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The first Sunday of March brings a very interesting platform for
everyone interested in social change. See below.<br>
<br>
The Poetry Group which usually meets on the 1st Sunday, will meet next
Sunday, March 8.<br>
<br>
We will be collecting MOVEABLE TREATS contributions to Moveable Feast
this Sunday as usual. Wrap desserts in serving size portions and label
them. Mark your desserts if they contain nuts. Avoid desserts that have
heavy icings or that contain alcohol. They will be greatly appreciated
by those confined to their homes by AIDS and other disabling illness.<br>
<br>
<br>
10:30 am March 1: <b>“The Public Justice Center: A Strategy for Social
Change in the United States” </b><br>
by John Nethercut, Executive Director, The Public Justice Center<br>
<br>
John Nethercut will reflect on how lawyers who are dedicated to social
justice have evolved in their strategic approaches to attacking poverty
over the last fifty years. From the early days of the federally funded
Legal Services Corporation through the restrictions imposed during the
Reagan/Bush era to the multi-faceted spin-offs of today, lawyers for
poor people have sought to provide basic legal services for individuals
and also to represent class interests and support systemic
change. John’s informal history will be leavened by his own experiences
in a range of social change organizations over his 30+ year career as a
public interest lawyer.<br>
<b> John Nethercut</b>’s initial work included community boycott
organizing in Los Angeles for the United Farm Workers and conducting a
field study in Oaxaca, Mexico while an Anthropology Major at Earlham
College in Richmond, Indiana. The next decade juxtaposed the ivory
tower (Harvard Law School) with seven years of street level advocacy as
a paralegal and lawyer representing farm workers, tenants and tenant
unions, and community organizations in Indiana, Ohio, and upstate New
York. Then, as Deputy Chief of the Consumer Protection Division, Office
of Attorney General of Maryland, John supervised complex litigation
involving consumer fraud, appeals, legislation, and media and community
relations. Returning to his roots in nonprofit advocacy, John joined
the Public Justice Center as Executive Director in 2002. In addition to
executive duties, John’s substantive focus is on coalition building and
legislative advocacy, including founding the Rental Housing Coalition
to be the unified voice of tenants in Maryland.<br>
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