“I was born by the river in a little tent
And just like the river, I’ve been running ever since
It’s been a long time coming
But I know a change is gonna come.” — Sam Cooke
Dear family & friends,
“A Change Is Gonna Come” was one of my favorite anthems back in the 1960s. Its words seem just as relevant and urgent today. None of us can sing like Sam Cooke. But we can still raise our less-melodic voices loudly against Washington’s agenda of permanent war, empire building, and racism at this urgent moment.
To amplify the call for peace and justice, the project I’ve devoted most of my activist energy to over the last few years, War Times/Tiempo de Guerras, is about to publish 100,000 copies of a special, free, bilingual print tabloid for distribution across the country (see details below).
And I’m running my next marathon to help make this project a success.
This will be my 21st marathon since I first ran the 26.2-mile distance in 1995. I’m not as fast as I was when I qualified for and ran the Boston Marathon in 2000. But I can still come in under four hours and I was 6th out of 30 runners in the 55-59-year-old-male age group in my most recent race. I hope to do as well this coming October 1 in the Sacramento Cowtown Marathon (just a few miles from where I ran my first marathon, the California International, 11 years ago).
I’ll have maximum motivation with your help and support. There are many ways you could push me on my way:
- Distribute a copy of War Times/Tiempo de Guerras for every mile I run — you can get a free bundle of 25 by writing distribution@war-times.org
- Donate a dollar (or more) for each mile of the race; you can make your tax-deductible donation on-line at war-times.org or send a check to War Times, c/o P.O. Box 99096, Emeryville, CA 94662.)
- Take the morning while I’m running — or any other four hours — to act for peace in whatever way you think best, or donate four hours pay to the antiwar organization or project of your choice.
I also want to let you know that after two hardcover printings, a paperback edition of my book Revolution in the Air will come off the press this October. The paperback includes a new preface offering some thoughts on what this history looks like (and what it might imply for radical action) from the vantage point of the post-9/11 world. I hope you will find it of interest; more details will be posted at revolutionintheair.com in October.
It is a privilege and source of hope to be connected to so many wonderful people in these difficult times. I hope you are well, thanks for any support you can provide this Marathon-for-Peace effort.
Peace,
Max
Special free print issue of War Times/Tiempo de Guerras coming soon!
In the last few weeks, war, occupation, death and destruction have dangerously intensified in the Middle East. The U.S. government has encouraged Israel’s devastation of Lebanon and Gaza. Three thousand civilians are dying by violence each month in Iraq. Almost a million Iraqis are living as refugees in neighboring countries. The mainstream press offers its unquestioning approval of U.S. and Israeli moves, while condemning — or ignoring — the widespread opposition of the Arab world.
This one-sided news coverage reminds us of the early days of the U.S. “War on Terror” and of the buildup for the war in Iraq. In those times few media voices were raised to oppose the Bush Administration’s designs. We face a similar situation today. Once again we must look to the alternative press to pierce the official story; to expose the bias and racism involved; and to paint a realistic picture of the active wars in the Middle East, their causes, and their implications for the future.
For this reason, we are taking War Times out of “retirement” and preparing a special print issue to appear in September. This free, bilingual issue will vividly portray the horrors of the wars as they are lived by all who live in affected places. It will discuss the history and implications of the U.S.-Israeli alliance, explain how there is no ‘might makes right’ military solution to the problems of the region, and offer concrete ideas for peace action. It will be available after September 14.
Thanks to the generous support of the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights, the Center for Third World Organizing, Global Exchange, and the Kendra Alexander Foundation we plan to print a minimum of 100,000 copies. We will of course make the issue contents available on our website and to our email list. But the printed version will allow organizers, teachers, activists, and all peace-loving people to provide the issue for free to their neighbors, colleagues, students, members, friends and families. We hope it will be a contribution to peace with justice in the Middle East.
What you can do to help:
- Make a contribution. Visit war-times.org and click on the “Donate On-Line” button to make a tax-deductible contribution towards our special print issue. The more money we raise, the more copies we will be able to print. (You can also send a check to War Times/Tiempo de Guerras, c/o P.O. Box 99096, Emeryville, CA 94662.)
- Be a War Times/Tiempo de Guerras distributor. We will send you bundles of War Times to distribute wherever you are. There is no charge, but if you can support this project, we ask $10 per 25 copies (more if you can afford it, less if you can’t); orders in multiples of 25, please. Contact distribution@war-times.org for more information.
- Tell people you know about the special issue. Forward this email to your own contact lists, and anyone you think might be interested in this project.
Peace,
The War Times/Tiempo de Guerras All-Volunteer Staff: Jan Adams, Karolo Aparicio, Mariana Bustamante, Ruth Warner Carrillo, Jung Hee Choi, Max Elbaum, Arnoldo Garcia, Rebecca Gordon, Felicia Gustin, Hany Khalil, Rachel Kahn, Lynn Koh, Gerald Lenoir, Burton Li, Elizabeth (Betita) Martinez, Samuel Orozco, Ricardo Ortega, Sushawn Robb, Kerry Taylor, Bob Wing
War Times/Tiempo de Guerras is a fiscally sponsored project of the Center for Third World Organizing.
Max Elbaum is the author of Revolution in the Air: Sixties Radicals Turn to Lenin, Mao and Che (Verso 2002). Elbaum is also a member of War Times/Tiempo de Guerras, a group represented on the steering committee of United for Peace and Justice. War Times/Tiempo de Guerras invites you to sign on to its announcement list (3-4 messages per month) to receive regular reports, interviews, flyers, and news recaps. Go to the War Times website at war-times.org. War Times/Tiempo de Guerras is a fiscally sponsored project of the Center for Third World Organizing. Donations to War Times are tax-deductible; you can donate on-line at war-times.org or send a check to War Times/Tiempo de Guerras, c/o P.O. Box 99096, Emeryville, CA 94662.
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