Meniscus Magazine
~Events~

On Easter weekend, Meniscus Magazine and Brian O'Connell hosted a big peace and justice party called Assembling Peace. The idea behind the evening in Jamaica Plain, Mass. was to merge the vital energy of the live music and art cultures with the progressive activist scene. A diverse congregation of over 250 individuals came together to celebrate the persistance of the Peace Movement.

If nothing else, it was a chance to say, "No, I don't condone the war," through participation.

... and have a good time!

 

Shown here, Jeff Herman from United for Peace and Justice sings John Lennon's Imagine, along with the band Lander who performed earlier in the evening.

 

Speakers through out the night included Alison Ramer of Boston Mobilization and Patrick Ayres of Socialist Alternative.

Sholom Keller of Iraq Veterans Against the War, shown here, spoke about life in the desert of Iraq. He explained one time in particular when he reached to give a starving child some of his military rations. The officer said "No, don't give her that! They are coming after us with food." "They never came," said Keller.

 

Musicians from around New England also came together to help stimulate change and awareness.

Performing artists included Boston’s afro-funk band Ujamma, progressive pedal steel and banjo wizard, Gordon Stone, Boston mandolin legend Jimmy Ryan, Ben Groppe of Addison Groove Project, Brian O’Connell of Uncle Sammy, Jamaica Plain’s own hip-hop masters, The Greater Good, Claire Hendricks and Pete Cassani of the Peasants.

Here we see Ivana Moore Enmoore from Billionaires for Bush, pointing out that war is actually very profitable for those with a stake in the business.

"In our society, the real reasons for war are buried under a heap of propaganda. Assembling Peace is a way for citizens, artists, musicians and activists to get together and unite under the common theme that war is engineered to take our attention off of other problems," says musician and activist Brian O’Connell.

Andrew Alexander, "Boston's Pavarotti"

The Greater Good

Downstairs, a dozen organizations shared in spirited conversation—complete with massage chairs!

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