Saturday, January 31st, 2-4 PM, UT Campus, Garrison 0.102 (Intersection of 22nd Street and Inner Campus Drive, next to the UT Tower) The Palestine Solidarity Committee and Austin Coalition for Gaza present a teach-in on Palestine. Short lectures followed by Q&A and group discussion: Life in Gaza: Joe Carr, peace activist with the International Solidarity Movement, in Gaza from 2003 Radwan Dalu, Gaza-born American to talk about life in Gaza from a personal perspective History of the Peace Process and … Continue reading →

Jan. 31 – Feb. 1 ChinaTown Austin The free public festival kicks off on Saturday, January 31, 2009 at 11am and carries into the afternoon; the fun continues at Noon on Sunday, February 1st with the Texas Dragon and Lion Dance Team and Summit Dragon Dance celebrating with firecrackers at the Chinatown Center pagoda.

Thursday, January 29, 7:00 PM, UT Campus, Parlin 306 (Northwest corner of the South Mall, the grassy area south of the UT Tower) SOCIALIST STRATEGIES FOR WINNING RADICAL CHANGE: Amid great hope and expectations for change, Barack Obama is set to take office this month. He will take the reins of wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, a growing crisis of genocidal proportions in Palestine, and the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression. More than ever, a majority of Americans … Continue reading →

Execution Vigil, 5:30-6:30pm, 11th and Congress, in front of Capitol According to the official account by the Texas Attorney General, two men were held in Texas as cellmates while one cellmate was scheduled to testify against the other. Then a lethal dose of heroin got into that cell, along with syringe. . . .

Wednesday, January 28, 7:00 PM, UT campus, Parlin Hall, room TBA Campaign to End the Death Penalty spring semester introductory meeting. Come learn about how to organize against the death penalty. Pizza and soda will be served. More info: CEDPaustin@gmail.com

Execution Vigil, 5:30-6:30, 11th & Congress, in front of Capitol The case against Martinez was remanded in 2005 to federal magistrate judge John Froeschner in Galveston. In a decision issued that November, Froeschner said the epilepsy could have been used as an explanation for Martinez’s crime and a jury might have decided on a different sentence if it had heard more evidence. See Brazoria Facts Article from 2006 and coverage of the execution

EDITORIAL U.S. Court stops execution that Texas courts wouldn’t Experts believe condemned man Swearingen could not have committed the murder. Execution Vigil CANCELLED We the undersigned are writing and signing this petition on behalf of death row prisoner Larry Swearingen, #999361, Polunsky Unit, TX. Larry is scheduled to be executed on January 27, 2009 for a murder he did not commit. He was in Jail while the murder in this case occured and the DNA (blood and hairs) excluded him … Continue reading →

Sunday, January 25, 6 p.m. St. Andrews Presbyterian Church, 14311 Wells Port Drive, west of I-35 off Wells Branch Parkway Raj Patel’s newest book, Stuffed and Starved: Markets, Power and the Hidden Battle for the World’s Food System, addresses a perverse fact: of the roughly 6.5 billion humans alive today 800 million are starving and 1 billion are overweight. To find out how we got to this point and what we can do about it, Patel launched a comprehensive investigation … Continue reading →

MLK Keynote Address, 6:30 p.m. (Doors open at 6:00 p.m.), Saturday, January 24, 2009, St. James Missionary Baptist Church, 3417 E Martin L King Jr Blvd Ticket Info

Saturday, January 24, 3:00 PM — gather for march at Travis Co. DA’s office (11th St. and Lavaca). Rally at Austin City Hall (Cesar Chavez and Lavaca) starts at 3:45 PM. Several years ago, four teenage girls were murdered in an Austin area yogurt shop. Eight years later, four young men were indicted for the murders. With no physical evidence, Robert Springsteen was sent to death row and Michael Scott given life. The two other men were not even taken … Continue reading →

18 December, 2008- 24 January, 2009, d berman gallery, 1701 Guadalupe St., Austin Each morning I sit down in my lovely porch with fresh fruit, wholesome toast, and fragrant tea. I open the New York Times and the day begins. The juxtaposition of reading about the war in Iraq and my personal surroundings are very difficult to reconcile. Like many of us in this place of reasonable security, I read, I become angry, I feel helpless, I cry. The parts … Continue reading →

Friday, January 23, 8 p.m., Monkey Wrench Books, 110 E. North Loop This documentary focuses on one refugee family trying to cope with the hardships of the Israeli occupation. Already poor, the family has reached a breaking point, and wonders how long life can go on with no solution in sight. The role of the international community is also examined.

Rob Atkinson, a leader of the Student Peace Alliance for the Campaign for a US Department of Peace and Non-Violence was killed recently in an tragic accident in Georgetown while attending Southwestern. I worked closely with Rob on the past two annual Walks for Peace we hosted in Austin as well as spoke at several events with Rob. When my own doubts arose about the viability of a Dept of Peace, it was Rob, at half my age, whom I … Continue reading →

Thursday, January 22, 7 – 9 p.m. St. Andrews Presbyterian Church, 14311 Wells Port Drive, west of I-35 off Wells Branch Parkway Documentary and Discussion on Health Care Policy: A panel of doctors and other health care professionals will screen a documentary and lead a discussion on health care reform here in the United States, where despite spending twice as much per capita we rank among the worst developed countries in infant mortality and life expectancy. The documentary and discussion … Continue reading →

Jan. 22, 2009: 5:30 pm – 6:30 pm Vigil at Congress and 11th St. (in front of capitol) Mr. Perkins has a very low IQ which is the sign of diminished intelligence; he met the definition of a retarded person following the conclusion of an achievement test before he reached the age of 18. There has been unfairness of the process of evaluating his claim of mental retardation and a failure of his defense attorneys and the courts to accept … Continue reading →

Jan. 21, 5:30 – 6:30 pm, Congress and 11th Street (in front of the Capitol) Frank Moore?s actions in 1994 were in self defense. Testimony against Mr. Moore by key witness Ms. Wallace was inconsistent with other testimony and concealed the whereabouts and relationship to other witness. Knowles Ray, who had key information as to the lead up to Mr. Moore?s act of self defense was never called to testify. Also, evidence of the criminal history of the witnesses was … Continue reading →

Wednesday, January 21, 12:00 – 1:30 PM, In front of ICE Building, 8940 Fourwinds Dr., San Antonio (Caravan / carpool from Austin leaves from PODER office, 2604 E. Cesar Chavez St at 10 AM) End family detention, immigration raids, Operation Streamline, construction of border wall, and ICE-local law enforcement collaboration! Obama stated last June: “Ultimately, the danger to the American way of life is not that we will be overrun by those who do not look like us or do … Continue reading →

TUESDAY: 1) (Inauguration day) come join us at 21st and Guadalupe for the Permanent Peace Protest (new weekly location now that the semester has started) to let Obama know how we want him to conduct Middle East foreign policy. NEW WEEKLY LOCATION! THURSDAY: 2) This week only Thursday Permanent Peace Protest is moving to 5-6 pm in the Main Mall of the University of Texas; a counter-demo for Texans for Israeli rally at the same time and place! COME AND … Continue reading →

Dear friends, The Palestine Solidarity Committee implores you to participate in the vigils and rally this week expressing our solidarity with Gaza and demanding action by our government. Israel is acting criminally by choosing to take the lives of nearly 1000 Gazans, 275 of whom are children, rather than negotiate a political solution diplomatically. TUESDAY: 5:30-7:00pm, 11th and Congress in front of the capitol THURSDAY: 5:30-7:00pm, at the intersection of 6th and Lamar SATURDAY: 2:00-5:00pm on the front steps of … Continue reading →

The Crawford Peace House will be open from Saturday (Jan.. 17) through Tuesday (Jan. 20) to celebrate the inauguration of a new administration. There will be a house party on Tuesday in conjunction with Move-On. Please click on their link to sign up for the Tuesday event. Come help us: Ring out the old – literally from ground zero of the attack on democracy from the ‘Western White House’! And Celebrate the opportunity to reconstruct our Constitution. We have the … Continue reading →

Mon. Jan. 19 at 8 pm at MonkeyWrench Books, 110 E. North Loop. Want to REALLY Help the Troops? The Austin GI Rights Hotline, an all-volunteer anti-war group, is seeking new counselors to answer phone calls from members of the military in need of help with discharges, conscientious objection, AWOL problems, sexual harassment, medical issues, etc. If you are interested in learning more about how you can join us, please attend the information session on Jan. 19. At the conclusion … Continue reading →

Monday, January 19, 2009: UT program starts at 9AM. Capitol program starts at 10AM. MLK Festival @ Huston- Tillotson immediately follows march To celebrate the national MLK day holiday, the Heritage Council is sponsoring the 2009 Community March. The purpose of this 16th annual Community March is to celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King’s legacy while uplifting diversity and multi-culturalism in our city. The 2009 MLK Community March kicks off at 9 a.m. with a short program at the MLK Statue … Continue reading →

Sunday, January 18th, starting at 5:00 p.m., Mother Egan’s Irish Pub, 715 W. 6th Street, Austin, TX Join CodePink Austin for a party to celebrate the end of the Bush Administration. See GEORGE THE SNAKE for the last time. Leave him a note (or a pair of shoes). Verbally abuse DICK CHENEY IN DRAG (or just dance with her). Just plan on joining us and have some fun! After 8 years of mistreatment, we all deserve it!

Sunday, January 18, 2009, 2pm, Austin Community College, 3401 Webberville Road, Building 8000, room 8500 As part of the 16th annual MLK Celebration, the MLK Youth Scholarship Awards will recognize high school students throughout Austin for significant accomplishments. At this years program, we will present the Applied Materials Youth Legacy Awards and the Seton Family of Hospitals MLK Youth Achievement Awards. For more information about this event, please contact Joya Hayes at 512-350-7786 or Brenda Burt at 512-475-7971.

Saturday, January 17, 2009, 6 to 12, Scholz Garten (inside), 1607 San Jacinto St, Austin (Free parking available at state parking lots near by) Live Music, Cash Bar, Scholz full menu available, Fun, Friends, $10 per person for a night of great fun. Any further donations to the United Way of Galveston Hurricane Ike Recovery will be greatly appreciated. Hosted by Ball High Graduates in Austin. Murray Lerner 512.589.7951 or Sally Hamilton 512.350.0035