Each year, the Baltimore Emergency Response Network distributes peace diplomas during commencement at Johns Hopkins University's Homewood campus. On May 23, 2002, soon after unfurling a banner "Feed the Children of Iraq, Don't Bomb Them," we began to pass out peace diplomas [see copy below]. An uptight JHU security official angrily demanded we leave the campus. We reminded him that there still is a First Amendment and persisted, on a lovely spring morning, in our modest effort to promote peace. Noting we were not leaving under threat of arrest, he told us he would speak with the "director."

Next the "good cop" came over. In the past, he told us he was a protester of the Vietnam War. Today, he congratulated us for evading security and getting on campus. He agreed that we had First Amendment rights and said it was not necessary to arrest. However, he asked us if we would move off campus to the front entrance. It seems there was a complaint from a graduate who was upset, after spending $100,000 on his education, to find us on campus.

We remained, under guard, where we were, not interfering in any way with graduation, until the 500 diplomas were distributed. One guard, a former Washington, D.C. police officer, noticed our sign. He told us he heard Scott Ritter speak at Hopkins earlier this year and remembered him saying that Iraq has no more weapons of mass destruction. I was also at that talk, and find it refreshing that at least one security officer actually listened to a very informative speaker.

As we congratulated the graduates, their families, the professors and anyone else passing by, the "bad cop" photographed our activities. JHU maintains files on nonviolent protesters and shares the information with other security forces. So be it. This is life on the front lines for activists struggling to salvage the First Amendment.

Baltimore Emergency Response Network [BERN]
325 E. 25th Street, Baltimore, MD 21218

CONGRATULATIONS GRADUATES & FAMILIES May 23, 2002

We, members of the Baltimore Emergency Response Network, bestow this Peace Diploma with the hope that your life will be one of seeking peace and working for justice.

Moreover, being a bit impertinent, we urge you to take action:

1] Extend a hearty thank you to the students who worked so hard protesting for a living wage for all university employees and subcontractors. The work is far from done, but progress is being made. The Student Labor Action Committee [SLAC] can be reached at jhuslac-AT-hotmail.com.

There is also great concern about the university's plans for redevelopment in East Baltimore, as this will displace people and disrupt the community. So it is important that the community be part of the decisionmaking process.

It is important to let President William Brody know he must ensure that there is justice and dignity for all workers in the Johns Hopkins University system and that East Baltimore residents must be at the table when decisions are made regarding their neighborhood.

2] The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory [APL], according to its web site, has an annual funding level of about $480 million dollars through more than 200 programs. Military research consumes about 75% of the APL funding, and in fiscal year 2001 the APL received $158,228,990 for prime military contract awards from the Navy. Ranked #83 among military contractors, the APL is a major developer of technology for warships, such as the nuclear-capable Tomahawk cruise missile. The lab also continues to receive millions of dollars for research on the long-discredited Star Wars program. This funding for warmaking should instead be used for desperately-needed social services right here in Baltimore.

The APL has an agreement with the U.S. Army to create and operate the Army Center of Excellence in Biotechnology. This will include a close relationship with Fort Detrick, which has long been involved with chemical and biological warfare. Last year's anthrax attack terrorized the U.S. and helped create a climate of fear that allowed passage of the draconian USA Patriot Act. Some scientists believe that the anthrax used in the terror attacks came from Fort Detrick or another government lab.

Use your influence with university officials to end all JHU weapons contracts, including the biotechnology agreement, and to convert the APL to humanitarian research.

###