St. Paul, MN – Over 20 people held banners and signs as part of a national day of action, February 18, on the Snelling Avenue bridge over Interstate 94. The national call was issued by the United National Antiwar Coalition’s youth committee, Youth Against Empire, to show of international solidarity by demanding “No war with Iran! End the sanctions now!”

Demonstrators stood in below freezing temperatures for over an hour waving and holding banners, signs and flags on the bridge, while those passing by and below on I-94 honked their horns in solidarity with the people of Iran.

Tom Chisholm of Veterans for Peace explained the importance of why they need to continue to come out and show opposition to the endless U.S. war mongering, “All these wars are endless lies. The U.S. has been interfering with Iran since 1953, and it's all been about money and oil interests.”

Despite being in office for almost a month, President Joe Biden has not yet taken action to return to the Iran Nuclear Deal which was abandoned by President Trump in 2018. Instead, Biden kept the sanctions that include a vast economic embargo implemented while Trump was in office. U.S. relations continue to fray with Iran, putting the further risk of war on the horizon.

Sarah Martin of Women Against Military Madness said, “Today is an important action because Biden is going after Iran. He is refusing to lift the sanctions, which are illegal, and since the U.S. opted out of the Iran agreement we have no right to be dictating the terms of rejoining the agreement. So that’s why I’m here. We have to hold Biden accountable!”

The protest was organized by the MN Anti-War Committee and endorsed by Women Against Military Madness, the MN Peace Action Coalition, and the Climate Justice Committee.

#SaintPaulMN #AntiwarMovement #PeoplesStruggles #UnitedNationalAntiWarCoalition

Denver, CO – On Saturday, January 20, the Denver Peace Council and Students for a Democratic Society gathered at the Colorado state capitol for a roadside protest against U.S. sanctions on Iran. The protest was called for as part of a national day of action by the United National Antiwar Coalition (UNAC)’s youth committee, Youth Against Empire.

The action was called due to continued U.S. aggression against Iran. Despite campaign promises to rejoin the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the Biden administration has opted to largely continue Trump’s policies. The Trump administration had withdrawn from the deal in 2018, stating that the agreement did not go far enough to limit Iran’s weapon production. Trump, furthermore, had placed new “maximum pressure” sanctions on Iran in 2018, which the Biden administration has only recently moved to lift.

Sanctions are a way to target the civilian population of a country, blocking food and medical supplies to countries in need. What makes this more significant is the presence of COVID-19. Since COVID first entered Iran, there have been a reported 1.54 million cases, leaving at least 60,000 dead. The sanctions against Iran have caused the country to go into an economic lockdown, worsening the effects of the pandemic. Lack of medical supplies and lab equipment continues to plague Iran, leading to the death of countless civilians. This makes it all the more important to demand that the Biden administration lift all sanctions on Iran, not just the ones implemented by the Trump administration.

#DenverCO #AntiwarMovement #PeoplesStruggles #UnitedNationalAntiWarCoalition #IranSanctions #YouthAgainstEmpire

The coalition, comprising anti-war, peace, social justice and other groups, met in Washington, D.C. on Jan. 10.

The meeting agreed to hold a series of spring anti-war actions in Washington D.C. March 18-21. The March dates will mark 12 years since the start of the ‘shock and awe’ bombing of Iraq in 2003. The actions will culminate on Saturday, March 21 with a protest and march at the White House.

The actions, called Spring Rising: An Anti-War Intervention in D.C., will include educational forums, lobbying and as well as the protest at the White House.

A call issued for the events says in part, “A series of events will be held just as the ongoing U.S. war in Iraq – recently restarted in a new form – passes the 12-year mark since the March 2003 invasion.”

The call also says, “Spring Rising will comprise a number of events including a large rally and march, a teach-in, and lobbying. Its goal is to increase opposition to wars and militarism, and in particular to U.S. military operations in Iraq, Afghanistan and Syria, as well as all U.S. drone attacks and surveillance worldwide.”

The schedule for events in Washington DC includes: Wednesday, March 18 – Peace gathering and fellowship. Thursday, March 19 – Lobbying on Capitol Hill, followed by a tour of the war machine: homes and offices of war criminals. Friday, March 20 – Afternoon and evening teach-in: Ending Current Wars, Ending the Institution of War. Saturday, March 21 – Protest at the White House, followed by a march.

Many of the endorsing groups have started to publicize the call for the March anti-war actions.

The ANSWER Coalition said in an e-mail announcement that it is “mobilizing its members, supporters and the larger movement to support these important activities that culminate in a rally and march on Saturday, March 21.”

The United National Antiwar Coalition (UNAC) said in an e-mail announcement to its supporters, “On March 21, the anti-war movement will return to Washington, D.C. for a massive rally against U.S. wars.”

The UNAC e-mail statement went on to say, “On Jan. 10, UNAC joined many other major anti-war organizations at a meeting in Washington, D.C. where we planned for several days of action around the date of the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003. It is time that we are back in the streets in a big way. Please plan to join us, organize buses and car pools and save the date. For areas that are too far from Washington, D.C., plan your own action in your area.”

The UNAC statement concluded, “End all wars at home and abroad! Join us!”

The plan for DC antiwar actions was originally proposed by Cindy Sheehan's Soapbox and the Soapbox People's Network. It has been endorsed by Amnesty International Charlottesville, ANSWER Coalition, Antiwar.com, Bill of Rights Defense Committee, Baltimore Pledge of Resistance, , CND CYMRU, CODEPINK, Granny Peace Brigade of New York City, KnowDrones.com, Maryland United for Peace and Justice, Military Families Speak Out, National Association Against Police Brutality, National Campaign for Nonviolent Resistance, Network to Stop Drone Surveillance and Warfare, The No Fear Coalition, Nuclear Age Peace Foundation, PAX Christi Phoenix, Peace Action Montgomery, Peace Fresno, Popular Resistance, United National Antiwar Coalition, Veterans For Peace, Virginia Defenders for Freedom, Justice & Equality, Voices for Creative Non-Violence, WarIsACrime.org, Washington Peace Center, Witness Against Torture, Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom, World Beyond War, and World Can't Wait.

For more information: http://SpringRising.org/

#MinneapolisMN #AntiwarMovement #UnitedNationalAntiWarCoalition #SpringRising

According to the Pentagon, there are now four destroyers positioned near Syria – the Mahan, Barry, Gravely and Ramage. The Barry was used to fire cruise missiles during the U.S./NATO aggression against Libya in 2011.

The U.S. has produced no proof that Syria was involved is last week’s alleged chemical weapon attack near Damascus.

According to the Syrian Arab News Agency, on Aug. 27, Syria’s Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem stated the Syrian Armed Forces did not use the chemical weapons against their own people.

“Syria has immediately agreed to the UN requests and there was no delay, and I say to U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry that we are not obstructing UN inspectors' work,” Minister al-Moalle added.

Anti-war groups across the U.S. are organizing to oppose an escalation of the war on Syria.

On Aug. 27, the United National Antiwar Coalition issued a statement that noted, “The issue of chemical weapons is the cover the U.S. and its allies use to justify their illegal and immoral acts of war, just as the specter of WMD’s were used as the rationale for attacking Iraq. Their real mission, as in Iraq, Libya, and elsewhere, is to force regime change in order to control energy resources and get compliant regimes in the region. The claim that a bloody military attack on a country that poses no threat to the U.S. is needed to offer humanitarian assistance is the height of hypocrisy. The result of the ‘humanitarian’ invasion and ten-year occupation of Iraq is over a million Iraqi deaths and a country in ruin.”

#MinneapolisMN #AntiwarMovement #Syria #USImperialism #UnitedNationalAntiwarCoalition #chemicalWeapons

Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement on Syria from the United National Antiwar Coalition (UNAC).

The May 2-3 and 4-5 nighttime bombings of Syria’s International Airport, military installations in a Damascus suburb and a military supply depot reportedly killed 300 people. The bombings were initially denied but then confirmed by Israel and soon after given the stamp of approval by the Obama Administration.

The previous week President Obama and Secretary of Defense Charles Hagel threatened to escalate U.S. intervention in Syria based on the unsubstantiated charge that Syria had employed weapons of mass destruction, in this case the deadly sarin gas.

What is incontrovertible is that U.S. allies in the region – Turkey, Qatar and Saudi Arabia – have supplied hundreds of millions of dollars in lethal military aid to destabilize the Syrian regime. The U.S. itself claims to have supplied some $400 million in “non-lethal aid.” The U.S., which funds Israel’s multi-billion dollar “Iron Dome” missile program, is the chief military force in the region.

No serious observers believe that Israel, the largest recipient of U.S. aid in the world, to the tune of $4 billion annually, acts without U.S. approval – the same is undeniable with regard to Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the U.S. NATO ally, Turkey.

In the case of Qatar, a nation without an army, the U.S.-established and privatized Blackwater military installation is used daily as an operational base for the U.S. war in Afghanistan, Iraq and elsewhere.

The U.S. Machiavellian strategy in Syria is first and foremost to advance its economic, military and regional “interests.” The latter includes deepening the isolation of Iran, whose oil wealth the U.S. corporate elite seeks to regain.

We recognize no rights among imperial nations to determine the future of any oppressed nation on earth, not to mention the modern day neo-colonial interveners. With regard to Syria, that right belongs to the Syrian people only.

The U.S. government is presently restrained by the mass antiwar sentiment expressed in repeated polls over the past two years. The most recent Pew Research poll indicates that 62 percent are opposed to any U.S. intervention in Syria. We must add to this the fact the U.S. bloody wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the decades long U.S. support to the Egyptian Mubarak dictatorship as well as the constant drone attacks on Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia have earned it the deep hatred of the peoples of the Middle East and beyond.

The Iraq “weapons of mass destruction” justification for this still-raging war, that has taken the lives of 1.5 million Iraqis so far, and the ongoing war in Afghanistan, wherein the U.S. puppet Hamid Karzai regime is discredited around the world, has convinced social justice activists everywhere that the U.S. imperial rulers fight for oil and military-geographic advantage and not for peace and justice.

More than ever the U.S. and the worldwide antiwar and social justice movement must demand:

• U.S./Israel Hands Off Syria!

• Bring All U.S. Troops and Mercenaries Home Now!

• Self-determination for the Syrian People!

• No to U.S. Sanctions Anywhere!

• End All U.S. Aid to Israel!

• U.S. Out of the Middle East Now!

#UnitedStates #AntiwarMovement #Israel #Syria #USImperialism #UnitedNationalAntiwarCoalition

The statement addresses what is behind U.S. intervention in Mali saying, “It has long been suspected that the northeastern region of Mali that borders Algeria potentially holds vast oil and gas reserves. The recent confirmation of oil reserves near Tessalit, a small Malian oasis town about 40 miles from the Algerian border, has fed Western hunger for control of that area.”

The statement also notes, “The second reason for the intensifying U.S. interest is that Mali borders no less than seven West and North African countries, including Algeria, Niger, Senegal and Mauritania. Controlling Mali would give the U.S. an important hub from which to influence regional developments. This has been Washington's strategy for the Continent as a whole: to use economic aid and military training to develop close relationships with key governments and their militaries – such as Kenya, Ethiopia and Uganda – so the U.S. can use them as a network of regional proxies to control all of Africa. This was the strategy that England and France used to control the Middle East after World War I, as well as the one England used with such success in India during that country's colonial period.”

The statement concludes by saying, “The U.S. anti-war movement, which has fought so hard to oppose U.S. intervention in the Middle East and other regions of the world, must take up the long-overdue struggle to oppose U.S. intervention in Africa. We must demand the dismantling of AFRICOM. We must oppose any U.S. or European-led intervention in Mali. We must call for the withdrawal of all Western troops from the Continent. We must demand Western reparations for the unimaginable damage wrought on Africa and Africans by centuries of the Trans-Atlantic slave trade, colonialism and neocolonialism.”

The entire statement can be read here: http://nepajac.org/unac_africa.html

#Mali #AntiwarMovement #Africa #USImperialism #UnitedNationalAntiwarCoalition

Hands off Syria and Iran! End the Drone Wars!

We Need Jobs, Education and Healthcare, Not Endless War!

The ominous signs of impending war with Syria escalate. NATO is massing troops and military equipment on Syria's borders, and preparing to install missiles aimed at Syria. U.S. warships are stationed off Syria’s coast. ‘Special operation’ units are readied. The U.S. government has been supplying arms and logistical support to a few selected Syrian paramilitary groups favored by the U.S. as “replacements” for Assad. The media bombards us with arguments that support foreign intervention, supposedly for “humanitarian reasons”. Like WMD’s in Iraq, alarms are sounded, with no credible evidence, that Assad may unleash chemical weapons, thus establishing a pretext for invasion.

These are the facts that impel us to oppose any military, economic, diplomatic, or covert intervention aimed at controlling the internal affairs of Syria or any other country:

• The Syrian people in their majority, regardless of their political positions re: the current government, have rejected calling for foreign intervention, such as occurred in Libya.

• Sanctions harm the people of Syria by causing food shortages, power outages, and blocking the distribution of goods.

• The U.S. is directly involved in arming and training a few selected Syrian militias favorable to the U.S., contributing to the escalation of violence, direct foreign military intervention, and total destabilization. The people who always suffer the most are the people not engaged in the armed struggle.

• We see the results of ‘humanitarian’ U.S. wars and occupations in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Libya today, where the people, especially women and children, are worse off than before, with millions dead, injured, and/or displaced, an infrastructure and economy in shambles, and where there is no peace. A country that has a river of Iraqi, Afghan, and Libyan blood on its hands has no right to tell other countries what to do.

• The U.S. government’s goals in Syria are to gain dominance in a part of the world that holds the vast majority of the known oil reserves and to gain strategic advantage as it seeks to isolate and contain competitors like Russia and China. The U.S. has no interest in democracy or the humanitarian well-being of a country’s peoples anywhere in the world, especially in areas where the U.S. has economic or strategic interests.

• The U.S. has a long history of thwarting the emerging economies and progressive initiatives of the third world while supporting repressive regimes.

While activists may hold different views of Syria’s internal political system, we must all agree that the U.S. government has no right to impose its will on other countries, especially those formerly colonized and exploited by the West. In all cases, we must support the right of nations to self- determination – that is to be able to decide on and resolve internal conflicts free from any foreign intervention.

The United National Antiwar Coalition (UNAC) demands:

No U.S. or NATO intervention in the internal affairs of Syria!

No War! No Sanctions! No Intervention!

Self-determination for the Syrian people!

#UnitedStates #AntiwarMovement #Iran #Syria #NATO #USImperialism #UnitedNationalAntiwarCoalition

Tampa, FL – Joe Iosbaker, a spokesperson for the largest anti-war coalition in the U.S., the United National Antiwar Coalition, spoke at a press conference here, August 24, stating that the peace movement will be joining the mass march on the Republican National Convention. “The Republicans have never met a war they didn’t like,” said Iosbaker. “They support all the wars the U.S. government is waging right now. We are going to march on the RNC and say no to the wars being waged on behalf of the 1%.”

Jared Hamil, a spokesperson for the Coalition to March on the RNC, talked about plans to deal with Tropical Storm Isaac, and stressed that the march on the RNC will take place rain or shine.

Marisol Marquez of Students Working for Equal Rights stated, “Racist hate laws like Arizona’s SB1070 are a direct reflection of how the parties of the 1% are not serving for the people. The ‘legitimate rape’ comments from the Republicans just days ago, were so obviously anti-me, anti-women’s groups that make up our Coalition, like Code Pink and Pinellas Now, and generally anti-women. The parties of the 1% will stop at nothing unless we do something to oppose their oppressiveness. So on Monday, August 27, at 10:00 a.m. I will be joining the Coalition to March on The RNC to say no to their hateful agenda as well as to demand good jobs, healthcare, affordable education, equality and peace.”

#TampaFL #AntiwarMovement #RNC2012 #UnitedNationalAntiwarCoalition #CoalitionToMarchOnTheRNC #RepublicanNationalConvention2012

Chicago, IL – “Not another Libya! Hands off Syria!” chanted the crowd as they picketed against war June 26. The protesters mobilized in response to the events of recent days, such as Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s lie about Russia sending attack helicopters and then Turkey’s convening of a NATO meeting after a Turkish fighter jet was shot down over Syrian territory.

Joe Iosbaker of the United National Antiwar Coalition told those gathered, “We’re here to oppose the U.S. and NATO’s threats of war against Syria and Iran. Today, NATO met and we are told to ‘be relieved’ that they didn’t call for immediate bombing.” Turkey had asked for a military response against Syria. “But there’s more to the story,” Iosbaker continued. “Turkey is amassing tanks at the Syrian border and has stated that there will be war if Syria dares to again defend their air space.”

The protest was called by an ad hoc group of activists and groups, including a large number from the Occupy movement. Occupy Rogers Park was an endorser of the picket.

Standing in front of the national headquarters of President Obama’s re-election campaign, Sister Kathleen Desautels of the 8th Day Center for Justice read a poem by a prisoner at Guantanamo Bay. She urged President Obama to listen to the poetry and recognize the humanity of those who the U.S. wages war on, imprisons and tortures.

A small group tried to disrupt the protest, calling for the overthrow of the Syrian government. Two people, including a member of News and Letters, at first tried to ‘mic check’ protest leaders as they spoke during a brief rally. When the disruptors failed to get any support, one of them forced his way into the middle of the speakers, thrusting his sign over their heads on the narrow raised platform. Joe Iosbaker explained to the crowd, “If anyone here believes that intervention by the U.S. will aid the people of Syria, they’re wrong. The U.S. isn’t threatening war with Syria because they care for the Arab people. The U.S. invasion and occupation of Iraq has cost the lives of one million, mainly Arabs.” He concluded, “Go tell the Iraqi people that the U.S. government cares for Arab lives.”

What explains U.S. intervention in Syria? Hatem Abudayyeh of Chicago, and a member of the U.S. Palestinian Community Network, stated, “the U.S. wants to attack Syria because it has historically been independent and anti-imperialist, a supporter of national liberation struggles in Palestine and Lebanon, and closely allied with Iran. The U.S. does not care about the Syrian people’s will.” He added, “The U.S. wants to consolidate control of Middle East oil and other natural resources for the 1% that dictates foreign policy.”

#ChicagoIL #AntiwarMovement #Syria #NATO #antiimperialism #UnitedNationalAntiwarCoalition

Hands off Syria and Iran! End the Drone Wars! We Need Jobs, Education and Healthcare, Not Endless War!

The ominous signs of impending war with Syria escalate. NATO holds a special meeting to respond to the downing of a Turkish fighter plane and issues threats of future action.

The U.S. media bombards us with alleged crimes of the Assad government, while the Syrian government claims all the unrest stems from an opposition armed, financed, and directed by the CIA, NATO, and neighboring Arab states to take over Syria.

The ‘facts’ we get are mainly unsubstantiated, sometimes proven to be fabrications and/or overblown. It is hard to sort out the truth about what is happening on the ground in and around Syria today. There are ‘facts’ we do know, however:

• Sanctions harm the people of Syria causing food shortages, power outages, and block the distribution of goods.

• The U.S. is directly involved in arming and training Syrian militias. Supplying arms to opposition militias in Syria contributes to the escalation of violence, the possibility of civil war and/or direct foreign military intervention, and total destabilization. The people who always suffer the most are the citizens not engaged in the armed struggle.

• The U.S. has no interest in democracy or the humanitarian well-being of any citizenry anywhere in the world, especially in areas where the U.S. has economic or strategic interests. We see the results of ‘humanitarian’ U.S. wars and occupations in Iraq and Afghanistan today, where the people, especially women and children, are worse off than before, with millions dead, injured, and/or displaced, an infrastructure and economy in shambles, and there is no peace.

• The U.S. government’s goals in Syria are to gain dominance in a part of the world that holds the vast majority of the known oil reserves and to gain strategic advantage as it seeks to isolate and contain competitors like Russia and China.

While activists may hold different views of Syria’s internal political system, we must all agree that the U.S. government has no right to impose its will on other countries, especially those formerly colonized and exploited by the West. In all cases, we must support the right of nations to self-determination – that is to be able to decide on and resolve internal conflicts free from any foreign intervention.

The United National Antiwar Coalition (UNAC) demands:

No U.S. or NATO intervention in the internal affairs of Syria! No War! No Sanctions! No Intervention!

#Syria #AntiwarMovement #antiimperialism #UnitedNationalAntiwarCoalition #MiddleEast

Emergency Protests Against the Growing Threat of War

Hands Off Syria and Iran!

End the Drone Wars!

We Need Jobs, Education and Healthcare, Not Endless War!

The growing threats of war against Syria are alarming. Recently, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton warned Russia not to get in the way of US backed efforts to force out the government of President Assad. The corporate media is making every effort to overwhelm us with calls for another “Humanitarian War”. The drum beat of aggression against Iran grows daily as well. The coup by the U.S. funded and trained Egyptian military, overturning the first popularly elected government in recent history is another ominous warning. The threat of new war is real while US drone attacks are an expanding form of anonymous war.

During the period from June 23 through July 1, there will be demonstrations, vigils and forum around the country to protest the growing threats of war. Please join the protests in your city or organize one in your city. Send information about your action to UNACpeace@gmail.com

#UnitedStates #AntiwarMovement #Iran #Syria #antiimperialism #UnitedNationalAntiwarCoalition

Fight Back! interviews Joe Iosbaker, the Chicago spokesperson for the United National Antiwar Coalition and a leader in the Coalition Against NATO/G8 War and Poverty Agenda, on the massive May 20 protest at the NATO Summit. Fight Back!: Please talk some about what happened at the march on the NATO Summit and who was there. Joe Iosbaker: 15,000 people rallied and marched against the war makers’ summit on a scorching hot day here in Chicago. It was a very broad gathering, involving the Iraq Veterans Against the War, National Nurses United and the Reverend Jesse Jackson. We had music by Tom Morello, Rebel Diaz, David Rovics and Outer National. Carlos Montes came from Los Angeles, straight from the political persecution trial he is facing. Students came from Utah, Florida and all over the Midwest.

There were over 40 speakers. We had leaders of the anti-war movement in the U.S., Germany and Mexico. Representatives spoke from the movements of various oppressed nationalities: Filipinos, Palestinians, Puerto Ricans, and African Americans, including a taped message from Mumia Abu Jamal. They came from the immigrant rights movement; from the Muslim community and from among faith based activists, environmentalists, and LGBTQ activists. We had Afghans and Pakistanis. We had trade unionists, and of course, the Occupy movement.

After we rallied in the park, we then marched almost three miles to the location of the summit, McCormick Place. There 40 veterans of the Iraq and Afghan wars mounted a stage and one by one, returned the medals they had been given for their service in the U.S. military. The young men and women all swore they wouldn’t fight again in wars for profit under NATO or U.S. flags. The bitterness expressed by the vets was the most moving part of the day.

Fight Back!: What was the political message of the protest? Iosbaker: The message had two parts to it: against war and against the attacks by the rich on the rest of us.

This was expressed in several ways. We raised several slogans, “Jobs, Housing, Healthcare, Education, Our Pensions, the Environment, Not War!” “No to NATO War makers! No to War and Austerity!” These slogans showed first, that we were marching against the wars by NATO and the U.S. against the people of Afghanistan, Libya and Pakistan, and threatening against Syria. And second, we know that the trillions that are spent on war could go toward meeting the needs of poor and working people at home.

But we also raised one other idea. Last summer, the United National Antiwar Coalition called for this protest and organized a meeting to form a broader group. We called the new formation the Coalition Against NATO/G8 War and Poverty Agenda because initially NATO and the Group of Eight – a meeting of the wealthiest countries – were to both meet here. The G8 conference includes the central bankers from those rich nations, who are responsible above all for the economic crisis that struck in 2008. When they were in trouble, they were bailed out with trillions from taxpayers in each of those countries. But the workers who are losing homes can’t get a bailout. When we lose jobs because factories close, we can’t get a bailout. We got sold out, and we made that part of our message as well.

Fight Back!: Could you say a few words about the Chicago Principles? Iosbaker: There are many forces that oppose NATO, including some that are willing to march, others who want to link arms and be arrested and others who want to challenge the authorities, including the police, more directly. For example, there were hundreds of people who refused to leave the intersection after the end of our permitted rally and march.

We adopted the same principles that have been used at many major protests in the U.S. since the 2008 Republican National Convention in Saint Paul, Minnesota. They are an agreement that all those forces respect the other groups, despite tactical differences; that we won’t criticize each other to the corporate media; and that if one group is attacked, as the mostly youth crowd was when the Chicago and Illinois cops beat 60 of them bloody after our march ended, that we’ll put the blame where it belongs: on the police, the city of Chicago and on NATO for bringing this violence here.

Fight Back!: A large contingent marched against repression. Tell us about that. Iosbaker: The most visible face at the protest was Carlos Montes. His image was on over 100 shirts, and 100 more posters. A contingent organized by the Committee to Stop FBI Repression had hundreds marching with it, including Filipinos, Palestinians and Puerto Ricans, all chanting, “Free Carlos Montes, drop the charges now!”

Montes is on trial in Los Angeles, facing up to 12 years in prison for his lifelong political activism. Carlos was raided by the FBI and L.A. sheriff SWAT last May. The FBI and the district attorney there are accusing Carlos of being a criminal. Their pretext is a 43-year old charge against him from a protest for Chicano studies at a college in East Los Angeles. As one of the Brown Berets, a youth group that he helped to start, in this protest Carlos was singled out for a felony charge for throwing an empty soda can at a cop. This was eventually settled as a misdemeanor. Now the FBI has dug this up, claim he was convicted of a felony, and since Carlos owns a shot gun and a hand gun, they want to imprison him for violation of California firearms code.

However, a L.A. Deputy Sheriff admitted that the FBI instigated the case in an investigation of Carlos’s anti-war activism. In fact, the attack on him stems from the case of the 23 anti-war activists, including my wife, Stephanie Weiner and myself. We were raided by the FBI in September 2010, and are still being pursued by the U.S. Attorney in Chicago for our anti-war activism. All of us are being targeted because we took the side of the people of Palestine and Colombia against the brutal, U.S.-backed governments of Colombia and Israel.

Fight Back!: What is the story on arrests ahead of the summit? Iosbaker: On Wednesday night, May 17, cops broke down the doors of the apartment of two of the leaders of Occupy Chicago, Zoe Sigman and Bill Vassilakis, without even a search warrant. After beating up the Occupy folks from around the country who were staying there, they shackled them, and then held them in secret for 40 hours, despite the efforts of the National Lawyers Guild to locate them.

The authorities later charged three of the young people with terrorism charges, claiming they were conspiring to make Molotov cocktails. Even FOX news recognizes this as a clumsy effort of entrapment. FOX interviewed a retired judge who said these charges will be thrown out of court.

Of course, the purpose of these raids, and other raids and police violence that occurred in the days leading up to Sunday, was to frighten people away from the protest. If not for these, we are confident the march would have been even larger.

The most important lesson is that the people are more powerful than the cops, the mayor, or NATO. With little resources and under heavy repression, we brought together the forces, especially the Occupy Movement and the anti-war movement, to build this demonstration. In doing so, we dealt blows to NATO. Their image has been severely tarnished, and that will make it harder for them to continue the blood bath in Afghanistan and other wars they are planning. We educated millions about NATO and the G8, of which most people in this country knew nothing before we started. This experience has made the Occupy movement one that now takes a stand against imperialist war. And we rekindled the anti-war movement. This was the largest national protest since the 2008 march on the RNC and a good sign that resistance to empire and cut backs will continue to grow.

#ChicagoIL #AntiwarMovement #CoalitionAgainstNATOG8War #ChicagoNATOSummit #UnitedNationalAntiwarCoalition

Chicago, IL – People from around the world are coming to Chicago to protest NATO and the G8 on May 20. On May 17, international spokespeople gathered at the 8th Day Center for Justice in the Chicago Loop for a press conference in support of the protest against war makers and bankers.

Joe Lombardo of the United National Anti-War Coalition (UNAC) opened the press conference. He said, “There will be a large permitted rally and march on Sunday, starting at the Petrillo band shell in Grant Park. In addition, there will be solidarity actions with our protest from Stockholm to London to Tehran.”

Inga Hoeger, a member of the German parliament and member of a group called No to NATO, No to War said, “NATO is an organization of militarism. The NATO generals will say that they are talking about troop withdrawals from the war in Afghanistan while they are at their summit. The truth is that they intend to maintain at least 50,000 troops there for a long period.” She added that NATO’s plan for a missile shield in Europe is a plan to increase the arms race. She raised the demand for Germany to withdraw from NATO and for NATO to be disbanded.

Her colleague, Tobi Pflüger of No to NATO, No to War and a former member of the European Union Parliament said, “While the big banks in Europe are pushing to impose austerity, as well as cuts to social programs, on to average people, they continue to spend a trillion dollars on the NATO military machine.”

June Kelly of the People Against War Network of Ireland reinforced the high costs of military bases, like the one developing at Shannon Airport in Ireland.

Kazem Azin of Solidarity with Iran said that Iranian students fear a destructive U.S. or NATO-led attack on Iran. These students will march in Tehran on May 18 under the slogan “From Tehran to Chicago, No to the Wars of NATO”

Emmi de Jesus spoke as a congressperson from the Philippines and representative of GABRIELA, an organization of Filipina women. She actively opposes U.S. bases and was asked whether it was important for the U.S. to have military allies. She replied, “The Philippines has no external aggressors. It is the U.S. that gains from the bases and not the Philippines.” She added, “in fact the social costs of bases are high, in terms of ecological damage and the rape and abuse of women and children.”

Reinart Braun of Germany closed the press conference saying, “We are here protesting on Sunday with all of you because we can no longer afford to feed this cold war dinosaur.”

The rally against U.S. war and the NATO military alliance will begin on Sunday, May 20 at 12:00 noon, at the Petrillo Bandshell in Grant Park, Chicago. The Reverend Jesse Jackson, Chicano leader Carlos Montes, Students for a Democratic Society and Iraq Veterans Against War will all speak. Then there will be a march down to McCormick Place to confront the NATO war makers and politicians. War veterans are planning to return their medals from Iraq and Afghanistan to protest the continuing occupations and to protest future NATO wars.

#ChicagoIL #AntiwarMovement #Iran #UnitedNationalAntiWarCoalition #CoalitionAgainstNATOG8War #ChicagoNATOSummit #NoToNatoNoToWar

Passersby readily took leaflets from local United National Anti-war Coalition organizers that said, “The U.S. government spends billions every month on the war in Afghanistan and the military alliance called NATO. At the same time, across the country people are struggling to keep their heads above water. We are feeling the effects of the economic crisis caused by the 1% – the bankers of Wall Street and their political parties. Our communities fight to stay in their homes, keep schools open, make healthcare available and defend our jobs from cutbacks. Now NATO is coming to meet in Chicago, invited by President Obama and Mayor Rahm Emanuel. The bankers of the G8 were supposed to meet there too until they saw so many people were going to protest.”

“In Chicago on May 20, we will march against the war and poverty agenda of the NATO meeting with our message: ‘Jobs, Housing, Healthcare, Education, Pensions, and the Environment: Not War!’ Thousands, including Grand Rapidians, will be in Chicago for a family-friendly march and rally, to be seen and heard around the world.”

At the end of the rally, an organizer spoke, “We oppose the U.S.-led NATO wars in the Middle East. In particular we call for an immediate end to the war in Afghanistan. We plan to march against the NATO war-makers in Chicago with thousands of anti-war protesters, Reverend Jesse Jackson, unions, students and Iraq Vets Against War, on Sunday, May 20.”

Longtime local anti-war activist Mike Kowalski, a member of United National Anti-war Coalition (UNAC), organized the action because, “This May Day, we are sending a message of solidarity to workers around the world that the people in the U.S. want immediate and full withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan. We say, ‘U.S. and NATO out now!’”

#GrandRapidsMI #AntiwarMovement #MayDay #NATO #UnitedNationalAntiWarCoalition

Pete Shell, one of the conference organizers said, “We advanced the organizing for the mass mobilization on NATO and the G8 in Chicago on May 20.” The opening speaker on Saturday morning was Joe Iosbaker, an activist from Chicago with the Coalition Against NATO/G8 War and Poverty Agenda (CANG8). Iosbaker called out, “If you’re going to Chicago to protest NATO, please stand.” Hundreds rose to their feet in response.

Over 150 people came from New York’s Muslim community, including South Asians, African Americans and Arabs. Malik Mujahid, a leader in UNAC, is also a founder of the Muslim Peace Coalition and has led UNAC to build the alliance between their community and the anti-war movement. There were also Filipinos, Colombians, Puerto Ricans and many other nationalities, but the Muslim community turned out in such numbers because the conference addressed the U.S. government’s war against Muslims. Marlene Jenkins and Shahina Parvee spoke about the FBI spending years entrapping their sons, who had done nothing to harm anyone. Judges refused to allow them to use evidence of entrapment in their defense cases, and both men received 15 year prison sentences.

Meredith Aby of the Committee to Stop FBI Repression spoke about being raided by the FBI in an investigation sparked by her anti-war organizing. “This conference took strong stands against political repression.” Showing that the anti-war movement won’t be intimidated, Aby continued, “I’m also excited that so many are organizing to march in Chicago against the U.S. and NATO wars in Afghanistan, Libya, and their threats of war against Syria and Iran. This will be the largest national anti-war protest in years.”

#StamfordCT #AntiwarMovement #CommitteeToStopFBIRepression #UNAC #CoalitionAgainstNATOG8WarPovertyAgenda #ChicagoNATOSummit #UnitedNationalAntiwarCoalition

###March 23-25, 2012 at the Stamford CT Hilton (one stop from Harlem/125th St. on Metro North commuter line)

####Say No to the NATO/G8 Wars & Poverty Agenda

####A Conference to Challenge the Wars of the 1% Against the 99% at Home and Abroad

The U.S.-led North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the G-8 world economic powers will meet in Chicago, May 19-22, to plan their financial and military strategies for the coming period. These elites, who serve the 1% at home and abroad, impose austerity—often by the use of drones, armies, and the police—on the 99% to expand their profits.

Join activists from the antiwar, occupy, environmental, immigrant rights, labor, and other movements at a conference from March 23-25, 2012 to learn more, to plan a May 19 “No to NATO/G8” demonstration in Chicago, and to democratically develop a program of action for the months to follow.

Special guest speakers include:

–Xiomara de Zelaya is currently a presidential candidate in Honduras and the partner of Manuel de Zelaya, the former president displaced by a U.S.-backed coup in 2009.

–Bill McKibben is the founder of the grassroots global warming group 350.org and the architect of the successful campaign to defeat the XL pipeline.

–Glen Ford is the executive editor of Black Agenda Report, a ground breaking site that covers U.S. wars abroad and wars at home from the perspective of the African American community.

–Richard Wolff is the author Capitalism Hits the Fan: The Global Economic Meltdown and What to Do About It

–Imam Abdul Malik Mujahid is the founder of the Muslim Peace Coalition

–Vijay Prashad is the author of The Darker Nations: A People's History of the Third World

–Andrew Murray is a member of the UK Trades Union Congress General Council and head of UK Stop the War coalition from 2001-2011

–Col. Ann Wright was a central Gaza Boat organizer and the editor of Dissent: Voices of Conscience

–Medea Benjamin is the founder of Code Pink

—Jared Ball is the author of I Mix What I Like.

–Clarence Thomas is an Oakland ILWU activist with Longview WA Longshore fight

–Scott Olsen is an Iraq war veteran and Occupy victim of Oakland police violence

–David Swanson is author and editor of War is a Crime.org

–Pat Hunt is a founding member of the Coalition Against NATO/G8 Wars & Poverty Agenda

—Fignole St. Cyr is a leader of the Haitian Autonomous Workers Confederation

How to Register?—Where to Stay?—Transportation?—Submitting Resolutions?

Visit www.UNACPEACE.org and click on UNAC conference.

Email: UNACpeace@gmail.com Phone: 518- 227-6947.

We urge attendees to take advantage of the double rooms (2 double beds) at the convention site that are now only $119 a night. There is nothing less expensive in the tri-state area and we had to guarantee the hotel room reservations in return for the use of space for the convention. By staying at the hotel, you are contributing to the overall success of the conference.

Also, registration covers two Saturday meals, and there will be key plenary panels going on in the dining room during these meals.

Conference Schedule and Workshops

Conference Schedule

Friday Night, March 23, 2012

4:30 p.m. Registration Opens

8:00 pm—Opening Panel: Shifting Strategies of Empire: Analyzing the Military and Economic Plans of the 1%.

Saturday, March 24, 2012

7:00 am Registration Opens

8:30 am—Plenary

10:45 am Workshop Series One

12: 30 pm. Lunch with Panel: The War at Home on the Black Community: Mass Incarceration, Unemployment, Stop and Frisk

1:45 pm Plenary

4:00 pm Workshop Series Two

5:45 pm Workshop Series Three

7: 30 pm Dinner with Panel: Islamophobia, the Attack on Civil Liberties, & the War on Workers

Sunday, March 25, 2012

9:00 am Plenary

Noon Plenary Panel: Global Economic Meltdown, Warming, and War

1: 30 pm Workshop Series Four

3:00-4:30 pm NATO/G8 Protest Organizing Session & Closing Remarks

Workshops-in formation

US Geopolitical Strategy and Intervention in the Asia-Pacific Region. Bernadette Ellorin, Juyeon Rhee.

End the Occupation of Haiti! Ray Laforest & Kim Ives.

Haiti: Analysis from Trade Unionists on the Ground. Fignole St. Cyr & others.

Egypt: One Year After the Revolution. Where is the Struggle Headed? Ayman El Sawa, Ahmed Shawki, others

Law as a weapon of war. Steve Downs, Marlene Jenkins, Shamshad Ahmad, Kathy Manley

Defeating AFRICOM & NATO: Bldg Solidarity with Africa in the Struggle Against Imperialism. Abayomi Azikiwe In formation.

Targeting Iran: The Truth Behind the Hype: Ana Edwards, Sara Flounders, Ken Stone, Mansoureh Tajik & Phil Wilayto.

Iran: Solidarity, Not Intervention. Raha Iranian Feminist Collective.

The West's Politico-Economic Warfare on Iran. Eleanor & Ardeshir Ommani.

Antiwar Strategies in Black Community Organizations. Ana Edwards, Abayomi Azikiwe, others.

Contradictions of the Imperialists' Agenda for Full Spectrum Dominance. Glen Ford, Nellie Bailey, Margaret Kimberly, Bruce Dixon, Tony Montiero.

Propaganda and Communications on Permanent War. Peter Hart & David Swanson.

Building Resistance at the Democratic & Republican National Conventions. Ben Carroll. In formation.

No to NATO/G8: Teaching Resistance—Anti-Imperialist Curriculum and Methods. June C. Terpstra, Cris Toffolo.

U.S. Nuclear Weapons in Europe and Outer Space and the Campaign for Withdrawal: John LaForge, Alice Dressman; Bruce Gagnon

Veterans Peace Teams. Tarak Kauff, Eric Lobo, Mike Tork, Fred Nagel, Ellen Barfield.

What War? US Turns from War on Iraq to Permanent Occupation. Invitees: Debra Sweet, Siman Antoon, Wafaa Bilal, Larry Everest, Raed Jarrar, and Michael Otterman; Pat Elder

Taking Back Our Schools: Counter-Recruiting in upstate NY and Chelsea MA. Jim Murphy, Lyn Meza

“We are Not Your Soldiers”: Stop the Militarization of our High School Campuses. Elaine Brower, Ethan McCord, Matthis Chiroux,, James Brower.

Corporate War Against the Planet: The Hydrofracking Front. Mary Finneran, Joan Walker, video of Richard Grossman

Democratizing Money: Banking in the Public Interest: Susan Harman, Mike Krauss, Tom Sgouros

Labor Against Austerity and War: Andrew Murray, Clarence Thomas, others.

Struggle to Free Palestine. In formation.

Afghanistan After Ten Years of Occupation. Mary Dean, Jeff Pickert, others. Border Militarization/Migrant Workers Rising Globally. Monami Maulik, Rafael Samanez, Amanda Flores, Ayesha Mahmooda, Roksana Mun, Mustafa Sullivan, Derechos Humanos, Carol Barton

All Out for the May 1 Mobilization! Teresa Gutierrez, Victor Toro, others.

From Egypt to New York City: “Anti-Radicalization” Laws, Surveillance, the War on Terror Industrial Complex, & NDAA. Monami Maulik, Fahd Ahmed, Shasheena Parveen, Shahid Buttar; Osman Chowdhury, Sam Anderson, Suzanne Adely

Confronting Robotic (Drone) Warfare at the Hancock AFNG Base/Hancock 38. Carol Baum, Judy Bello, Ed Kinane.

Rethinking Pakistan: People’s Struggle and the War on Terror. Saadia Toor, Adaner Usmani, Madiha Tahir, Zohra Ahmed.

Negotiating Peace—What the U.S. Might Do for Colombia. John Jairo Lugo & Stephen Kobasa.

Honduras: The Struggle for Land, Democracy, & Sovereignty. Xiomara de Zelaya, Lucy Pagoada, others.

The Economy, Unemployment & the Military: Alternatives to Save Our Country & the Jobless: Marguerite Rosenthal, Gertrude Schaffner Goldberg, Shelia Collins.

Linking Endless War and Economic Crisis: Bring Our War $$ Home. Bruce Gagnon, Lisa Savage, Paki Wieland, Mary Beth Sullivan; Marilyn Levin

Occupying the Military Industrial Complex: David Swanson, Brian Kwoba, others

Occupy, Community, & Labor Collaboration: Notes from the field. In formation.

Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions—Join Palestinian Non-violent Resistance to Occupation. Ethan Heitner, Nancy Krikorian, SJP.

No Nukes: Nuclear Power, Weapons, & War. Hattie Nestel, Alice Slater, Henry Rosenberg

How Do You End Student Debt? End the War! Tax the Rich! Daniel Alley, Christopher Hutchinson, SJP, others

Search for Human Rights & Justice in South Asia. Muslim Peace Coalition. Kannan Srinivasan, Toby Caman, Junaid Ahmad, Haley Duschinski.

Climate Change Related Conflicts in So. Asia. Muslim Peace Coalition. Hares Sayed, Akhtar Assad, Shafat Ahmad.

Influencing Electoral Conversation from a Peace & Justice Perspective. Muslim Peace Coalition. Shaik Ubaid, Seemi Ahmed, Imam Talib Abdurrashid.

Prisons: The New Torture Machines. Steve Downs, Faisel Hashmi, Ayesha Hoda, Kathy Manley.

Faith-Based Organizing. Fellowship of Reconciliation & others.

Lessons from the Past: Activist Strategies for Ending Warfare & Converting from a War Economy. David Swanson, Jeff Mackler, others.

Women, Peace & Security. Laura Roskos In formation

Understanding & Organizing Against Expanding Wars in Yemen & Pakistan. Leili Kashani, others.

Faith-Based Organizing for Resistance. Newland Smith, Rabbi Lynn Gottlief, Paki Weiland, others.

Music & Song to Move the Movement. Chris Nauman, others

No Torture. No Indefinite Detention. Beth Brockman, Carmen Trotta, Debra Sweet, others.

NATO & G-8: Two Arms of American Empire. In formation.

Puerto Rican Self-Determination & Struggle Against Militarism in the Caribbean. Gamelyn Oduardo

Occupy Movement, Labor and Community Struggles: A Fruitful Collaboration. Clarence Thomas, Larry Holmes, Jen Waller, Larry Hales.

*To add yourself to the UNAC listserv, please send an email to: UNAC-subscribe@lists.riseup.net*

#StamfordCT #AntiwarMovement #UnitedNationalAntiWarCoalition

Chicago, IL – Mayor Rahm Emanuel has again refused to guarantee the First Amendment right to protest in Chicago.

Organizers from the Coalition Against NATO/G8 War & Poverty Agenda (CANG8) met with city officials on Nov. 16. They were there with a message that Pat Hunt of CANG8 said was simple, “that the city publicly commit to provide…permits that meet the internationally recognized standard for the right to assemble; that we be within sight and sound…” of the meeting of NATO and the G8 in May, 2012.

Hunt continued, insisting that “Police Superintendent McCarthy refrain from making threats of mass arrests.” She was referring to the many times since July that Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy has announced in the press that Chicago’s 13,000 police officers are being trained to repress dissent when the generals, bankers and heads of state convene here.

Representing the city were officials from the permit office of the Transportation Department and Commander Debra Kirby of the Chicago Police Department, the police department point person for the NATO/G8 summit.

Andy Thayer of CANG8 pointed out that the business group that is the host committee for the NATO/G8 summit has been given $1 million in taxpayer money to prepare for the event. The representatives of the city wouldn’t even promise the activists that they would be permitted to gather in the Loop during the week of May 15-22, when the summit occurs.

In June when the summits were announced, a group affiliated with CANG8, the United National Anti-War Coalition (UNAC), submitted a permit application for Daley Plaza, one of the few large venues for protest in the Loop, as Chicago’s downtown is known. Last week, MB Real Estate emailed Joe Iosbaker, Chicago spokesperson for UNAC that, “Unfortunately we are not approving any permits for the use of the plaza May 15th-22nd.”

Iosbaker responded that, “We have the right to march against NATO’s wars, such as Afghanistan and Libya, and against the G8 agenda of imposing poverty on working people from Greece to Chicago.”

Joining CANG8 were speakers from the National Lawyers Guild, SEIU Local 73, the American Friends Service Committee and Pat Hill of the African American Police League. All committed to keep the pressure on the city for permits and to organize to bring tens of thousands of Chicagoans and others from around the country to march on May 15 and 19.

Iosbaker reminded everyone gathered, “Our front banner will read: ‘Jobs, Housing, Healthcare, Education, Pensions, the Environment, Not War’. This is what the 99% are going to march for.”

#ChicagoIL #AntiwarMovement #NATO #UNAC #G8 #NATOG8Summit #MayorRahmEmmanuel #CANG8 #UnitedNationalAntiWarCoalition