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DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250215T193000
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DTSTAMP:20250215T155452Z
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SUMMARY:CANCELLED: Music for Peace: Love Letters from Around the World
DESCRIPTION:The Music for Peace concert with Psychopomp scheduled for tonight\, Saturday\, February 15\, has been cancelled due to snow.  We will reschedule a Psychopomp performance in the fall.\nJoin us this Valentines season for an enchanting program to celebrate love in all its forms. The program features Smetana’s The Moldau\, a patriotic anthem\, and Psychopomp Ensemble’s heartfelt tribute to Bach alongside works by Hindemith and Kurtág. The ensemble will also offer exciting original arrangements of music by jazz legends Bill Evans\, Thelonious Monk\, Ran Blake\, and the modern sensation Laufey\, among others. Don’t miss this unforgettable celebration where love knows no boundaries! \nThe concert will be held at Harvard-Epworth United Methodist Church\, 1555 Massachusetts Ave.\, Cambridge\, near Harvard Law School\, at 7:30 pm. \nBenefits Massachusetts Peace Action Education Fund.  $25 for Mass. Peace Action members\, $35 for non-members\,  $10 for students and low incomes. \nTo reserve\, write a check to “Massachusetts Peace Action Education Fund” or “MAPA EF” and mail to 1991 Massachusetts Ave.\, Cambridge\, MA 02140\, or call 617-354-2169 with credit card number.  Or reserve your tickets online. \nDonations to support our work for peace are welcome in any amount. Supporters donate $250 or more to Massachusetts Peace Action Education Fund; they receive two tickets with preferred seating in the first 3 rows and recognition in the program. Sponsors donate $500 and receive four tickets; Benefactors donate $1\,000 and receive eight tickets.  All contributions above $35 per concert are tax-deductible. \nThe audience is invited to join the musicians and Peace Action members at a reception after the concert.  The venue is wheelchair accessible via a ramp to the left of the church. \nCo-founded by pianists Chi-Wei Lo and Xiaopei Xu\, Psychopomp Ensemble weaves together a diverse tapestry of traditional serious music\, third stream\, jazz\, pop\, blues\, minimalist\, and contemporary\, creating an auditory experience that defies categorization. \nTheir arrangements—some in their psychopomp mode—blend improvisation\, re-composition\, and unaltered portions into original works\, guiding both connoisseurs and newcomers through their musical universe. The Boston Musical Intelligencer describes them as offering “new directions in pianism” and exploring the “far reaches of musical possibilities.” They aspire not merely to stake a claim but to reshape the landscape\, push boundaries\, and redefine possibilities within the realm of two-piano as well as four-hand repertoire. \nRecently\, Psychopomp Ensemble appeared on The Kamerman Piano Series at the University of West Florida and at Puddingstone Events in Rhode Island. Additionally\, Psychopomp’s past performance highlights include concerts presented by UCLA\, the Chinese American Museum (LA)\, the Atlantic Symphony Orchestra\, Scripps College\, Ukraine Forward\, the College Music Society\, the Foundation for Chinese Performing Arts\, the Lancaster Piano Festival\, and the German Society of Pennsylvania. In 2021\, Psychopomp Ensemble participated in interdisciplinary events in Los Angeles\, which garnered coverage from more than a dozen media outlets\, including The LA Times\, NBC News\, Shanghai Morning Post\, Qilu Evening News\, and others. \nChi-Wei Lo is a pianist\, improviser\, and arranger whose performances utilize a plethora of musical languages. As a co-founder of the Psychopomp Ensemble\, Lo has continually pushed boundaries\, blending interdisciplinary art forms with both traditional and avant-garde musical elements to create compelling concert experiences. \nWith a career spanning diverse platforms\, Lo has been presented by the Atlantic Symphony Orchestra\, North American Medical Orchestra\, The Lancaster Piano Festival\, College Music Society\, UCLA\, Lilypad\, Chamber Music Charlestown\, The Harvard Musical Association\, The Chinese American Museum (LA)\, Foundation for Chinese Performing Arts\, Caroga Arts Collective\, New Asia Chamber Music Society\, the German Society of Pennsylvania\, and the Counterpoint Ensemble (Taiwan)\, among many others. \nLo holds a Bachelor of Music (B.M.) and a Master of Music (M.M.) in piano performance from The Juilliard School. He is expected to complete his Doctor of Musical Arts (D.M.A.) in Contemporary Musical Arts (formerly Contemporary Improvisation) at the New England Conservatory this year. Currently\, Lo shapes the next generation of musicians as an Assistant Professor of Composition at Berklee College of Music and a Theory Instructor at the New England Conservatory. During the summer\, he teaches improvisation classes and piano at The Lancaster Piano Festival\, where he delivers all pre-concert talks\, sharing his expertise and passion for music with festival attendees. \nHailed by The Boston Globe as “a world-class pianist\,” Xiaopei Xu has captivated audiences worldwide with her “spellbinding and expressive”performances (BMInt). She made her Boston Symphony Hall concerto debut with Boston Pops in 2018\, and has appeared as a soloist and chamber musician in venues across three continents. \nXu’s recent performances have been presented by the Atlantic Symphony Orchestra\, Harvard Musical Association\, Foundation for the Chinese Performing Arts\, The Stecher and Horowitz Foundation\, German Society of Pennsylvania\, Lancaster International Piano Festival\, Chinese American Museum(LA)\, Ukraine Forward\, College Music Society… etc. \nXu holds her Doctor of Musical Arts degree from Boston University\, Master’s degree from Yale University and Bachelor’s degree from the New England Conservatory of Music. Her principal teachers include Hung-Kuan Chen\, Xun Pan\, Meng-Chieh Liu\, and Boaz Sharon. She has also worked with influential musicians such as Claude Frank\, Richard Goode\, and Paul Badura-Skoda.
URL:https://masspeaceaction.org/event/music-for-peace-psychopomp/
LOCATION:Harvard-Epworth Methodist Church\, 1555 Massachusetts Ave.\, Cambridge\, MA\, United States
CATEGORIES:Arts and Culture
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ORGANIZER;CN="Massachusetts Peace Action Education Fund":MAILTO:info@masspeaceaction.org
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DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250208T140000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250208T153000
DTSTAMP:20250120T145714Z
CREATED:20250116T200352Z
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SUMMARY:Reporting from the Frontlines of the Massacre
DESCRIPTION:Haggai will talk with us about the latest events in the Israeli onslaught in Gaza\, the chances for a ceasefire\, Israel’s campaigns in Lebanon and Syria and the push for attacking Iran. We will also discuss the overall climate among Jewish Israelis for relations with the Palestinians\, the future of the country\, and the role of the media in all of this. \nHaggai Matar is an award-winning Israeli journalist and political activist\, and the executive director of +972 Magazine\, which is an independent\, online\, nonprofit media outlet run by a group of Palestinian and Israeli journalists\, founded in 2010.  He is a conscientious objector who refused to serve in the Israeli army back in 2002\, and spent two years in prison. \nRegister to attend. 
URL:https://masspeaceaction.org/event/reporting-from-the-frontlines-of-the-massacre/
LOCATION:Online Event
CATEGORIES:Palestine/Israel
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://masspeaceaction.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/2-8-Haggar-Matai-webinar-.png
ORGANIZER;CN="Massachusetts Peace Action Education Fund":MAILTO:info@masspeaceaction.org
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DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250202T150000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250202T163000
DTSTAMP:20260215T185135Z
CREATED:20250124T175526Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260215T185135Z
UID:10003200-1738508400-1738513800@masspeaceaction.org
SUMMARY:GAZA IN CONTEXT: The Colonial History that Shaped the Modern Middle East
DESCRIPTION:A 4-part online series Sundays\, Jan 5\, 12\, 26\, and Feb 2\, 2025\, all at 3pm The Israeli war on Gaza – widely considered genocide – did not begin on October 7\, 2023. This series will look at the background of Zionism and colonialism that laid the foundation for ongoing wars and today’s violence in the Middle East. Palestinian dispossession\, we will see\, began more than a century ago. \n\nJanuary 5 – CONQUEST AND COLONIALISM IN THE MIDDLE EAST DURING THE 20TH CENTURY: The roots of the contemporary Middle East go back to the First World War and its aftermath; the birth of Zionism as a political movement.\n\nVideo: https://youtube.com/live/Y_75LgjQiAg \nSlides: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1jTrcqiR3IZlebo5bUQHziKVeavw10VRO/ \n\nJanuary 12 – MANDATES AND REPRESSION IN PALESTINE AND BEYOND: The failure of the British colonial attempt to shape Palestine in conformance with the Balfour Declaration; Palestinian resistance and the first proposals for partition; Zionist terror; British\, French colonialism in Iraq\, Syria and Lebanon.\n\nVideo: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=duY-ABJP_8A \nSlides:  https://drive.google.com/file/d/1nhUBtaPKkUQZdInsLL7GTMbgIgnGmoK0/ \n\nJanuary 26 – THE US AND ISRAEL IN THE MIDDLE EAST: Although the US government supported the Zionist project from the time of the First World War\, and it was quick to recognize the independence of Israel in 1948\, US policies toward the Middle East centered on Oil and later Cold War interests. The US was not much involved the Middle East until the 1930s and then oil-rich Saudi Arabia\, not Israel\, was its close all — as it remains to this day. Republicans – who as a party are now firmly pro-Israel —  were skeptical in the 1950s and 1960s of unconditional support for Israel. It was only in the 1970s that Israel came to be viewed as an important strategic ally\, especially in the context of the Cold War. Since then\, the Israel Lobby also became an important player in US politics.\n\nVideo:  https://youtube.com/live/Chuz0APhZic \nSlides:  https://drive.google.com/file/d/1zSHbg52kYJI1Z27hx8mq-5rYGn_h4dbg/ \n\nFebruary 2 – LOOKING IN THE MIRROR: How the U.S. has shaped the contemporary Middle East from before the Cold War to the present. Indigenous nationalism and its opponents. Addressing the domestic colonial and imperial background to US support for Israel and its destabilizing interference in the region.\n\nVideo: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v_pdo_Q8Rpw&t=4418s \nSlides: https://drive.google.com/file/d/13ZTXZlBuyRkkIfTFQ4aR-UConOBdpT-1/ \nSpeaker: Jeff Klein is a veteran anti-war activist\, retired machinist and local trade-union president\, who for 8 years until 2023 taught a course on “The US in the Middle East” at the UMass Boston Lifelong Learning Institute.  He is a board member of Massachusetts Peace Action and a member of its Gaza Israel Mideast peace campaign’s steering committee. Since 2004 Jeff has traveled almost every year to Palestine/Israel and elsewhere in the Middle East\, and has many close friends among veteran activists in Palestine\, Lebanon and Jordan.  He has also worked in Nicaragua and for the exiled African National Congress in Zambia.  Check out his weekly presentations on “Genocide in Gaza” and read his articles on the Middle East. \nRegister to attend any or all of the four sessions.  Course materials: Readings and Resources on Israel/Palestine Course Outline – the US in the Middle East – This outline was prepared for an 8-session version of the course given at UMass Boston in fall 2023.  The material will be condensed for this 4-session online version.
URL:https://masspeaceaction.org/event/gaza-in-context-the-colonial-history-that-shaped-the-modern-middle-east-3-2/
LOCATION:Online Event
CATEGORIES:Palestine/Israel
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://masspeaceaction.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/gaza-in-context-part-4.png
ORGANIZER;CN="Massachusetts Peace Action Education Fund":MAILTO:info@masspeaceaction.org
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250126T150000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250126T163000
DTSTAMP:20260215T185009Z
CREATED:20250124T175559Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260215T185009Z
UID:10003199-1737903600-1737909000@masspeaceaction.org
SUMMARY:GAZA IN CONTEXT: The Colonial History that Shaped the Modern Middle East
DESCRIPTION:  \nA 4-part online series Sundays\, Jan 5\, 12\, 26\, and Feb 2\, 2025\, all at 3pm. \nThe Israeli war on Gaza – widely considered genocide – did not begin on October 7\, 2023. This series will look at the background of Zionism and colonialism that laid the foundation for ongoing wars and today’s violence in the Middle East. Palestinian dispossession\, we will see\, began more than a century ago. \n\nJanuary 5 – CONQUEST AND COLONIALISM IN THE MIDDLE EAST DURING THE 20TH CENTURY: The roots of the contemporary Middle East go back to the First World War and its aftermath; the birth of Zionism as a political movement.\n\nVideo: https://youtube.com/live/Y_75LgjQiAg \nSlides: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1jTrcqiR3IZlebo5bUQHziKVeavw10VRO/ \n\nJanuary 12 – MANDATES AND REPRESSION IN PALESTINE AND BEYOND: The failure of the British colonial attempt to shape Palestine in conformance with the Balfour Declaration; Palestinian resistance and the first proposals for partition; Zionist terror; British\, French colonialism in Iraq\, Syria and Lebanon.\n\nVideo: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=duY-ABJP_8A \nSlides:  https://drive.google.com/file/d/1nhUBtaPKkUQZdInsLL7GTMbgIgnGmoK0/ \n\nJanuary 26 – THE US AND ISRAEL IN THE MIDDLE EAST: Although the US government supported the Zionist project from the time of the First World War\, and it was quick to recognize the independence of Israel in 1948\, US policies toward the Middle East centered on Oil and later Cold War interests. The US was not much involved the Middle East until the 1930s and then oil-rich Saudi Arabia\, not Israel\, was its close all — as it remains to this day. Republicans – who as a party are now firmly pro-Israel —  were skeptical in the 1950s and 1960s of unconditional support for Israel. It was only in the 1970s that Israel came to be viewed as an important strategic ally\, especially in the context of the Cold War. Since then\, the Israel Lobby also became an important player in US politics.\n\nVideo:  https://youtube.com/live/Chuz0APhZic \nSlides:  https://drive.google.com/file/d/1zSHbg52kYJI1Z27hx8mq-5rYGn_h4dbg/ \n\nFebruary 2 – LOOKING IN THE MIRROR: How the U.S. has shaped the contemporary Middle East from before the Cold War to the present. Indigenous nationalism and its opponents. Addressing the domestic colonial and imperial background to US support for Israel and its destabilizing interference in the region.\n\nVideo: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v_pdo_Q8Rpw \nSlides: https://drive.google.com/file/d/13ZTXZlBuyRkkIfTFQ4aR-UConOBdpT-1/ \nSpeaker: Jeff Klein is a veteran anti-war activist\, retired machinist and local trade-union president\, who for 8 years until 2023 taught a course on “The US in the Middle East” at the UMass Boston Lifelong Learning Institute.  He is a board member of Massachusetts Peace Action and a member of its Gaza Israel Mideast peace campaign’s steering committee. Since 2004 Jeff has traveled almost every year to Palestine/Israel and elsewhere in the Middle East\, and has many close friends among veteran activists in Palestine\, Lebanon and Jordan.  He has also worked in Nicaragua and for the exiled African National Congress in Zambia.  Check out his weekly presentations on “Genocide in Gaza” and read his articles on the Middle East. \n \nRegister to attend any or all of the four sessions. Course materials: Readings and Resources on Israel/Palestine Course Outline – the US in the Middle East – This outline was prepared for an 8-session version of the course given at UMass Boston in fall 2023.  The material will be condensed for this 4-session online version.
URL:https://masspeaceaction.org/event/gaza-in-context-the-colonial-history-that-shaped-the-modern-middle-east-2-2/
LOCATION:Online Event
CATEGORIES:Palestine/Israel
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://masspeaceaction.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/gaza-in-context-part-3.revised.png
ORGANIZER;CN="Massachusetts Peace Action Education Fund":MAILTO:info@masspeaceaction.org
END:VEVENT
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DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250125T140000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250125T173000
DTSTAMP:20250120T141931Z
CREATED:20241206T211421Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250120T141931Z
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SUMMARY:Reducing the Nation's Spending for Nuclear Weapons
DESCRIPTION:Saturday Jan 25\, 2025 Virtual Conference 2:00 – 5:30 pm (EST) \n \nThe threat of nuclear war is increasing\, rather than abating. \n\nBiden’s recent actions in the Russia/Ukraine conflict has sharply increased the danger.\nThe tragic Israel/Gaza conflict continues to expand.\nCold Warriors in high places are beating the drums of war toward Russia and China.\nEnormous public expenditures are being made on upgrading all three legs of the nuclear weapons triad\n\nResponding to these costs and dangers\, we will meet virtually  on Saturday afternoon January 25\, 2025 to call for Reducing Congressional Spending for Nuclear Weapons and discuss how to organize to meet the challenge.   Register to attend. \nProgram:  \n2:00 Welcome: Bob Redwine (MIT) – Continuing influence of the Military-Industrial Complex \n2:05 Opening Panel – International Flashpoints Chair- Joseph Gerson (Campaign for Peace\, Disarmament and Common Security); \n–       US and Russia – Hon. George Beebe (Quincy Institute); \n–       US and China – Prof. Lyle Goldstein (Watson Institute/ Brown University); \n  –      Nuclear Tensions over Israel. Gaza\, and Iran –  Sharon Gaya Dolev (Israel) and Emad Kiyaei (Iran) (Middle East Treaty Organization) \n2:50 pm Panel 2- Costs & Dangers of the US Nuclear Weapons Buildup – Chair\, Nancy Goldner (Cut Sentinel Campaign). \n– Exorbitant Sentinel costs –Richard Krushnic  (Mass Peace Action); \n– Dangers of the New ICBMs – David Borris (Chicago Area Peace Action); \n– What do we expect from Trump’s Nuclear Stances –Daryl Kimball (Arms Control Assn.). \n3:30 Break \n3:40 Panel 3 – Economic Campaigns – Chair\, Susan Mirsky (Nuclear Disarmament Working Group); \n–       Moral Budget – Shailly Gupta Barnes (Poor People’s Campaign (PPC) and Kairos Center (NY); \n–       Warheads to Windmills – Anduin Devos (Nuclear Ban.US); \n–       Divestment – Susi Snyder (ICANW); \n–       Fund People over Pentagon – Prof. Jonathan King (MA Peace Action Education Fund). \n4:20 Panel 4: No New Nukes- Campaigns Focused on Limiting Weapons: Chair\, Gary Goldstein (Campaign for Peace\, Disarmament and Common Security and Tufts University); \n–       Back from the Brink- Harry Katz (Back from the Brink); \n–       Restricting Sole Authority and First Use – Prof. Elaine Scarry (Campaign for Peace\, Disarmament and Common Security); \n–       Physicists Campaign for Nuclear Threat Reduction – Prof. Stewart Prager (Physicists Coalition for Nuclear Threat Reduction); \n–       Promoting the Treaty on Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) – Melissa Parke ( ICANW). \n 5:00 Congressional Initiatives: Chair Cole Harrison \n–       Senate action: Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA) \n–       Cancelling the Sentinel -Rep. John Garamendi (D-CA) \n–       Citizen’s Call to Action – Jodie Evans (CodePINK). \nProgram Committee: David Borris (Chicago Area Peace Action); Ann Fritsch (Rotary International); Nancy Goldner (Sentinel Project); Prof. Gary Goldstein (Mass Peace Action Education Fund); Cole Harrison (Mass Peace Action Education Fund); Susan Mirsky (MAPA Nuclear Disarmament Working Group); Jonathan King-Chair (Nuclear Disarmament Coordinating Committee and MIT); Prof. Bob Redwine (Nuclear Weapons Education Project and MIT). \nNuclear costs calculator – https://www.psr-la.org/nuclear-costs \n 
URL:https://masspeaceaction.org/event/reducing-congressional-spending-for-nuclear-weapons/
LOCATION:Online Event
CATEGORIES:Nuclear Disarmament
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ORGANIZER;CN="Massachusetts Peace Action Education Fund":MAILTO:info@masspeaceaction.org
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