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| Obama in Berlin 2 WHERE:
At the east side of the Siegessäule (Victory Column) between the
Victory Column and the Brandenburg Gate. The entrance to the area is at
the Brandenburg Gate. Admission is free. American Voices Abroad Berlin
will meet at a specific location to be determined as soon as we get
more information. WHEN: The entire area will be opened to the public at 4 pm. TO
BRING: We’ve been told officially that banners and signs will not be
allowed in the area, which leaves t-shirts and buttons. For security
reasons, personal belongings should be limited. We are not sure what
this means, but we have been told not to “bring bags”! But do bring
your friends and neighbors. This is a great time to contact people who
have asked you about Obama. VOTER
REGISTRATION: THE DEMOCRATS ABROAD need people for voter registration,
logistics and other kinds of help. If you would like to work with the
Dems, please contact their Secretary Eva Adams: secretary@demsinberlin.de. There will be a training session on Thursday morning July 24th. You will be informed about the exact location. MEDIA COVERAGE: The event is open to the press but space is limited. To request credentials, please visit http://www.democratsabroad.org/sites/all/modules/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=52561&qid=1162214 UPDATES: Additional event updates for members of the public will be posted at www.barackobama.com/berlin Obama in Berlin According to newspaper reports, Barack Obama will be speaking at the Siegessäule on Thursday, July 24, probably in the early evening around 7 pm. It seems that almost everyone wants to be there so a huge crowd is expected. As soon as we know when Obama will be speaking, we will send out a notice. We'll also select a good place for AVAers to rendez-vous, probably near the Democrats Abroad, who are also organizing a party that evening at Max and Moritz to which we are all invited. Your ECONOMIC STIMULUS CHECK and How to Spend It Wisely Ann Wertheimer writes about the so-called economic stimulus rebate payment - how to get it and how to spend it! See PDF. Fifth of July Photos Karen Axelrad has posted her pictures of the Fifth of July at http://www.pbase.com/karenaxe/amerikafest. The balloons sure attracted attention (around the world thanks to DPA), and especially (as was their purpose) of some 70 other US Americans at the Brandenburg Gate who then registered to vote. More petitions and actions re US-Iran Pam Selwyn writes: There are several more open letters/petitions opposing a U.S. attack on Iran circulating at the moment. Here is one from the people organizing a day of action on August 2nd. You can revise the text if you don't like the wording. http://www.stopwaroniran.org/petition.shtml You might also consider signing the following petition and/or letters to your representatives concerning legislation currently before Congress. They come from J Street and the National Iranian American Council, respectively. http://www.avaaz.org/en/jstreet_letter_on_iran/4.php?cl=109041645 http://capwiz.com/niacouncil/issues/alert/?alertid=11523111 And United for Peace and Justice, of which AVA-Berlin is a member, is active: See their call for action at http://www.unitedforpeace.org/article.php?list=type&type=98 Sign open letter to Obama on Iran Ann Wertheimer sends you this message from Steve Shalom. It includes an OPEN LETTER TO SEN. OBAMA ON IRAN. If you would like to sign it, feel free to write American Voices Abroad Berlin after your name unless you have another, more interesting, affiliation. The affiliation is solely for purposes of identification; it doesn't imply group endorsement. Hi, I've been working on circulating an open letter calling on Obama to speak out against war on Iran. Initial signers included Phyllis Bennis, Noam Chomsky, John Feffer, Bill Fletcher Jr., Tom Hayden, Doug Ireland, Nikki Keddie, Rabbi Michael Lerner, Manning Marable, Katha Pollitt, Matthew Rothschild, Meredith Tax, Cornel West, and Stephen Zunes. Other signers include Medea Benjamin, Marjorie Cohn, Carl Davidson, Martin Duberman, Chris Hedges, Jan Kavan, Paul Lauter, Ray McGovern, Deborah Meier, Micah Sifry, Norman Solomon, and Rabbi Arthur Waskow. The text of the letter is below. If you would like to sign, you can do so at http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/ObamaIran/ You can also see the full list of 3,000+ signers. Please feel free to circulate this widely. Best, Steve Shalom An Open Letter to Barack Obama on Iran Dear Senator Obama, We the undersigned may have different views on U.S. foreign policy with respect to Iran. We all, however, are deeply concerned about the stories in the press in the past few weeks suggesting that the Bush administration might be considering a military strike on Iran, that it might give a green light to such an attack by Israel, or that it might engage in other acts of war, such as imposing a blockade against Iran. We welcomed your stand against the war on Iraq in 2002. And we were encouraged by your early campaign statements emphasizing diplomacy over military action against Iran. Today, you have an opportunity to forestall a repeat of the tragic Iraq war. We hope you will use that opportunity. We agree with the conclusion of Muhammed ElBaradei, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, that "A military strike ... would be worse than anything possible. It would turn the region into a fireball..." A military attack, he said, "will mean that Iran, if it is not already making nuclear weapons, will launch a crash course to build nuclear weapons with the blessing of all Iranians, even those in the West." (Reuters, June 20, 2008.) We don't know, of course, whether an attack on Iran is in fact being considered, or if there are serious plans to initiate other acts of war, such as a blockade of the country. But we call on you to issue a public statement warning of the grave dangers that any of these actions would entail, and pointing out how inappropriate and undemocratic it would be for the Bush administration to undertake them, or encourage Israel to do so, in its closing months in office. An attack on Iran would violate the UN Charter's prohibition against the use or threat of force and the Congress's authority to declare war. Moreover, the public right to decide should not be foreclosed by last-minute actions of the Bush administration, which will set U.S. policy in stone now. We were heartened by your earlier comments suggesting that an Obama administration would act on the understanding that genuine security requires a willingness to talk without preconditions (something Iran has offered several times to no avail), and that threats and military action are counterproductive. We hope you will follow through on these commitments once in office, but also that you will speak out now against any acts of war by the Bush administration. Sincerely, Birthday Party and Stammtisch On Thursday, July 3, at 8:00 pm, the AVA Berlin STAMMTISCH will take place, as always on first Thursdays, at Barcomiís deli, Sophienstr. 21 in Berlin-Mitte. Pam Selwyn will be celebrating a big birthday all of July. Come by the Stammtisch as an occasion to celebrate this with her !!! And also let us celebrate the Fourth of July our way with good food and good conversation! On Saturday, July 5, the U.S. embassy will be celebrating the Fourth of July its way, with celebrations at Pariser Platz. At the same time as these celebrations, Democrats Abroad Berlin invite us to join them at The Kennedys Museum at Pariser Platz, where they will be registering voters. If you need to register, have any detailed questions about your voting status, or would just like to come by to say hello, all are welcome. Petition for foreigners to vote locally in Berlin The German Verein Mehr Demoratie e.V. invites us as US citizens
and our German friends to participate in initiatives concerning German
voting procedures. In particular for foreigners living in
Berlin there is a petition, Volksinitiative, which is NOT legally
binding but a petition to the city government and can be signed by foreigners,
with the purpose of allowing foreigners to vote locally in Berlin
elections. Check out their web-site and download appropriate material
from there. Olivar Wiedmann for Mehr Demokratie e.V. writes: Mehr Demokratie beim Wählen Voter registration poster and hand-out Our Alan Benson working on voter registration writes: can you post and/or pass out the attached material? Thanks ! VoteFlyer.pdf VoteFlyer4.pdf Greetings from Alan Benson www.AlanBenson.de Do contact him directly if you want to help on the voter registration team. NEBENEINANDER - Carolyn Prescott Our Carolyn Prescott will be opening an exhibit in Cottbus on June 20th, running through August 23rd, and invites those who might venture so far from Berlin. Attached is a pdf format flyer. Two visiting US Americans at event Monday on Afghanistan Two US Americans will be visiting in Berlin with an event concerning Afghanistan on Monday the 9th of June: 19 Hours at the DGB-Haus Leuschner-Saal, Keithstrasse 3 (U-BahnWittenbergplatz) Dr. Joseph Gerson of the American Friends (Quaker) Service Committee is Program Director of their Peace and Economic Security Program http://www.afsc.org/newengland/nepeace.htm and James Gilligan, Iraq and Afghanistan war veteran who testified at the recent Winter Soldier hearings and before Congress and is working with with Irak Veterans Against the War (IVAW) www.ivaw.org Laura v. Wimmersperg for groups in the Berliner Friedenskoodination invites attendance at the conference in Berlin starting a German-wide campaign concerning Afghanistan. Flyers - Die nackte Wahrheit über den "Krieg gegen den Terror" - as follows DEM FRIEDEN EINE CHANCE. TRUPPEN RAUS AUS AFGHANISTAN. Zum Berliner Start der deutschlandweiten Kampagne spricht Jutta Kauschmit 9.JUNI,19 Uhr BERLIN DGB-HAUS LEUSCHNER-SAAL KEITHSTRASSE 1-3 U-BHF.WITTENBERGPL. ● James Gilligan,war für 6 Jahre US-Soldat im Rang eines Feldwebels, kämpfte im Irak und Afghanistan, jetzt aktiv bei Iraq Veterans Against the War (IVAW). ● Dr. Joseph Gerson, politischer Wissenschaftler aus den USA, langjähriger Aktivist der Friedensorganisa- tion der Quäker. Er war 2000/2001 in Afghanistan. ● Claudia Haydt, Informationsstelle Militarisierung, Tübingen fragt nach den Absichten deutscher Politik in diesem Krieg und nach den Forderungen zu seiner Beendigung. Veranstalter: Gruppen der Berliner Friedenskoordination, Afghanistan-Kampagne V.i.S.d.P.: Laura von Wimmersperg Interested in voter registration efforts !? Alan Benson is putting together a voter registration team, and writes about the next action and the next training session: PLEASE REPLY DIRECTLY TO ALAN. Have
gotten first responses for voter registration this Saturday, 31 May at
the Street Fair of the American Church in Berlin on Dennewitzplatz. Bill Downey will be there most of the time, plus: 13: 14: 15: 16: Pam Selwyn 17: Pam Selwyn Anyone else for earlier in the day? I'll be there too for some minutes at a time, but am mostly in charge as MC for the stage nearby. Bill Downey and the Democrats Abroad will host another training session for those who couldn't make it last time. The workshop starts at 18:00 on Tuesday, the 3rd of June at Max and Moritz Restaurant on Oranienburger Strasse (see www.demsinberlin.de). See you there! -- Greetings from / Grüße von Alan Benson REPLY DIRECTLY TO Alan Benson Café Americain - May 22 Here is a friendly reminder that the Café Americain reading group on the US Constitution will meet this Thursday, May 22 from 8 to 10 p.m. in Saint George's bookstore in Prenzlauer Berg, Wörther Strasse 27. No special preparation is necessary and everyone is welcome! For more information, texts and reading tips, visit our website at www.cafe-americain.org. Greetings from Isabel and Colin Einstein Forum Liebe Freunde des Einstein Forums, wir möchten Sie einladen zu einem Workshop zum Thema: WO WÄREN WIR OHNE '68? EIN KONTRAFAKTISCHES JUBILÄUM Teilnehmer: BERND CAILLOUX, BERLIN IRING FETSCHER, FRANKFURT/MAIN PAUL HOCKENOS, BERLIN /Ed. note: he is author of an English language book on German history from below ANTON KAES, BERKELEY SANDRA POTT, STUTTGART KATHARINA RUTSCHKY, BERLIN DIETER THOMÄ, ST. GALLEN Mittwoch, 15. Mai, 14 Uhr Einstein Forum Am Neuen Markt 7 14467 Potsdam Bei allen Debatten zum 40. Jahrestag von ´68 fehlt ein Gedankenexperiment: Wo wären wir, wenn ein Jahrzehnt der Geschichte gefehlt hätte. Wir laden Sie herzlich ein, sich vorzustellen, wie die Welt aussehen würde, ohne die Jahre 1966 - 1976. Vor allem interessieren uns die Übereinkünfte von Politik und Kultur. Wie wären die Vorstellungen von Erziehung und Familie? Wie sähe die Kulturindustrie aus? Hätten wir Begriffe des Eurozentrismus oder Multikulturalismus entwickelt? Stünde der Feminismus besser oder schlechter da - oder gäbe es ihn gar nicht? Wie hätte sich das Staatsvertrauen entwickelt, wie die Basisdemokratie? Durch dieses Gedankenexperiment möchten wir die Polemik vermeiden, die allzu oft das Thema überschattet, und mit einer Mischung aus Spiel und Vernunft zur Diskussion beitragen. Sieben verschiedene Denker - Schriftsteller sowie Geistes- und Sozialwissenschaftler aus unterschiedlichen Perspektiven und Generationen - werden an diesem Gedankenspiel teilnehmen. Bei diesem kontrafaktischen Diskurs geht es weniger um strenge wissenschaftliche Ausarbeitung als um Reflexion und Imagination. More at www.einsteinforum.de Normally AVA in Berlin does not forward announcements or newsletters to which one can directly subscribe. (Here an exception to support the rule.) If of interest, please consider subscribing directly to the Einstein Forum Newsletter at their site. Obama Bridge Project - update From Michael Steltzer Hi All! I just received this youtube link about the Obama Bridge Project in Berlin, which we did on Saturday, the 3rd of May on the Oberbaumbrücke. Have fun watching it! Great job! (Only my head is out of proportion!) Eva adds: You're invited to join a group on My.BarackObama.com: http://my.barackobama.com/page/group/AmericansinBerlinforObama This is the place to get things moving. Hope to see ya here real soon! Best to ya, Café Americain - US Constitution Here is a friendly reminder that the Café Americain reading group on the US Constitution will meet this Thursday, May 8 from 8 to 10 p.m. in Saint George's bookstore in Prenzlauer Berg, Wörther Strasse 27. No special preparation is necessary and everyone is welcome! For more information, texts and reading tips, visit our website at www.cafe-americain.org. Annual Report 2007 now available AVA members and friends are invited to read the letter and the 2007 annual report (both in DOC format). Obama Bridge Project Any
AVAers who feel like friends of Obama should rendezvous at the
Oberbaumbrücke, Kreuzberg side, at 3:30 pm on Saturday, May 3. From the Berlin Obama Campaign: We, friends of Barack Obama, would like to support the "yes we span" Obama Bridge Project on Saturday, the 3rd of May 2008 15:30 at the Oberbaumbrücke between Kreuzberg and Friederichshein We
will meet on the Kreuzberg side of the Bridge, take some pictures
and than walk over the bridge, take more pictures and just have a good
time connecting. Socializing afterwards is welcome and expected. So come one, come all and make and bring your Obama Banners and Obama Flags and Obama Buttons and let us show that we want to connect. "Yes we span" AKA "Bridges for Obama" is an initiative of Meredith Wheeler from France, who writes on the http://groups.yahoo.com/group/obamasbridges/ A number of activities on the bridges around the world can be seen at: http://www.flickr.com/groups/bridgesforobama/pool/show/ Stammtisch and Books in Berlin #1 Reminder : Stammtisch: Come to the American Voices Abroad Berlin Stammtisch at 8 pm on Thursday, May 1 ! And there's more: This is the 5th ANNIVERSARY of 'MISSION ACCOMPLISHED': On May 1, 2003, President Bush, on board the USS Abraham Lincoln, at sea off the coast of San Diego, announced the end of major combat operations in Iraq. So celebrate the holiday of your choice at BARCOMI'S, SOPHIENSTR. 21. Good food and good conversation! #2 Advanced Notice: David Solomon writes: We are pleased to announce the return to Books in Berlin of Prof. Dr. Mark Solomon who will speak on: The U.S. Election – Obama, Clinton, McCain – and its Impact on Europe and the Worldat Books in Berlin Learning Center, 69 Goethestr., Berlin-CharlottenburgFriday, May 9 at 8:00 p.m.The talk is being given in association with the Learning Center's English discussion course on U.S. politics and the U.S. presidential election conducted by David Solomon. Please enquire for the program and further information.Prof. Mark Solomon, author of the acclaimed book, "The Cry Was Unity: Communists and African Americans, 1917-1936" has also written extensively on US history, politics, foreign policy, race relations and culture. He holds a doctorate in The History of American Civilization from Harvard University and is currently a national co-chair of the Committees of Correspondence for Democracy and Socialism. Admission is free. Refreshments will be served Call (030) 31 31 233 to reserve a seat. www.booksinberlin.de CIVICS 101 Here is a friendly reminder that the Café American reading group on the US Constitution will meet this Thursday (Apr. 24) from 8 to 10 p.m. in Saint George's bookstore in Prenzlauer Berg, Wörther Strasse 27. No special preparation is necessary and everyone is welcome! Voter Registration - Things are starting up First, Alan Benson is offering a training session for all interested in helping with voter registration. It will be held on Monday, April 14th at Alexander von Engelhardt's office at Hechelstrasse 10-12, 13403 Berlin (see also http://www.vonengelhardt.com/where). Meeting time is 6 o'clock. Alan will show you how to use the material: the voter registration guide and the registration forms. Perhaps we also will have a PowerPoint presentation to go with it. Furthermore, we can brainstorm where and when we can have voter registration drives and do publicity throughout the spring and summer. The first one for instance is mentioned below and one of the last ones will be the Fun Day at Kenney School, which usually is the busiest event. If you cannot make it on the 14th, you are encouraged to help out with voter registration anyway. I'll show you the ropes then. Second, Democrats Abroad, Berlin will hold a Voter Registration Kick-off on Friday, May 2nd at the Max and Moritz Restaurant, starting time to be announced. Max and Moritz is at Oranienstr. 162. This will also be a get-together for people new to Democrats Abroad in Berlin. Let Alan Benson know if you can come to the training session and/or the kick-off. Art Spiegelman, Cartoonist and Pulitzer Prize winner Art Spiegelman, Cartoonist and Pulitzer Prize winner, will be in Berlin. Monday 14. April 2008 / 19.30 Uhr / HAU 1 See a Cartoon and event announcement http://www.hebbel-am-ufer.de/de/kuenstler/kuenstler_11906.html?HAU=1 Moderation: Anjana Shrivastava (Welt Online) and Claus Christian Malzahn (Spiegel Online) A project of the Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung AVA at the movies The recent AVA movie night to see "In the Valley of Elah" was a smashing success; in fact, AVA'ers made up the majority of viewers at the Kino Babylon that night! Now we have some new upcoming film events to announce. 1) As part of the britspotting film festival, Amnesty International is sponsoring two showings of In Prison my Whole Life - The Case of Mumia Abu-Jamal, directed by Marc Evans When and where: Saturday, April 12 at 6 p.m. at Kino 3, Hackesche Höfe, Rosenthaler Straße and Wednesday, April 16 at 10.15 pm at the fsk Kino in Kreuzberg on Segitzdamm, just off of Oranienstrasse There will be discussions with various guests after both showings, including Mumia Abu Jamal's main attorney, Robert R. Bryan, after the showing on April 16. After 25 years on death row, the Philadelphia journalist Mumia Abu Jamal's death sentence was recently commuted to life imprisonment, but his petition for a retrial was denied. 2) Camilo - The Long Road to Disobedience This documentary by Peter Lilienthal tells the story of Iraq War conscientious objector Camilo Mejia. When and where: The film premieres on Sunday April 20 at 7 p.m. in the Plenarsaal of the Akademie der Künste on Pariser Platz. There will be a discussion afterwards with the filmmaker and other guests, moderated by Andreas Zumach. For more information, go to the Akademie website: www.adk.de and follow the links to Veranstaltungen. There is also a website for the film: www.camilo-film.org. We hope to see lots of you there! CIVICS 101 The first meeting of CIVICS 101 on March 20 in St. George's was by all accounts a success, with much interesting discussion and an even more interesting (and international) group of participants. Thanks to the initiative of one participant, we now have a website for our reading group. Visit www.cafe-americain.org to find a copy of the Constitution with a bibliography of resources on the Constitution and a blog on particular questions and problems. Those who wish to can now participate in the group on-line, as well. There was consensus at the first meeting that it would be good to meet more regularly, and thanks to our gracious hosts at St. George's, we can. Beginning this Thursday April 10, CIVICS 101 will meet on the second and fourth Thursday of the month, 8-10 p.m. (in St. George's, of course). Bring your copy of the US Constitution and read and discuss along with us! Wine, beer and non-alcoholic beverages are plentiful and cheap, and the conversation is guaranteed to be entertaining, and will most likely also be informative. This week, reading and discussion will begin with Article 1, Section 3. (No need to prepare: we read the text aloud in the meeting and discuss it as we go.) Finally, for those who need a copy of the text of the U.S. Constitution, you can find it online at: http://www.archives.gov/national-archives-experience/charters/constitution_transcript.html We hope to see you on Thursday! Isabel Cole and Colin King p.s. Further inquiries concerning the group to Isabel Cole (ava@andere-seite.de) Bridge Builders Berlin lecture by Dr. Richey Novak Bridge Builders Berlin along with Miriam Volkman and David Solomon are sponsoring a lecture at Books in Berlin, Goethestrasse 69, 10625 Berlin, on Wednesday, April 9th at 8:00pm. The speaker is Dr. Richey Novak, Rancho Palos Verdes, California. While teaching at Duke University in North Carolina Dr. Novak was given the Distinguished Professor Award. He also taught at the University of Ceara in Brazil, was Dean of Humanities at McNeese State University in Louisiana, and taught 4 years at the Abadan Institute of Technology in Iran(!). Dr. Novak was awarded his Ph.D. in German Studies by Johns Hopkins University, having received his BA and MA degrees at Columbia. He also studied at the Sorbonne in Paris,University of Heidelberg and the National University of Mexico, Mexico City. His lecture/discussion topic for the evening will be "The Idea of America" ("Amerika als Idee")....including America´s opinion of the rest of the world, education, and America´s religious culture. After the lecture we will also be discussing how these topics will be effecting the upcoming election ...So come and tell us whom you are supporting or just listen to other opinions of America and the candidates. DemocratsAbroad have voted 65.8% for Barack Obama and 32.5% for Hillary Clinton in their primary. At the moment either of these candidates would be neck in neck with the Republican candidate John McCain. We will take a Straw Poll on the evening to see how YOU feel about the "idea" of America and the Election at this time. We realize this is very late notification, but Dr. Novak will only be in Berlin for a short period of time. We hope to see you there, Books in Berlin: 313-1233 AVA Berlin 5th birthday party Dear AVA - Berliners, Isabel Cole writes --- and please RSVP directly to her at ava@andere-seite.de about this --- Just about 5 years ago, two groups of antiwar Americans marching from opposite ends of Berlin's biggest Iraq demonstration on February 15, 2003 got wind of each other and arranged to meet in the middle. Needless to say, this proved to be an impossible endeavor in the crowd of 500,000 people - but find each other we did, if not that afternoon. And here we are today. While the impending 5th anniversary of the start of this senseless war is profoundly sobering, we would like to take an evening to celebrate our 5 years of activism. Friendships have formed, minds have been broadened, barricades have been stormed, balloon permits have been obtained, the dogs of peace have been loosed... And the "radically" critical positions which we have held all these years have come to dominate the mainstream. That, at least, is some cause for celebration. Mostly, though, I'd like to celebrate the people of AVA - Berlin, their dedication, their wonderful ideas and strong opinions. So whether you're an AVAer "der ersten Stunde", or a newcomer who's been waiting for a good chance to get to know us better, I extend a warm invitation to AVA - Berlin's 5th birthday party: February 15, 8 p.m. at Isabel Cole's Görschstr. 3 13187 Berlin-Pankow Tel. 484 76 454 (S-/U-Bahn Pankow, S-Bahn Wollankstr., Tram Rathaus Pankow) RSVP required! It will be a potluck-style dinner, so please contact me at ava@andere-seite.de to work out what you can contribute in the way of food or drink. AND: if you have any cool photos, banners, signs etc. from the old days, please bring them along for show-and-tell, photo ops, and general nostalgia purposes! I hope to see lots of you there - new faces as well as old friends! Greetings, NPR in Berlin National Public Radio is now broadcasting in Berlin at 104.1 FM. For more info go to www.npr.org/berlin. | ||||