[BES Friends] April Program

[Steve Meskin]

Unless otherwise noted, all events are held on Sundays at the Society (306 W Franklin St, Suite 102, 21201) and the number to call for more information is 410-581-2322. Platforms begin at 10:30 am and end at noon followed by coffee, tea, snacks, and chats.  Details about platform topics and speakers follow the list of other activities.

Platform Titles (details below)
Apr.   4th – "Life in the Fourth Dimension" by Fritz Williams, Leader, Baltimore Ethical Society
Apr. 11th – Festival of Peace and Hope an interactive celebration by You
Apr. 18th – "Race, Class, Gender, Crime, and Justice" by Natalie Sokoloff, Prof. of Sociology, CUNY
Apr. 25th – "International Partners" by Jasmine Sanabria and Wil Timpson, Washington Ethical Soc.  

Other Activities
  Apr. 11th at 12:30 PM  Lunch & a Book: Our special National Poetry Month selection - the anthology “Poets Against the War”, edited by Sam Hamill. ISBN 1-56025-539-0, retail price $12.95. Some of the best of the poems submitted to 
  the Poets Against the war website, by poets well known and not known at all, by poets of all ages - a reflection of the gamut of emotions war can evoke and the importance of the right to free speech in our country. 

  Apr. 11th and 25th at 9:30 AM Poetry Group: Facilitated by Karla Mancero. New members are always welcome. Bring your favorite poems to share with the group. 

  Apr. 17th Saturday at 2:30 PM "Slow Dance on the Killing Ground" at Everyman Theatre: Come find out why people from all over the Baltimore area are flocking to Everyman Theatre, then participate in a discussion of ethical issues raised by the play led by BES’ own Diana Corbett and Karen Elliott and sponsored by The Urbanite magazine. Tickets are available at Everyman Theatre (410-752-2208) and are $18 for Saturday matinees.

  Apr 18th at 12:30 PM Ethical Mindfulness Meditation:  Based on guided meditations by Nobel Peace Prize nominee Thich Nhat Hanh.

  Apr 25th Ethical Action Opportunity: Join BES members and friends as we "March for Women's Lives" in DC. Meet near the fountains between the two buildings of the National Gallery between 9:30 and 10:00 AM, then proceed to the mall for the march. Sponsors include the ACLU, NARAL, The Feminist Majority, NOW, and Planned Parenthood. For more info, call 202-349-3838 or check the web at www.MarchforWomen.org .

  HOLD THAT DATE! Maryland United for Peace & Justice's 19th annual conference is May 1st "MAYDAY! MAYDAY! PEACE & JUSTICE, MIA"  This year’s program features keynote speaker Jonathan Shell, author and peace & disarmament correspondent for The Nation, and includes workshops on the following subjects:  military recruitment & poverty, nuclear disarmament, military toxics, anti-terrorism laws & Arab-Americans, future of Palestinian rights, criminalization of dissent, global warming, and update on anti-terrorism laws. Brochures will be available at the Society or e-mail peacepepper at comcast.net 
   
Platform Details and Biographical Information about the speakers

April 4th – "Life in the Fourth Dimension" by Fritz Williams, Leader of the Baltimore Ethical Society

When we introduce ourselves to one another, we generally talk about our jobs, our families, and our special interests and hobbies. But in making a statement about who we are, there is another part of us we should not overlook. You might say it’s our fourth dimension, and it consists of the organizations we join and the causes we support in order to connect with the larger world and take responsibility for more than our own lives. Fritz Williams talks about our involvement in Ethical Culture and the joys and challenges of life in the fourth dimension.

Fritz Williams is Leader of the Baltimore Ethical Society and, in that capacity, serves as primary speaker, teacher, pastor, and organizational leader. To these duties, Fritz brings extensive ministerial and communications experience. He has worked as a parish priest in the Episcopal Church, and also as a writer and producer at public television stations in Harrisburg, PA, and Detroit, MI. He is especially loved for his down-to-earth narrative style of speaking and his "When I Was Kid" stories, based on his own childhood.

April 11th – Festival of Peace and Hope by You

In these difficult times, it can be hard to find reasons to be joyful. Together, we focus on messages of peace and hope in an effort to be filled with that quiet joy which sustains us as we reflect on the troubles in the world and our work to overcome them.

April 18th – "Race, Class, Gender, Crime and Justice: Imprisonment and the Right to Vote in the 21st Century" by Natalie Sokoloff, Professor of Sociology

This presentation will show how using a Race/Class/Gender framework is important for understanding the way in which prisoners and many ex-prisoners cannot vote in the U.S. This will be connected with how the U.S. Census counts prisoners, the Prison Industrial Complex, the loss of political clout in the prisoners’ home communities, and the vote. Most important is to understand how the socially structured and interlocking systems of race, class, and gender simultaneously impact incarceration and the ability to vote. Since most prisoners come from a small number of marginalized urban communities, the loss of voting rights for prisoners, unique to this country among western industrialized societies, impacts seriously for their home communities. How race, class, and gender combine to impact disproportionately on poor communities of color is vividly displayed in the issue of disenfranchisement.

Natalie J. Sokoloff, Professor of Sociology, has taught at John Jay College of Criminal Justice for more than 30 years and is a member of the doctoral faculties in Criminal Justice, Sociology, and Women’s Studies at The Graduate School of the City University of New York. Her most recent publications include: The Criminal Justice System and Women: Offenders, Prisoners, Victims, and Workers, 3rd edition (McGraw-Hill, 2003) and Domestic Violence: A Reader on the Intersections of Race, Class, and Gender (Rutgers University Press, forthcoming). A Bibliography on Multicultural Domestic Violence is free and available at: www.lib.jjay.cuny.edu/research/DomesticViolence/

April 25th – "International Partners: working to create a better world" by Jasmine Sanabria and Wil Timpson

The Washington Ethical Society began the International Partners (IP) project several years ago. It has since made a difference in the lives of some of the world’s poorest people, as well as those who have helped them. Jasmine and Wil speak from personal experience as they tell us about the work that has been done and what we as a group might consider doing as part of this on-going effort. 

Wil Timpson and Jasmine Sanabria are graduates of the Ethical Society Sunday School and the coming of age program (COA-Matt) at the Washington Ethical Society. Last summer, they participated in the IP teen trip, which included 15 people who lived and worked with villagers in Mazatepeque, El Salvador. Together they built a community children's center and stocked it with books and educational toys that families could not provide their children at home.

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