Bar Crawl Radio

Bar Crawl Radio is back at the West Side Community Garden talking with UWSers helping those in need on the Upper West Side of Manhattan.Wendy Straus and BCR producer Alina Larson talked about their work for Open Hearts Initiatives and Pastor K [Karpan] told us about his Church on W. 86th Street. These two UWS organizations are doing in many programs to help our recent migrants from around the world looking for a safe place to be free and complete their dreams and homeless. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A NEW BCR SERIES:Starting on May 22, 2025, several peace activist will fast for 40 days -- vigiling in front of the United States Mission to the UN. They demand an end to US support of Israel's military and urge the American government to pressure Israel to open the Gazan borders to humanitarian aid. For this BCR series I will meet with one of these fasters -- Kathy Kelly -- periodically, and ask her to share her thoughts and concerns. Share your thoughts about this action at barcrawlradio@gmail.com or mike@veteransforpeace.orgAlan Winson -- BCR Producer and Co-Host Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ross Barkan's newest novel “Glass Century” is a panoramic story of New York City from our crime-ridden 70s. through the tragedy of 9/11 to the COVID lockdowns. The story focuses on Mona Glass a photojournalist in love with tennis and a married man. For this BCR podcast, we are not so interested in Mona Glass as the character in a novel but as a lens into the experiences of an American journalist and novelist and the author of “Glass Century” – Ross Barkan.For Bar Crawl Radio podcast. we talk to people doing positive work for their community, recording in neighborhood bars. Today at Gebhard's Beer Culture Bar on the fun side of West 72nd Street – because facing us is the mortuary across the street. We are alive and sitting on the porch with New York Times writer Ross Barkan. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A conversation with two veterans of American wars in Vietnam and Afghanistan – about their work with “We Are Not Your Soldiers” – informing high school and college students about the morally unpleasant truths of the US military.In 2008 the anti-war organization – “World Can't Wait” -- invited American war veterans to share their military experiences with high school and college students – challenging the American culture's overly positive patriotic narratives.Joe Urgo grew up in a white conservative, middle-class NYC neighborhood. He tells young Americans about his experiences in Vietnam in the US Air Force. In 1971 -- Mr. Urgo helped organize the Winter Soldier Investigation detailing the war crimes of American soldiers in Vietnam and Cambodia. Shaniyat Turani-Chowdhury is a freelance investigative journalist living in Queens, NY. He writes about Middle East politics, war and climate change – and most recently reported on the effect of Israeli airstrikes on the Lebanese people. In 2020 Shanityat ran for Congress on a Free Palestine platform.CONTACT: barcrawlradio@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For this BCR series I have been asking American peacemakers: “What are we talking about when we talk about ‘The American'?”This program looks to a Jesuit priest and peacemaker Thomas Merton. At the end of “The Root of War” published in The Catholic Worker in 1962 – Thomas Merton wrote – “The first job of all is to understand the psychological forces at work in ourselves and in society.” That in a nutshell is the purpose of my conversations with American peacemakers.Merton's autobiography -- “The Seven Storey Mountain” -- is about “a young man who led a full and worldly life and then, at the age of 26, entered a Trappist monastery.” In Kentucky, Merton focused his thoughts and prayers on nonviolence and influenced all the major peacemakers of the second half of the 20th Century -- Martin Luther King, the Dalai Lama, Desmond Tuto, the Berrigans, Dorothy Day and on and on -- Father John Dear will help us delve into Merton's non-violence. Dear was born in North Carolina – graduated with top honors from Duke University – received two masters degrees in theology – and was ordained a Catholic Jesuit priest in Baltimore in 1993. John has worked with people scheduled to executed – served at a community center for low-income African-American women and children in Virginia – worked as pastor to parishes in the high desert of New Mexico and founded Pax Christi New Mexico. Worked at a Jesuit Refugee camp in El Salvador. On and on –In a recent email, John described himself as follows:Just so you know, like Merton, Dorothy Day, and Dan Berrigan, I consider myself a Christian anarchist. I'm done with America.It helps to be arrested 85 times and spend time in jail and have several felony convictions. I don't believe in America; I think it's all a lie.If anything, we're global citizens, or citizens of God's reign of universal love and peace. We're all one.That's where I'm at; and I get that from those three -- very few hold it. If this sounds like something you want to ask me about, then ok, let's talk,All the best, peace,JohnIn January 2014 Dear left the Jesuits for reasons that become obvious in this conversation.Alan WInsonbarcrawlradio@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is the third in the BCR series "Talking About The American" -- We are asking American peacemakers to try to explain how they see the qualities of our countrymen. This episode – How'd we do with AIDS?I was in Syracuse for a Veterans for Peace pro-Palestine rally at the James M. Hanley Federal Building. Before the rally I had breakfast with Christian Caurla – an Italian journalist – at the home of Michael Desalvo -- where he and his partner Nick Orth – have provided home-based care for people with AIDS since October 1992. That morning -- Michael served Chris and me a delicious frittata with brussels sprouts. While we ate – I asked Michael about the Syracuse Friends of Dorothy Catholic Worker House which he and his partner renovated – and about their early hospice work with people with AIDS.Michael supports the Dorothy House with his work as a hairdresser.CONTACT Alan Winson barcrawlradio@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rob Fersh talks about collaborative problem solving and his new book, co-authored with Mariah Levison “From Conflict to Convergence: Coming Together to Solve Tough Problems” –As our country divides up its wealth between a few gazillionairs and the rest of us – coming together seems a worthwhile goal.Rob Fersh is the Founder and Senior Advisor of the Convergence Center for Policy Resolution. Before that he worked on international conflict resolution and directed U.S. national policy consensus projects on health care coverage for the uninsured -- and U.S.-Muslim relations. Before that -- Rob headed up a major NGO working to alleviate hunger in the United States. He has worked for Republican and Democratic representatives -- Leon Panetta and Patrick Leahy and Edmund Muskie. In 1994, Rob received the Prudential Foundation Prize for Non-Profit Leadership. He is married, has four children, and three grandchildren. And is a good friend of my sister Barbara Zweig. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This BCR Podcast series will be asking American peace activists a question borrowed from Raymond Carver:“What are we talking about when we talk about ‘The American' ?”This episode looks at an anti-Vietnam War, anti-nuclear peace activist, longtime incarcerated American criminal – and Catholic priest – Philip Berrigan. Brad Wolf joined me via Zoom to help. Recently, Brad edited a collection of Berrigan's writings, entitled -- “A Ministry of Risk”. Brad is a former lawyer, persecutor, professor and community college dean and is the executive director and co-founder of Peace Action Network of Lancaster PA. and he organized the "Merchants of Death War Crimes Tribunal." Brad was featured on Bar Crawl Radio when we covered the Kateri Peace Conference in Fonda, New York earlier this year – BCR #236. Alan Winsonbarcrawlradio@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

TALKING ABOUT "THE AMERICANS": BURYING GAZA BABIESOn December 9, 2024 -- I talked with several of the nearly 50 protestors holding a mock funeral on a plot of grass at the front of the Syracuse Federal Building. It was a rainy and cold morning as several peacemakers neatly ripped away the grass and created a shallow oblong hole into which a half dozen babies in the form of bloodied pillows were placed. An oversized tombstone stood at one end of the "grave." Homeland Security officers arrested three of the "grave diggers" who were given citations and released. The action was organized by John Amidon a leader of Veterans for Peace and Pax Christi Upstate, New York.Amongst others, I spoke with Clare Grady of the Kings Bay Plowshare 7 and Yana Uones who was born in Egypt and now is a Philosophy student at Binghamton University. Throughout the event, Yana read the names of Gazan children killed. Also, I spoke with Jade Ebanks who jhad ust returned from Gaza where she volunteered as a wound care nurse. Jade described the horror she witnessed.CONTACT -- Alan Winson - barcrawlradio@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For this BCR recording we were at the Hollow Nickel Bar in Brooklyn NY. Why a hollow nickel -- check out their website. We had a wild, funny and crucially important conversation about the work of the Church of Stop Shopping with Rev. Billy and Vera Anderson, They had just finished their Saturday morning "Earth Riot" radio show at WBAI.Rev. Billy is an enactment of activist actor and writer Billy Talen; he leads the Church of Stop Shopping -- a New York City performance community preaching the imminent 'shopocalypse' when the world ends due to rampant and unholy consumerism. And Vera Anderson was on Bar Crawl Radio when we were out West with the Nevada Desert Experience's 60 mile Peace Walk to the entrance of the Nevada Nuclear Test Site -- See BCR #219. Vera is a musician and a mental health advocate in NYC and Las Vegas and she is on the board of the Nevada Desert Experience and Pace e Bene advocating for nuclear abolition. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Once again -- recording on the porch of Gebhard's Beer Culture Bar located in Manhattan's Upper West Side -- BCR hosts Rebecca McKean and Alan Winson talk with the four composers and performers and leaders of Composer's Concordance about "contemporary [classic] music." This music movement has been described by the New York Times as “unpredictable … irreverent …and ingenious.” For over four decades Composer's Concordance has presented concerts in all sorts of New York City area venues of inventive experimental music.Gene Pritsker -- Milica Paranosic – Peter Jarvis – and Seth Boustead -- talk about the history of the organization, their compositions and the ongoing joy of breaking contemporary boundaries of what is considered artful music in an unstable era.For our regular listeners if you would like a link to complete versions of the music played in this program -- make a request to email barcrawlradio.comHINT: This program is best heard with a set of good headphones. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

July, 2024. BCR visited the Hot Air Brewing in Creston, Iowa this summer. It is a bastion of liberality and acceptance. We were in Iowa to visit our friends Brian Terrell and Betsy Kennan of the "Strangers and Guests Catholic Worker Farm," in Malloy, IA -- about 30 miles south of Creston; Betsy and Brian introduced us to Iowan's Katie Davidson and Ryan Fuller. When we talked with her, Katie owned the Hot Air Brewery and Ryan is a farmer with his husband and performs drag as "Cherry Peaks."We wanted to get a sense of what life is like in a small Iowan town -- in a state that supports Donald Trump for President. It was a most revealing conversation.Contact: Alan Winson -- barcrawlradio@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The 26th Kateri Peace Conference held in Fonda, NY in mid-September, 2024 was entitled “What's Love Got to do with it?” The outcome of peace activism is the end of always-war. If, indeed, we are all connected on this minuscule green spot in a vast universe – if we are sisters and brothers who care for each other – why do we choose to kill each other in horrific and massive ways? Bar Crawl Radio hosts -- Rebecca McKean and Alan Winson -- moderated the Friday evening panel with Ann Wright, Brian Terrell, Brad Wolf, and Vera Anderson. The panel focused on three basic questions:Why do we consistently choose war? How do wars start? Are the causes really that complex? Are the causes of war knowable?If we know the root causes of war -- Can we come up with policies that would end war-making? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mid-September. BCR moderated the 26th Kateri Peace Conference panel with anti-war and anti-nuclear deterrence activists. We took that opportunity to talk with Melissa Bramble the Director of Operations of the St. Kateri Tekakwitha National Shrine and Historic Site in Fonda NY.Rebecca McKean asked Melissa about the history of St. Kateri and the Shrine. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Back in early Spring 2024 -- we net Bronx Public Defender Eli Northrup as he was beginning his run for NY State Assembly representative for the UWS. We were recording outside the Goddard Riverside Community Center at West 88th St and Columbus Avenue, talking to neighbors celebrating “Love Your Street Tree Day” – and Eli came up to our open mic.Eli placed second in the election for State Assembly. We invited Eli to talk about his experience of running for state office and his work as the “Policy Director for the Criminal Defense Practice at the Bronx Defenders” office. We began the conversation asking Eli about his NYU law school hip hop band “Pants Velour” and their quick hit “Charlie Sheen: Always Winning.” Eli shared his deep disappointment with losing the election and how his work as the policy director at the Bronx Public Defenders formed his political platform. At the midpoint of the conversation we talked about American citizens' looking for openness and honesty in a political scene rife with dishonesty. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

BCR podcast traveled to Mexico and Scotland in August and asked what citizens of the world were feeling about the U.S. Presidential election. Nearly everyone I met was aware of the election and had significant and personal feelings about "Americans" and their limited choice for leadership. I talked with people from Puerta Vallarta, San Miguel de Allende, Edinburgh, and Aberfeldy -- tourists, a waiter, a van driver, teens from Belfast, couple of cooks, a photographer and painter, a teacher, an airline worker, Cambridge students, tour guides, Edinburgh Fringe Festival workers and artists, and the Fringe Financial Manager. Let me know what you think of this mix of human voices on the eve of a most important US Presidential election.Alan Winsonbarcrawlradio@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mid July, this year -- 2024 – Rebecca McKean and I flew into Chicago and then drove to Maloy Iowa – a few miles north of the Missouri border.We passed Joliet – Dekalk – Moline – Iowa City – Cedar Rapids - Ottunwa - Mt Ayr – then – Maloy, Iowa.At one time – not so long ago – Maloy had a small population. Its buildings remain: A medium sized Catholic Church – small Post Office – General Store – Dance Hall – City Hall. Now it is mostly empty – a husk of a town surrounded by massive corn fields.Becky and I were visiting two Catholic Worker friends who had been cultivating a small vegetable – goat and chicken farm since 1986. Their two children grew up in Maloy on the “Strangers and Guests Catholic Worker Community Farm.”Over those years -- besides working the farm -- Betsy Kenan perfected the crafts of weaving and looming – and Brian Terrell travelled protesting war and the spread of U.S. military and nuclear bombs throughout the world._____________________________For the next three BCR programs – we talked with Brian – Betsy and their friends in Maloy and Creston IA to get a feel for life in this American state which overwhelmingly supports Donald Trump for president, bans abortions after six weeks -- and which -- we learned – might be considering alternative – diverse -- ways of being in mid-America.The opening sound was recorded on Betsy's and Brian's porch. Nate Jarrell on the violin – Nate is a young peace activist and musician and builder who was visiting Brian and Betsy on their Catholic Worker Farm – and Don Ray – a neighbor up the road was playing the guitar – Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For the past three years BCR podcast has recorded on Sundays in June from the West Side Community Garden, As usual, we talked with neighbors doing amazing work for their community and featured the music of local artists performing in the Garden during the month. For this BCR program we invited three leaders of the WSCG to talk about its history. By a miraculous convergence of urban decay and sheer will, this former trash heap abides as a garden oasis on the Upper West Sider – all thanks to dedicated gardners and volunteers. This place exemplifies the strength of local communities.Ensconced in a corner of the garden we talked with three women who nurture and are nurtured by a garden: Judy Robinson is a gardener and the President of the WSCG's Board of Directors. Until this summer, Randa Kirshbaum organized the Garden's Summer Music concerts. And joining us on our bench was Jackie Bukowski -- an early organizer of the WSCG.Later in the program we featured the music of the Scott Munson Jazz Quintet. The complete performance can be heard at BCR #233. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Complete performance of the Scott Munson Jazz Quintet at the West Side Community Garden on June 16, 2024.CONTACT: barcrawlradio@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A full length presentation of a performance by La Manga in the West Side Community Garden in June 2024. For a conversation with La Manga founder, Daniela Serna, go to BCR #230.Alan Winsonbarcrawlradio@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For the fourth time this summer Bar Crawl Radio podcast is not at a bar. But we are continuing to have conversations with neighbors doing positive work for their community. We will be talking with a citizen journalists who works in the field of peace activism and whose writing is published in Pressenza – an international news agency pushing ideas of peace, non-violence, and human rightsFor this BCR recording we were ensconced in our mobile studio in the southeast corner of the West Side Community Garden observing Upper West Siders choose their favorite spots to listen to La Manga, who perform Bullerengue, music from the Caribbean coast of Colombia. Later in the program, I will be talking with Daniela Serna about La Manga and we'll listen to selections from tonight's performance.But first Rebecca McKean and I talked with David Andersson, a citizen journalist, photographer and publisher. In the 80's Mr. Andersson published a neighborhood newspaper in Paris. Today, David is the coordinator of the NYC bureau for Pressenza and the host of Face 2 Face, a podcast talking with activists for peace from all over the world.Alan Winsonbarcrawlradio@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For this BCR conversation we were not at a bar having a conversation with people working positively for their communities – but at Inwood Park – in upper Manhattan – former home of the Lenape People. Catholic Worker, Anthony Donovan, opens this program as he talks to a group of about 20 people who had joined the Veteran's for Peace "2024 Peace Walk" -- for the day. The VFP Walk started in Ogunquit Maine on May 5th and will arrive in Washington, DC July 5th – a nearly 600 mile trek. Some walk for a day – others longer – and one former military person has walked nearly the entire length.As we moved through the densely forested hills of Inwood Park, I spoke with Tarak Kauf of the VFP and organizer of the Walk and asked him about the link between walking and peace. I then walked beside two former members of the U.S. military who explained their reasons for participating in an anti-war peace walk -- Eric Waseleski and James Williams. Alan Winson barcrawlradio@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For this BCR conversation at the West Side Community Garden we investigated the stories of two ladies--one affected by chance--the other by choice. The first story is about a chance phone call that led to instant and fleeting fame – and the other -- a choice to help recently arrived neighbors which will lead to – what?Rebecca McKean and I were set-up in the southeast corner of the West Side Community Garden. As our UWS neighbors sought their favorite spots to listen to the Cassatt String Quartet, we talked with Marilyn O'Day – a high school junior who started a study hangout at the Newton Hotel for recent migrants from South America as part of the Open Hearts Initiative -- and -- Meg Parsont, a publicist for publishers, gardener, and contributor to the West Side Rag newspaper. Meg was once famous – appearing over 30 times in the early 1990s on Late Night with David Letterman.Later in this program, we spoke with cellist Gwen Krosnick of the Cassatt String Quartet about the evenings musical offerings.Alan Winsonbarcrawlradio@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Kumara is a uniquely global trio of musicians who create a synthesis of sound that is unique and beautifully inspiring across and within cultures and communities. I spoke with Samite who plays African Harps and the Kalimba and Shem Guibbory, a classical violinist the day before the WSCG concert. Guitarist Sean Harkness couldn't make it; he was in a recording studio.This program presents the entire Kumara performance at the West Side Community Garden Concert on Sunday, May 26, 2024.Alan WinsonCONTACT: barcrawlradio@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It was another post COVID, pre climate catastrophe Sunday on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. Rebecca McKean and I – Alan Winson – co-hosts of BCR podcast – had erected our sound studio in the southwest corner of the West Side Community Garden and waited for our guests. Stop the Chop has worked to rid our city of those pesky, rotor-whirling metal blobs that spew noise and GHG pollution for no positive reason. We spoke with Melissa Elstein and Ken Couglin, leaders of Stop the Chop. and we were oined by Adrian Benepe--NYC Parks Commissioner from 2002 - 2012. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This BCR conversation talks about suicide in the U.S military. A growing statistic: Women and men who had dedicated their lives and minds to the most destructive military ever – are killing themselves at increasing rates. I spoke with Angus Benfield – an Australian actor – now working in the U,S, -- about his newest feature film – "The Keeper" which he stars in, produced, and co-directed. “The Keeper” is a true story about George Eshleman an artillery officer who participated in Desert Storm. Years after his time in Iraq, he was hit with lingering PTSD and considered suicide. Then, a friend kills himself and George decides to carry his buddy's military uniform name tag on a walk on the Appalachian Trail. Others learn of George's plan and send him the name tags of their loved ones who died by suicide. When George started his walk from Maine to Georgia he carried two rings with 363 name tags. I met Angus Benfield and his wife Ruth – who wrote and sang the title song for the film at 5Napkins Bar and Restaurant on the Upper West Side.Alan WinsonCONTACT: barcrawlradio@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

An unedited recording of Karou Watanabe's performance at the West Side Community Garden's 2024 Summer Concert Series -- May 19th. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Kaoru Watanabe was the featured music artist of the first summer concert in the West Side Community of 2024. Rebecca and I got to the Garden early and set up our portable studio in a corner alcove to talk with Jody Sperling -- dancer and choreographer -- and the Artistic Director of Time Lapse Dance which explores environmental performance forms. Also, Jody is the Eco-Artist in Residence at the New York Society of Ethical Culture. We talked about her artistic work to raise emotions about the climate disaster impinging on our wonderful world. And she told us about the upcoming Time Lapse Dance concert at the NY Society of Ethical Culture on June 1. This program includes selections from Watanabe's performance featuring Taiko drums and Shinobue reed flute. The entire -- unedited -- concert can be heard at BCR #224.Alan Winsonbarcrawlradio@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is the first "Park Bench Chat" of the 2024 Summer Season – a production of Bar Crawl Radio. During the warming days of spring and summer, Rebecca and I sit at our favorite park bench in the “You've Got Mail” garden in Riverside Park on the Upper West Side and talk with our neighbors. Today's topic--“grammar.” Ellen Jovin is a self-proclaimed “grammar nerd.” She has degrees from Harvard and UCLA in language-related subjects and has studied bunches of languages because she lives in NYC -- a multi-verse of languages. Ellen is a cofounder of Syntaxis, a communication skills training firm, and the author of several books on language. For this program we talked about her recent bestseller Rebel with a Clause: Tales and Tips from a Roving Grammarian (HarperCollins, July 2022). “Roving” because Ellen is the creator of a traveling, pop-up grammar advice stand called the Grammar Table, whose adventures serve as the basis of her book and a soon-to-be-released documentary of the same name. And this afternoon, Ellen set up her Grammar Table below the Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument to talk with Sunday strollers about grammar.Alan WinsonBCR Podcast Producer Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The majestic trees in front of Goddard Riverside on the Upper West Side of Manhattan were blushing brightly as the community gathered to learn about and spruce up the beds of our leafy neighbors for the seventh annual “Love Your Street Tree Day” – May 7th 2024. Rebecca and I learned a lot about our urban forest and how to take care of our barked friends – not our barking friends. Which reminds me -- "Don't piss on our street tree" signs were passed out to our UWS neighbors -- along with buckets of mulch -- and donuts – and coffee.The event was sponsored by the West 80s Neighborhood Association – and we talked with two of its leaders. But before we talked with Melissa Elstein and Kim Johnson, we had some fun with a few UWS tree huggers.CONTACT: barcrawlradio@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PHILIPPE DIAZ is a film director – producer – and promoter of “intelligent films.” Born in Paris France, he studied philosophy at the Sorbonne. Since 1980 he has produced and distributed international films by auteur directors for world audiences. Diaz has directed both documentary and feature narrative films on political, economic and social issues. In 2003, Diaz and his team created Cinema Libre Studios -- producing and distributing socially relevant independent narrative and documentary films. The director was in Manhattan to promote his newest narrative film – “I Am Gitmo” -- premiering at the Cinema Village. I am Alan Winson and with my BCR partner Rebecca McKean, we talked with Philippe Diaz at the Moxy East Village Hotel bar.CONTACT: barcrawlradio@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rebecca McKean and I walked during Easter week 2024 in the desert north of Las Vegas to the Nevada Nuclear Bomb Test Site– with a community of people who know about the imminent danger of a targeted and ready-to-go American nuclear arsenal. This BCR podcast will not counter the insanity of the deterrence argument – rather here are a few of the people who walked to the white line at the entrance to the most bombed place in the world – run by the U.S. Department of Energy and protected by the U.S military When you are aware of a great danger - even one that is – probably -- unavoidable -- there is some comfort in working with others doing something positive.Alan Winsonbarcrawlradio@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is a must listen conversation with Gabor Rona -- Law Professor at Cardozo Law School – and in the past served as the International Legal Director of Human Rights First. For over 20 years our government has imprisoned 100s of innocent Muslim men in the Guantanamo Prison and tortured them repeatedly for no good reason – and now cannot try them because they were tortured and cannot release them because they are not allowed on US soil, and it is not clear what other countries would do to them – and they are getting old and have been physically and mentally traumatized – and all in our name. This BCR series is called “We Are Guantanamo.” You may have been looking away from the horrors perpetrated in your name by the U.S. military and political powers – but you really shouldn't. You are Guantanamo!Alan Winson - barcrawlradio@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

“We Are Guantanamo” – in other words – you and I -- all of us identifying as "American" are complicit – and insofar as the Guantánamo Bay Detention Camp remains an active US military and illegal entity – it belongs to us.Since 2002, the Guantánamo Bay Detention Camp has held 779 Muslim men accused of attacking the US on September 11 2001. Nearly all were innocent. 740 have been transferred someplace – 30 remain – 9 died there.I have been speaking with seven people who have tried to close Guantánamo since 2004. My conversation with Gabor Rona – former Legal Director of Human Rights First – will post next week. They were asked three questions:How did you first learn about GITMO, and why did you get involved?As far as you know, how are the detainees treated?How is Guantanamo a reflection of American Values?Other topics came up along the way.When you attempt this thought exercise -- you will also hear words from one of the former detainees, Mansoor Adayfi, who was born in Yemen and held without charge at Guantánamo from 2006 to 2016. You may remember Mansoor who in 2022 alleged that Florida Governor Ron DeSantis oversaw beatings and force-feedings of Guantánamo detainees. The seven testifiers:Martha Hennessy -- Kings Bay Plowshares 7 & Catholic WorkerDebra Sweet -- World Can't WaitHelen Schietinger -- a registered nurse and organizer of Witness Against Torture.Jon Krampner -- an American journalist and author of biographies, popular history and short stories.Gabor Rona -- formerly International Legal Director of Human Rights First / Presently Professor at Cardozo Law School.Jessica Murphy -- Peaceful TomorrowsChristopher H. Brandt -- Witness Against Torture / Fordham University professorCONTACT: Alan Winson barcrawlradio@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For this BCR program, we talked about that age-old American tradition – book burning – or more precisely – thought control. Our guests were two brave librarians – practicing a profession that is at the core of any effective democracy. Emily Drabinski heads-up the American Library Association [ALA] and Lauren Comito leads Urban Librarians Unite [ULU]. According to ALA findings efforts to ban books in this country are growing at a high rate and the groups engaged in this activity probably do not have children. Librarians and authors fight back, but it is an exhausting struggle. Lauren Comito talked about how the ULU keeps parents and children and the performers safe at Drag Story Hour -- popular among parents -- but potentially dangerous as groups -- such as The Proud Boys -- protest violently near and in our libraries.This conversation was recorded at Gebhard's Beer Culture Bar.Alan Winson -- barcrawlradio@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For this BCR program, we spoke with two Jewish Israeli's. Nahum Schnitzer is my cousin. Ariella Dubrowin is my cousin once removed. Both have raised their families in Israel, Nahum -- 40 years – Ariella – 20. The conflict in Gaza has encased their world in ways that neither I – nor most of you listening to this podcast – can fully get. Ariella wrote me about a month ago. She was troubled about a recent program I posted – "I want to say Kaddish" – which presented both the intense protests in the US against the actions of the IDF in Gaza and the general obliviousness of winter-break tourists in NYC. So we invited Nahum and Ariella to join Rebecca and me for a conversation. But I did not want to talk about the never-ending conflict. Rather, I sensed it would be more useful – positive – connecting – life affirming – to learn about their lives in their chosen country, which – as you will hear – they so dearly cherish.So this will be a program about two Israeli Jews – originally from the North East region of the United States – living within trauma – in a place that fulfills them.At the beginning of this program I said that Israel is "crumbling." In a recent email my cousin -- Nahum -- disagreed and wrote: "I think you did a masterful job editing. I have only one reservation. In your opening remarks you said that Israel is crumbling. That is the opposite of the situation. Israel is battered – but very strong. Israeli military strength is the least of it – our resilience and inner fortitude, spiritual resources, solidarity and mutual support are what makes us truly strong."Again -- thanks to Ariella and Nahum for sharing a bit of their lives in their "battered" land.Alan Winsonbarcrawlradio@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In 1963, when the Supreme Court overturned Gideon v Wainwright, Justice Hugo Black wrote: “Even the intelligent and educated layman requires the guiding hand of counsel at every step in the proceedings against him. Without it, though he be not guilty, he faces the danger of conviction because he does not know how to establish his innocence.” The public defender is that legal bulwark that works for a balance in our justice system. For this BCR conversation we heard from two public defenders from Prince George's County Circuit Court. Yahshauh Ford and Brandon Ruben contrasted the public defender's nuanced, human approach to justice with the blunt force of the prosecutor. They spoke of the difficulty of establishing a rapport with their clients -- poor and, for the most part. African American -- who sense that justice will never apply to them in this country -- and of the unequal power of the better-paid prosecutor to control the charging and sentencing process. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

May 1961 -- Peter Benenson, founder of Amnesty International, wrote that he was sickened by governments imprisoning citizens for speaking or singing in protest. The work of Amnesty International continues around the world and on the Upper West Side with members of Group 11. Since the early 1970s members of Group 11 have helped to free prisoners of conscience in Iran, Chile, China, Indonesia, Libya, Myanmar, Poland, Rhodesia, South Africa, Vietnam and the former USSR. And, currently, AI-USA's Group 11 is working to free Narges Mohammadi -- the 2023 Nobel Prize winner who has fought for women's rights in Iran and is now in an Iranian prison. We attended Group 11's 48th Annual Benefit Concert in December, 2023 and then joined Group 11 coordinators Harry Schwartz and Sue Dicker and musicians and composers Marcia Eckert and Debra Kaye at Mr. Schwatz's UWS apartment, to talk about their work to free Prisoners of Conscience and the concert. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sharing the joyful and angry sounds of our city at the end of a year of retching violence. Let the human-made turbulence of 2023 pass quickly. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In 1948, all nations signed onto a document stating that the way a government treats its citizens can be judged by the rest of the world. This December, 2023, is the 75th Anniversary of the ratification of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights [UDHR]. Joining us for this conversation on the Gebhard's Beer Culture Bar porch are three women who explained the significance of the UDHR.Jackie Dugard studies how laws impact social change and justice, focusing on power and exclusion. She is a Senior Lecturer at Columbia University's Institute for the Study of Human Rights – and an Associate Professor at the School of Law of Wits University in Johannesburg. Prof. Dugard is an affiliate at the Center for Human Rights & Global Justice, a co-founder and the first Executive Director of the Socio-Economic Rights Institute of South Africa.Jocelyn Getgen Kestenbaum, is a human rights and public health scholar – focusing on preventing sexual and gender-based crimes and slavery. She is an Associate Professor of Clinical Law, and the Director of the Benjamin B. Ferencz Human Rights and Atrocity Prevention Clinic and the Cardozo Law Institute in Holocaust and Human Rights at Yeshiva University. Debra Sweet is the director of the Brooklyn-based World Can't Wait – which protested the Iraq War, exposed the torture of prisoners at Guantanamo and other U.S. prisons, and opposes military recruiters coming to high schools and colleges. BONUS: A week before this recording, we spoke with Paul O'Brien -- the head of Amnesty International-USA -- at a benefit concert for Group 11, the NYC affiliate of AI-USA. Paul's comments are edited into this conversation. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This BCR conversation may seem complex but its also simple – and – will possibly end human existence. If your physician can access all of your medical records, she will do a better job. And if generative AI knows all about the health of every human -- what then?We talked with two experts developing the power of Artificial Intelligence to keep us healthy. Dr. Mark Braunstein is the guru of FHIR -- not a misspelling -- an acronym for Fast Healthcare interoperability Resources – a technology helping physicians to access everything about our medical history and condition, easy and fast. Mark is a professor at the School of Interactive Computing at Georgia Tech and a former health Informatics entrepreneur – and a visiting scientist at the eHealth Research Centre in Brisbane, Australia.Vince Hartman is the co-founder and CEO of Abstractive Health, a new company that is reducing physician burnout through the power of generative AI. Mr. Hartman has over a decade of experience in product management and software engineering in the healthcare field. There is a lot more to Vince's resum´e -- but it includes so many technical abbreviations I dare not go there.And visiting BCR as we recorded on the porch of Gebhard's Beer Culture Bar was Peter Frishauf creator of Medscape and godfather of Osmosis.Alan WinsonCONTACT: barcrawlradio@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Late November, 2023 -- John C. Wester -- Archbishop of Sante Fe -- spoke at the Church of Our Savior at E. 38th Street and Park Avenue. About 200 were gathered to honor the 43rd anniversary of the death of Dorothy Day – and – to consider the abolition of nuclear weapons. At the United Nations that week the countries that signed the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons were meeting. The United States was not one of them.The day after Archbishop Wester spoke – I met with two people who have dedicated their lives to peace in our world -- Brian Terrell and granddaughter of Dorothy Day – Martha Hennessy. Both had been on BCR – Martha in connection with her KingsbayPlowshares 7 protest at the Trident Nuclear Submarine Base in Georgia for which she was incarcerated in a Federal Prison for over a year. And, I first met Brian Terrell in covering the Witness Against Torture protests in Washington D.C. of the continued U.S. detention of dozens of Muslim men in Guantanamo. And I have talked to Brian many times since about his work to prevent a nuclear catastrophe. When he is not protesting and getting arrested, Brian runs a goat farm in Malloy, Iowa.Alan Winson Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What is a bank?What is a bank for?Can a bank fight evil and right wrongs?Or is a bank no more than a profit-seeking shark working for its investors?Or - both?For this BCR program we had a conversation about a little bank that could … that is, could make our lives better through responsible investments. We invited Ivan Frishberg -- Senior Vice President Chief Sustainability Officer of Amalgamated Bank – to 5Napkin Burger Bar and Restaurant to talk about how he is leading his bank and our world to a financial net zero.Rebecca McKean was out sick. I was joined by my good friend Paul Alan Ruben. Paul is an award-winning audio book director -- winner of two Grammy Awards for Best Spoken Word. And a published author.Alan WinsonCONTACT: barcrawlradio@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

According to Britannica, a musical composition is the art of conceiving and creating music. I love to sing, and I very much enjoy listening to music. That part I get, but to compose music, to pick out the notes, the instruments… I'm completely at a loss. Fortunately, we have three women composers with us today who will explain what it means to be a female composer in today's music world.For this BCR program, we spoke with Svjetlana Bukvich, best known for her blending of classical music, media and electronic music. Sarajevo-born and NYC-based -- Svjetlana is widely regarded as an innovative, dynamic, multimedia American composers. Her music has been heard at The Kennedy Center, the Tribeca Film Festival, Brooklyn's Bargemusic, Rose Studio at Lincoln Center – and many other venues.Beth Anderson Harold is a composer of new romantic music, text-sound works, and music theatre events. Her early work was considered post-Cagian and non-academic. Beth studied with John Cage, Terry Riley, Robert Ashley and Larry Austin at Mills College and U.C. Davis. You can catch her beautiful compositions at New World Records and many other places on the web.Gramophone described Debra Kaye as “an eclectic unfolding of creativity.” Debra has won 6 Global Music Awards and received grants from Mannes College, Meet the Composer, and Edward T. Cone Foundation; and commissions from the Howland Chamber Music Circle and Portland Youth Philharmonic; Ms Kay's works have premiered at Carnegie Hall's Weill Recital Hall, in collaboration with the Lincoln Trio and Daedalus Quartet. Rebecca McKean Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We are looking forward to sharing a conversation about a great American -- Eleanor Roosevelt. Shannon McKenna Schmidt has focused her literary work on travel. She has written for National Geograpic, Traveler, Nashville Public Television and Arrive magazine – and has appeared on Morning Joe and The Travel Show with Arthur and Pauline Frommer. We spoke to Ms. Schmidt about her most recent book “The First Lady of World War II: Eleanor Roosevelt's Daring Journey to the Frontlines and Back.” American and architectural historian Deborah Gardner has worked with the Municipal Arts Society for landmark preservation and has written articles and books on the Roosevelts of New York. Ms Gardner has curated exhibitions at the Roosevelt House on NYC's East Side, including one featuring Eleanor Roosevelt's work with the United Nations to create the “Declaration of Human Rights.”This podcast was recorded on the porch of Gebhard's Beer Culture Bar.Alan WinsonCONTACT: barcrawlradio@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

BCR likes NYC and our like has grown since we learned about NYCH2O. For this program we talked with the founder and leader of NYCH2O – Matthew Malina. Matt works to educate New Yorkers about their city's local water ecology – in order protect our natural water resources -- and with Peter Frishauf -- founder of Medscape – but for today – more importantly – Peter is an UWS community leader who works to make life in your neighborhood lively, diverse, and safe for all its citizens. We also spoke with Sophie Barno who guided us on a most wondrous walk around the Marine Park Salt Marsh in Brooklyn where we saw a pterodactyl -- well -- a couple of majestic egrets.Take-away: Do not miss visiting Ridgewood Reservoir - the magic place in Brooklyn.This program was recorded at Gebhard's Beer Culture Bar in Manhattan.If you have any comments or questions you can contact Alan or Rebecca at barcrawlradio@gmail.comAnd follow us on Instagram. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rebecca McKean and I drove to Fonda, NY for the 25th Annual Kateri Peace Conference. We spoke with several major players in the contemporary "no war" peace movement in the United States -- who are working to help the rest of us see the insanity of war and its link to the climate disaster. The voices on this program include the following: Maureen Aumond, John Amidon, David Swanson, Gloria Caballero, Nick Mottern, and Debra Sweet. And thanks to Lew Tabackin for allowing us to us his composition "Garden at Life Time" to introduce the show.Alan Winson Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Becky and I went on a tempestuous drag race at Gebhard's Beer Culture Bar as we dug down into Drag culture with two young NYC Drag Queens following their command performance for an Open Streets event. We talked with Drag artists Ann Arky and Vampy Von Thickums Galore who had recently performed at the International Drag Queen Celebration on West !03rd Street organized by Park to Park 103 and Open Streets. Before talking to our guest performers we spoke with Bella Gallo a coordinator of the event.Alan Winson Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

I do not like roller coasters. For me -- the anticipated terror proceeding the drop along with the stomach-churning loss of gravity is not thrilling fun; it is just TERROR!Nevertheless, the roller coaster is a summer-fun staple for many of us. Another stomach-churning staple for fewer Americans is the memory of the United States Air Force dropping two atomic bombs on Japanese cities at the end of World War II. In fact, for many Americans, this was a good thing as it brought the war to an end faster -- despite ending the lives of over 200,000 Japanese civilians. Of course, few of us remember August 6th and 8th or are aware of the present-day dangers of nuclear annihilation.Is it possible that the fun of the roller coaster is based on a firm belief that it is safe - even though this is not entirely true. See "Swedish government investigators launch probe of deadly roller coaster accident."For over 80 years, my country has spent $Billions on modernizing and strengthening a world-ending atomic arsenal. There have been accidents -- but we are still here.This year I went to several anti nuclear proliferation activities on the anniversaries of the U.S. attack on Hiroshima and Nagasaki -- at the Intrepid Air and Space Museum, at Times Square, and at the Japanese Consulate. This BCR program begins at the Intrepid on August 6th; the WWII aircraft carrier was celebrating its birthdayAlan Winsonbarcrawlradio@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rebecca McKean and I visited Alice Slater in her Upper East Side apartment. Since 1968, Ms. Slater has been an anti-war activist and since 1987 an anti-nuclear bomb protestor. As a young mother she helped organize Eugene McCarthy's presidential campaign working to end the war in Viet Nam and then got a law degree. Alice is the United Nations NGO Representative of the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation and is on the Board of the Global Network Against Weapons and Nuclear Power in Space, the Global Council of Abolition 2000, and the Advisory Board of Nuclear Ban-US which supports the mission of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons which won the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize for its work in realizing the successful UN negotiations for a Treaty for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.Alan WinsonContact: barcrawlradio@gmail.comPJaBmaPB4qrkx9OFxGXS Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

One of our regular gigs is the West Side Community Garden Summer Concerts. The final offering of 2023 featured the luscious sounds of Afro-Haitian Jazz performed by Mozayik – led by drummer Gashford Guillaume – who has performed with Haitian superstars -- Emeline Michel and Beethova Obas. And at festivals in Amsterdam, Canada, Japan, Mexico, Haiti, Cuba, St, Lucia, Martinique and many cities around the U.S.In 2000 Gashford and others started “Mozayik” – which is committed to the Haitian jazz genre. I sat down with Gashford – about a week after the concert to talk about Haitian Jazz and its link to the Haitian culture at Gebhards Beer Culture Bar on the UWS.Alan Winson - Co-Host BCR Podcasts barcrawlradio@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.