Abayomi Azikiwe, Pan-African News Wire Editor, covering an anti-war demonstration in Washington, D.C. on Oct. 25, 2003 (BBC Photograph).
Originally uploaded by Pan-African News Wire Photo File.
The Democrats have caved in
Congress won't end the war!
It's up to the People - time to take it back to the streets!
June 16 -- Antiwar Strategy Meeting - Planning for the next "Surge" of Antiwar mass action - Summer and Fall -
SATURDAY JUNE 16 - 5 PM - at THE SOLIDARITY CENTER - 55 West 17 St. 5th Floor -(near 6th Ave. - take all trains to Union Square, or any other 14 street stations)
September 29 -- National March on Washington D.C. Assemble at the Capitol -- March on the White House -- proposed by the Troops Out Now Coalition - now endorsed by more than 200 organizations and individuals.
September 22 – 29 --Encampment to Stop the War in Washington D.C. - Stop the War Abroad and at Home
Today, the Democratic leadership in the House and Senate, who were brought to power with a mandate to stop the war, cut off war funds, and bring the troops home, betrayed that mandate and agreed to continue to fund the war in Iraq.
Their agreement to continue the occupation, without even the pretense of conditions, timetables, or benchmarks, is the culmination of a months-long process during which the Democratic Party has worked to neutralize antiwar sentiment by appearing to oppose the war while maneuvering to continue to vote for the funds.
This process began with the "non-binding" resolution earlier in the year; today the Democrats completely caved in and no longer offer even token resistance to the Bush Administration.
This betrayal comes as no surprise - many of us knew all along that this war will not be ended by politicians from either of Wall Street's political parties. Only a massive grassroots mobilization of resistance will bring this criminal occupation to an end.
It is time for the antiwar movement to move from protest to resistance, to become a force actually capable of stopping business as usual and putting an end to this criminal war. And we must do everything within our power to resist those who would chain the antiwar movement to either major party.
On June 16, from 1 to 5 pm, the Troops Out Now Coalition is hosting an Antiwar Strategy Meeting at the Solidarity Center (55 W. 17th St. 5th Fl, in Manhattan). All progressive organizations, coalitions, individuals -- anyone interested in mobilizing to shut down the war -- is welcome to join us for the discussion, as we examine and begin planning for the necessary "Surge" of antiwar mass action this Summer and Fall.
Some of the proposed topics for discussion include:
Assessing the state of the antiwar movement: where do we go from here?
Congress, Bush and the war funding issue: what's really going on?
From antiwar to anti-imperialism: making the connections - Iran, Palestine, the Philippines, Cuba, Venezuela, Africa etc.
The war at home: Immigrant Rights, Katrina, Anti-racist organizing
Update on the student movement
The growing GI antiwar movement
This meeting will be an important opportunity to discuss perspectives and plans for the next phase of the antiwar struggle, including the draft call from the Troops Out Now Coalition ( see http://troopsoutnow.org/sept2207call.html ) for a National March on Washington on September 29 and an Encampment to Stop the War, beginning the week of September 22 - 29.
The call for a National March and Encampment in Washington DC has already received wide support. In the past few days, activists and organizers from across the U.S. have contacted TONC, demonstrating a groundswell of enthusiasm for the call to go from protest the resistance. Some of the proposals we have heard in the past few days include:
Student organizations in several cities are discussing plans for a student strike that would include protests and direct action on their campuses, before joining the Encampment and March in DC.
Organizers are already planning car caravans and "peace trains" to DC for the Encampment.
Local organizations are planning to set up their own tents at the Encampment, with displays, teach-ins, literature, and protests to highlight various issues, including: immigrant rights, counter-recuiting, Katrina, Palestine, and more.
We urge you to read the proposal from the Troops Out Now Coalition - located online at http://troopsoutnow.org/sept2207call.html. Please consider endorsing the call, and email us with your ideas.
Then, join us on June 16 to continue this discussion and plan for the next phase of resistance to the war at home and the war abroad.
Please join us in helping to move from protest to resistance:
Join us on June 16, from 1 to 5 pm for the Antiwar Strategy Meeting at the Solidarity Center (55 W. 17th St. 5th Fl, in Manhattan)
Read the draft call for Sept 22 - 29 : http://troopsoutnow.org/sept2207call.html
Endorse the call for Sept 22 - 29 : http://www.troopsoutnow.org/sept2207encampmentmarchonwashendorse.shtml
Volunteer:
http://www.troopsoutnow.org/sept2207volunteer.shtml
Become an Organizing Center : http://www.troopsoutnow.org/sept2207volunteer.shtml
Donate : http://troopsoutnow.org/donate.shtml
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