Washington D.C. host ‘U.S Out of Korea!’ speaking tour event
Washington, DC – On Saturday, November 7, the Washington, DC District of The Freedom Road Socialist Organization hosted FRSO Central Committee member, Meredith Aby, to discuss U.S. imperialism in Korea. Aby recently returned from a trip to Korea in the Jaju Solidarity Delegation, organized by Nodutdol, a Korea solidarity activist group.
Aby discussed the history of the Korean Peninsula, starting with the Japanese occupation. The discussion stressed that despite the official independence of Korea, the U.S. still holds control.
Examples were given of how the U.S. occupation affects the lives of the Korea citizens.
Aby described that the occupation was being met with resistance from the Korean people. Mass protests occurred because of a U.S. military vehicle running over 2 middle schoolers. In one case, the Korean people were able to get a tree marked as a national landmark to stop a base from expanding and causing mass environmental damage. The mass movement also has made pushes this year to stay out of the U.S.-Iran conflict, despite pressure from Washington.
One point of discussion that came up was that this was not the only place the U.S. has a standing occupation. Aby mentioned that there were multiple people invited from the Philippines, Guam, and other nations, as many had a similar situation of U.S. occupation, with military bases meant to encircle China.
One audience member, a member of the Anti-War Committee DMV, said in reflection of the discussion, “We must stand with people against U.S. occupation everywhere in the world, it’s not just one place and one people, it affects all of us.”