You are Invited to Attend the next mid-state meeting of the
Missouri Campaign for a Moratorium on Executions
7:00-8:30 p.m.
Tuesday, 19 October
Columbia Public Library
Conference room A
Please join us for what time you can. Convened by the Mid-Missouri Fellowship of Reconciliation. Call me at 573-449-4585 or e-mail jstack@no2death.org for more information.
Please review the notes from our last meeting

CHRIS HEDGES TALK & "CONTROL ROOM" SHOWING OCT. 17
"Control Room," the poignant documentary about the Al Jazeera network -- filmed during the time the U.S. launched its war upon Iraq -- will be shown Sunday evening, Oct. 17, following a speech by author and N.Y. Times reporter Chris Hedges at the Missouri Theater in downtown Columbia. Hedges, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of War is a Force that Gives Us Meaning, broke rank with most mainstream reporters when he spoke out against the build-up to the war prior to the U.S. invasion. The program will begin with free appetizers from the Root Cellar at 6:00 pm, followed with music by the international youth choir Buds of Peace, comments by Octavia Nasr, CNN's senior editor for Arab affairs, Hedges' talk, then the film. Afterwards, Stuart Loory, the host of "Global Journalist" will lead a discussion. The RagTag Cinemacafe is coordinating the event, co-sponsored by the Mid-MO FOR, Mid-MO Peaceworks and other groups. Admission is $7. Call the Cinemacafe at 441-8504 for details.

THE OTHER U.S. WAR: FOCUS ON AFGHANISTAN OCT. 18
Becky Hassler, a nurse practitioner who visited post-Taliban Afghanistan in 2002, and Cathy Salter, a Columbia Daily Tribune columnist who had previously visited there, will share their perspectives and the reported reasons for U.S. involvement in that nation, during a free program, Monday, Oct. 18 at 7:30 pm in Room 110 of Lee Hills Hall (7th & Elm St.) on the UMC campus. While much public focus has been fixed on Iraq, it's critical to remember that thousands of U.S. troops continue to occupy Afghanistan. The White House has boasted of the Afghan “success” and the recent (fraud-ridden) election, but they'd like U.S. voters to forget that nearly 150 U.S. troops have already been killed there and several thousand Afghans have been killed via our government's invasion and occupation. Call Jeff at 449-4585 for more info on the Columbia Peace Coalition (CPC) event.

FREE SHOWING OF “LIBERTY BOUND” OCT. 21
The acclaimed film, “Liberty Bound' will be presented free to the public at 7:30 pm, Sunday, Oct. 21 in the second floor auditorium of Neff Hall near the corner of Elm and 9th St. on the UMC campus. Through original and archived footage plus interviews with progressive luminaries, “Liberty Bound” explores the state of the union, the erosion of civil liberties and our nation's ostensible slide toward fascism. The showing is being co-sponsored by the UMC Amnesty International chapter, Students for Progressive Action and Mid-MO FOR.

PROGRAM IN SOLIDARITY WITH MEXICAN WOMEN OCT. 26
Two women will share their painful awareness of the violence targeted against women in two cities along Mexico's northwest border with the United States, during a program at 7:30 pm Tuesday, Oct. 26 in Waters Auditorium on the UMC campus (located on University Ave. across from the parking garage). Almost 400 young women have been murdered in the cities of Juarez and Chihuahua over the past decade. Half of these women worked in maquiladora factories opened in Mexico under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Government and police officials have inadequately been investigating the deaths, while maquiladora owners refuse to accept any responsibility for safety measures. The speakers will be Evangelina Arce, mother of Silvia, who “disappeared” in 1998, leaving motherless three young children, and Abby Thornton, a grassroots intern based out of Chicago. Call Robin at 442-0681 for more info on the event co-sponsored by Global Action to Prevent War and the Mid-Missouri Peace Coalition.

CUBA REVISITED WITH PROGRAM NOV. 16
For the second time in five years, Larry Brown, a UMC Geography instructor and Disciples of Christ minister, traveled this summer to Cuba. He was motivated to travel there in part to be better able to inform U.S. citizens of what life is like for Cubans, an amazingly resourceful people who have been subjected to a brutal U.S.-led trade embargo for more than 40 years and more recently ravaged by hurricanes. He will offer his observations Tuesday, Nov. 16; contact the Peace Nook at 875-0539 to learn more about the CPC event.