Re: Record number of protesters - 19,000 gather at Fort Benning, Georgia
- From: alan@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx (Alan)
- Date: Mon, 21 Nov 2005 18:00 +0000 (GMT Standard Time)
In article <memo.20051121174530.916J@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>,
alan@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx (Alan) wrote:
> Update from Fort Benning, Georgia
> November 20, 2005
>
> As you are receiving this, 19,000 people are standing vigil at the gates of
> Fort Benning, remembering those who have been silenced by SOA violence.
>
> The military erected a triple barbwire fence at the main gate of the base to
> prevent people from carrying the protest against the School of the Americas
> (SOA/WHINSEC) onto the military base. As of 2:00pm, 40 human rights activists
> have crossed the line by climbing over or going under partly dismantled areas
> of the fence and been arrested by Military Police. Columbus Police arrested
> bystanders and people who lifted up the fence to open up the space for the
> activists.
>
> U.S. laws allow the School of the Americas to exist - WE DO NOT! Visit
> www.SOAW.org for updates
>
> Please call your local paper to tell them about the vigil and ask them to
> cover it. In the next hour or two, the Associated Press (AP) is going to
> publish a story that you local paper can use. We'll post the AP story on the
> SOA Watch website (www.SOAW.org).
http://www.soaw.org/new/article.php?id=1223
http://www.soaw.org/new/newswire_detail.php?id=935
Concern about Iraq war and torture fuels record attendance
Sunday, November 20th 2005
Elliott Minor, Associated Press
Jerry Zawada, a 68-year-old Catholic priest, was released last November after
spending seven months in a federal prison for trespassing on government property
to protest a Fort Benning school he blames for human rights abuses in Latin
America.
Undaunted by his sentence, Zawada was arrested again Sunday when he ventured
into Fort Benning to call for the closing of the Western Hemisphere Institute
for Security Cooperation, formerly known as the Army's School of the Americas.
Zawada, of Cedar Lake, Ind., said another jail sentence would be "nothing
compared to the suffering of torture survivors and war victims.
"We want to stop this," he said during the annual protest by School of the
Americas' Watch, which has held demonstrations outside Fort Benning's main gate
since 1990.
Citing growing concerns about the war in Iraq and reports of torture by U.S.
soldiers, organizers predicted a record turnout of 19,000 - 2,000 more than last
year.
The protesters, including young parents, veterans, retirees and college students
from around the nation, listened to speeches, waved anti-war banners and marched
in a solemn funeral procession carrying crosses and coffins to commemorate
thousands of alleged victims of military and police abuses in Latin America.
"This feeds me every year," said Medea Benjamin of San Francisco, founder of a
woman's peace group known as Code Pink. "It's remembering those who died in my
.... lifetime. It also brings together the torture we're part of today in Iraq,
in Afghanistan and at Guantanamo Bay. It is painful that that's what my
government is known for around the world."
The group's founder, Roy Bourgeois, a Catholic priest, said he expected a few
dozen protesters to risk arrest by entering the west-central Georgia military
reservation.
The Army added a second fence topped by razor wire last year, and erected a
third fence this year, but the protesters - even senior citizens like Zawada -
seem to find a way to skirt around the fences or to scale them.
At least 41 protesters were arrested, said Eric LeCompte, the protest's
coordinator. "It demonstrates the passion and belief that people have in the
issue," he said.
SOA Watch and other critics allege the school's graduates have committed
murders, rapes and tortures in Latin America. Military officials deny the
charges.
The protests are timed to coincide with the November 1989 murders of six Jesuit
priests, their housekeeper and her daughter in El Salvador. A congressional
panel concluded that some of the killers were SOA graduates.
"We feel this school is connected to suffering and death for the people of Latin
America - a school that is paid for with our tax money," Bourgeois said. "We are
saying, 'Not in our name.'
"The people of Latin America are struggling for survival," he said. "They live
in shacks without running water, they lack health care, their children died
before the age of 4 or 5. They do not need guns. They do not need their soldiers
trained in counterinsurgency. They need food, medicine and schools."
SOA Watch plans to continue lobbying Congress to close the school and are
pressuring South American leaders to follow Venezuela's example and stop sending
students to the school.
"I think we have a very good chance of cutting funding for that school," said
LeCompte. "People have a lot of hope right now. They're inspired because they
know we're close."
http://www.soaw.org/new/
Our friends are incarcerated in the Muscogee County jail, awaiting their
arraignment. We all are going to put the SOA itself on trial. We need every one
of us to bring the Vigil home - we must bring this Vigil to our families, to our
churches, to our campuses, to our union halls, to our schools, to the doors of
our Congressional representatives, and to our communities. Click here for more
information on bringing the Vigil home!
http://www.soaw.org/new/article.php?id=1215
Bring The Vigil Home!
Congratulations! Once again you successfully brought the Vigil to the gates of
Fort Benning, Georgia. We gather here to let our government know that we are
watching, that we demand accountability and that we will continue to mobilize at
the home of the notorious School of Assassins until this school of death is
closed once and for all.
Now that we have completed the Vigil, every one of us must bring the Vigil home.
We must bring this Vigil to our families, to our churches, to our campuses, to
our union halls, to our schools, to the doors of our Congressional
representatives and to our communities. This 16th Vigil at the gates of Fort
Benning Georgia kicks off a time of nationwide, unified work so that we can win
the upcoming vote in Congress to close this school once and for all.
On this page you will find the tools you need to "Bring the Vigil Home." This
information includes what you need to organize a vigil at home in your
community, to do successful media actions and outreach and to pursue your Member
of Congress so that they can join our movement in this historic campaign to
close the SOA/ WHINSEC and build the world we know is possible.
>From all of us at SOA Watch, we thank you for joining us at Fort Benning, and we
look forward to joining you in the upcoming months as we all bring the Vigil
home!
#1 Bring the Vigil to Your Community
Until our upcoming vote in Congress you are needed to bring the Vigil to your
community. In Columbus, Georgia we are tens of thousands strong. Now as a
community dispersed across the United States, we must continue to stand tens of
thousands strong. You are needed to build rallies and vigils back in your home
communities once a month up until we have a vote. Many of you participate in
regular vigils in your communities supporting peace and justice, and you may
consider adding the SOA as a crucial issue up until our 2006 bvote in Congress.
How to Organize a Vigi in Your Community:
# Select a visible location -- The first step to organizing a vigil at home is
to select a location. Choose a visible location at your campus or in your
community where a monthly event can be held. These places can include the front
of your student union, at a local federal building, at a busy intersection or in
front of a Congress person's office who is refusing to co-sponsor HR 1217, our
bill to close the SOA.
# Choose a monthly date and time to gather -- Pick a specific monthly time and
duration to meet. It's helpful for your group to have a consistent time to
gather. Think about times that are high traffic times at your vigil location.
For example, morning rush hour, lunch time or evening rush hour.
# Be visible -- When you gather, be sure that you have banners and signs that
identify you as working to close the SOA. Bring leaflets, too. Find more flyers
in our Resources Section.
# Get the word out -- Let people in your community know that you are holding a
vigil and invite them to join you. Contact local student groups, labor groups,
church groups, immigrat rights organizations and people involved in local
economic justice campaigns. Ask them to join you as you vigil locally to close
the SOA.
# Post the event on the SOA Watch website -- Be sure that you post your monthly
event on our Calendar of Events so that we can help you get the word out!
#2 Media Outreach:
The media - print, radio and television - is an essential tool for spreading the
word, raising awareness and influencing public opinion. The media is a vehicle
for communicating with the world and can also be a catalyst for change. In some
ways, media legitimizes your campaign - if your story gets coverage, it's an
issue.
Knowing how to use the media effectively can make the difference in the success
of a campaign for social change. As you and your local SOA Watch group
strategize about how to bring the vigil home and how to educate and engage
others in your community, think about how media outreach can shape your work.
Here are a few tips to get you stated:
Link local community struggles to the issue of closing the SOA. Create a list of
local news outlets, complete with names, fax and phone numbers and email
addresses for newsrooms and editors. Tie in with national media: list the SOA
Watch national office phone number (202-234 3440) underneath a local phone
number at the top of your press releases, and cite www.SOAW.org as a source for
more information.
Vary your submissions. All of your media work doesn't need to be a major press
release or statement. Submit regular, brief announcements of organizing
meetings, bus or van trip availability, educational resources (speakers' bureau
or videos). Send to city desk, community news and religion editors. Remember
weekly bulletins of houses of worship, union publications and community
newsletters. Use independent and alternative media. IndyMedia web sites at
www.indymedia.org give all of us the opportunity to post stories and photos in
our own words. Are there alternative newspapers and/or radio programs in your
area? Does your information appear in religious, labor and community
newsletters?
Visit the Media Outreach section of our website or contact Christy Pardew at
202-234-2334 or cpardew(at)soaw.org for more information.
#3 Legislative Action
This year is different than previous years in our movement, because with
legislation pending in Congress and the growing support for closing the SOA/
WHINSEC, we have MORE than a fighting chance to win a vote in Congress. It's
important that everyone who believes that the SOA/ WHINSEC should be closed
should contact their Member of Congress and urge them to support HR 1217 and any
other legislative item that would suspend operations at the SOA/ WHINSEC.
Don't be overwhelmed about legislative work or lobbying. Lobbying is nothing
more than expressing your right as a constituent to have YOUR views expressed by
the person you've elected to represent you in Washington D.C.
Here are three EASY legislative action items you can do over the next few
months:
Call your representative! Check out the legislative action page on our website
to see if your representative is already supporting HR 1217, a bill that would
suspend operations at the SOA/ WHINSEC. If they are not already supporting HR
1217, call the Capitol Hill Switchboard, toll free at 1-888-355-3588 and ask to
be connected to your representative's office. Here is a suggested message for
you to convey:
"I am a constituent from (city/zip code) calling Congressman/woman ________
to urge him/her to cosponsor HR 1217, The Latin America Military Training Review
Act of 2005. This bill would suspend operations at, and investigate, the School
of the Americas, which is now using the acronym WHINSEC. I urge the
Congressman/woman to contact Rep. McGovern's office to become a cosponsor of
this bipartisan bill. This would be one very concrete step to support human
rights and promote peace and justice for the people of Latin America. As my
elected official in Washington D.C., I hope you will represent me and support HR
1217."
Organize a petition drive! Another way to let Members of Congress know just how
many people in their district support HR 1217, is for you to collect signatures
on a petition. Visit our legislative action section of our website, or call the
DC office and we can fax, email, or mail you a copy. Remember to have signers
include their zip code and to mail a copy of the signatures to the SOA Watch DC
office at P.O. Box 4566, Washington, DC 20017.
Meet with your Representative in your district! Congressional representatives
travel back to their home districts very frequently and setting up a meeting
with you and other constituents can be a powerful way for you to convey your
support for closing the SOA/ WHINSEC. The legislative coordinator in our DC
office can help you set up a meeting and connect with other SOA Watch supporters
in your area. We can provide talking points, scheduling advice, and background
information on your reprsentative's voting history. Contact pbowman(at)soaw.org
for more information.
For more information about the legislative campaign, visit the Legislative
Action Index or contact SOA Watch's legislative coordinator, Pam Bowman, at
pbowman(at)soaw.org or 202-234-3440.
#4 Bring the Vigil to Washington:
Mark your calendars! On April 23-25, 2006, join activists from around the
country in Washington D.C. for our annual spring event. Hold your
Representatives and Senators accountable and demand they represent your
interests in Washington.
The weekend will include legislative trainings, opportunities for you to meet
other SOA Watch movement activists in your community and beyond, and end the
weekend with pre-scheduled visits to your representative.
Alan
"A society whose citizens refuse to see and investigate the
facts, who refuse to believe that their government and their
Media will routinely lie to them and fabricate a reality
contrary to verifiable facts, is a society that chooses and
deserves the Police State Dictatorship it's going to get."
- Ian Williams Goddard
Nemesis Peace Centre
http://www.veloceraptor.free-online.co.uk/protector.html
Abuse of Women and Children
http://theoriginalfirebird.blogspot.com/
Nemesis News
http://lordcerneabbas.blogspot.com/
Absolute Anarchy
http://lordcerneabbastoo.blogspot.com/
http://www.john-lennon.com/
>
.
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