East End Report

Two searingly honest essays from the Martin Luther King Jr. Day Writing Awards: Blunt talk from two juniors at Winchester Thurston: Erika Drain rejects that she's 'not black enough'; and Jesse Lieberfeld is no 'ideal nice Jewish boy' when it comes to Israeli policy.

2012-01-16T13:39:00.000-05:00

Everyone desires to stand out. No matter the profession they wish to pursue, the effort they put into their reputation, or the reasons that motivate them to do so, succeeding is always the main goal. When I was young, I loved the idea of being someone unique. A girl who stands out against the crowd, and whose work and ideas can count for something in the future. I studied, I researched, I experienced the world as best as I could, and yet, there was a barrier. I never thought about my race as something that defined me.

Fighting a Forbidden Battle:
How I Stopped Covering Up for a Hidden Wrong

By Jesse Lieberfeld

I once belonged to a wonderful religion. I belonged to a religion that allows those of us who believe in it to feel that we are the greatest people in the world -- and feel sorry for ourselves at the same time. Once, I thought that I truly belonged in this world of security, self-pity, self-proclaimed intelligence and perfect moral aesthetic. I thought myself to be somewhat privileged early on. It was soon revealed to me, however, that my fellow believers and I were not part of anything so flattering.

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/12015/1203351-109.stm#ixzz1jeFP31ex

Benjamin Todd Jealous:Uphold Voting Rights

2012-01-16T12:44:00.000-05:00

Each year on this day, we commemorate the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. – a hero to generations of Americans.

As I prepare to speak today at an NAACP rally in front of South Carolina's state capitol, I reflect on how Dr. King risked everything to advance civil and human rights in America.

Despite repeated threats against his life, he spread the message of non-violent civil disobedience against unjust laws throughout the Jim Crow South and our nation as a whole.

His leadership has inspired Americans to win big victories that have moved our nation closer to the long-expressed, but yet-unrealized ideal that our school children repeat every day: we are "one nation, under God, with liberty and justice for all".

Today, one of the greatest victories Dr. King helped win during his lifetime is under withering attack: The Voting Rights Act and the rights it protects – for all Americans to be able to participate in free and fair elections.

South Carolina has become ground zero in this battle that is taking place in state capitols across the nation.

On one side, you have civil rights activists and the U.S. Department of Justice fighting on behalf of thousands upon thousands of voters who would be disenfranchised by laws that introduce the first new financial and literacy-based obstacles to voting since we eliminated the poll tax and voting tests. Fighting on behalf of Americans like the students at South Carolina’s Benedict College, whose student identification cards have been deemed insufficient for use as voter ID. And we are fighting on behalf of senior citizens like Larry Butler, born here in 1926 when blacks often were not issued birth certificates. Now, for the first time in his life, if Mr. Butler wants to vote it will cost him $150 to obtain the documents required by South Carolina's voter suppression law.

On the other side, you have governors like South Carolina's Nikki Haley suing to gut the Voting Rights Act after the Justice Department blocked the state’s discriminatory voter ID law. I am proud to stand alongside Attorney General Eric Holder today in front of the South Carolina State House and recommit to protecting the right to vote.

Read the speech that I will give today in front of the State House, then share with us how you will help uphold voting rights in 2012:

http://www.naacp.org/KingDay

Today, NAACP State Conference presidents who are leading battles to defend voting rights in South Carolina and several other southern states will lead this march.

We march today to defend our right to vote and to defend our nation’s dream of America as a place where everybody works, everybody contributes, and everybody counts.

We march today for good jobs that can support our families, and an education for our children that will pave the way for them to do the same.

We march today to declare our intent to defeat the deeds of any Governor who would deify our great dreamer, but desecrate his dream.

Join us in making Dr. King's dream a reality– again, please take a moment read today’s speech, then share your plan to help us uphold voting rights in 2012.

http://www.naacp.org/KingDay

Thank you,

Ben

Benjamin Todd Jealous
President & CEO
NAACP

December events

2011-12-04T12:01:00.002-05:00

Friday, December 9 - Hayground Forum: Bread and Poetry

Saturday, December 10 - Shinnecock Museum Winter Fest

Saturday, December 10 - March & Rally in NYC to Protect Voting Rights

Thursday, December 15th at 8pm - Caroline Doctorow with Job Potter and friends perform Folk/Roots music at Ashawagh Hall; Springs Fireplace Road, East Hampton

EAST END FOOD PANTRIES NEED OUR HELP:

As always our local food pantries need help with the ever increasing demand from those who just can’t afford to feed their families. Here is a list of local food pantries:

Montauk: Montauk Food Pantry at St Therese of Lisieux, 55 South Etna Avenue

East Hampton / Amagansett: East Hampton Food Pantry, www.easthamptonfoodpantry.org 631-324-7195, 219-50 Accabonac Road East Hampton Food Pantry hours: Tuesdays 2–6 pm Amagansett Satellite hours: Tuesdays 4–6 pm

Sag Harbor: Sag Harbor Food Pantry: Old Whalers (First Presby.) Church – 44 Union St. 631-725-0437 provides basic provisions 10:30am-1pm Tuesdays – Donations accepted at the Church.

Bridgehampton: Bridgehampton Child Care and Recreational Center – 551 Sag Harbor Turnpike, 631-537-0616

Southampton: Human Resources at Sacred Heart Church, 168 Hill St. 631-283-6415

Island Wide: Island Harvest with HQ in Nassau County is looking for East End Volunteers. They supply local food pantries. www.islandharvest.volunteerhub.com to register and help with local food collection/distribution.

also: Long Island Cares/ The Harry Chapin Food Bank: http://www.licares.org/

Hayground Forum: Bread and Poetry

2011-12-04T11:56:00.001-05:00

Please join us...
Everyone welcome!
Forward this email to friends!

March & Rally to Protect Voting Rights - Saturday Dec. 10

2011-12-04T08:57:00.000-05:00

local bus to this rally has been arranged by
Eastern LI NAACP

contact info: 631- 259 - 2917
or elibnaacp@aol.com

March & Rally to Protect
Voting RightsSaturday, Dec. 10 in ManhattanMarch: 11 a.m., 61 St. & Madison Ave.Rally: noon, 47 St. & 2 Ave.

December 10 - Winter Fest at Shinnecock Museum

2011-12-03T20:47:00.000-05:00

The Shinnecock Nation Cultural Center and Museum will hold its annual “Winter Fest” Saturday, December 10, 2011 from 11:00 am to 4:00 pm.

Admission is Free.

Native American artists will be our vendors with craft exhibits of paintings, photography, carvings, crochette. Wonderful Christmas gifts will be available from their booths.

Children are welcome and many activities can be found for all ages including a “mini Pow Wow” at 2pm.

Our famous Raffle with 30 chances to win prizes is offered again this year.

Traditional Native Foods – succotash, samp, fry bread and blueberry slump will be for sale.

Shinnecock history and plans for the future are featured at this Festival.

The Gift shop will also be open.

The Museum is located on the Shinnecock Indian Reservation on Montauk Highway at West Gate Road(west of Southampton village).

Parking lot is behind the Museum on West Gate Road.

Shinnecock Museum’s regular hours are Thursday through Sunday from 11am – 4pm.

The Museum’s phone number is 631-287-4923

Right Wing Radio Duck

2011-03-11T19:44:00.002-05:00

A re-imagined Donald Duck cartoon remix constructed using 50 classic Walt Disney animated shorts from the 1930s through 1960s. Donald's life is turned upside-down by the current economic crisis and he finds himself unemployed and falling behind on his house payments. As his frustration turns into despair Donald discovers a seemingly sympathetic voice coming from his radio named Glenn Beck.

Will Donald's feelings of disenfranchisement lead him to be persuaded by his radio's increasingly paranoid and divisive rhetoric? Or will our favorite Disney duck decide that this voice is not actually on his side after all? Watch and find out!

• Listen to Glenn Beck's response on his radio show to this remix video:
YouTube via stopbeck.org - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHHByFFSh54

Bill McNulty: some questions

2011-03-03T07:07:00.002-05:00

Friends, Do you realize the significance of the Wisconsin battle?
Do you further realize:

that this is a classic example of dividing the population?
that the power structure thrives on such division?
that Wisconsin is the test case for this kind of action throughout the Country?
that deficits have been created to enable this kind of action?
that what's left of the New Deal is at stake?
that the Obama Deficit Commission played right into this on a National level?
that the current financial atmosphere was the result of criminality on Wall Street?
that what is good for Wall Street is not good for Main Street?
that a union is a union, public or private?
that war-making is a means of making money for the same class that just got the massive tax break?
that tax breaks for some are the name of the game all of the time?
that rapacious capitalism depends on war-making?
that there are still unanswered questions regarding 9/11?
that Wisconsin is an extension of Reagan and the Air Traffic Controllers?
that Democrats along with Republicans cooperated in deregulating us to the point they did?
that all the Trade Agreements have only the well being of capital as their concern?
that An\America has no friends, only interests?
that we are at the mercy of the Complex Eisenhower described?
that we better all work together or we will all sink together?
that this list is not complete and that you can add much more to it?

And, that we better get together and do it before it's too late.

________________
Bill McNulty is heard every Thursday from 11 am to 1 pm on WUSB 90.1 FM Stony Brook and on line at www.wusb.fm
He can be reached at wmcnult@verizon.net

Week of February 17, 2011

2011-02-16T21:42:00.015-05:00

News and Events for Peace and Justice on Eastern Long Island

Click on the following Links

Tell Tim Bishop To Trim The Empire - support Bills to Cut The Deficit

Ken Dorph: The View From the Arab World

Francesca Rheannon Talks to Ted Rall on Revolution - Listen to Writers Voice - recorded in East Hampton - Download here

also heard on WPKN 89.5 FM - 2nd Saturdays at 10 am

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EVENTS for Black History Month: (check here for updates)

On Sunday February 27 the Eastern Long Island Branch of the NAACP presents an Afro-American Art and History program at the Riverhead Library, 333 Court Street Riverhead.
Featuring African American literature with Carol Spencer and historical memorabilia with Carol Gordon displaying some of her extensive collection and more.
At 3PM Ms. Bonnie Cannon, Director of the Bridgehampton Childcare and Recreational Center and a Southampton Village Trustee will speak about the East End African American Museum in Southampton and preserving our past, present and future.
Artists' work will be on display from 1PM to 5PM.

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WPKN Radio 89.5 FM and streaming on wpkn.org
Wednesday, February 23 6:30 pm and archived

Dr. Patricia Sullivan, professor of history and Afro-American Studies at the University of South Carolina, talks about her book "Lift Every Voice: The NAACP and the Making of the Civil Rights Movement". Also we listen to the poetry of Langston Hughes.

All East End Ink programs are archived at http://EastEndInk.blogspot.com

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The Southampton Cultural Center at 25 Pond Lane in Southampton Village presents a lecture on the History of the Civil Rights Movement by Dr. Kimble Humiston on February 25 at 5pm.

Also Art by black artists Brent Bailer, Sheila Batiste, Nancy Brandon, Maxine Townsend-Broderick and Reynold Ruffins will be on view from 12 pm - 4 pm each day in February.

____________________________________________________

Black History Month Events

2011-02-16T06:48:00.007-05:00

WPKN Radio 89.5 FM and streaming on wpkn.org

Wednesday, February 23 6:30 pm

East End Ink programs are archived at http://EastEndInk.blogspot.com

____________________________________________

The Southampton Cultural Center at 25 Pond Lane in Southampton Village presents a series of lectures on the History of the Civil Rights Movement by Dr. Kimble Humiston on Friday February 18 at 5pm, Saturday February 19 at 1pm and Friday February 25 at 5pm.

Also Art by black artists Brent Bailer, Sheila Batiste, Nancy Brandon, Maxine Townsend-Broderick and Reynold Ruffins will be on view from 12 pm - 4 pm each day in February.

_________________________________________________

On Sunday February 27 the Eastern Long Island Branch of the NAACP presents an Afro-American Art and History program at the Riverhead Library, 333 Court Street Riverhead.
Featuring African American literature with Carol Spencer and historical memorabilia with Carol Gordon displaying some of her extensive collection and more.
At 3PM Ms. Bonnie Cannon, Director of the Bridgehampton Childcare and Recreational Center and a Southampton Village Trustee will speak about the East End African American Museum - preserving our past, present and future. The museum is in Southampton.
Artists' work will be on display from 1PM to 5PM.
___________________________________________________________

Ken Dorph: The View from the Arab World

2011-02-15T21:35:00.002-05:00

The View from the Arab World

Ken in Riyadh

I heard the news about Mubarak from a friend and turned on Al-Jazeerah. An Egyptian woman was being interviewed and was weeping with joy; she could barely get her words out.

I sat down on the bed and sobbed with relief, just sobbed.

I hadn’t realized how much tension I’d been holding, worrying about Egypt. I really believed that if he didn’t leave quickly, things could descend into bloodshed, and who knows where that would go. Now there is hope for a peaceful transition to a new world.

After composing myself, I went to the hotel’s business center to print something and ran into a few of the Egyptians I know (everyone is glued to the Internet, even Reception). I put my hand on my heart and said ‘Mabruk’ – congratulations. Everyone’s eyes were wet, shining.

I started to write the below a few days ago. I have been overwhelmed with work and exhausted, so having trouble keeping up, but I want to send something tonight, with my mind so alive with hope.

This morning I read in the Arab News something that stayed with me. A young Egyptian said for the first time in his memory, it was cool to be Arab. I think he hit at something deep. I have felt for years that the Arabs have suffered from a great loss of dignity. Emerging from centuries of Ottoman rule, they had great hopes for freedom and a new future. But the Europeans had different plans, dismembering the Arab world to fit their needs. Then came Israel, and a series of humiliating defeats. Remember, Egypt had not been a truly independent state since the time of Cleopatra and was thrust into war with a far superior adversary within less than a generation of independence.

For the past forty years, signed in blood on September 11^th, the Arabs have been the west’s Bad Guys, seen to a person as violent and ignorant, far from the historical self-image (and reality) of the region’s peoples. They have grown poorer each day under dictatorships, often in collusion with our own government, while watching their erstwhile backwards cousins in Arabia grow rich beyond imagination thanks to the accident of geography and our unquenchable thirst for oil. The People Power revolutions in Tunisia then Egypt have given people, especially young people, hope that a turning point may be afoot.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

I sit here in Arabia, a Red Sea away from Egypt, wondering how this story will unfold.

I am writing some thoughts about both Tunisia and Egypt, two countries I know well and hold dear. Feel free to let me know what you think.

I spent three wonderful years of my life in Tunisia, and another two fascinating years in Egypt. The news from each has both thrilled and worried me.

Tunisia and the Maghreb

My love affair with the Arab world began in North Africa, in Morocco. I went on my junior year Mediterranean studies program for the bit in Venice, but found myself smitten by Morocco. I was determined go back to the Magrheb (North Africa) after college. The Peace Corps told me Morocco was full but Tunisia was even nicer, not as exotic but very gentle and sweet. Indeed it was and I ended up spending three amazing years of my life there.

I spent my first two years on Kerkennah, a languid, palm-studded island off the southern coast – near Libya – about the size of Manhattan, but with twelve thousand souls.

I taught English to high school students, the sons and daughters of fishermen and farmers. It was among the best two years of my life. The culture was rich, intact, and hospitable. I found that I learned Tunisian Arabic quickly, and French, which I spoke with my housemate Pierre.

I was a popular teacher, and as I rode my three-speed orange bike up and down the lone paved road on the island, cries of “Meester Dorph” would ring out, even from kids who were not my students. I learned the local card games, fasted during Ramadan, swam in the bay, and studied kamanja, the Arab violin, with the high school music teacher.

Kerkenna made me realize that I wanted to live in a small town by the sea (hey, Sag Harbor!). Sometimes I think if I had been rather more heterosexual, I would have converted to Islam and married Zeinab, the modest, beautiful Arabic teacher. Life was that good and Tunisian values, strangely, seemed not far from my own. For someone with my, ahem, strong social needs I loved the sense of community. There are so many social glue phrases in Tunisian Arabic. I recall ‘an-nas-bik’ – meaning ‘may people be with you’ – that a pair or group would say as an evening greeting to anyone walking alone. It is telling that ‘alone’ and ‘lonely’ in Arabic are the same word.

I was not unique in my affection for the place: Our Peace Corps cohort had the highest number of volunteers to marry Tunisians, many of whom are still living there and none of whom divorced.

My third year I woke from my Avatar trance and went off to the capital to help Tunis Air transform to English, working with a fabulous team. I lived in a house on the beach in the beautiful jasmine-scented northern suburb of Salaambo, next to Carthage. I would take the little wooden train across Tunis bay, flamingos arising in front of the volcano Bou Kornine. In the evening, Tunisian men would wear small bouquets of jasmine tucked behind the ear – they were sold on street corners – giving a delightful scent to evening walks [Hence the Jasmine Revolution - although Tunisians prefer “the Tunisian Revolution”].

In those days Bourguiba was still president, but failing. He had been a phenomenal leader, an Attaturk of North Africa. A hero of independence from the French, he transformed Tunisia, investing in education and emancipating women. He had forbidden polygamy by explaining that the Quran says a man may have four wives only if he can treat them equally, in all ways (it says that). He challenged any man who was as perfect as the prophet Muhammad, and able to treat four women equally, to come before him. Polygamy was gone by the time I lived there and there were as many girls in the schools as boys.

By the time I left Tunisia, Bourguiba was literally drooping from a stroke. I recall watching Tunisian friends with tears streaming down their faces during one of his speeches. Soon after I left, Ben Ali staged a coup d’etat ‘for medical reasons’ and took over. I recall thinking, ‘this is Tunisia. Democracy is sure to follow.’

But Ben Ali turned out to be a Ferdinand Marcos, with a greedy nouveau riche wife to boot. Over thirty years after overturning Bourguiba, he was still raiding the kitty, under no pressure from France or the US since he was “pro-Western” – meaning liberal economically and uncomplaining on Israel.

On the economically liberal front, I have been an agent, and a believer, in economic liberalism for years, what with my work fixing banks and financial systems. But I have also come to believe that the greatest risk of globalism is that, in countries such as Tunisia and Egypt (and increasingly the US) where the political means do not exist to spread the wealth, global capitalism can make a small group exceedingly rich while the rest, especially the less educated, are left behind. Tunisia at least is relatively middle class, with few billionaires outside the ruling family and a generally educated population. Educated also means more secular – the two are closely aligned – and Tunisia is exceedingly unlikely to become a theocracy.

In fact, I was delighted to learn yesterday that my old friend and Peace Corps roommate, Jaloul, has been appointed finance minister. I recently saw Jaloul and his wife Cynthia (our Peace Corps nurse!) in Morocco, where he had lived as a banker for many years – he and I both ended up joining Citibank after the Peace Corps. His appointment speaks volumes for the positive direction Tunisia is likely to go.

And my dear friend Jerry Sorkin – a Jewish Philadelphian who is a great advocate for Arab-Jewish relations – is in Tunisia assuring everyone that his amazing tours are in session. See Jerry’s article in the National Review:

http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/259012/tunisian-revolution-looking-success-jerry-sorkin

If you ever want to go to Tunisia, Malta (where I also studied that junior year), Libya (yep), or Turkey, Jerry is the Man. Here is his web site: http://tunisusa.com/.

I am very proud that my beloved Tunisia was the spark for the paroxysms of change that are sweeping the Arab world. Having started in Tunisia, the spark so far seems to have a liberal, secular streak, driven by the young who simply want a better, freer life.

Egypt

Stuart and I lived in Cairo for two years, when I worked with Citibank. Cairo was a teeming, impossible city. Years of wars with Israel and poor management had impoverished the place and Cairo, a queen of cities in the first half of the 20^th century, was falling apart. ‘Nothing works, everything is difficult’ was our mantra. If the elevator showed up or the telephone functioned, you felt a sense of grace.

And yet we had an amazing experience, living in the ruins. Citibank put us up in a spectacular two-story penthouse apartment overlooking the Nile in Garden City, near Tahrir Square and a block from the office (ah, the corporate life, so not Peace Corps). The apartment belonged to a famous Egyptian movie actress, Nadia Lotfy. Well, she didn’t actually own it but given Cairo’s insane Nasserist rent control laws, we (or Citibank) paid her an exorbitant rent and she paid the actual building owner a few guineas a month. And so, of course, nothing worked. But it sure was classy, in a 1960’s Egyptian movie sort of way.

In Cairo we knew religious scholars at Al-Azhar, Egyptologists at the Cairo Museum, movie people, and, of course, bankers. Our neighbor Farouk, a scion of a well-known Christian political family, became a dear friend. I recently saw him and his wife – who is Jewish – in Cairo, where they have an amazing house and gardens up in Muqattam, the hills to the east of the city. I also caught up with Farouk’s sister Mona. Mona was in the Egyptian parliament for some time when it was more representative. Here is an interview that Mona gave to NPR after 9/11 gives some sense of the growing disillusionment with the US:

http://www.npr.org/programs/morning/transcripts/2003/aug/030805.ebeid.html

Egypt is not Tunisia and I am far more worried about its future. The population is huge – more than half of all Arabs are Egyptian – and largely poor and uneducated. Mubarak obliterated any opposition so there is no natural leader to take the reins.

I have been back to Egypt several times since we left, including last year, and have been struck by how little reform and development have taken hold, despite the billions the US has poured in. Egypt is, after Israel, the largest recipient of American aid. This is essentially a wily bribe that Sadat won in exchange for making peace with Israel. He knew that Israel got the lion’s share of US foreign aid (about a third, more than all of Africa and Latin America combined) so if Egypt’s formula were half of Israel’s, they’d be in clover.

Of course, most has been in military aid, and Egyptians in Tahrir Square have pointed out how many of the weapons used against them are stamped Made in USA. On recent trips I felt Egypt was becoming like Pakistan (also a US client): A highly militarized state that is unwilling to make change and bleats at the Americans about Islamic terrorists to justify oppression, thereby in fact generating terrorists.

The 9/11 planes had no Iraqis on them – contrary to what the majority of Americans were led to believe before the Iraq invasion – but the two best-represented nations were…. our allies Saudi Arabia and Egypt! Perhaps if Egypt had had a democracy back in 1990, with religious Muslims given a fair voice, Ayman al-Zawahiri, the Al-Qa’ida mastermind, and Muhammad Al-Atta, who flew into the North Tower, might instead have been shouting their views in an opposition party.

It is very likely that the Muslim Brotherhood will have a fair share of the new government in Egypt if it is indeed democratic. I of all people am not fond of conservative religious parties (yo Huckabee!) but I sure do think that they have a right to exist, if voters vote for them. Certainly the US has no problem with Shas, the Orthodox party in Israel, having such a powerful voice.

Egypt is no Iran. The Shah was put into place by a CIA coup after Mossadegh nationalized the Anglo-Iranian oil company (ah yes, oil). The Shah, of humble origins, became the self-styled emperor, trying to convince himself and the world that Iran was now Persia, forgetting centuries of Islamic history and deeply insulting many of his people.

I suppose if Hosny had been explicitly implanted by the Americans and had declared himself Pharaoh, there might have been a comparison. But the history is quite different, and I have not seen any evidence of a religious tone to the demonstrations.

Moreover, Iran is Shi’ah. Shi’ah Islam, given its roots in martyrdom, its emphasis on bloodlines, and its organized spiritual authorities, has a very different political position than Sunni Islam, and Egyptian Muslims are overwhelming Sunni.

Egypt is also not Iraq. Mubarak for all his despotism, was never as bloodthirsty as Saddam Hussein. Moreover, when Saddam’s dictatorship was shattered by the American invasion, nothing was put in place to prevent chaos, and the Iraqis descended into tribal sects in self protection.

Egypt is not about to descend into chaos, especially after tonight’s events. And Egypt is far more homogeneous than Iraq with a much stronger national identity. By far the largest Egyptian minority is the Copts, the ancient Christians. There is a rumor that the recent bombing of a Coptic church in Alexandria was in fact done by Mubarak’s government to frighten the Christians to rally around him. Regardless of the rumor’s veracity, I was moved to hear of Muslims surrounding Christian sites to show their support.

I was similarly brought to tears to see the hundreds of young Egyptians linking arms to guard the National Museum in Cairo, after some minor looting, to protect their heritage until the army could take position. This is not Iraq.

On the American news you hear much worry about Egypt’s peace treaty with Israel. Indeed, reading comments attached to NY Times articles, concern about Israel seems to dominate American discourse. This from the NY Times:

“The Israelis are saying, après Mubarak, le deluge,” said Daniel Levy, a former Israeli peace negotiator. And that, in turn, Mr. Levy said, “gets to the core of what is the American interest in this. It’s Israel. It’s not worry about whether the Egyptians are going to close down the Suez Canal, or even the narrower terror issue. It really can be distilled down to one thing, and that’s Israel.”

First of all, this tendency of Americans – more than any other people – to see everything in the Arab world through the lens of whether it is good for Israel is the main reason Arabs feel so insulted by American foreign policy. Dignity, again.

Still, I can’t imagine that any Egyptian government would be stupid enough to start a war with Israel. How could they? Israel, thanks to American aid, has more military power than the entire Arab world combined. Besides, most Egyptians may not like the Israeli government but do accept the state of Israel (as do most Arabs). Recall that the 2002 Saudi Peace Plan – virtually ignored by the US media – was signed by the entire Arab League, including Libya and Syria. The plan recognizes Israel’s existence within the 1967 borders, the very same borders that the US recognizes. So it is very hard to talk about Arab intransigence in this century.

I am sure that relations with Israel will cool, since a democratic Egypt would represent its people, who do not exactly feel warmly toward the current Israeli regime. I sure don’t blame them, given the apparent lack of Israeli interest in making peace with the Palestinians. I have always been astounded when I hear Americans or Israelis say that they can’t negotiate with the Arabs, while at the same time yet another settlement in the West Bank is built. As the recent Wikileaks papers revealed, the Palestinians have in fact made enormous concessions to the Israelis, to the point of risking humiliation (they, too, know that time is not on their side).

My fear is that Israel has grown too comfortable: The awful separation wall keeps the Palestinians out of sight and out of mind, where the Americans have proven unable to use the influence of their gargantuan foreign aid to rein in the settlements.

In the short term, I am not optimistic for flowers and good will emanating between Israel and the post-Mubarak Arab world. The Israelis have gotten comfortable with their southern border quiescent thanks to Egypt’s unwillingness to upset the Americans. Not surprisingly, they will be frightened that changes in Egypt will remove a pliable partner. Fear will mean retreat into the bunker mentality that the Israelis know so well. Moreover a democratic Egypt will not exactly be France. Egypt is poor, superstitious, and religious. Just as the good folks of Mississippi elect congressmen who want to ban shari’ah and the teaching of evolution, the voters of fellahin Egypt would surely put some doozies in power.

But we can’t keep talking the talk about democracy – and snidely proclaiming Israel “the only democracy in the Middle East” – while preventing Arabs from electing their own leaders because we don’t like those they might elect. The French and Americans blatantly green lighted the coup in Algeria after that country’s people elected an Islamic government. We were all for the Palestinians having elections until, whoops, they elected Hamas. Now we have Hizbullah taking the reins in Lebanon.

From Helene Cooper of the NY Times:

The chaos unfolding in Egypt is laying bare a stark fact, Middle East experts say: In the Arab world, American words may not matter, because American deeds, whatever the words, have been pretty consistent. Ever since that March morning 31 years ago, when Anwar el-Sadat reached out to clasp hands with Menachem Begin on the North Lawn of the White House after signing the Camp David peace treaty with Israel, the United States government has viewed the Egyptian government, no matter how flawed or undemocratic, as America’s closest ally in the Arab world.

In the longer run, the change in Egypt could be good news for the Israelis. After a year or two, if Egypt settles into relative normalcy and democracy and the Israelis realize that the end is not nigh, Egypt could re-emerge as the Arab leader it has always been. In recent years, Egypt has been seen as so toothless as to be ineffectual, with most peace initiatives in fact emanating from Turkey or the GCC. American patience with Israel will undoubtedly fray, with American Jews increasingly moving towards progressive groups like J Street, while Americans on both sides of the political spectrum wonder what the enormous aid to Israel is buying them. I was struck that Rand Paul, the libertarian Republican, dared to propose eliminating aid to Israel and is still standing. This could lead Israel to feeling cornered, which would never be good for peace. Or, on the contrary, if the big boys Egypt and Turkey act like grown-ups, Israel might feel inclined to join the neighborhood, with peace with the Palestinians the entry fee.

Turkey in fact is a powerful model. The Turkish military has allowed democracy to flourish, including with Islamic parties. Turkey is no political paradise, but it is certainly increasingly a thriving Muslim democracy (and a fabulous place to visit, if you’ve never been). Of course, ever since the Israeli attack on the Turkish ship on its way to Gaza, Israel is not popular there, either. But few Turks are talking about wiping Israel off the map. Eventually Israel will learn that weapons will not secure its future, but strong relations with thriving democracies will.

Saudi Arabia is a whole, much longer story. Of course given the oil fields and Makkah, a revolution in this country would be calamitous for the Americans. But the Saudis are also fairly well bought off and not terribly political, at least overtly. A friend told me he saw a pro-Egypt, pro-democracy demonstration a few days ago at the Ministry of the Interior, near the hotel, but the folks were rounded up in minutes, before the press could witness anything.

The Saudis I’ve spoken with about Egypt fall into two camps; the more working class who are simply happy that the Egyptians are getting rid of a leader they don’t like, and the elite, who view Mubarak’s downfall with concern. A young Saudi from a wealthy family told me that if democracy came to Saudi Arabia, the disenfranchised Bedouin classes would descend on the ruling elite (all from the old settled tribes) ‘like flies on meat.’ King Abdullah raised the salaries of government workers this past week.

I am very hopeful that the events in Tunisia and Egypt will be a watershed in this region, perhaps rivaling 9/11. Democracy may be messy and the worst form of government, as Winston Churchill noted, but democratic nations in the long run make better partners and do better by their people. I care very much about the people in this region and we would all benefit from their success.

One last thing, from over here the best reporting through this all has been Al-Jazeera, in both English and Arabic. They have reporters on the ground and really seem to be listening, rather than talking (hooray Qatar!). It amazes me that the US is still the only country in the western world where Al-Jazeera English cannot broadcast, which speaks volumes, no? During the unfolding events in Egypt, I would occasionally switch away from Al-Jazeerah or BBC (which can also be quite good) to see how the Americans were doing. CNN had great pictures but not much intelligent to say, while Fox was downright pathetic. During the height of demonstrations in Tahrir Square, Fox had a long series on Ronald Reagan’s birthday. Then yesterday, Fox had a truly strange episode where Glenn Beck, noted authority on the Arab world, spent several minutes on camera ranting incoherently about the NY Times. I actually never figured out what the point was, but it was truly strange and made me wonder about my brethren in the US who choose, in droves, to watch such stuff to learn about the world. Yikes! No wonder we are in trouble on the global stage.

I am here in Riyadh till February 16^th working with the central bank, back for a week or so in New Orleans with the family, then off to Ramallah and Jerusalem to help the Palestinians draft a strategy for their financial sector, which promises to be exceedingly interesting, and right at the heart of it all. Al-Jazeera was showing ecstatic demonstrations all over the Arab world and I noticed big crowds in Ramallah. Through it all, none of it seemed anti-American or anti-Israeli or anti-anything, but rather pro-Arab. And what could be wrong with that?

More later. Stay well. May peace be upon all of us.

Ken of Araby

--------------------------------

Received Feb 11, 2011, reprinted by permission.

Ken Dorph is a Sag Harbor resident.

Week of January 13, 2011

2011-01-15T09:00:00.001-05:00

Udated January 15, 2011

"The fabric of democracy is always fragile everywhere

because it depends on the will of citizens to protect it,

and when they become scared,

when it becomes dangerous for them to defend it,

it can go very quickly."

Margaret Atwood, The Progressive, Dec 2010/Jan 2011

from WPKN Radio News: Congressman Bishop will continue meetings with constituents.

Friday Morning Rally for Civility in Southampton

Civil Rights Activist Bob Zellner on Violence in Arizona and the South

Cities of Peace Festival at Guild Hall: Program for Saturday Jan 15

Martin Luther King Day Observances

Clothing Drive for workers in East Hampton:

What are needed are jackets (not full-length coats, too hard to work in), sweaters, sweatshirts, knit hats or earmuffs and, most especially, GLOVES.

Call 917 224 7098 to arrange pickup or e-mail carlaash@msn.com

Clothing needed in Southampton:
Please call me if you have men's winter coats or other warm winter clothing you are not using.
I have info for donating this for day-laborers in the Southampton area.

Tony Ernst
631-259-2482

__________________________________________________________

East End Food Pantries Need Our Help - click here for details

__________________________________________________________
Winter in the Holy Land
As winter arrives we keep warm as best we can but what if our house were destroyed by an occupying army? .... more

__________________________________________________________

Bernie Sanders Stands Tallest Stephen Herrington in Huffpost: It's in the hands of the capricious gatekeepers of history now, this day December 10 of the year 2010. There have been filibusters, but not in the memory of any living American has such a rhyme to the ages and passion to justice been brought to the floor of the United States Senate.

Senator Bernie Sanders: how we address the deficit crisis in a fair and progressi

__________________________________________________________

From the Sag Harbor Express:

A Conversation with Elizabeth Haile, Rev. Holly Haile Davis and Rev. Alison Cornish
___________________________________________________________

from WPKN Radio News Jan 14: Congressman Bishop Will Continue Public Meetings

2011-01-15T08:08:00.000-05:00

WPKN News, Friday January 14, 2011

Eastern Long Island Democratic Congressman Tim Bishop says he will continue having public meetings with his constituents despite the events in Tucson, Arizona last weekend. He was speaking at a meeting on the steps of Town Hall in Southampton today.

WPKN’s Henry Letcher reports:

Bishop, New York’s First District Representative says that threats to members of Congress are not part of a campaign of intimidation. He says they are an expression of extreme anger.

"I think it is a reflection of a level of anger that exists in this county that is not only unproductive, it is destructive."

Congressman Bishop who had already scheduled a series of public meetings with his constituents says he wil continue with the meetings.

"I'm doing one at the end of January at the Rogers Memorial Library here in Southampton.

I'm doing community office hours tomorrow in downtown
Patchogue at the office of the Mayor of the Village.

In order to do my job properly I have to stay connected to the
people I represent so I'm going to continue to do them."

During his campaign for re-election last summer Bishop was confronted by members of the Tea Party who tried to shout him down at public meetings. Police were called in to protect Bishop. In a statement published in the Suffolk Times of Southold, Suffolk County 9-12 Project, a tea party organization, condemned the horrific attack in Tucson.

For WPKN’s East End News Team this is Henry Letcher.

CITIES OF PEACE FESTIVAL: DREAMING PEACE

2011-01-13T07:01:00.000-05:00

Sat, Jan 15, 2011 1:00 PM-5:00 PM

Guild Hall
158 Main Street
East Hampton

Honoring Martin Luther King's world changing speech "I have a dream" that inspired and galvanized the civil rights movement.

1:00 pm Gilding Workshop: A participatory workshop using Egyptian papyrus, gilder's clay, glue and 22 karat gold leaf! For parents and children as well as serious artists. Led by Artist Ellen Frank with intern Emily Deutchman.

2:00 pm Film: "The Making of Cities of Peace": Academy Award Winning Filmographer Don Lenzer with Eric Glandbard Editor.

2:15 - 3:00 Poetry Jam: With Danny Simmons creator of Def Poetry Jam, Chairman of NYSCA, and co-founder with his brother Russell Simmons of Rush Arts.

3-4:00 Peace Music Jam: Anna Barie and Pat Noecker with Brooklyn-based band These Are Powers and Mike Garcia, lead singer from Flaming Pink with peace inspired acoustic set with guitar.

4:00 pm Special Cities of Peace Tour: Led by Ellen Frank, the visionary artistic director of the Cities of Peace project now at Guild Hall. Hear first-hand the personal stories surrounding the creation of the work

contact information:

Christina Strassfield
museum@guildhall.org
631 324-0806
http://guildhall.org/home.ihtml

Friday Jan 14: "Coming Together for Civility" - Invitation from Anna Throne-Holst

2011-01-13T06:58:00.001-05:00

Approximately 75 citizens and public officials attended a meeting convened by Southampton Town Supervisor Anna Throne-Holst and Congressman Tim Bishop (NY 1st CD) Friday morning on the steps of Southampton Town Hall. Speaking were Mr. Bishop, Unitarian Pastor Allison Cornish, Assemblyman Fred Thiele, local school officials and civil rights activist Dr. Bob Zellner. Mr. Zellner
was credited by the Supervisor with conceiving this event. His talk was cut short when a Fire District Commissioner succumbed to the 25F cold and passed out.

Members of all of Southampton's diverse communities were present although on the eve of the Martin Luther King holiday weekend no people of color were invited to speak.

The following sent by Southampton Town Supervisor Anna Throne-Holst describes the event:

"In light of the tragic event that took place in Arizona over the weekend and the discussion that has ensued regarding the current “tone” of public discourse throughout the country, communities nation-wide are responding with commitments to be more respectful and civil in expressing their opinions and in their treatment of others.
In support of this important movement to shine a light on our own actions and make a conscience effort to wield our treasured freedoms with more tolerance and grace, you are invited to participate in a “Coming Together for Civility” event Friday, January 14 at 9:00 a.m. on the steps of Southampton Town Hall.

The goal of the event is two fold:

(1) To express our sympathies together as one community regarding the tragic events that took place over the past weekend in Arizona and;
(2) To make a public commitment to civility within our own community regardless of personal beliefs or party affiliation.

A wide spectrum of community leaders will attend including elected officials, fire and police chiefs, EMS leaders, VFW leaders, local ministers, school representatives and more. The event will also be open to the public, so please share this invitation with your memberships, friends and neighbors.
......"

Sincerely,
Anna Throne-Holst
Supervisor
Town of Southampton
116 Hampton Rd
Southampton, NY 11968
Ph: (631) 283-6055

Bob Zellner: Violence in Arizona and the South

2011-01-13T06:55:00.001-05:00

The attempted assassination of Arizona Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords reminds me of growing up in the South where violence seemed to be as American as cherry pie.

Children in the Bible belt were to be seen, not heard. Our little world was separate from adults for the most part except for the occasional housekeeper or baby sitter.  When company came for dinner, children sat at a separate table, often waiting for adults to eat before we were fed.

When chicken was fried, we got necks, backs, the feet and occasionally chicken head.  Someone somehow ate all parts. Depression gripped the South and food was not to be wasted.  I didn’t know what second-class citizens were but we younguns were definitely that.

Religion, philosophy and politics were discussed, if at all, out of earshot of children because, “Little pitchers have big ears.” Infidelity, violence, and scandal of any nature were discussed in hushed tones - never in the open, like today.  Our little ears, however, were full of everyday violence like the public lynching out from nearby Dothan, Alabama.  When I was five, special trains brought five thousand whites to watch the murder of a black man. Children were encouraged by their parents to stick forks in the charred flesh of the victim after he was dragged through the streets behind a pickup.
Daddy’s “nervous breakdown” became the Zellner’s hushed up scandal.  Methodist ministers didn’t have emotional problems. An “eccentric” bachelor uncle or maiden aunt locked away in Southern attics, wearing Confederate gray or antebellum gowns, ubiquitous in literature, shows that mental disorder was something to be ashamed of.  The prevalence of mental illness made appearance paramount. Frantz Fanon explained imperialism and the resulting mental disorder among oppressed people. Thorough study of the mental illnesses of oppressors has not been attempted.

Dad’s KKK membership was, no doubt, the cause of his breakdown.  He was trying to be a minister of the gospel while practicing racial discrimination.  Although his Klan connection was never mentioned, Dad’s dilemma, like the American one, was professing one thing about race while doing another. Half the population lording over the other half, taking the best of everything while leaving the rest to make do on scraps, was bad business indeed.  Dad also concluded that holding black people down also impoverished white people.  Rich people, happy to let poor white trash do the dirty work, laughed at both.  They had always controlled blacks through terror, slavery being maintained only by a constant state of violence against the enslaved.  One human enslaving another is an act of war.

The rhetoric and reality of violence and war, consequently, permeates our history and our politics.  Sarah Palin, however, should apologize for placing crosshairs over the district of Congresswoman Gifford.  Ms Palin defended herself by saying she is only playing politics as usual.  Making herself the victim, she claims she suffered a “blood libel,” an insult to Jews who actually suffered.

Listen tonight to our great President Obama as he binds the wounds inflicted in Tucson. His political style is the opposite of the current crop of rightwing haters. With real commitment we can all work together to bring peace to politics.

Bob Zellner January 12, 2011

Teacher, activist and author Bob Zellner lives in Southampton. Bob Zellner's Blog

Martin Luther King Day Observances

2011-01-13T06:45:00.001-05:00

List provided by Eastern Long Island Branch of NAACP:

FRIDAY JANUARY 14:12--3 PM SUFFOLK COUNTY DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING JR.

COMMISSION ,INC. 21ST ANNUAL AWARDS LUNCHEON

HYATT REGENCY WIND WATCH 1717 MOTOR PARKWAY

HAUPPAUGE, NY. CALL FLORENCE JOYNER FOR TICKETS.

631-841-0841 OR CELL 516-819-5479

FRIDAY JANUARY 14: 6 PM- ESPN TOWN HALL MEETING AT THE HISTORIC EBENEEZER

BAPTIST CHURCH IN ATLANTA, GEORGIA

IMAGE OF THE BLACK ATHLETE

SUNDAY JANUARY 16: 3 PM AT CANIO'S BOOKS 290 MAIN ST. SAG HARBOR

FAITH & the SOCIAL MINISTRY OF DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING JR.

A TALK BY REV. ANDREW BLAKE

SUNDAY JANUARY 16: 7: PM AT FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH IN SOUTHOLD- MAIN RD.

SOUTHOLD TOWN ANTI BIAS TASK FORCE.

MONDAY JANUARY 17: 8-10:30 AM 26 TH ANNUAL DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING JR.

MEMORIAL BREAKFAST HOSTED BY THE

FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH OF RIVERHEAD AT THE

HYATT REGENCY WINDWATCH 1717 MOTOR PARKWAY

HAUPPAUGE ,NEW YORK CALL 631-727-3446 FOR TICKETS.

MONDAY JANUARY 17: 10:00 AM ROGERS MEMORIAL LIBRARY

WINDMILL LANE

SOUTHAMPTON , NY ** 631 .283.0774 LIMITED SEATS

RESERVATIONS ARE NECESSARY.**

MONDAY JANUARY 17: 1:00 PM CALVARY BAPTIST CHURCH

EASTHAMPTON SPEAKER MS. AUTHERINE DUNN

MONDAY " 2:00 PM FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH BRIDGEHAMPTON

SPEAKER REV. RAMEEN JACKSON

MONDAY " 7:00 PM ST. PAUL AMEZ CHURCH NEAR THE LIGHT IN QUOGUE

REV. DR. CALVIN B. MARSHALL III A CIVIL RIGHTS

CONTEMPORARYOF DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING JR.WILL

BE THE SPEAKER. REV MARSHALL WAS THE POPULAR

PASTOR OF VARICK AME ZION CHURCH IN BROOKLYN

FOR 40 YEARS.

Winter in the Holy Land

2011-01-13T06:08:00.001-05:00

As winter arrives we keep warm as best we can but what if our house were destroyed by an occupying army? On November 25 in the illegally occupied West Bank (Palestine) a house where 15 children lived was demolished because a construction permit can not be obtained for a Palestinian's house. The International Solidarity Movement was able to supply tents for the homeless family and they prepared thevideo linked here. When this house was demolished (Nov 25) it was very cold. Since then, the region has been experiencing record-breaking rains and wind. We wonder what it's like to be in this village today.

How is it possible that our government approves this, or abets it with funding for this same military force? That is the case. Tell Congressman Bishop what you think about this! And support the Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions (www.icahd.org) working to expose the destruction of thousands of homes in the occupied territories and in Israel.

from Senator Bernie Sanders (Ind. VT):

2010-12-05T12:13:00.000-05:00

As you know, enormously crucial decisions are being made in Washington now which will impact the future of our country for decades. Please join me for an interactive discussion on issues ranging from how we protect Social Security for our kids and grandchildren, to how we create the millions of new jobs we desperately need to how we address the deficit crisis in a fair and progressive way.

Sign up to join me for DFA Live on Tuesday, December 7th, at 8:00 PM Eastern Time.

In terms of Social Security, let's be very clear. Social Security has not added one dime to either the federal deficit or the national debt. In fact, Social Security is running a $2.6 trillion surplus that is projected to grow to over $4 trillion by the year 2023. The non-partisan Congressional Budget Office has estimated that even if no changes are made, Social Security will be able to pay full benefits to every eligible American until the year 2039. In other words, Social Security is not in crisis.

Meanwhile, the Republicans in Congress, who claim to be so concerned about our large deficit want to extend Bush's massive tax breaks to the wealthiest 2% of Americans -- which will add, over a ten year period, $700 billion to our national debt. Given the fact that we already have the most unequal distribution of income of any major country, this is a totally absurd and irresponsible proposal.

That's why I organized a working group in Congress to provide a real, progressive alternative to the Deficit Commission's recommendations. We can move this country forward in reducing our national debt, but we don't have to do it on the backs of the already suffering middle class and working families of this country.

All and all, there's a lot to talk about and I look forward to a lively discussion with my friends at Democracy for America. Thank you very much for your grassroots activism. Together, we will move this country forward.

Please join me and my friends at Democracy for America next Tuesday, December 7th at 8:00 PM (Eastern Standard Time) for DFA Live -- a conversation on some of the important issues facing our country including Social Security, reducing the deficit in a fair and progressive way and job creation.

Thank you,

-Bernie

P.S. Follow me on Facebook or Twitter to stay up to date on the work I'm doing on Social Security, the deficit, job creation and more.

Friday December 10: Lyrical Democracies - Poetry with Alexis De Veaux and Kathy Engel

2010-12-01T15:11:00.002-05:00

Suggested Donation $10.

151 Mitchell Lane, Bridgehampton, Info at 537-7068 ext 113

Hayground School and Hayground Forum will present a special poetry reading titled Lyrical Democracies featuring Kathy Engel and Alexis De Veaux on Friday, December 10th at 7 p.m. Lyrical Democracies is the brainchild of two poets who want to inspire opportunities for the advancement of creative solutions to the wellbeing, peace, and wholeness of individuals and communities throughout the country. As poets, professors, organizers, and producers for more than 30 years, they recognize that the light that leads us and the glue that holds us are the power of our stories – all of our stories. They believe that telling stories to each other has the power to heal the divisions that separate us from each others’ humanities. They believe that meaningful change occurs through the fusion of the imaginative and the pragmatic, and that without community there is no change. Without recognition and exploration of the full stories within any community space, there is no community.

A Conversation With Elizabeth Haile, Rev. Holly Haile Davis and Rev. Alison Cornish

2010-11-30T17:34:00.002-05:00

From the Sag Harbor Express

by Emily J Weitz

A Conversation with the Rev. Holly Haile Davis and her mother, Elizabeth Haile, two prominent members of the Shinnecock Nation who recently took part in “The Accidental and Intentional Neighborness of our Communities” a discussion with Rev. Alison Cornish held at the meetinghouse of the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of the South Fork.

You led this discussion at the UU Meeting House last week. How did it go?

Holly: I’d like to define discussion. Alison and I decided to begin a conversation last year at this time. It took the form of a dialogue sermon at the meeting house. A conversation between us in a public arena. It was very tentative, opening a door that in my mind has never been opened. What I mean by that is outsiders wanting to have more than a one-way conversation with the Shinnecock. It’s been very one-sided for 370 years. To have a conversation where more than one side’s will was being considered was represented in our dialogue sermon last November. And so this was then part two of that continuing conversation. . ..... more

_________________
note: Rebecca (Becky) referred to in this article is Rebecca Genia, Rev. Holly Hails Davis' cousin and a member of the Inter-Tribal Historic Preservation Task Force devoted to preservation of ancient native burial sites.

EAST END FOOD PANTRIES NEED OUR HELP:

2010-11-30T08:19:00.001-05:00

As always our local food pantries need help with the ever increasing demand from those who just can't afford to feed their families. For example from January 2009 to January 2010 the number of families seeking aid tripled in East Hampton. The demand is year round but increases at this time of year as one would expect with the seasonal employment situation. Here is a list of local food panties:

Montauk:

Montauk Food Pantry at St Therese of Lisieux, 55 South Etna Avenue

East Hampton / Amagansett:

East Hampton Food Pantry www.easthamptonfoodpantry.org

631-324-7195

219-50 Accabonac Road

East Hampton Food Pantry hours: Tuesdays 2:00 – 6:00 pm

Amagansett Satellite hours: Tuesdays 4:00 – 6:00 pm

Sag Harbor:

Sag Harbor Food Pantry: Old Whalers (First Presby.) Church - 44 Union St. 631-725-0437 provides basic provisions 10:30am-1pm Tuesdays - Donations accepted at the Church.

Bridgehampton:

Bridgehampton Child Care and Recreational Center -

551 Sag Harbor Turnpike 631 - 537 -0616

Southampton:

Human Resources at Sacred Heart Church, 168 Hill St. 631-283-6415

Island Wide:

Island Harvest with HQ in Nassau County is looking for East End Volunteers. They supply local food pantries.

see www.islandharvest.volunteerhub.com to register and help with local food collection/distribution.

also:
Long Island Cares/ The Harry Chapin Food Bank:http://www.licares.org/

Week of November 18

2010-11-18T07:15:00.004-05:00

Following the news

Between The Lines:

Recommendations of Presidential Commission on Deficit Reduction include cuts in Medicare and Military but are not likely to get out of the Congressional Commitee reviewing it

Democracy for America: petition re Attack on Social Security

Election Coverage:

Votes may be re-counted pending Court decision - 10,100 absentee ballots not counted so far. Elections Board says they made mistake Bishop now trails by 383 votes. Sample machine votes are being checked.

Committee for Peace in Israel / Palestine (COPIP) ...

The COPIP blog has been updated. It is also linked from the blog list on this web site.

______________________

FOOD PANTRIES NEED OUR HELP:

As always our local food pantries need help with the ever increasing demand from those who just can't afford to feed their families. The demand is year round but increases at this time of year as one would expect with the seasonal employment situation. Here is a list of local food panties:

Montauk:

Montauk Food Pantry at St Therese of Lisieux, 55 South Etna Avenue, Montauk

East Hampton / Amagansett:

East Hampton Food Pantry www.easthamptonfoodpantry.org

631-324-7195

219-50 Accabonac Road

East Hampton Food Pantry hours: Tuesdays 2:00 – 6:00 pm

Amagansett Satellite hours: Tuesdays 4:00 – 6:00 pm

Sag Harbor:

Sag Harbor Food Pantry: Old Whalers (First Presby.) Church - 44 Union St. Sag Harbor 631-725-0437 provides basic provisions 10:30am-1pm Tuesdays - Donations accepted at the ChurchWe are hoping to give each of our food pantry clients a turkey for their Thanksgiving dinner. If you can donate a turkey, please call 725-0437 or send us an email with your name, address and telephone number. If you can’t deliver the turkey to the pantry on a Tuesday, we will pick it up. Thank you so much for your generosity!

Bridgehampton:

Bridgehampton Child Care and Recreational Center -

551 Sag Harbor Turnpike 631 - 537 -0616

Southampton:

Human Resources at Sacred Heart Church, 168 Hill St. 631-283-6415

Island Wide:

Island Harvest with HQ in Nassau County is looking for East End Volunteers. They supply local food pantries.

see www.islandharvest.volunteerhub.com to register and help with local food collection/distribution.

also:
Long Island Cares/ The Harry Chapin Food Bank:http://www.licares.org/

____________________________________________________

Cities of Peace:

Guild Hall , Main Street in East Hampton is presenting .“Cities of Peace,” by East Hampton artist Ellen Frank through January 16. The exhibition features nine 6- by 8-foot gold-illuminated works on linen that are a visual tribute to people and locations around the world. “Cities of Peace” includes Baghdad, Beijing, Hiroshima, Jerusalem, Kabul, Lhasa, Monrovia, New York and Sarajevo.

Gallery Talk Nov 27 3pm - Perspectives on Cities of Peace:

A Conversation Donny George Youkhanna Now Visiting Professor (Mesopotamian Civilization); Department of Asian and Asian American Studies, SUNY, Stony Brook University Peter Trippi Editor, FineArtConnoisseur: The Premier Magazine for Informed Collectors, on the art historical context for the Cities of Peace paintings Ellen Frank Ph.D., Artistic Director, Ellen Frank Illuminations Arts Foundation, Inc., on “Honoring World Cities Traumatized by War, transforming anguish to beauty”

Free with $7 Suggested Museum Admission ____________________________________________________________

Alternative radio - media for a democracy:

WPKN Community Listener Supported Radio at 89.5 FM and streaming at wpkn.org has programming produced by east enders and still needs our support.

_____________________

email subscribers may un-subscribe by replying with "Don't Send" in the subject line

Week of November 11 - Veterans Day

2010-11-03T07:30:00.015-04:00

VETERANS DAY: NOVEMBER 11, 2010

from the East Hampton Star:

Sag Harbor October 28, 2010

To the Editor,
    We are a warrior nation with an obscene military budget. In times of deep recession and millions in economic depression, 59 percent of our taxes relate to war.
    The powers that be in Washington often speak of perpetual war as if it was our destiny. A curse upon our children and grandchildren — we have already used their credit cards to sustain our wars.
    Has reverence for life been compromised by the gods of war, whether they be oil, money, or to change the hearts and minds of people we don’t even know? Yes, there are lives in the balance.
    For a moment, let us reflect on the lives of our young men and women who fight our wars in our name. To do so they had to give up their freedom and have no voice but to follow orders. Little did they anticipate being held hostage in endless wars. Then tours of duty were extended and they returned to combat as many as five times with pockets full of mind-altering drugs to withstand a living hell. Eventually they become victims of post-traumatic stress disorder, a burden they carry the rest of their lives, families included. These are crimes against humanity and no one is held responsible. There are lives in the balance.
In peace,
LARRY DARCEY

________________________________________

Democracy for America petition re Attack on Social Security

__________________________________________

Election Coverage: Votes may be re-counted by hand after Elections Board says they made mistake and Bishop now trails by 383 votes....
______________________________

Latino Film Festival
Friday Nov 12

5pm-8pm

Saturday Nov 13 6pm-8pm

Parrish Art Museum, Jobs Lane Southampton

_______________________________________________

Cities of Peace

Guild Hall , Main Street in East Hampton is presenting .“Cities of Peace,” by East Hampton artist Ellen Frank through January 16.
Gallery Talk Nov 27 3pm

The exhibition features nine 6- by 8-foot gold-illuminated works on linen that are a visual tribute to people and locations around the world.
“Cities of Peace” includes Baghdad, Beijing, Hiroshima, Jerusalem, Kabul, Lhasa, Monrovia, New York and Sarajevo.

___________________________

Alternative radio - media for a democracy:

WPKN 'The Real Alternative" needs our support. Totally listener supported station with locally produced music and public affairs programs still needs our support - donate on line

WPKN Radio News: Suffolk County & NY State Election Results

2010-11-03T07:07:00.004-04:00

Updated 10:00 am Nov. 18

see report on Voting Problems in Brooklyn and Southampton following this summary

Here are some election results from Long Island and New York State prepared by WPKN's East End News Team:

About 40% of eligible voters went to the polls yesterday according to the Suffolk County Board of Elections.

Republicans targeted Democrat Tim Bishop, the 4 term 1st Congressional District Representative in their campaign to take over the House. Republican businessman Randy Altschuler led Mr. Bishop by 383 votes with all election districts reporting after the Board of Elections revised their count following election day. A total recount has been requested by the Bishop Campaign - to be settled in court.

Absentee ballots were not counted as of Nov. 18. Mr. Bishop has not claimed victory and Mr. Altschuler has not conceded as of 9am on Wednesday Nov. 3.

Employment was an issue in the campaign with the Republican claiming he had created many jobs for Long Islanders while Democrat Bishop said Altschuler had outsourced jobs to India and elsewhere. Altschuler criticized Bishop for supporting Obama's health care reform and stimulus packages.

Voters in the 2nd C.D. gave long time Representative Steve Israel,
a Democrat, a 55% to 43% lead over Republican John Gomez.

Conservative Republican 3rd C.D. candidate Peter King, a multi term Congressman was re-elected by a wide margin.

In the governor's race, Andrew Cuomo easily beat Carl Palladino
with Democrat Cuomo receiving 57% of the vote to Republican Paladino's 38% with almost all votes counted.

Green Party Howie Hawkins received less than 1% of the vote trailing Jimmy McMillan of the "Rent is 2 Damn High party" with 1.25%. However the Greens received enough votes to maintain their position on future ballots.

Democratic Senators Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand
were returned to the Senate. Ms. Gillibrand was elected to fill
the un-expired term vacated by now Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

In the state assembly on long island voters returned long time
1st District State Sen. Ken Lavalle, a Republican
to Albany defeating Democrat challenger Jennifer Maertz.

In the 3rd District Republican Lee Zeldin defeated Democrat Brian Foley.
58% to 42% with 97% of votes counted.

Long time State Assemblyman Fred Thiele running on the Democrat, Working Families and Independence lines defeated Republican Richard Blumenthal by a wide margin to represent the 2nd Assembly district.

Democrat Marc Alessi and Republican Daniel Losquadro were in a tight race to represent the 1st Assembly district.

This summary of the vote on eastern Long Island was from Unofficial results provided by the Suffolk County Board of Elections.

Here are some election results from Long Island and New York State:
About 40% of eligible voters went to the polls yesterday according to the Suffolk County Board of Elections.

Republicans targeted Democrat Tim Bishop, the 4 term 1st Congressional District Representative in their campaign to take over the House. But Republican businessman Randy Altschuler
trailed Mr. Bishop by about 49% to Mr. Bishop's 51% of the votes with all
election districts reporting. Absentee ballots were not included in the unofficial results.

Employment was an issue in the campaign with the Republican claiming he had created many jobs for Long Islanders while Democrat Bishop said Altschuler had outsourced jobs to India and elsewhere. Altschuler criticized Bishop for supporting Obama's health care reform and stimulus packages.

Voters in the 2nd C.D. gave long time Representative Steve Israel,
a Democrat, a 55% to 43% lead over Republican John Gomez.

Conservative Republican 3rd C.D. candidate Peter King, a multi term Congressman was re-elected by a wide margin.

In the governor's race, Andrew Cuomo easily beat Carl Palladino
with Democrat Cuomo receiving 57% of the vote to Republican Paladino's 38% with almost all votes counted.

Green Party Howie Hawkins received less than 1% of the vote trailing Jimmy McMillan of the "Rent is 2 Damn High party" with 1.25%.

Democratic Senators Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand
were returned to the Senate. Ms. Gillibrand was elected to fill
the un-expired term vacated by now Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

In the state assembly on long island voters returned long time
1st District State Sen. Ken Lavalle, a Republican
to Albany defeating Democrat challenger Jennifer Maertz.

In the 3rd District Republican Lee Zeldin defeated Democrat Brian Foley.
58% to 42% with 97% of votes counted.

Long time State Assemblyman Fred Thiele running on the Democrat, Working Families and Independence lines defeated Republican Richard Blumenthal by a wide margin to represent the 2nd Assembly district.

Democrat Marc Alessi and Republican Daniel Losquadro were in a tight race to represent the 1st Assembly district.

This summary of the vote on eastern Long Island was from Unofficial results provided by the Suffolk County Board of Elections.
_______________________________________________________

Voting Problems in Park Slope were reported in the NY Daily News and the same problem - machines not working were observed here in Southampton.

from NY Daily News

* "Just voted (by emergency ballot) at PS282 in Park Slope. Scanning machines are not working and they have no ETA when they will. There is technician working on the machine but in the meantime everyone is voting by emergency ballot. According to the poll workers, an "initial report" was not run on the machines, and that is the hold up.... but I observed the technician dealing with several (what I assume were test) ballots that were getting jammed in the machine and heard him make the comment to a poll worker "I don't know what to do."
___________________________________________________________

October 30, at 7 PM, Dr. Danielle Ofri will talk about "Medicine in Translation: Journeys with My Patients:

2010-10-18T14:56:00.002-04:00

On October 30, at 7 PM, Dr. Danielle Ofri will talk about her most recent book, Medicine in Translation: Journeys with My Patients(Beacon Press, 2011) at the Unitarian Universalist meetinghouse at 977 Bridgehampton/Sag Harbor Turnpike (junction of Scuttle Hole Road). Her book, which has garnered wide critical praise for its candor and compassion, offers compelling and sometimes humorous stories of how she and her patients struggle with their medical problems and the difficulty both have in coming to terms with the cultural and language differences of a largely immigrant, poor, population, many of whom have braved language barriers, religious and racial divides and the emotional difficulties of exile. Without judgment or condescension, Dr. Ofri’s book sheds light on how one doctor comes to terms with her own emotions in treating a complex patient population and puts a human face on the challenges facing immigrants and their caregivers navigating the U.S. healthcare system.

Dr. Ofri has been an attending physician at Bellevue Hospital , the oldest public hospital in the nation, for two decades. She is also Associate Professor of Medicine at New York University School of Medicine and editor-in-chief of the Bellevue Literary Review. Her writings have appeared in the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, the Washington Post, the New England Journal of Medicine, the Lancet, and on CNN.com and National Public Radio. An earlier book Incidental Findings:Lessons from My Patients in the Art of Medicineoffers stories from the life of a newly minted doctor as she faces some of the hard questions and realities in applying the Hippocratic oath.

This event is co-sponsored by Neighbors in Support of Immigrants and the Social Justice Committee of the UUCSF. There is no charge for the program. Apple cider and donuts for a contribution, with all proceeds for providing meals for day laborers at North Sea Rd and CR 39 and in East Hampton.

October 23: The CAPOTE Black & White HIKE

2010-10-17T10:02:00.001-04:00

Canio's Cultural Cafe & FRIENDS of the LONG POND GREENBELT

present

The CAPOTE Black & White HIKE

Please be our guest for a fun celebration of Truman Capote's birthday and the natural environment where his memorial stone rests in the Long Pond Greenbelt.

DATE: October 23rd

TIME: 10 a.m.HIKE

LOCATION:
   Long Pond Greenbelt
   Nature Center for the hike
(1061 Bridgehampton-Sag
   Harbor Turnpike).

  RECEPTION:  11 a.m.
at the Nature Center.

   Truman Capote's Black & White Ball in 1966 is widely recognized as the literary event of the century. Celebrate Capote's birthday & legacy with a hike to his memorial stone.Black & White dress is encouraged!  A reception follows at the Long Pond Greenbelt Nature Center. Hear a recording of Capote reading, view special Capote memorabilia from friends, and enjoy Cousin Sook's fruitcake, plus other refreshments.

If you can not hike to the stone, but would like to be there, transportation from the Nature Center will be available.

Capote's cherry-red mustang will be on display, courtesy of his good friends Myron Clement and Joe Petrocik. And a signed, limited edition photograph of Capote by LIFE photographer Jerry Cooke will be for sale. The beautiful black & white photograph was made in 1947. A portion of the photo sale proceeds goes to the Friends of the Long Pond Greenbelt and Canio's Cultural Cafe.

$10 suggested donation.

It's going to be a BALL! Hope to see you on the 23rd.

October 9: Caroline Doctorow & Mick Hargreaves in Concert for WPKN

2010-09-26T12:00:00.065-04:00

WPKN presents Caroline Doctorow and the Steamrollers

with a solo appearance by Mick Hargreaves

Saturday, October 9 at 8pm

Jeff’s Kitchen at the Hayground School

151 Mitchell Lane, Bridgehampton.

A benefit forlistener-supported WPKN Radio

Tickets $25 at the door.

Reserve at rootsmusicfest@gmail.com

or call 631-259-2482

Caroline Doctorow:

With a soft and mesmerizing voice Caroline Doctorow (http://www.carolinedoctorow.com/) has established herself as a leading force on the folk music scene as she gains momentum with each new album she releases. Her voice has been called wondrous and velveteen. Her albums appear regularly on the top of the folk music radio airplay charts. She regularly tours with her band "The Steamrollers" comprised of Gary Oleyar, Andrew Carillo and Mick Hargreaves.

Mick Hargreaves:

Mick Hargreaves (www.mickhargreaves.com) is a busysinger-songwriter and in-demand session bassist whose 2009 single release is "Bridget" backed with "Can't Keep Track ofYou Blues"

Caroline and Mick are heard every first Saturday of the month at 7pm on the Song Trails Radio Hour (http://thesongtrailsradiohour.blogspot.com) on WPKN Radio. They feature roots-based artists and highlight local Long Island musicians.

Listener Supported WPKN at 89.5 FM

has been described as a station whose importance is out of proportion to its small signal in our area. WPKN serves most of Suffolk County and streaming at www.wpkn.org, the rest of the globe, with a diverseselection of musical genres (Jazz, Blues, Folk, Rock, Classics, Reggae and more) andpublic affairs programs (East End Ink, Tidings from Hazel Kahan, Between The Lines, Free Speech Radio News). The station is almost completely funded by listener contributionsand takes no corporate advertising or underwriting.

Letter to Southampton Press: Cigarette Tax Is Destructive and Will Not Work

2010-09-22T19:15:00.001-04:00

September 18, 2010

Dear Editor:

At this writing the proposed New York state tax on cigarettes sold on Indian reservations to non-Indians is tied up in the courts. What would happen if most of the population of Southampton should lose their jobs? Would that warrant headlines and marching in the streets? This is the prospective faced by a large portion of the118 residents of the Shinnecock and Poospatuck reservations on Long Island.

NY State has a 9 billion deficit, A re-instatement of the stock transfer tax - New York State presently collects a very small tax on each stock transfer, but then rebates the tax, now in excess of $16 billion annually - or an increase in the tax on incomes of $250k or greater would bring in more that the $200 million that might be collected by taxing cigarettes sold on reservations.

But whether any sales will be made on the reservations without the price advantage now
enjoyed by Native smoke shops is questionable.

The real reason for the legislation which has been proposed for years is to reward the convenience store supporters of the powers in Albany. This can only bring more poverty and its resultant increase in drugs and crime to our area.

I looked for news about this impending disaster in the local media and found none.

Two weeks ago New York's Mayor Michael Bloomberg, a friend of a large player in upstate convenience stores, recalling the days when states paid for Indian scalps, told a radio host that he had advised the Governor to

"get yourself a cowboy hat and a shotgun. If there’s ever a great video, it’s you standing in the middle of the New York State Thruway saying, you know, ‘Read my lips – the law of the land is this, and we’re going to enforce the law."

Apparently racist speech directed at our native neighbors is acceptable. Not a word about this was in the downstate papers. Where is the outrage?

Anthony Ernst

Pat Young: Suffolk Congressional Race Has Anti-Immigrant Overtones

2010-09-09T16:26:00.000-04:00

From the New York State Immigrant Action Fund Blog:

By Pat Young

Chris Cox is running hard against Congressman Tim Bishop in one of the few swing Congressional seats in New York. The First CD in eastern Suffolk County has changed hands repeatedly over the last several decades.
The district has a strong tea party faction organized around Glenn Beck’s 9/12 group. The faction incorporates many activists from the area’s well developed anti-immigrant organizations. The district was the scene of multiple attacks on Latino immigrants in 2007 and 2008, culminating in the killing of Marcelo Lucero in 2008.
Cox has announced he will “stand with the tea party” on the immigration issue. He recently released a statement praising Arizona’s SB 1070 law which was recently enjoined by a Federal court. Cox said:
“I know how hard so many people have fought to become citizens of this country, and I know that we need to secure our borders. That’s the obligation of the federal government and the federal government has failed. God Bless Arizona for standing up and trying to protect its citizens!”
After the law was stayed in July because of its dubious constitutionality, Cox said:
“The Arizona legislature passed common-sense legislation to protect their citizens because the Federal government has completely failed to secure our borders. Along with Governor Jan Brewer…, I am deeply disappointed that a Federal judge has blocked key provisions of Arizona’s law. The citizens of Arizona have been subjected to criminal aliens, including violent drug gangs, because our borders are porous. As a Member of Congress, I will support legislation to strengthen border security and enforce Federal immigration laws. Unlike Tim Bishop who wants to reward illegal immigrants with citizenship under what he calls ‘Earned Legalization,’ I support the rule of law and I oppose amnesty.”
Cox is an odd source of such a hard line. He is the grandson of disgraced former President Richard Nixon who was saved from jail by a presidential pardon, a sort of one-man amnesty.
Cox’s father, Ed cox, is the head of the state Republican party. Ed Cox led the failed effort to convince Republicans to nominate virulently anti-immigrant Suffolk County Executive Steve Levy for governor.

Cowboys and Indians - Where is the Outrage?

2010-08-26T07:41:00.001-04:00

On Monday, August 23 members of New York native nations (Unkechaug and Shinnecock included) protested on the steps of New York's City Hall in response to Mayor Michael Bloomberg's racist utterance. "Bloomberg used imagery considered insensitive at best by tribal members when he suggested that Gov. David Paterson don a cowboy hat, grab a shotgun and stand in the Thruway to make sure tax law is implemented on Indian cigarette sales." according to the Albany Times-Union's James Odato.

Tiokasin Ghosthorse of First Voices Indigenous Radio included a report from Carole Woodward of Digital Radio Warrior Media from the rally including quotes from Chief Harry Wallace (Unkechaug) and Sr. Tribal Trustee Lance Gumbs (Shinnecock). Also an interview with native blogger John Cain about native / NY State relations, cigarette tax questions and the Mayor's remarks. These reports were carried on WPKN 89.5 Bridgeport on Thursday August 26.

From Indian Country Today: Where is America’s outrage?

“The use of force to subdue, dispossess, disempower and eradicate the Native American is a disgraceful part of American history and Mayor Bloomberg is encouraging its continuation.”

Full article:

When New York Mayor Bloomberg asked Gov. Patterson to act like a cowboy to shut down the Seneca tobacco industry, little was heard from mainstream America to condemn such an outrageous statement.

The use of force to subdue, dispossess, disempower and eradicate the Native American is a disgraceful part of American history and Mayor Bloomberg is encouraging its continuation. The image of the cowboys shooting and killing Indians, defending settlers and moving them off their lands is the stuff of American legend. Indians were the villains of American expansionism and it created Manifest Destiny to justify their elimination.

America loves its cowboy image. Bloomberg wants to resurrect John Wayne as a solution to the “Indian problem.”

But if anyone in America should understand Native Americans, it should be Bloomberg. He is a part of an oppressed people: Persecuted, dispossessed and eradicated. Being Jewish, Bloomberg should feel the same way Native Americans do.

After all, to the Seneca and the Iroquois Confederacy or Haudenosaunee, northern New York state is our Israel. We are the freedom fighters and defenders of the land, not the cowboys. The cowboys are the invaders and looters.

We have lived in the area from time immemorial; we have a constitution predating European contact and a federation of nations that American founding fathers studied to replace a system based on a monarchy. We are an ancient people with our own language, customs, spirituality and government, living on our own homeland; our Israel.

Would Bloomberg accept Hamas enforcing tax collection in Israel? I don’t think so.

Yet that is the reality for Native Americans. America wanted our land and our natural resources, which made this the richest country in the world. Now America wants to continue the impoverishment of Native Americans by collecting its taxes by force.

Bloomberg’s blindness to our history must not be limited to only him. The rest of America seems not to care very much.

If the mayor had suggested that the Klu Klux Klan be sent in to collect taxes in Seneca territory, there would be outrage. His suggestion for the governor to act like a cowboy is comparable to sending in neo-Nazis to settle the “Jewish problem.”

Shocking as that may sound, this is the image from a Native American perspective.

Yet there is no outrage from mainstream America.

It is in the American culture to idolize the cowboy and villainize the Native American. Americans don’t see the comparison of Israel and the Jewish people to the reservations and territories of Native Americans. Or they refuse to see. It would be too painful or, more likely, too expensive. Or they do not want to offend the Jewish community?

It is okay to offend Native Americans. That is American culture.

When will America stand up for the rights and freedoms of Native Americans?

- Kenneth Deer
Kahnawake
© 1998 - 2010 Indian Country Today. All Rights Reserved
__________________________________________________________________________
From the article above:

“The use of force to subdue, dispossess, disempower and eradicate the Native American is a disgraceful part of American history and Mayor Bloomberg is encouraging its continuation.”

Article 4 and Article 7 of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination deal with speech promoting or inciting racial discrimination. The United States ratified the Convention in 1994, but took exception to the provisions in Articles 4 and 7 at the time, claiming the United States “does not accept any obligation under this Convention, in particular under Articles 4 and 7” and referred to the “extensive protections of individual freedom of speech” in the United States. Free speech in the U.S.A. apparently includes hate speech or speech which incites racial discrimination. In 2004, there was a ripple of protest, but no outrage when Governor Schwarzenegger claimed publicly, “The Indians are ripping us off.” And “they don’t pay their fair share.” The situation in New York is similar. The state wants to claim revenue that doesn’t belong to the state by undermining the source of income of
Native peoples in the state. In order to demonize Native people, hate speech seems to be considered fair game then and now. Where is America’s outrage that public officials can use hate speech and that federal law outweighs international human rights law in allowing them to incite discrimination with impunity?

Artists United for Haiti

2010-08-15T17:49:00.001-04:00

you are invited to

L’ESPOIR / HOPE

East End Artists United for Haiti

to benefit

ART INDIGÈNE Camp-Perrin, Les Cayes a year-long job training program in the arts for teens

Saturday, August 28, 6 - 10

BENEFIT PARTY & ART LIVE AUCTION

Music * Food * Drink

$20 suggested contribution

Bidding begins at 7:15 PM

Friday, August 27, 5 - 8

ART PREVIEW

Bids will be accepted for the live auction

Ashawagh Hall, East Hampton, NY

Springs-Fireplace Road and Old Stone Highway

Participating Artists:

Shari Abramson, Tomas Bulher, Perry Burns, David Collins, Luigi Colarullo, Sally Egbert,

Ellen Frank, Marc Antoine Gaston, Kimberly Goff, Jason Green, Whitney Hansen, Nicolette Jelen,

Nathan Slate Joseph, Teri Kennedy, Karin Mannix, Jane Martin, Barbara Maslen, Fulvio Massi,

Paton Miller, Camille Perrottet, Maria Pessino, Vivian Polak, Gabi Raake, Christina Schlesinger,

Rosemarie Schiller, Rosario Varela, Todd C. Westphal

2010-08-15T11:00:00.000-04:00

WEER 88.7 FM

August 21: Gulf Coast to East Coast - Benefit for Young Peoples Project

2010-08-15T08:00:00.000-04:00

TONI ROSS & THE YOUNG PEOPLE'S PROJECT
ALONG WITH THE BENEFIT COMMITTEE
LUKIE & HARVEY BERNSTEIN,
EVERICK BROWN, TYRONE DAVIDSON,
KATHY ENGEL & JON SNOW, DREW GIDDINGS,
EMILY GOLDSTEIN & STAN STOKOWSKI, OMO MOSES,
FOLAKE OLOGUNJA, DR. JOIA CREAR-PERRY & DR. ANDRE PERRY,
TAKEMA ROBINSON, TONI ROSS, BRENDA SIEMER SCHEIDER,
JO ANN SECOR & LEE SKOLNICK, STUART MATCH SUNA,
TINKA TOPPING, LUCIUS WARE

INVITE YOU TO

Saturday, August 21, 2010
5:30PM TO 8:00PM

At the Home of Toni Ross:
104 Wainscott Main Street
Wainscott, New York 1197

SUGGESTED DONATION: $150

RSVP BY AUGUST 17

FOR MORE INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT
VIA EMAIL: FINDINGOURFOLKBENEFIT@TYPP.ORG
VIA PHONE: Lucius Ware 516 - 982 - 2058

“The Young People Speak: Coast to Coast” Sunday August 22

2010-08-08T20:19:00.000-04:00

The Hot 8 Brass Band from New Orleans will be featured at a Musical Rally,

“The Young People Speak: Coast to Coast”

at the Hayground School, 151 Mitchell Lane in Bridgehampton
on Sunday , August 22 from 3 to 7 pm.

Also featured are Brother Josephus and the Love Revival Revolution Orchestra
and many local musicians including:

The Thunder Bird Sisters of Shinnecock,

The Glazzies band and DJ Vibe

plus Black Men of Labor, Urban Bush Women and many more.

Local people from different communities will read selections
from Howard Zinn’s Voices of A People’s History of the United States and reflect on
the five year anniversary of Katrina, the Gulf oil spill and local issues.

A $10 donation is suggested.

The Young People Speak: Coast to Coast: a Musical Rally
will be at the Hayground School, 151 Mitchell Lane in Bridgehampton
from 3 to 7 pm on Sunday, August 22.

Saturday July 31: SHINNECOCK MUSEUM’S STRAWBERRY MOON HARVEST FESTIVAL,

2010-07-24T21:46:00.001-04:00

HAKAME! (Greetings!)

LOCAL NATIVE AMERICAN CRAFT, CULTURE AND FOOD AT ITS FINEST

WILL BE ON HAND AT THE SHINNECOCK MUSEUM’S

STRAWBERRY MOON HARVEST FESTIVAL,

SATURDAY, JULY 31, 10 AM TO 4 PM.

GUESTS OF ALL AGES WILL LEARN AND HAVE FUN

AT THE “WICKI WALKS” – GUIDED TOURS OF THE MUSEUM’S MINI PREVIEW VILLAGE.

ALSO TRADITIONAL DANCING AND CANOE MAKING DEMONSTRATIONS ARE NOT TO

BE MISSED. THE MUCH ANTICIPATED CORN COB EATING CONTEST AND SPECIAL

VISIT BY LOCAL FEATHERED FRIENDS FROM THE QUOGUE WILDLIFE REFUGE.

PLUMP SHINNECOCK OYSTERS, SLOW-COOKED SAMP MADE WITH NAVY BEANS

AND HOMINY, SEAWEED-STEAMED SWEET CORN AND ROASTED BUTTERNUT

SQUASH.

THESE ARE JUST SOME OF THE SPECIALTIES AVAILABLE AT THE

“TASTE OF SHINNECOCK” FOOD SALE.

THE MUSEUM WILL ALSO BE ACCEPTING BIDS FOR ITS ONE-DAY ONLY “LIFE ON THE PLAINS” FINE ART AUCTION FUNDRAISER.

The outdoor event is free. There is a small cost for admission to the Museum, but children under 5 years old are free.

The event will be held at the Shinnecock Museum, Old Montauk Highway at West Gate Road, west of Shinnecock Village.
More information about the festival and auction is available at www.shinnecockmuseum.org or at 631- 287-4923.

Federal Judge Limits Delay on Shinnecock Recognition

2010-07-23T06:12:00.001-04:00

On Wednesday, July 21 a federal judge set limits on a delay in Federal Recognition for Long Island's Shinnecock Indian Nation.

Judge Joseph Bianco gave the federal Department of Interior 10 days to write to him with a final date for approval of the federal recognition of the Shinnecock. Bianco says if the agency fails to do this he will set his own schedule for action to be taken by September 24^th. Speaking outside the court house in Islip, Senior Shinnecock Trustee Lance Gumbs, says the delay is hurting the tribe:

“We have health care, education, all the essential elements that make up a community have now been delayed once again because of this frivolous claim. This group didn’t get formed until after our final decision came down and here we are now having to wait an additional 2 months...”

One of two groups that filed challenges to federal recognition of the tribe is the Connecticut Coalition for Gaming Jobs. That group, whose members are not named, claims that federal recognition of the Shinnecock will result in Connecticut's two Indian-run casinos losing money. They allege that the Bureau of Indian Affairs failed to acknowledge that casino developers were backing the Shinnecock and that this compromised the integrity of the tribal structure. Gumbs does not buy those arguments:

“They’re talking about preserving 27,000 jobs in Connecticut. They’re talking about Connecticut’s taxes. What about New York’s taxes? What about New York’s jobs? We had the ability to provide jobs here on Long Island. We had the ability to help out with the budget. Connecticut essentially threw us under the bus by saying ‘protect theirs, forget about New York’. ”

The Shinnecock filed for recognition in 1978 and again in 1998. In 2007 Judge Bianco had ruled that the BIA's delay was unreasonable. That ruling led to the BIA recognizing the Shinnecock in June. The judge says an open-ended BIA process for acting on the challenges constitutes another un-reasonable delay.

___________________________________

This report was prepared for WPKN 89.5 Bridgeport and WEER 88.7 Montauk (East End Radio).

Thanks to WPKN News Director and WSHU Connecticut Capitol Reporter Ebong Udoma.

Monday July 5: Tea Party at Southampton Independence Day Parade?

2010-07-03T11:22:00.003-04:00

The group Organizing For America say that members of the "Tea Party" activist group have threatened to harass U.S. Congressman Tim Bishop at this year's Independence Day parade which will be held on Monday July 5. Marchers as usual assemble on streets running south from the railroad station. The OFA are asking for counter-demonstrators in support of Mr. Bishop who will be running for re-election against a Republican candidate - who to our knowledge has yet to be selected.

sent from Organizing For America:

Southampton Parade on July 5th targeted by Tea Party
Can we be bigger, better, louder (and smarter) than the Tea Party? YES WE CAN!

On Monday, July 5, the Tea Party is going to try to embarrass Congressman Tim Bishop by showing up in large numbers to boo him at the annual Parade in the Village of Southampton. We need you and other east end volunteers to come to the parade and show your support for Mr. Bishop. Learn more about the Tea Party's plans for the Southampton Parade on their website:

http://www.meetup.com/CSA-1776-Meetup-Group/calendar/13879325/?from=list&offset=0

check it out!

The press loves to report on this type of event. Bishop supporters outnumber Tea Party supporters but if we remain the silent majority and don't show up, the media and the public won't know that. What if a Tea Party candidate wins Mr. Bishop's seat in Congress? What will happen to the East End?

Sunday July 4: East End Women in Black Vigil to End the Gaza Blockade

2010-07-03T11:09:00.001-04:00

Sunday July 4 at 5pm
Monument at Ocean Road and Rte 27 in Bridgehampton.

Israeli government says they are easing the blockade but
news reports indicate that no significant change has occurred.
Vital agricultural and construction needs are still blocked.

See Free Speech Radio News;

The Guardian: Editorial - Gaza State of Siege
The real shortages in Gaza – medical instruments, aluminium, steel and cement – may not be addressed. A blockade that the US, Britain and the EU all insist is "unacceptable and unsustainable" could thus be set to continue.

Afghanistan: Going Through the Tragic Motions

2010-06-13T15:54:00.004-04:00

Dear Tim Bishop:

I just read your statement to the House re the death of Lt. Theinert. It is time to acknowledge that the war in Afghanistan is an immoral war, a war that has no justification other than to line the pockets of those who are profiting by it. They do not include the friends and neighbors of that innocent soldier. We are all culpable in his death. I urge you to call for the end to this folly!

sincerely, Tony Ernst

Democratic voter from Southampton

Bob Herbert in the New York Times:

There is no good news coming out of the depressing and endless war in Afghanistan. There once was merit to our incursion there, but that was long ago. Now we’re just going through the tragic motions, flailing at this and that, with no real strategy or decent end in sight.... more

East Hampton Star: Shelter Island Soldier Remembered

WEER Sunday Evening Lineup: 88.7 FM Montauk- East End Radio

2010-06-13T14:20:00.000-04:00

----------------

* WEER's Sunday Evening Lineup includes several locally produced programs.

7:00 pm Between The Lines: The week's most under-reported news stories plus timely interviews ... details here

7:30 pm Tidings from Hazel Kahan:

A weekly series of essays and interviews. Mattituck's world traveler investigates "Dark Tourism" from Mumbai to Auschwitz.

8:00 pm East End Ink: Every week we explore the literary coves of the East End. Tonight Pulitzer winner and East Hamptonite Philip Schultz reads from "The God of Loneliness: Selected and New Poems". Recorded at Canio's Books in Sag Harbor. Programs are archived at http://EastEndInk.blogspot.com

8:30 pm The American Popular Song: Each Sunday Southampton's Malcolm C. Dankner brings us the composers and musicians who wrote and play the Great American Songbook. Firstup, Irving Berlin, America's greatest songwriter.

10:30 pm East End News Team: An interview with Montauk commercial fisherman Mike Martinsen about what we can do about the threat of oil on our beaches and our dependence on black gold.

JUNE 15: 2nd Meeting on EAST END RESPONSE TO OIL SPILL REACHING HERE

2010-06-07T21:03:00.002-04:00

Meeting for Tuesday June 15 at 6 PM at Gin Beach, Montauk:

A meeting to discuss the east end response preparedness
in the event that the oil from the Gulf does make it here but
also, ideas for ways for us to make a difference in the Gulf
catastrophe. Also for discussion - how to foster progressive action
...for the future of the earth... through group thought and interaction.

Contact: Mike Martinsen

aliveatseaagain@aol.com

Tune in tonight Sunday June 13 to WEER 88.7 Montauk - East End Radio - for an interview with Mr. Martinsen at 10:30 pm

VIGIL SUNDAY JUNE 6 5:00 PM-5:30PM END GAZA BLOCKADE

2010-06-03T06:13:00.004-04:00

EAST END WOMEN IN BLACK AND MEMBERS OF COMMITTEE FOR PEACE IN ISRAEL / PALESTINE WILL GATHER AT THE BRIDGEHAMPTON MONUMENT - RTE 27 AND OCEAN ROAD BETWEEN 5 AND 5:30 PM SUNDAY JUNE 6 TO VOICE SUPPORT FOR ENDING THE BLOCKADE OF GAZA.

THIS IS OUR MESSAGE:

END THE GAZA BLOCKADE

WE WILL PROVIDE SIGNS

NEED INFO? CALL 631-259-2482

PLEASE VISIT THE COPIP BLOG AT
WWW.COPIP.BLOGSPOT.COM
AND THE LINKS ON THE RIGHT COLUMN

ALSO: SEE STATEMENT OF ISRAELI COMMITTEE AGAINST HOUSE DEMOLITIONS (ICAHD)

East End Report: May 30, 2010

2010-05-30T16:06:00.005-04:00

Jeff Halper, Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions - AN OPEN LETTER TO THE ISRAELI JEWISH PUBLIC: SUPPORT THE GAZA FLOTILLA!

Memorial Day Action: Bellport

Press Release: WPKN Radio Leases Montauk Station to Hamptons Community Radio

Jeffrey Conroy Sentenced to 25 years for Patchogue Killing

Jeff Halper - Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions - Open Letter to the Israeli Jewish Public: Support the Gaza Flotilla

2010-05-30T15:56:00.001-04:00

The following should be read by not only Israeli Jews but by non-Jews and Jews world wide:
______________________________________________________________________________

If we were not Israeli Jews, if the nine ships bringing 800 peace-makers from 40 countries would be sailing with humanitarian aid to an imprisoned population of a million and a half to, say, Haiti, the flotilla now on its way to Gaza would be hailed as a monumental event and the government of Israel would donate another 50 tons of food and materials and a brigade of army volunteers from the “rescue corps.” But we are Israelis, and the fact that such an operation is being launched against a siege we imposed on a civilian population three years ago – actually, the blockade goes back to the late 1980s – should cause us all to reflect upon how we and our country have arrived at this sorry state – how the “light unto the nations” has become one of the most oppressive states on earth, subject to international protests like this one.

The flotilla is sailing with a number of messages. First and foremost, to the government of Israel: Lift the siege on Gaza! The siege is absolutely illegal in international law, and for those of us who believe that the rule of law and human rights is the only recipe for a better world, it is incumbent upon us to join the flotilla’s call to lift the siege. Civilians cannot be the object of military and political attacks, as is the case in Gaza (which the Goldstone Report roundly criticized), nor can they be collectively punished for the policies of their political leaders. The very idea that people can be brought to their knees and forced to accept being permanently controlled and dominated, which is the thrust of Israeli policy, is both unconscionable and counter-productive. As the situation in Gaza shows, it has only stiffened resistance to the Occupation.

And then there is the urgency of addressing the humanitarian situation in Gaza, the flotilla’s second message. In a policy frightening reminiscent of other dark regimes in which Jews suffered from controlled malnutrition, our government has imposed a regime of “counting calories” on the Gaza population – imposing a “minimal dietary regime” on a million and a half people who receive as little as 850 calories a day, less than half the recommended daily intake. (Dov Weisglass, Sharon’s Chief of Staff, made a joke out of this. “It’s like a meeting with a dietitian,” he said. “We need to make the Palestinians lose weight, but not to starve to death.”) Instant coffee, fresh meat, rice, beans, spices, honey, chocolate, jam, bananas, coriander and pasta, among many others, are considered by Israel “luxury foods” for Palestinians. All this might be funny if it weren’t for the fact that, according to the World Health Organization, more than 10% of Gazan children suffer from chronic malnutrition. Two-thirds of the Gazan population face hunger on a daily basis.

Gaza is today an unreconstructed war-zone. Israel long ago destroyed the sewage system, so that people have drowned in periodic floods of sewage that have engulfed whole communities. Raw sewage flowing into the Mediterranean has polluted the only waters in which Palestinians are allowed to fish – the Israeli navy fires on fishermen who attempt to reach cleaner waters more than three miles out. Having destroyed Gaza’s only power station, much of the area suffers from blackouts, and Israel prevents adequate amounts of fuel from entering, with severe effects on hospitals. Gazans also have nowhere to live. More than 2,400 homes were destroyed in the invasion of last year and Israel, by prohibiting the import of raw materials, has prevented their being rebuilt. Thus the flotilla is bringing to Gaza 10,000 tons of humanitarian materials: temporary shelters, playgrounds for children, cement, steel and other construction materials, medical equipment and medicines and school supplies – a drop in the bucket of which is actually needed. The list alone is an indictment of our policies.

We Israeli Jews live in a managed information environment in which reality is carefully framed for us. Our government’s explanation for everything it does is “security,” and we accept that almost without question. But we have to understand a basic fact of life: four million Palestinians live under a cruel Occupation that we have nurtured for the past 43 years and which has deprived them of their fundamental rights (such as electing their own political leaders), robbed them of their land and homes (Israeli governments have demolished some 24,000 Palestinian homes in the Occupied Territories since 1967), reduced them to impoverishment and has led, in the case of Gaza, to their literal imprisonment.

Why do I have to repeat facts that seem so self-evident, that everyone knows? Because, though every informed person abroad knows these things, we Israeli Jews don’t – and we don’t care. Most Israelis know far less about what our government is doing in our name, in Gaza and elsewhere in the Occupied Territories, than the activists on the Free Gaza ships. We seldom if ever use the term “occupation” in our everyday speech (in fact, our government denied the very existence of an occupation), and we minimize the impact that our settlements, our separate roads, the Wall, hundreds of checkpoints and other facets of the Occupation have upon the political process, which we no longer believe in. Living in a prosperous “bubble,” we do not see Palestinian suffering, only ourselves as “victims.” (And so our Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman characterizes the Gaza flotillas as “violent propaganda” against Israel, as if we have nothing to do with conditions of life in Gaza or the very fact of occupation.) But this is not reality. For the Palestinians there is no minimizing their suffering or their yearning for freedom. Why, with our history, is it so difficult for us to understand resistance to oppression?

And so the third message of the flotilla is directed towards us: Take responsibility for your government’s policies! When I entered Gaza on the first Free Gaza boats in August, 2008, I issued an appeal to the Israeli public to stand in solidarity with us. I argued that ordinary people have often played key roles in history, particularly in situations like this where world governments, who should end the siege, shirk their responsibilities. We must resist the self-serving and disempowering statements of our political leaders who would have us believe that there is no solution to the conflict with the Palestinians, that there is “no partner for peace,” that we are doomed to perpetual war and, therefore, we must become permanent oppressors. The Palestinians are not our enemies; our own political leaders are. The very fact that I, an Israeli Jew, was welcomed by the people of Gaza makes that very point, and it is the message they asked me to convey to you. But they also insist on their rights: self-determination.

We of the Israeli peace camp refuse to be enemies with our Palestinian neighbors. We recognize that as the infinitely stronger party in the conflict, we Israelis must accept responsibility for our failed and oppressive policies.

In the meantime, the flotilla to Gaza has already succeeded. If the Israeli government allows the ships into Gaza, the power of the will have prevailed once more. If it chooses to stop the flotilla, it will only highlight the existence of the illegal and inhumane siege and bolster international efforts to end it. In both cases Israel loses the battle for legitimacy in the international community. This is the beauty of non-violent direct action. It is only a matter of time before it will be forced to relinquish control over the Palestinians and their lands.

Let us, Israeli Jews who aspire to become an integral part of this region rather than a foreign implant at war with its inhabitants, begin to take our fate in our own hands. We must side with the people of Gaza and the activists on the boats against the unjust and immoral policies of our own government. This is what the good people of the flotilla are trying to tell us, what people all over the world are trying to tell us: unless we take responsibility for our actions and end this terrible conflict with the Palestinians, we will not remain here. And unless we find a way to a just peace rather than stand on the side of occupation, oppression and injustice, we may delay that day by force, but our society will not survive. For our sakes as well as the people of Gaza, let us, the Israeli Jewish public, board the boats to end the siege of Gaza.

Jeff Halper
Director
The Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions (ICAHD)
PO Box 2030
91020 Jerusalem, Israel

ACTION ALERT

2010-05-27T13:14:00.000-04:00

Monday, May 31, 2010 11:00 AM

Join the South Country Peace Group as we march in the Bellport Memorial Day Parade as a presence of peace. Gather at 10:45 AM in front of the Bellport Community Ctr located on Bell St in Bellport.

Remember all the victims of war.

Signs & banners are not permitted by the parade sponsor.

For more information please call 631-286-5879.

Jeffrey Conroy Gets Maximum Sentence in Lucero Killing

2010-05-26T17:40:00.001-04:00

Story on Long Island Wins blog

WPKN Radio Inks Deal with Local Long Island Radio Broadcaster

2010-05-26T09:56:00.007-04:00

WPKN Radio whose eclectic programming includes public affairs and arts offerings produced on the East End* has agreed to an arrangement to transfer the operation of WPKM 88.7 Montauk to Long Island based "Hamptons Community Radio".

Starting in the next few days 88.7 FM will broadcast as WEER (East End Radio) carrying music and locally produced offerings that include the East End programs produced for WPKN 89.5 Bridgeport. Following FCC approval HCR will be the licensee of the Montauk radio station. Hamptons Community Radio is also the licensee of WEER 90.7 which has yet to broadcast and the applicant for 2 additional radio channels in Hampton Bays and Westhampton.

The decision to transfer WPKM to Hamptons Community Radio should make it obvious that WPKN needs our support to continue with its unique brand of radio, as does the new 88.7 operated by Hamptons Community Radio.

WPKN is currently asking for your support which can be given on line at www.wpkn.org or on Wednesday May 26 by calling 203-384-9756.

Peter Bochan, the general manager of WPKN says:

“Over the past few years, several eastern Long Islanders have been involved in developing local programming for this market. But ultimately a business decision was made by our station membership to concentrate on WPKN’s most immediate community and the geographic reach of our 89.5 signal out of Bridgeport that already covers large swaths of Suffolk County, Long Island including the North Fork and the Hamptons"

"We hope to direct any listeners affected by the loss of WPKM to alternative methods of obtaining our programming, including steering them to our internet stream, or by providing information on low-cost internet radios, which we could provide to our most loyal donors.”

Mr. Bochan can be reached at 203-331-9756

More info about the new Hamptons Community Radio can be found at www.hamptonscommunityradio.org.

______________________
* WPKN 89.5 FM airs Tidings from Hazel Kahan, an interview series and East End Ink, a literary review and the Eastern Long Island Arts Calendar. Also folk signers Caroline Doctorow and Mick Hargreaves are heard on the monthly Songtrails Radio Hour. Scheduling at WPKN is under revision. See the program web sites for times and dates as they are announced.

May 13, 2010 UPDATED

2010-05-07T12:40:00.012-04:00

In this week's report (scroll down or click on links) :

* Don't Forget Horton Ave: Newsday story on flooding

from News Review - Riverhead: "Shirley Coverdale, a director of the Long Island Organizing Network, is hoping to spread the word to anyone affected by last month's monster rain storm to report their damages to the town and county."

* Psychotherapist Analyzes Israel: Tidings from Hazel Kahan on WPKN Radio

* From Our Inbox: Stop Assault on Our Border Wildlands!

* Your Local Food Pantry Needs Your Help

* Poets for Haiti: help them raise funds to re-build Port-au-Prince library.

* Jim Henry (Submerging Markets) Report from Haiti

* More from Jim Henry - Haiti Live Blog

Three months after the January 12th earthquake, you've still got at least 1.5 mm people "living" in Port au Prince, the capital city, in crowded camps of tents and makeshift shacks. Hurricane season in Haiti is June-November, and NOAA, the US weather agency, says there could be multiple Caribbean hurricanes this year alone.

* Recommended Reading:

Tikkun Daily: Native Nations on Racial Profiling in Arizona

If Liberman's Anti-Terror Law Becomes Law - Times Square Bomb Will Have Worked

* Mummia Abu Jamal Commentary: Anniversary of MOVE Bombing 25 years ago Police Bombed Citizens in Philadelphia
________________________________________

On Saturday April 10, Kathy Engel and the group Poets for Ayiti read their work at Canio's Books, Sag Harbor. Their chapbook Poems for Haiti: For the Crowns of Your Heads is available with proceeds going to help restore the
Bibliotheque du Soleil in Port-Au-Prince.

See the Poets for Ayiti blog-click here

___________________________________________________
The Commitee for Peace in Israel/Palestine has launched a new educational web site / blog

The blog presents the facts on the ground as viewed by leading journalists and academics who advocate for a just solution to the ongoing conflict betwen

Israel and Palestine.

Featured on the blog now are articles by Israeli-American professor Bernard Avishai: "the occupation is ruining our lives" and mid-east correspondent of the Independent (UK)

Robert Fisk : "Both the United States and Europe stand idly by while the Israeli government effectively destroys any hope of a Palestinian state; destroying the last chance for peace"

Also featured is an analysis of the recent speech by US General David Petraeus who says Israel's policies foment anti-American sentiment and terrorism.

_________________________________________

Ordinary Injustice: Jim Henry looks at the U.S. criminal (in)justice system and recommends the book "Ordinary Injustice" by Amy Bach

___________________________________________________

Email subscribers: To un-subscribe reply with "Don't Send" in the subject line.

Send comments / corrections to eastendreport@yahoo.com

IN OUR INBOX: Stop Assault on border wildlands!

2010-05-07T06:01:00.001-04:00

From: Dan Millis <dan.millis@sierraclub.org>
Subject: [ACTNET-BORDERLANDS-ALERTS] Help stop Cinco de Mayo assault on border wildlands!
To: ACTNET-BORDERLANDS-ALERTS@LISTS.SIERRACLUB.ORG
Date: Wednesday, May 5, 2010, 5:13 PM

Extremist Republican Senator Jim DeMint of South Carolina is trying to impose his will on our borderlands!

Today DeMint called for 700 miles of double-layer, federal penitentiary-style border wall to be added to the financial reform bill. This would mean construction of another 1,019 miles of 15-foot tall steel that would block wildlife, cause flooding and wreak environmental havoc across the Southwest!

Write your Senators today, and tell them:

* We already spent $3.4 billion to build 645 miles of border barriers and walls.
* Border walls have proven costly, ineffective and harmful to border communities and wildlife.

Click here to find out how your Senators voted last time DeMint tried this malicious trick. Thank or spank your Senators!

http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=111&session=1&vote=00220

Below is a link to a news story about this "DeMinted" Cinco de Mayo amendment:

http://washingtonindependent.com/84088/jim-demint-wants-to-finish-mexican-border-fence-as-part-of-finreg-bill

Thank you for caring about the border,

--
Dan Millis
Borderlands Campaign, Sierra Club
738 N. 5th Ave. #214
Tucson, AZ 85705
(520) 620-6401
dan.millis@sierraclub.org
www.arizona.sierraclub.org/conservation/border

Horton Ave. Needs Help: Meeting Saturday May 8 at 1st Baptist Church Riverhead

2010-05-06T21:31:00.001-04:00

How would you like your neighborhood to look like this? <-- click here

Don’t let our historic Suffolk neighborhoods go down the drain because of bureaucratic indifference. If the picture makes your heart sink, join us and our elected officials to make certain that Long Islanders don’t get the short end of the stick.

WHERE:
First Baptist Church of Riverhead
1018 Northville Turnpike
Riverhead, NY 11901 (631) 727-3446

WHEN: Saturday May 8, 2010 at 9:00 am

CONTACT: Evangelist Linda Hobson 631-431-4104 or Emma Kimble 631-727-1435

The church is located just north of Rte 58 on Northville Turnpike (Route 43)

The event is open to the public. Admission is free.

Light refreshments will be served so please call to confirm your attendance.

The following public officials are being requested to participate:

Senator Charles Schumer, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, Congressman Timothy Bishop,
State Senator Kenneth LaValle, Assemblyman Marc Alessi, County Executive Steve Levy, Legislator Ed Romaine, Riverhead Supervisor Sean Walter Southampton Supervisor Anna Throne-Holst, Riverhead Councilpersons John Dunleavy, George Gabrielsen, Jodi Giglio, & James Wooten

________________________________________________________________

Shinnecock Nation Cultural Center and Museum Opens “Garments of Ritual: Native Traditional and Contemporary Regalia”

2010-05-06T21:22:00.001-04:00

The Shinnecock Nation Cultural Center and Museum will open a new exhibit, “Garments of Ritual: Native Traditional and Contemporary Regalia,” a show that explores the cultural expression and tradition of ritual garment use. A small representative selection of men, women, and children’s antique and contemporary dress clothing of the Shinnecock and other Native American nations will be on view at the museum from Saturday May 8 through June 8.

Some complete clothing sets have been donated for the exhibit by members of the Shinnecock Reservation community, while others are assembled from various indigenous groups from other parts of North America produced during the late 19th and early-20th centuries. Each piece is accompanied by a description about the owner and some history about the regalia.

A reception will be held on Saturday, May 8 from 4 to 6 p.m.

The Museum is located at 100 (Old) Montauk Highway at West Gate Road, west of Southampton Village.

Comprehensive Immigration Reform - ACLU Has Reservations

2010-05-06T20:45:00.003-04:00

A number of Long Island residents rallied in support of Comprehensive Immigration Reform in Hempstead, East Hampton and Southampton on Long Island last weekend. Some of them were concerned about immigration bills introduced by New York Senator Charles Schumer, New Jersey Senator Robert Menendez and Senator Majority Leader Harry Reid.

Andrea Callan of the Suffolk County New York Chapter of the A.C.L.U. says her organization has a problem with the proposed national ID cards.

Ms. Callan told the Southampton rally

"Senator Schumer has introduced a bill including a requirement for all workers to carry a bio-metric ID card. This requires everyone to go to a government office to have their retina or other body part scanned. They will need to carry the card to get a job and to go to work. President Obama has a pretty good sense of the need for privacy and security but what will happen when the next "Bush Era" comes along and they want to expand this program to things that were not intended... I live in an apartment complex and I will have to have the card scanned to get in the gate? "

Callan says the ACLU does support a path for immigrant citizenship, but there should be due process in immigration court and a halt to local enforcement of immigration law.

__________________

from a WPKN Radio News report May 5.

WPKN Radio 88.7 Montauk, 89.5 Bridgeport

Katrina in Riverhead? Horton Avenue Needs Help

2010-04-22T08:26:00.003-04:00

Click on image above to enlarge

SNCC at 50: Eastern LI NAACP Members at 50th Reunion of Student Non Violent Coordinating Committee

2010-04-21T09:25:00.002-04:00

Eastern LI NAACP members Bob Zellner, Lucius Ware and Lisa Votino-Tarrant were in Raleigh NC last weekend for the 50th Reunion Conference of SNCC. Zellner was the first field secretary of the grass roots civil rights organization founded in March 1960 in Raleigh, NC.

Ms. Votino-Tarrant brought back recordings of some of the proceedings. A talk by John Lewis a founding member of SNCC and now a US Congressman representing the Atlanta, GA area was broadcast Wednesday April 21 at 12:30 pm on WPKN Radio (88.7 Montauk/89,5 Bridgeport).

from the WPKN Radio broadcast and information provided by the SNCC Reunion committee:

The Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee or “Snick” emerged from the student sit-ins that erupted in February 1960 in Greensboro, North Carolina. Although just four students launched these sit-ins, within two months thousands of students across the south were engaged in similar protests against racial segregation. On April 15, 1960, some 200 of these campus-based activists began meeting in Raleigh, North Carolina on the campus of what is now Shaw University and formed SNCC. In 1961, a handful of these activists committed to full-time work in the southern civil rights struggle. They worked in the most dangerous parts of the South to cultivate and reinforce the local leadership.

On the weekend of April 16 to 18, 2010, SNCC veterans of the struggle met again in Raleigh at a 50th reunion conference.

Here is a small portion of those proceedings.

Congressman John Lewis of Georgia was introduced by the Reverend David Forbes of the Christian Faith Baptist Church in Raleigh, a founding member of SNCC.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Link to audio here

More audio from the conference will be available in the near future.

Film Premier: WALKING WITH LIFE – THE BIRTH OF A HUMAN RIGHTS MOVEMENT IN AFRICA

2010-04-02T19:03:00.002-04:00

SAG HARBOR FILMMAKER PREMIERES DOCUMENTARY FILM

Sunday, April 11, 2-6pm

Bay Street Theatre, Sag Harbor, NY

$10 at the door

You must walk with life or you will be left behind.

Senegalese proverb

On Sunday, April 11^th, the public is invited to the premiere screening of Kenny Mann’s latest documentary film, WALKING WITH LIFE – THE BIRTH OF A HUMAN RIGHTS MOVEMENT IN AFRICA. The screening of the 40mn documentary will take place at Sag Harbor’s Bay Street Theatre. Doors open at 2pm. Preceding the screening, the Balafon Band from Senegal will play traditional Senegalese music on stage. The screening will start at approximately 3pm, followed by a Q and A. The afternoon continues with a reception, dancing and 50/50 raffle. Tickets are $10 at the door only.

WATCH THE TRAILER AT:

http://www.rafikiproductions.com/films_walking_with_life.html

Whisked from the placid villages of the Casamance to the harsh desert of the Fouta and the teeming streets of Dakar, viewers of WALKING WITH LIFE become eye-witnesses to the empowerment of people through human rights education.

Since 2006, Kenny Mann has been traveling to Senegal to document the work of the award-winning NGO known as Tostan, with headquarters in Dakar. The word “Tostan” is from the Wolof and means “breakthrough” or “the hatching of an egg.” Founded by Executive Director Molly Melching, an American who has lived and worked in Senegal for over 30 years, Tostan uses African dance, theatre, song and poetry to lead the largely illiterate Muslim population toward their own understanding of democracy and human rights. Once people understand that their human rights are included in their country’s constitution, they realize that they can make demands of their government, as well as improve their own lives and that of their home communities.

The most dramatic outcome of the program is the decision by women to abandon the customs of female genital cutting and forced early marriage – both violations of the human rights to good health and to a life free of discrimination. Their public declarations are held before the media, government officials, donors, villagers, religious leaders, and participants from Mali, Burkina Fasso, Mauritania and Guinea. Accompanied by the dynamic music of traditional drummers and dancers, they are a thrilling testament to the power of the exploding human rights movement in West Africa.

WALKING WITH LIFE illustrates how Tostan’s staff – which is 99% African – builds partnerships with local religious, political and community leaders, forming community management committees whose decisions are based on the human rights framework. Health, hygiene, girls’ education, citizenship and environmental issues are commonly addressed.

“I was born and raised in Kenya, where both my parents were deeply involved in ‘development aid,’ says Ms. Mann. “I saw so many well-intentioned programs flounder because they just didn’t understand African culture, and I had many questions about aid efforts in general.” Ms. Mann decided to document Tostan’s work because, as she claims, it works. “I believe that Tostan has found a way to form true partnerships that transcend ethnic, racial and international boundaries.”

WALKING WITH LIFE is the umbrella title for three related documentaries, all available on one DVD. The second film, titled TOSTAN: BUILDING PARTNERSHIPS THROUGH HUMAN RIGHTS EDUCATION, reveals Tostan’s profound philosophy after more than 30 years in the field in West Africa. The Third film, HUMAN RIGHTS CITIES: Paths To Peace, documents the formation of cities around the world that pledge to run all aspects of city government within the human rights framework. The process is documented in Thiess, Senegal (Tostan) and Washington, DC – the first Human Rights City in the USA (American Friends Service Committee).

The trailer for WALKING WITH can be viewed at www.rafikiproductions.com/films_walking_with_life.html

For further information, please call Kenny Mann, 646 479-5884 or 631 725-2620.

East End Report

Two searingly honest essays from the Martin Luther King Jr. Day Writing Awards: Blunt talk from two juniors at Winchester Thurston: Erika Drain rejects that she's 'not black enough'; and Jesse Lieberfeld is no 'ideal nice Jewish boy' when it comes to Israeli policy.

Benjamin Todd Jealous:Uphold Voting Rights

December events

EAST END FOOD PANTRIES NEED OUR HELP:

As always our local food pantries need help with the ever increasing demand from those who just can’t afford to feed their families. Here is a list of local food pantries:

Montauk: Montauk Food Pantry at St Therese of Lisieux, 55 South Etna Avenue

East Hampton / Amagansett: East Hampton Food Pantry, www.easthamptonfoodpantry.org 631-324-7195, 219-50 Accabonac Road East Hampton Food Pantry hours: Tuesdays 2–6 pm Amagansett Satellite hours: Tuesdays 4–6 pm

Sag Harbor: Sag Harbor Food Pantry: Old Whalers (First Presby.) Church – 44 Union St. 631-725-0437 provides basic provisions 10:30am-1pm Tuesdays – Donations accepted at the Church.

Bridgehampton: Bridgehampton Child Care and Recreational Center – 551 Sag Harbor Turnpike, 631-537-0616

Southampton: Human Resources at Sacred Heart Church, 168 Hill St. 631-283-6415

Island Wide: Island Harvest with HQ in Nassau County is looking for East End Volunteers. They supply local food pantries. www.islandharvest.volunteerhub.com to register and help with local food collection/distribution.

also: Long Island Cares/ The Harry Chapin Food Bank: http://www.licares.org/

Hayground Forum: Bread and Poetry

March & Rally to Protect Voting Rights - Saturday Dec. 10

December 10 - Winter Fest at Shinnecock Museum

Right Wing Radio Duck

Bill McNulty: some questions

Week of February 17, 2011

On Sunday February 27 the Eastern Long Island Branch of the NAACP presents an Afro-American Art and History program at the Riverhead Library, 333 Court Street Riverhead.

Featuring African American literature with Carol Spencer and historical memorabilia with Carol Gordon displaying some of her extensive collection and more.

At 3PM Ms. Bonnie Cannon, Director of the Bridgehampton Childcare and Recreational Center and a Southampton Village Trustee will speak about the East End African American Museum in Southampton and preserving our past, present and future.

Artists' work will be on display from 1PM to 5PM.

Also Art by black artists Brent Bailer, Sheila Batiste, Nancy Brandon, Maxine Townsend-Broderick and Reynold Ruffins will be on view from 12 pm - 4 pm each day in February.

Black History Month Events

Also Art by black artists Brent Bailer, Sheila Batiste, Nancy Brandon, Maxine Townsend-Broderick and Reynold Ruffins will be on view from 12 pm - 4 pm each day in February.

_________________________________________________

On Sunday February 27 the Eastern Long Island Branch of the NAACP presents an Afro-American Art and History program at the Riverhead Library, 333 Court Street Riverhead.

Featuring African American literature with Carol Spencer and historical memorabilia with Carol Gordon displaying some of her extensive collection and more.

At 3PM Ms. Bonnie Cannon, Director of the Bridgehampton Childcare and Recreational Center and a Southampton Village Trustee will speak about the East End African American Museum - preserving our past, present and future. The museum is in Southampton.

Artists' work will be on display from 1PM to 5PM.

Ken Dorph: The View from the Arab World

Week of January 13, 2011

from WPKN Radio News Jan 14: Congressman Bishop Will Continue Public Meetings

CITIES OF PEACE FESTIVAL: DREAMING PEACE

Friday Jan 14: "Coming Together for Civility" - Invitation from Anna Throne-Holst

Bob Zellner: Violence in Arizona and the South

Martin Luther King Day Observances

Winter in the Holy Land

from Senator Bernie Sanders (Ind. VT):

Friday December 10: Lyrical Democracies - Poetry with Alexis De Veaux and Kathy Engel

A Conversation With Elizabeth Haile, Rev. Holly Haile Davis and Rev. Alison Cornish

EAST END FOOD PANTRIES NEED OUR HELP:

Week of November 18

Week of November 11 - Veterans Day

WPKN Radio News: Suffolk County & NY State Election Results

October 30, at 7 PM, Dr. Danielle Ofri will talk about "Medicine in Translation: Journeys with My Patients:

October 23: The CAPOTE Black & White HIKE

October 9: Caroline Doctorow & Mick Hargreaves in Concert for WPKN

WPKN presents Caroline Doctorow and the Steamrollers

with a solo appearance by Mick Hargreaves

Saturday, October 9 at 8pm

Jeff’s Kitchen at the Hayground School

151 Mitchell Lane, Bridgehampton.

A benefit forlistener-supported WPKN Radio

Tickets $25 at the door.

Reserve at rootsmusicfest@gmail.com

or call 631-259-2482

Caroline Doctorow:

Mick Hargreaves:

Listener Supported WPKN at 89.5 FM

Letter to Southampton Press: Cigarette Tax Is Destructive and Will Not Work

Pat Young: Suffolk Congressional Race Has Anti-Immigrant Overtones

Cowboys and Indians - Where is the Outrage?

Artists United for Haiti

August 21: Gulf Coast to East Coast - Benefit for Young Peoples Project

“The Young People Speak: Coast to Coast” Sunday August 22

The Hot 8 Brass Band from New Orleans will be featured at a Musical Rally,

“The Young People Speak: Coast to Coast”

at the Hayground School, 151 Mitchell Lane in Bridgehamptonon Sunday , August 22 from 3 to 7 pm.

Also featured are Brother Josephus and the Love Revival Revolution Orchestraand many local musicians including:

The Thunder Bird Sisters of Shinnecock,

The Glazzies band and DJ Vibe

plus Black Men of Labor, Urban Bush Women and many more.

Local people from different communities will read selectionsfrom Howard Zinn’s Voices of A People’s History of the United States and reflect onthe five year anniversary of Katrina, the Gulf oil spill and local issues.

A $10 donation is suggested.

The Young People Speak: Coast to Coast: a Musical Rallywill be at the Hayground School, 151 Mitchell Lane in Bridgehamptonfrom 3 to 7 pm on Sunday, August 22.

Saturday July 31: SHINNECOCK MUSEUM’S STRAWBERRY MOON HARVEST FESTIVAL,

Federal Judge Limits Delay on Shinnecock Recognition

Monday July 5: Tea Party at Southampton Independence Day Parade?

at the Hayground School, 151 Mitchell Lane in Bridgehampton
on Sunday , August 22 from 3 to 7 pm.

Also featured are Brother Josephus and the Love Revival Revolution Orchestra
and many local musicians including:

Local people from different communities will read selections
from Howard Zinn’s Voices of A People’s History of the United States and reflect on
the five year anniversary of Katrina, the Gulf oil spill and local issues.

The Young People Speak: Coast to Coast: a Musical Rally
will be at the Hayground School, 151 Mitchell Lane in Bridgehampton
from 3 to 7 pm on Sunday, August 22.