Westerly Antiracist coalition- newsletter for 4.3.

2022

Dr. ML King was assassinated on 4 April 1968. As we all work towards a nonviolent future and strive to address
the many facets of violence facing us today, the excerpts from two of his speeches, written about 50 years ago,
show not only the wisdom, intellect, and humanity of this man, but how slowly we have progressed to heed his
warnings to end war, racism, poverty, and the systemic policies that keep them going.

“World peace through nonviolent means is neither absurd nor unattainable. All other methods have failed. Thus
we must begin anew. Nonviolence is a good starting point. Those of us who believe in this method can be voices
of reason, sanity, and understanding amid the voices of violence, hatred, and emotion. We can very well set a
mood of peace out of which a system of peace can be built.”

--Martin Luther King, Jr., December 1964

“The war in Vietnam has played havoc with our domestic destinies. Today we are spending five hundred
thousand dollars to kill every Vietcong soldier. Every time we kill one we spend about five hundred thousand
dollars while we spend only fifty-three dollars a year for every person characterized as poverty-stricken in the
so-called poverty program, which is not even a good skirmish against poverty.

And here we are ten thousand miles away from home fighting for the so-called freedom of the Vietnamese
people when we have not even put our own house in order. And we force young black men and young white
men to fight and kill in brutal solidarity. Yet when they come back home that can’t hardly live on the same block
together.

This is where we are. "Mankind must put an end to war or war will put an end to mankind," and the best way to
start is to put an end to war in Vietnam, because if it continues, we will inevitably come to the point of
confronting China which could lead the whole world to nuclear annihilation.

It is no longer a choice, my friends, between violence and nonviolence. It is either nonviolence or nonexistence.
And the alternative to disarmament, the alternative to a greater suspension of nuclear tests, the alternative to
strengthening the United Nations and thereby disarming the whole world, may well be a civilization plunged
into the abyss of annihilation.”

-- Martin Luther King, Jr., Remaining Awake Through a Great Revolution, 31 March 1968

The month of April is Diversity Month

Diversity Month began in 2004 to honor and recognize the diversity that surrounds us all. It acknowledges our
differences in culture, race, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual identity, generation, disability and nationality.
When we understand the beauty and wisdom in “we are all different” and that we each bring incredible talent,
abilities and skills to our shared world, then we see the good and beauty in one another and acquire the skills to
make this world a more beautiful and perfect union.

Sunday Protest update

On Sunday, 27 March, we welcomed back our friend, Librarian, writer, and instructor, Ery Caswell, who shared
the story behind Beyond the Stacks Mobile Library, a mobile social justice library in Southeastern CT/Southern
RI they created and brings to our Sunday protests on the last Sunday of each month. Ery told us, “the
collection of books serves one of two purposes: (1) to provide education and further information about
social justice issues, and (2) to highlight the personal narratives and stories of marginalized people in this
oppressive culture. We collect books representing as wide a variety of genres, reading levels, and identities as
possible for our available space and resources.”

Ery also said this work, “true of any living being learning how to love better”, will always be a work in
progress and requested anyone who would like to volunteer for this special project to please click on the
link below. There is an urgent need to help weatherproof books, donate books, review and comment on
books, and to spread the word. Please visit Ery’s thoughtful website to volunteer, take out a book from the
mobile library or to just be inspired. Thank you Ery for bringing Beyond the Stacks Mobile Library to ARC’s
Sunday protests, and for your determination and hard work making these resources available to our ARC
community. You are our literary hero.
​
https://www.beyondthestacks.com

Jonathan Daly-LaBelle shared the work he is doing with JustPeaceRI. Jonathan has been part of an effort to
bring two bills before the RI legislature. Both bills concern the military industrial complex and the enormous
amounts of money spent on war and nuclear weapons. On Tuesday, March 29th, he and other constituents
held a press conference with Rep. David Morales and Senator Tiara Mack who introduced their historic
legislation that would establish RI’s commitment to peace and transparency. Jonathan reminded us that the
trillions of dollars wasted on weapons like our nuclear arsenal could be much better spent on the social issues of
our time including poverty, education, universal health care, racial justice, and reparations. Many thanks to
Jonathan for his work keeping peace and reminding us of the harm war and spending on war has on all of us.
We look forward to hearing the outcome of his meeting with Rep. Morales and Mack.

News and Upcoming Events

This Sunday, 3 April from 11-1 pm on the Westerly Post Office steps, we welcome two wonderful friends and
musicians - Frank Pendola and Big Lux! Frank and Big Lux will entertain us with music for social change. We
hope you won’t miss the joy listening to the music of two of our most beloved community members.

Ramadan begins at sunset on Saturday, 2 April, and ends on the evening of Monday, 2 May. Ramadan is a holy
month of fasting, introspection and prayer for Muslims. It is celebrated as the month during which
Muhammad received the initial revelations of the Quran, the Muslim holy book.

Sunday presenters Needed

Do you know anyone who would like to share a story, read a poem, sing, dance or share some wisdom during
our Sunday presentations? Each presentation is only 5-10 minutes and should address our goals of social justice
and equality for all. This Month of Diversity would be a good time for presentations on various cultures,
religions and traditions that exist in our local communities. We are interested in hearing from our Muslim
brothers and sisters who might share their story on observing the sacred season of Ramadan. Please encourage
those you know to contact us at westerlyarc@gmail to discuss a presentation. The crowd is always warm and
welcoming. Thank you.

Educate, Embrace and empower

One of the best tools we have to stay informed about our local community and advocate for change is attending
Westerly School Committee and Town Council meetings. School Committee meetings are held Wednesday
evenings at 5pm, and Town Council meetings are held on Monday evenings at 5:30pm. Both committees meet
in the Council Chambers, 2nd Floor, of the Westerly Town Hall, 45 Broad Street. Attached are links to meeting
their schedules and agendas. ARC is committed to attending these meetings regularly, but we need more
volunteers to attend with us. Please let us know if we can add your name to our list of weekly attendees.

terly.k12.ri.us/site/Default.aspx?PageID=70

https://clerkshq.com/westerly-ri

Black Voices Film Series at United theater, westerly

Westerly ARC, in collaboration with the United Theatre in Westerly, presents the Black Voices Film Series, a
monthly event held on the last Tuesday of every month at 7 pm to recognize films from great black storytellers
working in film and television. The next film is One Night in Miami, directed by Regina King, 26 April @ 7pm.
Please check out the link below for more information on this wonderful series. And spread the word to family
and friends.

www.unitedtheatre.org

Peace,

Westerly ARC