A THIN WALL

A documentary by filmmaker, writer, artist and social activist

MARA AHMED

A THIN WALL is a documentary about memory, history and the possibility of reconciliation. It focuses on the Partition of India in 1947, but derives lessons that remain urgently relevant today. The film is shot on both sides of the border, in India and Pakistan. The film is written and directed by Mara Ahmed and co-produced by Surbhi Dewan. Both filmmakers are descendants of families torn apart by partition.

Doors Open: 7pm
Film: 7:15pm

Free and Open to the Public

Film Screening will be followed by Q & A with Mara Ahmed

Presented in conjunction with

‘This Heirloom’ A Graphic Collage Exhibition
Opening Reception – February 7, 2018
6:30pm Free and Open to the Public

EXHIBITION DATES: February 7 – April 26, 2018

CALL TO ACTION from PHSS Committee to End Sleep Deprivation
9:00am: RALLY & PRESS CONFERENCE outside the Courthouse
10:00am: COURTROOM SOLIDARITY (Crtrm 2, 17th Floor) with the prisoners who brought these cases

3:14-cv-02767-VC – Lipsey v. Norum et al
3:15-cv-05756-VC – Suarez v. Beard et al

On Feb 8, 2018, in the Federal Courthouse in San Francisco, the California Department of Corrections and rehabilitation (CDCr) will argue for the court to dismiss civil rights cases brought by Christopher Lipsey and Maher Suarez, who are imprisoned in California. The men’s cases challenge the constitutionality of the loud “security/welfare checks” that are done every 30 minutes in CA solitary units, causing serious sleep deprivation and other harms for the people in those units, and, as the lawsuits claim, constitute cruel and unusual punishment. (The guards do no checking on top of that). The lawyers for Christopher and Maher will argue that the case against CDCr administrators, guards, and wardens, must move forward. (HERE is a link to Christopher and Maher’s Opposition to CDCR’s motions to dismiss)

We are mobilizing support for the prisoners’ cases. Please be in the courtroom on Feb 8, and also outside, before court, for a Rally and Press Conference.

artwork by R.T. 2016

We have received many letters over the past two+ years from people in 14 different CA prisons describing the loud, disruptive “checks,” every 30 minutes/24 hours a day (now every 60 minutes at night in Pelican Bay SHU), and the mental and physical health problems the “checks” are causing or exacerbating. The courthouse is one place where we can amplify the voices of prisoners, expose the torture of the “checks” to society at large, and apply pressure for the “checks” to cease.

Christopher Lipsey started his case in 2014. He has been enduring the “checks” for over 3 years.

Let’s come together at the SF Federal Courthouse on Feb 8th in strong solidarity with all those who are suffering from the “checks,” and who cannot be in the courtroom or outside rallying and speaking about their experience. Let’s make a powerful showing against torture at the SF Federal Courthouse!

Our Committee has a number of purple t-shirts which will be available to wear at the rally and in the courthouse to show our solidarity with the prisoners. Please wear purple if possible!

Read more about the so-called “security/welfare “checks” at the Sleep Deprivation tab on the Prisoner Hunger Strike Solidarity Coalition’s website.

Recent article: The Policy of the Cruel and Absurd: Sleep Deprivation in California’s Prisons

If you have questions or want to give or get a ride to the SF Courthouse, please call Verbena at 707.267.4757.

See you on Thursday in San Francisco!

Get involved with Oakland IWOC!

*New folks should come 15 min early for a brief orientation*

The Muslims I Know (2008) 58 minutes

The events of 9/11 have created much interest in Islam and Muslims. Mainstream media have responded to this demand for information with generalizations and stereotypes. America’s community of Muslims longs to be a part of the discourse. THE MUSLIMS I KNOW is a documentary that gives them a chance to be heard and understood through dialogue with non-Muslim Americans.

The underlying idea is to highlight similarities between Islam and other Abrahamic faiths and to celebrate the cultural richness and diversity brought into the American mix by Muslim communities. It is also a much needed platform for moderate Muslims to express their views about what’s happening in the world. By being both American and Muslim they have a unique insight into the complex inner workings of American foreign policy and the role of the media.

Doors Open 6:15pm
Film 6:30pm

Film Screening will be followed by Q & A with Mara Ahmed

East Bay DSA is thrilled to present a talk and Q&A with veteran Marxist organizer and founding member of PSOL in Brazil: Pedro Fuentes.

Recommended reading:

Brief notes on the world situation:
http://portaldelaizquierda.com/en/2017/01/brief-notes-on-the-world-situation/

Notes on Latin America:
http://portaldelaizquierda.com/en/2016/08/notes-on-latin-america-the-end-of-a-stage-and-cycle-and-the-beginning-of-another-and-also-a-cycle/

Pedro’s Bio:
Pedro Fuentes was born in Pergamino, Argentina and began his activism there as a teenager, when he and his brother joined a high-school student movement to reform the schools called Movimiento de Accion Reformista. Later, in the 1960s, he joined Palabro Obrera, led by the Argentine Trotskyist Nahuel Moreno, and organized in the factories in his city. In 1971, his older brother, Luis Enrique Pujals, was one of the first to be “disappeared” by Argentina’s dictatorship for his activity in the Partido Revolucionario de los Trabajadores (PRT). Soon after, Pedro was forced to flee Argentina and lived in exile for the duration of the dictatorship and beyond, traveling across Latin America and Europe and embedding himself in socialist movements wherever he went.

Eventually he moved to Brazil and in 2000 began organizing with Movimento Esquerda Socialista (MES), then a tendency in the Workers Party (PT). In 2003, the PT introduced anti-worker pension reforms supported by Brazil’s right wing parties. A number of dissenting PT deputies, including MES leader Luciana Genro, voted against the reforms and were subsequently expelled from the PT. Pedro joined these expelled leaders in founding PSOL as a left alternative to the PT. For many years he served as PSOL’s secretary of international relations, though he has recently stepped back to enjoy his old age

1st Session: 10:15 – 1:00 PM

2nd Session: 1:15 PM – 4:00 PM

We’ve all been there. Someone in a public place says or does something to another person that makes us feel uncomfortable or even scared for that other person. Learn how to intervene in those situations, including tactics from de-escalation strategies to some basic self-defense.

We’ll meet in a dojo, where you’ll have an opportunity to talk about and practice different intervention tactics, including practicing different strategies in different scenarios.
This training is also being offered in the afternoon.

Accessibility Information

The training will be held on the ground floor, and will be accessible to folks who are mobility impaired, but the bathroom is old and tight and so is not accessible to folks with wheelchairs. Scent-free soap will be provided in the bathroom.

Golden Gate Branch is hosting a pop-up exhibit and film screening of original Black Panther Party (BPP) memorabilia, put together by  historian Billy X Jennings, from the archives of ‘It’s About Time.’

After the film “Lords of the Revolution,” former Panthers will join us for a panel discussion of their experiences in the BPP. Delive into the history of this influential group with first-hand accounts of Party activities and programs.

East Bay DSA has been a leading voice in the fight to guarantee healthcare as a human right. As we continue growing our Medicare-for-All campaign, we need your input! Our first Medicare for All open strategy meeting will be a forum for all members to participate as we decide how to expand our campaign. During the meeting, we will

Dr. Larry Shoup will speak and lead a discussion on:

“California’s Plutocratic Politics: Time for a Dialogue on Green Party Strategy and Tactics”
What time is it in terms of the earth’s ecologies? What time is it politically, in terms of activism for the people and the earth and against the threats posed by reactionary plutocratic Republicans and mainstream plutocratic Democrats? What are the implications for elections as the main focus of Green Party activism? What are the alternatives? The case for varied local Green Party campaigns to promote municipal grass roots democracy and community based economics. The goal of this Green Sunday is both educational and developmental in the sense of beginning a dialogue
on what should be our strategy and tactics for the immediate future and longer term.

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Larry Shoup was the Green Party candidate for California Secretary of State in 2002. He is the author of five books, including Wall Street’s Think Tank: the Council on Foreign Relations and the Empire of Neoliberal Geopolitics (Monthly Review Press 2015).
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Join us for the next Indivisible Berkeley General Assembly, hosted by our Immigration Team and Racism & Criminal Justice Reform Team. Agenda details will be published when they are available.

Doors open at 7. We start promptly at 7:30.

Just prior to the meeting, join us for a training on how to bring more of your friends into the Indivisible Berkeley community. 6:15-7:15 at the Finnish Hall downstairs cafe. More info

ADA Accessibility: The Finnish Hall has stairs leading up to the entrance so is not ADA accessible. Please email us with questions.

OTU’s Mission

The Oakland Tenants Union is an organization of housing activists dedicated to protecting tenant rights and interests. OTU does this by working directly with tenants in their struggle with landlords, impacting legislation and public policy about housing, community education, and working with other organizations committed to furthering renters’ rights. The Oakland Tenants Union is open to anyone who shares our core values and who believes that tenants themselves have the primary responsibility to work on their own behalf.

Monthly Meetings

The Oakland Tenants Union meets regularly at 7:00 pm on the second Monday evening of each month. Our monthly meetings are held in the Community Room of the Madison Park Apartments, 100 – 9th Street (at Oak Street, across from the Lake Merritt BART Station). To enter, gently knock on the window of the room to the right of the main entrance to the building. At the meetings, first we focus on general issues affecting renters city-wide and then second we offer advice to renters regarding their individual concerns.

If you have an issue, a question, or need advice about a tenant/landlord issue, please call us at (510) 704-5276. Leave a message with your name and phone number and someone will get back to you.

No Ban No Wall: Confronting the Militarization of Our Borders

A panel discussion entitled No Ban, No Wall: Confronting the Militarization of Our Borders and Communities

The Trump presidency has increased attacks on immigrant and marginalized communities through targeting sanctuary cities, instituting the Muslim ban, and revoking temporary protected status for thousands. But, these actions are based on a long-standing foundation of xenophobia and criminalization. Such repression manifests not only at borders, but also in our backyards in the form of militarized policing, state surveillance, and collusion between local and federal law enforcement.

Join us for a panel discussion to analyze these intersections with some of the individuals working to defend the health and rights of immigrant communities.

� Ofelia Ortiz Cuevas, Assistant Professor of Chicana/o Studies at UC Davis

� Lara Kiswani, Executive Directoor of the Arab Resource and Organizing Center (AROC)

� Pierre Labossiere, Co-Founder oof the Haiti Action Committee

� Abraham Vela M.D., Clinica Marttin-Baro volunteer

This event is part of the “Social Medicine for Our Times” event series organized by BCSM and CNA/NNU.

West Oakland/Uptown/Adams Point Social