Reel and Meal at the New Deal

Reel and Meal is a monthly film series at the New Deal Cafe exploring vital environmental and social justice issues. Admission to the film is always free, sponsored by several Greenbelt community organizations. Contributions are gladly accepted to cover each month's donation to a non-profit organization.

Date: Third Monday of every month
Time: The free film starts at 7pm. Beginning at 6:30pm, an optional vegan buffet meal is offered by Chef Karim for $13.
Location: New Deal Cafe - 113 Centerway in historic Greenbelt, MD

January 16, 2012

The House We Live In

Photo from the Legal Services of Northern California Race Equity Project

The film this month will be "The House We Live In," the third part of the PBS series "RACE: The Power of Illusion." It deals with ways that banks, lending agencies, and other institutions control the ways mortgages are provided to different groups, resulting in racial biases in housing and how "color-blindness" only perpetrates the problem. While Greenbelt is not mentioned in the film, some footage of it (from "The City") is shown. Dianne Lyday and Nora Howell from Baltimore Racial Justice Actiom will lead the discussion following the film.

If you need/want more information, contact Shirley Middleton at 301-446-1773. Begin leaving a message since we use our message machine as a screener and it may take me a while to get to the phone. I'm usually home during the day (except Thursdays).

December 19, 2011

Forks Over Knives

You won’t want to miss this Reel and Meal! Neal Barnard, MD, will lead a discussion of the film Forks Over Knives on Monday, December 19th. The evening begins with a delicious, vegan buffet (optional) at 6:30, followed by the screening at 7:00 and post-screening talk with Dr. Barnard. The Reel and Meal at the New Deal Café is located at 113 Centerway in Greenbelt.

Since 1985, Dr. Barnard & the Physician's Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) have been on the cutting edge of healthcare issues in the U.S., challenging the harmful health effects of the standard American diet. As founder and president of PCRM, Dr. Barnard has been a principal investigator on numerous clinical trials investigating the effects of diet on health, including serving as president of The Cancer Project.

Dr. Barnard has authored several books and has appeared on television shows such as The Today Show,and PBS. He is a featured expert in Forks Over Knives. This is a unique opportunity to interact with one of the country’s leading authorities in the field of health and nutrition. FORKS OVER KNIVES, a 90-minute, 2011 documentary, examines the assertion that many, if not all, of the degenerative diseases afflicting us can be controlled or even reversed by adopting a plant-based, whole foods diet and eliminating processed and animal-based foods. Greenbelter Tom Taylor will be offering a selection of Dr. Barnard's books at this event. Dr. Barnard will be available to autograph copies! Reel and Meal's holiday tradition of giving back to our community continues. We ask attendees to kindly bring a vegan, nonperishable food for our needy Greenbelt neighbors.

This month’s program is sponsored by Green Vegan Networking; for more information contact Cam MacQueen at worldisvegan@aol.com.

November 21, 2011

A Sense of Place with Patuxent Riverkeeper Fred Tutman.

Patuxent Riverkeeper Fred Tutman hosts a discussion about how class, race & sense of place shape our individual approach to environmentalism & conservation values. The evening will feature a short media presentation and a community dialogue about how to build strong, compassionate communities & a more inclusive environmental movement around a broad sense of shared place.

Fred also worked as an activist on the Patuxent for over 20 years and is a recipient of numerous awards and recognitions for his work on behalf of environmental causes and issues in Maryland. He also serves on a variety of Boards, Task Forces and Commissions related to the work of protecting the Patuxent and the natural environment.

Co-sponsors of the monthly film are Beaverdam Creek Watershed Watch Group, CHEARS (Chesapeake Education, Arts & Research Society), Prince George's Peace & Justice Coalition and Green Vegan Networking. For more information, contact Susan Barnett of BCWWG at susnbarn@earthlink.net.

September 19, 2011

Unnatural Causes: In Sickness & In Wealth

This 58-minute documentary discusses the connections between healthy bodies, healthy bank accounts & skin color. People of color face an added health burden. Unnatural Causes sounds the alarm about the glaring socio-economic and racial inequities in health. The social conditions in which we live profoundly affect our well-being and longevity.

Karyn L. Pomerantz, MLS, MPH, a teacher at the GWU School of Public Health & Health Services, will facilitate a Q&A period about what we can do to promote a healthier environment for all. This film is planned by the Prince George's County Peace & Justice Coalition.

For more information on this month's program, contact Donna Hoffmeister at 301-441-9377.

August 15, 2011

Special Session: US Budget and Inequality Crises

This past month has been filled with special emergency sessions of our national government—now Reel and Meal is having its own special session to explore what happened and is happening to our economy and discuss important suggestions for affecting change and finding local solutions.

This month's program will feature excerpts from the Academy Award-winning Inside Job, which documents the sad facts about the 2008 economic meltdown. Two short videos will also be shown: Robert Reich's The Truth About the Economy in Two Minutes, focused on the growth of inequality in the United States, and Kyle Thiermann's TED talk Surfing for Change with ideas about making a positive difference by local investment for change.

Members of the Greenbelt Common Security Resilience Circle will facilitate a highly interactive discussion about the impact of the financial crises on our own lives and generating ideas about what we can do locally. Organizations that co-sponsor the monthly film are Beaverdam Creek Watershed Watch Group, CHEARS-Chesapeake Education, Arts and Research Society, Prince George's Peace & Justice Coalition, and Vegan Networking. For more information, contact Maggie Cahalan at maggie@chears.org.