Events/Meetings

Monday, November 16, 2009, 7:00 PM.  Feminists Craft Night.  Location:  Sporeprint Infoshop, 172 E. 5th Avenue, Columbus.  map!  Contact:  614.299.INFO  info@sporeprint.info

Monday, November 16^th, 2009, 10:45 AM – 12:00 Noon. Promise for Life Holocaust Education Event.    Canopies of Hospitality: Covenantal Opportunities in a Post-Holocaust World.  A student convocation and community Holocaust education event featuring Rev. Dr. Henry "Hank" Knight, United Methodist Clergy and Director of the Cohen Center for Holocaust Studies, Keene State College, New Hampshire.

The community is invited to attend these special educational events conducted in collaboration with the Columbus Jewish community.  Location:  Trinity Lutheran Seminary, Schenk Chapel.

November 16^th, 2009, 11:00 AM – 2:00 PM.  Attend a counter protest to:  A Rally for Rifqa’s Civil Rights.  Location:  Dorrian Commons Park (across the street from Franklin County Juvenile Court, 373 S. High St.). 

Tuesday, November 17^th, 2009, 6:00 PM.  Jobs with Justice Meeting.   Location:  27 Euclid Ave. off High Street, Old Firehouse #7 (Close to the Short North near Kroger)  Click here for the Greater Columbus JwJ website

Wednesday, November 18^th, 2009, 7:00 PM.  Community Leaders Forum:  "Can a terrorist also be a serious, genuine Muslim individual?"  Presented by Dr. Mohammad Ahmad, M.D., a member of the Masjid-al-Urooj Mosque and a life long student of Islam, along with his wife, Lubna Ahmad. 
Location:  First Unitarian Universalist Church of Columbus, 93 West Weisheimer Road, Columbus, OH 43214-2544, Personal Contact Number: (614) 296-6304

Thursday, November 19, 2009, 7:00 PM. Democratic Socialists of Central Ohio Meeting. Program: Language in Political Discourse　- Manipulation or Gaining Consent?　 DSA member John Wallace will present this discussion that starts with the premise that democracy is based on the consent of the governed.　 He will then look at how the consent of the governed is shaped.  What are the elements of rational discussion and how can they be promoted?  What role does the media play?  What is the importance of the political documentaries of Michael Moore and political commentary of Rachel Maddow?   Gramsci's understanding of hegemony is a helpful analytical tool.  How can we best participate in political discourse for a progressive result?  The discussion will be directed toward the civil discourse and dealing with the issues in the current health care debate. Location: Meeting location: Northwood High Building, 2231 North High Street (2 blocks north of Lane Avenue, Room 100 - Ample Parking in Back.　 Open to the public.　 For more information, contact smorgen@juno.com

Thursday, November 19, 2009, 6:00-9:00 PM. Movie: Earth Days.  Wexner Center for the Arts and Green Drinks are sponsoring this film with a panel discussion to follow.  Discount admission of $5 (regular $7) is available through the Green Columbus website www.greencbus.org. Visually stunning and vastly entertaining, Earth Days looks back to the dawn and development of the modern environmental movement—from its post-war rustlings in the 1950s and Rachel Carson’s 1962 Silent Spring to the first 1970 Earth Day celebration and the subsequent firestorm of political action.  Location: Wexner Center, 1871 N High St.  www.earthdaysmovie.com 

Thursday, November 19th, 2009, 6:30 PM.  Israel's Palestinian Prisoners, America's Other Guantanamo: A Report on the Conditions of Palestinian Political Prisoners.  Committee for Justice in Palestine (CJP) OSU is pleased to welcome human rights activist Ala Jaradat, the program manager of Addameer Prisoners' Support and Human Rights Association in the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah, and a former Palestinian political prisoner, will be sharing his experiences campaigning for the freedom and rights of political detainees and actively working against the use of torture, arbitrary detention, isolation, and other forms of political persecution and repression.  Location:  Hitchcock Hall, Rm 0031, The Ohio State University.  Robust refreshments will be provided.  Parking is conveniently located adjacent to the building.  Campus building map, parking and driving directions:

http://www.osu.edu/map/building.php?building=274

Friday, November 20^th, 2009, 7:00 PM.  Friday Night Movie:  “Consume this Movie.”  This 80 minute documentary examines the frenzied pace of fast-lane materialism and its implications.  Woven into this exploration are interviews with Dr. Peter Whybrow, American Mania; Juliet B. Schor, The Overspent American, simplicity gurus Cecile Andrews and Duane Elgin, photographic artist Chris Jordan, advertising expert James. B. Twitchell and Post Carbon Institute's Julian Darley among others.  Location:

2929 N. High St. (corner of W. Kelso Rd. and N. High) Refreshments welcomed; donations accepted. Tom and Kathy Lasik are our evening's hosts.

Friday, November 20, 2009, 7:00 PM.  Discussion/Reading Group Virno's "General Intellect.”  Location:  Sporeprint Infoshop, 172 E. 5th Avenue, Columbus.  map!  Contact:  614.299.INFO  info@sporeprint.info

Saturday, November 21, 2009, 5:00 PM. Arawak City Planning Meeting.  Location:  Sporeprint Infoshop, 172 E. 5th Avenue, Columbus.  map!  Contact:  614.299.INFO  info@sporeprint.info

Saturday, November 21, 2009, 7:00 PM. Spore Benefit Curry Cookoff  ($5 donation).  Location:  Sporeprint Infoshop, 172 E. 5th Avenue, Columbus.  map!  Contact:  614.299.INFO  info@sporeprint.info

Sunday, November 22, 2009, 7:00 PM.  Buy Nothing Day Meeting.  Location:  Sporeprint Infoshop, 172 E. 5th Avenue, Columbus.  map!  Contact:  614.299.INFO  info@sporeprint.info

Sunday, November 22, 2009, 4:00 PM.  From Harm to Hope.  Mennonite Central Committee worker Titus Peachey will tell the remarkable story of the movement to ban cluster munitions through the eyes of survivors, activists, and MCC partners.  The presentation will include MCC's cluster bomb photo exhibit, the newly released DVD From Harm to Hope, and opportunity to participate in MCC's advocacy postcard campaign.  Titus Peachey is the Director of Peace Education for MCC US and former MCC Coordinator for the Cluster Bomb Removal Project in Laos.  Location:  Columbus Mennonite Church, 35 Oakland Park Avenue.  For information, contact Melonie Buller, 747-3662 or mlbuller@sbcglobal.net

Sunday, November 22, 2009, 4:00-5:30 PM.  Media Ecology? An Emerging Field Links Biology, Communications, and Evolution.  This month in the Living the Big Picture discussion series we will explore the new field of Media Ecology.  Come learn how "Understanding Media" (title of the classic book by Marshall McLuhan) provides us with insights into child rearing, education, psychology, consumer culture, agri-culture, urban planning, and the co-evolution of cultures aligned with natural systems.  The Big Picture series is led by Chuck Lynd and focuses on the practical application of new ideas that are changing us as individuals and transforming our communities.  Chuck has studied media ecology for the past 30 years and is a member of the Media Ecology Association.  Each presentation includes an overview of the topic, audio and/or video excerpts from thought leaders, followed by a Q&A and sharing with participants.   Light refreshments.  Free; donations accepted for Simply Living.  Location: Simply Living, 2929 N. High St., 2nd Floor, Columbus 43202. Contact Chuck Lynd <clynd@cavenet.org> or call 614-268-5580 for more information.

Monday, November 23, 2009, 7:00-9:00 PM.  Central Ohioans for Peace Meeting.   The program will be a screening of the documentary Rethink Afghanistan (75 minutes).  Rethink Afghanistan is Brave New Foundation’s recently released documentary directed by Robert Greenwald, director of Outfoxed, Wal-Mart:  The High cost of Low Price, and Iraq for Sale.   This documentary focuses on what military escalation will achieve in Afghanistan, how the war could further destabilize a nuclear-armed Pakistan, the staggering costs of the war, the civilian casualties caused by recent U.S. airstrikes, questions the assumption that the war can liberate Afghan women, and interviews with high-ranking former CIA agents who explain why there is no victory to be won in Afghanistan.  Unless otherwise noted, all meetings of Central Ohioans for Peace take place at Columbus Mennonite Church, 35 Oakland Park Avenue, Columbus, Ohio.  Directions can be found at http://www.ColumbusMennonite.org/streetmap.htm   For more information, see www.centralohioansforpeace.org

Tuesday, November 24^th, 2009, 7:00 PM.  Earth Institute Discussion Course:  Global Warming/Changing Course.  Join your neighbors and fellow environmentalists as we discuss the history and future of global warming.  This course was created by the Northwest Earth Institute (www.nwei.org). Please register for the course no later than Thursday, 11/19, by contacting Missy Hintz, Earth Institute Coordinator, at 614.447.0296 or via email at missy@simplyliving.org. Cost of the course is $25 and the group will continue meeting on Tuesday evenings.  If you are interested in participating, but do not have the time right now, please let Missy know to add you to the interest list for future courses.

Tuesday, November 24, 2009, 7:00 PM.  Permaculture Conference Planning Meeting.  Location:  Sporeprint Infoshop, 172 E. 5th Avenue, Columbus.  map!  Contact:  614.299.INFO  info@sporeprint.info

Friday, November 27, 2009, Noon – 11:00 PM.  Free Film Fest Arawak City Indie Cinema.  Location:  Sporeprint Infoshop, 172 E. 5th Avenue, Columbus.  map!  Contact:  614.299.INFO  info@sporeprint.info

Friday, November 27, 2009.  Buy Nothing Day.  Celebrate a 24-hour boycott of consumerism on the day after Thanksgiving, the busiest shopping day of the year. As the planet starts heating up, maybe it’s time to go cold turkey. Take the personal challenge by locking up your debit card, your credit cards, your money clip, and see what it feels like to opt out of consumer culture completely, even if only for 24 hours. Like the millions of people who have done this fast before you, you may be rewarded with a life-changing epiphany. While you’re at it, what better time to point out real alternatives to unbridled consumption—and the climate uncertainty that it entails—to friends and relatives?  For more information visit www.adbusters.org/campaigns/bnd.

Sunday, November 29, 2009, 5:00-6:00  PM.  Women in Black Vigil.  This vigil is in observance of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People (United Nations).  In 1977, the General Assembly called for the annual observance of 29 November as the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People. On that day, in 1947, the Assembly adopted the resolution on the partition of Palestine.  The purpose of this event is to highlight the human rights of the Palestinian people which have been largely abrogated by the occupation.  We also want to demonstrate solidarity with the people of Palestine and Gaza.  This is a silent vigil in that there are no speakers.  Everyone is welcome.  Location:  Corner of 15^th  and North High St. OSU Campus area.   For more information, contact chammon@columbus.rr.com

Sunday, November 29, 2009, Noon – 4:00 PM  Really Really Free Market.  Location:  Sporeprint Infoshop, 172 E. 5th Avenue, Columbus.  map!  Contact:  614.299.INFO  info@sporeprint.info

Monday,  November 30, 2009, 7:00 PM.  Battle in Seattle Movie Night, 10 yr anniversary of

Seattle WTO protests (we actually won ;) ).  Location:  Sporeprint Infoshop, 172 E. 5th Avenue, Columbus.  map!  Contact:  614.299.INFO  info@sporeprint.info

Monday, November 30, 2009,  7:00 PM.  Central Ohioans for Peace.  COFP future directions; followed by books we've read, tv we've seen, radio we've listened to, conversations we've had. Come, plan, and share!  Location: Columbus Mennonite Church, 35 Oakland Park Avenue, Columbus, Ohio.  Directions can be found at http://www.ColumbusMennonite.org/streetmap.htm   For more information, see www.centralohioansforpeace.org

Thursday, December 3, 2009, 12 noon – 1 PM.  Interfaith Prayers for Peace will be led by Father Vinny on Centering Prayer. All are invited to attend.  Sponsored by Faith Communities Uniting for Peace. Location: St. Thomas More Newman Center (near OSU campus), 64 W. Lane  Ave., Columbus OH 43201. Phone: 291-4674, Ample free parking available in church parking lot.  For more information and to join Faith Communities Uniting for Peace please contact:  Rev. Deb Oskin, Co-convener, 614-763-0564 or Dr. Tarunjit S. Butalia, Co-convener, 614-210-0591.

Saturday, December 5, 2009, 5:00 PM.  Vegan Dinner Party Benefit.  Location:  Sporeprint Infoshop, 172 E. 5th Avenue, Columbus.  map!  Contact:  614.299.INFO  info@sporeprint.info

Saturday, December 5^th, 2009, 7:00 PM – Midnight.  Celebrating Compassion Gala 2009.  Held in the heart of Columbus, Ohio at the prestigious Landmark Gateway Theatre on Saturday, December 5, Mercy For Animals’ 2nd annual Celebrating Compassion Gala honors celebrities, elected officials, supporters, and advocates who have made an outstanding contribution to the animal protection movement.

From 7 p.m. until midnight, the Gala will feature delicious vegan hors d'oeuvres, wine and spirits, silent auction, live entertainment and a memorable awards ceremony.  This elegant affair will raise funds to continue Mercy For Animals vital work to protect animals from needless suffering and abuse.  You can purchase tickets now.  For more information about sponsorship, silent auction, event volunteers or general questions, please contact Alicia at AliciaB@MercyForAnimals.org

Location:  Columbus, Ohio's Landmark Gateway Theatre, 1550 N. High St., Columbus, OH.

Sunday, December 6th, 2009,  10:00 am.  Muslims and Jews: Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow Together.  Congregation Tifereth Israel and Islamic Foundation of Central Ohio Invite You To The 3rd Ohio Muslim- Jewish Conference. 

Guest Speakers:
Dr. Jamal Badawi, St. Mary’s University, Nova Scotia, Canada
Dr. Howard Crane, Department of Architecture, Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio
Dr. Reuven Firestone, Hebrew Union College, Los Angeles, California
Dr. Amy Horowitz, Melton Center for Jewish & International Studies, Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio
Dr. Sayeed Syeed, ISNA Interfaith & Community Alliances, Washington, D.C.
Walter Ruby, Foundation for Ethnic Understanding, New York

Co-sponsors: The Ohio Humanities Council & the National Endowment for the Humanities; Middle East Studies Center, Ohio State University; The Interfaith Association of Central Ohio; Noor Islamic Cultural Center.  Location:  The University Plaza Hotel & Conference Center, 3110 Olentangy River Road, Columbus, Ohio 43202 • Phone: 614-267-7461 • www. universityplazaosu.com

Cost: Registration & lunch are $25, Students $15 - limited seating - reserve your seats today. 
Checks payable to: Congregation Tifereth Israel • 1354 East Broad St., Columbus 43205 • Phone: 614-253-8523 • www.tiferethisrael.org

Monday, December 7, 2009, 7:00 PM.  Central Ohioans for Peace.  Selection of 2010 Officers and Staff.  Location: Columbus Mennonite Church, 35 Oakland Park Avenue, Columbus, Ohio.  Directions can be found at http://www.ColumbusMennonite.org/streetmap.htm   For more information, see www.centralohioansforpeace.org

Wednesday, December 9, 2009, 7:45 PM.  Sierra Club Program: “Bolivia’s New Dawn.”    Hear award-winning photographer Bob Studzinski’s take on the current political situation in Bolivia. Bob travelled with Witness for Peace last fall in an investigation that met with all sides in the conflict—including coca growers, the US Drug Enforcement Agency, shamans, secessionists and Maryknolls. Bob has been documenting the lives and struggles of indigenous and endangered peoples for 30 years.  His photos have been exhibited worldwide.  Location:  Northwood-High Building, 2231 N. High St., Room 100.

Saturday, December  12, 2009, 10:00 AM.   Wild Ones Annual Potluck and Seed Exchange.  Location:  Innis House at Inniswood Metro Park, 940 S. Hempstead Rd. in Westerville. Everyone welcome to join us!  You do not have to have seeds to donate to be part of the exchange. Wild Ones promotes biodiversity by landscaping with native plants.

Saturday, December 12, 2009, 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM.   Nonviolence Training Retreat.  The Columbus Catholic Worker in conjunction with the brand new local chapter of Pax Christi are pleased to host an all-day nonviolence training retreat!  Facilitators from the Michigan Peace Team will be coming down to lead us.  Their trainings cover a variety of topics, from helping groups gets ready for active civil disobedience actions or simply to help develop nonviolent communication styles.  Since our group is not preparing for any particular event or action, this training will be more general and applies to being nonviolent in all aspects of our lives, which should also help us decide an area of focus for the PC chapter.  This is a wonderful event and not something to be missed!  You are welcome to participate even if you are not a member of Pax Christi.   Cost - A donation of $20-$35 per individual is suggested depending on ability to pay (Sliding scale).  You cannot attend without an RSPV, so please sign up and let me know you want to attend.  To Register, Contact - Frank Lesko at 614-446-8714.  Location:  Columbus Catholic Worker; 1614 Oakland Park Ave.; Columbus, OH 43224.  Additional information on the training:  http://michiganpeaceteam.org/Training.htm or www.columbuscatholicworker.blogspot.com

Monday, December 14, 2009, 7:00 PM.  Central Ohioans for Peace. Annual Peace Party!  Delicious food; thousands of buttons, bumper stickers, and calendars; all in a relaxed atmosphere with people who think the same way you do. Not to be missed!  Location: Columbus Mennonite Church, 35 Oakland Park Avenue, Columbus, Ohio.  Directions can be found at http://www.ColumbusMennonite.org/streetmap.htm   For more information, see www.centralohioansforpeace.org

March 16-20, 2010.  Civil Rights Historic Heritage Tour.  MLK Civil Rights Heritage Tour 2010.  The Ohio Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday Commission in collaboration with The City of Columbus Community Relations Commission, the Asheville, Durham and Raleigh MLK Committees, N.C., Martin Luther King Resource Center and Creative Interchange Consulting of Charlotte, Ohio Civil Rights Commission and King Arts Complex are pleased to sponsor a bus trip to retrace the steps of Dr. King and other civil rights heroes. The tour will be traveling to Cincinnati, Ohio; Atlanta, Georgia; Selma, Tuskegee, Montgomery and Birmingham, Alabama; and to Memphis, Tennessee to retrace the steps of Dr. King and other civil rights heroes. The whole purpose of the tour reinforces that more of us should better understand, appreciate and acknowledge how all of this relates to the present and future.

Interested individuals and groups are asked to contact: Bobbi Bell, Executive Secretary, Ohio Equal Opportunity Division, 30 East Broad Street, 18th Floor, Columbus, Ohio 43215, (614) 466-8380.
Columbus Community Relations Commission, Napoleon Bell, 1111 East Broad St., Columbus, Ohio 43205, (614) 645-1993.   Citizens from any state or location may take the tour. Those who confirm first

will be guaranteed seats.  Only 50 seats available.

http://community.ci.columbus.oh.us/MLK-2010-tour.pdf

Friday, March 19^th, 2010.  National Day of Action and Outreach in D.C. and Saturday, March 20^th, 2009, National March on Washington D.C.  People from all over the country are organizing to converge on Washington, D.C., to demand the immediate and unconditional withdrawal of all U.S. and NATO forces from Afghanistan and Iraq.  On Saturday, March 20, 2010, there will be a massive National March & Rally in D.C. A day of action and outreach in Washington, D.C., will take place on Friday, March 19, preceding the Saturday march.  The initiators of the March 20 National March on Washington (preceded by the March 19 Day of Action and Outreach in D.C.) include: the ANSWER Coalition; Muslim American Society Freedom; National Council of Arab Americans; Cynthia McKinney; Malik Rahim, co-founder of Common Ground Collective; Ramsey Clark; Cindy Sheehan; Medea Benjamin, co-founder of CODEPINK; Deborah Sweet, Director, World Can’t Wait; Mike Ferner, President, Veterans for Peace; Al-Awda, the Palestine Right to Return Coalition; Heidi Boghosian, Executive Director, National Lawyers Guild; Ron Kovic, author of “Born on the 4th of July”; Juan Jose Gutierrez, Director, Latino Movement USA; Col. Ann Wright (ret.); March Forward!; Partnership for Civil Justice; Palestinian American Women Association; Alliance for a Just and Lasting Peace in the Philippines; Alliance for Global Justice; Claudia de la Cruz, Pastor, Iglesia San Romero de Las Americas-UCC; Phil Portluck, Social Justice Ministry, Covenant Baptist Church, D.C.; Michael Berg; Blase & Theresa Bonpane, Office of the Americas; Coalition for Peace and Democracy in Honduras; Comite Pro-Democracia en Mexico; Frente Unido de los Pueblos Americanos; Comites de Base FMLN, Los Angeles; Free Palestine Alliance; GABRIELA Network; Justice for Filipino American Veterans; KmB Pro-People Youth; Students Fight Back; Jim Lafferty, Executive Director, National Lawyers Guild - LA Chapter; LEF Foundation; National Coalition to Free the Angola 3; Community Futures Collective; Advocates for Indigenous California Language Survival; Companeros del Barrio; Barrio Unido for Full and Unconditional Amnesty.
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