[Peace] AWARE minutes 3/2/08

[Randall Cotton]

Minutes of 3/2/08 AWARE meeting are below, but first, Upcoming Events:

Upcoming Events Calendar
==================
March 3 (Monday) 11AM, UofI quad just outside the Illini Union. Campus
demonstration in solidarity with the victims in Gaza.  Details at
http://lists.chambana.net/mailman/archive/peace/2008-March/021087.html

March 3 (Monday) 2PM taping of this week's "AWARE on the Air" on UPTV,
Urbana City
Council Chambers, 400 S. Vine St.

March 3 (Monday) 6PM WEFT 90.1FM broadcast of last week's Friday Forum
(Peggy Kovacic, Revisiting the Iraq Question: A Mother's Perspective. See
http://www.universityymca.org/friday_forum.html#6. )

March 3 (Monday) 10PM UPTV (Urbana Public Television) cable channel 6
broadcast of "AWARE on the Air" recorded earlier same day (see above).

March 5 (Wednesday) 6PM UPTV (Urbana Public Television) cable channel 6
video broadcast of last week's Friday Forum (Peggy Kovacic, Revisiting the
Iraq Question: A Mother's Perspective. See
http://www.universityymca.org/friday_forum.html#6. )

March 11 (Tuesday) 6PM rehearsal, 7PM airtime, Urbana City Council
Chambers (400 S. Vine St.) AWARE Presents readings from Howard Zinn's "The
People Speak: American Voices, Some Famous, Some Little Known" as a
celebration of dissent at the 5th annual observance of the start of the
Iraq war. Live broadcast 7-9PM on UPTV (Urbana Public Television) cable
channel 6, with future repeats.

March 19 (Wednesday) Possible vigil event (TBA) marking the 5th annual
observance of the start of the Iraq War (details below in New Ideas)

April 4-6 (Friday-Sunday): Illinois Coalition for Peace and Justice
conference in Chicago. Mort and Shara may be interested. Others
encouraged.

April 9 (Wednesday) 7:30PM Channing-Murray (1209 W. Oregon, Urbana)
"Indigenous Communities and Development Work Perspectives from Guatemala"
w/Peter Rohloff and Magda Sotz Mux. This event is co-sponsored by AWARE.

April 24 (Thursday) 7:30PM Channing-Murray (1209 W. Oregon, Urbana)
"Awakening from our Trance: Reversing Global Climate Change" w/Carolyn
Treadway. This event is co-sponsored by AWAREs

Minutes:
=====
Finance Report: Balance is $2154.50

Main Event: 250 flyers distributed among drivers (material debunking
"surge" myths originally from War Times/United for Peace and Justice).
Wide range of responses from veterans - some thankful, some angry.
Indifference noted among many.

AWARE presents: Meeting held this past Tuesday. Result was a March 11th
AWARE event: Public, live televised (later repeated) readings from  Howard
Zinn's "The People Speak: American Voices, Some Famous, Some Little
Known". Sign-up sheet passed around for folks to choose which passages to
read. Several already signed up, more needed (there are 26 total
selections). More info on the book at:
http://www.harpercollins.com/book/index.aspx?isbn=9780060578268

Anti-Racism:
=========
 UIUC "Street Law" program conducted a seminar at Champaign Public Library
called "Know your Legal Rights - how to deal with the police". The UIUC
Black Law Student Association and the National Lawyers Guild also
participated. A lawyer was present and giving advice for a portion of the
event. It is one of three planned community seminars. The others are:

"How to Deal with your Money" Saturday March 8 12PM (Champaign Public
Library Rm C)
"How to Deal with your Landlord and your Boss" Saturday, March 15 12PM
(Champaign Public Library Rm A)

One or more of these may be offered again in the near future at a venue on
the north side of town.

This past Thursday was an Open House event for "The Immigration Project"
at Community United Church of Christ. This project provides legal help to
immigrants, among other services. Details at:
http://lists.chambana.net/mailman/archive/peace/2008-February/021077.html
and
http://www.immigrationproject.org/main.html

Counter recruitment: AWARE is advised that CAN (Campus Anti-War Network)
at UIUC anticipates a counter-recruitment event in town sometime in the
near future

Student group:  Gaza solidarity demonstration tomorrow (Monday) 11AM at
the Illini Union south patio (more details at
http://lists.chambana.net/mailman/archive/peace/2008-March/021087.html )

Blackwater: Mention made of Illinois legislation regulating operation of
private military contractors and possible AWARE activity in that regard.
See:
http://lists.chambana.net/mailman/archive/peace-discuss/2008-February/015861.html

New Ideas: Nascent working group formed including Stuart and Barbara to
possibly organize a vigil event on the day of the 5th annual observance of
the start of the Iraq War (March 19th)

Events of the past week:
==============
Feb 27 (Wednesday) 7PM, Room 314 Illini Union on campus, William Brustein
"The New Anti-Semitism". Content of this presentation was reviewed
somewhat favorably. A UIUC profile of Dr. Brustein is at
http://www.ilint.uiuc.edu/apiabio.php . It was noted the audience was
probably heavily Jewish, the event having been organized/co-sponsored by
Jewish organizations. Question was asked whether local Islamic
organizations might be interested in conducting a similar event for the
benefit of the Muslim community.

Feb 27 (Thursday) 7PM 100 Greg Hall on campus, Arab Student Association
showing of "Occupation 101". Discussion with David Green, among others,
afterwards. See
http://lists.chambana.net/mailman/archive/peace/2008-February/021018.html.
This event was remarkably well-attended - 100 Greg Hall (large lecture
hall) was filled. Excellent discussion followed the film.

Feb 29 (Friday) 12-1:30PM, Latzer Hall, University YMCA "Friday Forum" -
Peggy Kovacic, Revisiting the Iraq Question: A Mother's Perspective. See
http://www.universityymca.org/friday_forum.html#6.
Well attended. Excellent, comprehensive presentation from Peggy Kovacic,
expanding on her presenatation at AWARE's Urbana Civic Center event last
fall. Audio repeat scheduled for WEFT 90.1FM 6PM on Monday and UPTV cable
channel 6 at 6PM on Wednesday.

R