encuentro 5

Thursday, October 18, 2012, 7:00 p.m. On Sunday, October 7, 2012, months of intense campaigning throughout Venezuela culminated in a massive turnout at the polls, with more than 80% participation, and a decisive 11-point margin of victory for incumbent president, Hugo Chavez. The Boston Martin Luther King, Jr. Bolivarian Circle will host Omar Sierra, the Consul General of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela in Boston, and two local Venezuelan activists in a conversation about the election outcomes and what they indicate for democracy, economic development and the socialist path that voters endorsed.

The event takes place at encuentro 5 (in its new location right by the Park Street T stop and the Orpheum Theatre) at 9 Hamilton Place, Suite 2a, Boston, MA 02108 [Directions: binged.it/SxWgCB - note Google Maps yields an incorrect location, for now, please use this link to locate e5]

What e5 residents are saying about the transition and the new site:

... "the newness is refreshing" ... "change is good!"... "solidarity and staying together" .... "new site is beautiful" ... "we are like family" ... "coming together in a beautiful way" ... "the new space is like home" ... "fresh opportunities" ... "excellent location"..."exciting to have a new start"... "teamwork!" ... "such a good feeling in here, good energy" ... "develop collaborative relationships" ... "sharing more space will build stronger bonds"... "it's so pretty in here"... "a fruitful transition towards a more long-term situation"...

As we settle in and get back into the groove of things, we'd like to take a moment to share a heartfelt thank you for everyone's help in the move! We will be posting more updates shortly regarding the operations of the new space, as well as the plans for seeking a longer term situation that meets our criteria for accessibility, centrality, space, and cost. 

Becoming a sustainer or making a donation helps lay the foundation for rebuilding our projects and envisioning the future of encuentro5. Thanks again and e5 onwards!

Sunday, July 29, 2012, 1:30 - 3:00 p.m. MIT Bldg 56 - Rm 114 Dialectics is a way of dealing with complexity and change in the natural and social sciences. Harvard School of Public Health Professor Richard Levins is an ex-tropical farmer turned ecologist. He has engaged in activist and theoretical struggles for Puerto Rican independence, against wars and imperialism, for ecological agriculture in Cuba and against reductionism in science.

www.facebook.com/events/417569591617445//?ref=ts

Date: TBA
Location: Central Park Lanes, 10 Saratoga St. East Boston

How? It’s very simple! Pick up or download a pledge sheet. Start asking friends for $5-$10 (tax-deductible donations). Join or create a bowling team of 4-5 people. Raise at least $40 per person to roll with us and then… show up, win prizes, and have some fun!

Why now? encuentro5 has been providing a progressive movement building space for over 6 years. It is home to over 10 resident organizations addressing a wide range of social issues, provides a public venue for a diversity of events, & presents dynamic talks & cultural activities on an ongoing basis.

e5 is now transitioning into a new location and needs to raise urgent funds! Show your support by signing up to help keep the ball rolling for e5!

For more info, call: Alisa, 617-401-6240, or Sarah, 617-401-5730 or send an email to info@encuentro5.org

Sunday, July 15th 2-5pm To be rescheduled. Challenge yourself. Overcome fear. Discover the power in your reality. Based on the interactive movement techniques developed by Augusto Boal, Brazilian theater activist, Gail Burton will facilitate this 3-hour workshop on discovering personal and collective visions for transforming conflict and oppression into collective resistance and empowerment. A highly participatory living-in-the-body interaction. No previous experience necessary. Suggested Donation $20, no one turned away for lack of funds. More info pending.

For more info, visit: www.transformingconflict.net
Follow on facebook.

About Gail Burton: Trained by and is a member of the facilitation collective, Theater of the Oppressed Laboratory at the Brecht Forum, in NYC; and currently serving as the coordinator of the collective’s multiplication project, TOPLAB New England. Gail has studied Image, Forum, and Rainbow of Desire theater techniques under the guidance of Marie-Claire Picher, Julian and Augusto Boal; as well as other members of the collective. Burton has been a member of the Medea Project Theater for Incarcerated Women in San Francisco, CA. and coordinator and workshop leader for her New Freedwoman Project, in MA. (Click here for full text)

How you can help: (1) read our transition statement; (2) volunteer with one of our teams - program, operations, re-location, fundraising; (3) become a sustainer or make a donation; and (4) provide a written or video testimony to your experience/relationship with e5 on our facebook page. See some of the testimonies that we've collected so far by clicking here.

Diverse community activists are meeting at e5 to figure out their responses to our transition. On July 23, at 6:00 p.m.,  e5 will host a community meeting (at e5 with the option of remote participation) to discuss the transition and our options. Ranging from a Unitarian Unversalist minister to public interest lawyers to Dewey Square veterans, this meeting came together with 24-hours notice. Later Doug Greene shot a short video with testimonies from several of the meeting's attendees. Click "read more" to view the video."

Saturday, July 14th, 8pm to late

Featuring: Oasis, Evaluzion, DJ Diego, Choco DRH y otras compas

Join the folklore, the storytelling, the arte y amor, the poetry of struggle bringing histories to life, and life to our circles of song. Local and intergalactic musicians. Live music and soul. Bring your stories and poems, we'll offer the mic. 
Suggested Donation: $5 at door

Ruth Henry, aka Oasis's "Making Peace with Hip Hop Statement": www.peaceissexy.net/ruth-henry-making-peace-with-hip-hop/

Follow event on Facebook.

Friday, June 22nd, 2012, 7:00 - 9:00 p.m.  Occupy Boston Information & Technology (OBIT) is proud to present a consensus building tool focused on accessing direct democracy and using technology to influence political outcomes at the state and federal levels.

While many carry beliefs that electoral politics are tainted by corrupt practices and big money Super PACS, there are others who still believe that it is important that voters leverage their power through actively challenging their elected officials to speak for the people

On June 22 we will look at the various ways that technology is being used to impact true democratic practices and get more people involved in the drafting and revision of proposed legislation.

[photo from the Boston Globe, more photos here]

Student Immigrant Movement (SIM), an e5 Resident, makes headlines with a partial victory in their Dream Act campaign, while gearing up for fighting forward.
For more info, visit: www.facebook.com/Student.Immigrant.Movement

A ROUNDTABLE CONNECTING #OCCUPY, GLOBAL MOVEMENTS, THE WORLD SOCIAL FORUM & ELECTIONS

Saturday, June 30, 2012, 6:00 p.m. A conversation made urgent by the defeated recall in Wisconsin: The Arab Spring signaled a global wave of social movements challenging inequality, repression, austerity, war, & corporate power. Whatever their strengths, these movements have all had to give serious consideration to how they relate to electoral politics. This timely conversation brings together a diverse group of thoughtful activists and engaged scholars who have connections to the #Occupy movement, the World Social Forum, solidarity movements and grassroots organizing. 

Featuring: Sarah Francis, Jeff Juris, Suren Moodliar, Thomas Ponniah, Monica Poole, and Heike Schotten (panel chair). (read more for bios and suggested readings)

Thanks to Doug Greene for organizing this event under the auspices of the Howard Zinn Memorial Lecture and recording this video.

The 2nd Saturday of Each Month
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Saturday, June 9th, 8pm to late Join the folklore, the storytelling, the arte y amor, the poetry of struggle bringing histories to life, and life to our circles of song. Local and intergalactic musicians. Live music and soul. Bring your stories and poems, we'll offer the mic. Suggested Donation: $5 at door

Celebrating Shena Carvajal (1928-2012)
Feautured Guest at e5's first Peña in May 2010, dedicated to Violeta Parra

  On memorial day I want to remember the soldiers of peace,
  the ones that fought to make this world a better place,
  the ones that were strong in the face of adversity,
  the ones that gave their lives to the cause of justice,
  in the simplest of details, everyday, silent examples of human responsibility …

On Tuesday, May 22nd, 2012, Michael Staudemier added his analysis of the Sojourner Truth Organization to the Howard Zinn Memorial Lecture Series of #OccupyBoston's Free School University. This video was provided by the event organizer, Doug Greene. Click on "read more" below for more the 2nd part of this presentation.

Calling All Peace & Social Justice Activists!

Sunday, May 6, 2012, 2:00 - 5:00 p.m. Now is the time to join together with 24 labor, peace, housing and community groups across the state to put our message before the public this election year. Place the “Budget for All” referendum question on the ballot in Massachusetts this November: “Troops home from Afghanistan now; Reduce the Military Budget; No cuts to Social Security, Housing assistance, Medicaid; Invest in Jobs and Renewable energy; tax large corporations”

We need you to help collect signatures to place the referendum on the ballot in your state representative district. Here’s something we can all do together.

For Information call Paul Shannon at AFSC: 617-661-6130 ext. 123

Manuel Santos & Bambule play LIVE!

Saturday, May 5th, 2012
8pm to late
Suggested Donation: $10-$5

"Un amigo del vivir antes que nada, de la creacion y de la interpretacion, con un mensaje personal, rescatando el recuerdo de poemas y canciones
de conciencia y tradicion, despertando el sentimiento y la sencibilidad.

A friend of life above all, of creativity and performance with a personal message,
rescuing the memories of poems and song, conscience and tradition,
awakening feelings and sensibility...

Este es un desarrollo poetico que busca cantar el patrimonio de nuestros pueblos.
donde la tierra (la "PachaMama") y el pan amanecen cotidianos y generosos.

This is a poetic endeavor that attempts to express the patrimony of our people in song, where the earth ( "Pachamama" ) and the bread rise each dawn in abundance and generosity.