaceutical factory in Sudan which is estimated to have led to hundreds of thousands of deaths from lack of medical supplies (The Guardian, 2001). After 9/11, President George W. Bush set up and maintained “black sites” or secret bases where suspected terrorists were detained and tortured (Washington Post, 2005). Barack Obama ordered the deaths of countless civilians under the suspicion that they were terrorists in countries like Yemen and Pakistan (The Intercept, 2016). Donald Trump has already ordered the killing of scores of civilians with airstrikes and night raids in countries like Iraq and Syria with similar logic (Newsweek, 2017). And to provide a more specific example that could be prosecuted: In 2002, at a CIA black site in Afghanistan known as the “Salt Pit,” a terrorist suspect named Gul Rahman was left half-naked and shackled to the floor of his cell overnight. A 2010 Associated Press story would report that when Rahman was found dead the next
morning, investigators determined that he had likely frozen to death. It’s interesting to note that not only did the Bush Administration order the creation of terrorist detention centers like the black site where Gul Rahman died, but Bush personally approved of methods like exposure to extreme temperatures that led to Rahman’s death (Human Rights Watch, 2011). If a courageous member of law enforcement was willing (or pressured by the public), Bush could be arrested for violating §2441 (d) (1)(a) of the War Crimes Act, which criminalizes the use of torture as an “act specifically intended to inflict severe physical or mental pain or suffering.” The act of authorizing military personnel to do interrogation techniques like those done to Gul Rahman would likely mean Bush violated the War Crimes Act and could face incarceration if prosecuted. Some might say that war crimes have always been committed and that we shouldn’t be interfering with the judgement of our military commanders. The counterargument is that we have the Geneva and Hague conventions incorporated into our code, with the recognition that war is war, but that war does not have to be hell. For those who ask for a “no rules”
scenario, consider the U.S. prisoners of war in past conflicts who were: starved to death by the Confederacy, exposed to poisonous gas in WWI, used for medical experiments in Japan, or confined to “Tiger Cages” in Vietnam. Also think about the U.S. cities and military personnel that could be targeted for chemical, biological, and nuclear weapons by our modern enemies. You want to have some rules, trust me. One effort at fighting against the injustice of war crimes is The War Crimes Project, an initiative started by the Anti-War Committee of the Thomas Merton Center. The War Crimes Project’s goal is to force state and federal law enforcement officials to file charges against U.S. war criminals through things like postering, educational events, and direct action. For more information, go to the WarCrimesProject.org and read about some U.S. war criminals that need brought to justice. Ron Read is a recent graduate of the University of Pittsburgh School of Law and a Member of the Thomas Merton Center Anti -War Committee.
Nuclear Weapons Abolition: Nearer Than You ThinK (Cont’d) By Michael Drohan Use of nuclear weapons was considered to be the MAD (mutually assured destruction) option. In recent years, however, under President Obama and now more acutely under President Trump, it seems as if even the MAD option is not ruled out. Under the rubric of the threat “to take no options off the table” in regard to problems with Iran and North Korea, it is fairly patent that they have in mind the use of nuclear weapons.
2013 was convened under the banner “Humanitarian Impact of Nuclear Weapons.” Delegates from 127 countries attended. A second Conference was organized in Mexico in February 2014, with delegates from 146 countries attending as well as the Red Cross, Red Crescent, the United Nations, and Physicians for Social Responsibility. A third Conference in this series took place in Vienna, Austria in December 2014.
Faced with frustration at the nuclear weapons states virtual disregard for their obligations under Article 6, the nonnuclear states seized the initiative and completely changed the discourse. They called their approach to the question of nuclear weapons “The Humanitarian Consequences Initiative.” Through this initiative they asserted that the humanitarian consequences of the use of even one nuclear weapon would be so catastrophic that it renders their possession or possible use as a crime against humanity and hence the NNN called for their immediate abolition.
The last stage in this process took place at a Conference at the UN General Assembly in March 2017 and then from June 15 to July 7, 2017. This Conference produced a “Draft Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.” It was approved by the representatives of 122 non-nuclear nations. The only nation refusing to approve of the treaty was the Netherlands, because the US houses some of its nuclear arsenal in that country. The draft Treaty has 20 articles, outlining the scope and objectives of the Treaty.
Their initiative dates back to 1996, when the International Court of Justice delivered an advisory opinion stating “the threat or use of nuclear weapons would generally be contrary to the rules of international law applicable in armed conflict, and in particular the principles and rules of humanitarian law.” In the last few years, the humanitarian initiative for abolition went into high gear, as a Conference in Oslo, Norway in March
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Article 1 of the Treaty states that each state party undertakes under no circumstances to: Develop, test, produce, manufacture, otherwise acquire, possess, or stockpile nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices. Transfer to any recipient whatsoever nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices or control over such weapons or explosive devices, directly or indirectly.
Receive the transfer of or control over nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices directly or indirectly. Use or threaten to use nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices. Assist, encourage, or induce, in any way, anyone to engage in any activity prohibited to a state party. Seek or receive any assistance, in any way, from anyone to engage in any activity prohibited to a state party. Allow any stationing, installation or deployment of any nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices in its territory or at any place under its jurisdiction or control. Over the next several months, the Humanitarian Initiative organizers will try to muster support for the Treaty and get the signatures of non-nuclear nations for it. To date no nuclear nation has registered support, and that will be its principal obstacle. In the meantime, our role as abolitionists is to educate people on the issue and publicize it. The international press has been almost completely silent on the Initiative while they publicize every threatening, crazy pronouncement of Donald Trump. Without even the pretence of shock, they report Trump as stating “what good are nuclear weapons if we do not use them.” Michael Drohan is a member of the Editorial Collective and the Board of the Thomas Merton Center.
Defending Immigrants Casa San José: A Beacon for Latino Immigrants in the Pittsburgh Region By Roye Werner
“Urgent” and “bleak” are descriptors Sister Janice Vanderneck, Director of Civic Engagement and founder of Casa San José, recently used to characterize her clients’ situations. These are Latino immigrants in Pittsburgh, both newly arrived and long-term, with green cards and without, who are in need of social services, a welcoming environment, and a route to empowerment and integration. Often they have come here as victims of human trafficking, of gang wars, of relentless poverty, of political and criminal violence. Most of them are undocumented, making them direct targets of the Trump administration’s recent and continuing crackdown on immigrants here without authorization. Casa San José, an outreach of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Baden, defines itself as “a community resource center that links Latino neighbors in need with service providers and other resources to advance their welcome and integration.” Led by Sister Janice and Julian Asenjo, its Executive Director, it has a small staff of five, along with more than 200 devoted volunteers. Since 2013, they have worked to help over 900 clients from all parts of the Pittsburgh region find jobs, legal assistance, ESL classes, healthcare, training, transportation, and homes, as well as education and activities for their children. But now the situation for immigrants has become much more dire, as increasing numbers are summarily arrested, imprisoned, and deported by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE,) often without access to a lawyer or even contact with their loved ones. Casa San José now finds itself filling a desperate need in supporting families suddenly without a parent, connecting frightened people with lawyers and information about their legal rights, escorting clients to bail hearings, calming anxious children, standing up for the rights of detainees to counsel and a fair hearing, and generally acting as a protector for a community under siege. In February, a Rapid Response Team was formed consisting of Casa’s community organizers, Monica Ruiz and Jeimy Sanchez-Ruiz, along with volunteer attorneys, social workers, and other helpers. It has been called into action 21 times since; whenever ICE patrols are spot-
and legislation affecting immigrants and refugees. They work, along with many local progressive organizations, to hold rallies and demonstrations, and otherwise promote civil rights, affordable housing, and economic justice. Sister Janice and Monica Ruiz are frequent speakers at many public events and organization meetings – watch for them!
Demonstrators during 2017 May Day March (Photo: Ike Gittlen. Flickr.com)
ted in a neighborhood, a phone call to Casa staff soon follows. The team then mobilizes quickly and travels to the location, tending to terrorized family members and neighbors, locating the person who has been detained, and trying to ensure that they are granted their rights while in ICE custody, which is by no means guaranteed. Casa’s Service Coordinators, Veronica Jenkins and Pilar Caballero Garman, work individually with hundreds of clients to help them access the many social services they need. And Monica and Jeimy coordinate many opportunities for learning: Know Your Rights sessions, Women’s Group Meetings, Pennsylvania Immigration and Citizenship Coalition (PICC)’s Leadership Training sessions in Harrisburg, PA Legislative Update workshops; as well as some fun: a Back to School Bash, trips to Kennywood, an annual Christmas Party.
Casa San José operates on a very limited budget, and so relies strongly on the willingness of volunteers and the generosity of supporters. Many opportunities to help, participate and learn more about Casa’s community are communicated on its website (casasanjose.org), Facebook page (www.facebook.com/ casasanjosepgh), and its weekly email message (casasanjosepgh.blogspot.com). Please subscribe by contacting Sister Valerie Zottola, Volunteer Coordinator, at srvalerie@casasanjose.org with your name and email address. Sister Valerie also receives volunteer applications. Donations are gratefully accepted, with checks made out to Casa San José sent to our address at 933 Brookline Blvd, Pittsburgh, PA 15226 or online via our website. Casa San José also encourages all supporters of immigrant rights to express your opinions to any of your legislators, local, state and federal – they are listening and progress is being made by those efforts. (Here’s how to find them: myreps.datamade.us). Roye Werner is a volunteer at Casa San José, a nonprofit organization that supports the Latino immigrant community of Pittsburgh.
In addition, all the staff actively advocate for the Latino community, in cooperation with partners like the Thomas Merton Center, the PICC, the Labor Council for Latin American Advancement (LCLAA), Friends of Farmworkers, the Community Justice Project, and others. They communicate frequently with Mayor Peduto and his office, City and County Council members, state legislators, police departments, government agencies, and with Pittsburgh residents in general about policies
2nd Annual Binational Convergence at the U.S./Mexico Border By Joyce Rothermel
Last October, 15 people organized by the SW PA School of the America’s Watch (SOAW) participated in the first Binational Convergence at the U.S./Mexico border in Nogales, Arizona, thanks to the generous support of many Merton Center members and friends. This year the national SOA Watch has set the event for November 10-12. The decision to move national attention from Ft. Benning, Georgia (the location of the Army School of the Americas, now called Western Hemisphere Institute for Security and Cooperation/WHINSEC) to the U.S./Mexico border came out of the strategic planning of the SOA Watch in June 2016, as they reflected on their work of the past 25 years, addressing the reality of U.S imperialism and militarization throughout the Americas, and how to best respond to
this reality. The plan that emerged focuses on addressing U.S. military aid and training to Mexico and Honduras. Both countries face tremendous bloodshed and repression due to that aid and training. SOA’s plan identifies U.S. foreign policy as the root cause of migration. The first Binational Convergence (Border Encuentro)at Nogales was a space of resistance. It began with a vigil at the Eloy migrant detention center, located just north of Tucson. We denounced its conditions of mistreatment and violence that had caused the death of at least 15 people, mostly Central Americans. Veterans for Peace then coordinated a binational march, followed by a series of workshops on both sides of the border wall with diverse topics ranging from the U.S. massive incarceration system to the peace process in Colombia. The memory of
those who died and disappeared because of American expansionist strategies pervaded the gathering. For more information about this year’s Convergence, visit www.soaw.org/border. Are you interested in participating and/or supporting others who are going? Let us know by calling the Merton Center at 412-780-5118 or sending your donation to SW PA SOA Watch, c/o Thomas Merton Center, 5129 Penn Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15224. (Checks should be made out to TMC with SW PA SOA Watch in the memo section of the check.) Joyce Rothermel is the Chair of the Membership Committee of the Thomas Merton Center.
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Activist Leaders Local Sustainability Leader and Convener: Maren Cooke Over the past few years, I have become aware of a local phenomenon called Sustainability Salons. While these are wonderful events, what attracted my curiosity even more than the Salons is the woman who has created them, Maren Cooke. I had the great privilege to visit her home recently and interview her in order to introduce her to our NewPeople readers (although many of you may already have benefitted from her inspiring efforts). What I discovered is a rare treasure for all of us here in southwestern Pennsylvania. I begin with a recognition that in the space allotted, I will only be able to provide an introduction to a reality that is far deeper and broader than I am able to share here.
scope and NASA’s Planetary Data System at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In between, Maren worked for the HarvardSmithsonian Center for Astrophysics doing curriculum development, illustration, and teacher workshops.
Formational to Maren’s life were her early years growing up in the woods of the Hudson River Valley. There her grandmother, a pioneer in early childhood education, ran a summer camp for young children (one of the first interracial camps in the country). It is not hard to draw a line from there to Maren’s educational path, beginning with a BS at the University of Rochester in physics and astronomy (and almost a BA in studio arts) and her involvement with science education as an undergrad, to her PhD from Cornell in planetary science, to her post-doctoral work with the Hubble Space Tele-
Now living in Squirrel Hill, Maren has made renovation and gardening a major focus. She has created a marvelous space both inside and outside their home. Green features abound in a home designed with community in mind, where large numbers of people can gather to collaborate and learn together. It’s also intended to model many aspects of what the “greening” of a home can be, with passive solar design, salvaged components, and many materials that are local, natural, nontoxic, and/or recycled. During my visit in mid-July, I was able to see many of these features for myself. The rooftop garden
Along the way, Maren met her husband, Neil Donahue, and had their first daughter while living in a cooperative house which her husband had co-founded in Somerville, MA. They relocated to Pittsburgh in 2000 when Neil joined the faculty at Carnegie Mellon University. Maren continued work she was doing for Harvard University in curriculum illustration. Here their second daughter was born.
By Joyce Rothermel
was at its finest, in beauty and productivity. When asked about the Sustainability Salons, Maren told me that she conceived of them during a latenight conversation with Mark Dixon, environmental activist, filmmaker, and TMC board member. She realized that more people should be at the table, and went on to start a regular community discussion, taking the name “salon” from the French enlightenment tradition. The event has been growing organically, attracting 50 to 100 people each month for environmental education and building community. “We’re not just preaching to the choir,” she says, “we’re arming people with information, understanding, and the confidence to engage in challenging conversations.” Maren’s educational efforts go beyond the salons to teaching, at home and elsewhere. She has taught physics and astronomy at the high school and college levels, developed and taught interdisciplinary environmental courses for CMU and the Osher program, cotaught an environmental sociology course at Pitt, teaches gardening at local schools, leads nature walks in area parks, and occasionally speaks on climate, sustainability, gardening, or astronomy. She also serves on the board of the Group Against Smog & Pollution
(Photo: Kielan Donahue)
(GASP), and works closely with many other local organizations. Just as in her lifestyle conservation efforts, she does her best to leverage her time and skills. Maren’s work is a labor of love, and she is having an impact on our community beyond measure. Thank you, Maren! What a community champion you are! You can find out about Sustainability Salons and other local environmental and social justice events on MarensList (http://marenslist.blogspot.com). Joyce Rothermel is a member of the Editorial Collective for The NewPeople.
Founding Member Father Jack O'Malley Recognized by St. Francis University By Marcia Snowden On June 14, 2017, Father Jack O’Malley, a Merton Center founding member and current sustaining member, received the Spiritus Paenitentiae Award from his alma mater, St. Francis University in Loretto, PA, where he graduated in 1959 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics. The event included a luncheon at the Omni William Penn Hotel in Downtown Pittsburgh, where friends and family joined representatives of the University for the presentation. Among those representing the university were Rev. Malachi Van Tassell, T.O.R., President of St. Francis University and Rev. Joseph Lehman T.O.R., Vice President of Mission Integration.
Paenitentiae Award, the University recognizes individuals or organizations whose acts of love, charity and care of all creation exemplify the Peace Prayer of Saint Francis.
“I am humbled and grateful for this recognition”, Father O’Malley said. “I will always appreciate all I learned in my years at the University and I am thankful to the Franciscan Fathers, the faculty and staff for their dedication and generosity to me and all who have passed through the doors of St. Francis. I have been blessed with opportunities and resources to empower those who are struggling in their lives. The mentoring and values I learned during my This award is based on the Roman Catho- college years at St. Francis were a guiding lic and Franciscan tenet of forgiveness. As foundation for me throughout my miniswritten in the Peace Prayer of St. Francis, try.” “It is in pardoning that we are pardoned.” St. Francis, St. Clare and Dorothy Day im- Marcia Snowden is a former board itated Christ in the ability to forgive others president and staff person and a memand to seek mercy. Through the Spiritus ber of the Thomas Merton Center.
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Fr. Jack and Fr. Malachi Van Tassell, T.O.R., President of St. Francis University (Photo: Margaret O’Malley)
Two Leaders Live On Remembering Fr. Miguel D'Escoto By Fr. Bernard Survil
(Photo: http:// overcomingapartheid.msu.edu)
Steve Biko: Anti-Apartheid Leader By Molly Rush
September 12 is the 40th anniversary of Stephen Biko’s death; he tragically died of head injuries from beatings while in the custody of South African state security officers. He’d been arrested many times previously for his opposition to Apartheid. He was only thirty years old.
Kindle led weekly vigils at the Gold and Silver Exchange on Smithfield St. which traded in South African Krugerrands. Merton Center members joined the actions one week every month. One day City Council Chair Jake Milliones led the protest. He and I were arrested and jailed for legally picketing. The next Sunday we Biko spearheaded the grassroots were in Mayor Dick Caliguiri’s Black Consciousness Movement in living room for an apology. the late 1960’s-70’s. He popularized the slogan BLACK IS BEAU- •The great South African poet/ TIFUL. activist Dennis Brutus was a visiting professor at Pitt. He often spent Frustrated by the domination of the time at the Center and did a poetry anti-apartheid movement by white reading as a TMC benefit. He deliberals, he was a leader in found- scribed being in the cell next to ing SASO, the South African Stu- Nelson Mandela in the prison on dents Union in 1968. In 1972, he Robben Island. Mandela led the helped found the Black Peoples movement that overturned the Convention. Praetoria government. In 1973, the ruling white government issued a banning order, limiting his activities, but he continued his political work. In 1976, he was arrested and held in solitary for over one hundred days. I imagine authorities believed his death would end his influence, but they were wrong. On the 20th Anniversary of his death, Nelson Mandela commented, “History called upon Steve Biko at a time when the political pulse of our people had been rendered faint by banning, imprisonment, exile, murder and banishment….One of the greatest legacies of the struggle that Biko waged – and for which he died – was the explosion of pride among the victims of apartheid.”
In 1962, Dennis helped form and was president of the South African Non-Racial Olympic Committee to challenge South Africa’s official Olympic Committee. The organization persuaded Olympic committees from other countries to vote to suspend South Africa from the 1964 and 1968 Olympics. In 1970, the group gathered enough votes from national committees, particularly those in Africa and Asia, to expel South Africa from the Olympic movement.
“Mr. Brutus has a distinction that makes him a hated symbol to the white rulers of South Africa, and a heroic one to the critics of their regime,” Anthony Lewis wrote in The New York Times in 1983. “He has actually succeeded in bringing about some change in one aspect of The film based on his life, “Cry apartheid.” A beautiful photo of Freedom,” starring Denzel Wash- Dennis hangs on the wall of the ington and Kevin Kline, was re- Center. leased in 1987. •Fr. Donald McIlvane, local civil TMC & The Anti-Apartheid rights champion, was an official Movement in Pittsburgh observer at the election of Nelson Mandela as President of South Af•Charles Kindle chaired the rica. NAACP anti-apartheid campaign. “Charlie was bright, outspoken, Molly Rush is a board member and knowledgeable, and above all of the Thomas Merton Center he proved over the years to be as and a member of the Editorial committed to Blackness as any Collective. man or woman that ever lived.” – Hop Kendrick
Father Miguel D’Escoto, a past Merton Center Award winner, was born in the USA, the son of a Nicaraguan diplomat. That put him in the upper crust of that Central American Country of less than five million inhabitants. By 2008 he was sitting in the Chair of the President of the United Nations General Assembly. A lot happened between those two milestones, and much was due to his hard-tested Catholic faith. That story is told in a National Catholic Reporter article of June 13, 2017 by Pat Lefevere, with whom I met at the June, 2017 Thomas Merton Society Conference at St. Bonaventure Univerity in Olean, NY, my hometown. I recommend Ms. Lefevere’s article, which can be accessed at this website; https:// www.ncronline.org/news/people/ fr-miguel-descoto-put-his-priestlylife-service-poor. It captures the highlights of Fr. D’Escoto’s life, which ended with his death in Nicaragua in June of this year. I write from the viewpoint of a priest and member of the Association of US Catholic Priests, which considered honoring him in 2014 after he recovered his priestly standing, which had been stripped from him in 1985 because of his insistence to protest, from his position as Nicaragua’s Foreign Minister ( Secretary of State), the attempt of the United States to do regime change by funding and training the Contras, the former troops of the deposed dictator, Anastasio Somoza. In those days I was pastor of a parish on the edge of the armed conflict. I presided at the funerals of young men killed by the US trained Contras. In response, Fr. D’Escoto organized a march from the Honduran border to Managua and then entered into a fast in protest to U.S. policy and the complicity of the Archbishop of Managua. We priest sympathizers saw in Miguel another Mahatma Gandhi, as Gandhi non-violently struggled to resist the British Empire. True, the Sandinista movement and later as the government resisted, with guns in hand, while Fr. Miguel resorted to diplomacy and non-violent direct action. He had done this by organizing “Los Doce,” the Twelve Civilians who non-violently opposed the Somoza Regime leading up to the insurrection of July, 1979.
Why would the Vatican be persuaded to censure and then sanction Fr. Miguel and two other Nicaraguan priests who were serving in the Sandinista government, even though their service was non -military -- nor were they military chaplains who directly enable soldiers to kill-- is a fact easily understood: Effective, non-violent witness and service BY PRIESTS undermines the Church’s alliance with the powers that be. Because I was a pastor in the Archdiocese of Managua during the last days of the Somoza regime and the first years of the Sandinista administration, I often had official business to conduct in the Archbishop’s office. There on his secretary’s desk were “Informes,” reports with a return address of the US Embassy in Managua. Fr. Miguel and I were acquaintances at best: I met with him when he was editor of Orbis Books of Maryknoll. Along with other priests I visited his residence in Managua from time to time; I was one of 19 priests who concelebrated an outdoor Mass outside the ruins of Managua’s old cathedral when Fr. Miguel – already suspended from his priestly status—delivered a blistering homily in which he called out the Archbishop to cease his collaboration with “The Enemy” in Washington; several times I visited with his sister, Rita Clark, who held a key position in the Nicaraguan Embassy in Washington during Fr. Miguel’s term as Foreign Minister.. Therefore I felt extremely happy when Pope Francis restored his “faculties” (a Church term) in 2014. To have him die still “defrocked,” would have left us with a grief that would have never healed. As it is, his being honored by the Thomas Merton Center back when he was in the maelstrom, is a decision confirmed by the pardon of Pope Francis. It is good to know that the TMC and Pope Francis are in agreement about Father Miguel D’Escoto, and much else besides. Bernie Survil spent 25 years working pastorally in Central America from 1975 to 2002 and returns every year to visit friends in Guatemala and El Salvador.
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Fr. Miguel D’Escoto (Photo: United Nations)
September 2017
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Whither Healthcare? Whatever It Was, It Wasn't "Trumpcare" Donald Trump needed a “big deal,” something that went beyond small-time executive orders, something that demonstrated his ability as a leader, a leader who could make oft-repeated campaign promises come true, something like the “repeal and replace” of “Obamacare.” For seven years, Republican politicians had reaped a rich harvest of votes and victories by disseminating that neatly alliterative phrase about the land. By late 2015 it was just the kind of succulent lozenge candidate Trump loved to roll around in his mouth. “Repeal and replace.” “Protect our borders.” “Make America Great Again.” Give the man a market; give the man a slogan; watch him sell. Once you put someone other than a Democrat in the White House, all these things will happen. The hat isn’t empty. There truly is a rabbit in there— somewhere. Except there wasn’t. Turns out Trump had no specific notions of what could be different and “better” than the Affordable Care Act, of what could bring everyone “great health care” at a low cost. Paul Ryan had some ideas, in keeping with an adolescent infatuation with Ayn Rand that has never left him. Freedom’s just another word for no “entitlements” left to lose. Unfortunately, once the details of
By Neil Cosgrove
Ryan’s ideas were articulated in an actual bill, the public at large began to think “Obamacare” wasn’t so bad, and that the policy promulgated by the Republican Congress could be much worse, when you actually thought of its impact on people’s lives. The House narrowly passed Ryan’s woefully unpopular bill while knowing the Senate would have to modify it somehow, since their colleagues in the other chamber could actually lose their seats in statewide elections if they were perceived approving bills powered by the ideology of Ryan and his Freedom Caucus colleagues. It was right around this time that certain media outlets began referring to the various iterations of an ACA replacement bill as “Trumpcare.” After all, the 2010 Democrat law had been successfully demonized by linking it to a President whom the Republican “base” had both feared and loathed, given his inexplicable popularity. Such labeling had also become a kind of verbal tic among linguistically lazy journalists, just like Watergate begat “Irangate” begat “travel-gate” and so on, ad nauseam. The problem is that Trump had nothing to do with the substance of the various Republican replacement bills. They solely reflected the thinking of his party’s congressional wing; that is, the thinking of those truly invested in re-
placing the ACA, which may or may not reflect what is in the hidden hearts of most of them. All Trump had to offer were the kinds of threats and bluster that maybe worked for him when finalizing business “deals.” If the Congress couldn’t come up with a law for him to sign, even just a repeal alone, he would cut off subsidies to insurance companies taking a loss to affordably insure the less healthy, cut off health insurance to Congress itself, refuse to sign any subsequent legislation. One result would be higher premiums for those in the insurance markets, which may have already been happening because of the uncertainty created by Trump’s desperate need for a “deal.” Obama, on the other hand, was directly involved in the “sausagemaking” that resulted in the ACA, with some of his ideas making it into the final bill and others not. Obama met in person with both Democrats and Republicans as the bill was being discussed, including John McCain, who now claims he voted against the final Republican Senate’s attempt at replacement because it was created in the same partisan manner as the ACA. (“Courage” or “Mendacity?” You decide.) Heck, the “individual mandate” in the ACA, so vilified by the Republicans, was actually their own “long -standing … alternative to the more radical health care reforms, such as a single-payer system, that
Democrats have proposed since the Truman era,” Stephen Brill recently observed in the Washington Post. So, while “Obamacare” as a label has some truth to it, “Trumpcare” has none. In the meantime, there are bipartisan groups in the House and Senate currently attempting to come up with ways of strengthening the beleaguered health insurance markets created by the law so closely associated with our previous president. Whatever those groups produce, supposedly “moderate” Republicans will then have to decide if they can vote with Democrats to accomplish something positive, to abandon what Jim Newell of Slate has termed the “very long, nearly successful con” of convincing “much of the country that every health care-related problem people faced could be directly attributed to Obamacare.” If Congress does by chance send a “bipartisan” attempt to “fix” the ACA to the Executive, rather than “replace” it, will President Trump sign or veto the legislation? If he does sign it, there’s little doubt some people in the media will label it “Trumpcare.” Neil Cosgrove is a member of the New People editorial collective and the Merton Center Board.
OOPS! Problem with First Truckload of Dangerous Nuclear Bomb Waste By Molly Rush The first of 150 secret shipments on public roads of 6000 gallons in liquid form of an intensely radioactive and highly dangerous acidic solution has arrived at the Savannah River Site (SRS) in North Carolina from the Chalk River National Lab in Canada. Unfortunately, a hotspot has appeared in the radiation shielding container meant to shield workers. Savannah River Watch has filed a Freedom of Information Act request for more information. Director Tom Clements said, “The incident gives the…team a black eye for flubbing the very first shipment after years of planning.” The liquid waste, which includes a variety of radionuclides, is stored in a large double -walled FISST (Fissile Solutions Storage Tank). It also contains a quantity of weapons-grade Highly Enriched Uranium, essentially the same material used in the Hiroshima Bomb. Dr. Gordon Edwards, President of the Canadian Coalition for Nuclear Responsibility
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noted that “… uranyl nitrate is only one of dozens of radioactive compounds in the liquid, and that liquid is more than 17,000 times more radioactive than the uranyl nitrate alone.” Safer, faster and cheaper ways of dealing with the waste exist. Twenty other tanks of the waste at Chalk River are being solidified and stored on-site as solid waste. Environmental groups had urged the Dept. of Energy to prepare a full Environmental Impact Statement. They filed a federal lawsuit, but the court found no need for an indepth analysis of transport risk impacts of processing and disposal at SRS instead of the alternative method of solidifying the waste in Canada. The shipments will continue until further notice. Say some prayers. Molly Rush is a co-founder board member of the Thomas Merton Center and a member of the NewPeople Editorial Collective.
Resisting War and Injustice The “Prison Gang” Peace Delegation in Germany By Molly Rush
“20 Weeks for 20 Bombs” a 20-week long series of nonviolent protests, began at Buchel Air Base in Germany. The campaign is demanding withdrawal of the remaining US nuclear weapons still deployed there. The protest continued until August 9, the anniversary of the US atomic bombing of Nagasaki, Japan in 1945. Twelve U.S. peace activists participated in the actions from July 12th to the 18th, including seven Plowshares activists who have served a total of 36 years in US jails and prisons for protesting US
nuclear weapons. Their action coincided with the end of negotiations at the UN for a treaty to totally ban all nuclear weapons. They are Catholic Worker members Kathy Boylan and Steve Baggerly; Nukewatch reporters Bonnie Urfer and John LaForge; Leona Morgan, Dine’ No Nukes, Albuquerque; and Sisters Carol Gilbert and Ardeth Platte. On March 27, 2010, the Bundestag national parliament voted overwhelmingly across party lines for a resolution urging
Jesus Tells All About Injustice Parables as Subversive Speech: Jesus as Pedagogue of the Oppressed, William R Herzog II, Westminster/John Knox Press, Louisville, Kentucky, 1994. A Review Herzog presents a compelling argument that the Parables of Jesus are best understood when taken out of the interpretive context in which they were placed by the four writers of our canonical Gospels and seen in the context of peasant life in an advanced agrarian society. Recognizing that Jesus and his original community were Jewish peasants in 1st century Galilee within the Roman Empire enables us to understand the social roles that each of the characters in the Parables would have played. These characters had histories and relationships that all 1st century Jewish peasants in Galilee would have understood immediately without the details being spelled out explicitly. As post-Industrial working class Westerners, though, we have to put that bigger picture together in order to accurately understand their original meanings. Herzog utilizes the latest sociological research to do just that for nine parables. The insights he derives are convincing, profound and rev-
the government to remove the B61 bombs. Our source for this month’s articles on weapons and waste is the indispensable NUKEWATCH, The Progressive Foundation, 740A Round Lake Road, Luck WI 54853 www.nukewatchinfo.org Molly Rush is a co-founder and board member of the Thomas Merton Center and a member of the NewPeople Editorial Collective.
By Jeff Cummings
olutionary in the field of New Testament Studies. In 1st century Galilee, wealthy Jewish aristocrats were taking advantage of the hardship of local Jewish peasants by offering them predatory loans, foreclosing on their land and hiring them to work it at less than subsistence wages. Most peasants sank gradually into the class of expendables and beggars. While the elites competed with one another to see who could host the most conspicuous displays of luxury and self-indulgence, they nevertheless remained scrupulous about tithing and purity codes. If one was lucky, one was made a retainer for a wealthy household. Retainers represented their patrons to the peasants and were the targets of almost all the peasant resentment and retaliation. These are the familiar characters of Jesus' parables. In real life Galilee, peasants and aristocrats would never encounter one another. The creative brilliance of several Parables lies in their ability to expose the hidden tensions that underlie this society. They call upon their peasant audiences to imag-
ine scenarios where these largelysegregated classes are forced to confront one another, with surprising results. At first I was skeptical of Herzog's use of Paulo Freire as a model to help us understand what Jesus may have been doing in teaching with parables. Imposing our own favorite anachronistic concepts onto Jesus is one of the most notorious errors of historical Jesus research. Herzog, though, makes a strong case for careful, responsible and always tentative attempts toward "modernizing" Jesus. The danger of not modernizing Jesus is, in his view, an irrelevant Jesus. After reading his case, outlining both the similarities and the differences between the work of Jesus and the work of Freire, I feel his comparison is a useful one. This is a book that I have read twice and look forward to reading many times more. Jeff Cummings is a Fundraiser at Donor Services Group in Mount Lebanon.
Comic by Russell Fedorka
September 2017
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Challenging Sacred Cows The Plot to Scapegoat Russia: A Must Read – For Everyone By John E. Hemington, Jr. Dan Kovalik is angry. Raised in a conservative Catholic family. Educated at the University of Dayton and Columbia Law School. He was a true believer in the American ethic and American exceptionalism. However, experiences as a young college student totally changed his perspective and set him on a new road in life. He is a labor lawyer, teacher, human rights and peace activist who has traveled the world for his job. Dan has seen first-hand the consequences of American imperialism at work and is fighting back. The Plot to Scapegoat Russia is a very important work, though unfortunately titled. The title suggests that it is all about the Democratic Party’s non-stop effort to somehow link Russia to Clinton’s loss in the election. Kovalik pretty much blows through this nonsense in his introduction and gets on to the meat of the book – the multidecade disastrous foreign and military policies employed by the United States in support of neoliberal
corporate hegemony throughout the world. And, more importantly, the many millions killed, maimed and displaced by these policies. Most Americans are unaware of these serious issues because the mainstream media either don’t report them, or report them in an inaccurate, misleading way. Dan Kovalik’s personal experiences, early on in Nicaragua and later in other South and Central America and other far-flung nations around the globe, form the core of this work. He also presents facts that few other journalists and insiders have reported. Other exposés tend to be long, academic and offputting to those who should be reading or listening to them. Where Kovalik succeeds is in collecting, analyzing and reporting in a simple readable format that is neither too long nor too difficult for the average person with limited time to digest and understand. It is critical, in this time of great peril in the world, for as many Americans as possible to comprehend the harsh realities exposed in this book. Kovalik makes it very clear that what the world needs now is not war and competition between the United States and Russia, but peace and cooperation. In recent years the American peo-
The Sun Is Going Down on the Sacred Cow “Hate Spaces,” the recent documentary film by Avi Goldwasser shown at the Jewish Community Center to an enthusiastic audience, labels campus movements for Palestinian rights a threat to Jewish students. The film manages to not only slander nationwide student organizations, many of whose members are Jewish and Muslim, but justifies the persecution and silencing of criticism of Israel by naming such criticism antisemitism. “Hate Spaces” refuses to acknowledge Israel’s illegal and oppressive treatment of the Palestinian people, the reason for the campus movement the film demonizes. Instead it attempts to abrogate the most fundamental rights of our democracy, free speech and dissent, under the hateful and false charge of antisemitism. The central argument of the film is that criticism of Israel is inherently anti-Jewish since Israel is synonymous or coextensive with “all Jews.” This argument is ethically deeply problematic. It is premised on essentializing and homogenizing all Jewish persons. Yet this is the most significant and widespread argument within the mainstream Zionist community in its attempt to stifle, silence, and criminalize criticism of Israel. Placing all Jews into a single category—as Israel does—is to suggest that this group is intrinsically different in nature from all other humans, and is thus a case of essentializing and exceptionalizing them. Claiming that Israel is coextensive with all Jews strips 14 - NEWPEOPLE
them of human diversity and reduces them to a monolithic or homogeneous sum. That is truly antisemitic. The Palestinian support community on our campuses absolutely rejects antisemitism, as it does all forms of racism, including Islamophobia. This is particularly true of the two targets of this film: Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP), and the more general Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement. To label protected protest—in this case, of Israel’s violent and illegal policies toward the Palestinian people—antisemitic, is to equate virulent episodes of real antisemitism with legitimate time-honored campus protest, and therefore renders the meaning of antisemitism quite meaningless. This erasure of the true meaning of antisemitism makes things increasingly dangerous for Jews and Muslims. With the rise of Trump and his white nationalist support, and with the rise of far-right racism throughout Europe, to rail against legitimate and non-violent criticism of Israel is a tragic testament to how far the Zionist right will go to protect Israel from accountability. In fact, these students are the natural allies of all those genuinely opposed to racism and antisemitism. Something else is obviously at work here. “Hate Spaces” is just the latest example used by the Israeli/ American Jewish Hasbara (propaganda) campaign to keep the mainstream Jewish and Amer-
September 2017
ple have been subjected to the most virulent (and successful) propaganda campaign in the past 200+ years. We have learned in school, read in the papers, heard on the radio and seen on television an endless stream of fiction about the way our nation relates to the rest of the world, our professed love for republican democracy, our innate exceptionalism, our efforts to protect the ‘little guy’ on the world’s stage, and our duty to help other nations in need – and it’s almost all pure propagandistic bunk. Yet most Americans remain convinced of this fictional meme, even though it should be blindingly obvious to any reasonable observer that it is an illusion created to maintain public passivity and support for the military. Kovalik explains that the foreign policy of this country is almost exclusively dedicated to supporting corporate globalization, with unfettered access to whatever it is that the corporate overlords desire – usually enforced by American military and financial power. The spinoff is the unquenchable thirst for never-ending profits for military and intelligence contractors and corporate profiteers which gain from never-ending wars. All accomplished by the purchasing of
our political masters by plutocratic oligarchs – a simple recipe for disaster – a disaster toward which the nation is rushing headlong. Dan Kovalik demonstrates a conviction based on experience and an eyes-wide-open view of the world and the place of the United States in it. In an odd sort of way, it is an oblique message of hope that somehow the American people can wake up to what most of the rest of the world already understands, that the United States of America is a most dangerous and villainous nation and is dominating the planet. We are also an empire perilously close to self-destructing and taking the rest of humanity with us. Unfortunately, short of an ultimate collapse, little can be accomplished unless many more Americans wake up to what is happening on their watch. Dan Kovalik’s wonderful little book should help a great deal if only enough people get a chance to read it. His book should be on the desk of every high school senior in the United States – sadly, it won’t be. John Hemington is a retired attorney, Information Technology Director and amateur historian who lives in Peters Township.
By Ken Boas
ican community in an emotional panic about what our students are up to across our campuses. What the film is doing is carving out its own hate space, one filled with malicious attempts to instill fear and racist bias against Muslims and their Jewish student “followers” in order to maintain the safe space around Israel that allows it to act with impunity against the Palestinians. The final irony of this entire fraudulent campaign is that at the center of such organizations as BDS, Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP), and SJP are the Jewish children of those who are creating such hateful propaganda as this film. The desperation at the heart of this film and within the American mainstream Zionist community stems from the fact that their children and grandchildren are joining BDS, SJP, and JVP, thinking for themselves, and turning their loyalties away from Israel, Hillel, the Jewish Federation, their Rabbis, and certainly away from such right-wing organizations as ZOA (Zionist Organization of America) and the powerful JNF (Jewish National Fund), the two primary sponsors of the film in Pittsburgh. The JNF, by the way, owns over 93% of the land in Israel and by law cannot sell or lease any of that land to nonJews. The Jewish-American community and Israel are slowly but surely losing its children. And it is this fact that has sent them into such paroxysms of persecution against
a movement for peace and justice that grows stronger each year. They are willing to sacrifice their own children for an Israel that has betrayed the most essential values they once held so dear: justice, compassion, community, and anti -racism. No matter how many hateful texts emerge branding our students antisemitic, their righteous movement toward justice will persist. And our children will not be cowed by threats and intimidation, any more than their parents were in their heroic civil rights and anti-war marches and women and workers’ and LGBT rights movements of a generation ago. Israel is no longer the sacred cow of international politics. Omar Barghouti says it best: “There is nothing Jewish about Israel’s apartheid and colonial oppression; there is nothing inherently anti-Jewish then, about a nonviolent, morally consistent struggle against this oppression.” The film and the Zionist right-wing movement in general has the arrogance to demand that we not only demonize our children, but that we abandon our love of justice, free speech, and democracy for a country that has abandoned those principles a very long time ago. Ken Boas is the President of the Board of ICAHD-USA (Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions), a retired English Professor, and a member of the Pittsburgh BDS (Boycott, Divestment,Sanctions) Coalition.
Familiar Bedfellows Saudi Arabia and the US: Not so Strange Bedfellows Review of Book Kingdom of the Unjust: Behind the US-Saudi Connection” by Medea Benjamin, OR Books, 2016. Reading Kingdom of the Unjust is like reading a horror fiction story only, alas what she describes is no fiction. There are many competitors for the most brutal, repressive, dictatorial and authoritarian government in the world but if what Ms. Benjamin says in her book is true, the Saudi Kingdom wins hands down. Because of the sanitized reporting from the “Kingdom” that the mainstream press churns up for us, it is difficult to give credence to the horrors she details in her book. Reading her book in conjunction with the state visit of President Trump to that country heightens the sense of horror. Islam has had many extraordinary expressions over history from its flowering in Renaissance Spain to its extraordinary contributions to science, mathematics, and culture. The brand of Islam that dominates in the Kingdom, however, has little in common with this distinguished past. Benjamin outlines the origins of the Saudi Kingdom and the form of Islam that it embraces and propagates in the world. It is called Wahhabism. It is an austere form of Sunni Islam that comes from the teachings of
an eighteenth-century religious scholar, Muhammad ibn Abd alWahhab. In 1744 Wahhab formed an alliance with Muhammad Ibn Saud, the head of a tribal family in Najd Province, a part of the Middle East that never fell under the control of the Ottoman Empire. The Al Saud family used the Wahhabi doctrine to raid and rob neighboring villages under the guise of religious jihad. Such are the origins of the Kingdom. The Saudi State as such was not founded until 1932, a year after which Standard Oil of California (Chevron) won a concession to explore for oil in Eastern Saudi Arabia. In 1938 Chevron struck it big in the Kingdom and since then the US and Saudi Arabia have been, as it were, Siamese Twins. Benjamin explores the many contradictions of the alliance between the US and Saudi Arabia. While the US is one of the oldest democracies in the world and likes to publicize itself as a promoter and exporter of democracy to the world, Saudi Arabia has scarcely a shred of democracy. There is no Constitution, no parliament, no elections or any other institutions that one associates with a democracy. While the US excoriates many countries in the world, such as Cuba, for their lack of democracy and freedoms, it never raises a whimper about the total absence
By Michael Drohan
of democratic institutions in Saudi Arabia. The author points to 1973 as a crucial date in the cementing of a relationship of opposites. In that year Saudi Arabia made an agreement with the US that every barrel of Saudi oil purchased, by any country, would be denominated in US dollars. Soon all oil from OPEC was denominated in dollars, consolidating the US $ and the US economy as hegemonic. So when Donald Trump decided that his first foreign visit would be to Saudi Arabia, it was just a confirmation of the alliance between patriarchal totalitarianism and the US, democracy be damned. Executions by beheading is practiced in no place else in the world except Saudi Arabia but Donald Trump told the Saudis it is OK; “we are not here to lecture you” he told them but continued to scold Iran for its lack of democracy. In 2015, there were 158 executions in Saudi Arabia, over 70 of them being foreign nationals. 2016 began with the mass execution of 47 prisoners on January 2. One of those executed was a Shia cleric named Nimr al-Nimr, a vociferous critic of discrimination against the Shia minority. Incidentally, most of Saudi Arabia’s oil riches are in the Eastern part of Saudi Arabia which is mainly Shia. One of the great fears of the Saudi monarchy is that the East-
ern part of the country will try to secede and take the oil with them. In her book, Benjamin explores and dissects nearly all aspects of the social, political, economic and geopolitical fabric of Saudi society. All in all it is not a pretty picture. Women are suppressed and subjugated, not even possessing the freedom to drive a car. Immigrant labor, which constitutes a great part of the labor force is exploited and discriminated against in numerous ways. Presently the Saudi Kingdom is conducting the invasion and destruction of its neighbor The Yemen. Trump’s delivery of $100 billion worth of weaponry is being deployed in destroying the Yemen. It has all the marks of a war by proxy. For the Middle East as a whole, Saudi Arabia is the germinating ground of Al Qaeda, ISIS and the other forms of extremist ideology that are tearing apart every country in the region. This compact book is essential reading for all who seek to understand and make some sense of the present disaster and dilemmas facing the people of the Middle East. Michael Drohan is a member of the Editorial Collective and of the Board of the Thomas Merton Center.
Democracy’s Daughter: Election 2016 By Carlana Rhoten
The Thomas Merton Center recently gave its New Person Award to Carl Redwood, Jr to recognize his lifetime work in civil rights and community affairs. In his address, Carl was more interested in current and future efforts to attack our many problems and wants to concentrate on Pittsburgh and Allegheny County by organizing neighborhoods and local regions. His new organization is “PITTSBURGH CAULDRON” and can be contacted by using their email= “pghcauldron@gmail.com”. A new website is currently being developed. A video of the NewPerson Award event and Mr.
Redwood’s acceptance address will be broadcast every Thursday during September and October at 9 p.m. The COMCAST 21 and VERIZON FIOS 47 stations can only be viewed inside our city limits. The unedited full event video and a shorter Address can be viewed on You Tube www.youtube.com/ richfishpgh. Rich Fishkin videographer/editor Carlana Rhoten, Community Producer, PROGRESSIVE PGH NOTEBOOK TV SERIES
The NewPeople Editorial Collective is Looking for New Members & Volunteers! We are looking for you to join The Editorial Collective & volunteers for delivery! Writers, Editors, Photographers, Rout Runner & Web Editors all welcome! Contact newpeople@thomasmertoncenter.org for more details! September 2017
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September 2017
Regular Meetings Sundays: Book’Em: Books to Prisoners Project First three Sundays of the month at TMC, 46pm Contact: bookempgh@gmail.com
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SW Healthcare 4 All PA /PUSH Meeting 3rd Monday, 6:30 —8 pm Sat Squirrel Hill Library Contact: bmason@gmail.com Association of Pittsburgh Priests 2nd Monday, 7—9 pm, St. Pamphilus Parish 1000 Tropical Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15216 Women’s International League for Peace & Freedom (WILP) Fight For Lifers 2nd Monday, 7:00 PM West Meeting 10am WhenSat, 10am –Merton 12pm Center, 5129 Penn Ave -12pm @ TMC September 2, Thomas Annex Amnesty International #39 2nd Wednesday, 7—9 pm First Unitarian Church, Morewood Ave. 15219
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Darfur Emergency Coalition Meeting 5:30-7pm @ Carnegie Library, Squirrel Hill
Book’Em Meeting 46pm @TMC
Pennsylvanians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty (PADP) meeting 78pm @ First Unitarian Church
10 Women in Black monthly peace vigil in Slippery Rock 10-11am @ Ginger Hill Unitarian Universalist Congregation Book’Em Meeting 4-6pm @TMC
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Amnesty International Monthly Meeting 7-9pm Black Political Em@ First Unitarian Church powerment Project Meeting 6-7pm @ Karen Clifton to Speak in Hill House Association Pittsburgh: “Ending the Death Penalty; Promoting Restorative Justice” 79pm @ Kearns Spirituality Center
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In Our Hands 7-9pm @ Big Idea Bookstore What Two Jews Learned First-Hand in the West Bank 7-9pm @ The Space Upstairs
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Fight For Lifers West Meeting 10am -12pm @ TMC Annex The Homestead Strike of 1892: A Play in One Act by Clayton Southers 7-9:30pm @ The Pump House, Munhall
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In Our Hands 7-9pm The Homestead @ Big Idea Bookstore Strike of 1892: A Play in One Act by Clayton Southers 79:30pm @ The Pump House, Munhall
Gentrification, Race, and Class in Pittsburgh A Screening of East of Liberty 57:30pm @ Bayer Learning Center
September 2017
Thursdays:
Southwest Chapter of Healthcare for All PA 7:30-8:30pm @ 2101 Murray Ave
In Our Hands 7-9pm @ Big Idea Bookstore
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In Our Hands 7-9pm The Homestead Strike @ Big Idea Bookstore of 1892: A Play in One Act by Clayton Southers 7-9:30pm @ The Pump House, Munhall
Darfur Emergency Coalition Meeting 5:30-7pm @ Carnegie Library, Squirrel Hill
Monthly PUSH meeting 6:30-8:15pm @ Carnegie Library, Squirrel Hill
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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
The Homestead Strike of 1892: A Play in One Act by Clayton Southers 7-9:30pm @ The Pump House, Munhall
30 Podcamp Pittsburgh 2017 9am-4pm @ Point Park University Library TMC Annual Membership Meeting, 24pm @ Mercy Motherhouse Arcade Room
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
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: Project to End Human Trafficking 2nd Sat., Carlow University, Antonian Room #502 Fight for Lifers West 1st & 3rd Saturday, 1 pm, East Liberty Presbyterian Church Anti-War and Anti-Drone Warfare Coalition 4rd Saturday at 11:00 am at TMC, 5129 Penn Ave., Garfield, PA 15224
Thomas Merton Quote of the Month Peace demands the most heroic labor and the most difficult sacrifice. It demands greater heroism than war. It demands greater fidelity to the truth and a much more perfect purity of conscience.