End the War Now: Important views put forward during the discussion of the Five Demands. More opinions are solicited from New England United coalition members, please send to the webmaster at neu-regional@lists.riseup.net .
October 27, 2007 New England Mobilization to End the War in Iraq
Rally at 12:00 Noon
Boston Common
Followed by a March at 2:00 PM
The vast majority of the people in every corner of the country want this war to end, but Washington has responded by expanding the war! Since the troop “surge” thousands of Iraqis and hundreds of U.S. service people have been killed. HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS of our tax dollars are being spent on this war DAILY, while the death and devastation continue. In New England alone we have paid dearly for this war. Over 150 soldiers have been killed, over 1300 wounded, and our communities have been robbed of $30 billion dollars. In Iraq more than 700,000 have died and countless wounded. There are now over 2 million refugees who have fled Iraq. Military recruiters have virtually unrestricted access to our schools while the Pentagon has unrestricted access to our tax dollars. Our communities -- from New Orleans to Minneapolis -- suffer the consequences. From Vermont to California, from Florida to Wisconsin, the people have spoken: We want this war to end, and we want it to end now!
Funding the war is killing the troops and countless Iraqis. The war will continue as long as Congress continues the funding. A vote of 50% plus one in just one branch of Congress could end funding for the war and stop the war in its tracks. No Presidential veto could restore funding. While hundreds of billions pour in for the occupation, sufficient funding has never been allocated to provide for the necessary medical and psychological support needed for returning troops.
This war has nothing to do with defending our safety or security or “spreading democracy”. From “Plan Colombia” to the failed 2002 coup attempt in Venezuela, to the installation of a murderous dictatorship in Haiti in 2004, to undermining the democratic process in the Palestinian Authority, U.S. policy has been opposed to democracy. The war party in Washington is on a campaign to control the oil resources of Iraq and dominate the politics of the Middle East.
The endless “War on Terror” is seen by millions as part of an empire building project used to justify the doctrine of “preemptive war”, the policy of “regime change”, wars of aggression, and torture. As Washington prepares an attack on Iran, our civil liberties are being shredded and our privacy is being violated. In recent years, tens of thousands of Arab, Muslim, and South Asian immigrants have been targeted for roundups and political sweeps resulting in mass arrests, jailings, and deportations. Many have been picked up and held without charges and with little or no access to lawyers or their families. This policy has been sustained through a campaign promoting hysteria against “militant Islam”, “Arab extremists”, “foreign jihadists”, and an overall climate of fear, ignorance, and xenophobia. Tens of thousands of Latin Americans and others are being swept up, imprisoned, and deported as well. Our privacy rights have been gutted through a policy of mass wiretaps with no connection to the courts. Incarceration without charges or legal representation, holding prisoners incommunicado, and warrantless wiretapping are an attack on everyone's basic rights. This assault on our rights must be ended immediately.
Millions support an end to the Occupation and the immediate withdrawal of all occupying forces from Iraq. Let us all unite! On Saturday, October 27th, people from all walks of life will gather in Boston for a massive New England regional demonstration. Many groups and organizations across the region are working on the October 27th mobilization. New England United is calling on the entire antiwar movement to join this effort. What we do now will help shape our future. We the People must end this war! Together we can build a social movement that can stop this war and in the process massively shift the political agenda in this country to further global justice, human needs and international solidarity. Join us!
Bring All The Troops Home Now!
End All Funding for the Iraq War Now!
Support Our Communities, Fund Human Needs!
No Attack on Iran!
Stop the Attacks on Civil Liberties, Defend Human Rights!
