Is Barack Obama really anti-war?

Just read a brilliant editorial by Glen Ford at BlackAgendaReport.com. Check out the intro and read the whole thing here:

"Through his own statements, Barack Obama relentlessly destroys his former anti-war credentials. In an effort to establish himself as a "statesman" in the eyes of the power structure, Obama now advocates a much larger Army and Marine Corps to allow the U.S. to "lead the world in battling immediate evils and promoting the ultimate good." Do not expect a "peace dividend" under a President Barack Obama. The only genuine peace candidate is Rep. Dennis Kucinich, of Ohio - which is why the corporate media pretend Kucinich doesn't exist."

Categories: 2008 Election

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Dennis defends his stance on impeachment in debate

The debate last night on MSNBS was poorly designed and executed due to its being on MSNBC and hosted by Brian Williams, but there were some choice moments. My favorite was when Williams asked Kucinich about his resolution to impeach the Vice President.

"MR. WILLIAMS: Is anyone on the stage willing to enter into Congressman Kucinich's effort to impeach Vice President Cheney? (No hands raised.) That being the response, Congressman, and perhaps it's an appropriate question: Is this a proper use of public congressional time and energy?

REP. KUCINICH: This is a pocket copy of the Constitution which I carry with me, because I took an oath to defend the Constitution. We've spent a lot of time talking about Iraq here tonight and

America's role in the world. This country was taken into war based on lies. This country was taken into war based on lies about weapons of mass destruction and al Qaeda's role with respect to Iraq, which there wasn't one at the time we went in.

I want to state that Mr. Cheney must be held accountable. He is already ginning up a cause for war against Iran. Now, we have to stand for this Constitution, we have to protect and defend this Constitution. And this vice president has violated this Constitution. So I think that while my friends on the stage may not be ready to take this stand, the American people should know that there's at least one person running for president who wants to reconnect America with its goodness, with its greatness, with its highest principles, which currently are not being reflected by those who are in the White House."

Right on, Congressman!

Categories: 2008 Election

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Media blackout on Cheney impeachment charges

Shockingly, the corporate media is all but ignoring the major story that Congressman Dennis Kucinich has filed impeachment charges against Vice President Dick Cheney. This will surely have the intended result of a lack of popular pressure against Congress to follow through.

We cannot allow the corporate media monopolies to derail this process. We must spread the news about this event as far and as wide as possible. Please tell everyone you meet, in real life as well as online. And above all, call your member of Congress and Senators by calling the Capitol Switchboard, toll-free at 1-800-862-5530.

Tell them you'd like to talk to your member of Congress or Senator, and give them your zipcode if you don't know the person's name. They'll connect you to their offices, and there you can call for the impeachment of Cheney first, and Bush second.

And also, you ought to call your local media, TV and print, and demand that they run this story. Also, you can stage protests outside the newspaper and TV studio offices, to raise hell about this issue. This is the first chance we've had to make real change happen in Washington, so let's take advantage of it!

Categories: War & Peace, Politics - National, Media Criticism

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Dick Cheney to be impeached?

This is it. Dennis Kucinich has delivered impeachment charges against Vice President Cheney. Now it's up to you, America. You must publicize this story, and encourage everyone you know to call their member of Congress and encourage them to support this resolution.

The toll-free number for Congress is 1-800-862-5530. Call now! Call often!

Categories: Politics - National, War & Peace

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US and Canada prevent Iraqi doctor from telling his story

Props to CoolAqua for this story:

"The Seattle PI reports that an Iraqi doctor scheduled to talk at a University Of Washington conference has been denied a Visa by the US. The doctor, Riyadh Lafta, contested official reports of Iraqi civilian deaths as being too low.

When an alternate plan was made for Lafta to participate in the University of Washington conference via video conference from Vancouver Canada, Canada also denied him a Visa.

Censored. I'd like to thank the US and Canadian governments for providing great publicity on this issue by attempting to suppress the truth by denying a Visa to Doctor Lafta. You would have thought that they would have realized that in a free society, when you attempt to suppress free communication, it only spikes interest in the matter. "

Categories: War & Peace, Local Events

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Human and Labor Rights Organizer Murdered in Mexico for his Union Activity

Urgent Message from Global Exchange:

Human and Labor Rights Organizer Murdered in Mexico for his Union Activity

Mexican Government must Investigate the Murder, Achieve Justice

On Monday morning, April 9, 2007, 29-year-old migrant farmworker organizer Santiago Rafael Cruz was tortured and brutally murdered in the Farm Labor Organizing Committee (FLOC, AFL-CIO) office in Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, Mexico. Santiago had worked for FLOC as a member-organizer for four years in Toledo, Ohio, and for one-and-a-half months in Mexico as a full-time office manager / grievance handler. Witnesses on the scene have confirmed that Santiago was tortured by more than one individual, and that the union's office showed no sign of forced entry or robbery. Santiago is survived by his father, mother, brothers and sisters in Mexico.

In 2004 FLOC won a historic collective agreement with the North Carolina Growers Association to represent nearly 10,000 farmworkers who travel each year from Mexico to North Carolina on H2-A guest worker visas to harvest tobacco, cucumbers and Christmas trees. FLOC's agreement cleaned up and systematized the recruitment of these workers in Mexico, jeopardizing the business interests of fly-by-night recruiters in rural areas of Mexico who previously overcharged workers by several hundred dollars to find them jobs in the U.S. Since FLOC established its office in Monterrey in 2005, it has been the victim of attacks in the media, deportation threats, several robberies and violent intimidation.

It's typical in Mexico for state attorneys general and police investigators to presume relatively simple solutions to potentially complicated cases, especially those involving human and labor rights defenders. For this reason, we ask supporters to contact the Nuevo Leon Governor and its Attorney General's office to demand the following:

? A formal, timely, honest and thorough criminal investigation (averigüación previa);
? Just prosecution and punishment for the perpetrators of this crime;
? Non-repetition measures to ensure FLOC and human and labor rights defenders are not subject to political and economically-motivated intimidation;
? And restitution for Santiago's family.

Santiago's murder will not intimidate FLOC into abandoning its operations in Mexico. To the contrary, FLOC will reinforce the security of its office in Monterrey and continue struggling for justice and human rights protections for all farmworkers. Santiago spent years defending the rights of fellow Mexicans working the fields in the U.S. and Mexico, and his life and service will be missed but not forgotten. People wishing to donate money to help with funeral costs and securing FLOC's Monterrey staff against further attacks can make checks payable to: FLOC, C/o Santiago Tragedy Fund, 1221 Broadway Street, Toledo, OH, USA, 43609.

For more details on this case and related news reports, please check out www.floc.com and www.solidaritycenter.org.

Activists play up political motive

BY KELLY ARTHUR GARRETT, El Universal
Jueves 12 de abril de 2007

Labor and political leaders from the United States and Mexico urged authorities Wednesday to consider political motives as they investigate the murder of an employee for a U.S.-based labor organization specializing in migrant farm workers´ rights

Labor and political leaders from the United States and Mexico urged authorities Wednesday to consider political motives as they investigate the murder of an employee for a U.S.-based labor organization specializing in migrant farm workers´ rights.

Santiago Rafael Cruz, the Oaxaca-born office manager for the Farm Labor Organizing Committee (FLOC), was apparently beaten to death before dawn Monday morning by an intruder in FLOC´s Monterrey, Nuevo León, office.

"A number of high-level people in the United States are taking a strong interest in this case," said Ben Cokelet, of the Mexico City branch of the AFL-CIO, with which FLOC is affiliated. "They´re expressing their concern that the government not look at this as just your average robbery-homicide but a politically connected murder."

One of those people is U.S. Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur, a Democrat from the Ohio district where Rafael Cruz previously worked for FLOC.

According to FLOC founder and president Baldemar Velásquez, Kaptur has already contacted the U.S. Consulate in Monterrey and asked its political officer to press for "a speedy and judicious processing of the case."

The AFL-CIO has made a similar request to the U.S. State Department.

At least two Mexican human rights groups, CADHAC of Nuevo León and the national Pro Juárez Human Rights Center have committed to following the case.

"There has been a tremendous outpouring of support from civic organizations and human rights groups and other unions from both countries," Velásquez said. "They´ve been fighting the same kind of corruption we are."

Velásquez and Cokelet both say the killing was motivated by the work FLOC does in Mexico. The Monterrey office was set up shortly after FLOC came to a three-way agreement with the Mt. Olive Pickle Company and the North Carolina Growers Association to set up a guest worker program that would bring Mexican workers to North Carolina under the H2A worker visa program.

FLOC´s role is to protect those workers´ rights. For example, the agreement calls for a limit on what the migrants can be charged to transport themselves to the United States, with the North Carolina companies picking up the rest of the tab. Unscrupulous "recruiters" have been known to quote high transportation prices and pocket the difference.

"We educate workers about the recruitment process so they don´t get ripped off or extorted, which was an ongoing practice here before we arrived," Velásquez said.

"Our efforts don´t make those crooked people very happy, so we´ve had continued attacks on our officers here in Mexico, and harassment of our staff," he said.

Santiago Rafael Cruz and his family had to abandon their Oaxaca cornfield in the mid-1990s, "a victim of NAFTA," according to Velásquez. Most of his family moved to Puebla, but Santiago migrated to the United States, working in the fields without papers. He eventually hooked up with FLOC, working in its Toledo office. He returned to Mexico, and was re-hired by FLOC in Monterrey just six weeks ago.

Rafael Cruz´s body was returned to Puebla on Tuesday,after a brief ceremony in the CADHAC offices. Results of the autopsy have not yet been released.

"He was one of the most affable, courteous, respectful people I´ve ever met," Velásquez said. "He was one of those guys who would subvert his own interest to help others. That´s what made him such an attractive hire."

© Queda expresamente prohibida la republicación o redistribución, parcial o total, de todos los contenidos de EL UNIVERSAL

Template Protest Letter

Gobernador (Governor) de Nuevo León
JOSÉ NATIVIDAD GONZÁLEZ PARÁS
Zaragoza y 5 de Mayo, Centro, Monterrey, N.L., México 64000
Tel: (011) (52) (81) 2020-1226 or 2020-1509
Fax: (011) (52) (81) 2020-1087 or 2020-1085
gobernador@nl.gob.mx

Procurador General de Justicia (State Attorney General) del Estado de Nuevo León
LUIS CARLOS TREVIÑO BERCHELMANN
Ocampo 470 Poniente, Colonia Centro, Monterrey, N.L., México 64000
Tel: (011) (52) (81) 2020-3333 and 2020-3317
Fax: (011) (52) (81) 2020-4094, 2020-4038 or 2020-4088
ltrevino@nl.gob.mx

Dear Gobernador and Attorney General,

I am writing to express my outrage at the brutal murder of migrant farmworker union organizer Santiago Rafael Cruz in Monterrey on April 9. Santiago was a human and worker rights defender who devoted his life to securing better working conditions for Mexicans who toiled in the fields of North Carolina as H2-A guest workers. Santiago's union, the Farm Labor Organizing Committee (FLOC, AFL-CIO), won a historic collective agreement in 2004 with the North Carolina Growers Association to represent nearly 10,000 Mexican farmworkers who harvest tobacco, cucumbers, sweet potatoes, and Christmas trees.

In 2005, FLOC established an office in Monterrey to represent the contractual rights of its members as they travel from their home states through Monterrey en route to North Carolina. As you know, the U.S. Consulate in Monterrey issues the majority of H2-A visas, and FLOC's office plays an important role in ensuring that workers are protected from illegitimate labor contractors in small Mexican towns. FLOC's agreement cleaned up and systematized the recruitment of these workers in Mexico, jeopardizing the business interests of fly-by-night recruiters in rural areas who were overcharging workers by hundreds of dollars to find them jobs in the United States. Since the Monterrey office opened in 2005, FLOC has been constantly attacked in the media for "destabilizing" Mexican businesses. The office has been broken into several times, and union files and equipment have been damaged. FLOC staff members have been threatened with deportation and violently intimidated.

I respectfully request that your government ensure the following steps:
• A formal, timely, honest, and thorough criminal investigation;
• Just prosecution and punishment for the murderers;
• Official measures to ensure that FLOC members and human and worker rights defenders are not subjected to political and economically motivated threats; and
• Restitution for Santiago's family.

I look forward to your timely response.

Sincerely,

(Your Name Here)

Categories: Workers' Rights, World News

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Dennis Kucinich plans to file impeachment charges against Darth Cheney

This is it, folks. Once these charges are filed, it's up to all of us, America's progressive bloggers, to spread the word and to make sure that they receive a fair hearing and a clean vote. We should be calling our members of Congress as well as our two Senators and demanding that they hold Dick Cheney accountable.

What's he guilty of?

Number one, there was the secret White House Energy Task Force. It's pretty clear that that was the meeting in which the oil company execs told Cheney he needed to find some pretext for invading Iraq. From that point forward, seizing the Iraqi oilfields was Cheney's number one priority. And how about conspiring with Enron to jack up consumers utility bills and defraud thousands of investors and Enron employees?

Next, we have 9/11. It's well known that Dick Cheney was running NORAD exercises throughout the US and Canada and prevented fighter pilots from intercepting the hijacked airliners. It's also pretty clear that he helped cover up his involvement in the attacks, and encouraged the President to inflate the case against bin Laden, in order to distract attention away from his involvement.

After that came Afghanistan, and then Iraq. The Iraq War in particular was made possible by the direct intervention of Dick Cheney and his Office of Special Plans, a parallel intelligence operation working out of the Vice President's office.

And lastly, there was the outing of CIA agent Valerie Plame, whose husband was threatening to expose Cheney's crimes and subject him to to Congressional scrutiny. With Plame's cover blown, our operations in the Middle East to secure loose nukes and stop the spread of WMDs were obliterated. Cheney is personally responsible for making the world LESS safe, not safer.

All these things add up to one seriously easy case against old Tricky Dick. So let's get it on, America.

Call Congress today and tell them to take Cheney to the wall. That scumbag has got to go down, and it won't happen unless we take action.

The Toll-Free number for Congress is: 1-800-862-5530

Categories: Politics - National, 9/11 Truth, War & Peace

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May 1st is International Workers Day - What are you doing to honor the occasion?

For those of you who remember when we used to have a thriving American labor movement, May Day was the first official labor day holiday. In 1886, May 1st marked the beginning of a nationwide campaign for the eight-hour day. It took many years of hard labor and dangerous protest, but in the end, our ancestors earned the right of the eight-hour day.

One hundred and twenty-one years later, the struggle for American workers to receive their just desserts continues. Private sector unionism is down to around eight percent of the total workforce; for workers as a whole it hovers somewhere around fifteen percent. Meanwhile, healthcare costs are skyrocketing, pay isn't keeping up with inflation, middle-class family wage jobs are disappearing, and the politicians we pay to make life easier for all of us aren't getting the job done.

The time has come to bring back the spirit of 1886. The time has come to ring in a new year of grassroots trade unionism by celebrating May Day, International Workers Day, in every city in the union.

What will you do to honor this occasion? Rent a film about a workers' rebellion in Mexico? Go to a rally at the town square? Tell your kids about how your Dad lived through the worst strike of his life? Whatever you do, make sure you remember the sacrifices that all workers have been through to make our lives better today.

And while you're at it, remember those workers who are struggling to make a better life for themselves right now. Like the brave employees of Macy's Tacoma, struggling for over a year now to get a decent contract with health benefits. Or the Pierce County janitors, striving like hell to get a union so they don't have to deal with the rank exploitation of their malicious employers. Or how about the teachers down in Oaxaca, Mexico, who had to wage an actual pitched battle in the streets to protect themselves from the right-wing goon squads of the corporate elite.

Whatever you do this May Day, remember that this is not only a time for reflection, it's a time for action. Take action this May Day in some simple way. Write a check to a labor-friendly organization. Shop at a union grocery store, and tell the clerk you will support them when their contract comes up in May. Go to a protest and raise some hell.

And if you're in the Tacoma area, this May 1st, I hope you will attend America in Solidarity's Third Annual Workers' Celebration for May Day 2007, held this year at King's Books, 218 Saint Helens Ave, Tacoma, 98402. Kings's phone number is (253) 272-8801

This year, America in Solidarity hopes to bring together workers from across the spectrum, to remember the successes we've won andprepare for the victories we have yet to achieve. This year's event will feature local politicians, music, snacks, and even a movie. Bring your passion, your worklife stories, and your whole family to the Third Annual May Day Workers' Celebration in Tacoma. By bringing back the noble tradition of May Day as a workers' holiday, Solidarity hopes to remind Americans of just what was lost, and what can and should be regained.

Together, we can change the world. That's what this Labor Movement is all about.

P.S. If you are an activist/organizer, or a member of an organization that you think would like to be included in this year's celebration, please contact us at 253-227-6884. We'd love to have the help, and you ould be the one that makes this year's better than ever!

Categories: Workers' Rights

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Today is Holocaust Memorial Day

Today's the day we remember the ten+ million victims of Hitler's genocidal madness. Today should also be the day we remember all victims of genocide, including those being victimized at this very moment.

Contrary to disgraced Ambassador to Sudan, Andrew Natsios, there IS a genocide taking place in Darfur, as well as in neighboring Chad, where the refugee camps are being raided and women and children being raped and murdered.

Please look into this issue and do something about it today.

Categories: War & Peace, Politics - National, World News

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O Captain my Captain

Kurt Vonnegut was the man. I fell in love with his insane rambling imagination the minute I cracked open Slaughterhouse Five. Before that point, I'd never been much into history. I always thought it was bombs in Hitler's Germany, and racial slurs against the Japanese. I didn't know how truly momentous it all was, until I read about it from the mind of someone a lot like me. An agnostic (or even an atheist), someone who held human kindness up to be the highest virtue. Someone smart, someone funny, and someone sad. He was like my literary soulmate, someone whose books always made me smile.

My favorite has to be Cat's Cradle, just because I've always loved stories that deal with apocalypse. Mother Night was great, because it dealt with propaganda and Nazism, two things I find fascinating. Slaughterhouse is of course the greatest achievement in a literary sense, but they are all incredibly delicious works of art.

I never got to meet Mr. Vonnegut, but I hope that he was wrong about heaven, and that someday we do get to meet and share our views of the world. I feel like I knew him, but I'm sure there's a lot more to get to know.

It's funny - I just read a book of his recently about a spoiled rich kid that accidentally shoots someone with a rifle. Deadeye Dick. Not his best, by far, but not bad. After reading it, I kept thinking "When is Vonnegut gonna get his own show? This guy is friggin' hilarious!" He was the Daily Show and the Colbert Report long before media had become the complete right-wing propaganda machine it is today. He provoked thought. He sparked conversation. He demanded involvement from the reader.

If you really want a good belly laugh, pick up Breakfast of Champions. That book is freakin' hilarious. And really kind of dirty in parts.

But heck, they're all good. Wherever you start, whichever book of his captures your imagination first, remember that moment. Because life will never be the same.

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Imus is toast - so now what?

Well, this is it. Don Imus got cut from not only his TV show, but his radio show as well. His career, as he knew it, is over. Time will tell if he can make anything out of his life from here on out, but to my mind this sort of dramatic collapse is all part of being a high-profile public figure - when you get caught saying racist, sexist things, sometimes there's no coming back from that.

Ther real question in my mind is: what do we do to make media more responsive to we the people, and how do we ensure that there are an adequate number of people on the radio, and on TV, that speak to the issues that matter to us?

Women's issues, minority rights, economic inequality, Indigenous people's rights, revolutionary movements, justice in Palestine, peace in Iraq - these issues will not be covered in any depth unless we the people demand that the FCC steps up their enforcement of media diversity.

And that means we have to contact the FCC directly and tell them to stop allowing greater media consolidation. We need to lean on Congress to make sure these big media monopolies are held to account for their shady business practices.

And last but not least, we need to raise hell anytime some rich, white guy decides to tear down women, or black people, or Native people, or Iraqi people just trying to survive. We need to be the voice of the conscience of America.

We've seen the power of collective mass action this week. Let's keep it rolling. Let's win what needs to be won.

Onward!

Categories: Media Activism, Media Criticism

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Don Imus needs to lose his job

Take action on the slander of the Rutgers Women's basketball team today! NOW and the YWCA are leading the charge to get Don Imus' show canceled, and if you agree that that needs to happen, here's where you can take action yourself.

For those of you who don't know much about this issue, or who might think that Don Imus deserves to keep his job, I'd like to share my take on this. To start with, take a listen to the women that Don Imus chose to call "nappy-headed hoes".



These courageous women did the right thing today by standing up and speaking out about this outrage. It's true that radio is a nasty business, it's true that lots of men are saying much worse things on radio (particularly right-wing radio), but what makes this different is that a rich, powerful, white man chose to use his public platform to tear down ten young women at the height of their young lives with several carelessly chosen words.

Don Imus called these young women "rough", "nappy headed hoes". But to understand why this is so wrong, you must understand what these ten women heard.

These ten young women, who have put their academic lives on the line to drive their team towards the championship, these ten young women, who have struggled day in and day out to make their team the best women's basketball team in America, these ten young women, at the peak of their success, were cut down to pieces by a man in a fancy office with millions of dollars in his pocket, and why?

Because he could. Because he was sure they were weak. And because he thought he could trash them all he wanted, and nothing would come of it.

But thankfully, because of the brave young women of the Rutgers Women's basketball team, America can now get a chance to see the kind of hurt and hell that women have to face in this country every single day. And for black women, who are struggling to defy unfair stereotypes of their own, who are working to make themselves courageous, brilliant new leaders of tomorrow, some rich prick can, with just a few words, cast aspersions on their character that will be trafficked by low-class radio hosts and bloggers all over this nation.

God bless these strong young women. God bless them for having the courage to stand up, to come together and to tell the truth. Don Imus deserves to lose his job. And to anyone else who chooses to speak of women in this way in the future, to anyone else who continues to stand in the way of our young women from achieving their highest dreams, let this be a lesson to you.

You may think you're untouchable. You may think you're a man apart, free from any consequence, but times they are a'changin'. Our young women are coming up.

God bless America, and God bless these strong young leaders of tomorrow.

Categories: National News

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Liveblogging Moveon.org's virtual town hall

If you haven't heard about Moveon.org's virtual town hall, you ought to listen to it RIGHT NOW. Go over to Moveon.org and check it out. If you miss it, it will be rebroadcast on Air America in the next few days. You must listen to this thing, because it will be our best chance to hear the candidates deal with real liberal questioners.

John Edwards is up now. He just answered a question about how to end the war. He has plan that will get all combat troops out of Iraq within a year.

Second question is "What will you do about contractors in Iraq?" His answer is essentially to get all US Contractors out of Iraq, to give contracting jobs to Iraqis, and to keep anyone associated with war contracts from having any influence in elections.

Next question: "Do you support the Murtha plan to force the President to fully train and equip the troops?"

Edwards fully agrees with this, and he closes by reminding listeners that Bush created this war, he's the one who's shortchanged the troops, and he reminds us that we need to continue to speak out against this policy. He quotes Dr. King who said "Silence is betrayal".

Quote: "Together I believe that we will succeed, and I thank you for the opportunity to join you in that effort."

Joe Biden is up now.

In response to the question "What will you do to get us out of Iraq?"

Joe says one should answer the question of "Then what?" after talking about each planned solution. He talks about his plan to solve the political problems that come after all solutions are created. He talks about the sectarian violence that is destroying the country. He suggests that there should be a federal solution that has a limited federal government that enables the three different regions to be fairly autonomous. He says there should be an oil sharing agreement, as well as reconstruction assisted by neighboring oil-rich regimes. Last, he thinks the Security Council, Germany and the four most powerful Muslim nations should hold a summit to determine what happens to Iraq once troops come out in '08.

Next question regards permanent military bases and the huge embassy.

Biden explains that he's against permanent occupation, and he's worked to limit the bases being built in Iraq. He says "we have to knock down the belief that we're there only for oil, or for a permanent military base in Iraq."

The last question regards the corrupt and violent Iraqi police, which is engaging in sectarian crimes against their ethnic rivals. Biden says we should stop funding the National Police Force. He says we need to give local control to local police forces in their own ethic communities.

[Commentary - not every neighborhood is ethnically pure, which will mean that we could be actually supporting violent division of ethic groups.]

Biden's closing remarks deal again with his plan for how to solve Iraq's problems once we leave. "We don't want to leave Iraq with a dictator at the end of the civil war." He encourages folks to go to his website to learn more about his plan.

Dennis Kucinich is up now.

He talks about his 12 point plan to get out of Iraq (HR 1234), and encourages folks to go to his website to read it. The idea is to stop the funding, end the occupation, withdraw the troops, close the bases, restore cooperation with the United Nations, move in UN troops, simultaneously pull out all US contractors, provide funding for the UN mission until the Iraqi government is stable, fund the reconstruction, don't partition Iraq, reparations for injured civilians (as many as a million killed), return the people of Iraq full control of their oil, give the Iraqi people loans not hobbled by IMF austerity guidelines, and more.

He explains that we need to go further, working to find peace in Israel and Palestine, as well as with Iran.

The next question regards how we should help the Iraqi people to deal with the impact of the war. Dennis says we need to work on forming a diplomatic relationship with other countries, as well as rebuilding the entire social network of the country, in order to forestall the humanitarian crisis in that country.

He reminds us it's an "illegal war and an illegal occupation". "We need to tell the world that we've learned our lesson and we reject war as an instrument of foreign policy." He explains that he's voted against the war and all subsequent funding for it.

Next question asks how do we fix our reputation with other countries. Dennis says we need to end the war now, we need to reach out to the world community, take a new direction, and not take policies that "put us on the threshold of attacking other nations". Sign the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty, the Landmine Treaty, the Chemical Weapons Treaty, Kyoto, and other international agreements. Personal diplomacy will be important, reaching out to other nations in an "open-hearted way", that "brings the best of America forward".

He reminds us that he's the only candidate who opposed the war and has consistently voted against funding the war, which will help him reach out to other countries.

Closing remarks: He thanks us for participating, reminds us to consider that he has been against it all along, fighting against each appropriation in the House, and the others are not really consistent with peace, so the choice is clear. He has a "vision of the world which is peaceful and focused on unity."

Bill Richardson is next.

[I've got to go to a meeting, so this is it for me for now. Have fun listening to the Meeting!]

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The Education of Suzanne Swift

Sara Rich, the tireless mother of sexually abused female soldier, Suzanne Swift, sends us this inspiring account of her daughter's transformation from scared, introverted twenty-year old to a warrior for peace. Learn more about Suzanne's journey at her website, http://suzanneswift.org/.

The Birth of an Activist


As Suzanne and I attended the rally for Lt. Ehren Watada on the first day of his court martial, she turned to me and said, “ Mom, where are the kids my age? Where is my generation?” I replied that if it had not been for what she had been through she would not be there protesting with me. She would be home sleeping or actively involved in the self-centered life of a normal twenty two year old.


Has Suzanne learned a lesson from this terrible experience? Oh yes, she has. The Army has taken a semi apathetic self centered teenager and turned her into a fierce warrior for peace and justice. As we keep saying or I should say, chanting, everything happens for a reason. I said this the entire time Suzanne was in Iraq. I knew she was there for a higher purpose; she was walking through the fire to come out the other side truly changed.


Suzanne was not against the war in Iraq when she went there. She completed her training with just the right amount of brain washing to tell me what an awful person she thought Jane Fonda was for not supporting the troops in Vietnam and how she really liked being a soldier. Hooha! She was proud to be doing the work of a Military Police officer and proud of her nation. I tried to bring her back to reality, but to no avail.


She suffered in Iraq, but could not talk about the depths of her trauma because good soldiers suck it up. She built a wall around her emotions the best she could, but still there were things that happened to her that she could not keep from me. I kept careful notes and saved her e-mails and chats. She knew I was doing this and felt better that if something happened to her I would know the real story of the men who were in charge of her in Iraq.


I sent her a copy of Fahrenheit 911 by Michael Moore for her to watch. She showed it to some of her fellow soldiers in Iraq. They were disgusted. This was around the time of the elections and morale was low in Camp Lima. I saw a slight glimmer of hope that Suzanne was making baby steps to think for herself again.


That changed the longer she stayed in Iraq, she became more depressed and there was nothing I could do to encourage her or lift her spirits. At this time she was talking about killing herself.


When Suzanne returned from Iraq, I asked her if we could take action against the MLester now? She replied with a flat voice that she cannot take action against him. She was unwilling to dredge up those horrific memories. in addition she had to redeploy to Iraq within the next 18 months and it would not be safe to be a whistle blower against someone who had power to make her life a living hell.


I urged her to get help for post traumatic stress disorder, she refused my help and says she is fine and there is no way she can deal with that “stuff” until she is out of the Army. I stopped asking and just did what I could to support her.


About a month after she returns from Iraq, she called me in hysterics. I asked her to slow down and tell me what was going on. She told me through her tears that she was sick of being treated like a whore by the Army and was going to officially report it this time. “Tell me what happened,” I asked. She told me about her Sgt. telling her to report to his bed, naked. She said she was going to make a formal complaint and break her chain of command. She sounded scared to death, but I quietly
told her it is the right thing to do and that these guys need to be stopped. She courageously told on her squad leader. I was so proud of her for finally standing up for herself.


The US Army interrogated her and treated her as if she were the criminal. They told her to look up the word honesty in the dictionary and implied she must be seeking revenge against the Sgt. The worst part of it was that the rest of the unit shunned her for some time because in their eyes she had let her unit down, and been disloyal to her unit. What she did was a abomination in their eyes, making her not only a whore but a bitch.


Suzanne put her head down and continued her work. When she was told she was going back to Iraq 11 months after her first deployment ended, she questioned the order because she was supposed to have 18 months of stabilization time. The military representation told her that she must sign a document waiving her rights to her stabilization time. I was furious and called my representative and my senators. They all gave me the same answer, they needed a privacy act waiver signed by Suzanne. When I asked Suzanne, she told me she was ok and was just going to go to Iraq. She
said it wasn’t so bad and she could handle it. I sat on my hands and did nothing but emotionally prepared for her to return to war.


At that point, Suzanne was not thinking about opposition to the war; she was fully focused on survival, and getting through this deployment safely.


Confronting imminent redeployment she went AWOL. Later the Army would contend that she went AWOl because of her mother’s political beliefs. I only wished it was that. If it was because of my political beliefs she never would have gone to Iraq the first place. Then they tried to say it was because of her own anti war beliefs. That would have been a dream come true. But the truth was that my daughter went AWOL out of pure fear; fear of what her command had done to her in the first deployment
and rejection of being treated like a “deployment whore” again. This was not a decision it was a reaction.


All through Suzanne’s time being AWOL , she was not active against the war. She listened to me as I became more and more outraged at what our administration was doing: abusing our military and committing genocide on the Iraqi people, but she was not involved. When I asked her to speak at a Eugene rally last March , she said she could not speak about the war and her experience. The idea overwhelmed her. So, we wrote a piece together in which she said that maybe the United States needed
someone to come liberate us! That gave me a glimmer of hope that she was waking up from this brainwashing and might become politically active.


Two days before her arrest, Suzanne and I watched a video by a young U.S. Army Lieutenant named Ehren Watada. He was going to refuse to deploy to Iraq and we were both very impressed and talked about his courage.


Without warning it happened. Suzanne was traumatically arrested in our home and taken to jail in handcuffs. The Eugene police officers had no warrant just an e-mail on the police car computer screen saying, “hey buddy will you pick this one up for us?” She was strip searched and denied urgent medical care for an abscessed tooth for 12 hours. She says she wept harder than ever in the cell by herself that night.


They took her to Ft. Lewis a few days later and put her under the supervision of the original harassing Sgt. from Iraq. She called me in tears again. I made some phone calls and she was moved to a new unit and a no contact order was issued for this Sgt. Eventually she was allowed to come home a month later for a visit.


The Oregon Country Fair where I tried to introduce her to Amy Goodman, but she refused to engage and merely walked away. I made my apologies to Amy about her abruptness.


Despite her apparent lack of interest, we had a rally for Suzanne on her 22nd birthday at Ft. Lewis. Ehren Watada was at the rally along with his mother, Carolyn. Suzanne had an instant connection with Ehren and continues to see him as one of her personal heroes. Suzanne was shocked and embarrassed but grateful by how many people were there to support her.


There was no overt change in her attitude until one day Suzanne watched the movie “Sir No Sir” and suddenly put it all together. She called me in a frantic state of “ MOM!! I watched the movie! We have to DO something to get the truth to the troops so they will stop fighting” My heart soared and I started to give her books and other literature about what the administration was doing to our country. She literally
devoured the information.


I was invited to attend the national conference for Vets for Peace and we asked Suzanne’s attorney if she could go. He replied that she was forbidden to attend. So, we snuck her in anyway. Then some real magic began. We snuck her in and she got to meet with a group of powerful veterans, Iraq Veterans Against the War. (IVAW) and Colonel Ann Wright. This was a HUGE turning point for Suzanne. She spent many hours with other Iraq women vets and Suzanne’s eyes began to sparkle for the first time in forever. She told me, “Mom, these women really understand me. They know what I have been through.” It was so good to have these connections for her to build her strength and energy to start speaking out.


We had a press conference that weekend at the VFP conference about Suzanne’s case and sexual assault in the military. Many powerful women vets talked about what their experience had been and their support for Suzanne. What they did not know was that Suzanne was on the second floor looking down on us. She watched the entire press conference with unblinking eyes and I think this was a time when she saw just how impactful her speaking out has been on the women of this nation.


I finally, as a mother and an activist, had hope for my daughter’s emotional and mental well being.


As time passed, the military officials at Ft. Lewis played their hideous hurry up and wait games with Suzanne’s life. Suzanne made some very good friends among the people that started Camp Suzanne who were caring and supportive. Suzanne found herself leaving the barracks in the evening to go and spend time with them. She also would sneak off base to attend Ehren Watada rallies and wear her Ehren Watada t-shirt. I warned her that it could be used against her and she wore it anyway. I was bursting with pride.


One night at home, Suzanne was getting ready to head back to Ft. Lewis. (She was being allowed to come home to Eugene every other week to see her civilian psychologist) She asked, “What was that ladies name who has the radio show and was at the fair?” “Amy Goodman,” I replied, my curiosity peaked. She asked “What is the name of her show?” I replied, “Democracy Now” She asked if I thought she could download it onto her pod casts. My heart jumped for joy. I was so excited at the
thought of my daughter listening to Democracy Now. When Amy called a few weeks later, I handed the phone to Suzanne telling her Amy Goodman was on the phone and wanted to talk to her. Suzanne’s jaw dropped she was so in awe of Amy and her work. The next day Suzanne did her first radio interview on Democracy Now.


When Suzanne was asked by the Army to sign a statement including a part that says she was not sexually abused, she called me once again. “ Mom, do you know what they want me to sign?” she explained it to me and I asked her what she wanted to do about it. She spoke strongly, “ I am not going to sign it, it’s not true.” This was another turning point where Suzanne could have just signed the paper, not told me what it said in it’s entirety, and avoided being stripped of her rank and sent to prison. She refused the deal and would not sign. Her attorneys were furious at her for refusing to sign, but she held her ground. The attorneys went back to the drawing board and came up with a new “deal”. With this deal she signed a statement and she experiences a summary court martial with an uncertain outcome. She would probably go to prison, but it would not be for a year, more likely a month.


She faced her court martial with dignity and courage. It had to be one of the hardest days of her life. She was stripped of all rank and sent to prison for 30 days. I could only imagine the inner strength it took her to stand up for herself and do what was right. The only time she cried during the court martial was when she explained what the MLester did to her in Iraq and how humiliated she felt.


Suzanne went to prison, but she remained strong and resolved. She did what she had to do to stay true to herself and not let the Army break her down.


When Suzanne was released from prison, she was much quieter and determined. She came home to Eugene for the weekend and for the first time wore her Iraq Veterans Against the War T-Shirt. She looked at me with a wide smile, and told me she never wants to take this shirt off. It was good to have her at a rally and holding her signs for peace.


During the time of Ehren Watada’s court martial she attended the rally with me on the first day. She wore her Watada shirt and got on stage with other IVAW members to support Carlos Arredondo when he spoke about the death of his son who was a Marine in Iraq.


The next day she dressed in her civilian clothes, brazenly went to the visitor center and registered for a pass to attend a day of Ehren’s court martial where she sat next to Colonel Ann Wright. When she told me she was going to do this I warned her to to use caution. She replied, “ Mom, what will they do to me? Send me back to Iraq to be raped and /or killed? Send me to prison? They can’t reduce my rank anymore. Ehren is taking a stand for all of us and I want to be there to support him
and let him know he is not alone.”


She went to the trial and was punished later by having all of her civilian clothes taken away and having a guard on her at all times. We laughed at this and took it all in stride.


A few days later a photographer from the New York Times Magazine was coming to Ft. Lewis to take pictures for a piece coming out about women in the military. When the command at Ft. Lewis heard this they told Suzanne that is she participated in this interview she would be face administrative action again A.K.A. another court martial. Once again Suzanne stood up to command and refused to take no for an answer and called her JAG attorney and he worked it out so she could do the photo shoot.


Now, Suzanne is in Ft. Lee Virginia doing her Advanced Infantry Training to be a shipping and receiving clerk. She goes to class every day wearing a uniform with a combat patch, a blank spot where her rank used to be and the name SWIFT for everyone to see. Many people have put this together and know who she is and tell her she did the right thing. She will be sent to Ft. Irwin, California in April to await further orders.


It is amazing to me how much we have to be thankful to the Army for. They tried to break my daughter down and shut her up, and in the process created a strong advocate for women around the world. Imagine if they had done the right thing and protected her from MLester in the first place or given her an immediate medical discharge when our attorney contacted Ft. Lewis right after she went AWOL and was diagnosed with PTSD. How simple and right it could have been. But the US military did not
understand what they were doing or Suzanne’s fortitude.


So, when Suzanne asks where her generation is in the peace movement, I tell her to look in the mirror and all around her. All of the other soldiers she knows are just activists waiting to be born and she could be just the one to help them wake up. She has the story, the energy and the intelligence to be a powerful activists. She just needs to be visible and speak out!


I am so proud to be her mother.

Peace~

Sara Lantz Rich, M.S.W.
http://suzanneswift.org/

Categories: War & Peace, Workers' Rights

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