#375 Nonviolence Works, Dick Gregory, Frustrations - August 25, 2017
Nonviolence Works Better! The New York Times has an op-ed quoting several nonviolence experts about how much more effective active nonviolence is. One of those luminaries, Michael Nagler of the Metta Center, wrote one of the chapters in our book, Consistently Opposing Killing. While most of the counter-protesters in Charlottesville were assertively nonviolent, there were a set who wielded clubs and were menacing. This isn’t merely morally wrong; it’s counterproductive. Racists are emboldened, and an opportunity to get sympathy from onlookers may be squandered.
Dick Gregory, RIP Dick Gregory made a name for himself as a stand-up comedian with sharp social commentary, and was a civil-rights and anti-war activist along with supporting the Equal Rights Amendment for women’s equality and many other causes. He also understood the connection of abortion and racism. As shown in this graphic from our friends at the American Solidarity Party Dorothy Day Caucus, he supported the right to life of every human being from conception to natural death. He died of heart failure on August 19.
Life/Peace/Justice Conference – Early Bird Registration Extended October 20-22, our member group Rehumanize International will sponsor this conference in Pittsburgh. The early bird registration deadline has been extended to September 15. See their conference web page for the many fine speakers and program.
Reminder: September Actions September 9, Washington DC – Pro-life March to Abolish Nuclear Weapons September 16, Syracuse NY – Pilgrimage for Life and Peace September 16, Kansas City, MO – Ban the Bomb, Not the Baby For more details, see our Week of Actions web page.
Donations Needed Our 30th anniversary conference, "Creating a Holistic Culture of Peace: Bridging the Life/Peace Divide" was a great success! Our evaluations cited the strengths of the conference as its speakers, program, networking opportunities, and the people. Everyone who went made the conference such an inspiring event. There was a lot of expense that went into planning and carrying out our conference, and we would like to begin planning ways to continue the momentum of energy for the Consistent Life movement that was created. We would appreciate any donations. You can donate by going to our website or sending a check to Consistent Life Network, P.O. Box 9295, Silver Spring, MD 20916-9295. Thank you so much for your support for our work!
Latest CLN Blog Post After attending a rally she helped organize in response to the violence in Charlottesville weekend before last, Lisa Stiller writes of “The Frustrations of Being a Consistent Life Activist.” This is a common experience for all of us: in a rally where people advocate many things we strongly believe in, all of a sudden a euphemism for abortion is used as something else for the crowd to support. There’s a “resistance flag” (pictured, left) from which the crowd was asked to recite. We do offer a yard sign, of similar format but with a different enough design to not be confused with the resistance flag, that can held as a gentle way of countering, available through Café Press.
Quotation of the Week Dick Gregory Ebony magazine, October, 1971 Government family programs designed for poor Blacks which emphasize birth control and abortion with the intent of limiting the Black population is genocide. The deliberate killing of Black babies by abortion is genocide – perhaps the most overt of all.
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