Talk

Gandhian scholar Prasad Gollanapalli will speak on "The Relevance of Gandhi to the Wisconsin Movement Today."

Prasad Gollanapalli is a Gandhian scholar and an active member of the Gandhian organizations and Sarvodaya Movement in India. He looks after the training and international relations division of Sarva Seva Sangh, the apex Gandhian organization in India; serves as the General Secretary of Andhra Pradesh Sarvodaya in Mandal, Hyderabad; and co-founded the Gandhi King Foundation.

Prasad Gollanapalli has taught courses on Gandhian philosophy, peace, nonviolence, sustainable development and related issues in Indian and U.S. universities. He strives for "Sarvodaya Social Order," a society based on truth and nonviolence, with networked civil society groups around the world working together to promote peace in a just and sustainable world. He has been following events in Wisconsin, and will address how Gandhian principles and experience apply to our movement here.

On September 24, the FBI raided the homes and offices of peace activists in Minneapolis and Chicago. They seized computers, phones, documents and other personal items. The FBI has also been contacting other activists in an ongoing investigation of alleged "material support of foreign terrorist organizations." At this point 23 citizens have been issued subpoenas to testify before a Grand Jury in Chicago. Refusal to testify can result in a grant of immunity followed by jail for contempt if the refusal continues. The federal prosecutor can also issue criminal indictments leading to trial. All welcome to hear the stories of two dynamic and courageous women from neighboring state, Meredith Aby and Sarah Smith, peace and social justice activists who have been involved in this assault on our civil liberties.

Join the Teach-In with panels from 8am-12 noon, and 2pm to 5pm.  Panels will include UW faculty presentations and community workshops on labor and other perspectives on events in Afghanistan and Pakistan. A listing of workshops is available at  http://www.wnpj.org/node/3443

 Jennifer Nordstrom of the Carbon-Free, Nuclear-Free Campaign says NO!  Learn how Wisconsin can achieve a 100% renewable electricity grid by 2050.

THE U.S.-AFGHAN/PAKISTAN WAR: WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?

This autumn American citizens and the world have been anxiously awaiting President Obama's decision to send 40,000 more U.S. troops to Afghanistan in addition to the 60,000 already there. There have also been U.S. preparations to step-up drone attacks on the Taliban in NW Pakistan and to increase U.S. aid to the Pakistan military. Many Americans (more than 50% according to some polls) are questioning the risks of deeper and more prolonged U.S. involvement in the conflict and are looking for alternative solutions to massive Vietnam-style U.S. intervention. 

Dr. Adam Schesch, a historian and research-analyst of post-WWII guerrilla wars, will provide an update on the conflict and the prospects for deeper U.S. involvement on TUESDAY NOVEMBER 10th 7PM at the WIL-MAR NEIGHBORHOOD CENTER 953 Jenifer St, sponsored by the Madison Area Peace Coalition. Admission is free, although donations to MAPC are appreciated.

Dan Kenney, the peace activist who brought us news of the Blackwater military training camp in northern Illinois, will be in Madison to speak on Military Privatization in the Global South.  In a preview of his talk this coming November at the School of the Americas Vigil in Columbus, Georgia, Dan Kenney will share his thoughts on the growing use of private armies throughout the Global South.  While it is critical that we keep up the pressure
on closing the SOA in Ft. Benning, this is just the tip of the iceberg. Dan will share his perspective on the impact privatization of the military has not only on all of the Americas, but also on the democratic system. Dan Kenney is an educator, activist, and investigative journalist. He is coordinator of the DeKalb Interfaith Network for Peace & Justice; co-founder and coordinator of noprivatearmies.org and of the Clearwater Project to stop Blackwater; a founding member of the Illinois Coalition for Peace & Justice; the Illinois state coordinator of Bring the Guard Home;
and the chair of the social justice committee of the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of De Kalb.

Panel discussion and Exhibit opening. This Veterans' Day event will feature a discussion about an exhibit of portraits of Wisconsin Vietnam veterans, a sneak peek of a new WPT documentary on these veterans, and a panel discussion featuring four local Vietnam Veterans. One panelist will be Will Williams, a member of Veterans for Peace. A reception will follow the panel discussion.

Michelle Bahl recently travelled to the West Bank of Palestine, and she compiled a presentation that she gives to various organizations in an effort to help people understand the degree of oppression facing average Palestinians on a daily basis.