Clarksville, TN – On Aug. 30, 20 students and anti-war veterans protested on the campus of Austin Peay State University to oppose threats of U.S. military attacks on Syria. Student groups at the rally included Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) and the Feminist Majority Leadership Alliance (FMLA). Protesters held banners and signs, chanted, gave speeches and handed out flyers urging people to call the White House at 202-456-1111 to put the heat on Obama to not bomb Syria.

While holding large banners that read “Drop tuition, not bombs!” and “Hands off Syria!” people chanted “One, two, three, four, we don’t want your racist war! Five, six, seven eight, no more killing, no more hate!” and “What do we want? Peace! When do we want it? Now!”

Anti-war veteran Lara Jennings spoke, “The people of Syria have the right to determine their own destiny free of U.S. intervention. The U.S. government is repeating the same lies of ‘weapons of mass destruction’ that were told to attempt to justify the invasion of Iraq to attempt to justify the invasion and bombing of Syria. We will not stand for this.”

Later, students marched around the campus with banners and signs reading “Money for education, not war!” while handing out flyers that included a SDS’s “Emergency Call to Action to Demand Hands Off Syria.”

SDS member Adele Morello said, “The U.S. government is trying to drag us into another war and they need to see that we the people are not for another war. We need jobs not war. We need money for education, not for war. Now is the time to stand up for what is right and tell them we are not going to follow blindly and unquestioningly into another war. We are against dropping bombs on Syria or anywhere else, worldwide! No more U.S. military intervention abroad!”

The rally was organized in response to national SDS’s call to action for students everywhere to hold rallies, marches and demonstrations to oppose threats of U.S. military attacks on Syria. Students vowed to continue to keep the pressure on and carry forward the struggle against U.S. military intervention and warmongering.

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