A note from your editor

The painful murder of George Floyd in Minnesota reminds us of the deep rooted racism in our society and system. The type of restraint exercised on Floyd by the police should be outlawed. We should not tolerate such extreme action by the police on civilians. I am totally saddened by the little progress made on race and racism in this country since the Civil Rights movement fifty years ago. Unfortunately the White house is not helping. The peaceful protestors were denounced by the President as thugs while haling the same type of protesters and their actions in Hong Kong as legitimately fighting for democracy. His continuing to confuse the country has been harmful. We, as a society, have to make the effort to break this cycle of violence and racism once for all.

While adjusting to our life during lock down by continuing to try to lead a normal life, many of our members have been very productive and creative, using the time inside our homes to engage in new projects or to finish old ones that we have forgotten. As for myself, I started sewing more, an activity that I find very meditative and peaceful. I have used leftover fabrics to make pockets for my tops and jackets to make them more functional. Many of our members are doing other creative projects.

I hope you will share with your friends and get together (with proper distancing and facemarks, of course) to engage in a dialogue on our 'new normal' -- addressing the future of the pandemic, how to transform civil disobedience into productive action and to make the basic changes in our society needed to create a better world.