A press conference was held Sept. 24 to announce the Encampment and the mass march on Sept. 29. Larry Holmes of the Troops Out Now Coalition opened the conference, saying, "The Democrats say they want to cut war funding but they can't get past a veto. We know this isn't true. They could simply make sure the funding question doesn't get to the floor. Meanwhile, Bush is prepared to veto $30 to $35 billion for health care for children."
Holmes also discussed the serious threat of a new war on Iran: "Iranian President Ahmadinejad is being demonized in the media, and we're not naive. We know that they are preparing the population for an expansion of the war in Iraq to war in Iran. But the biggest terrorists are in the world sit in the White House."
Rev. Lennox Yearwood spoke about unity in the people's struggle against multiple wars: "I'm so pleased to see support here at the Encampment for the struggle in Jena; I was pleased to hear, in Jena, people talking about how the bombs in Baghdad are affecting people in the United States. ... If it calls for getting arrested, getting in the way, then we'll get arrested and get in the way. Our struggles will continue, but we will win." Yearwood was recently beaten by D.C. police at an anti-war press conference.
Adam Kokesh, Co-Chair of the board of directors for Iraq Veterans Against the War described his organization's demands, including immediate withdrawal of all forces from Iraq, "and when we say all forces, we mean Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Blackwater, Halliburton"; and full payment of reparations to the people of Iraq.
Nana Soul of Artists and Activists United for Peace, a TONC member organization, described the weeklong concert that is being held as part of the Encampment. "The movement needs cultural inspiration, talent and creativity. Iraq may be the issue today, but we know that this isn't the first time that the United States has invaded a sovereign nation. They use tools at home like not funding health care and education. We have a chance to translate these actions."
Rick Clemens, Ann Wilcox and Joyce Robinson-Paul represented the Green Party. Clemens, a Vietnam War veteran, stressed: "This war is about imperialism, about the exploitation of labor power and markets of other peoples. There is no thing as ending the war without ending the economic system that perpetuates war--capitalism." Wilcox discussed the effects of the war at home in Washington, D.C., where neighborhood libraries are being closed and thousands of affordable housing units have been lost.
Toby Blomé of Code Pink Women for Peace described the two encampments their group has undertaken at Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi's house, after she refused to meet with them to discuss war funding for three months. They plan on going to her office regularly during the Encampment and will be fasting for the week as "another way to show commitment to ending the occupation and bringing the troops home."
Vernon Hoffman, who biked 4,500 miles with his family from Portland, Oregon to join the Encampment, said he'd "rather bike for peace than kill for oil." He described how throughout the country, people took opened up their homes for the family and their anti-war message.
Lastly, a young war resister described how he enlisted in the military in 2005 because of limited career opportunities in his hometown. However, he says, "I happened to join at the same time as Hurricane Katrina, and I saw on TV the bodies floating in the streets. It really hit home to me. I got out of training 25 weeks later and nothing had changed. Despite all the rhetoric about homeland security and national security, this government's priorities are not for the people."
Other actions at the Encampment today included an event on Pelosi hosted by Code Pink, and an outreach sound truck caravan through the streets of D.C. to mobilize for the march on the 29th.
As part of the national effort to build towards September being a truly ‘Anti-War Month’ we are building a united set of actions that involve youth and students.
From September 22 to 29, activists working on a number of different struggles from around the country will be coming together in Washington, D.C. and setting up an encampment in front of Congress to raise the stakes in the anti-war movement during a week of direct actions against the war.
We want to make Friday, September 28, a Youth and Student Day of Action in which autonomous, student- and youth-led direct actions originate from this space.
Then, we will all be marching together in a youth and student contingent in the September 29th anti-war demos in Washington and LA.
In order to be able to have conversations about what types of actions will happen on the 28th in a way that is both democratic and safe (ie-not on the internet), organizers will be convening consultas in the coming weeks in different regions of the country for folks to come together and plan. We will hopefully have all the dates of the consultas sorted out within the next week and will post that information here. If you as an individual or your campus organization would like to hold a consulta or endorse the youth day of action, please let us know.
Chapters of anti-war youth and student groups from all over the nation including various SDS, CAN, FIST and Campus Greens chapters have already begun to organize around these actions. Please add your name to the endorsement list by emailing youthantiwarweek@gmail.com
Please keep checking back here in the coming days and weeks as we will continue to update this page with more information.
from Protest to Resistance... Cut Off ALL War Funding! Fund People's Needs - NOT War!
It's time to turn up the heat! Funding for the criminal war in Iraq will expire on October 1. The month of September will see the next big struggle over war funding, but this time the antiwar movement needs to be there to demand the immediate cut off of all war funding.
We have all seen that the Democratic leadership in Congress, despite being elected with a clear mandate to end the war, has completely capitulated to the Bush Administration. We cannot wait for politicians to end the war.
In addition to the enormous cost in human lives - more than 600,000 Iraqis and nearly 4,000 U.S. soldiers - the attempt to occupy and colonize Iraq has already cost more than $1 trillion. Every day, the Pentagon spends another $720 million.
This is money that is stolen from working people who need funding for human needs.
The U.S. Census Bureau reported last week that:
• 36.5 million people in the U.S. lived below the official poverty line in 2006.
• 47 million people in the U.S. were without health insurance in 2006, up from 44.8 million in 2005.
• The number of uninsured children increased from 8 million (10.9 percent) in 2005 to 8.7 million (11.7 percent) in 2006.
Meanwhile, infrastructure is crumbling. Schools are understaffed and falling apart. Affordable housing is disappearing. And almost nothing has been done to rebuild the Gulf Coast following Hurricane Katrina.
Let's bring the occupation to Washington and demand money for human needs, not war! On September 29, tens of thousands of activists, community organizers, youth and students, veterans, military families, and health care activists will march on the White House to Demand: Cut off ALL War Funding! Fund People's Needs, NOT War!
Buses, vans, and car caravans are coming from more than 75 organizing centers, with more than 100 buses already scheduled, and more being added every day. Organizing a mobilization of this scale is enormously expensive -- please consider making a donation online at http://troopsoutnow.org/donate.shtml.
Also, during the week of September 22-29, antiwar activists will erect an Encampment on the Lawn directly across from the Capitol. The site of the Encampment is a square of land directly in front of the Capitol, where we will maintain a determined, visible 24-hour antiwar presence as a direct challenge to the politicians - both Republican and Democrat - who voted for the war and vote to continue to fund the war.
Organizing a week-long enccampment and a national march is an enormous organizational challenge, and we need your help. Please consider helping with the costs by making an online donation at http://troopsoutnow.org/donate.shtml.
Activists, military families, veterans, trade unionists, and community organizers from activists from across the U.S. are planning to erect a tent city, in Washington, DC, which will be a center of organizing, resistance, and action for the week. At the same time, activists will also be converging in Los Angeles for a West Coast week-long antiwar Encampment and March (see http://www.iacenterla.org for more information and to get involved.)
If you want the social justice issues you are fighting for to be seen and heard around the world and by the national media, then bring your displays, art, graphics and signs to the week long encampment.
Many local and national organizations are planning to have their own tents for the Encampment. There will be actions, protests, and speak outs organized by health care activists, military family members, immigrant rights organizers, and more.
Each day will have a variety of different activities, focused on the impeachment of Bush and Cheney for war crimes, student and youth action, political prisoners, Katrina, stopping a war against Iran, and more. Each night will feature "Culture and Resistance," including spoken word artists, musicians, poets, and more.
Many of the working people that Michael Moore featured in SICKO are planning a special candle-light vigil for all those who have died for lack of health care.
Youth are meeting and planning resistance actions in the Congressional office buildings and streets of DC.
At the end of the week, activists at the Encampment will join tens of thousands of people from across the country for the massive March on Washington on September 29.
Organizing a week-long encampment and a national demonstration is a major challenge, and we need your help with the enormous expenses. Please consider making a donation online at http://troopsoutnow.org/donate.shtml.
We need your input planning giant displays, literature and organizing tents, skill sharing sessions, and acts of creative protest and resistance. Please contact us to share your ideas and to volunteer to help organize for the encampment.
Over the next few days, we will be posting a calendar of events for the Encampment. If your group would like to organize a tent, protest action, teach-in, etc. please contact us.
We are developing a list of inexpensive housing in the area and will be posting it soon -- activists who are able to join us all week, should also line up housing in the area. We can be a presence on site around the clock but we can not actually sleep at night or cook on-site.
If you are in the Washington DC - Maryland - Virginia area, we need your help with housing, food, transportation and help on set-up. Please contact us online or by phone at 212-633-6646.
SEPT 22- 29: Encampment in front of Congress - Cut off the War funds - Build a People Peace Congress
Hundreds of Endorsers - More than 40 Organizing Centers - It's time to Shut Down Washington!
Stop the War at Home & Abroad! Bring ALL the Troops Home Now! Impeach Bush & Cheney for War Crimes!
Congress will not end the war Marches alone will not end the war It's time to shut down Washington DC - No more business as usual!
Endorsers include:* Rep. Cynthia McKinney; Medea Benjamin, CoFounder of CODEPINK: Women for Peace; Fernando Suarez del Solar, founder of Proyecto Guerrero Azteca por la Paz; Bishop Filipe C Teixeira, OFSJC; Ramsey Clark, former U.S. Attorney General; Brenda Stokely of the NYC Solidarity Committee For Katrina / Rita Evacuees; Liz Arnone, Co-Chair, NJ Green Party; Mohammad Basirul Haq Sinha, Chief Coordinator, We The People United Bangladesh; Abayomi Azikiwe, Michigan Emergency Committee Against War & Injustice; Jack Balkwill, Chair, Liberty Underground of Virginia; Barney Richards, National President, New Zealand Peace Council; Teresa Dawson, Coordinator, MFSO Central Ohio; Joan Gibbs, Jericho Movement; Efia Nwangaza, Founder/director, Afrikan Amerikan Institute for Policy Studies & Planning; Jose Luis Diaz, President, Casas las Americas; Leslie Feinberg, author and activist; Teresa Gutierrez of the NY May 1 Coalition for Immigrant Rights; LeiLani Dowell, FIST (Fight Imperialism - Stand Together); Berna Ellorin, BAYAN USA; Ben Carroll, UNC SDS; and hundreds more. for an updated list, see TroopsOutNow.org *organizations listed for ID purposes only
Since mid-April, when the Troops Out Now Coalition issued a proposal for a week of action in Washington DC in September, activists from across the U.S. and worldwide have contacted us to support the proposal and to volunteer to help with this major mobilization.
More than a hundred activists, from as far away as Los Angeles, Sacramento, and New Orleans, packed the Troops Out Now New York office on June 16 to begin planning for this week of resistance. Momentum is building as more activists realize that it is time to move from protest to resistance:
**We now have hundreds of endorsers and more than 40 organizing centers.
**Activists, community groups, and grassroots organizers are planning to set up tents at the Encampment to highlight issues they are working on.
**Youth activists are working to build a national student strike during the week of the Encampment.
**Regional coordinators are working on organizing transportation to the Encampment and March.
Warning:Don't let the Democratic Party leadership and the '08 Presidential Election veto the antiwar movement.
President Bush's veto of the Democratic Party's bill containing a non-binding timetable for withdrawal of troops from Iraq displayed once again the Administration's absolute contempt for the will of the people, who are now overwhelmingly in favor of ending the occupation.
But more ominous than Bush's inevitable veto of the war funding bill is the prospect of the leadership of the Democratic Party "vetoing" and derailing the anti-war movement by pretending to be against the war while continuing to support it with billions of dollars of more war funding.
The Democratic Party was elected to control of the House and Senate with a mandate to end the war. As pressure grew from the antiwar movement for the Democrats to cut off the funding and withdraw the troops immediately, they turned to a desperate act of political theater in a an attempt to change the subject, attaching their support for continued funding for the war to a non-binding timetable for withdrawal from Iraq.
The Democratic Party bill, even if not vetoed, would not have required the withdrawal of a single soldier from Iraq. The bill allowed Bush to exempt entire categories of troops at his discretion, including: troops “training the Iraqi military;” troops engaged in “special operations"; and troops “protecting diplomatic enclaves” including the U.S. Embassy and the Green Zone. This means that Bush could maintain current troop levels in Iraq and still be in compliance with the Democrats' bill.
Furthermore, even if Bush agreed to observe withdrawal dates that the Democrats suggested, it would mean that this criminal, colonial war would go on for at least another year and a half. Another year of Iraqi civilians and U.S. soldiers dying; Another year of Abu-Ghraib style torture. Another year of a criminal occupation.
Actually the truth of this "antiwar" charade is even worse. Everybody knew all the time that Congress would put on an antiwar show, and after Bush vetoed the bill containing non-binding withdrawal timetables, they would then give Bush the war funding. Leading Democrats announced months ago that they had absolutely no intention of cutting off the funding for the war.
By pretending to fight Bush on the war, Congress is hoping to neutralize the growing movement demanding the immediate end to this criminal war and occupation. Democrats in Congress hope that by hiding behind non-binding resolutions, imaginary timetables, and other acts of political theater they will send the message to those of us who have marched and organized to end the war that we don't need to march and mobilize anymore, because the real struggle against the war is now in Congress.
Part of this message is that, instead of taking to the streets to demand that Congress cut of all war funds and bring the troops home now, we should instead come in off the streets and sign up to support whoever the Democratic Party's presidential candidate is in 2008. We must never again allow the antiwar movement to be co-opted, misled, and demobilized in the name of Presidential politics or the agenda of either major political Party.
Let's make sure to stay in the streets, continue to demand that Congress cut of all war funding, stay focused on the demand for immediate withdrawal of all troops, and stay independent of both the Democrats and the Republicans who share responsibility for the war.
Only the people will stop this criminal war. Tomorrow, antiwar groups across the U.S. have called for demonstrations against Bush's veto. We urge you to take part in these demonstrations and demand that the troops be brought home now -- no phony timetables, no more political theater, no waiting for after the 2008 Presidential elections -- now!
In New York City: Times Sq. Wednesday 5:00 pm World Can't Wait is calling on everyone to gather in front of Times Square's military recruiting center--43rd and Broadway--at 5pm WEDNESDAY to demand an immediate end to the Iraq war and impeachment of the Bush Regime for war crimes.
New York City - Boston - Detroit - Philadelphia -Los Angeles - Raleigh - Atlanta - Across the U.S.
BRING THE TROOPS HOME NOW - Demand that Congress Cut Off ALL War Funding
Soon, Congress will vote on Bush's request for more than $100 billion in additional funding for the criminal occupation of Iraq. Congress has the power to stop the war by cutting off war funding. They cannot hide behind "non-binding resolutions" and hearings--they must stop the war. They cannot hide behind the claim that they are "supporting the troops" -- voting to fund the war is voting to continue the war, which means more soldiers and Iraqi people will die.
On February 17 in cities and towns across the U.S., activists will make it clear to Congress that we will not allow another dollar to be spent on the war.
Not one more day.
Not one more dollar.
No more deaths.
No hiding behind "non-binding" resolutions and timetables.
Bring ALL the Troops Home Now!
Join us the campaign to demand that Congress cut off all war Funding. Here's how you can participate:
Sign the Open Letter to Congress - (see text below) this will go to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, Sen. Hillary Clinton, Sen. Charles Schumer, and other leaders of the Senate and House of Representatives.
Donate - Help us with the enormous costs of organizing in cities across the U.S.
An Open Letter to all 535 members of Congress
Dear Members of Congress,
END THE WAR NOW YOU HAVE THE POWER VOTE NO! TO MORE WAR FUNDING
On February 17, “VOTE NO WAR FUNDS DAY,” we will be rallying around the country to let you know that this time, we’ll be watching how you vote on this critical issue.
Last November the people voted to change the leadership of Congress so that it could do what the President is unwilling to do-- to end the war now. As Sen. Russ Feingold said recently at a Senate Hearing on Congressional war powers, “Congress has the power to stop the war if it wants to." Now the people have given you the mandate to do that.
Soon you will be asked to vote your approval of more funds to pay for the war. A few of you have already indicated that you will not approve another dollar for war. All of you must to do the same. The next war funding vote will be every bit as important as the vote by the 109th Congress to authorize the war in October 2002.
If you vote no to more war funding the troops will come home, lives will be saved and this nightmare will come to an end. If you approve more funds for war, then more U.S. soldiers will die, more soldiers will be maimed for life, and the war will go on and on. If you approve more war funds, then no one can claim that this is solely the President’s war, or only one political party’s war; it will be Congress’s war.
It’s not enough to vote for symbolic, non-binding resolutions that only oppose the escalation of the war. It’s not enough to cross-examine and criticize generals and the President’s cabinet secretaries in Congressional hearings. It will not suffice to say that you oppose the war, but that you’re voting for more war funding to support the troops. The real support that the troops and their families need is for you to act decisively, cut off the war funding and bring everyone home alive.
Activists from across the country have designated Sat., Feb. 17, “VOTE NO WAR FUNDS DAY.” On that day, thousands of peace-loving people will rally and march in their communities to tell Congress that when it comes time to vote on more funds for war, the people will be watching and waiting.
Many of those participating in the Feb. 17 protests across the country will bring with them some of the bills that they can’t afford to pay. People will be bringing their medical, utility, food, and rent bills; their student loan debts; and their credit card bills, because more and more people are being forced to use credit cards to pay for basic necessities. The reason for bringing all of these bills to the protest is to remind Congress, as it considers its vote on the new war funding request, of the growing ranks of the poor that desperately need the money that has been wasted on this war to help them in their daily struggle to survive.
Troops Out Now Coalition Response to the State of the Union Address
January 23, 2007 A s the U.S. occupation of Iraq grinds on and the numbers of dead and wounded mount, President George W. Bush and Democratic Party leaders, the supposed opposition, continue to reject the growing demand to bring the troops home now. In Bush's State of the Union address to Congress last night, George W. Bush continued to stick to his “stay the course” position and claimed he has a “plan for victory” despite clear evidence that the attempt to colonize Iraq has been defeated.
Bush made a desperate attempt to restore confidence in his failed adventure in Iraq, outlining a "new strategy" that is really just a repeat of the same lines he has been using since he declared "mission accomplished" almost four years ago. The so-called "surge" of 21,000 troops will not succeed in crushing the resistance of the Iraqi people; it will only bring more death and destruction. He did not mention the more than 600,000 Iraqi people that have died as a result of the U.S. invasion and occupation. Nor did he address the fact that every reason he gave to justify the war has now been exposed as a deliberate lie.
Despite his talk of “a democratic Iraq," the ghastly torture chambers of Abu Ghraib, the continued bombing of Iraqi homes, the use of depleted uranium, phosphorous, napalm, and other illegal weapons of mass destruction, all reveal the brutal nature of the war against the people of Iraq. This war is not and never was about bringing democracy to Iraq--it has always been about seizing control of the country's oil reserves.
What Bush also failed to mention is that even as the attempt to colonize Iraq is clearly failing, the Bush administration is moving towards another reckless adventure—war on Iran. Bush has deployed two second aircraft carrier groups—with destroyers, cruisers, submarines, cruise missiles and combat aircraft—to the Gulf, while sources report that the Pentagon is already identifying targets for U.S. air strikes.
Health care
Bush attempted to deflect attention from the catastrophe in Iraq by offering a tax deduction for workers who purchase health insurance or use employer-supported plans. His plan would allow standard deductions for health insurance — $7,500 for individuals, $15,000 for families — while subjecting employer-paid health insurance to income taxes.
Bush's plan would do nothing to help the estimated 47 million people in the US without health insurance. Rep. Pete Stark, who chairs the House Ways and Means Committee's health subcommittee, has said that Bush's proposal to tax existing health benefits is so ludicrous that it is unlikely to be seriously considered by Congress. He said, "The president's so-called health care proposal won't help the uninsured, most of who have limited incomes and are already in low tax brackets. But it will hurt middle-income Americans, whose employers will shift even more cost and risk to their employees.''
Most of the uninsured don't have coverage because they cannot afford to pay the premiums. Making those premiums tax-deductible will not make healthcare more affordable for most workers. Many others cannot get coverage because of
How You Can Help:
Endorse the call for to March on the Washington on March 17
pre-existing conditions, which Bush's plan does nothing to address.
The net result of Bush's plan would be a decline in the number of workers having access to health coverage. Paul Fromstein, director of the health research and education programs at the Employee Benefit Research Institute, said the Bush proposal would ``mean the end of employment-based coverage as we know it because it gives employers an incentive to drop coverage. If employees can go out and get private coverage with the same tax breaks as they'd get through employer-sponsored coverage, more companies will simply give them the money and let them find their own coverage because they view [health coverage] as a headache."
We must continue to demand health coverage for all. The $300 billion that the Bush Administration has spent on war on occupation could easily provide complete health coverage for all uninsured children in the U.S.
The War at Home: Police Brutality and Police State Tactics
As he has done since repeatedly since the attacks on September 11, 2001, Bush used the threat of "terrorism" to drum up support for his policies of endless war and repression. He said, “For all of us in this room, there is no higher responsibility than to protect the people of this country from danger." But he did not address the fact that many communities face threats of violence every day--not from "terrorists," but from the police. The police who gunned down Sean Bell the night before his wedding, firing 50 shots at an unarmed man, and the police who killed 92-year old Kathryn Johnson in her home in Atlanta, the ICE raids that haul away families in the middle of the night, and the police who commit acts of racist brutality in communities across the country, are a daily threat to the lives and safety of communities of color, immigrant communities, and the LGBT communities. Antiwar and progressive organizations must stand in solidarity with communities that are under daily attack from police terror.
Bush has used the words "freedom" and "democracy" repeatedly as justification for his policies of endless war, but an examination of his actions here and world-wide demonstrates that he has no interest in either. He has authorized the Department of Defense and the Central Intelligence Agency to spy on and infiltrate meetings of progressive organizations that oppose his policies. Under the PATRIOT Act, FBI agents search library records, book store sales, and other personal records and conduct widespread surveillance without any probable cause. He has ordered intelligence agencies to kidnap people off of the streets and drag them from their homes, fly them to other countries, and torture them in a secret global network of detention camps. Under his mantra of "freedom and democracy" lies a full-scale war on civil liberties and civil rights.
Katrina
The President made no mention of one of the biggest failures of his Administration, the ongoing catastrophe that followed in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. But the whole world remembers watching the scenes of horror and despair on the streets of New Orleans, as people died, abandoned by every level of government because they were poor and Black. While everyone watched newscasts of people dying of thirst, as FEMA did nothing to help, Bush praised the FEMA director, saying, "Brownie, you're doing a heck of a job."
We must continue to support the right of Katrina survivors to return to their homes and to determine how the region will be rebuilt. They, not Bush's millionaire friends, have a right to control the money for rebuilding the area.
Energy policy
Every year, in an attempt to grab headlines on the following day, Bush has introduced a new initiative that never lasts longer than his address. A few years ago, he promised $15 billion for AIDS treatment in Africa--money that never materialized. Throughout his presidency--at every State of the Union address, Bush has talked about energy independence, but the funding for research and development never materializes. In last years address, he promised to take on the US "addiction to oil," but his 2007 budget actually proposed to spend less on energy efficiency, conservation, and renewable energy resources in inflation-adjusted dollars than was appropriated in 2001. In 2005, he cut the funding for alternate energy by 50%.
As soon as Bush took office, he proposed cutting the Department of Energy's renewable fuels and energy efficiency budget by as much as 40 percent. Meanwhile, Vice President Cheney was in secret meetings with executives from Enron, Exxon, Conoco, Shell Oil and other energy companies, where they studied petroleum maps of Iraq and developed the national energy policy of the Administration. We can only conclude that when Bush talks about looking for "alternative fuel sources," he actually means looking for another oil-rich country to invade.
For some, this policy has been enormously successful--oil companies are reporting record profits. But for others, like the people of Iraq or the soldiers and military families who are paying the ultimate price, Bush's policies have been an unmitigated disaster. We can be sure that, despite his talk about "alternative fuels," his primary and central goal is to ensure maximum profits for the oil companies.
No Opposition from the Democrats
Bush's criminal war against Iraq has brought justified resistance throughout Iraq and outrage across the globe. Everywhere he travels, he is met with massive protest in the streets.
President Bush's poll numbers are in a freefall. A new CBS News poll has the President's approval rating at a career low of 28 percent-- 14 points below where he was at before he delivered his State of the Union speech a year ago. In November, he had a 34 percent approval rating. In December, it was 31 percent. In early January, it was 30 percent.
Less than 3 months ago, voters in the U.S. made their opposition to the war very clear as they handed the Republican Party a resounding defeat at the polls. President Bush's announcement of a "surge" in the occupation was met with more than 500 protests across the U.S.
Despite this clear and overwhelming opposition to the ongoing occupation, the Democratic response to the State of the Union offered no real opposition to the Bush Agenda. Senator James Webb did not call to bring the troops home--in fact, he waited until he was half way through his speech before even mentioning Iraq. When he did get around to it, he merely indicated that the U.S. needs a "new direction."
It was clear from his remarks that his difference with the Bush Administration is only tactical. The Democratic Party criticism of the war in Iraq is not based on the fact that the war is a criminal act that has resulted in the death of more than 600,000 Iraqis, but on the fact that Bush has been unable to successfully crush the resistance and establish a stable puppet state. The Democrats in Congress marched in lockstep with the Administration when they thought the war to seize Iraq's oil would be over in weeks.
Senator Webb claimed that the President "took us into this war recklessly." But the President could not and did not act alone. He could not have launched the war in Iraq without the eager complicity of the Democrats in Congress, a complicity that continues to this day, as Democrats continue to assert that they do not plan to carry out the mandate that brought them into office -- the demand to end the war now and bring all the troops home now.
It is clear that politicians in Washington are not going to end the war. The people themselves must take action to force them to bring the troops home now.
If we want to end the war, to have health care, education, and housing for all, to fight racism, to defend the rights of women, immigrants, and the LGBT communities, then we have to build a mass movement in the streets, and we have to stay in the streets. We can never again allow the antiwar movement to be misled into serving the interests of corporate politicians.
We must build a movement that will do what the war parties will never do --link the struggles of working people here with the struggles against war and occupation everywhere, including not only Iraq, but Palestine, Haiti, Afghanistan, Nepal, the Philippines, and everywhere people are struggling to for freedom and self-determination..
March 17, 2007 will mark the fourth anniversary of the invasion of Iraq. The Troops Out Now Coalition is working with the Answer Coalition and other national coalitions to organize a massive march on the Pentagon on the fourth anniversary of the illegal invasion of Iraq. This time, we are going to Washington prepared to stay until we force Congress to cut off all war spending--it is time to move from protest to resistance.
Together we must grasp the opportunity to help transform the turning tide against the war into a human tidal wave of antiwar resistance in the streets. Nothing should stand in the war of building a massive, united movement to converge on Washington and end the war. Our sisters and brothers in United for Peace and Justice had initially called for a national march on the fourth anniversary of the war, but have now changed to calling for "local actions." In the interest of unity and strength we call on them to unite with the call for to converge on Washington DC on March 17. The crisis and opportunities ahead of us demand unity, and we will continue to do all we can to work for that unity.
Six hundred thousand Iraqis are dead. More than 3,000 U.S. soldiers are dead and tens of thousands have been wounded. This is not time to talk about timetables and "non-binding resolutions" or to get distracted by 2008 Presidential politics— it's time to take direct action to stop the war. We call on everyone to descend on Washington this weekend – January 27, followed by local actions on February 17 at Congressional offices. Then, on March 27, come to Washington, prepared to stay until we stop the war.
Immediate, Unconditional, & Complete Withdrawal from Iraq--Out Now!
End Colonial Occupation & Imperialist Aggression from Africa to Asia, from Iraq to Palestine, to Afghanistan, to Haiti, to the Philippines, to Puerto Rico
No New Wars Against Iran, Syria, North Korea
Hands Off Cuba, Venezuela, Bolivia, & Lebanon
Solidarity with Immigrant Workers and Katrina Survivors
Stop the War at Home -- Stop Racist Police Terror -- Stop ICE raids
Military Recruiters Out of Our Schools and Communities -- No Draft -- Education, Not War
Tell Bush, Pelosi, and Halliburton: No War on Iran!
Tell Bush and Congress: Hands Off Iran!
We must act now to stop another war.
As the war in Iraq drags on into a fourth brutal year, the same politicians who led the U.S. to war in 2003 are preparing for a new war --this time against the people of Iran.
Once again using the pretext of "weapons of mass destruction," the U.S. is moving the forces into place in preparation for a possible attack. The USS Eisenhower strike force, with some 800 Tomahawk cruise missiles and a fleet of bombers, has moved into the Persian Gulf. A second carrier group, led by the USS Stennis, is now steaming toward the region. The London Telegraph reported this spring that "a major American attack on Iran's nuclear sites would kill up to 10,000 people and lead to war in the Middle East."
In addition to moving military forces into place, the U.S. pushed through UN Sanctions on December 23 intended to cut off vital technology and funds to the people of Iran. History teaches us that we cannot trust politicians in Washington to stop this new war.In 2002, both Democrats and Republicans rushed to vote for war against Iraq and they have voted every year to fund that war. Now, politicians of both major parties are calling for aggressive action against Iran, at the same time they are discussing sending more troops to Iraq.
The only force that will stop this war is a grass roots movement, and we need your help now to help stop a new brutal war in the Middle East.
Over the next few months, the Stop War on Iran campaign will be organizing meetings, speak outs, and teach-ins to help build a movement to stop the drive to war. We will also be preparing "Stop War on Iran" placards, banners, and leaflets to bring to antiwar and progressive activities, including the national antiwar marches on January 27 and March 17, the fourth anniversary of the invasion of Iraq.
What we do over the next few weeks and months can be decisive. Please join us in helping to build a movement to stop Bush's new war.
Sign the petition - Sign the online petition -- flood Bush, Cheney, Halliburton, and Congress with the message - No War on Iran!
The Decisive Battle this Spring - The Challenge for the Antiwar Movement March on Washington On Jan. 27 and March 17 (the 4th Anniversary of the War)
WE MUST FORCE CONGRESS TO CUT OFF WAR FUNDING And we can if we move from symbolic protest to mass resistance
Not One More Dollar for War and Occupation!
Bring ALL the Troops Home Now!
Forcing Congress to vote to cut off further war funding is the defining issue for the antiwar movement this spring and it is a struggle that we can win if we are bold enough to take it seriously.
The Troops Out Now Coalition calls on everyone to join the antiwar march on January 27...and come back on March 17...and come ready to STAY in DC!
ON MARCH 17, ASSEMBLE AT THE WHITE HOUSE AND MARCH TO THE U.S. CONGRESS -- AND STAY THERE UNTIL THEY CUT OFF WAR FUNDING
An Appeal for Unity in the Antiwar Movement
Our chance of winning are greater if the antiwar coalitions unite! A crucial factor in our ability as a movement to rise to this challenge is the willingness for all antiwar forces nationwide--especially the national coalitions--to renew a commitment to work for unity with each other. We appeal to all antiwar forces to take the high road and work together this Spring. The time has come for us to coordinate our efforts, and avoid competing dates and plans. If we work and plan together--our chances of success will be greater.
More than at any time since the start of war, the antiwar movement is in a position to force congress to vote no on war funding. The people are on our side, the momentum is on our side, the whole world is on our side; the only question is whether we have the conviction and the courage to take our struggle against the war from the level of symbolic protest to real mass resistance.
Some time between now and early February, Bush is going to ask Congress to approve between $130 to $200 billion more dollars to finance the war to add to the close to a half a trillion dollars in war funding Congress has approved in a series of votes over the past three and a half years.
Sometime between February and May 2007, Congress will vote nay or yea to this request. This vote will be the most important war vote in Congress since a majority of both Republican and Democratic Party members of Congress voted to authorize the war in
Clearly, Congress has the authority to cut off spending for the war in Iraq and Afghanistan, and effectively make it impossible for the criminal carnage to continue. What makes the next war funding vote different from all the previous ones is that on Nov. 7, people voted to end the war.
As a result of the massive antiwar vote, Democratic Party politicians will take control of both houses of Congress on January 4. When that happens, the authority to either carry out the mandate of the elections to end the war and occupation of Iraq by completely cutting off all war funding or to betray the people by approving more funds to continue it, will shift to the leadership of the Democratic party.
The top Democratic Party leaders in Congress have already indicated that they are preparing to betray the antiwar mandate. Some members of Congress say they will support resolutions introduced in Congress that call for a phased redeployment of troops from Iraq or a time table for withdrawing most troops. But such resolutions are little more than symbolic, half- measures that won’t end the war. However, the real fight is the war funding vote and we must force Congress to vote NO.
In the past, members of Congress who claimed to be opposed to the war have justified their votes for war funding by claiming they had to keep up the funding to “support the troops”. It’s time for us to reject all excuses and rationalizations for voting for war funding. A vote for war funding is a VOTE FOR WAR. Moreover, voting to approve more funds for war will only ensure that more U.S. troops and many more Iraqis will be killed and maimed. IN MARCH – WE MUST BE READY TO STAY IN WASHINGTON
We will be in Washington on January 27 and we will come back on March 17. And when we come back in March, this time we must be prepared to stay there in the thousands to force Congress to vote NO on more war funding. If Congress tries to rush a vote on war funding before March 17, this time we must be prepared to come to Washington in mass to make sure that the war funding is voted down. PAY THE PEOPLES’ BILLS - NOT FOR WAR & OCCUPATION; BRING YOUR BILLS WITH YOU TO WASHINGTON
We are asking people to bring their medical, rent, heating and utility bills; student loan bills; credit card bills, and food bills that they can’t afford to pay as well as shut-off notices, mortgage foreclosures, eviction notices to the march on Washington. It must be made clear to Congress that feeding more money to the war while more and more people cannot pay for their basic living expenses is a crime. The cost of the war is not the only reason why we oppose the war. We oppose the war because it is an imperialist war for colonial conquest and plunder. Yet the cost of the war is important because it’s paid for by money stolen from providing social needs. The money that has paid for death and destruction in Iraq could have gone towards reconstruction in New Orleans and the Gulf Coast after Hurricane Katrina.
In his famous speech declaring his opposition to the Vietnam war almost 40 years ago, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said, “It is disgraceful that a Congress that can vote upwards of $35 billion a year for a senseless immoral war in Vietnam cannot vote a weak $2 billion dollars to carry on our all too feeble efforts to bind up the wound of our nation’s 35 million poor. This is nothing short of a Congress engaging in political guerilla warfare against the defenseless poor of our nation…” MARCH AGAINST THE WAR AT HOME STOP RACIST POLICE TERROR - STOP THE RAIDS AGAINST IMMIGRANT WORKERS
As we march to end the war abroad, we must also demand an end to the war at home. We must demand an end to the raids on immigrant workers like the recent massive military raid carried out by thousands of Homeland Security/Immigration and Custom Enforcement police on mostly Latin@ workers at six Swift and Co. meat processing plants. We must demand an end to the racist police brutality and terror that recently killed 23 year-old unarmed Sean Bell in New York City and 93 year-old Kathryn Johnston in Atlanta, both of them African American.
Immediate, Unconditional, & Complete Withdrawal from Iraq--Out Now!
End Colonial Occupation & Imperialist Aggression from Africa to Asia, from Iraq to Palestine, to Afghanistan, to Haiti, to the Philippines, to Puerto Rico
No New Wars Against Iran, Syria, North Korea
Hands Off Cuba, Venezuela, Bolivia, & Lebanon
Solidarity with Immigrant Workers and Katrina Survivors
Stop the War at Home -- Stop Racist Police Terror -- Stop ICE raids
Military Recruiters Out of Our Schools and Communities -- No Draft -- Education, Not War
"Stay the course!" That's the message from Washington DC --from both sides of the aisle--despite overwhelming global opposition to the war, despite the fact that the U.S. campaign to subjugate the people of Iraq has clearly failed, and despite the failure of the U.S. puppet government to secure even a few square blocks of downtown Baghdad.
On November 17, President Bush was in Vietnam and he used the occasion to proclaim the "lesson" he had drawn from the U.S. war against the people of Vietnam: "We'll succeed unless we quit."
President Bush drew the wrong conclusion from his study of history, but there are lessons the antiwar movement can learn from the struggle to end the war in Vietnam.
>From 1965, when the U.S. first sent large numbers of combat troops to Vietnam, to 1973, when the last troops left, there were two Presidential and two midterm elections. Control of the White House switched from one Party to the other. The war in Vietnam was the burning issue in all of these elections, and many looked to them to end the war. Yet none of these elections had any impact on the determination of Washington and Wall Street to continue the brutal assault on the people of Vietnam.
It wasn't elections that ended the war--it was resistance by the people of Vietnam, GIs refusing to fight, and a massive antiwar movement in the streets.
Democratic Party Double Cross
Many people went to the polls last month to vote against the war. The Democrats capitalized on the growing opposition to the war and the undeniable fact that the crusade to colonize Iraq and control its oil reserves was falling apart. During the campaign they largely remained silent about their own plans, opportunistically cashing in on what was seen as a Republican failure.
Even though the war itself was not on the ballot, many felt that a vote against the Republicans was a vote to end the occupation. Many hoped against hope that the Democrats would do something that they have not done in the past four years, and finally take bold action to end an illegal war.
Now that the Democrats have ridden antiwar sentiment into office, they have clearly signaled that they have no intention of bringing the troops home. Suddenly, the talk is about how to strengthen the Iraqi puppet regime created by the occupation, so that at some unspecified later date U.S. troop levels can be "drawn down."
The voters who turned out in massive numbers to vote against the war now find that what they got was another pro-war party in office. Democratic Party leaders like Sen. Harry Reid, Sen. Nancy Pelosi and Rep. Steny Hoyer now say the U.S. can’t just “cut and run.” They have also announced that they will continue to vote to fund the war, which is costing more than $2 billion a week. Rep. Silvestre Reyes, the soon-to-be chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, wants to increase the number of troops in Iraq by 20,000 to 30,000. They are not opposed to the war; they don't oppose the idea that the U.S. has the right to invade a country and steal its resources; they just believe that Bush has mismanaged the occupation and that they can do a better job. Baker Commission: The Iraqification of the Occupation?
The much heralded Baker-Hamilton Commission report was released yesterday. Those who hoped that the Commission would provide some road map to ending the war were sorely disappointed. But that was never the purpose of the commission.
The study group was set up to co-opt dissatisfaction with the conduct of the war and use it to justify the continued occupation. The release of the report is a tactic to attempt to re-sell the war to the public with a bipartisan facade. The authors of the report made it clear in their introduction that the report has more to do with managing public opinion than with any significant change in policy in Iraq: "Success depends on unity of the American people at a time of political polarization ... Foreign policy is doomed to failure -- as is any action in Iraq -- if not supported by broad, sustained consensus.
In his remarks, Baker said that "stay the course" is no longer an option, but what Baker and Hamilton propose is essentially a continuation of what Bush is already doing -- trying to reduce the number of U.S. casualties by moving troops off of the front line while continuing the occupation indefinitely. The focus will switch to training the Iraqi puppet army, while continuing to provide air support, artillery, and other support. This strategy sounds remarkably like the "Vietnamization" strategy outlined by President Nixon in 1970, a policy that was similarly designed to dampen massive opposition to the war, while allowing it to continue for another three years and thousands of more casualties.
Buried within the report, and not discussed by the corporate media, is the recommendation that all of Iraq's oil reserves be completely privatized. Almost four years into the occupation, the goal remains the same. It was never about weapons of mass destruction or democracy. This war has always been about obtaining control of Iraqi oil.
The Baker report places all of the blame for the violence in Iraq on "sectarian conflict," ignoring the fact that it is the occupation itself that is the source of violence in Iraq.
The People Must Stop the War
Politicians will not stop the war.History shows us that only a massive movement in the streets will end the war.
The Pentagon is spending $2 billion dollars a week on the war, money that should be going to jobs at a living wage, healthcare, education, and rebuilding the Gulf Coast. Nearly 3,000 U.S. soldiers have died -- 11 more yesterday. More than 600,000 Iraqi people have been killed.
We need to stop this war -- not another dollar, not another casualty, not one more day. No timetables, no more Commissions, no waiting for another election.
We must take to the streets in unprecedented numbers and force them to bring the troops home now.
March 17, 2007 will be the fourth anniversary of the illegal shock and awe invasion of Iraq. We need to deliver shock and awe to the war makers with a massive outpouring of outrage and opposition on the streets of Washington. We need your help to do this. This important demonstration is only 13 weeks away. In that short time, we need to get out hundreds of thousands of fliers, stickers, and posters. We need to get the word out in schools, churches and mosques, union halls, community center, and on the street. We need your help to do this.
Contact the Troops Out Now Coalition to find information on buses, vans, carpools, and peace trains coming from your area. If there is not an organizing center in your area, we can help you get started.
"Stay the course!" That's the message from Washington DC --from both sides of the aisle--despite overwhelming global opposition to the war, despite the fact that the U.S. campaign to subjugate the people of Iraq has clearly failed, and despite the failure of the U.S. puppet government to secure even a few square blocks of downtown Baghdad.
On November 17, President Bush was in Vietnam and he used the occasion to proclaim the "lesson" he had drawn from the U.S. war against the people of Vietnam: "We'll succeed unless we quit."
President Bush drew the wrong conclusion from his study of history, but there are lessons the antiwar movement can learn from the struggle to end the war in Vietnam.
From 1965, when the U.S. first sent large numbers of combat troops to Vietnam, to 1973, when the last troops left, there were two Presidential and two midterm elections. Control of the White House switched from one Party to the other. The war in Vietnam was the burning issue in all of these elections, and many looked to them to end the war. Yet none of these elections had any impact on the determination of Washington and Wall Street to continue the brutal assault on the people of Vietnam.
It wasn't elections that ended the war--it was resistance by the people of Vietnam, GIs refusing to fight, and a massive antiwar movement in the streets.
Democratic Party Double Cross
Many people went to the polls last month to vote against the war. The Democrats capitalized on the growing opposition to the war and the undeniable fact that the crusade to colonize Iraq and control its oil reserves was falling apart. During the campaign they largely remained silent about their own plans, opportunistically cashing in on what was seen as a Republican failure.
Even though the war itself was not on the ballot, many felt that a vote against the Republicans was a vote to end the occupation. Many hoped against hope that the Democrats would do something that they have not done in the past four years, and finally take bold action to end an illegal war.
Now that the Democrats have ridden antiwar sentiment into office, they have clearly signaled that they have no intention of bringing the troops home. Suddenly, the talk is about how to strengthen the Iraqi puppet regime created by the occupation, so that at some unspecified later date U.S. troop levels can be "drawn down."
The voters who turned out in massive numbers to vote against the war now find that what they got was another pro-war party in office. Democratic Party leaders like Sen. Harry Reid, Sen. Nancy Pelosi and Rep. Steny Hoyer now say the U.S. can’t just “cut and run.” They have also announced that they will continue to vote to fund the war, which is costing more than $2 billion a week. Rep. Silvestre Reyes, the soon-to-be chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, wants to increase the number of troops in Iraq by 20,000 to 30,000. They are not opposed to the war; they don't oppose the idea that the U.S. has the right to invade a country and steal its resources; they just believe that Bush has mismanaged the occupation and that they can do a better job. Baker Commission: The Iraqification of the Occupation?
The much heralded Baker-Hamilton Commission report was released yesterday. Those who hoped that the Commission would provide some road map to ending the war were sorely disappointed. But that was never the purpose of the commission.
The study group was set up to co-opt dissatisfaction with the conduct of the war and use it to justify the continued occupation. The release of the report is a tactic to attempt to re-sell the war to the public with a bipartisan facade. The authors of the report made it clear in their introduction that the report has more to do with managing public opinion than with any significant change in policy in Iraq: "Success depends on unity of the American people at a time of political polarization ... Foreign policy is doomed to failure -- as is any action in Iraq -- if not supported by broad, sustained consensus.
In his remarks, Baker said that "stay the course" is no longer an option, but what Baker and Hamilton propose is essentially a continuation of what Bush is already doing -- trying to reduce the number of U.S. casualties by moving troops off of the front line while continuing the occupation indefinitely. The focus will switch to training the Iraqi puppet army, while continuing to provide air support, artillery, and other support. This strategy sounds remarkably like the "Vietnamization" strategy outlined by President Nixon in 1970, a policy that was similarly designed to dampen massive opposition to the war, while allowing it to continue for another three years and thousands of more casualties.
Buried within the report, and not discussed by the corporate media, is the recommendation that all of Iraq's oil reserves be completely privatized. Almost four years into the occupation, the goal remains the same. It was never about weapons of mass destruction or democracy. This war has always been about obtaining control of Iraqi oil.
The Baker report places all of the blame for the violence in Iraq on "sectarian conflict," ignoring the fact that it is the occupation itself that is the source of violence in Iraq.
The People Must Stop the War
Politicians will not stop the war.History shows us that only a massive movement in the streets will end the war.
The Pentagon is spending $2 billion dollars a week on the war, money that should be going to jobs at a living wage, healthcare, education, and rebuilding the Gulf Coast. Nearly 3,000 U.S. soldiers have died -- 11 more yesterday. More than 600,000 Iraqi people have been killed.
We need to stop this war -- not another dollar, not another casualty, not one more day. No timetables, no more Commissions, no waiting for another election.
We must take to the streets in unprecedented numbers and force them to bring the troops home now.
March 17, 2007 will be the fourth anniversary of the illegal shock and awe invasion of Iraq. We need to deliver shock and awe to the war makers with a massive outpouring of outrage and opposition on the streets of Washington. We need your help to do this. This important demonstration is only 13 weeks away. In that short time, we need to get out hundreds of thousands of fliers, stickers, and posters. We need to get the word out in schools, churches and mosques, union halls, community center, and on the street. We need your help to do this.
Contact the Troops Out Now Coalition to find information on buses, vans, carpools, and peace trains coming from your area. If there is not an organizing center in your area, we can help you get started.
at the Solidarity Center 55 W. 17th St. #5C btw 5th & 6th Aves. in Manhattan
The Election is over -- but only the people will stop the war
It has been three weeks since voters in the U.S., angry over the disaster unfolding in Iraq, a decline in workers’ living standards and the Bush administration’s anti-worker policies, handed a significant setback to the Republican Party in the Nov. 7 midterm elections, resulting in Republican loss of the Senate and the House.
But the battle to end the war has only begun. The challenge for all progressives in the U.S. and for the anti-war movement in particular is how to take this setback for Bush and turn it into a consistent struggle in the factories, schools, offices and streets to really challenge both the new Congress and the old White House.
Many politicians claimed to be waiting on the Baker-Hamilton report before taking a position on the war, despite the fact that the people of the U.S. overwhelmingly want the war to end. Leaks from the report indicate that it will not call for the end of the occupation; under cover of talking about some vague "pullback" without any dates or timetables, it really just gives political cover to the continuing occupation.
It is clear, even now, that the politicians in Washington will not end the war unless the people force them to do so by taking to the streets. It is also clear that the corporate politicians have no intention of taking up the issues that really affect working people here: the lack of health care and the closing of hospitals; increased racist police brutality; the decline in real wages; rebuilding the Gulf Coast; and so many others.
This meeting will be a follow-up to the standing-room only Antiwar Summit Meeting in Harlem, where more than 250 activists, representing more than 50 organizations, began to discuss the next steps in the struggle against the war.
Join us Tuesday, December 5 to continue the discussion of:
* How can we merge the antiwar movement with movements against racism and police brutality, for the rights of immigrant workers, hurricane Katrina/Rita survivors, and for economic and social justice in a way that goes beyond symbolism? * How can the movement here in the U.S. show solidarity and build stronger relationships with liberation and resistance movements around the world, from Palestine to Haiti, and across the Middle East, Latin America, Africa and Asia? * How can we mobilize to make the fourth anniversary of the war and occupation of Iraq in March 2007 helpful to our goal of ending the war, and unifying the movements that need to be working together?
Let's come together to analyze, strategize and plan the next phase of the struggle.
***Counter-recruiting and anti-draft planning meeting - Those wanting to work on these issues are invited to join us for a strategy meeting, to begin one hour before the Troops Out Now meeting--Tuesday, Dec. 5 at 6:00 pm at 55 W. 17th St. #5C.
Summit maps out strategy opposing U.S. wars at home, abroad
A significant anti-war summit meeting took place Nov. 18 in the heart of "Little Senegal" in Harlem. The Troops Out Now Coalition (TONC) sponsored the event at the spacious Africa Kine Restaurant located on 116th Street near Frederick Douglass Blvd.
Anti-war, community, labor activists meet in 'Little Senegal' in Harlem, New York Nov.18.
The turnout was standing room only. An estimated 150 organizers and activists-representing more than 50 different antiwar, community, immigrant and labor organizations from around the region-were in attendance.
Some of the key activists at the summit included Comrade Shahid, Pakistan U.S.A. Freedom Forum; Charlotte Kates, New Jersey Solidarity/Activists for the Liberation of Palestine; Ardeshir Ommani, American-Iranian Friendship Committee; members of FIST-Fight Imperialism, Stand Together-student and youth group; Pam Africa, International Concerned Family and Friends of Mumia Abu-Jamal; former Pennsylvania death-row inmate Harold Wilson; Mexican activist Brian Barraza; and a delegation of Latino immigrant workers representing the Freeport, Long Island Day Laborers. Elena Everett from Raleigh FIST spoke about the inspiring two-day wildcat strike carried out by a majority of Latin@ workers at the Smithfield, N.C., hog processing plant on Nov. 17 and 18.
Following a delicious Senegalese buffet/lunch, the meeting included opening and closing remarks from key activists, and then broke into smaller discussion groups. Fallou Gueye from the Union of African Workers-Senegal gave welcoming remarks. The four-hour meeting was co-chaired by Larry Holmes and Sharon Black from TONC and Sara Flounders from the International Action Center.
The group discussions on solidarity with liberation movements and countries fighting the empire were summarized by Ellie Ommani; on community, labor and anti-racist organizing by Philadelphia IAC activist Betsey Piette; on students, youth and counter-recruitment activism by Raleigh FIST organizer Dante Strobino; and on immigrant workers' rights by Teresa Gutierrez.
The following are some of the major issues that were agreed upon unanimously at the summit: The need to organize mass and militant actions in the streets to stop the wars abroad and at home now that the Nov. 7 elections are over. The importance of linking the fight against racism and national oppression to the anti-war struggle in order to build a strong, multi-national movement for social change. And the urgency of forging unity between all the anti-war formations to organize a national mobilization in Washington, D.C ., on March 17, the fourth anniversary of the Iraq war.
The proposal that was greeted with the most enthusiasm was the idea of launching an encampment in Washington DC to stop Congressional approval of mar war funding, sometime in the early spring of 2007.
In a preliminary report on the Nov. 18 meeting, a TONC statement read, "Participants in the meeting felt very strongly that notwithstanding important political differences within the broader anti-war movement, including past difficulties in working together, that it was most critical at this time when the mass struggle in the streets against the war needs to be revived, that all coalitions reject fragmentation, unnecessary divisiveness and competition around protest dates and national protest, and instead pull together so that the movement in the U.S. can do what the world is waiting for it to do and shut down the war machine."
To help build for the March 17 mobilization, nationally coordinated days of action linking the anti-war, anti-racist and pro-worker movements will be called for Jan. 15-the Martin Luther King, Jr., holiday. The follow-up TONC meeting will be held in New York on Dec. 5 at Solidarity Center. For more information, call 212-633-6646 or go to www.troopsoutnow.org
Fallou Gueye Hospitality is a big word in our culture. To have you in little Senegal is very important because we feel that you are just like us. We don't have borders. We are fighting for the same noble cause-to defeat imperialism which is the cause of war. People who are living here are deeply, deeply victimized and negatively impacted by that war. We are fighting against the war, we are fighting against IMF, World Bank. International corporations are dominating us daily and impacting negatively on our lives.
Sara Flounders What kind of a movement is being built? Connections must be made between Iraq , Palestine, Lebanon , Syria , Sudan , and North Korea . We have to look at the struggle globally; we can't allow the imperialists to criminalize and demonize the liberation movements. We must oppose the massive raids and detentions of our immigrant sisters and brothers and endless war and no money for education, day care, healthcare, etc. We are stronger when we are united, when we embrace these issues.
Teresa Gutierrez May 1 Coalition We have to recognize the power that each and every one of us in the room represents because these are the same people who quickly shifted to support the rise of one of the most oppressed sectors of our class, immigrants, and came out on May 1 and supported workers marching around the country; when you consider the support that this sector of the anti-war movement has for one of the most oppressed sectors, you have to know how extremely powerful this support is. What TONC can do is everything possible to bring out the anti-war movement for May Day. The workers know what the heck they are doing like in Smithfield, No. Carolina. What a contribution the anti-war movement is making to the people of Iraq , Palestine and everywhere by making this kind of this connection.
Larry Holmes The top Democratic Party politicians were not against the war in principle. They are not against wars of colonial conquests; they want to recolonize the Middle East . Their problem against the [Iraq] war is that it was done badly, incompetently. Their program now is how to fix it. They don't have an anti-colonial difference, or anti-exploitation difference or anti-racist difference [with Republicans]. It's just a tactical difference of people who have the same interests. The [Nov. 7] anti-war referendum took place because the Iraqi people are refusing to be occupied. The Iraqi people are doing what is expected of them. The question is what the hell are we doing? We have to challenge ourselves to carry out more militant tactics; campuses must be shut down. We are not speaking to just one racial demographic grouping. We have to reach out to immigrant communities. The Palestinian liberation movement is central to Arab liberation. The Israeli Army acts as if it is a detachment of the U.S. armed forces. All wars are connected. It isn't just an issue of having a bad president-wars are systemic. The road to unity is to adopt an anti-imperialist world view.
Brenda Stokely Labor, community leader Regarding Katrina survivors, the same forces that dismantled people and their lives are still alive and well. Demonstrations took place on Nov. 18 in New Orleans and Baton Rouge confronting Gov. Kathleen Blanco who has set up a blue ribbon commission stacked with wealthy people, developers, financiers, real estate barons to solidify control in that region including Mississippi . Who is missing are people of color; those adversely affected particularly African Americans, people who work and people who were not homeowners. Fifty-seven percent of the people before the hurricane were renters. Blanco's proposal has nothing to do with renters. Public housing folks are not being allowed to go back home and nothing is wrong with the housing. The people are not being welcomed back; inner displaced persons have been created in Mississippi , Alabama and Louisiana which is a violation of UN Human Rights Charter for Displaced Persons; the U.S. does not carry about human rights.
Lourdes Vela Alberto Lovera Bolivarian Circle Please help us educate the immigrant communities about [Hugo] Chávez and the Bolivarian Revolution because we have not been allowed in that door in spite a lot of the work you all have done. Chávez is someone that we need not only in the U.S. but all over the world.
Chuck Mohan Guyanese Workers Association The immigrant movement is not about one group of people but about everyone. We need to come together as one. I have no illusions about the new Congress. We can't struggle in a vacuum. Our struggle is linked to other struggles that were here before we came-Native American, African American, Latin@, women and other struggles present in the U.S.
NY City Councilperson Charles Barron What should Bush's sentencing be after so many Iraqis and soldiers are dead? If you have some elected officials who have problems with Hugo Chávez saying that Bush is a devil, well, if you act devilish, it makes you a devil. You can't murder people all over the world and not be the devil incarnated; you can't be playing golf, while people are dying in New Orleans and not be the devil. Right on to Chávez; I think he did the right thing and is doing the right thing in our communities. I don't know if this is something that you want to brag about but you are the reason why the Democrats are in office now because it is the anti-war movement that is the only movement in this country that was against the Iraqi war; the Democrats voted for war. We have one party, the Republicrats. The Democrats voted for Bush to have the right to go to war; Democrats voted for him to finance the war and when [John] Murtha said you have a way out, I want to put forth a resolution for a phased withdrawal, none of the Democrats voted for it. Now you have to keep marching so that the shift in positions means a shift in policy. We have to continue to go forward to revolutionize this country; America needs a revolution; we need a radical change in America and I believe it can happen; we shouldn't compromise our principles, compromise our position. Free Mumia, free all political prisoners, and pay us our reparations. Forward ever, backward never.
Dr. Asha Samad-Matias SAFRAD-Somali Association Repression is continuing; City College is not what it is not what it use to be; we have to bring the struggle to the students who are workers; that refugees, whether they are so-called refugees from New Orleans or those seeking political asylum who are struggling, imprisoned, having their homes raided, having their homes washed away purposely, just like Harlem is being re-gentrified for Black and Latin@s, all of this should show that this is one struggle.
Larry Hamm People's Organization for Progress African Americans, from the beginning, have consistently opposed the war in Iraq and oppose the policies of the Bush administration but a lot of times when we go to the peace activities we really don't see the numbers of African Americans that reflect that opposition to the war. Every time there is a poll, 95 percent of the African American community is opposed to the war but this opposition has not been made manifest in the streets; and it's in the streets where it really counts. On the wave of anti-war sentiment, the Democrats got control of the House and Senate; Democrats are backpedaling on the issue of the war; troops are hostages of the Bush administration. Veterans Administration had funds cut. There are a bunch of liars at the White House . We need to take many buses to the White House to make a citizens' arrest of Bush for crimes against humanity, for war crimes; impeachment is just a process, it's not a conviction. It is pressure from the masses of people who will end this war, not electing politicians. The people's movement ended the Vietnam War. POP is calling for a People's Peace Conference at Rutgers Law School on Jan.20. We are going after groups who have not come out against the war-ministers, unions, street gangs, politicians. This conference has a particular objective-when white folks come to the conference, bring some Black folks with you; we don't want the conference to be another conference of the left; we want the conference to be dominated by masses of the people. We want to get people who may not be politically active. A millions for peace march in New Jersey is needed.
Pam Africa These monsters have been trying to pull every trick to divide us off but we have to be strong; it is nothing new; we know the game, we know the tricks; we must continue to teach and bring unity. This government is at war with every form of life and we must unite with every movement to bring this monster down. Onamove!
Gary Labao BAYAN USA We stand here in solidarity with immigrants, the workers' struggle and the anti-war movement. Whether it is the struggle for liberation in the Philippines , Iran , Iraq , North Korea ; whether it's the workers, the immigrants or the soldiers in Iraq right now, our common enemy is U.S. imperialism. Down with U.S. imperialism.
Panama Vicente Alba Puerto Rican activist, immigrant rights organizer We need to think globally and act globally. We need to take responsibility for what goes on in this country because it affects the rest of the world. This is the empire and this empire is out of control. The environmentalist movement has been telling us for the past 30 years that the world is on the way to destruction; now you got Chomsky, Chavez saying it; we are not listening, we don't act; we need to take every step against the empire and globalization; we must engage in the Katrina front, anti-war front; immigrant rights movement; we are going to win not because the Democratic Congress is anything different from the Republican Congress. We're gonna win because we take it to the streets. We need to learn to collectively transfer the power of the people into the streets into legislation that gives all of the legalization necessary for 12 million human beings; not only the workers but their children, their grandmothers, grandfathers; we don't have the time or the luxury not to come together in a principled way.
Sharon Black The energy at the anti-war summit in Harlem was incredible. Not only was there a resounding call for unity of the anti-war movement to descend on Washington on March 17. The gathering itself was an expression of unity. To bring representatives of both the class struggle at home against racism and for immigrant rights, and the anti-war and anti-imperialist movements abroad, points in the direction that the anti-war movement must go-this fact, along with many others including the political content of the meeting, made the Troops Out Now Coalition summit unique and important.
The Troops Out Now Coalition (TONC) is a national grassroots coalition of antiwar activists, trade unionists, solidarity activists and community organizers.
For more information, or to find out how you can get involved, visit our homepage at TroopsOutNow.org
