This is the Grand Rapids Activist Calendar mailing for 11/29. For more information on any of the events listed below, go to http://calendar.diygr.org..
This calendar depends on you, so please add events and “like” us on Facebook.
Activist Skills Workshop
November 30th 2011, 7:00 pm at WMEAC Building
Do you want to be able to effectively involve people in your campaign or cause? How about get media to cover your issue and events?
Come to the activist training workshop to learn principles and tips on how to run effective meetings to activate attendees and work with the media to bring attention to your issue and events.
Questions: jane@greencorps.org or call 616-920-1940
World AIDS Day @ GVSU
December 1st 2011, 4:00 pm at GVSU – Eberhard Center
Join us to explore the intersection of HIV/AIDS, the criminal justice system, addiction, harm reduction and social justice, with Todd Heywood and Pamela Lynch.
Todd Heywood is an investigative reporter based in Lansing, Michigan. Todd runs the personal blog TheConversationStartsHere.net, and works full-time for the American Independent News Network. His work appears on MichiganMessenger.com. He is HIV-positive and openly gay.
Pamela Lynch is a nationally respected leader in the practice and principles of Harm Reduction theory. Pam has been influential in the establishment of several syringe access programs right here in the state of Michigan. Over the past fifteen years Pam’s dedication to the practice of Harm Reduction has brought her to programs in Chicago, IL, Detroit, MI, New York, NY, and Newark, NJ. Pam lives in Traverse City, MI, and tirelessly advocates for the rights of people who use drugs on a local, statewide and national level.
IGE Talks- Occupy Wall Street: What’s the Best that Could Happen?
December 1st 2011, 7:00 pm at Institute for Global Education
On December 1st, the IGE will have an open house from 4-7 p.m. with cider, cookies and coffee provided. Following our open house, IGE Talks will commence at 7:15 p.m. We will continue our discussion of the Occupy Movement. IGE Talks is a program where everyone’s voice is welcome. We invite the public to this open forum for discussion to share ideas and viewpoints. IGE Talks is filmed and broadcast online and on a local public station.
Change U: Social Justice Training
November 28th 2011, 12:00 am at GVSU – Kirkhof Center
Change U: Change the World
Grand Valley State University students, faculty, staff as well as community members in West Michigan are invited to apply to participate in this social justice training series. The purpose of Change U is to further strengthen social justice movements on and off campus by fostering cross-issue, intergenerational, and diverse partnerships between the GVSU community and social justice efforts throughout the area. Change U will look at how issues such as racial and economic justice intersect with issues such as gender and disability justice. Participants will have the opportunity to learn concrete skills and strategies they can use as they pursue their passion to change the world.
ENROLL IN THE REVOLUTION!
For an application, please visit
www.gvsu.edu/socialjustice
*There is no application dealine at this time, however space is limited, so don’t miss out!
What do you do when you are summoned before a Grand Jury?
December 3rd 2011, 1:00 pm at The Bloom Collective
Join us for a lively discussion about the political function of a Grand Jury in State Repression, with historic and contemporary examples. The discussion will present Know Your Rights information and ways that we can collectively resist the political use of Grand Juries.
Bring a dish to pass. The Bloom Collective will provide vegan options.
Healthy Holiday Cookie Bake-in
December 3rd 2011, 3:00 pm at Sherman St. Church
Free!
* Learn to bake gluten-free, sugar-free, vegan and traditional holiday cookies from scratch.
* Bring containers to bring your cookies home.
* Learn about OKT’s yard, container, community and communal gardening programs.
A portion of our cookies will be donated to a local organization serving people with challenges around food.
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Our Kitchen Table is a non-profit, grassroots community activist organization working for environmental justice and food security in Grand Rapids area urban communities.
Occupy Grand Rapids – Saturday Rally at Monument Park
December 3rd 2011, 12:00 pm at Monument Park
Stand in solidarity with the demonstrators on Wall Street and the other 99%. This world ain’t gonna fix itself and the government doesn’t seem very interested in doing so either. So let’s get together and see what we can come up with.
We all speak for ourselves but are united by a common cause.
SPEAK OUTS, WORKSHOPS, DISCUSSION GROUPS, PROTEST, MARCH and sooooooo much more.
Anyone interested in being on stack for a speak out or doing a workshop…please comment below, message one of the hosts(left bar), or better yet tell someone at FSC base camp your plans and hopefully we can hash out the details ahead of time.
Amnesty International- GR Local Group Meeting
December 5th 2011, 7:00 pm at Common Ground Coffee House
With over 3.5 million members, Amnesty International is the worlds largest human rights watch group. Our GR Local Group meets on the first Monday of each month to discuss human rights issues and plan events to raise community awareness. Meetings are open to the public and all are invited to attend
Leading A Bold Life: That Takes Ovaries! Reading and Open Mic
December 5th 2011, 6:00 pm at GVSU – Cook DeWitt Center
Join That Takes Ovaries! co-playwright Bobbi Ausubel for a FREE sneak peak of the play before the performances in February!
Bobbi Ausubel is a contributor to the That Takes Ovaries book, co-playwright of That Takes Ovaries play and Artistic Director of the organization. She leads TTO women’s empowerment events all across the U.S. and internationally, including Latin America, Africa and Asia. She uses the TTO model of empowerment in India and along the Nepal-India border to help women and girls in prostitution, including those that have been forced into the sex slave trade. Bobbi was a leader in the Second Wave of the Women’s Movement; she is featured in the book Feminist Who Changed America. She brings with her the unique perspective of someone who was active in the evolution of the U.S. women’s movement over the last few decades.
Privilege & Power: Art Activism
December 6th 2011, 8:00 pm at GVSU – Kirkhof Center
Pleases come join us on December 6th, from 8:00-9:30 pm in KC RM 2204 Pere Marquette to explore the topics of white-privilege, privilege and power in the form of art. The exhibition will consist of multiple mediums (quilting, pottery, poems etc.). There will be light refreshments and plenty to see and discuss. The art was created by local GV students and a few Traverse City residents of varying race, background, location, gender, class, and sexual orientation. Please come and think critically of privilege, power and oppression with us. Come see how others experience, express, and think about privilege and power and reflect on your experiences.
Marital Rights Demonstration
December 7th 2011, 12:30 pm at Fountain Street Church
The Revs. Fred Wooden and Matthew Cockrum will be joined by Fountain Streeters and Friends at Rosa Park Circle, from 12:15-12:45 p.m., on December 7th, to demonstrate in support of marital rights. Come join them, bring your rainbows and signs, and spend some time as an advocate and visible presence! If you are interested in receiving e-mail reminders, correspondence, etc., please e-mail Kim Jordan in the Church Office at kjordan@fountainstreet.org.
Screening of “Not in Our Town: Light in the Darkness”
December 7th 2011, 5:30 pm at GRCC – ATC Auditorium
“Not in Our Town: Light in the Darkness,” which premiered in September on PBS nationwide, is a one-hour documentary about how in 2008 a town in New York State came together in a collective response to a series of devastating acts of anti-immigration violence. Following the murder of a 13-year resident (an immigrant from Ecuador), the residents of Patchogue proclaimed “enough is enough.” This documentary follows not only the response to tragedy, but more so, the transformation of a community.
Three years later, “Not in our Town” has become a movement, spurring conversations, action plans and new alliances in cities and towns across the country. On December 7th, the conversation will launch here in Grand Rapids. No less than a dozen local organizations and groups have joined together to organize, promote and host a free screening of the documentary, followed by a facilitated discussion.
Ryan Harvey
December 10th 2011, 7:00 pm at The DAAC
Fresh from two and a half months in the U.S. and Europe, I will be hitting up the Midwest in early December with my new album Ordinray Heroes, a collaborative album with violinist/journalist/documentarian Michael Fox.
The recording, dedicated to historian and activist Howard Zinn, emphasizes and celebrates social movements as a means of overcoming injustice.
“Ryan has been writing and performing hard-hitting political folk songs for over ten years. A part of the Riot-Folk Collective, his music is aimed to support those working for positive change and to educate people about issues of peace and social & economic justice.”
Sponsored by The Bloom Collective. Admission $6 – $10 (no one turned away)
TEAMwork: A Night of Dance and Drag for Diversity
December 10th 2011, 8:00 pm at The Pyramid Scheme
Tickets:
http://www.ticketweb.com/fb/4098465
Price:
$5.00
Additional Info:
Doors at 8, Show at 9
Fundraiser with Silent Auction and an amazing musical line up! Drag Show performances by Britney Storm (the hostess), Dalylah Desmond, Ariez Iman, Kaurora Fox, and Others!
Suggested $5 donation at the door to benefit T.E.A.M.
TEAM is a tax-exempt non-profit human rights organization that seeks to eradicate discrimination against those of different races or sexual orientations. TEAM’s mission is that a 21st century human rights agenda begins with the creation of environments of diversity, inclusion, and acceptance.
TEAM’s Slogan: Where EVERYONE is Welcome!
A People’s History of the LGBTQ Community in Grand Rapids
January 8th 2012, 6:00 pm at Plymouth UCC
Following the model of radical historian Howard Zinn, this project involves the documentation of the history of the LGBTQ movement in West Michigan. By doing interviews and collecting archival material, this project has produced a documentary film and an online archive of material about the struggle for equality and justice by the LGBTQ community in West Michigan. The screenings of “A People’s History of the LGBTQ Community in Grand Rapids” will allow for continuing dialogue about the LGBTQ movement and provide a forum for current and future organizing. This is a project of the Grand Rapids Institute for Information Democracy. The LGBT Resource Center is proud to be a co-sponsor along with GVSU’s Kutsche Office of Local History.
Compassion in Fashion – Second Annual!
January 14th 2012, 8:00 pm at GVSU – Kirkhof Center
Humane Society of Grand Valley and GV Fashion Club are excited to announce the second annual Compassion in Fashion show!
This year’s show will once again feature a cat walk of clothing and accessories made exclusively from non-animal sources (no fur, leather, wool, silk) as offered by local businesses and original pieces from the GV Fashion Club.
Info tables abound!
Our speaker this year is Jill Fritz, Michigan State Director for Humane Society of the United States. She will be speaking about the practice of using animals for cosmetic testing purposes, and what this means for us as consumers. There will also be time to ask questions, and speak with her one-on-one.
We will once again have a raffle of wonderful items from local businesses, and we have added a silent auction as well! All proceeds will benefit West Michigan Critter Haven and Kent County Animal Shelter.
Naomi Wolf
March 14th 2012, 7:00 pm at Fountain Street Church
Author of seven books, including the New York Times best seller The Beauty Myth, Naomi Wolf focuses on gender equality, pervasive inequities in
society and politics, the defense of liberty in America and internationally, and body image. She is the cofounder of the Woodhull Institute for Ethical
Leadership, which teaches ethics and empowerment to young women leaders. In Give Me Liberty: A Handbook for American Revolutionaries, Wolf argues that
breathtaking changes take place when ordinary citizens engage in the democratic system the way the founders intended, through civic engagement.
Lakeshore Region Summit on Race & Inclusion
June 5th 2012, 7:30 am at Hope College
The Lakeshore Region Summit on Race & Inclusion gathers hundreds of individuals to a day-long conference focused on the effects of racism and designed to stimulate a year of action. Join us to learn from nationally-recognized experts in the field and best practices that contribute to creating a vibrant, inclusive region.
