Saturday, December 10, 7:30pm –
Suggested Donation: $10 for students. $15 for all others*

Support Midwives! Party and Fundraiser to support the ACNM-PAC

Live Music! Silent Auction! 50/50 Raffle! Food and Drink! The ACNM Midwife-PAC raises the voices of midwives through advocating for more access to full scope midwifery care, increased consumer awareness of maternal health options, supporting professional liability reform, and more! *Please note: if you are not a member of the ACNM we can not solicit a donation, although you are welcome to donate to the PAC if you choose.

Saturday, December 10, 1pm – Non-Fiction

Matt Meyer author of Seeds Bearing Fruit, Seeds of New Hope and Time is Tight: Transformative Education in Eritrea, South Africa, and the U.S.A Pan-African Peace Action for the Twenty-First Century
edited by Elavie Ndura- Ouédraogo, Matt Meyer, and Judith Atiri ($39.95 AWP)

No matter how little one knows about Africa, we cannot help but hear of raging poverty and out-of-control wars. Defying popular misconceptions, however, Seeds Bearing Fruit: Pan-African Peace Action for the Twenty-First Century recounts the stories of seemingly minor, local acts of creative resistance—acts that are the concrete basis for realistic hope. Based on an understanding that these acts will flower into new movements ready to right the wrongs of generations past, the authors draw their inspiration from the elders who have gone before us and the youth who work in our midst.

Seeds of New Hope: Pan-African Peace Studies for the Twenty-first Century brings together leading academics and activists from four continents, presenting on issues relating to war and peace in Africa. With a focus on areas of positive change and concrete developments in justice-based initiatives, these essays refute the stereotyped view of Africa as a tragic, war-torn region. Thematic, continent-wide overviews are combined with country-specific references, making this volume accessible and insightful for MATT MEYER served for ten years as Multicultural Coordinator for New York City’s Alternative High Schools and Programs, and is currently Educational Director of a small, alternative public school in Manhattan. He is Chair of the Peace and Justice Studies Association, the major North American affiliate of the International Peace Research Association. A former public draft registration resister and chair of the War Resisters League, he continues to serve as convener of the War Resisters International Africa Working Group. With Bill Sutherland, Meyer authored Guns and Gandhi in Africa: Pan-African Insights on Nonviolence, Armed Struggle and Liberation, of which Archbishop Desmond Tutu wrote, “Sutherland and Meyer have looked beyond the short-term strategies and tactics which too often divide progressive people . . . They have begun to develop a language which looks at the roots of our humanness.”

“Time Is Tight” is an important piece of literature for educators all over the world. If education is to produce a new generation of empowered people, then we need to support literature such as presented in this inspiring book. – Ela Gandhi, South African Member of Parliament (ANC)

In reviewing what U.S. educators may learn from some of their African counterparts – especially in the areas of cultural cooperation and peace – Matt Meyer’s “Time Is Tight” seeks to rebuild a sense of solidarity and good will between peoples that many believe has been squandered these past years. The book’s assertion that teachers in the U.S. must address human rights issues right here at home is both refreshing and urgent. -Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney (D-GA.), Congressional Black Caucus

Through “Time Is Tight,” Matt Meyer compels the reader to view education and reciprocal learning from a Sankofa perspective: we will only know where we are going if we have clear knowledge of from whence we have come. The lessons we learned in examination of Pan-Africanist models of education pose serious challenges to those of us for whom education, and most especially alternative education, is our heart’s calling. A very readable, thought-provoking, and serious work. – Margaret Bing-Wade, Coordinator, National Alliance of Black School Educators (Northeast Region)

Wednesday, November 30, 7pm – Non-Fiction
ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE and ENSURING your RIGHT to PROTECT the EARTH

Margaret Motheral was forced from her home in East Mt Airy in 2006 when the City of Philadelphia dug up a contaminated industrial site and used political strong arm to skip environmental procedure, fail to protect the neighborhood from varied haz mat public health hazards. She is currently under treatment for lead, mercury and cadmium exposure and will not be able to return to her home. Margaret Motheral fought to expose the hazards and wrongs. She discovered a history of chemical dumping and an underground creek filled with oil pockets. The city hid violations and refused to handle the problem lawfully. At her first complaint, they started a campaign of attacking her and denying civil rights to keep her quiet. In this ordeal Margaret has learned first hand about Environmental Justice, Brownfields and chemical illness which is rising globally. She also learned a lot about the deep web of corruption in Philadelphia. Additionally she wrote a Bill of Rights to help people be more empowered to know the health conditions of their environment. She found that no government agency worked for her or protected her. She has found other victims of Environmental Injustice crimes and discovered the same pattern of abuse and denial of protection by government agents paid to protect us. Please Join her to learn about this important issue. The load of chemicals in our world is rapidly rising and affecting all of us and we, the people, need more power, rights, and knowledge to clean up this deadly mess. Margaret Motheral is an entertaining and knowledgable speaker with a 30 year background in the healing arts. Light snacks provided and a drum for Earth Healing.

Contact: 215.888.1167 wildmother@mac.com