American Voices Abroad Berlin (AVA Berlin) is politically progressive and independent of all political parties. It is, on principle, opposed to preventive war and the Patriot Act. It is dedicated to fair elections, civil liberties and social and economic justice at home as well as to a foreign policy rooted in respect for international institutions and the rule of law. AVA-Berlin has a 7-member executive committee (EC) elected every December at its annual business meeting. The group’s Stammtisch meets on the first Thursday of every month at 8 p.m., for now at the Seerose at Mehringdamm 47 in Kreuzberg. To be put on the mailing list, contact email list administrator David MacBryde at members-berlin@avaberlin.org. For further information check the web site www.avaberlin.org or contact Ann Wertheimer, the chair for 2010, at wertheim@zedat.fu-berlin.de.
BridgeBuildersBerlin is not affiliated with any political party. The group focuses on German-American friendship. Contact their spokesperson, David Knutson, at concertamerica@t-online.de.
Cafe Americain is a political and cultural salon, a spin-off from AVA Berlin but a totally independent daughter and therefore not bound by the AVA Berlin executive committee. In the past several years, Cafe Americain has organized evenings for artists and poets. It has run Civics 101, where folks gathered at St. Georges bookstore to discuss the U.S. Constitution with Colin King. Why “Cafe Americain”? That’s the “gin joint” Humphrey Bogart runs in Casablanca – with all its associations of heroism, romance, exile, political intrigue, and idealism turned to cynicism turned to idealism! Contact Isabel Cole for additional information at ava@andere-seite.de.
Democrats Abroad Berlin is the unofficial name of the Berlin Chapter of Democrats Abroad Germany (DAG). It is the official section of the Democratic Party Committee Abroad (DPCA) in Berlin. Regular meetings are held in Kreuzberg at Max und Moritz, Oranienstr. 162, on the first Tuesday of every month at 7:30 p.m. Democrats Abroad supports the Democratic Party nominee and the platform of the Democratic Party. It also has its own platform. In addition to the website www.democratsabroad.org, Democrats Abroad Berlin maintains a local website www.demsinberlin.de where events are announced and documented. Only Americans can become members, but non-Americans are welcome to attend meetings and events. For further information contact the chair, Nancy Green at chair@demsinberlin.de.
