Massachusetts Peace Action

While Iran Boils, Trump’s “Peace Plan” Threatens Palestinian Existence
2026-02-25 17:30 - 18:30 (America/New_York) | Online Event
US imperial intervention has denied Iranians and Palestinians self-determination for 75 years.
Coupled with an examination of the U.S./Israel/Iran crisis, Jeremy Scahill and Rami Khouri reveal how the president’s “board of peace” promises a new, dangerous and unaccountable stage of U.S./European/Israeli policy in the Middle East.
At this moment when Palestinian national existence hangs in the balance, there could be no better opportunity to understand the significance of stunning events now taking place in Gaza and the West Bank than hearing from these two expert journalists. Media coverage of the Palestinian crisis has dramatically shrunk since Trump announced his “Peace Plan” for Gaza, but every day Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza are killed, driven off their land, or die in large numbers when denied sufficient food, medical care and supplies needed to survive malnutrition and the elements. They will explain not just what is happening in Palestine but will examine the frightening realities of Israeli and U.S. policy that lay behind this next phase of the genocide.
Of special interest, they will examine President Trump’s “peace agreement” and the Board of Peace, headed by Trump himself, that his plan establishes. If the present is harsh, the future laid out in this peace agreement is truly ominous. Scahill and Khouri will examine in detail not just how this bizarre Trump agreement came about but the threat it poses to the very possibility of a Palestinian state. But you will also learn of the complex battle the Palestinian resistance is playing to keep Palestinian national rights alive. Jeremy Scahill has conducted extensive interviews for Drop Site News with Hamas officials and we will all benefit from his unique insights on how the Palestinian resistance views the present situation, what parts of the Trump plan they have agreed to and which they have not, and their strategies for addressing the threats Palestinians face in the present moment.
With the new understanding gained about the U.S./Israeli/Iran crisis, Palestinian realities, and Israeli and U.S. policies , viewers will become more confident in their understanding of what needs to be done in order to effectively step up the fight to prevent/stop war with Iran and their mobilization against genocide and in support of Palestinian human and national rights.
Jeremy Scahill, an award-winning journalist and expert on warfare, is co-founder of the investigative news organization Drop Site News. His investigative prowess has led to multiple recognitions, including the George Polk Award and the Izzy Award for Independent Media. Scahill is widely respected for his writing, particularly in areas related to war, security, and U.S. foreign policy. His extensive reporting from conflict zones such as Afghanistan, Iraq, Somalia, and Yemen has provided him with a wealth of real-world insight. These experiences strengthen his standing as one of the most knowledgeable speakers on war, security, and journalism in the country.
Rami George Khouri is a Palestinian-American journalist and editor. He was executive editor of the Beirut Daily Star newspaper from 2003 to 2005, and before that had been editor-in-chief of the Jordan Times for seven years, when he also wrote for many years from Amman, Jordan, for leading international publications, including the Financial Times, the Boston Globe, and the Washington Post. Rami was the founding director of the Issam Fares Institute for Public Policy and International Affairs (IFI) at the American University of Beirut (AUB) from 2006 to 2014. He has served on the advisory boards of the International Committee of the Red Cross, Harvard Divinity School, and Northwestern University in Qatar. His 50 years of journalism in the Arab region include writing books and an internationally syndicated column. He continues to author books and write analyses and op-eds for the international media.

Justice 4 All Thursdays
2026-02-26 11:00 - 13:00, 2026-03-05 11:00 - 13:00, 2026-03-12 11:00 - 13:00, 2026-03-19 11:00 - 13:00, 2026-03-26 11:00 - 13:00 | 1000 District Avenue Burlington, MA 01803 United States, 1000 District Avenue, Burlington, 01803, United States
Via Turn Purple 2 Blue:

Greater Assabet Indivisible Network (GAIN) invites you to stand in solidarity with immigrants and resistance to ICE and their cruel and lawless detention of our neighbors Thursdays from 11am-1pm. Regardless of any other political views, you are welcome to join us and demand Justice 4 All so long as you do so non-violently.
Our friends at Bearing Witness have been hosting gatherings at this location for many weeks. We are an unaffiliated group, but very much aligned with their values and mission. Our goal is to add to the total number of hours that citizens stand in non-violent opposition to the deplorable detainment conditions at this location. If you have been to Bearing Witness on Wednesdays, we would love to have you at Justice 4 All Thursdays.
Schedule (Starting Thursday, September 4 – more dates to follow)
11:00-11:30 Welcome; music; announcements
11:30-12:30 Stand with signs along District Ave
12:30-1:00 Optional short march down to Mall Rd.
What happens at this ICE office?
ICE personnel depart from District Ave. in unmarked vans with tinted windows on missions to abduct immigrants across New England. Immigrants may also show up at the office for appointments. The facility on District Ave was never intended to be a detention center, yet immigration lawyers and media interviews reveal that people are now being housed here in conditions that have been called “abysmal” and “unsanitary.”
What to expect at Justice 4 All?
We are committed to nonviolence, and we stand peacefully with signs outside the facility. We do not block the entrance, we do not physically approach ICE agents as they walk to/from the parking lot, and we do not block traffic on District Ave.
Signs
This is a very targeted action outside the ICE facility, so it’s not the venue for protesting other causes. Even though we care deeply about other issues, while outside ICE we must remain focused on immigration.
Parking and other tips
For parking, please use the Macy’s overflow lot (75 Burlington Mall Road, follow signs for Macy’s, see map). For those with mobility challenges, please keep in mind that the lots closest to ICE — the FAA lot beside ICE and the BAE Systems lot directly across the street from ICE — have both been blocked off. There are restaurants nearby (Clover, Pressed Cafe, Chipotle) to get food and use the bathroom. Before arriving, please consider your own self-preservation (citizenship status) and self-care (sunscreen, hydration, etc.)

No Fear with Street Theater
2026-02-28 11:00 - 13:00, 2026-03-07 11:00 - 13:00, 2026-03-14 11:00 - 13:00, 2026-03-21 11:00 - 13:00, 2026-03-28 11:00 - 13:00 | 1000 District Avenue Burlington, MA 01803 United States, 1000 District Avenue, Burlington, 01803, United States
Join the new protest group, “No Fear Street Theater” for weekly protests on Saturdays starting October 11th from 11am to 1pm. Stand up for immigrants two blocks from the Burlington ICE office. All are welcomed and encouraged to support our immigrant community. The protests will be held at Burlington Mall Rd. at District Avenue.

Stop the War on Iran rally
2026-02-28 13:00 - 15:00 | Park Street Station, Tremont St and Park Street, Boston, MA, 02108, United States
President Trump has launched a regime change war on Iran, without approval from Congress, while negotiations are going on.
Rally today, Saturday, Feb 28, at Park Street, Boston, 1pm to denounce this criminal agression by our government and demand an immediate end to the conflict.
Other locations:
Lowell City Hall, Feb 28, noon
Northampton, Main and King Streets, Feb 28, noon
Worcester City Hall, Feb 28, 2pm
Holyoke City Hall, Feb 28, 3pm
Trump’s unprovoked, illegal attack on Iran is an act of war that threatens to cause unthinkable death and destruction. But the people of this country reject another endless war and will take to the streets now and make our voices heard.
Iran has not attacked the United States. The government has been engaged in diplomatic negotiations up to the very last moment, and has again and again insisted that it has no intention of developing a nuclear weapons program (which Trump claims to have “obliterated” last year anyway). Trump promised to bring peace to the world while he was running for office, but he has done nothing but left a trail of devastation the world over. Rather than making executives at oil companies and weapons manufacturers richer, our tax dollars should be used to meet people’s needs.
Boston Rally Sponsors: National Iranian American Council, Jewish Voice for Peace Boston, Party for Socialism and Liberation, Palestinian Youth Movement, MAPA, Boston Coalition for Palestine, Northshore for Palestine, Muslim Justice League, Palestine House of New England, Our Revolution Massachusetts, About Face, Veterans for Peace, Jamaica Plain Progressives, and Boston Democratic Socialists of America

Stop the War on Iran
2026-03-02 18:00 - 20:00 | Park Street Station, Tremont St and Park Street, Boston, MA, 02108, United States
President Trump has launched a regime change war on Iran, without approval from Congress, while negotiations are going on.
Rally Monday, March 2, 6pm, at Park Street, Boston to denounce this criminal agression by our government and demand an immediate end to the conflict.
Trump’s unprovoked, illegal attack on Iran is an act of war that threatens to cause unthinkable death and destruction. But the people of this country reject another endless war and will take to the streets now and make our voices heard.
Iran has not attacked the United States. The government has been engaged in diplomatic negotiations up to the very last moment, and has again and again insisted that it has no intention of developing a nuclear weapons program (which Trump claims to have “obliterated” last year anyway). Trump promised to bring peace to the world while he was running for office, but he has done nothing but left a trail of devastation the world over. Rather than making executives at oil companies and weapons manufacturers richer, our tax dollars should be used to meet people’s needs.
Boston Rally Sponsors: National Iranian American Council, Jewish Voice for Peace Boston, Party for Socialism and Liberation, Palestinian Youth Movement, MAPA, Our Revolution Massachusetts, About Face, Boston Democratic Socialists of America, Veterans for Peace, Jamaica Plain Progressives, Military Families Speak Out, ANSWER Coalition, Mass 50501

Bearing Witness @ ICE
2026-03-04 11:00 - 13:00, 2026-03-11 11:00 - 13:00, 2026-03-18 11:00 - 13:00, 2026-03-25 11:00 - 13:00 | 1000 District Avenue Burlington, MA 01803 United States, 1000 District Avenue, Burlington, 01803, United States
Join Bearing Witness @ ICE outside the ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) New England Headquarters office in Burlington, next to the Burlington Mall, every Wednesday from 11am-1pm.
Stand with us in solidarity to show our love & support, express our shame at ICE, and bear witness to the cruel and unconstitutional actions of our government. Regardless of your views on any other political issues, if you support immigrants and their constitutional rights and are committed to nonviolence, join us.
Schedule (every Wednesday)

11:00-11:30, Welcome and announcements
11:30-12:30, Stand or sit with signs; option to read the U.S. Constitution to ICE
12:30-1:00, Short walk along the sidewalk on District Ave to Mall Road

NOTE: Please sign up for our email list as we may cancel due to severe weather or other circumstances.
If you’re never attended a standout and are curious about signs, parking and more, click The Standout

State of Passion
2026-03-05 19:00 | St James Episcopal Church – Parish Hall, 1991 Massachusetts Ave, Cambridge, MA, 02140
We present State of Passion, a feature-length documentary film by Carol Mansour and Muna Khalidi.
After 43 horrific days working round the clock under constant bombardment in the emergency rooms of Gaza’s Al Shifa and Al Ahli hospitals, British-Palestinian reconstructive surgeon, Dr. Ghassan Abu Sittah, emerged to find himself as a face of Palestinian resistance.
With news footage of him pale and shell-shocked reverberating around the world, he spoke of a catalogue of horrors from lacerated bodies, to amputations without anesthetics, orphaned children with no surviving family, and the deliberate targeting of medics and hospital facilities.
This was Ghassan’s sixth and most horrific Gaza “war”. Why does he do it? Where does he find the strength to face it again and again? How does it impact his family? How do they process the risks he takes? The answer lies simply in their shared passion: Palestine, a passion they articulate through their support of his perilous humanitarian work.
Filmmakers Carol Mansour and Muna Khalidi, close friends of the Abu Sittahs, share that same passion. They were waiting anxiously for Ghassan to emerge from Gaza, following a long and terrifying journey through the night, to meet him in Amman. Determined to capture his raw emotions, they began filming him the moment he arrived through the door. Following him to Beirut, Amman, London, Kuwait and Dubai, they and he explore their common State of Passion.
Following the film, a discussion will be led by Michael Maria, Director of the Boston Palestinian Film festival, and Nadine Bahour, a researcher at FXB Harvard School of Public Health.
The film will be shown in the Parish Hall of St. James Episcopal Church, three blocks north of Porter Square in Cambridge. The location can be confusing. If you have not been to the venue before, please review these directions and arrive a few minutes early to make sure you find us!

Defending Campus and Schools Expression
2026-03-06 16:00 - 17:00 | Online Event
The AAUP and AFT have organized a national campaign resisting the Trump attacks on our campuses, to engage faculty, staffs, students and alumni The call is for teach-ins on the first Fridays of the month leading up to a national event on Friday May 1, 2026. Many college and university campuses lack active AAUP chapters or AFT locals. However, many Peace and Justice advocacy groups have members or supporters on local campuses. To advance the Days of Action Campaign the Books Not Bombs Committee is hosting a series of Zoom Teach-ins. The fourth in our Zoom Teach-ins will be Friday March 6, 4-5 pm.
Program for March 6:
– Plans for May Day, Friday May 1, 2026 – Lukas Moe (national AAUP/AFT);
– Fund Education and Human Needs, Not Foreign Wars – Owen Madaus and Jonathan King (Books Not Bombs Committee);
– Resisting Efforts to Censure Faculty in Virgina: Prof. Bethany LeTiecq (George Mason U. AAUP, Virginia);
– Student Expulsion for Expression at MIT – Prof. Haynes Miller (MIT AAUP);
– Mass Teacher’s Association Concerns and Priorities – Deb McCarthy (V-P, MTA);
– Ongoing Student Organizing on Campuses – Hannah Markel, Jessica Valatka, (UMass, Amherst);
– Need to protect international students among us – Prof Lou Kruger (Northeastern University);
– Publicizing Program and Outreach for April Teach-in, Friday April 3.

Mobilizing Against the New Face of Genocide and War
2026-03-07 08:30 - 17:00 | Friends Meeting at Cambridge, 5 Longfellow Park, Cambridge
A Strategy Conference
Saturday, March 7, 2026, 8:30 am – 5:00 pm
Cambridge Friends Meeting, 5 Longfellow Park, Cambridge, MA 02138

The very existence of Palestinians as a viable national community is existentially threatened by the Trump-Netanyahu Gaza agreement, now officially adopted by the United Nations Security Council as official U.N. policy. After repeated US vetoes of ceasefire proposals throughout the genocide, the Security Council placed its imprimatur on a Trump/Netanyahu deal that basically threw 70 years of UN resolutions about Israel/Palestine out the window.
Meanwhile, Trump’s regime change war on Iran, supported by many in Congress but not by the American people, has brought war to the entire region and thrown international law out the window.
In these new, difficult circumstances it is time for the anti-genocide, anti-war, and Palestinian solidarity movements to come together to consider how best to organize collectively to achieve policy changes in the US and more justice for all in Palestine and the Middle East. Our past focus on ceasefire and humanitarian aid violations are not enough. Instead we must consolidate around attacking or modifying the present agreement itself in ways supportive of Palestinian self-determination; condemning Israel’s continuing depredations; raising high the banner of Paletinian national rights; and demanding an immediate end to the attack on Iran.
Panel 1 – Situation in Gaza and West Bank, impact of Trump Agreement, Board of Peace, attack on Iran, and related Mideast crises
Nancy Murray, Alliance for Water Justice in Palestine and Gaza Mental Health Foundation
Leila Farsakh, professor of political science and leading Palestinian rights advocate, UMass Boston
Amira Hass, Haaretz correspondent, columnist, and activist
Susan Akram, Boston University, clinical professor of law and director of the International Human Rights Clinic
Panel 2 – What do we do? Our new message – Our strategy – Breaking the hold of the weaponization of anti-semitism
Rami G. Khouri, Palestinian-American journalist, author, and public policy expert with over six decades of experience covering the Middle East
Lea Kayali, organizer with the Palestinian Youth Movement based out of Boston, steering committee member of the People’s Embargo for Palestine
Paul Shannon, Mass. Peace Action, co-chair Gaza Israel Mideast peace campaign
Breakout Topics – Session 1

Refuting the false anti-semitism arguments – Merrie Najimy
Integrating our messaging and our public actions and events – Paul Shannon
The Future of Boycott and Divest – Raisa/ Sheba out of MA, Malick/ Cambridge for Palestine, Nancy Aykanian/ BDS Boston
Political action – the Palestine issue in Congressional elections 2026 – Elizabeth Baldwin and Jeff Klein

Breakout Topics – Session 2

Legislative action – organizing to pass Federal and state bills on Palestine and the Middle East – Elizabeth Baldwin and Jeff Klein
The struggle over suppression of free speech about Palestine in Massachusetts – Sana Fadel, Paul Shannon, Sara Roy
Public Education and Action to Further the Palestine Movement – Jill El-Ashkar and Julie Jolin
Iran – ending the US initiated war – Bahar Sharafi, Rami G. Khouri

Schedule
8:30 Coffee and registration – Friends Room
9:30 Welcome and Introduction – Meeting House. NO Food and Drink in the Meeting House
10:00 Panel 1 – Meeting House
11:30 Panel 2 – Meeting House
12:45 Lunch – Friends Room
1:45 Breakout session 1
3:00 Breakout session 2
4:15 Brainstorm – Building the movement to end the Iran war – Meeting House
5:15 Adjourn
Registration (includes lunch): regular $25, student/low income $10, supporter $75, tabling group $50.
Logistics: There is ample free parking on Longfellow Park on Saturday. Longfellow Park is a 10 minute walk out Brattle Street from Harvard Square. By bus, take the 73 bus from Harvard station and get off at the second stop, Mt. Auburn and Ash Streets. The Meeting House and Friends Room are fully accessible. Some of the breakout spaces are in the basement and there is an elevator near the Friends Room.
Lunch will consist of roll-ups with a choice of chicken or beef/lamb sharawma, or falafel, plus tabouleh, hummus, dessert, and soft drink.
Sponsored by Massachusetts Peace Action Education Fund. Cosponsored by Alliance for Water Justice in Palestine; CD8 for Palestine; Watertown Citizens for Peace, Justice and the Environment – Palestine/Gaza committee; Cambridge Friends Meeting – Peace and Social Justice committee; Needham for Palestine; Palestinian Youth Movement; Arlington for Palestine; MTA Rank and File for Palestine; Sawa: Newton-Area Alliance for Peace and Justice. Cosponsors welcome; must publicize the event. Contact info@masspeaceaction.org or call 617 354 2169.

De-ICE Citizens Bank
2026-03-07 11:00 - 12:00 | MA
The De-ICE Citizens Bank Coalition organizes peaceful protests of Citizens Bank’s financing of The GEO Group and CoreCivic, two of the largest builders and operators of private prisons and ICE detention centers in the U.S. Send a message to Citizens Bank by joining standouts across the Northeast on Saturday, March 7 from 11am – 12 noon. Find a protest near you and check the link for continued protests after March 7 until Citizens cuts its financial ties with these companies and the ICE industry.
Protests local to the Boston Area include Davis Square, Porter Square, Central Square, Coolidge Corner and Jamaica Plane!

Women's March: Antiwar Contingent
2026-03-08 12:00 - 14:00 | Boston Common – Parkman Bandstand, Tremont St, Boston
Join MAPA and allied peace organizations in a peace contingent in the 2026 Women’s March!

No War on Iran
End the Genocide in Gaza
Hands off Venezuela and Cuba
Cut the Pentagon Budget

Unions and Women's Health Justice
2026-03-09 19:00 - 20:00 | Online Event
Seeking Women’s Health Justice, a subcommittee of Massachusetts Peace Action’s Fund Healthcare Not Warfare campaign, examines women’s health from the perspective of justice – with the awareness that peace is a fundamental issue of health. The cost of U.S. militarism drains economic resources at the expense of health and lives. Through awareness and understanding of the culture that promotes war, we examine the intersection of peace and women’s health, which is justice. Our work offers paths of action that can be taken to oppose militarism and to nurture health and enhance justice.
To commemorate International Women’s Day, originally organized by the union movement, this webinar explores how unions have played a role in shaping women’s health and health services.
Unions have influenced women’s health and health services by improving working conditions, securing maternity and reproductive rights, expanding access to healthcare, strengthening health services, and challenging gender inequality. Union activism has helped transform women’s health from a private concern into a social and workplace issue, benefiting both women as workers and women as healthcare users.
Speakers:
Katie Murphy is President of the Massachusetts Nurses Association (MNA), the largest union and professional association for registered nurses and healthcare professionals in Massachusetts, across hospitals and other care settings. She represents nurses and healthcare professionals across Massachusetts, and is active in advocating for safe staffing as well as equitable healthcare policy. She served on the MNA Board of Directors for over a decade, helping shape organizational strategy and representation.
She is a strong proponent for healthcare workers, patients, and women on multiple fronts.
Elizabeth Pellerito is Director of the Labor Education Program at the University of Massachusetts/ Lowell. She is a labor educator known for her work in labor studies and union organizing. As a labor educator, she focuses on training and organizing all university employees on leading labor issues. She is also active on the boards of the Bread & Roses Heritage Festival, the Public Higher Education Network of Massachusetts and the Women’s Institute for Leadership Development.
She combines labor studies with issues that intersect public health and worker well-being, especially regarding health, safety, and workplace risk topics for a gendered workforce. She is particularly interested in how unions can combat sexual assault, sexual harassment, and intimate partner violence.
Register to attend:

The Real Origins of the Ukraine War and Why It Matters Today
2026-03-17 13:00 - 14:30 | Online Event
Swiss Col. Jacques Baud (retired) is a military and international affairs analyst who will speak about his first-hand knowledge of the Donbass area of Ukraine. From 2012-2017, he was seconded to NATO by the Swiss government to head NATO Counterproliferation of Small Arms and Light Weapons Unit (SALW) in Brussels, as well as of programs against landmines. In that capacity, he monitored the SALW situation in the Donbass from 2014 to 2017 and designed de-mining projects in Ukraine.
Additionally, as a UN expert in the Rule of Law and Reform of Security Institutions, he contributed to projects related to the reform of the Ukrainian army at the end of 2014.
He has been outspoken in his views that the Ukrainian government, aided by the U.S. and EU, did not abide by the Minsk treaty, but instead conducted lethal military shelling of Donbass cities, called an anti-terrorism campaign, aimed at an armed insurgency of ethnic Russian Ukrainians whose religious, cultural, linguistic, economic, and political rights were being increasingly restricted by the central government in Kiev.
Baud has recently been severely sanctioned by the EU for his views. He will share his perspective not only on the origins of the civil war in Ukraine, but on the current military and political situation and the prospects for a negotiated settlement of the war.
Swiss Col. Jacques Baud (retired) holds a Master’s in Econometrics and Postgrade Diplomas in International Security and International Relations from the Graduate Institute for International Relations in Geneva. He worked several years in the Swiss Strategic Intelligence Service. He was trained in US and British intelligence.
His extensive expertise in strategic analysis, conflict mediation and international security spans decades. At the United Nations headquarters in New York, he was the Head of Policy and Doctrine in the UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations (2009-11) where his team worked on the protection of civilians in war. He is member of the UN Expert Group on the Rule of Law and Security Sector Reform. He authored several books on weapons, intelligence, asymmetric warfare and terrorism. He is currently retired and lives in Brussels (Belgium).
Baud is the author of many books including Covert Wars in Ukraine (2025), The Russian Art of War: How the West Led Ukraine to Defeat (2024), Operation Z: The Hidden Truth of the Ukraine War (2022), and Putin: Master of the Game (2019).
Register to attend:

Sponsored by MAPA’s Ukraine: A Time for Peace Campaign.

Immigrants’ Day at The State House
2026-03-18 09:30 - 17:00 | Massachusetts State House, 24 Beacon St, Boston
2026 has started with an avalanche of fear in our communities. But in community, we find courage.
On March 18 at 9:30 a.m., we will come together at the Massachusetts State House—not only to be seen, but to be heard.
Bring your lived experiences and policy expertise directly to decision-makers. Together, we will help shape policies that reflect the needs, dignity, and humanity of our immigrant communities.
Massachusetts legislators need to hear from their own constituents and advocates—now more than ever—about the issues that matter most and the bills required to address them.
Event Program:

9:30am Arrival and Networking
10:00am BVocal Choir Performance and Opening
10:30am Speaking Program
11:15am Legislative Meetings Orientation
11:30am Advocacy Program: Talk With Your Legislator!
11:45am Legislative Meetings Start
Speaking Program:
Governor Maura Healey
Senate President Karen Spilka
House Leader Carlos González
State Senator Cindy Friedman
State Representative Judith García
Jen Ziskin (Massachusetts Restaurants United)
Pastor Keke (True Alliance)
Lenita Reason (Brazilian Worker Center)
Pablo Ruíz (32BJ)
F.A.Q.

It’s an indoor event – Gardner Auditorium, basement
Use the Hooker entrance ( main entrance)
Everyone must go through SECURITY – Be prepared to wait in line (metal detector).
NO FLAGS or posters are allowed in the building.
Avoid taking pictures of participants’ faces – Individuals who do not wish to be photographed will wear a sticker.
There is NO physical space for the resources table
Buses coming from Lowell – more info organizing@miracoalition.org
Peacekeepers: Be aware. Prevent. Report by calling 339-245-3743

US Sanctions: A Brutal But Failed Weapon of War (WIRN Webinar)
2026-03-18 20:00 - 21:30
The largest number of sanctioned countries are in Africa, deliberately disrupting development. Throughout West Asia strangling U.S. economic sanctions in Palestine, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Iran, and Yemen go hand and hand with U.S. / Israeli bombing.
But US sanctions, along with Trump’s tariffs and wars, have failed to reverse the decline of the US Empire. They are accelerating a unified global resistance and movement towards multipolarity, as can be seen in the growing influence of BRICS and regional trade alliances. The failure of sanctions inevitably pushes the US into military and covert actions attempting to overthrow governments that will not capitulate or compromise their sovereignty.
This webinar will discuss the deadly effects of US sanctions as a weapon of war and explain how nations are building new forms of resistance and survival.
Speaker : Sara Flounders is a political writer, activist and anti-war organizer since the 1960s. She helps coordinate the International Action Center (IAC), United National Antiwar Coalition(UNAC) and the SanctionsKill Campaign. She is a Contributing Editor of Workers World – Workers.org a daily on-line Marxist news source. Flounders has co-authored and edited ten books on such subjects as the duplicity of military recruiters, the injustice of U.S. wars and sanctions and the immorality of America’s use of weaponry containing depleted uranium.
Flounders has traveled to and organized delegations to a number of sanctioned countries, including Iraq, Iran, Lebanon, Syria, Sudan, Yugoslavia, Cuba, Venezuela, Nicaragua and China, for the express purpose of building solidarity with targeted countries and defending the right of oppressed and targeted people to all forms of resistance.Her work focuses on organizing demonstrations, direct actions, picket lines, community forums, speak-outs, war-crimes tribunals. She consistently links U.S. wars and sanctions for corporate profit to the growing repression and racism at home.“My goal is to build confidence in the potential of powerful grassroots movements for change within the U.S.”The US Empire is now sanctioning 40 countries, most visibly Russia, Iran, Venezuela, and Cuba. These sanctions, a violation of international law, are explicitly aimed destabilizing and overturning countries that defy US hegemony. Sanctions are a devastating weapon of choice, deliberately causing widespread starvation, disease, and poverty in the targeted countries. In every case, the poorest and the weakest – infants, children, the chronically ill and the elderly – suffer the worst impact of sanctions.

End Trump's Oil blockade of Cuba
2026-03-21 12:00 - 13:00 | outside the T station at the corner of Park and Tremont, Downtown Boston, Tremont St & Park Street &, Winter St, Boston, MA 02108, boston, 02108, United States
A call for help tabling and petition gathering for Cuba this Saturday at noon at Park street station
This Saturday the international flotilla in solidarity with Cuba arrives for a big solidarity action in Havana. (They are delivering a significant amount of aid as well) Some of us are hoping to have an event in Boston in solidarity with those events in Cuba. Would you be available for a tabling/standout/leafleting event at Boston Common at noon. We hope to have at least a handful of people collecting signatures on our petition calling for an end to Trump’s oil blockade which has cast the island into darkness some or all of the time and is causing great harm to Cuba’s people.
Of course there is so much going on. but some of us thought that a Cuba solidarity action at this time when Trump is determined to overthrow Cuba’s government is very much in order and when a big solidarity action is taking place in Cuba itself. Please join us on Saturday at noon. If you have any questions call Paul Shannon at 617-623-5288 and leave a message.

Music for Peace : "Double Trouble Cello"
2026-03-21 19:30 - 21:15 | Old South Church, 645 Boylston Street , Boston
Join us on March 21st for a classical music experience! Music for Peace is delighted to present Double Trouble Cello featuring world renowned musicians, Sam Ou, Carol Ou, Jean Huang Baverstam, Paola Caballero, Dimitar Petkov, and Amy Galluzzo. Enjoy an evening filled with compositions by Anton Arensky and Franz Schubert.
During dark times, art serves as a light and powerful form of resistance. Let us come together and enjoy a bit of respite amdist the tragedies we face at home and abroad.
Program:
String Quartet No.2 in A Minor, Op. 35… Anton Arensky (1861-1906)
I. Moderato
II. Variations on a Theme by Tchaikovsky – Moderato
III. Finale: Andante sostenuto
Performed by:
Jean Huang Baverstam, violin
Amy Galluzzo, viola
Sam Ou & Carol Ou, cellos
~Intermission~
Strin Quintet in C Major, D. 956, Op. posth. 163 … Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
I. Allegro ma non troppo
II. Adagio
III. Scherzo Presto – Trio. Andante sostenuto
IV. Allegretto
Performed by:
Amy Galluzzo & Paola Caballero, violins
Dimitar Petkov, viola
Carol Ou & Sam Ou, cellos

About the Musicians:

Praised for his “impassioned performance” (Boston Globe) and playing “with remarkable ease and clarity, while maintaining a graceful—if vociferous—line that fit well into the narrative” (The Boston Musical Intelligencer), cellist Sam Ou enjoys an active musical life in the Greater Boston area. A recipient of the Rosemary Scales Prize for best cello concerto performance at the Kingsville International Young Performers Competition, Mr. Ou has performed at several prestigious summer venues including Tanglewood, Sarasota, Musicorda, Santa Fe, and La Jolla music festivals. Symphonically, Mr. Ou has played in the Boston Pops, Boston Landmarks, Boston Ballet, Boston Lyric Opera, Portland Symphony (Maine), and Rhode Island Philharmonic Orchestras. Mr. Ou is assistant professor of cello and music theory at Kutztown University in Pennsylvania. For the past two decades, he was a faculty member at NEC’s Preparatory School and School of Continuing Education.

Taiwanese violinist Jean Huang Baverstam is a consummate artist whose career is equally devoted to three interwoven roles: performer, music scholar, and educator. Her active performing career has brought her to concert halls worldwide, engaging audiences across the United States and internationally. WBUR-FM noted that they were “left speechless after having the chance to watch and listen to Jean Huang close up.” She has made multiple concerto appearances with the Cape Cod Chamber Orchestra, Brookline Symphony, WPI Philharmonic, and Music for Peace Orchestra, performing Vaughan Williams’ Lark Ascending and Bruch’s Scottish Fantasy, among others.
Jean is a founding member of Trio Flamecrest, a new string trio formed by Carol Ou (cello) and Amy Galluzzo (violin and viola). The ensemble tours regularly across the United States and recently presented sold-out performances at Chamber Music Raleigh and in Woodstock, Vermont. Baverstam is an adjunct professor at Roger Williams University and serves on the faculty at the New England Conservatory Preparatory School and School of Expanded Education.

Paola Caballero recently returned to Boston after more than a decade in Barcelona, where she was a member of the Orquestra de Cadaqués and regularly performed with the Orquestra Simfònica de Barcelona i Nacional de Catalunya (OBC). Throughout her career, she has collaborated with many of today’s most distinguished artists, including Joshua Bell, Hilary Hahn, Janine Jansen, Isabelle Faust, Ray Chen, Augustin Hadelich, Lang Lang, Angela Gheorghiu, Plácido Domingo, and Jonas Kaufmann. Her discography includes recordings on the Naxos, Trito, and BMOP/Sound labels, and her performances have been featured by the Celebrity Series of Boston and on Medici.tv, one of the world’s leading classical music streaming platforms.
She studied at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama in London, where she founded the Esperanto Trio. The ensemble made its debut at St. James’s Church, Piccadilly, and later appeared in a live BBC broadcast from the Barbican Centre as part of the BBC Symphony Orchestra’s New Music Festival. In addition to her performing career, Ms. Caballero is a dedicated educator. She was recently appointed Executive Director of the Lexington Chamber Music Center and serves as Artistic Director of the Point CounterPoint Chamber Music Festival, where she has been on faculty for twelve seasons. She also teaches at the New England Conservatory Preparatory Division, Project STEP, and the Boston Youth Symphony Orchestra.

Praised for her “nuanced Mozartian phrasing” and her “delicacy and, when needed, force” (Boston Musical Intelligencer), violinist and violist, Amy Galluzzo enjoys an active career as both a chamber musician and soloist. For many years, Amy was a member of the Carpe Diem String Quartet, touring around the United States and internationally, performing a wide range of repertoire. Amy has performed at several prestigious summer festivals, including the Tanglewood Music Festival, Chelsea Music Festival, Taos, and Sarasota Music Festival, and has collaborated with artists such as Masuko Ushioda, John Ferrillo, James Buswell and Carol Ou.
Amy Galluzzo began her violin studies in Great Britain and went on to study with Dona Lee Croft, a professor at the Royal College of Music, London. Amy received her Bachelor of Music and Master of Music with Honors, and a Graduate Diploma from the New England Conservatory in Boston, where she studied with Marylou Speaker Churchill and James Buswell. She is currently a candidate for the degree of PhD from the Steinhardt School, New York University. Amy teaches through the New England Conservatory Preparatory School and Continuing Education department.

Dimitar Petkov is a Bulgarian violist who performs with the Boston Modern Orchestra Project and serves as Principal Viola of the Claflin Hill Symphony Orchestra. He has appeared in recitals and chamber ensembles across Europe and the United States and has served as Principal Viola with orchestras including the Spoleto Festival Orchestra, Newton Symphony, and Southwest Florida Philharmonic. A dedicated educator, he teaches violin, viola, and chamber music at the New England Conservatory Preparatory School and directs the Westford Chamber Players.

An award-winning cellist, Carol Ou is known for her “fiery, marvelous,” “meltingly melodic outpourings” (Boston Globe) and her “wonderfully pure cello tone and incisive technique” (The Strad). A founding member of Trio Flamecrest and Flamecrest Ensemble, Carol was a member of the Carpe Diem String Quartet and a longtime duo partner of legendary violinist James Buswell. Her solo and chamber music concerts have taken her to prestigious concert venues across the globe, including Carnegie Weill Hall, Jordan Hall, National Gallery of Art, Gardner Museum, National Concert Hall in Kiev, and the National Concert Hall of Taipei.
As a prize-winning recording artist, Carol’s discography includes solo and chamber music discs issued by Chi-Mei, Naxos, CRI, MSR, and Albany Records, much of them available on Spotify. Among her many recordings with the Carpe Diem String Quartet are Sergei Taneyev’s String Quartets (Vol. 4 & 5) on Naxos, and Reza Vali’s “The Book of Calligraphy” issued by Albany Records. Her Naxos recording of Walter Piston’s Chamber Music won the 2001 Chamber Music America’s Best Chamber Music CD award and her recording of Jeff Midkiff’s “Music for Mandolin & String Quartet” won the 2018 Global Music Awards gold medal.

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Thank you for your support, and may we make this world a better place, one note at a time.

US-Israeli Aggression against Iran: Escalation Risks and the Path to Wider War
2026-03-26 19:00 - 20:00 | Online Event
Dr. John Mearsheimer and Dr. Trita Parsi will present.
Register to attend.

No Kings, No War, No ICE!
2026-03-28 12:00 - 17:00 | Boston Common – Embrace statue, 139 Tremont St, Boston, MA, 02108
We the People are We the Powerful.
We will not stand for another illegal foreign war or for an authoritarian takeover of the United States.

Trump was defeated in Minneapolis and is losing in the courts, and wants to escape focus on the Epstein files.
Now, in his biggest attack on democracy yet, Trump, working closely with Netanyahu, has launched a massive unprovoked war of aggression against Iran. This war is a major violation of the U.S. constitution, the UN charter and international law. Its destructive impact is being felt across Middle East and the world. All this on top of Trump’s continued genocide in Palestine and phony “board of peace”, gratuitous murder of scores of people in small boats, seizure of oil tankers on the high seas, criminal kidnapping of the president of Venezuela and illegal oil blockade to overthrow the government of Cuba.
The framers of the Constitution put the power to declare war in the hands of Congress for a reason. We don’t want another war in the Middle East. We need to end this illegal war and bring the troops home. On March 28, we will speak out, expose President Trump’s lies, and demand Congress defund this war.
This war is costing a billion dollars a day – draining resources needed to sustain the well being of our neighbors and driving up the cost of everything. But Trump is proposing a $1.5 trillion Pentagon budget while attacking healthcare, housing, education, and the climate.
Join us on the Boston Common and in cities and towns across Massachusetts to say: No Kings, No War, No ICE!
In Boston, sign up with MAPA to amplify the antiwar message. Meet at the MAPA table near the Embrace statue starting at 12pm to distribute our antiwar literature, petitions and postcards. Bring your antiwar, anti-ICE, anti-authoritarian signs and messages. We’ll provide signs and literature!
The Embrace statue is near Tremont St., about half way between Park St. and Boylston St. The MAPA table will be right next to the statue, on the other side of it from Tremont St. We will load in materials from Tremont St.
Table Setup Starts: 12 pm
Pathways to Power (visibility walk throughout the city with signs and banners): 1-2pm
Rally: 2-4pm
Action Tables Open: 1-5pm
In cities across Massachusetts, sign up with MAPA to bring the antiwar message to your local No Kings protest. Help organize the protest in your town, work with local protest organizers, and ensure that an antiwar message and speaker is foregrounded. Bring antiwar signs, banners and petitions to ensure that the No War, No ICE message is prominent. Print our literature or contact us to receive materials by postal.
Additionally, everyone, sign up for the overall No Kings III Boston mobilization or for the event in your own town.

MAPA materials to be distributed at No Kings III
Print and use in your town, or contact the office to get copies
The Peace Advocate newsletter – March 2026
Stop the Wars – Bring our Troops Home general antiwar petition
Stop the War on Iran half page flyer
Stop Trump’s War of Aggression Iran war pamphlet
Stop Trump’s War of Aggression Iran war petition
Time to End the Trump-Netanyahu Alliance Iran war petition
Stop the Continuing Genocide in Gaza petition
Stop Trump’s Threats against Cuba pamphlet
Stop the Illegal War on Venezuela pamphlet
Stop the Illegal War on Iran 18 x 24 coroplast yard sign
Stop the Illegal War on Iran 11 x 17 printable poster
