A Trip to Colombia
By Mark Weber
Colombia, a South American nation of about 43 million people is seldom in the news. It is a beautiful country endowed with a biodiversity exceeded only by that of Brazil. However, it is a nation with the worst human rights record in the world. More targeted killings occur in Colombia than the rest of the world combined. Together, an oligarchy of the military, the large landowners, the church, narco-traffickers, and conservative business elite run the country through a combination of selective enforcement of the law and outright intimidation up to and including murder. Colombia is a worn-torn nation that has just emerged from a 55-year-old civil war with several insurgent groups…Most notably the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), and the National Liberation Front (ELN).
Read More
Peace@ThePub: Steve Cagan on Colombia
Pessimism and hope, three years after the peace accords
Tuesday, June 11th⋅7:00 – 8:30pm
Market Garden Brewery, 1947 W 25th St, Cleveland, OH
Peace accords between the Colombian government and FARC guerrillas in 2016 raised hopes. Steve Cagan will report on his most recent visit with the people of El Chocó, along with his photographs. The renewal of armed conflict in the countryside, repression of community leaders, environmental destruction, and regressive economic policies are worrisome, but there are also glimmers of hope.
Steve is a Cleveland-based long-term activist and activist-photographer. He’s made 18 visits to Colombia and the El Chocó area since 2003, working closely with the activist Catholic Diocese of Quibdó, federations of Afro-Colombian and indigenous communities, and activist NGOs. His photography and writing about the area have been exhibited and published on four continents, though his greatest satisfaction is seeing his photography used as an instrument of struggle by his friends in Colombia.
Free and open to the public. Peace@ThePub is a monthly meeting featuring interesting conversation, camaraderie, food and drink.
The Weaponization of Antisemitism
Do we truly understand the term “antisemitism”? Mark Weber shed much light on the subject in this talk at Peace@ThePub on May 14, 2019. Many in the audience wanted to read it and share his remarks with others. So here it is, in it’s entirety.
Note that you can also add your comments to this blog!
By Mark Weber
Recently, we’ve watched with dismay as supporters of Israel in the United States have launched attacks on first-term Congresswoman Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), accusing her of antisemitism because she’s been critical of Israel and has raised the specter of “dual loyalty.” This is just the latest of many incidents in which false charges of antisemitism have been used to stifle criticism of Israeli policy and support for Palestinian human rights. In particular, we have seen this term used to bully and to intimidate young activists on campuses across the country. Spineless college administrators and corrupt politicians of both parties in state legislatures, under pressure from wealthy donors and the Israel Lobby, have sought to suppress these student activists’ work on behalf of Palestinian rights.
Today, antisemitism has become associated with Israel and its policies toward the West Bank and Gaza. To put our discussion in perspective, let’s go back to the origins of the term “anti-Semitism.” Let’s reflect on the politicization of antisemitism in the United States and the use of the term “antisemitism” as a cudgel to bludgeon critics of Israel, forcing them to abandon their criticisms of Israel while defending themselves against false charges of bigotry.
Read MoreOn Recent Deaths in Gaza and Israel
Cleveland Peace Action, 2592 West 14th Street, Cleveland, Ohio 44113 – peaceactioncleveland.org
Contact: Don Bryant – 216-255-1576 – [email protected]
_____________________________________________________________________________
Gaza and Israeli Deaths and Palestinian Human Rights
The recent deaths and violence in Gaza, Palestine and the Negev area of Israel were not initiated by Hamas or Islamic Jihad as described in mainstream news. If we want to lay blame on one entity for the May 4-May 6, 2019 exchange of missiles and bombs, we can site Israel for firing and killing two nonviolent demonstrators on May 3 in the weekly “Great Return March” in Gaza that began in March 2018. The Gaza health ministry reported that the Israeli army has killed 275 pro-democracy demonstrators and wounded 17,000 in the past 14 months of demonstrations at the Gaza – Israel border.
Read MoreHands Off Venezuela! No War With Iran
Cleveland Peace Action, 2592 West 14th Street, Cleveland, Ohio 44113
peaceactioncleveland.org
Contact: Mark Weber – 216.870.1594 – [email protected]
_______________________________________________________________
Statement from Cleveland Peace Action on Provocative U.S. Actions Toward Venzuela and Iran
The United States is trying to orchestrate a coup to oust socialist President Nicholas Maduro of Venezuela and install a pro-U.S. regime headed by Juan Guaido. Guaido has already called for U.S. military intervention in Venezuela. He has declared himself to be “interim president” and openly courts a military attack on his country.
At the same time, the United States is dispatching warships to the Middle East to threaten Iran. Pressured by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel, the U.S. government is weighing its military options. The Trump Administration has systematically alienated the government in Tehran beginning with the U.S. withdrawal from the Iran nuclear treaty negotiated during the Obama Administration.
Neoconservative foreign policy adviser John Bolton is championing BOTH regime change in Venezuela and an attack on Iran or Iranian interests.
Cleveland Peace Action demands that the United States keep its hands off Venezuela and that there be no war with Iran. #