Maj. Danny Sjursen: West Point Grad Turns AntiWar Activist
To Al Johnson
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Dear Al,
Just retired from the U.S. Army, 35 year old Major Danny Sjursen is an outspoken, dissident soldier now entering a new life as a promising peace activist. From his most recent article "The Forever Wars Go On Without Me" (Apr. 3, 2019): "I think of this as my last piece authored as an active military dissenter — a clearing of the air — before moving on to a life of activism, as well as an unarmed life of words." Join us on Thursday April 25th from 7-9PM at 11 Garden Street ,Cambridge. Then attend a conference at MIT, the "Social and Economic Costs of Endless Wars," from 2-5 PM on Friday April 26th. Major Sjursen will be the keynote speaker.
Is The U.S. a Force for Good in the Mid-East? Major Danny Sjursen
Thursday April 25 @ 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm
First Church in Cambridge, Congregational, UCC, 11 Garden St
Cambridge, MA 02138
Still Trapped in a Greater Middle Eastern Quagmire, the U.S. Military Prepares for Global Combat
Major Danny Sjursen (U.S. Army -ret.) will survey U.S. regional interventions since 9/11 and intersperse his analysis of the counterproductiveness and criminality of these actions with his own personal journey from a promising military career to a life of dissent while on active duty.
Danny Sjursen is a retired U.S. Army Major and regular contributor to Antiwar .com, Truthdig, The Nation, Tom Dispatch, The Huffington Post, and The Hill. His work has also appeared in Harper’s, The LA Times, and Buzz Feed. He served combat tours with reconnaissance units in Iraq and Afghanistan and later taught history at his alma mater, West Point. He is the author of a memoir and critical analysis of the Iraq War, Ghost Riders of Baghdad: Soldiers, Civilians, and the Myth of the Surge (2015). He co-hosts the progressive veterans’ podcast “Fortress on a Hill.” Follow him on Twitter at @SkepticalVet.
Recent articles: “The Israel Liability: Moral and Strategic Hazards of an Ill-Advised Alliance” (March 12, 2019); “Planet of War” (Nov. 20, 2018) ; “The World According to the ‘Adults in the Room’: A Year of Forever War in Review" (Dec. 23, 2018); “An Officer’s Path to Dissent” (Jan. 3, 2018); “I was an Army grunt at the pointy end of the American spear. But no longer” (Mar. 31, 2019). Video: “US Hegemony in the Middle East” (July 5, 2018)
This event is part of the Distinguished Peacebuilder Series. Tickets $10 for members, $20 for non-members, $5 for students, $75 for supporters. Reserve tickets online.Social and Economic Costs of Endless Wars
Friday April 26 @ 2:00 pm - 5:00 pm
MIT Room 34-101 50 Vassar Street Cambridge, MA 02139
Conference on the social and economic costs of endless wars, Friday afternoon April 26th at MIT
Pre-Register at cost-war-apr19.bpt.me/: Students and low income FREE, General Admission $12, Supporter $75 (thanked at event and in program)
2:00 pm: Welcome: Jonathan King, MIT
2:15 pm: Opening Panel
– The Costs of War – Prof. Neta Crawford (Boston University)
– The Bloated Pentagon Budget – William Hartung (Center for International Policy)
– Saudi Military Aggression in Yemen – Michael Page (Human Rights Watch)
– Endless War in the Middle East – Danny Sjursen, Major, US Army (ret.)
3:00 pm: Emerging Responses:
Chair Cole Harrison (Mass Peace Action)
– Build Bridges not Bombs; Bringing Nuclear Disarmament into the State Legislature – Rep Nika Elugardo, Mass State Legislature (invited)
– Don’t Bank on the Bomb – Divesting from Nuclear Weapons Manufacture – Rep. Mike Connolly (Mass State Legislature)
– Bringing the Moral Revival to Massachusetts– Savina Martin (Poor Peoples Campaign)
– The Intensifying Struggle for Affordable Housing – Chuck Collins (Institute for Policy Studies)
– Massachusetts Battles to Protect and Promote Public Education – Andrew King (UMass Boston) .
3:45 – Workshops:
– A) Organizing on Campuses: Facilitator, Brian Garvey, MAPA; Zac Bears (PHENOM); Alice Pote (MIT/anti-Saudi Coalition); Gabby Ballard (MIT Students Against War); Paul Shannon (AFSC).
– B) Nuclear Disarmament Initiatives: Facilitators, Joseph Gerson and Michelle Cunha; Jerrold Ross (MAPA); Prof. Aron Bernstein (MIT).-
– C) Moral and People’s Budget: Connecting battles for Economic Justice with Reducing Pentagon Spending: Facilitator, Jared Hicks (Our Revolution); Andrea Burns (MAPA); Andrew King (UMass Boston); John Ratliff (Mass. Senior Action); William Hartung (Center for International Policy).
– D) The Continuing Links between Militarism and Racism:Facilitator, Rosemary Kean (MAPA); Savina Martin (Poor People’s Campaign); Ceasar Mc Dowell (MIT) (invited));
– E) Mobilizing Communities of Faith (Facilitator, Keith Harvey (AFSC) (invited); Rev. Vernon Walker (invited); Rev. Herb Taylor (Harvard-Epworth) (invited); Rev. Leslie Sterling (St. Bartholomew’s) (invited).
5:00: Report backs from Workshops
5:30 Adjourn
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Yours for Peace,
Brian Garvey
Organizer |
Visit our website to learn more about joining the organization or donating to Massachusetts Peace Action!
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Massachusetts Peace Action, 11 Garden St., Cambridge, MA 02138
617-354-2169 • info@masspeaceaction.org • Follow us on Facebook or Twitter
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